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Thursday 24 October 2013
Illinois Man Sentenced to Prison for Defrauding Local BusinessRead the Press Release
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA –John Suehr, 44, of Palatine, Illinois, was sentenced to fifteen months in federal prison today for aggravated identity theft and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Between 2007 and 2010, John Suehr and his co-conspirator, John “Jack” Wachowiak, 54, of Holland, Ohio, were employed as account executives for Mainline Information Systems, a Tallahassee-based reseller of computer equipment and information technology. During that time, the two men conspired to embezzle more than $700,000 from Mainline. They arranged for Mainline to purchase computer equipment ostensibly for use by Mainline clients. Wachowiak falsified emails and company records to make it appear that Mainline clients had ordered this equipment, when, in fact, they had not. When the equipment was delivered, Wachowiak and Suehr took possession of the items and either resold them or kept them for their own use.
Wachowiak pled guilty to conspiracy and aggravated identity theft in May of this year. In August, Suehr pled guilty to the same charges based upon his own role in the embezzlement. In September, Wachowiak was sentenced to two years in prison for these offenses. Both defendants were ordered to pay $767,746.48 in restitution to Mainline.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Rhew-Miller prosecuted this case.
In announcing the sentence imposed by the court, United States Attorney Pamela C. Marsh said: “These conspirators were motivated by pure greed, and ignored the human consequences of their actions. They ripped off their own company and forged client records and communications – potentially ruining the financial reputations of both the corporation and its customers. This sentence should serve as a clear warning to those who may be tempted to line their own pockets by abusing positions of trust and influence.” Ms. Marsh commended the work of the FBI for their exceptional investigative work that contributed to these convictions.Guyanan Citizen Sentenced to 104 Months’ Imprisonment for Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, announced that Augustine DeCruz, age 59, was sentenced Wednesday by United States District Judge A. Richard Caputo to 104 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute cocaine and crack cocaine and possessing and carrying a firearm during, in relation to, and in furtherance of possessing with intent to distribute cocaine and crack cocaine. DeCruz, a native and citizen of Guyana, who is in the United States illegally, formerly resided in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
According to United States Attorney Peter J. Smith, on February 10, 2011 and February 16, 2011, members of the Pennsylvania State Police Vice and Narcotics Unit based at PSP Wyoming, Luzerne County, executed search warrants on DeCruz’s residence located on Pennsylvania Avenue, Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County. During the search, troopers seized approximately 77 grams of cocaine base, (crack cocaine), 85 grams of cocaine hydrochloride (powder cocaine), two handguns, a rifle, approximately $2,500 in U.S. currency, a surveillance system, and a large amount of packaging material.
In addition to the items found during the search warrant of DeCruz’s residence, police were able to make multiple controlled purchases of cocaine from DeCruz during transactions that occurred in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. After his arrest by local authorities, DeCruz’s criminal case was adopted for federal prosecution.
The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations and the Pennsylvania State Police. The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Brian G. McDonnell.
Guilford Podiatrist Sentenced to 30 Months in Federal Prison for Defrauding MedicareRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that RICHARD SOKOLOFF, 70, of Guilford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 30 months of imprisonment, followed by 18 months of supervised release, for defrauding Medicare.
“Medicare fraud is a serious crime” said Acting U.S. Attorney Daly. “Doctors and other medical providers need to know that they risk jail time if they defraud the Medicare program. As this sentence makes clear, doctors will also be held accountable when they attempt to obstruct justice by falsifying records to cover up their crimes.”
According to court documents and statements made in court, SOKOLOFF was a podiatrist with a practice at 652 Boston Post Road in Guilford. Between July 2008 and February 2012, SOKOLOFF engaged in a health care fraud scheme by submitting claims to Medicare for avulsion of nail plate services that were not rendered. An avulsion of nail plate service, or “nail avulsion,” is a surgical procedure to treat ingrown toenails. The procedure involves the surgical separation and removal of all or part of a toenail from the tip of the nail back to the base of the nail. Pursuant to relevant Medicare policies, the procedure is required to be performed using injectable anesthesia, unless the patient is devoid of sensation or there are other extenuating circumstances. Injectable anesthesia is necessary to perform a partial or full nail avulsion to avoid causing extreme pain to the patient.
SOKOLOFF commonly provided only “routine foot care” services to his Medicare patients, such as simply trimming or clipping their toenails, yet he regularly submitted claims to Medicare as if he had performed nail avulsion surgical procedures. Routine foot care is typically not a payable service under relevant Medicare regulations except in limited circumstances for patients with certain systemic conditions and/or other significant medical issues. SOKOLOFF also did not use an injectable anesthetic while supposedly providing nail avulsion services.
When Medicare requested that SOKOLOFF provide documentation to substantiate his nail avulsion services, SOKOLOFF created and back-dated patients progress notes to make it appear that the avulsion of nail plate services had been performed when, in fact, they had not been performed.
Judge Arterton ordered SOKOLOFF to pay $213,676 in restitution to Medicare, which includes fraudulent claims dating back to 2008.
On June 26, 2013, SOKOLOFF waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty to one count of health care fraud.
This investigation was conducted by special agents from the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard M. Molot and Auditor Kevin Saunders.
Acting U.S. Attorney Daly encourages individuals who suspect health care fraud to report it by calling the Health Care Fraud Task Force at (203) 777-6311 or. 1-800-HHS-TIPS.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
[email protected]Goodwin, Law Enforcement Leaders Unveil Permanent Putnam Co. Prescription Collection Bin; Urge West Virginians to Join Prescription Drug Take-back on SaturdayRead the Press Release
Saturday’s event is the seventh national Prescription Drug Take-Back event
WINFIELD, W.Va. - United States Attorney Booth Goodwin, joined by Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Resident Agent in Charge Suzan Williamson and Putnam Co. Sheriff Steve Deweese, today asked West Virginians to reach into their home medicine cabinets and pull out any unused, unwanted or expired prescriptions and turn them in at a drop-off site on Saturday as part of National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day. The three officials gathered in Winfield to unveil the Putnam County Sheriff’s Department’s new permanent prescription drug collection box.
The latest national Prescription Drug Take-Back Day will be held on Saturday, October 26, 2013, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. More than 130 locations across the state will serve as designated drop-off sites for Saturday’s event. This Saturday’s event is the seventh national Prescription Drug Take-Back. To date, the take-back initiative has removed more than 11 tons of unwanted prescription drugs from homes and medicine cabinets in the Mountain State, and more than 1,409 tons nationwide.
“We’ve seen overwhelming response in our first six take-back events,” said U.S. Attorney Goodwin. “That strong public reaction tells us there’s a huge need for places to dispose of unwanted prescription drugs. Putnam County has answered that need with this permanent collection box. I hope to see more local governments follow their lead.”
Goodwin continued, “For many people, particularly teenagers, the road to addiction starts with pills they find in their parents’ or grandparents’ medicine cabinets. That’s why prescription drug take-back programs are so important. I urge everyone to clean out their medicine cabinets and drop off unneeded medications at a take-back site this Saturday.”
Putnam County’s new permanent prescription drug collection box was made possible through a partnership between the Putnam Wellness Anti-Drug Coalition and the Putnam County Sheriff’s Department. The collection unit, which will be accessible for citizen prescription drug drop-offs beginning Saturday, October 26 (Prescription Drug Take-Back Day), is located at the Putnam County Sheriff’s Department. Citizens can drop off any unused and unwanted medications at the new site or any of the designated sites across the state with no questions asked.
Saturday’s Take-Back event provides an opportunity for people who missed previous events, or who have accumulated unwanted, unused prescription drugs since the last take-back event, to safely dispose of those medications.
For more information about take-back locations in West Virginia, please visit www.dea.gov and follow the link for National Prescription Take-Back Day.
Gallatin County Woman Pleads Gulty to Conspiring to Manufacture MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
Angela Seavers, 35, of Ridgeway, Illinois, pled guilty today in United States District Court in Benton to an indictment charging her with conspiring with others to manufacture methamphetamine, announced Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois. The indictment, returned by a Federal Grand Jury on May 9th, alleged that the conspiracy existed between February 2012 and March 13, 2013, in Gallatin County.
Sentencing was set for February 7, 2014, at 11:00 a.m. at the United States District Courthouse in Benton. At that time, Seavers faces up to 20 years’ imprisonment, a $1 million fine, and 3 years of supervised release to follow her incarceration.
Seavers has been held in the custody of the United States Marshal since her bond was revoked in September. She was again remanded to the custody of the Marshal to await sentencing.
The case was investigated by the Carmi office of the Southern Illinois Drug Task Force and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney James M. Cutchin.
Freddy Wayne Jimenez Sentenced in U.S. District CourtRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Great Falls, on October 22, 2013, before Chief U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen, FREDDY WAYNE JIMENEZ, a 40-year-old resident of Browning, was sentenced to a term of:
Prison: 210 months
Special Assessment: $1,000
Supervised Release: 3 years
JIMENEZ was sentenced after a federal district court trial in which he was found guilty of (6) counts of assault resulting in serious bodily injury, and (4) counts of assault with a dangerous weapon.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan G. Weldon prosecuted the case for the United States.
At trial, the following evidence and testimony was presented to the jury.
In 2012, JIMENEZ beat and strangled his wife on two occasions. JIMENEZ's wife was left with broken ribs that were floating in her body, a fractured finger, and while strangling her, JIMENEZ said, "I'm gonna hurt you so bad you won't be able to do nothing."
Over a period of years, JIMENEZ also tortured his children. He cut them with machetes, hit them with metal bars, broke beer bottles over them, slammed them into vehicles. JIMENEZ even told outsiders that he wanted one of his sons dead and that he was going to kill his entire family. Although JIMENEZ claimed to have never touched his children, other than spanking one of them one time, JIMENEZ wrote a letter wherein he admitted, "I beat up my wife and kids."
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that he will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, he does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Four from Northeast Ohio Indicted for Identity-Theft Scheme That Defrauded Six States Out of $361,000Read the Press Release
Four people from Northeast Ohio were indicted for operating an identity-theft scheme which they used to defraud six states out of more than $361,000 in unemployment benefits, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
Darnell Nash, age 29, of Cleveland Heights, Kennard Berts, age 20, of Cleveland Heights, Dwayne Buchannan, Jr., age 22, of Cleveland, and Justin Davis, age 26, of Cleveland Heights, are named in the 33-count indictment. The charges include conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, mail fraud, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and money laundering.
“These defendants took advantage of people looking for help, then defrauded funds that were designed to assist those out of work and facing hard times,” Dettelbach said.
The indictment alleges that the defendants executed a “fictitious employer” scheme from about March 2012 to January 2013.
Nash, Berts, Buchanan and Davis prepared and distributed flyers in low-income areas that appeared to be from the “Full Circle Fund” which purportedly provided assistance vouchers for rent, food, furniture, clothing and cash to individuals. Individuals distributing the flyers were instructed by Nash to distribute the flyers in downtown areas and avoid neighborhoods, according to the indictment.
The flyers directed people to call a toll-free number. Callers to the Full Circle Fund were required to provide their names, dates of birth and Social Security numbers, according to the indictment.
Nash and others then submitted false paperwork to states’ unemployment-insurance offices in which the defendants registered 10 companies that did not actually exist and reported non-existent earnings for fictitious employees, according to the indictment.
The defendants then submitted false claims for unemployment-insurance benefits of the purported employees in California, Ohio, North Carolina, Texas, Indiana and Kansas. In doing so, the defendants used actual individuals’ personal identifying information that the defendants had obtained through misrepresentations, according to the indictment.
Unemployment insurance benefits cards for the fictitious employees were then mailed to at least five different addresses in Ohio. The debit cards were collected at maintained at Nash’s residence in Cleveland Heights. The defendants then used the debit cards at various ATMs to withdraw the money, according to the indictment.
Approximately $361,341 in fraudulent unemployment benefits were paid as a result of this scheme, according to the indictment.
Nash deposited more than $200,000 in cash into two personal bank accounts in 2012, representing proceeds from the scheme. He also purchased a 2008 Land Rover for $35,000 using money from the scheme, according to the indictment.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys, Robert W. Kern, M. Kendra Klump, and James Morford following an investigation by the Department of Labor’s Office of the Inspector General, the United States Secret Service, the United States Postal Inspector, and the Social Security Administration’s Office of Inspector General. Cleveland Heights Police Department also assisted the investigation.
