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Tuesday 22 October 2013
Cambria County Man Sentenced to Probation, Fined for Conspiring to Conceal Money from the IRSRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. - A resident of Vintondale, Pa., has been sentenced in federal court to probation and ordered to pay a fine in the amount of $2,500, on his conviction of conspiracy, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
United States District Judge Kim R. Gibson. imposed the sentence on Alvin Miller, 60.
According to information presented to the court, from June 9, 2007, to April 15, 2008, Miller conspired with others to defraud the United States by assisting a co-conspirator in concealing money from the Internal Revenue Service in order for the co-conspirator to avoid paying income tax.
Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie L. Haines prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
Mr. Hickton commended the Laurel Highlands Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and Ebensburg Borough Police Department for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Miller.
California Man Admits Role in Distributing Millions of Dollars’ Worth of Untaxed CigarettesRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A California man today admitted his role in a conspiracy to distribute untaxed contraband cigarettes from New Jersey to California, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced today.
Jia Yongming, 45, of Monterey Park, Calif., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Noel L. Hillman in Camden federal court to Count One of an Indictment charging him with conspiracy to ship, transport, receive, possess, sell, distribute and purchase more than 3.7 million untaxed cigarettes.
Yongming was arrested and charged in February 2011 along with Yazhou Wu, 29, of Diamond Bar, Calif., and Johnny Chan Koon Ha, 36, of Corona, Calif. Also charged was Ricky Le, 52, of Diamond Bar, Calif., who is currently not in the United States. Ha has since pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing. Wu fled after his initial appearance in court, and his whereabouts are currently unknown.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Most states, including California, require a stamp to be placed on packs of cigarettes indicating the appropriate state tax has been paid. From May 2009 through May 2011, California imposed a tax of $0.87 on each pack of cigarettes. As part of an FBI undercover investigation, the cigarettes, which had been shipped to Port Newark, N.J., from China, were taken by truck to the conspirators in California, where undercover FBI agents delivered them to the defendants and received payment of $225,000. The money paid to the FBI agents was their commission for delivering a total of five loads of cigarettes. The state of California lost more than $2 million in taxes as a result of this conspiracy.
The charge to which Yongming pleaded guilty is punishable by a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 29, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford; and special agents of HSI-ICE, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Andrew McLees, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dara Aquila Govan and Jonathan W. Romankow of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Organized Crime/Gangs Unit in Newark.
13-407Defense counsel: Thomas F.X. Dunn Esq., Glen Rock, N.J.
Yongming, Jia Indictment
Bucks County Man Charged with Creating Child PornRead the Press Release
Thomas Rafferty, 67 of Levittown, PA was charged today by Indictment with three counts of employing a minor to create an image of the minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct, five counts of creating obscene visual representations of children, and one count of possession of images of child pornography announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger.
If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 200 years imprisonment, with a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years, a mandatory minimum term of 5 years supervised release after release from prison, up to lifetime supervised release, a $2.25 million dollar fine, and a $900 special assessment.
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 case was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael L. Levy.
Click here to view the indictment
An Indictment, Information or Criminal Complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525Brothers Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Illegally Export Firearm Parts to ThailandRead the Press Release
Two brothers who were arrested in June 2013 in connection with a conspiracy to illegally ship firearms parts to Thailand, have pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Seattle to conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan. NARES LEKHAKUL, 36, a lawful permanent resident of Bellevue, Washington, pleaded guilty today and NARIS LEKHAKUL, 42, a Thai citizen arrested in June 2013 at SeaTac Airport pleaded guilty last week. Both men are scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones on January 24, 2014.
In their plea agreements the brothers admit that NARIS LEKHAKUL, while living in Thailand, identified the firearms parts he wanted ordered and shipped overseas. Initially the gun parts were sent to his brother NARES’ home in Bellevue, Washington, where NARES LEKHAKUL attempted to disguise the shipments which were sent on to Thailand. After one shipment was seized in 2011, NARIS LEKHAKUL recruited four other people to receive the shipments of firearms parts, disguise them, and send them on to Thailand. The co-conspirators did not obtain appropriate licenses to make the shipments. The co-conspirators would use fake names and fake invoices to try to avoid detection, and they packed various firearms parts in specific ways to try to avoid detection by x-ray scanners. Members of the group shipped various firearms parts with false labels. For example, in one instance they shipped magazines for .45 caliber handguns, while labeling them “Vented steel case for electronic components” or “replacement springs and metal caps for bottling machine.” Other shipments were labeled as “hobby parts,” or “glow in the dark marker sets.” In all, the group is believed to be responsible for more than 240 shipments of restricted firearms components. The defendants did not ship any assembled firearms or entire firearms disassembled.
Prosecutors have agreed to recommend a sentence of four years in prison for NARIS LEKHAKUL, and 30 months in prison for NARES LEKHAKUL. Judge Jones is not bound by the recommendation and can impose any sentence up to the five year maximum.
In addition to the LEKHAKUL brothers, these additional defendants have also pleaded guilty:
WITT SITTIKORNWANISH, 24, a U.S. citizen residing in the Los Angeles area;
WIMOL BRUMME, 41, a Thai citizen residing in Las Vegas;
SANGSIT MOWANNA, 35, a U.S. citizen residing in the Los Angeles area; and
SUPANEE SAENGUTHAI, 35, a Thai citizen residing in Berkeley, California.
The Department of State promulgates the United States Munitions List, which consists of categories of defense articles and services that cannot be exported without a license issued by the Department of State. The U.S. Munitions List includes the firearms’ parts and components shipped in this case. As a result, the export of firearms components requires an export license.