If convicted, the defendants’ sentences will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendants’ prior criminal records, if any, the defendants’ role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Four Former City Officials in Martin, Ky Indicted on Fraud ChargesRead the Press Release
Indictment Charges the Former Mayor and Her Daughter
LONDON, KY - A former mayor of Martin, KY., her daughter, and two other city employees have been indicted for engaging in a scheme to defraud the Social Security Administration (SSA) and to misapply federal funds.
The federal indictment filed on Wednesday names former Martin Mayor Ruth Thomasine Robinson, 69; her daughter, Rita Christine Whicker, 42, who formerly directed the Martin Community Center; Ginger Michelle Halbert, 42, a volunteer city employee who worked closely with Robinson; and Ethel Lee Clouse, 68, the bookkeeper for the city.
All four defendants have been charged with conspiracy to defraud the SSA, an agency of the United States; theft of social security disability benefits; and aggravated identity theft. Halbert, Whicker, and Robinson were also charged with misappropriating money from a federal program. The final count of the indictment charges Halbert with knowingly failing to report her employment and earnings to the Social Security Administration.
According to the indictment, from 2006 until January 2013, Halbert, who purportedly worked on a volunteer basis, was secretly being paid with federal funds that were primarily intended for the Martin Community Center and the Martin Housing Authority. To conceal the scheme, the defendants allegedly arranged for the checks to be made payable to Halbert’s son.
The indictment further alleges that Halbert, who was receiving social security disability benefits, intentionally failed to notify SSA of her earned income from the city of Martin. Under federal law, anyone who receives disability benefits is limited in the amount of money he or she can receive from another source and all income must be reported to the SSA so it can properly determine eligibility for benefits.
Kerry B. Harvey, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, Perrye Turner, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Guy Fallen, Special Agent in Charge, Social Security Administration, Office of the Investigator General, Office of Investigations, and Jack Conway, Attorney General of Kentucky, jointly made the announcement today.
The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Social Security Administration, and the Attorney General’s Office. The indictment was presented to the grand jury by Assistant United States Attorney Kenneth R. Taylor.
The defendants’ appearance before the United States District Court has not yet been set by the Court in Pikeville. The charges of conspiracy and social security fraud carry a maximum of 5 years in prison; the charge of misappropriating money from a federal program carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison; and the aggravated identity theft charge has a mandatory minimum penalty of two years in prison upon a conviction.
The indictment of a person by a grand jury is an accusation only, and that person is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Former School Employee Sentenced to 20 Years for Child Sexual ExploitationRead the Press Release
Project Safe Childhood
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a former employee of the Joplin, Mo., school district was sentenced in federal court today for sexually exploiting several child victims.
Ronny Justin Myers, 35, of Joplin, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Beth Phillips to 20 years in federal prison without parole. The court granted the government’s motion for an upward variance and sentenced Myers to a longer prison term than was recommended under the federal sentencing guidelines (151 to 188 months). Following his prison term, Myers will be on supervised release for the rest of his life. The court also ordered Myers to pay $5,000 in restitution to a 14-year-old victim (identified in court documents as “C.A.”).
On May 13, 2013, Myers pleaded guilty to transferring obscene material to a minor and to enticing a minor for criminal sexual activity. At the time of his arrest, Myers had been employed as an assistant network systems administrator for the Joplin school district since December 2005.
According to court documents, Myers contacted C.A. via Facebook in November 2012. This contact prompted C.A. to disclose to a school counselor that she had been repeatedly sexually molested by Myers when she was between the ages of 8 and 12. A law enforcement officer assumed C.A.’s identity and began communicating with Myers. These Internet exchanges became very graphic and Myers sent obscene images to C.A.
On Feb. 15, 2013, Myers attempted to entice C.A. to meet him in order to engage in sexual activity during his lunch hour from work. Myers drove to the Joplin mall to pick up C.A. but was met by law enforcement officers who were waiting for him. Myers avoided capture and led police on a high speed car chase through the city of Joplin before being arrested.
During an interview with law enforcement officers, Myers admitted that he had sexually molested three young girls (ages 6, 9 and 11). He also admitted that he secretly recorded a 17-year-old engaging in sexual activity.
Myers also told law enforcement officers that he secretly stored child pornography on his computer. He stated that he had approximately 10 child pornography images of Joplin school district students, four of whom have been identified and range in age from 15 to 16 years old. Myers discovered those images when he accessed the students’ laptop computers.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Abram McGull, II. It was investigated by Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force, the Baxter, Kan., Police Department and the FBI.Project Safe Childhood
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."Former Owner of Salt Lake City Medical Equipment Supply Company Indicted and Three Company Employees Plead Guilty for Roles in Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A former owner of a Salt Lake City medical equipment supply company has been indicted and three former company employees have pleaded guilty for allegedly engaging in a $20 million Medicare fraud scheme.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney David B. Barlow of the District of Utah, Special Agent in Charge Mary Rook of the FBI’s Salt Lake City Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Gerry Roy of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Kansas City Regional Office, and Special Agent in Charge Janice M. Flores of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service’s (DCIS) Southwest Field Office made the announcement.
Jacob Kilgore, 34, of Fruit Heights, Utah, was indicted in the District of Utah on three counts of health care fraud, three counts of false statements relating to health care matters, and three counts of wire fraud.
According to court documents, Kilgore was the co-owner, vice president, and regional sales manager of Orbit Medical Inc. (Orbit), a durable medical equipment supplier located in Salt Lake City specializing in power wheelchairs. From approximately September 2008 through June 2011, Kilgore allegedly directed a scheme to defraud Medicare by submitting false and fraudulent claims to Medicare for power wheelchairs. Court documents allege that Kilgore and others falsified medical records – including power wheelchair prescriptions and chart notes obtained from physicians – to make it appear that beneficiaries qualified to receive power wheelchairs when they did not and that the claims otherwise met all Medicare requirements. Kilgore and others then used these falsified documents to support false and fraudulent claims from Orbit to Medicare.
Additionally, former Orbit sales representatives Morgan Workman, 35, of Farmington, Utah; David Evans, 29, of South Jordan, Utah; and Hunter Hartman, 29, of Ladera Ranch, Calif., have each pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit health care fraud, based on the same alleged scheme to defraud Medicare. They are awaiting sentencing.
The scheme allegedly resulted in more than $20 million in claims from Orbit to Medicare for power wheelchairs, of which Medicare paid more than $15 million.
The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG and DCIS. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Niall M. O’Donnell of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Y. Hirata of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah.
Former Owner of Salt Lake City Medical Equipment Supply Company Indicted and Three Company Employees Plead Guilty for Roles in Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
SALT LAKE CITY - A former owner of a Salt Lake City medical equipment supply company has been indicted and three former company employees have pleaded guilty for allegedly engaging in a $20 million Medicare fraud scheme.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney David B. Barlow of the District of Utah, Special Agent in Charge Mary Rook of the FBI’s Salt Lake City Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Gerry Roy of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Kansas City Regional Office, and Special Agent in Charge Janice M. Flores of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service’s (DCIS) Southwest Field Office made the announcement.
Jacob Kilgore, 34, of Fruit Heights, Utah, was indicted in the District of Utah on three counts of health care fraud, three counts of false statements relating to health care matters, and three counts of wire fraud.
According to court documents, Kilgore was the co-owner, vice president, and regional sales manager of Orbit Medical Inc. (Orbit), a durable medical equipment supplier located in Salt Lake City specializing in power wheelchairs. From approximately September 2008 through June 2011, Kilgore allegedly directed a scheme to defraud Medicare by submitting false and fraudulent claims to Medicare for power wheelchairs. Court documents allege that Kilgore and others falsified medical records – including power wheelchair prescriptions and chart notes obtained from physicians – to make it appear that beneficiaries qualified to receive power wheelchairs when they did not and that the claims otherwise met all Medicare requirements. Kilgore and others then used these falsified documents to support false and fraudulent claims from Orbit to Medicare.
Additionally, former Orbit sales representatives Morgan Workman, 35, of Farmington, Utah; David Evans, 29, of South Jordan, Utah; and Hunter Hartman, 29, of Ladera Ranch, Calif., have each pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit health care fraud, based on the same alleged scheme to defraud Medicare. They are awaiting sentencing.
The scheme allegedly resulted in more than $20 million in claims from Orbit to Medicare for power wheelchairs, of which Medicare paid more than $15 million.
The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.Kilgore is scheduled to make an initial appearance on the charges on Nov. 21, 2013, at 10:15 a.m. in U.S. Magistrate Judge Brooke Wells’ courtroom.
The case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG and DCIS. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Y. Hirata of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Utah and DOJ Trial Attorney Niall M. O’Donnell of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.Former Mount Sinai Medical Center Temporary Employee Convicted in Identity Theft Tax Refund Scheme Involving the Theft of Patient InformationRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Michael J. De Palma, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Steven Steinberg, Chief, Aventura Police Department, Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), and Thomas Caul, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General (SSA-OIG), announce that defendant Oliver Gayle, 43, of Miami, was convicted in an identity theft tax refund scheme involving the theft of patient information.
Specifically, Oliver Gayle was found guilty of one count of possession of 15 or more unauthorized access devices, that is, debit cards and social security numbers of other persons with corresponding names and dates of birth, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1029 (a)(3) and 2; three counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1028A(a)(1) and 2; and one count of possessing, using and attempting to use a U.S. visa knowing it to be forged, counterfeited altered and falsely made, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1546 (a).
According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, on February 27, 2013, the Aventura Police Department stopped a vehicle driven by Gayle after being alerted by a U.S. bank of an individual who attempted to cash a fraudulent check. Gayle presented a Jamaican passport as his form of identification. During an inventory search of the vehicle driven by Gayle, officers uncovered a black bag containing over 100 printouts from Mt. Sinai Medical Center Account Inquiry Processor with multiple names, dates of birth, social security numbers, and addresses of patients on each printout. Additionally, photocopies of checks written to Mt. Sinai Medical Center from various individuals with a photocopy of the corresponding billing statement from Mt. Sinai were found in the bag.
According to court documents and trial testimony, during a consensual search of Gayle's residence, law enforcement found multiple printouts from Mt. Sinai Medical Center that appeared similar to the ones found in his black bag. Law enforcement also found copies of U.S. Treasury checks; a document labeled “HIT LIST” with a list of names, Social Security numbers and dates of birth; several tax returns in the names of other individuals; multiple Tax Act and Turbo Tax pre-paid debit cards issued in the names of other individuals; a Jamaican passport in Gayle's name containing a counterfeit U.S. visa; and, an identification badge for Mt. Sinai Medical Center with Gayle’s name and photo.
Sentencing is scheduled for January 9, 2014 at 10:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Donald L. Graham. At sentencing, Gayle faces up to 10 years in prison on the access device fraud count, to be served consecutively by two years in prison for each count of aggravated identity theft, and a maximum of 10 years in prison on the fraud and misuse of visas, permits and other documents count.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the Identity Theft Tax Refund Strike Force, with special commendation to the IRS-CI, Aventura Police Department, ICE-HSI and SSA-OIG. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elina A. Rubin-Smith and Michael J. Garofola.
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 Hudson County, N.J., Teacher Pleads Guilty to Distributing Images of Child Sexual Abuse over the InternetRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A former substitute teacher at a private school in Jersey City, N.J., today admitted to distributing images of child sexual abuse over the Internet, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Guy West, 45, of Jersey City, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Peter G. Sheridan in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with one count of distribution of child pornography. West was working as a permanent substitute teacher who regularly taught and supervised children between the ages of 2 and 14 at the time of his January 2013 arrest.
According to documents filed in the case and statements made during West’s guilty plea proceeding:
West admitted that on Dec. 18, 2012, he made images and videos of child pornography available that were stored on his home computer for others to download via a peer-to-peer file-sharing network. On that date, an undercover law enforcement agent successfully downloaded 120 images and 24 videos of child sexual abuse from West via the file-sharing network.
As part of his guilty plea, West agreed to forfeit the computers and computer accessories he used to commit the offense.
The count of distributing child pornography to which West pleaded guilty carries a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison, a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 4, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, Newark Division’s Child Exploitation Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark; officers of the Jersey City Police Department, under the direction of Chief of Police Robert Cowan; and the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Gaetano T. Gregory with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Alfonzo Walsman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office General Crimes Unit in Newark.
13-414
Defense counsel: Nace Naumoski Esq., Roseland, N.J.
West, Guy Information
Former FAMU Student Sentenced to Prison for Identity TheftRead the Press Release
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA– Christopher J. Wright, 23, of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, was sentenced today to two years in federal prison for aggravated identity theft and access device fraud arising from a scheme to steal financial aid monies from students at the Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University.
While students at FAMU in 2010, Wright and his co-defendants, Carliss Pereira, 22, of Tallahassee, and Carl Coutard, 22, of Miami Shores, Florida, discovered a means of accessing the financial aid accounts of other students in FAMU’s iRattler computer system. The defendants obtained the usernames, passwords, and other personal identifying information of their fellow students by taking paperwork discarded in the trash bins near the FAMU computer help desk, by gathering information from public sources on the internet, and by tricking FAMU employees and the students themselves into providing this information. The defendants used the information to log on to the financial aid accounts of students who were scheduled to receive financial aid refunds. The defendants then changed the bank account and routing numbers in the victims’ financial aid accounts to divert the victims’ financial aid refunds to pre-paid debit cards held by the defendants. In all but a few cases, FAMU was able to reverse the fraudulent transfers.
Pereira and Coutard pled guilty to access device fraud and aggravated identity theft charges earlier this year. Coutard was sentenced to six months of home detention and six months of community confinement, and was ordered to perform 80 hours of community service, as conditions of a three-year term of supervised release. Pereira was sentenced to a three-year term of supervised release with conditions that he serve four months of home detention and two months of community confinement. Pereira was also ordered to perform 80 hours of community service and to pay $3,983 in restitution to FAMU.
In announcing the sentence imposed by the court, United States Attorney Pamela C. Marsh said, “Today’s sentence sends a clear message that engaging in this type of criminal conduct will have serious consequences, including the real possibility of a felony conviction and a prison term. The defendants in this case quite literally breached the security of their university, in an effort to victimize their fellow students.” Ms. Marsh expressed her deep gratitude to the FBI, the FAMU Police Department, the United States Department of Education – Office of Inspector General, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the United States Secret Service, whose excellent investigative work resulted in these prosecutions. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Rhew-Miller prosecuted the case.Former Employee Sentenced to Federal Prison for Stealing from BankRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – Armando Ruben Aleman, 28, of Weslaco, has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction of one count of embezzlement, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Aleman pleaded guilty March 27, 2013, admitting he stole more than $190,000 from the bank account of a deceased customer of BBVA Compass Bank in Mission while Aleman was an employee at that bank.
Today, U.S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez, who accepted the guilty plea, sentenced Aleman to 12 months in federal prison without parole to be followed by two years of supervised release. At the hearing, testimony was presented by the heir to the deceased bank customer, who was entitled to receive the money in the account from which Aleman stole the funds. The heir told the court that while he harbored no resentment toward Aleman, the defendant had brought the consequences of his crime upon himself through his actions. Judge Alvarez noted that while the bank had paid the heir the money owed to him, the bank had not been able to recoup all of the lost amount from Aleman. Therefore, the court ordered Aleman to pay the remaining, unrecovered $61,772 in restitution to the bank.
In determining the sentence, the court considered that Aleman had used another bank customer’s identifying information to open a bank account without authorization in order to hide the stolen funds. The court noted that the customer, through no fault of his own, was experiencing difficulties opening bank accounts because of the account Aleman had fraudulently opened using that customer’s name.
At the time of the guilty plea, Aleman admitted that during more than half of last year, while he was employed at BBVA Compass Bank, he emptied a deceased client’s account before the executor of the client’s will could retrieve the funds.
Aleman withdrew cash and forged cashier’s checks in the deceased client’s name in order to steal the funds from his account. Then, Aleman transferred the funds into an account he opened at Chase Bank using a stolen identity from another person. Aleman managed to spend and transfer to himself more than $70,000 from the fraudulently-opened Chase account before his scheme was discovered and the bank froze the account.
Aleman was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
This case was investigated by the Secret Service with the assistance of the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Sully prosecuted the case.
Former Elgin Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Federal Prison for Gun and Drug CrimesRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A former Elgin man was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison after being convicted of firearms and narcotics crimes at trial this past summer, federal law enforcement officials announced today. The case is another example of successful cooperation between federal, state and local law enforcement partners in investigating and prosecuting dangerous gun and drug offenders in northern Illinois.
JOEL RIVAS, 35, who resided in Chicago when he was arrested in 2010, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Amy J. St. Eve, who said the lengthy sentence was necessary to protect society.
“Although drug trafficking may provide a steady source of income for people unwilling to do the hard work required for legitimate employment, such behavior is reprehensible and should be severely punished,” prosecutors said in a sentencing memo. “The sentence may help to deter others from making the same poor choices as [Rivas].”
Rivas was sentenced as an Armed Career Criminal after being convicted at trial in July of conspiracy to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine, possession of cocaine and marijuana, and illegally possessing two guns, both as a previously convicted felon and in furtherance of drug trafficking.
Evidence in the case showed that between 2007 and 2010, Rivas and co-defendant ISMAEL MIRANDA, 36, also formerly of Elgin, distributed wholesale amounts of cocaine and marijuana to customers in northern and central Illinois. Rivas and Miranda rented a storage unit in Elgin to conduct their business of storing, packaging, and selling narcotics. In February 2010, Elgin police searched the storage unit and seized cocaine and marijuana, as well as a loaded .357 caliber handgun in a tool box and a 9 mm caliber handgun inside a desk.
Rivas’ lengthy sentence was determined, in part, by his status as an Armed Career Criminal under federal law, based on his previous convictions dating to the 1990s for various state narcotics offenses. Judge St. Eve also found that Rivas lied during his testimony at trial. Miranda previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison. The case is just one example of lengthy federal prison sentences that defendants face when convicted of serious firearm and narcotics charges. Other recent examples may be found at: www.psnchicago.org/prosecutions.html.
The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph Thompson and Erika Csicsila.
The sentences were announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Constance Hester, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of ATF. The Elgin Police Department, the Illinois State Police and other state and local law enforcement agencies assisted in the investigation and trial.
Former Commander of Mexican State Police and Member of the Gulf Cartel Sentenced for Drug ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Gilberto Lerma Plata, a former commander of the Mexican State Police and member of the Gulf Cartel, was sentenced today to serve 151 months in prison for conspiring to import multi-ton quantities of marijuana into the United States, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Administrator Michele M. Leonhart of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Lerma Plata, 50, was sentenced before U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly in the District of Columbia. In addition to his prison term, Lerma Plata was ordered to forfeit $10 billion in drug proceeds as part of a money judgment. At a post-trial hearing, the United States proved that from 2006 to 2011, the Gulf Cartel distributed in excess of 1.4 million kilograms of cocaine and 8,000 metric tons of marijuana. The money judgment represents the gross receipts of the Gulf Cartel’s drug sales into the United States from its principal distribution centers located along the U.S.-Mexico border.
“Gilberto Lerma Plata chose his own interests and those of the Gulf Cartel over fulfilling his duty to protect the Mexican people,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Raman. “As a police officer, the defendant should have fought narco-traffickers; but, instead, he helped those traffickers transport massive quantities of dangerous drugs into the U.S. Today, this former crime fighter will start serving his prison sentence alongside the cartel members he assisted and will be required to forfeit 10 billion dollars in ill-gotten gains - a fitting end to his criminal career.”
On July 29, 2011, Lerma Plata was charged with conspiracy to manufacture and distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine and 1,000 kilograms or more of marijuana for importation into the United States. Lerma Plata was arrested in McAllen, Texas, on April 6, 2012. On March 1, 2013, Lerma Plata pleaded guilty to conspiracy to import multi-ton quantities of marijuana into the United States.
Lerma Plata was employed as the commander of the state police in Miguel Aleman, Tamaulipas, Mexico. According to court documents, Lerma Plata was on the Gulf Cartel’s payroll while he was employed by the state police, and he used his position of authority to engage in drug trafficking activities with the cartel. Lerma Plata also contributed to the acts of violence committed by the cartel in its efforts to control drug trafficking routes to the United States by aiding in the procurement of firearms. Intercepted conversations revealed that Lerma Plata and high ranking members of the Gulf Cartel discussed the shipment of large quantities of marijuana for distribution in the United States as well as the transportation from the United States of proceeds from the sales of the drugs. These intercepted conversations also revealed that Lerma Plata obtained AK-47 and AR-15 assault rifles, as well as pistols, for members of the cartel.
The investigation in this case was led by the DEA’s Houston Field Division and the DEA Bilateral Investigation Unit and was part of a DOJ Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation. The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Adrián Rosales of the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section.
Former Alabama Tax Return Preparer Sentenced for Tax Fraud and Aggravated Identity TheftRead the Press Release
Bridgett Terry-Sankey of Montgomery, Ala., was sentenced today to serve 24 months and one day of imprisonment for filing a false claim and aggravated identity theft, announced Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department's Tax Division and U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama George L. Beck Jr.
Terry-Sankey previously pleaded guilty to one count of filing a false claim and one count of aggravated identity theft on June 18, 2013. According to court documents, Terry-Sankey worked as a tax preparer at Davis Professional Tax in Montgomery. Terry-Sankey admitted that while employed at Davis Professional Tax she prepared and electronically filed four false 2010 federal income tax returns using the means of identification of actual individuals without their knowledge or permission. Terry-Sankey then caused the false refunds to be deposited onto debit cards or issued as refund anticipation loans, and she used the false refunds for her personal benefit.
This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) - Criminal Investigation. Tax Division Trial Attorneys Alexander Effendi and Jason H. Poole and Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Brown prosecuted the case.
Florida Doctor Convicted of Federal Tax CrimesRead the Press Release
Dr. Patricia Lynn Hough, of Englewood, Fla., was convicted today by a jury in Fort Myers, Fla., of conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by concealing millions of dollars in assets and income in offshore bank accounts at UBS and other foreign banks, and of filing false individual income tax returns which failed to report the existence of those foreign accounts or the income earned in those accounts, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.
According to court documents and court proceedings, Hough owned two Caribbean-based medical schools – The Saba University School of Medicine located in Saba, Netherlands Antilles, and The Medical University of the Americas located in Nevis, West Indies. Hough conspired to defraud the IRS with her husband, Dr. David Fredrick, who is awaiting trial. They carried out the conspiracy by creating and using nominee entities, including a foundation, and undeclared accounts in their names and the names of nominee entities at UBS and other foreign banks to conceal assets and income from the IRS. Both schools and associated real estate were sold on April 3, 2007, for more than $35 million, all of which was deposited into undeclared accounts in the name of the nominee entities. The majority of the sale proceeds were not reported to the IRS on their tax returns and no tax was paid.
The evidence at trial further proved that Hough and her co-conspirator used emails, telephone calls and in-person meetings to instruct Swiss bankers and asset managers to make investments and transfer funds from their undeclared accounts at UBS. The evidence established that Hough and her co-conspirator caused funds from the undeclared accounts in the names of the medical schools to be transferred to undeclared accounts in their individual names or in the names of nominee entities. Hough and her husband then used the funds in their undeclared accounts to purchase an airplane, two homes in North Carolina and a condominium in Sarasota, Fla.
Hough was also convicted of four counts of filing false tax returns for 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008. The evidence at trial established that Hough filed false tax returns that substantially understated her total income because she failed to report substantial interest and investment income and in 2007 because she failed to report her half of the proceeds from the sale of the medical schools. In addition, Hough failed to report on Schedule B of the tax returns that she had an interest in or signature or other authority over bank, securities or other financial accounts located in foreign countries.
U.S. citizens, resident aliens and legal permanent residents of the United States have an obligation to report to the IRS on Schedule B of a U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, Form 1040, whether they have a financial interest in, or signature authority over, a financial account in a foreign country in a particular year by checking “Yes” or “No” in the appropriate box and identifying the country where the account is maintained. U.S. citizens and residents also have an obligation to report all income earned from foreign bank accounts on their tax returns.
“Today's jury verdict is another example that those who would attempt defraud the IRS by hiding income and assets in offshore accounts risk prosecution and, upon conviction, potentially significant jail time,” said Kathryn Keneally, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “In the end, they will still owe taxes due and face severe civil penalties.”“Dr. Hough's financial transactions were nothing more than a shell game to hide her income,” said Richard Weber, Chief, IRS-Criminal Investigation. “Her earned income was placed into foreign bank accounts to advance her tax fraud. Taxpayers participating in international tax fraud are under the watchful scrutiny of the IRS, and stopping them is one of our highest priorities."