The case is being investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with assistance from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.Baltimore Man Exiled to 10 Years in Prison on Drug OffenseRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz sentenced Taji Hart, age 32, of Baltimore, today to 10 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release for possession with intent to distribute heroin.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Steven L. Gerido of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - Baltimore Field Division; Baltimore City State’s Attorney Gregg L. Bernstein; and Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony W. Batts.
According to his plea agreement, on July 27, 2012, after receiving information about a fight involving a man with a handgun who was driving a vehicle, police officers saw the vehicle in the 2200 block of West Fayette Street in Baltimore. The officers saw Hart drive the vehicle away. Officers stopped the vehicle in the 2100 block of West Saratoga Street and seized a loaded .40 caliber Glock handgun and a plastic bag with nine gel capsules containing heroin from the vehicle. Hart admits that he is a career offender. He has five previous drug convictions.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the ATF, Baltimore Police Department and Baltimore City State’s Attorney=s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Special Assistant United States Attorney H. Brandis Marsh, Jr., a cross-designated Baltimore City Assistant State’s Attorney assigned to Exile cases, who prosecuted the case.
Anchorage Heroin Ring sentenced in Federal CourtRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska - U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced today that Jared Thomas Bowers and Christopher Thomas Mejia, both residents of Anchorage, have been sentenced in federal court in Anchorage for their convictions of the crimes of drug trafficking conspiracy, attempted possession of heroin with intent to distribute, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. A federal jury of seven men and five women returned guilty verdicts for Bowers and Mejia on July 29, 2013.
Last week, Chief U.S. District Court Judge Ralph R. Beistline imposed a sentence of 144 months on 23 year-old Bowers. Today, Judge Beistline sentenced 24 year-old Mejia to 181 months in prison. Judge Beisline sentenced Mejia to an additional 6 months imprisonment for violation of supervised release in a previous federal case for his 2007 conviction of felon in possession of a firearm.
According to information presented to the court by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin White Bradley, who prosecuted the case, the evidence presented at trial established that Mejia and Bowers conspired to distribute approximately 97 grams of heroin. They supplied their co-defendant, Rhadames Marmolejos, Jr., with heroin on eight separate occasions, which Marmolejos then sold to an undercover agent working for the Drug Enforcement Administration. Trial testimony established that Bowers provided Marmolejos with heroin for seven of the drug deals. Mejia provided Marmolejos with heroin for one of the drug deals. On February 21, 2013, the United States Postal Service intercepted a package containing over one kilogram of heroin. Investigation revealed that Mejia intended to purchase one pound of that heroin for approximately $30,000. Law enforcement arrested Mejia and Bowers as the two waited in a vehicle to purchase the heroin. The two were in possession of approximately $27,000 in United States currency and a loaded .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol.
Prior to imposing sentence, Judge Beistline noted Bowers’ significant involvement in this drug trafficking conspiracy, as well as his management and supervision of co-defendant Marmolejos. In arriving at a sentence of 144 months, Judge Beistline emphasized the serious nature of the crime, as well as a need to deter further criminal activity. In sentencing Mejia, Judge Beistline noted a need to protect the community, in light of Mejia’s lengthy criminal history. Earlier this month, Marmolejos received a sentence of 84 months, after pleading guilty to the crime of drug trafficking conspiracy.
Ms. Loeffler commends the Drug Enforcement Administration and the United States Postal Inspection Service for the investigation leading to the convictions in this case. SAUSA Bradley is a prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office funded by the Municipality of Anchorage for the purpose of prosecuting gang-related and violent crime cases.
Monday 21 October 2013
Violent Federal Felon Sentenced to 28 Years in Prison for Attacks on Prison GuardsRead the Press Release
A federal felon who participated in a violent assault at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac, Washington in January 2012, was sentenced today to 28 years in prison, announced U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan. ROY SCOTT FRITTS, 35, is already serving a life without parole sentence in Wyoming for an attempted murder conviction. U.S. District Judge James L. Robart ordered that the 28 year sentence be served consecutive to the life sentence imposed in Wyoming.
“This sentence works to ensure a dangerous felon never returns to threaten society,” said U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan. “He persistently and repeatedly endangered the public, and in this case, the public servants we rely on to keep our prisons safe and secure. This violent and dangerous conduct will not be tolerated.”
According to records filed in the case, FRITTS and co-defendant Sabir Shabazz attacked a prison guard at the FDC on the morning of January 3, 2012. Shabazz beat the guard with a pipe. The men claimed the attack was an escape attempt, but video of the assault shows it was just a brutal attack. Other inmates intervened in the assault, likely saving the guard’s life. At the time of the assault, FRITTS was armed with a homemade knife called a shank. FRITTS threatened various officers with the shank during the melee. On July 10, 2013, FRITTS was convicted by jury verdict of one count of conspiracy to assault a federal officer, and three counts of assault of a federal officer with a dangerous weapon.
FRITTS had been sent to FDC SeaTac for a mental evaluation following a crime spree across five western states. FRITTS had absconded from parole in Oregon, stole a truck in Nebraska, shot and attempted to kill the driver who had given him a ride in Wyoming, carjacked a car in Utah and tried unsuccessfully to carjack a second vehicle. When arrested he was armed with a semi-automatic .45 caliber handgun.