U.S. District Judge John Steele scheduled sentencing for Feb. 10, 2013. The conspiracy count carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The false return counts each carry a maximum potential penalty of three years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
This case was prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Caryn Finley and Leigh Kessler of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and was investigated by IRS – Criminal Investigation. Tax Division Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally thanks them for their work, and also thanks the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, Fort Myers Division, for their assistance and support in the prosecution.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found at www.justice.gov/tax.Flight Attendant and Co-Conspirator Indicted for Heroin SmugglingRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the return by a grand jury of an indictment charging Carlos Luis Alomar-Baello (43, Davenport) and Carla Michelle Alvarado (33, Kissimmee) with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin. If convicted, Alomar and Alvarado each face a minimum penalty of ten years and a maximum penalty of life in federal prison.
According to the indictment and other court documents, on September 28, 2013, Alvarado, a Jet Blue flight attendant, tried to smuggle almost one kilogram of heroin through U.S. Customs at the Orlando International Airport. After landing on a flight from Bogota, Colombia, Alvarado was selected for inspection by Customs officers. The officers discovered the heroin hidden inside a body suit that Alvarado was wearing underneath her uniform. Agents identified Alomar as the intended recipient of the heroin. The next day, agents arranged a meeting with Alomar, who was arrested after taking possession of a bag he thought contained the heroin. Agents searched Alomar’s home and found more heroin that he had hidden there.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of the federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration with assistance from U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bruce Ambrose.
Felipe Jesus Parra-Flores Sentenced in U.S. District CourtRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Great Falls, on October 21, 2014, before Chief U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen, FELIPE JESUS PARRA-FLORES, a 46-year-old resident of Nampa, Idaho and Medicine Lake, was sentenced to a term of:
Prison: 60 months
Special Assessment: $100
Forfeiture: computers and hard drives
Supervised Release: 15 years
PARRA-FLORES was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to receipt of child pornography.
In an Offer of Proof filed by Assistant U.S. Attorney Cyndee L. Peterson, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
In May 2012, as part of a Montana Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) investigation, agents downloaded known child pornography files from an IP address they determined was in Medicine Lake. The agents determined the same computer was also accessing the Internet from an address in Nampa, Idaho (as well as Montana) from February 2012 through August 2012. Agents determined the common denominator between the two residences connected to those IP addresses was PARRA-FLORES.
A search warrant for the IP subscriber's Medicine Lake residence and PARRA-FLORES pickup truck was obtained. The IP subscriber was PARRA-FLORES' employer.
On September 9, 2012, agents executed the warrant. No one was at the residence. That afternoon, agents located PARRA-FLORES driving a semi-truck and trailer. PARRA-FLORES consented to the search of his truck. A laptop and external hard drives were located. PARRA-FLORES admitted they were his and signed a consent to search the items. PARRA-FLORES admitted there would be files depicting child pornography on his laptop, and that it was his child pornography.
The forensic examiner located over 1,000 files which depicted images and videos of child pornography on PARRA-FLORES' laptop and hard drives. A file sharing program (LimeZilla) was installed, and the examiner determined that some of the files depicting child pornography had been downloaded via the file sharing program. The file creation date range was August 2, 2012, through September 6, 2012.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that he will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, he does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.
The investigation was a cooperative effort between the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security - Homeland Security Investigations, Montana Department of Criminal Investigation, and the Customs and Border Patrol Air Interdiction.
Eight Head to Federal Prison for Violent Robberies of Area BanksRead the Press Release
Sentences Range from 60 to 525 months in Prison
HOUSTON – Eight men have been ordered to prison on charges related to the armed bank robberies of several area financial institutions, including one involving the shooting of an off-duty Harris County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) sergeant, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
Shelton McGowen, 24, opted to plead guilty before trial was set to begin on Tuesday, May 28, 2013. During jury selection the next day, seven more entered guilty pleas – Derrick Williams, 28, Marcus Rosemond Tarpley, 32, Reginald Mosley, 37, Joel Keon Jackson, 33, Hakim Ibn Ahmad, 31, Alonzo Horace Harris, 37, and Patrick Wayne Simmons, 29. The final two – Calvin Wesley Gray, 34, pleaded guilty the morning of opening statements, while Dwayne Holmes, 34, entered his guilty plea following the government’s opening remarks and with a witness about to take the stand.
Today, U.S. District Judge David Hittner sentenced Mosley, identified as the shooter of the off-duty officer, to a total term of 525 months in prison. He was convicted of conspiracy, three counts of bank robbery and discharging a firearm during commission of a violent crime. Simmons, also convicted on the same five counts as Mosely, was ordered to serve a 480-month term of imprisonment. Tarpley and Ahmad, both convicted of conspiracy as well as three counts of bank robbery and brandishing a firearm during commission of a violent crime, were sentenced to respective terms of 480 and 444 months in prison, while Gray, convicted of conspiracy and two counts of bank robbery will serve 300 months. McGowen, Jackson and Williams were each convicted of one count of conspiracy, and will serve 60 months in federal prison. The sentencings of Holmes and Harris were continued to November.
At the hearing today, additional evidence and testimony was presented including statements from the wounded officer and another victim. The officer commented upon his actions and that he would not change anything he did that day. He testified that he saw that something was going to happen and that it was his obligation as a law enforcement officer to step up and act. He further noted the effect the shooting has had on him, his family and well as the sheriff and his family.
An 11th defendant, Anthony Demonde Nowlin, 24, had previously pleaded guilty earlier this year to bank robbery and conspiracy to interfere with commerce through bank robbery. He is set for sentencing on Monday.
The defendants were part of a sophisticated criminal organization that planned and executed violent takeover style bank robberies of banks inside grocery stores. The conspiracy began on May 4, 2007, and ended with the arrest of some of the men on Sept. 16, 2011.
According to court records, the defendants would “case” banks and credit unions that were located in grocery stores, using force, violence and intimidation to rob them. During the robberies, which were committed on weekday mornings between 9:00 a.m. and noon, the defendants wore dark clothing, gloves, material over their faces and were armed with semi-automatic pistols, shotguns and Uzi style firearms to intimidate the bank employees. The men would also use stolen vehicles during the robberies to elude law enforcement.
During the Aug. 4, 2011, robbery of Wells Fargo Bank in Sugar Land, the robbers shot the off-duty sergeant who was in the bank on personal business.
Tarpley, Nowlin, Ahmad, Mosley, McGowen and Williams were arrested on the morning of Sept. 16, 2011, on Interstate 45 North after several were observed both driving and going in and out of a stolen Dodge Intrepid. Officers later observed McGowen enter the Associated Credit Union for the purpose of casing it for a robbery. Law enforcement officers observed several suspicious vehicles one with paper plates near the Kroger that housed the Associated Credit Union on the day of their Sept. 16 arrest. Due to previous robberies of groceries store banks and credit unions, law enforcement had reason to believe that the defendants were about to commit an armed bank robbery.
Further investigation led to the identification of the additional five defendants involved in the scheme resulting in the federal indictment for multiple bank robberies in the greater Houston area. After the dismantling of this 11-man crew, no further violent takeover style bank robberies occurred inside of bank grocery stores.
All men will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
This matter was investigated by the FBI Bank Robbery Task Force which is comprised of personnel from the FBI, Houston Police Department and HCSO with special assistance from the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office and the Baytown and Pasadena Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Suzanne Elmilady and Kebharu H. Smith.
Eastern North Carolina Drug Conspirators Sentenced and Civil Action Seeking Forfeiture of House FiledRead the Press Release
RALEIGH - United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that five individuals involved in a drug conspiracy ring in Eastern North Carolina have been sentenced in federal court by United States District Judge Terrence W. Boyle. Additionally, procedures to seize a house in Kinston, North Carolina used by drug distributors and users have been initiated to rid the community of that blight.
The criminal investigation of this case was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Kinston Department of Public Safety, North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement, Lenoir County Sheriff’s Office and the United States Marshal’s Service. Assistant United States Attorneys Toby Lathan and Leslie Cooley handled the prosecution of the criminal cases on behalf of the Government. Assistant United States Attorney Steve West handled the forfeiture of the property in Kinston for the government.
According to the investigation, a boarding house located at 302 East Caswell Street in Kinston was a known crack house. Information was obtained that multiple individuals were selling crack from this location and there were guns at the location as well. Between August 2011 and April 2012, law enforcement officers conducted an operation wherein four different individuals bought crack cocaine from five different individuals a total of eight times. Additionally, one individual was arrested on a weapons charge.
The defendants received the following sentences: ERIC DION LATHAM, 36, of Brentwood, New York was sentenced to 300 months imprisonment followed by 5 years supervised release. LATHAM, was sentenced for conspiracy to distribute a quantity of cocaine base (Crack), distribution of a quantity of cocaine base (Crack) and aiding and abetting the same, and using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime and aiding and abetting the same, and with felon in possession of a firearm. JAMES HENRY STRONG, 31, of Grifton, North Carolina was sentenced to 48 months imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release. JAMES HENRY STRONG was sentenced for distribution of a quantity of cocaine base (Crack) and aiding and abetting the same, and distribution of a quantity of cocaine base (Crack) and aiding and abetting the same. JEREMY TYRONE STRONG, 34, of Grifton, North Carolina was sentenced to 21 months imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release. JEREMY TYRONE STRONG, was sentenced for distribution of a quantity of cocaine base (Crack) and aiding and abetting the same. MICHAEL ALPHONSO POLLARD, 36, of Hookerton, North Carolina was sentenced to 48 months imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release. POLLARD was sentenced for two counts of distribution of a quantity of cocaine base (Crack). UNTEZ DEVON LLOYD, 22, of Kinston, North Carolina was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release. LLOYD was sentenced for distribution of a quantity of cocaine base (Crack) and distribution of a quantity of cocaine base (Crack). JAMES THOMAS STRONG, 62, of Grifton, North Carolina was sentenced to 37 months imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release. STRONG was sentenced for possession of an unregistered firearm.
In conjunction with the criminal matter, the government filed a civil action seeking the forfeiture of a house at 302 East Caswell Street in Kinston. The civil complaint filed on September 26, 2013 alleges that multiple sales of illegal controlled substances were made from the house. The civil action remains pending.Don Edward Lyle Sentenced in U.S. District CourtRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Great Falls, on September 24, 2013, before Chief U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen, DON EDWARD LYLE, a 53-year-old resident of Troy, was sentenced to a term of:
- ison: 36 months
- ecial Assessment: $100
- pervised Release: 5 years
LYLE was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
In an Offer of Proof filed by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica A. Betley, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
In early April 2013, undercover law enforcement agents and a confidential informant (CI) began to buy methamphetamine from Jesus Heriberto Ramirez-Soto in Troy.
During the evening of April 5, 2013, the CI was with Ramirez and LYLE at Ramirez's home in Troy. The CI mentioned to Ramirez and LYLE that he had a friend who wanted to purchase methamphetamine.
The next day, on April 6, 2013, Ramirez called the CI and said that LYLE would be traveling to Kalispell with the methamphetamine. Later that evening, undercover agents met with LYLE in Kalispell. Stuart Morgan Pattie also accompanied LYLE on the methamphetamine deal. The agents paid LYLE $5,400 for three ounces of methamphetamine and received an additional ounce from LYLE with the understanding that the agents still owed LYLE for the last ounce.
On April 11, 2013, the CI placed a call to Ramirez to set up another methamphetamine deal. Ramirez told the CI that he could provide the CI's friends with pounds of methamphetamine. The agents called Ramirez and agreed to meet on Saturday, April 13, 2013, in Havre to buy methamphetamine. Ramirez agreed to sell the agents two pounds of methamphetamine for $50,000.
That afternoon, Ramirez met an agent in a parking lot and said his friends would be there shortly. Ramirez then discussed possible future drug deals and left the parking lot. A half hour later, LYLE and Pattie pulled up next to the agent. Pattie got out of the car and got into the agent's car with the methamphetamine wrapped in a shirt. Agents then arrested Ramirez, Pattie, and LYLE. Agents recovered more than 500 grams of a substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine.
Ramirez and Pattie pled guilty to federal charges.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that he will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, he does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.
The investigation was a cooperative effort between the U.S. Department of Homeland Security - Homeland Security Investigations and the Montana Division of Criminal Investigation.
District Man Sentenced to 40 Years in Prison for 2010 Murder in Southeast Washington-OnStar Technology Helped Police Locate Victim’s Car and Evidence-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Marlon Williams, 34, Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a prison term of 40 years on a charge of first-degree felony murder stemming from the 2010 slaying of a man in Southeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.
Williams was found guilty by a jury in July 2013, following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Russell F. Canan.
According to the evidence at trial, at about 4:30 a.m. on Sept. 13, 2010, the victim, Min Soo Kang, was found on the curb in the 3500 block of Croffut Place SE, with multiple gunshot wounds. Detectives found his wallet and contacted his next of kin, who advised them that Mr. Kang, 37, owned a 2010 Cadillac Escalade equipped with OnStar GPS technology. Detectives requested that OnStar assist in tracking the vehicle. At about 5:30 p.m. on that same date, OnStar located the Escalade in the 5200 block of Ames Street NE, and engaged the remote ignition block, which prevented the ignition from re-starting the vehicle once it had been turned off.
Coincidentally, a short time later, a neighborhood resident returned home to find the disabled Escalade stopped in front of her residence. At about 7 p.m., that woman dialed 911 and alerted the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) about the suspicious behavior of a man who, upon hearing sirens approaching in the area, exited the vehicle, quickly slammed the hood, threw something into her yard, and walked away. However, when those sirens went elsewhere, the same man returned, retrieved what he had thrown into her yard, and re-entered the vehicle, making further attempts to get it started.
Once police located Mr. Kang’s vehicle, they had it towed to the Mobile Crime Lab. Technicians lifted a palm print from the hood of the car and several fingerprints from the interior handles of the driver’s door. In addition, a search of the passenger compartment yielded a receipt for the purchase of two cartons of Newport cigarettes by Mr. Kang, in Virginia, less than three hours prior to his body being found. Three unopened packs of Newport cigarettes with Virginia tax stamps remained in the vehicle. The technicians, upon noticing apparent bullet holes in the driver’s seat, recovered three bullets from inside that seat.
Earlier, during the day of Sept.13, 2010, upon performing an autopsy on Mr. Kang, a medical examiner identified three gunshot wounds to the chest with exit wounds from his back. In addition, Mr. Kang suffered a gunshot wound to the face, which exited the left ear, another gunshot wound to the left index finger, exiting the palm of Mr. Kang’s hand, and one gunshot wound perforating his right forearm.
Detectives used the palm-print, lifted from the hood of the Escalade, and identified by the fingerprint examiner, to match that of the defendant, and the description given by the 911 caller, which also matched that of the defendant, to obtain a warrant for a search of Williams’s home. There they found the murder weapon beneath his bed. In that same bedroom, police recovered one empty pack of Newport cigarettes bearing a Virginia tax stamp.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen praised the work of the MPD detectives, officers, crime scene technicians, and forensic specialists who worked on the case. He also expressed appreciation for the assistance of OnStar. In addition, he praised those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Alesha Matthews Yette, Litigation Technology Specialists Kimberly Smith, Leif Hickling, and Joshua Ellen, and Interns Arielle Barnett and Malini Malhotra.
Finally, he commended the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary Wheeler, who secured the indictment in the case and handled the prosecution at trial.
13-362District Man Found Guilty in Stabbing; Attacked Man After Argument over $20 Debt-Defendant Tells Victim, “Get Me My Money”-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Charles Link, 53, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty today of a charge of assault with a dangerous weapon stemming from the November 2012 stabbing of a man in Northwest Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.
Link was found guilty following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Russell F. Canan scheduled sentencing for Jan. 3, 2014.
According to the government’s evidence at trial, the victim and Link were close friends for more than four years. They socialized together and played chess, and the victim even helped Link at his job at a funeral home. From time to time, Link would loan the victim small amounts of money. Last fall, the two men got into a disagreement over the repayment of a $20 loan. The victim had given Link his food assistance card and had told Link to use it to buy $40 of food, to cover the $20 debt. When Link never used the card and failed to return it, the victim cancelled the card so that he could get a new one and access his food benefits.
On the evening of Nov. 13, 2012, as the victim was walking down a street near his home, he encountered Link and the two began arguing over the debt. When the victim reached the entrance to an alley off the 500 block of Newton Place NW, he was pushed from behind by an unidentified man and fell to the ground. Link joined in the attack and kicked and punched the victim, stating “get me my money.” Link then pulled out a knife and stabbed the victim five times—twice in the chest and rib cage. He and the unidentified man fled, leaving the victim bleeding in an alley.
In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Machen praised the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department, including detectives from the Fourth Police District. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Wanda Trice and Debra McPherson. Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Vivien Cockburn and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Trevor N. McFadden, who assisted in the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Brittain Shaw, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
13-365District Man Convicted of Sexually Assaulting Four Women in Series of Attacks Committed at Knifepoint-Defendant Lured Victims into His SUV, Then Raped Them-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Barrington Bennett, 35, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty by a jury on Oct. 9, 2013 of sexually assaulting four victims at knifepoint between December 2011 and August 2012, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.
Bennett was found guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia jury of four counts of first-degree sexual abuse while armed with aggravating circumstances, four counts of kidnapping while armed, and three counts of armed robbery. The Honorable J. Ramsey Johnson scheduled sentencing for Jan. 10, 2014.
According to the government=s evidence, Bennett lured the victims into his sport utility vehicle in attacks that took place on Dec. 16, 2011; Feb. 18, 2012; July 28, 2012, and Aug. 23, 2012.
One victim joined Bennett after the offer of a ride home. The other victims were prostitutes who believed they would perform sex for money. Bennett had folded down the middle row of seats in the SUV and covered it with a blanket. When victims got into the SUV, from various locations in Northeast and Northwest Washington, Bennett drove them to places in Northeast Washington. He pulled out a folding knife, held it to their throats, and raped them at knifepoint.
Bennett also robbed three of the victims of cell phones and money. He cut the fourth victim on her jaw and head, and she wiped her blood on the blanket. When she finally escaped the SUV, she saw the license plate and reported the tag number immediately. Detectives with the Metropolitan Police Department located the SUV within an hour, impounded it, and searched it after obtaining a warrant.
Inside the SUV, police discovered a folding knife that contained DNA consistent with the fourth victim and the defendant. Police also found a blanket that contained the fourth victim’s blood, along with the DNA of the defendant and the first victim. Finally, the second victim had received a sexual assault kit which contained Bennett’s DNA.
In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Machen commended detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department=s Sexual Assault Unit, the Fifth District, and the Forensic Science Division. He also commended the work of the Consolidated Forensic Sciences Division. He also expressed appreciation to those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Lezlie Richardson; Paralegal Specialists Jason Manuel and Tiffany Jones, and Victim-Witness Specialists David Foster and Katina Adams-Washington. He particularly commended the work of Claudia Gutierrez, Joe Calvarese, Leif Hickling and the entire Litigation Support Staff for their work on the case. Lastly, Mr. Machen thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Zubrensky, who investigated, indicted and tried the case, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jodi Lazarus, who co-tried the case, and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Andrews, who also investigated the case.
13-363Derek Tyson Bellamy Sentenced in U.S. District CourtRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Billings, on October 21, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy, DEREK TYSON BELLAMY, a 31-year-old resident of Billings, was sentenced to a term of:
- ison: 63 months
- ecial Assessment: $100
- pervised Release: 3 years
BELLAMY was sentenced after a federal district court trial in which he was found guilty of being a felon-in-possession of a firearm.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brendan P. McCarthy prosecuted the case for the United States.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that he will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, he does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.
The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Dearborn-Based Business OwnerSentenced to Prison for Immigration FraudRead the Press Release
The owner of a Dearborn-based investment company was sentenced to 33 months in prison today in federal court in Detroit for operating an immigration fraud ring from one of his restaurants. U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade announced today.
Joining McQuade in the announcement were Giovanni Tiano, Special Agent in Charge of the Detroit Division of the Department of Homeland Security - Office of Inspector General, and Paul Abbate, Special Agent in Charge of the of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Detroit.
U.S. District Judge Marianne O. Battani imposed sentence on Hussein “Sam” Nazzal, 59, of Dearborn. Nazzal is the former owner of the Shish Village restaurant and the G&S Development real estate company, both located in Dearborn.
Nazzal pleaded guilty in July to conspiracy to defraud the United States. That conviction arose from Nazzal’s role in brokering three separate false marriages between U.S. citizens and Lebanese nationals to obtain immigration benefits by fraud. As part of the same investigation, federal officials obtained criminal convictions of two of the individuals involved in the fraud activity. Two other participants have been deported from the United States to Lebanon.
In announcing the sentence, McQuade stated, A Fraud schemes undermine the integrity of our immigration system, and make it harder for legitimate applicants to obtain immigration benefits.”
Special Agent in Charge Tianno stated, A"DHS-OIG will continue to actively attack corrupt and greed-driven criminal schemes which would compromise our immigration system and threaten our border security."
Paul M. Abbate, Special Agent in Charge of the Detroit, Michigan, Division of the FBI, said “The FBI is committed to aggressively pursuing individuals who perpetrate fraud schemes such as this one to commit crimes against the United States. The FBI praised the teamwork of the law enforcement agents, partners, and the Assistant United States Attorneys who brought this case to a successful conclusion.”
This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security - Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Sam Nazzal is also facing sentencing for his convictions on multiple counts of bank fraud, commercial bribery and obstruction of justice. That sentencing will take place on November 18, 2013, before U.S. District Judge David M. Lawson.
Darryl Lynn Big Hair Sentenced in U.S. District CourtRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Billings, on October 24, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, DARRYL LYNN BIG HAIR, a 41-year-old resident of Crow Agency, was sentenced to a term of:
- ison: 12 months
- ecial Assessment: $100
- pervised Release: 3 years
BIG HAIR was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to the use of a communications facility (cell phone) to help bring about a conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute marijuana.
In an Offer of Proof filed by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica T. Fehr, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
On July 20, 2010, a Yellowstone County Sheriff(s Office Deputy initiated a traffic stop on a black 2010 Mercedes Benz SUV after running the license plate and determining that the owner had a valid arrest warrant. The owner of the vehicle, Joseph Chartraw, provided a false name to the deputy but ultimately admitted the individual's name. A narcotics-detecting K-9 was called to the scene and positively alerted on the vehicle for the presence of narcotic odors. The vehicle was impounded pending a search warrant application. A subsequent search yielded airline tickets, a cell phone, documents, $14,154 in cash, and user amounts of marijuana.
Pursuant to the search warrant, detectives had the cellular telephone seized from the vehicle analyzed. The contents revealed that Chartraw had been involved with selling hundreds of pounds of marijuana, as well as transporting tens of thousands of dollars in cash. Some of the text messages on the phone blatantly discussed prices for pounds of marijuana, smuggling bulk cash via the airlines, having bulk cash from drug proceeds deposited into bank accounts, and dealing marijuana to the Indian reservations in Montana. According to the text messages on the phone, marijuana was distributed to Browning, Polson, Crow Agency, as well as Havre, St. Ignatius, Great Falls, Missoula, Cut Bank, Lolo, and other places throughout Montana.
One of the subjects having drug-related communications with the owner of the vehicle stopped in Yellowstone County was BIG HAIR. On June 23, 2010, BIG HAIR and Chartraw exchanged a series of text messages arranging for BIG HAIR to pick up marijuana from one of Chartraw's distributors for future distribution to BIG HAIR's clients.
BIG HAIR was interviewed and admitted to distributing marijuana he purchased from Chartraw and to using his cellular telephone to arrange his drug deals with Chartraw in furtherance of the conspiracy.
Chartraw pled guilty to federal charges.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that he will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, he does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.
The investigation was conducted by the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force.
Dallas Man Sentenced to 19 Years in Federal Prison on Drug and Firearm ConvictionsRead the Press Release
Defendant Had Crack Cocaine, Firearms and
Nearly $500,000 in Cash When ArrestedDALLAS — Lawrence Edward Knox, 42, of Dallas, was sentenced this afternoon by U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle to 228 months (19 years) in federal prison following his guilty plea in December 2012 to one count of possession with intent to distribute 280 grams or more of cocaine base (crack cocaine) and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking offense. Today’s announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
According to documents filed in the case, the investigation began when law enforcement received information that an individual had obtained cocaine from Knox's residence on Saddleridge Drive in Dallas. In early August 2012, Dallas Police SWAT executed a search warrant at his residence and found approximately 2.7 pounds of crack cocaine, four firearms and $469,302 in cash. They also found pans, a strainer and other utensils in the kitchen that are used to manufacture crack cocaine. Knox, who was home at the time of the search, admitted the drugs and currency were his and was arrested.