In asking for the lengthy sentence prosecutors wrote to the court, “The attack on the officer was premeditated and carried out with shocking violence. The officer nearly died as a result of the attack and has been left permanently damaged. But for the intervention of other inmates, the officer would have been murdered. This was the worst officer involved assault in FDC SeaTac history. … Though FRITTS did not strike the blows, he is equally culpable. He helped plan out the attack, in anticipation of the assault he armed himself with a deadly weapon, and stood ready to assist while it was carried out.”
The FBI and Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) investigated the prison assault. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Bruce Miyake and Mike Lang.
Two Oakland Men Sentenced to 21 Months for Selling Crack Near Elementary SchoolRead the Press Release
OAKLAND – Adell Burrell and Antwon Graham were sentenced on October 3 and October 16, respectively, each to 21 months in prison, for possession with intent to distribute cocaine base within 1,000 feet of a school, United States Attorney Melinda Haag announced.
Burrell pleaded guilty on June 12, and Graham pleaded guilty on June 27, 2013. Both offenses occurred at a location on Sycamore Street in Oakland, which is within 1,000 feet of the St. Andrew’s Baptist Missionary Elementary School and Kindergarten. Burrell admitted at his change of plea hearing, that on November 5, 2012, he possessed 6.7 grams of cocaine base with the intent to distribute it to others. Graham admitted in a plea agreement, that on November 2, 2012, he knowingly sold 0.34 grams of cocaine base for $20.00.
Burrell, 26, and Graham, 24, both of Oakland, were indicted by a Federal Grand Jury on March 21, 2013.
Burrell’s sentence was handed down by The Honorable Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, U.S. District Court Judge, following a guilty plea to one count of violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 860(a) and 841(a)(1). Graham’s sentence was handed down by The Honorable Jeffrey S. White, U.S. District Court Judge, following a guilty plea to one count of violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 860(a) and 841(a)(1). Both defendants were also sentenced to six years of supervised release following their time in custody. Burrell and Graham were prosecuted as part of Operation Safe Schools, an ongoing series of cases spearheaded by the U.S. Attorney’s Office targeting drug trafficking near schools in high-crime areas.
Burrell has been in custody since June 13, and Graham has been in custody since May 1, 2013.
(Burrell indictment & warrant )
(Graham indictment & warrant )
Two More Romanian Nationals Sentenced for Obtaining Immigration Benefits as A Result of Marriage FraudRead the Press Release
BOISE — Victor Raul Fenesan, 32, and Claudia Luminita Beian, 34, Romanian nationals residing in Boise, Idaho, were sentenced today in federal court for obtaining a United States Visa by fraud and unlawful procurement of citizenship, respectively, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. The defendants were living in Blaine County at the time of the offense conduct. They were charged in separate indictments in September 2012, and pleaded guilty to the charges on August 12, 2013.
U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge sentenced Fenesan and Beian each to two years’ probation and imposed a $2,000 fine. Judge Lodge also entered an order revoking Beian’s U.S. citizenship. Fenesan did not attempt to obtain U.S. citizenship. Fenesan and Beian will be subject to immigration enforcement action by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
According to plea agreements filed in the cases, Fenesan and Beian admitted to marrying U.S. citizens in 2004 for the sole purpose of obtaining immigration benefits. Neither Fenesan nor Beian resided with their spouses as husband and wife, but rather continued to reside with each other. In April 2005, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) granted Fenesan and Beian lawful permanent resident Visas, which they would not have received had they disclosed the fraudulent nature of their marriages. In February 2010, Beian obtained naturalization as a United States citizen as a result of her fraudulent marriage.
“As this case demonstrates, abusing our immigration system to illegally obtain U.S. citizenship will not be tolerated,” said Brad Bench, special agent in charge of HSI Seattle, who oversees Idaho investigations. “These individuals will have a lifetime to contemplate the devastating consequences of manipulating the process, back in their home country and without the life they started to build in the U.S.”
The cases were investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Two More Defendants Sentenced in Staged Automobile Accident SchemeRead the Press Release
92 defendants have been charged to date in Operation Sledgehammer I-VI
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Michael B. Steinbach, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, Michael J. DePalma, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Jeff Atwater, Florida Chief Financial Officer, Florida Department of Financial Services, and Dave Aronberg, State Attorney, Office of the State Attorney for Palm Beach County, announce that defendants Wilfredo Sauceda, 33, of West Palm Beach, and Nelson Felix Martinez Torres, 47, also of West Palm Beach, were sentenced today by United States District Judge Kenneth A. Marra for their participation in an automobile insurance fraud scheme involving staged automobile accidents. Wilfredo Sauceda was sentenced to 40 months of incarceration, followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $643,964.09; Nelson Felix Martinez Torres was sentenced to 70 months of incarceration, followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,359,208.73.
Each of the defendants previously pled guilty to one count of conspiring to commit mail fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1341, all in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349; multiple counts of mail fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1341 and 2; one count of conspiring to commit money laundering, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1956(a)(1), all in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1956(h); and multiple counts of money laundering, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1956(a)(1)(A)(i), 1956(a)(1)(B)(i), 1956(a)(1)(B)(ii), and 2.
On September 30, 2013, Maria Testa Baceiro, a/k/a "Maria Testa," 29, of Miami, Olinda Rodriguez, 39, of West Palm Beach, and Yeisy Chouza, 31, of Miami, were sentenced by United States District Judge Kenneth A. Marra for their participation in the same scheme. Maria Testa Baceira was sentenced to 72 months of incarceration, followed by two years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $4,232,248.04; Olinda Rodriguez was sentenced to 50 months of incarceration, followed by two years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,447,139.23; and Yeisy Chouza was sentenced to 40 months of incarceration, followed by two years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $558,261.55. On October 8, 2013, Iris Roca, of Davie, was sentenced by United States District Judge Daniel T.K. Hurley for her participation in the same scheme. Iris Roca was sentenced to 50 months of incarceration, followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,135,577.23.