According to the factual resume filed in the case, prior to his arrest, Knox had been convicted in this district on the federal offense of possession of a controlled substance with the intent to distribute.
As part of his plea agreement with the government, Knox will forfeit not only the cash and firearms, but also a 2004 Land Rover, furniture and televisions.
The case was investigated by the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Taly Haffar prosecuted.
Cleveland Pair Accused of Defrauding Social Security AdministrationRead the Press Release
A federal indictment was filed today charging Lester K. Benson and Cheryl L. Benson, both age 53, of Cleveland, with one count of embezzling government funds, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The indictment charges the defendants with misrepresenting information to the Social Security Administration and thereby obtaining approximately $44,605.60 in disability benefits to which neither was entitled.
The indictment follows an investigation conducted by the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General, and the case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney M. Kendra Klump.
If convicted, the defendants’ sentences will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendants’ prior criminal records, if any, the defendants’ role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Canadian Indicted for Securities and Wire FraudRead the Press Release
RALEIGH - United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that on October 18, 2013, a federal grand jury in Raleigh, North Carolina returned a two count indictment charging JAMES ALAN ROWAN with securities fraud and wire fraud.
ROWAN is a Canadian citizen who served as President and Chairman of Enviro-Energies, a Delaware-registered corporation, headquartered in Canada. As detailed in the Indictment, ROWAN claimed to have developed and patented a new type of turbine to generate clean electricity for homes and small commercial establishments. He told potential investors, distributors, and customers in the United States that he developed and patented a new type of wind turbine that did not require a tower to support the turbine assembly. ROWAN referred to his line of wind turbine models as “Mag Wind Turbines.”
Through aggressive marketing efforts over the Internet and in person, ROWAN received endorsements for the Mag-Wind Turbine design concept from unwitting Hollywood celebrities and environmental activists. Additionally, the Grand Jury alleges that ROWAN made numerous false and deceptive claims to his U.S. based distributors and customers about the Mag-Wind Turbine by exaggerating its power generation capacity, falsifying scientific and technical data, and falsifying information regarding his capacity to manufacture and distribute the Mag-Wind turbines. The Grand Jury also alleges that ROWAN inveigled U.S. investors in North Carolina, California, and elsewhere into purchasing Enviro-Energies shares by falsely telling them that these shares would be listed on the stock exchanges through an Initial Public Offering (IPO). Even though some investors responded to ROWAN’S false claims, once they paid for their shares, ROWAN never delivered the actual share certificates.If convicted, the maximum penalties for the charged counts are twenty years in prison for securities fraud and twenty years in prison for wire fraud. The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty. The case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Evan Rikhye.
Bruce Wayne Eagleman, Jr. Sentenced in U.S. District CourtRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Helena, on October 24, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, BRUCE WAYNE EAGLEMAN, JR., a 25-year-old resident of Crow Agency and an enrolled member of the Crow Tribe of Indians, was sentenced to a term of:
- ison: 405 months
- ecial Assessment: $100
- pervised Release: 5 years
EAGLEMAN was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to second degree murder.
In an Offer of Proof filed by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica A. Betley, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
On November 23, 2011, the Hardin City Court ordered EAGLEMAN to participate in the 24/7 sobriety program in Bighorn County. EAGLEMAN had just been arrested for disorderly conduct, criminal trespass to property, an open container violation, and possession of drug paraphernalia. He pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct after he admitted to drinking a gallon of gin on the day of his arrest.
The 24/7 sobriety program became law in Montana on October 1, 2011. The program is designed to address the most serious alcohol offenders in the state, and also, to verify that these people are not drinking and driving. Pursuant to this program, the Hardin Court ordered EAGLEMAN to take a breath test twice a day - the first between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. and the second between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.
The Hardin City Court was also familiar with EAGLEMAN due to his previous driving under the influence conviction. On July 11, 2008, EAGLEMAN pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of alcohol after he stated he drank twelve, 24-ounce, cans of beer. EAGLEMAN, who is 25-years-old, also has never had a valid driver(s license.
During the morning of December 29, 2011, EAGLEMAN's mother drove him from Crow Agency to Hardin to take his morning breath test. EAGLEMAN and his mother then returned to Crow Agency. Sometime in the early afternoon, EAGLEMAN took his mother's 2006 Dodge Durango and said he was leaving to go check the mail. Instead, EAGLEMAN left the house and met up with V.F.
EAGLEMAN and V.F. drove to a friend's house in Crow Agency. Everyone discussed driving to Hardin. Shortly thereafter, EAGLEMAN, V.F., and a friend drove to Hardin. EAGLEMAN drove his mother's Durango. EAGLEMAN and V.F. had already drank four malt liquors earlier in the afternoon. As EAGLEMAN drove to Hardin, the friend said EAGLEMAN began to drive more erratically.
EAGLEMAN first drove to a pawn shop, where he pawned a few items and received $10. EAGLEMAN used the $10 to buy a liter of Nikolai gin. EAGLEMAN next drove to another pawn shop. At the pawnshop, an employee observed that EAGLEMAN was extremely intoxicated. She saw EAGLEMAN leave and get in the driver's seat of the Durango.
After leaving the pawn shops, EAGLEMAN made a few more stops for gas and at another friend's house. Finally, he drove to the grocery store where he purchased two cans of Mike's Hard Lemonade and left the store. EAGLEMAN dropped the friend off in Hardin, which left just V.F. in the car with EAGLEMAN. EAGLEMAN then drove back to Crow Agency.
EAGLEMAN drove back to Crow Agency by way of the two-lane East Frontage Road. Initially he drove in the correct lane of travel - the southbound lane. At approximately 5:40 p.m., however, EAGLEMAN crossed into the northbound lane of the road and directly in front of S.S.'s oncoming car. S.S. attempted to drive to the left to avoid the oncoming crash, but was unsuccessful. The passenger side of EAGLEMAN's Durango collided with the passenger side of S.S.'s car in the northbound lane of traffic - the correct lane of traffic for S.S. A witness drove up almost immediately thereafter and saw EAGLEMAN in the driver's seat of the Durango.
Responding medical and law enforcement saw that V.F. was still alive, but he could not breathe well. He died shortly thereafter. S.S. had two other passengers in her car, both of whom died on scene. An ambulance transported S.S. to the hospital where she died. EAGLEMAN suffered minor injuries and was released from the hospital. Soon after the crash, at 6:52 p.m. that evening, his blood alcohol content was .257. He also tested positive for opiates and THC.
Bruce Eagleman killed four people on the Crow Indian Reservation while driving drunk. The Montana United States Attorney's Office takes very seriously the danger of drunk driving in Indian Country. This sentence imposed today will not bring back the four people he killed, but it will justly punish Mr. Eagleman for his actions and serve as deterrence to the general public from engaging in similar criminal conduct." said U.S. Attorney Michael W. Cotter.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that EAGLEMAN will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, EAGLEMAN does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.
The investigation was a cooperative effort between the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Montana Highway Patrol, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Bridgeport Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Narcotics Distribution ChargeRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that LAWRENCE BLUE, 36, of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty yesterday before Chief U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine base (“crack”).
In December 2002, BLUE was sentenced by Judge Hall to 92 months of imprisonment and three years of supervised release for possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon. He was released from federal prison in June 2009.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on March 20, 2012, the U.S. Marshals Service and members of the Connecticut Violent Fugitive Task Force arrested BLUE at his Bridgeport residence on a federal violation of supervised release warrant. On that date, a search of BLUE’s bedroom revealed narcotics, two loaded firearms and approximately $2,500 in cash.
Judge Hall has scheduled sentencing for February 3, 2014, at which time BLUE faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.
BLUE has been detained since his arrest. On April 17, 2012, Judge Hall sentenced BLUE to 21 months of imprisonment for violating the conditions of his supervised release stemming from his prior federal conviction.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alina P. Reynolds.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
[email protected]Beasley SentencingRead the Press Release
BATON ROUGE, LA – Acting United States Attorney Walt Green announced today that U.S. District Judge James J. Brady sentenced KIAMANI A. BEASLEY, age 28, of Jeanerette, Louisiana, to 12 months and a day imprisonment and 12 months of supervised release following imprisonment. The sentence results from BEASLEY’s conviction for embezzlement from a federally funded entity in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 666.
BEASLEY’s conviction stems from actions she took while serving as Finance Director of the Louisiana Association of Community Action Partners (LACAP), a non-profit organization which receives funding from the federal government’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Program. LACAP was established to organize and strengthen the forty-two (42) private and public Community Action Agencies (CAAs) in Louisiana. CAAs were established to address the effects and causes of poverty and to increase self-sufficiency among the poor. CAAs implemented many educational and health-oriented programs funded by the federal government. As Finance Director of LACAP, BEASLEY was responsible for overseeing the financial integrity of the organization, including the accounting and distribution of federal funds.
BEASLEY admitted that, while working for LACAP, she used her position of trust to embezzle $50,858, which funds were to be used for computer software training and weatherization services. BEASLEY further admitted to using the funds for her personal entertainment.
The investigation of this matter was conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Reginald E. Jones.
Baltimore Police Officer Sentenced to 8 Years in Prison for Drug Dealing and Gun Charge Uncovered by Federal WiretapRead the Press Release
Corrupt Officer Protected Drug Dealer, Filed False Police Reports,
Planned Armed Robbery and Sold Stolen PropertyBaltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett sentenced Baltimore Police officer Kendell Richburg, age 36, of Baltimore, today to eight years in prison, followed by four years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute heroin and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. Judge Bennett ordered that as a special condition 10 months of his supervised release be served in home detention.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Stephen E. Vogt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and Commissioner Anthony W. Batts of the Baltimore Police Department.
According to his plea agreement, from June 2011 through October 2012, Richburg, who was assigned to the Violent Crimes Impact Section in the Northwestern District of the Baltimore Police Department, conspired with a street level drug trafficker to distribute heroin. Richburg’s co-conspirator was a registered confidential informant with the Baltimore Police Department. The co-conspirator sold drugs in the Pimlico area of Northwest Baltimore. Richburg provided information to the co-conspirator that permitted him to sell drugs without interference from law enforcement, telling the co-conspirator on a near daily basis when it was “safe” to go out to sell drugs. In return, the co-conspirator provided Richburg with information about his drug customers so that Richburg could arrest them. Richburg paid his co-conspirator with official Baltimore Police Department funds for providing the information that resulted in the arrest of the drug customers. Richburg sometimes gave the co-conspirator back some of the drugs seized from the co-conspirator’s customers so that the co-conspirator could re-sell the drugs. Richburg falsified the arrest documents to eliminate the co-conspirator’s involvement, often falsely stating that Richburg had witnessed a drug transaction.
In early 2012, the FBI received information that Richburg was trafficking in stolen property, including iPhones, iPads and other electronics, and obtained a wiretap of Richburg’s cellphone. Intercepted conversations confirmed that Richburg was trafficking in stolen property and led to the discovery of Richburg’s drug trafficking.
Richburg and the co-conspirator were also overheard discussing the “planting” of evidence, and arranging an armed robbery. For example, on September 2, 2012, Richburg and the co-conspirator discussed having the co-conspirator plant a gun in an unlicensed cab, then having Richburg pull over and arrest the cab driver on a gun violation and pay the co-conspirator $350 to $400 as an informant fee for recovering a firearm. On October 9, 2012, Richburg, armed with his service weapon, searched a person, without probable cause, and located a large amount of cash. The victim told Richburg that he had just received his paycheck. Richburg contacted his co-conspirator and arranged for the co-conspirator, whom Richburg knew was armed, to rob the victim, identifying where the victim was located.
Richburg has been detained since his arrest on January 18, 2013.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the FBI and Baltimore Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys A. David Copperthite and Peter M. Nothstein, who prosecuted the case.
Attica Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography ChargeRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Paul J. Havlen, Jr., 48 of Attica, N.Y., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara, to attempting to receive child pornography.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kathleen A. Lynch and Paul J. Campana, who are handling the case, stated the defendant posted an ad on Craigslist seeking a young man who was interested in smoking marijuana and engaging in sexual activities. Between October 26, 2011 and December 19, 2011, Havlen engaged in graphic email and text exchanges with a person he believe to be a 15 year old boy. During those chats, the defendant asked the 15 year old for pictures and made arrangements to meet him at a park in Attica. The individual that Havlen was actually chatting with was an undercover police officer, and the defendant was arrested after he drove to the area of the park on December 19, 2011.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who 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.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of the Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Brian P. Boetig, Special Agent in Charge and the Wyoming County Sheriff’s Department, under the direction of Acting Sheriff Gregory J. Rudolph.Armed Pharmacy Robber SentencedRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA - William Webb, 51, of Philadelphia, was sentenced today to 25 years in prison for a string of armed robberies that targeted pharmacies. Webb pleaded guilty July 24, 2013 to conspiracy, interference with interstate commerce by robbery, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. He and Edward Schaeffer conspired to target approximately 19 pharmacies in order to steal prescription pharmaceuticals, including oxycontin, oxycodone, and percocet. Schaeffer, 30, pleaded guilty Sept. 12th and will be sentenced December 5, 2013.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge John R. Padova ordered restitution in the amount of $65,270.15, and five years of supervised release.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Philadelphia Police Department, with assistance from the Abington Twp. Police and Glenolden Borough Police. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Chun Barry.
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525Albuquerque Woman Sentenced to Prison for Attempted Armed Bank Robbery ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Late yesterday afternoon Emma Rosemary Hossy, 23, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for her attempted armed bank robbery conviction. Hossy is a naturalized U.S. citizen from South Africa who was residing in Albuquerque, N.M., when she was arrested in this case.
Hossy was arrested on Dec. 9, 2012, on a criminal complaint charging her with attempted armed bank robbery. She subsequently was indicted on that same charge.
According to court records, Hossy attempted to rob the Wells Fargo Bank branch located at 8333 Montgomery Boulevard NE in Albuquerque on Dec. 7, 2012. On that day, a woman, subsequently identified as Hossy, approached a teller station and told the teller that she needed four thousand dollars. Hossy then displayed an object and said she would press “the detonator and blow up the building” if the teller did not promptly comply with her demand. Hossy left the bank without any cash after she apparently noticed that the teller had pressed an emergency button located under the counter of the teller station.
Hossy was arrested two days later after an anonymous tipster provided information about her whereabouts after seeing bank surveillance camera photographs of Hossy in news reports. Following Hossy’s arrest, the bomb squads of the FBI and Albuquerque Police Department located the object displayed by Hossy during the attempted bank robbery and determined that it was a hoax bomb device.
Hossy pleaded guilty to the indictment on June 20, 2013, without the benefit of a plea agreement.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the Albuquerque Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney William J. Pflugrath.
Alabama Man Pleads Guilty to Stealing Tax RefundsRead the Press Release
Tarrish Tellis of Montgomery County, Ala., pleaded guilty today to conspiracy, theft of public funds and aggravated identity theft, announced Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department's Tax Division and U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama George L. Beck Jr.
According to court documents, Tellis obtained and used the stolen means of identification of individuals, including their names, dates of birth and Social Security numbers, for the purpose of filing false federal income tax returns. Tellis instructed his co-conspirators and others to provide him with bank account numbers for accounts at financial institutions that were used to receive the fraudulently obtained tax refunds. Tellis used the account numbers and stolen means of identification to file false tax returns that claimed over $700,000 in false refunds. As a result of his plea, Tellis faces a maximum sentence of 17 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 per count.
This case was investigated by special agents of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) - Criminal Investigation. Trial Attorneys Charles M. Edgar Jr. and Michael Boteler of the Justice Department’s Tax Division prosecuted the case.
Alabama Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Murder-for-hire Charge for Attempting to HireKu Klux Klan to Kill NeighborRead the Press Release
A Talladega County, Ala., man pleaded guilty today in federal court to attempting to hire a member of the Ku Klux Klan to murder an African-American neighbor, the Justice Department announced today.
Allen Wayne Densen Morgan, 29, of Munford, Ala., entered a guilty plea before U.S. District Judge Karon O. Bowdre to one count of using and causing someone else to use interstate facilities and travel -- a telephone and a motor vehicle -- with the intent to commit a murder-for hire. Morgan's sentencing is scheduled Feb. 27, 2014, and he faces a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
Federal officials arrested Morgan in August of 2013 after he told FBI agents posing as members of the KKK that he would pay them to murder his neighbor. Morgan admitted he offered a watch, a necklace and a gun as payment for the murder and gave explicit details for the man's torture and murder.
Morgan's efforts to arrange the paid murder of his neighbor unfolded as follows, according to his plea:
Morgan talked to an undercover FBI agent by telephone on Aug. 22, 2013, who identified himself as a KKK member. The men arranged to meet three days later at an Oxford motel to discuss payment for the murder. In that phone conversation, Morgan used a racial slur to describe the man he wanted killed and bragged that he had just fired several shots toward the man to intimidate him. Morgan also described, in detail, how he wanted the man to be “hung from a tree like a deer and gutted," to have body parts cut off and to "die a slow, painful death."
“The defendant attempted to arrange the brutal murder of his neighbor as vengeance for a perceived wrong,” said Jocelyn Samuels, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. “The Justice Department will prosecute with vigor those who seek violent vigilantism.”
“This defendant’s effort to solicit a murder for hire is a federal crime,” Joyce White Vance, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama said. “The prosecution here was swift and the punishment will be in a federal penitentiary. Future wrongdoers are on notice that we vigorously prosecute these crimes."
The FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Pat Meadows and John B. Felton of the Northern District of Alabama and Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney David Reese are prosecuting the case.
7th National Take Back Initiative to be held October 26thRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y.--U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. and Drug Enforcement Administration Resident Agent in Charge Michelle Spahn announced today that the public will have another opportunity to prevent prescription pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, or unwanted prescription drugs. The seventh National Take Back Initiative will take place this Saturday, October 26th from 10:00 A.M. to 2:00 P.M. The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.
During the first six National Take Back events since September 2010, Americans turned in nearly 2.8 million pounds—almost 1,409 tons—of prescription drugs. Over 27 tons were collected in Western New York during the first six take backs, a total that represents one of the highest in the nation.
Prescription drugs that languish in medicine cabinets create a public health and safety concern because they are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high and indicate that almost twice as many Americans (6.8 million) currently abuse prescription drugs than the number of those abusing cocaine, hallucinogens, heroin, and inhalants combined, according to the 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet.
DEA is in the process of drafting regulations to implement the Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act of 2010, which amends the Controlled Substances Act to allow an “ultimate user” (the patient or patient’s caregiver, including the owners of animals being treated by veterinarians) of controlled substance medications to dispose of them by delivering them to entities authorized by the Attorney General to accept them. The Act also allows the Attorney General to authorize long term care facilities to dispose of their residents’ controlled substances in certain instances.
The following is a list of local collection sites:Erie County Botanical Gardens, 2655 South Park Ave., Buffalo
St. Joseph’s Hospital, 2605 Harlem Rd., Cheektowaga
West Seneca Senior Center, 4620 Seneca St., West Seneca
Buffalo State College “C” Lot, 1300 Elmwood Ave., Buffalo
Kenmore Mercy Hospital, 2950 Elmwood Ave., Kenmore
West Herr Collision Center, 5140 Camp Road, Hamburg
Millard Fillmore Suburban Hospital, 1540 Maple Rd., Williamsville
DeGraff Memorial Hospital, 445 Tremont St. North Tonawanda
Twin District Fire Department, 4999 William St., Lancaster
Mercy Ambulatory Center, 3669 Southwestern Blvd, Orchard Park
Grand Island Town Hall, 2255 Baseline Rd., Grand Island
Lockport Plaza, South Transit and Willow Streets, Lockport
North Collins Police Department, 10543 Main St., North Collins
Former Niagara Falls Police Headquarters, 520 Hyde Park, Niagara Falls
Mt. St. Mary’s Hospital, 5300 Military Rd., Lewiston
Bertrand Chafee Hospital, 224 E. Main St., Springville
Gowanda Village Municipal Building, 27 East Main St., Gowanda
Cattaraugus Indian Reservation Health Center, 36 Thomas Indian School Drive, Irving
Pembroke Town Highway Barns, Routes 5 and 77, East Pembroke
Batavia Police Department, 10 W. Main St., Batavia
Arcade Police Station, 17 Church St., Arcade
Wyoming County Sheriff’s Department, 151 North Main St, Warsaw
Alstar Hqs. North, 738 Monroe St., Dunkirk
LeRoy Police Department, 3 W. Main St. Le Roy
Salamanca City Municipal Building, 225 Wildwood Ave., Salamanca
Lionel R. John Health Center, 987 R.C. Hoag Dr., Salamanca
Medina Fire Department, 600 Main St., Medina
Orleans County Public Safety Building, 13925 State Route 31, Albion
Geneseo Fire Department, 132 Center St., Geneseo
Holley Fire Department, 7 Thomas St., Holley
E. Avon Fire Department, 1615 W. Henrietta Road, Avon
Cuba Volunteer Fire Department, 51 East Main St., Cuba
Cattaraugus County Office Building, 1 Leo Moss Dr., Olean
Chautauqua Mall, 318 East Fairmount Ave., Lakewood
Brockport Police Department, 1 Clinton St., Brockport
Dansville Fire Department, 11 Franklin St., Dansville
Wellsville Fire Department, 20 S. Main St., Wellsville
Jamestown Pharmacy, 121 Liberty St., Jamestown
Monroe County Ecopark/Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, 10 Avion Dr., Rochester
Dansville Fire Department, 11 Franklin St., Dansville
Gates Police Department, 1605 Buffalo Rd., Gates
Brighton Police Department, 2300 Elmwood Ave., Brighton
Greece Police Department, 400 Island Cottage Rd., Greece
Almond Volunteer Fire Department, 1 Marvin Lane, Almond
East Rochester Police Department, 254 W. Ivy St., East Rochester
FF Thompson Hospital, 350 Parrish St., Canandaigua
Fairport Police Department, 31 S. Main St., Fairport
Webster Police Department, 226 Phillips Rd., Webster
Macedon Town Hall, 1620 Wayneport Rd., Macedon
Palmyra Police Department, 144 E. Main St. Palmyra
Wayne County Sheriff’s Office, Ontario Sub Station, 1850 Ridge Rd., Ontario
Wegman’s Plaza, 800 W. Miller St., Newark
Loson’s Big M Market, 33 Forgham St., Lyons
New York State Police, 3957 Rt. 104, Williamson
Yates County Sheriff's Department, 415 Liberty St., Penn Yan
Hammondsport Volunteer Fire Department, State Route 54, HammondsportSodus Police Department, 39 Gaylord St., Sodus
Tyrone Fire Station, 3600 State Route 226, Tyrone
Corning Police Department, 1 Civic Center Plaza, Corning
Wednesday 23 October 2013
Zachary T. Fardon Takes Oath of Office as U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of IllinoisRead the Press Release
CHICAGO ― Zachary T. Fardon, who served as a federal prosecutor for nearly a decade before entering private law practice, returned to government service today as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. Mr. Fardon, 47, took his oath of office from Chief U.S. District Court Judge Ruben Castillo after President Obama signed his commission.
“I am honored and excited to serve as United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. I spent my formative years as a prosecutor in this office, so I feel like I am back home. This is a great office, full of smart and passionate people. I look forward to continuing the office’s strong traditions of fairness and excellence in the pursuit of justice on behalf of the nine million residents of the Northern District of Illinois,” Mr. Fardon said.
A public investiture ceremony for Mr. Fardon is planned for the future but no date or details have yet been determined.
Gary S. Shapiro, who served as interim U.S. Attorney after Patrick J. Fitzgerald stepped down nearly 16 months ago, remains First Assistant U.S. Attorney. Mr. Fardon commended Mr. Shapiro for his stewardship of the office.
Mr. Fardon leads an office that is widely recognized for numerous significant investigations and prosecutions involving international terrorism and terrorism financing, public corruption, corporate fraud, violent crime, narcotics, and gangs. As U.S. Attorney, Mr. Fardon manages more than 300 employees, including approximately 170 authorized Assistant U.S. Attorney positions in Chicago and Rockford.
Mr. Fardon became an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Chicago in 1997 and tried several highprofile cases, including the 2005-06 corruption trial against former Illinois Governor George Ryan. From 2003 to 2006, he served as First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee in Nashville, where he supervised approximately 30 Assistant U.S. Attorneys in all federal criminal and civil matters. In 2007, he became a partner at Latham & Watkins LLP, where he chaired the Litigation Department in Chicago.