According to court documents, between approximately October 2006 and December 2012, the members of the conspiracy staged automobile accidents and thereafter caused the submission of false insurance claims through chiropractic clinics they controlled. To execute the scheme, Maria Testa Baceiro, one of the true owners of some of the chiropractic clinics involved in this scheme, and others, recruited individuals who had the medical or chiropractic licenses required by the State of Florida to open a clinic to act as "nominee owners" of the clinics. The defendants also recruited individuals, including defendants Yeisy Chouza, Wilfredo Sauceda, and Nelson Felix Martinez Torres, whom they referred to as "Perros" and "Perras" depending on their roles in the accidents, to participate in the staged accidents, and others to help the clinics launder the insurance proceeds. The defendants also hired complicit chiropractors and therapists, including licensed massage therapists Olinda Rodriguez and Iris Roca, who prescribed and billed for unnecessary treatments and/or for services that had not been rendered. Thereafter, complicit clinic employees prepared and submitted claims to the automobile insurance companies for payment for these unnecessary or non-rendered services. Defendants Yeisy Chouza, Wilfredo Sauceda, and Nelson Felix Martinez Torres also worked cashing checks for various chiropractic clinics. Twenty-one clinics participated in this scheme.
Starting with Operation Sledgehammer I in June 2011 and including the defendants charged in Operation Sledgehammer VI, 92 defendants have been charged for their participation in this automobile insurance fraud scheme. Of those 92 defendants, 56 have been charged federally by the U.S. Attorney's Office, resulting in court-ordered restitution of more than $5 million to the defrauded insurance companies. Thirty-six defendants have been charged by the Palm Beach County State Attorney's Office.
Mr. Ferrer commended the efforts of the FBI, IRS-CI, the Florida Department of Insurance Fraud, the Palm Beach County State Attorney's Office, and the Greater Palm Beach County Health Care Fraud Task Force for their outstanding work in this case. Mr. Ferrer also recognized the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) for its collaboration and assistance in this investigation. The federal cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney A. Marie Villafaña and the state cases are being prosecuted by the Palm Beach County State Attorney's Office.
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 Local Men Convicted of Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas– Carlos Cortinas, 40, and Mark Anthony Stokes, 35, of Three Rivers, have entered pleas of guilty to sexual exploitation of a child, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
During the pleas today, Cortinas and Stokes admitted that on May 13, 2013, police responded to a domestic violence call in Three Rivers. Stokes, who had been stabbed and cut by his wife, told officers that his wife had injured him after she discovered nude photos of minor female relative on a flash drive.
Stokes admitted to a sexual interest in children for the past 20 years and that he and his friend, Cortinas, had a previous conversation in which both discussed their mutual sexual interest in children.
Stokes told Cortinas he had nude images of the young female, which Cortinas asked to see. Stokes then sent some of the images of the child via text message from his cell phone. Within an hour, Cortinas then sent nude images of one of his minor female relatives as well. From that day forward, Stokes and Cortinas would send each other voyeur type images of these minor children taken without the their knowledge as well as other child pornography images downloaded from the Internet. Stokes stated that Cortinas also sent nude images of another child which he had taken. State search warrants were executed on both residences which resulted in the discovery of evidence related to the child pornography production described by Stokes. Senior U.S. District Judge John D. Rainey, who accepted the guilty pleas, has set sentencing for Feb. 18, 2014, at 4:30 p.m., at which time they each face a minimum of 15 and up to 30 years imprisonment. Both have been and will remain in custody pending that hearing.
This case, prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lance Duke and investigated by the FBI, 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."
Two Jackson County Men Plead Guilty to Methamphetamine ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Two Jackson County, Illinois, men pled guilty to an indictment, charging conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.
On October 9, 2013, and October 17, 2013, Donald Gregory, 47, of Murphysboro, and Daniel Loden, 30, of Grand Tower, entered guilty pleas to the one-count indictment charging conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine. The offense occurred between March 2011 and March 2013 in Jackson County. Gregory is facing a term in prison of 5-40 years, a $5,000,000 fine, and 4 years of supervised release. Loden is facing up to 20 years in prison, a $1,000,000 fine, and 3 years of supervised release. Both Gregory and Loden are being held without bond pending their January 2014 sentencing hearings.
The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office and Murphysboro Police Department.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Amanda A. Robertson.
Tomas Alvarado and Eliseo Lopez Martinez 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 21, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Sam E. Haddon, TOMAS ALVARADO, age 59, and ELISEO LOPEZ MARTINEZ, age 50, residents of Turlock, California, were sentenced.
ALVARADO was sentenced to a term of:
Prison: 360 months
Special Assessment: $100
Forfeiture: $56,000 and multiple firearms
Supervised Release: 5 years
MARTINEZ was sentenced to a term of:
Prison: 324 months
Special Assessment: $100
Forfeiture: $56,000 and multiple firearms
Supervised Release: 5 years
They were sentenced in connection with their guilty pleas to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances.