Mr. Fardon was born in Kansas City and raised in Knoxville, Tenn. He graduated in 1988 from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, where he also earned his law degree in 1992. He is married and has three children
Wisconsin Man Sentenced for Defrauding Local RetailersRead the Press Release
A man who defrauded local retailers by switching UPC codes on consumer products was sentenced today to more than one year in federal prison.
Jeremy J. Fishnick, age 27, from Lancaster, Wisconsin, received the prison term after a July 1, 2013, guilty plea to one count of wire fraud.
In a plea agreement, Fishnick admitted that, between at least July 2012 and November 20, 2012, he using home computer equipment and a printer to create fraudulent UPC codes on adhesive labels. He then entered retail stores and covered real UPC codes on higher‑priced models of certain products using the fraudulent UPC codes he created. In so doing, Fishnick caused the items to reflect substantially lower prices when electronically scanned at checkout. Fishnick admitted fraudulently purchasing products from stores in, at least, Dubuque, Iowa, Maquoketa, Iowa, Anamosa, Iowa, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Coralville, Iowa, Monticello, Iowa, and Prairie Du Chien, Wisconsin. Fishnick also admitted his scheme caused a loss to retailers of more than $30,000. Fishnick admitted that he sold or attempted to sell a substantial portion of the fraudulently-obtained items over the Internet.
Fishnick was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade. Fishnick was sentenced to fourteen months’ imprisonment to be followed by a three-year term of supervised release. A special assessment of $100 was imposed, and he was ordered to make $33,632.74 in restitution to victim retailers. The restitution amount included $9,912.75 to one retailer as compensation for costs incurred in investigating Fishnick’s offense. There is no parole in the federal system.
Fishnick was released on the bond previously set and is to surrender to the United States Marshal on November 13, 2013.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Peter Deegan and was investigated by the Dubuque, Iowa, Police Department; the Maquoketa, Iowa, Police Department; the Anamosa, Iowa, Police Department; the Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Police Department; the Coralville, Iowa, Police Department; the Monticello, Iowa, Police Department; the Vinton, Iowa, Police Department; the Lancaster, Wisconsin, Police Department; and the Prairie Du Chien, Wisconsin, Police Department.
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 13-1009 LRR.
Washington’s Largest Used Car Dealership Pleads Guilty to Financial Reporting CrimesRead the Press Release
The largest volume used car dealership in Washington, pleaded guilty and was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle for failure to file a monetary transaction report, announced U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan. ZEIN AUTOMOBILES, INC., d/b/a Independence Auto Sales and Best Bet Auto Sales with locations in Lynnwood and Everett, forfeited $1.5 million to the United States, paid a $250,000 fine and entered into a corporate integrity agreement to ensure the illegal conduct does not happen again. The car dealership was the subject of searches by law enforcement in September 2013.
“This resolution takes substantial profit from a business that flouted the law to fatten its bank account,” said U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan. “It should serve as a warning to others – we will enforce laws on currency reporting which are an important tool for keeping illegal conduct out of the stream of commerce.”
In the plea agreement the corporation admits that between January 2010 and September 2013, its employees and agents entered into cash sales of vehicles in excess of $10,000 and failed to report the cash sales to the IRS. In a search warrant affidavit describing the Drug Enforcement Administration led investigation, undercover officers and confidential sources repeatedly purchased vehicles for cash at the two dealerships. Posing as drug traffickers, the undercover agents told sales people they did not want the cash transactions reported. The undercover agents were very clear that they wanted the vehicles for drug trafficking purposes. The sales people assured the agents that they were familiar and comfortable with such transactions and proposed various schemes that they said would avoid the cash transactions reporting requirements. Such schemes are illegal.
Under the terms of the corporate integrity agreement, the company is required to keep a log and report every cash transaction in excess of $10,000. Both the sales managers and title clerks are required to ensure the reports are made to the IRS. During a two year probationary period, the company is subject to unannounced audits to ensure such reports are being made. The company has also agreed to publicize its guilty plea, penalties, and compliance plan in formats to be approved by U.S. Probation.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), the Seattle Police Department and the King County Sheriff’s Office.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kate Vaughan and Robert Westinghouse.
Two Port St. Lucie Residents Sentenced in Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Marijuana and Firearm ChargesRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Hugo J. Barrera, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Miami Field Office, William D. Snyder, Sheriff, Martin County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO), John A. Bolduc, Chief, Port St. Lucie Police Department (PSLPD), announce the sentencing of Antione Elie Sparks, 41, and Jon Scott Merritt, 44, both of Port St. Lucie. Sparks and Merritt were each sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez to a total of ten years in prison, followed by four years of supervised release. Sparks and Merritt also forfeited cash and a cache of weapons.
Sparks and Merritt had previously pled guilty to conspiracy to manufacture and possess with intent to distribute 100 or more plants of marijuana, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 846, 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B), and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(c)(1)(A)(ii).
According to the criminal complaints, MCSO deputies conducted a traffic stop of Antione Elie Sparks for speeding. During the traffic stop, a MCSO narcotics K-9 alerted for the presence of drugs. As a result, deputies conducted a search of the vehicle, and located approximately 120 grams of packaged marijuana. An inventory of the vehicle yielded Florida Power and Light bills for a residence in Port St. Lucie, as well as receipts from a hydroponics store for soil, nursery pots, LED lights, cloning gel and light bulbs, as well as receipts for several warehouse unit rentals in St. Lucie West. Deputies also recovered $3,900 during their inventory of the vehicle. Sparks admitted that there was additional marijuana and small marijuana plants growing at the residence.
Upon execution of the search warrant at the residence, detectives found loose marijuana and several plants, drug paraphernalia, a number of firearms and ammunition, including three pistols, three shotguns, two rifles and multiple magazines containing multiple rounds of ammunition and over $7,000 in U.S. currency.
Upon further investigation and execution of the search warrant at the storage units, detectives found a pistol, an AK-47 style rifle, an assault rifle, and a fully assembled Sig Sauer pistol with an obliterated serial number. In addition, detectives found a number of unassembled firearms, including several AK-47 kits, a shotgun, and revolvers.
Detectives also found approximately 380 grams of marijuana and three rooms that had been converted into marijuana grow rooms. Each grow room contained high intensity lighting, water irrigation systems, fans and climate control systems, timers, air filters, plastic buckets and marijuana plants with root systems. Detectives counted a total of 150 marijuana plants with root systems. PSLPD recovered multiple latent prints and partials from the grow equipment. A match was made between a recovered latent print and Jon Scott Merritt. Merritt was subsequently arrested at his residence where ATF agents found additional AK-47 type rifles and parts.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ATF, the Martin County Sheriff’s Office and the Port St. Lucie Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Carmen Lineberger.
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.
Two Men Admit Trafficking MarijuanaRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that OVES ST. ORBIN WRIGHT, 56, of Massapequa, N.Y., and KEVIN J. DUNBAR, 45, of Manchester, have pleaded guilty in Hartford federal court to marijuana distribution charges. WRIGHT pleaded guilty yesterday and DUNBAR pleaded guilty today.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on May 19, 2013, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CPB) agents in western Texas conducted a search of a tractor trailer and discovered approximately 315 pounds of marijuana secreted in a shipping crate. CBP agents contacted DEA agents in El Paso who determined that the crate was destined for a shipping facility in Enfield. On May 29, 2013, Connecticut DEA agents established surveillance at the Enfield shipping facility and observed WRIGHT and DUNBAR unpack the crate, load the contents into a van and travel to a storage facility in East Hartford where they were arrested.
WRIGHT and DUNBAR each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with the intent to distribute marijuana, a charge that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years and a fine of up to $1 million. They are scheduled to be sentenced in January by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford.
This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, with the assistance of U.S. Customs and Border Patrol. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey M. Stone and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Ahearn.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
[email protected]Two Maui Residents Found Guilty of Fraud Charges Related to Debt Elimination SchemeRead the Press Release
HONOLULU -- A federal jury yesterday found Mahealani Ventura-Oliver, 44, and Pilialoha K. Teves, 52, both of Maui, guilty of conspiracy and mail fraud offenses arising out of their marketing of a debt elimination scheme between 2008 and 2009. The jury also found Ventura-Oliver guilty of conspiring to submit false tax returns, and of submitting a false tax return.
Florence T. Nakakuni, United States Attorney for the District of Hawaii, said that according to evidence produced in court, Ventura-Oliver and Teves were part of a group known as Ko Hawaii Pae Aina, the Registry and Hawaiiloa Foundation. Between 2008 and 2009, the group held weekly seminars on Maui, where Ventura-Oliver and others spoke about Hawaiian history and culture, and royal land patents. The evidence showed that, in return for the payment of a fee, the group offered to provide distressed homeowners with “bonds” and other documents that would pay off their mortgages and forestall collection efforts. The “bonds” purportedly directed the United States Treasury Department or the State of Hawaii Comptroller of the Currency to make payments on behalf of the homeowners.
According to evidence presented at trial, Hawaiiloa Foundation collected approximately $468,000 from approximately 200 individuals who went through the debt elimination process. Many of the individuals tried to use the bonds, but ultimately lost their homes through foreclosure, or had to renegotiate loans.
The government presented evidence that, as part of its process, the Hawaiiloa Foundation also promoted a tax program whereby participants supposedly could seek refunds from the IRS for debts paid off with the purported bonds.
Following an 11 day trial, the jury found Ventura-Oliver guilty of conspiring to use fictitious financial instruments, 15 counts of mail fraud, one count of money laundering, one count of conspiring to submit false tax returns seeking $1.5 million in refunds from the IRS, and submitting one false tax return with her estranged husband, John Oliver, who pled guilty and testified at trial. Teves was convicted of conspiring to use fictitious financial instruments, and of 12 counts of mail fraud, and was acquitted of three counts of mail fraud.
Ventura-Oliver and Teves will be sentenced on February 10, 2014 by United States District Judge J. Michael Seabright. Ventura-Oliver faces the following penalties at sentencing: (1) a maximum sentence of five years on each of the conspiracy offenses, and the false claim offense; (2) up to 20 years on each of the 15 mail fraud offenses; and (3) up to 10 years on the money laundering offense of which she was convicted. Teves faces a maximum sentence of five years on the conspiracy charge, and up to 20 years on each of the 12 mail fraud offenses of which she was convicted. Each charge also carries a potential fine of up to $250,000.
The court will also have a hearing on whether the United States can forfeit property seized during the investigation of the case. The property includes approximately $84,000 in cash, more than $18,000 seized from bank accounts, gold coins worth over $36,000, and vehicles.
The investigation of this case was conducted jointly by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service -- Criminal Investigation, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the Maui Police Department. The prosecution was handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Larry Tong and Michael Nammar.
Two Charged with Placing “Skimmer” on Springdale ATM to Steal Bank Card InformationRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Fred Alverson
Public Affairs OfficerCINCINNATI – A federal grand jury has indicted Dimitar Angelov, 28 and Dimitar Kolev, 26, both of Chicago, for placing an electronic scanning receiver, known as a “skimmer”, and a hidden camera on an ATM at a Springdale, Ohio bank in order to steal account information of customers using the ATM.
Carter M. Stewart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Mark Porter, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Secret Service and Springdale Police Chief Michael Mathis announced the indictment today following the arraignment hearing for both men.
The one-count indictment charges them each with fraud in connection with access devices, a crime punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
According to court documents, Springdale Police officers responded to a call on September 28, 2013 that two individuals had been sitting in a car parked in a lot adjacent to a credit union ATM. The subjects were seen individually walking to the ATM and returning to the vehicle. Springdale officers later approached the men and found evidence of possible credit card fraud. Upon further investigation, law enforcement discovered the skimming device and a pinhole camera attached to the ATM.
Springdale officers and Secret Service agents arrested Angelov and Kolev on a federal complaint. They have been in custody since their arrest. The grand jury indicted them on October 16. They entered pleas today of not guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen Litkovitz, who ordered them held without bond pending trial. U.S. District Judge Michael R. Barrett will schedule a trial.
U.S. Attorney Stewart commended the cooperative ongoing investigation by Secret Service agents and Springdale officers, as well as the prompt action of nearby business owners. Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Mangan is prosecuting the case.
An indictment contains allegations and is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.