In an Offer of Proof filed by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph E. Thaggard and Brendan P. McCarthy, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
In late 2012, the FBI, DEA, the Montana Division of Criminal Investigation (MDCI), the ATF, various drug task forces based in Billings, the Billings Police Department, the Yellowstone County Sheriff(s Department, and the Montana Highway Patrol began to investigate the widespread distribution of methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin in an area stretching from Billings to the Bakken oil fields of northeastern Montana and western North Dakota. In March 2013, the Idaho State Police also joined the investigation.
As part of the investigation, on March 1, 2013, the Montana Highway Patrol stopped a vehicle driven by an unindicted coconspirator on Interstate 90 near Park City. The vehicle was subsequently searched and found to contain one-quarter pound of methamphetamine and a quantity of heroin the unindicted coconspirator said consisted of 80 grams.
The unindicted coconspirator admitted to distributing large amounts of heroin and methamphetamine. The unindicted coconspirator stated that the sources of supply for the drugs were (Mateo( and (Tomas.( The descriptions provided by the unindicted conspirator of (Mateo( and (Tomas( matched those people known to law enforcement officers in Billings as MARTINEZ and ALVARADO.
On March 11, 2013, Idaho State Police stopped a vehicle driven by ALVARADO in Power County, Idaho. An adult female was a passenger in the vehicle. ALVARADO said he and the passenger had driven from Billings to Nevada the previous day and were returning to Billings. A search of the vehicle ensued. The authorities found a .40 caliber handgun, three gross pounds of a substance that yielded a presumptive Narcotics Identification Kit (NIK) test result for the presence of methamphetamine, and two gross pounds of a substance that yielded a positive NIK test result for the presence of cocaine.
On March 12, 2013, the authorities, acting under the authority of a search warrant, searched a residence in Billings occupied by MARTINEZ. The officers recovered three handguns, over $56,000 in United States currency, two pounds of suspected cocaine, six pounds of suspected methamphetamine, and over 100 grams of suspected heroin.
The officers also searched a motor vehicle at or near MARTINEZ(s residence in Billings. That vehicle was associated with MARTINEZ. The officers found 16 total firearms, including handguns, shotguns, and rifles (including two semi-automatic, SKS assault-style rifles) in the vehicle.
MARTINEZ was taken into custody when the search warrant was executed on March 12, 2013. When interviewed, MARTINEZ stated he had moved to Montana two or three months earlier as part of plan whereby he and ALVARADO distributed methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin, and marijuana in the Billings area. MARTINEZ estimated that he and ALVARADO had sold approximately 25 pounds of methamphetamine over the preceding two months.
On March 12, 2013, the authorities interviewed ALVARADO. ALVARADO stated that he and MARTINEZ had distributed methamphetamine in Billings since approximately October 2012 and moved to Billings in November 2012 as part of the distribution scheme. ALVARADO detailed that, between October 2012 and March 12, 2013, he and MARTINEZ distributed at least 80 pounds of methamphetamine to subordinate drug dealers in Montana.
On March 12, 2013, the authorities also interviewed MARTINEZ. MARTINEZ admitted that he had moved to Montana two to three months earlier and participated in a scheme whereby MARTINEZ and ALVARADO distributed methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin, and marijuana in Montana.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that they will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, they do have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.
This investigation was a part of Project Safe Bakken, which is a cooperative effort between the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), the U.S. Border Patrol, the U.S. Marshal's Service, the Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division (EPA-CID), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Montana Division of Criminal Investigation (MDCI), the Montana Highway Patrol, the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), the Billings Police Department, the Yellowstone County Sheriff's Office, and the Idaho State Police.
Today's sentence is a product of diligent work by the very dedicated agents who have been joined together under the banner of Project Safe Bakken. As the work of this team - which includes law enforcement professionals from all branches of local, state, and federal law enforcement - goes forward, the people of Montana and North Dakota can expect more cases from affected communities. That is the mission and commitment of Project Safe Bakken." said U.S. Attorney Michael W. Cotter.
Texas Man Sentenced for Part in Drug Conspiracy Distribution RingRead the Press Release
LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that Fernellis Woods, 37, of Irving, Texas, was sentenced on October 18, 2013 by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote to 130 months in prison with five years of supervised release for conspiracy with intent to distribute and distribution of cocaine. He pleaded guilty May 15, 2013.
Woods along with co-defendants, German Rodriguez, Tyrone Thibeaux, John Dauphin and Glenn Charles were indicted in April 2012 for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute approximately 5 kilograms of cocaine between August 2008 and April 2011. According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, Rodriguez, of Houston, Texas, supplied multi-kilogram quantities of cocaine to a large scale Lafayette, La. drug trafficking/distribution organization including Woods and Thibeaux. On several occasions, Woods directed Charles to purchase cocaine from Rodriguez’s associate in Houston for distribution in the Lafayette area. On March 2, 2011, Charles delivered $44,000 to Rodriguez’s associate for payment of 2 kilograms of cocaine; on March 15, 2011, Charles delivered $36,000 to Rodriguez’s associate for payment of cocaine, and on March 30 2011, Charles picked up 2 kilograms of cocaine from Rodriguez’s associate to be delivered to Lafayette associates, to include Woods. Charles was stopped and arrested on the way to Lafayette. The approximate value of all the cocaine transferred from March 2, 2011 to March 30, 2011 was more than $115,000.Rodriguez, Dauphin and Charles previously pleaded guilty, and Dauphin is currently scheduled for sentencing on Feb, 14, 2014. Dates for Rodriguez and Charles’ sentencings, and Thibeaux’s trial have not been set.
Woods was arrested as part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Carencro Louisiana Police Department, the Houston Texas Police Department and the Waller County Texas Sheriff’s Office participated in this OCDETF investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Howard C. Parker is prosecuting the case.
The OCDETF program is a joint federal, state and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking and is the nation’s primary tool for disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations, targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations, and coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources to disrupt or dismantle the targeted criminal organization and seize their assets.
Texas Man Pleads GuiltyIn Dog Fighting CaseRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Texas man has pleaded guilty to holding a dog fight at his home, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said today.
Vertrick Jordan, 47, Tyler, Texas, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to transport animals across state lines to participate in dog fighting. In his plea, Jordan admitted he conspired with co-defendants Pete Davis of Kansas City, Mo., and Melvin Robinson of Kansas City, Kan., to hold a dog fight at his residence in Smith County, Texas, on March 23, 2013. When agents raided the dog fight, 30 people were detained and several more fled the property on foot. Agents found a dog fighting pit had been built on the property. Two trophies were found next to the pit.Investigators learned Jordan had received a call March 19 and agreed to allow the dog fight to take place on his property. He was told the fight would be a “grand championship” match between two dogs that had won four previous fights to qualify. He was told the fight would be very private with only a few people attending. Those attending paid $30 to $40 each at the gate the night of the fight.
Sentencing is set for Jan. 21, 2014. Both parties have agreed to recommend a sentence of probation, 50 hours of community service and three years of supervised release. Jordan also agreed to a three-year prohibition against owning dogs.
Co-defendants include:
Pete Davis, who was sentenced Oct. 10 to 16 months in federal prison.
Melvin Robinson, who was sentenced Oct. 10 to 10 months in federal prison.Grissom commended Assistant U.S. Attorney Tris Hunt and the following agencies that contributed to the investigation: The FBI, the Kansas City (KS) Police Department, the Harrison County (MO) Sheriff's Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the Texas Department of Public Safety - Narcotics and Highway Patrol, East Texas HIDTA, the FBI Dallas Division - East Texas Resident Agencies, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department - Game Wardens, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice - OIG, the Lindale Police Department, the Smith County Sheriff=s Office, the Dallas Police Department and the Dallas County Sheriff=s Office and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty To Animals.
Sugar Land Physician Sentenced to Federal Prison for Diagnostic Testing ScamRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Donald Gibson II, 57, of Sugar Land, is headed to prison following his conviction of conspiracy to commit health care fraud relating to medically unnecessary diagnostic testing and physical therapy, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today. Gibson entered a plea of guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud on April 1, 2013.
Today, U.S. District Judge Lynn H. Hughes, who accepted the guilty plea, took into consideration Gibson’s cooperation with federal authorities and handed him a sentence of 52 months in federal prison. Judge Hughes also ordered restitution in the amount of $6,943,478.87. The United States previously seized approximately $2.62 million in Gibson’s assets and froze another $505,455 Medicare was to pay to Gibson. As a result, these two amounts totaling $3,129,175 will be applied to Gibson’s restitution and subsequently returned to Medicare program.
As part of the scheme to defraud, Gibson ordered, prescribed and authorized medically unnecessary diagnostic tests and other procedures which included allergy tests, pulmonary function tests, vestibular tests, urodynamic tests and physical therapy, among others. These services were then billed to Medicare and Medicaid for payment under Gibson’s billing number. Gibson worked in conjunction with the owners and operators of medical clinics and diagnostic testing centers in the Houston area. As part of the scheme, Medicare patients were paid to show up at the clinics for testing. Patient recruiters were also paid for recruiting and bringing patients to the clinics for the unneeded testing.
From January 2007 through January 2012, Gibson caused more than $19.4 million in medical claims to the Medicare and Texas Medicaid Programs. As a result, Medicare deposited approximately $8.5 million into a bank account owned and controlled by Gibson.
Gibson’s co-defendant, Sunday Joseph Edem, is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Hughes on Nov. 18, 2013.
This case is the result of a joint investigation involving multiple federal and state agencies including agents and investigators of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, Railroad Retirement Board, Secret Service, Drug Enforcement Administration, FBI and the Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Blan and Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Leuchtmann are prosecuting this case with Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristine Rollinson overseeing the asset forfeiture.
Shawneetown Man Sentenced on Methamphetamine and Ammunition OffensesRead the Press Release
On October 17, 2013, Michael A. Lovell, 35, of Shawneetown, Ill., was sentenced in United States District Court in Benton on a three-count indictment charging him with conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine-making materials, and being a felon in possession of ammunition, announced Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois.
Lovell was sentenced to a total of 151 months in prison, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release. Lovell was also fined $600. Evidence at the plea and sentencing hearings established that, between August 2010 and August 7, 2012, Lovell was involved with others in the manufacture of methamphetamine in Saline and Johnson Counties. On May 16, 2011, Saline County officers found Lovell passed out in the driver’s seat of a vehicle with the motor running and the car in gear. When Lovell and the vehicle were searched, officers located methamphetamine, methamphetamine-making materials, and ammunition. On August 7, 2012, Lovell was arrested in possession of a methamphetamine lab and methamphetamine-making materials in Johnson County. Lovell received an enhanced sentence based on his classification as a Career Offender.
The investigation was conducted by the Southern Illinois Drug Task Force, Johnson County Sheriff’s Office, Vienna Police Department, Saline County Sheriff’s Office, Illinois State Police Methamphetamine Response Team, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
The case was assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Amanda A. Robertson for prosecution.
Randolph County Woman Pleads Guilty to Methamphetamine OffensesRead the Press Release
On October 17, 2013, Rachel S. Holt, 40, Sparta, Illinois, pled guilty to three methamphetamine-related offenses, announced Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois.
Holt pled guilty to a three-count indictment charging conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine and two counts of possession of pseudoephedrine knowing that it would be used to manufacture methamphetamine. Evidence at the plea hearing established that, between 2009 and March 2013, Holt was involved with others in the manufacture of methamphetamine in in Jackson, Randolph, and St. Clair Counties. On March 17, 2010, Holt obtained pseudoephedrine at stores in both Sparta and Belleville. On September 30, 2011, Holt and four co-conspirators purchased pseudoephedrine together at Carbondale and Murphysboro stores. The pseudoephedrine was obtained for the purpose of manufacturing methamphetamine. Holt is currently being held without bond pending a January 30, 2014, sentencing hearing. At that time, Holt faces 5-40 years in prison, 4 years of supervised release and up to a $5,000,000 fine.
The investigation was conducted by the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Randolph County Sheriff’s Office, Murphysboro Police Department, Sparta Police Department, and Drug Enforcement Administration.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Amanda A. Robertson.
Prosecution of Violent Group That Commited Armed Robberies in Iowa and Nebraska Concluded with A Combined Sentences of More Than 139 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
The Sarg’s Mini Mart and Seoul Foods Robberies Investigations have been completed. Sioux City Police Chief Doug Young and United States Attorney’s Office Sioux City Branch Chief Tim Duax reported the results of the investigation at a press conference held at the Sioux City Police Department on Friday October 18, 2013.
On October 11, 2013 the last of the conspirators responsible for the June 19, 2012 Hobbs Act robbery of Seoul Foods in South Sioux City, Nebraska, the July 13, 2012 Hobbs Act robbery of Sarg’s Mini Mart in Sioux City, Iowa and other crimes as well (e.g., a large gun-burglary, a drive-by shooting, and an aborted robbery) was sentenced in federal court to 312-months in prison. This dangerous interstate criminal conspiracy was brought to justice by a strong interagency and intergovernmental partnership. The community can be proud of how its governments (city, county, state, and federal) worked together to quickly mitigate this threat and solve these crimes even as members of the conspiracy counted on state lines to interrupt and complicate the investigation and protect them from justice.
Summary of Facts
At trial, the change of plea hearings, and the sentencings of the defendants the United States revealed the following:
Sometime before June 19, 2012, David Johnson, Rudy Johnson, and other men committed a home burglary in Sioux City, Iowa and stole a semi-automatic rifle with two magazines (each capable of carrying 24 rounds of ammunition) and 17 other firearms.
Rudy Johnson kept this weapon at his home until sometime after June 19, 2012 when he unwittingly sold it (and the 16 other weapons) to law enforcement. Subsequently, law enforcement covertly bought another short-barreled shotgun, a semi-automatic assault rifle, and a pistol from Rudy Johnson and discovered Rudy Johnson’s firearms and drug supplier in Omaha, Nebraska.
This supplier was Troy Gee. Eventually law enforcement bought another 14 firearms, 346 rounds of ammunition, 2 bullet proof vests and two ounces of crack from Troy Gee.
Meanwhile, on two other occasions, also before June 19, 2012, David Johnson, Joshua Fields, Rudy Johnson, Austin Peters, and perhaps other associates, participated in an aborted robbery and a completed drive-by shooting. Defendant acknowledges he knew of the completed drive-by shooting before he joined the robbery conspiracies.
On June 19, 2012, Christopher Bailey, Joshua Fields, David Johnson, Rudy Johnson, Terrence Miles, and Austin Peters entered, surveilled and later used the (now shortened) stolen semi-automatic rifle to rob the clerks at Seoul Foods in South Sioux City, Iowa (a business then engaged in interstate commerce). The clerks and their children (ages 4, 10, 12, and 14) were inside the store at the time. Video surveillance of Seoul Foods revealed the victims were all forced to the floor at gun-point. Christopher Bailey pumped (i.e., readied for firing) and aimed a bb-gun rifle (that looked like a semi-automatic rifle) and robbed the clerks Seoul Foods. David Johnson carried the shortened semiautomatic rifle during the robbery. Josh Fields carried a pistol-styled bb-gun. Terence Miles had a bar or club and Rudy Johnson had a knife. Austin Peters was the "look-out and getaway driver."
The men escaped to Sioux City, Iowa after the robbery (which is also where the men had earlier planned the robbery and acquired weapons for the robbery). As they fled, one of the confederates explained they would be safe in Iowa because different states had different laws and cops. The money was put into equal piles, by denominations, and dealt out like cards equally to all participants in Josh Fields' Kitchen.During all the above, Paige Mathison and David Johnson were romantically involved and cohabitating. After the Seoul Foods Robbery, Austin Peters who had been the look-out and getaway driver for that robbery, left Sioux City, Iowa, and Rudy Johnson, who had provided the shortened-rifle for the Seoul Foods Robbery, withdrew it from the group's possession. Paige and Dustin Mathison, however, were both still in Sioux City, and Ms. Mathison had a car.
Mathison knew David Johnson, Joshua Fields, Christopher Bailey, Terrence Miles, and Austin Peters (at least) robbed the Seoul Foods in South Sioux, City, Nebraska, on June 19, 2012, and that - after this - Johnson, Fields, and Bailey had a "hit list" of businesses they were considering robbing.
On a handful of occasions, Mathison drove Josh Fields and David Johnson around scouting "licks" (i.e., businesses they might rob) and discussing how to conduct the various robberies. During these trips the hunting party was armed with a sawed-off shotgun with an obliterated serial number, that she had acquired from her brother, Dustin Mathison.
Mathison, Johnson and Fields discussed robbing and scouted (1) a bank in Correctionville (where Mathison and Johnson had once lived); (2) a bank and (3) a Pump 'N Pack in the Morningside area of Sioux City, Iowa and, of course, (4) Sarg's Mini Mart.
Finally, on July 13, 2012, Mathison, Johnson, Fields, and Bailey armed themselves with Dustin Mathison's sawed-off shotgun and loaded into Paige Mathison's car. They prowled Sioux City, Iowa looking for targets until they selected Sarg's: a site they had staked out the night before. Paige Mathison dropped off Johnson, Fields, and Bailey in an alley about a block from the store, so they could enter Sarg's Mini Mart with the sawed-off shotgun. She then relocated her car from the insertion point to the predetermined extraction point (much nearer the store).
Inside Sarg's the three men entered and waited to rob the store-clerk with the firearm (then secreted in the sleeve of Josh Field's shirt). When the store proved too busy, the men stepped outside, waited, passed the weapon around, and finally reentered. Christopher Bailey aimed the sawed-off shotgun directly at the clerk's face. He told police he thought the shotgun was loaded with a yellow shotgun shell at the time.
After the robbery, Paige Mathison picked up her confederates and drove them away while they ducked down at times to avoid detection.
Later that day, Mathison attempted to conceal the crime by returning the sawed-off shotgun to her brother (from whom she had acquired it), and checking one of her confederates into a hotel room registered in her name.
Results
The investigation resulted in the following convictions and sentences:
Joshua Fields pled guilty on February 26, 2013, and on August 15, 2013, Joshua Fields was sentenced to 300 months’ imprisonment for Conspiracy to Commit Robbery; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence; Possession of a Short-Barreled Rifle; Conspiracy to Commit Robbery; Robbery; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence; and Possession of a Short-Barreled Shotgun, to be followed by 5-years supervised release. A special assessment of $700 was imposed.
David Johnson pled guilty on January 14, 2013, and on August 15, 2013, Johnson was sentenced to 343 months’ imprisonment for Conspiracy to Commit Robbery; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence; Possession of a Short-Barreled Rifle; Conspiracy to Commit Robbery; Robbery; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence; and Possession of a Short-Barreled Shotgun, to be followed by 5-years supervised release. A special assessment of $700 was imposed.
Rudy Johnson pled guilty on February 20, 2013, and on August 15, 2013, was sentenced to 194 months’ imprisonment for Conspiracy to Commit Robbery; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence; and Possession of a Short-Barreled Rifle, to be followed by 5-years supervised release. A special assessment of $400 was imposed.
Dustin Mathison pled guilty on May 2, 2013, and on May 30, 2013, was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment for Possession of a Short-Barreled Shotgun, to be followed by two-years supervised release. A special assessment of $100 was imposed.
Paige Mathison was convicted by jury at trial on June 19, 2013, and on August 21, 2013, was sentenced to 147 months’ imprisonment for Conspiracy to Commit Robbery; Robbery; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence; and Possession of a Short-Barreled Shotgun, to be followed by 5-years supervised release. A special assessment of $400 was imposed.
Terrence Miles pled guilty on March 13, 2013, and on August 15, 2013, was sentenced to 118 months’ imprisonment for Conspiracy to Commit Robbery; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence; and Possession of a Short-Barreled Rifle, to be followed by five-years supervised release. A special assessment of $300 was imposed.
Austin Peters pled guilty on March 26, 2013, and on August 15, 2013, was sentenced to 118 months’ imprisonment for Conspiracy to Commit Robbery; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence; and Possession of a Short-Barreled Rifle, to be followed by five-years supervised release. A special assessment of $300 was imposed.
Christopher Bailey pled guilty on February 26, 2013, and on October 11, 2013, was sentenced to 312 months’ imprisonment for Conspiracy to Commit Robbery; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence; Possession of a Short-Barreled Rifle; Conspiracy to Commit Robbery; Robbery; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence; and Possession of a Short-Barreled Shotgun, to be followed by 5-years supervised release. A special assessment of $700 was imposed.
Additionally, in the District of Nebraska, on October 7, 2013, Troy Gee was sentenced to 84 months’ imprisonment, for the firearms and drug trafficking offenses discovered during this investigation, to be followed by 5-years supervised release. A special assessment of $500 was imposed.
Restitution obligation of $9000 payable to Northeast Nebraska Insurance shall be joint and several with the following co-defendants: Austin Peters; Joshua Fields; Christopher Bailey; Rudy Johnson; Terrence Miles; and David Johnson.
Restitution obligation of $600 payable to Sarg’s Mini Mart shall be joint and several with the following co-defendants: Joshua Fields; David Johnson; Christopher Bailey; and Paige Mathison.
There is no parole in the federal system.
“This dangerous criminal conspiracy was brought to justice as a result of excellent cooperation among federal, state and local law enforcement,” said United States Attorney Sean R. Berry. “The community can be proud of how its law enforcement agencies worked together to quickly solve these crimes and prevent further violence.”
Fields, Johnson, Johnson, Mathison, Mathison, Miles, Peters, and Bailey are being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until they can be transported to a federal prison.
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is No. CR12-4083-MWB.
The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a cooperative local, state, and federal program aimed at the enhanced prosecution of gun and violent crimes. The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, The Iowa Department of Public Safety, the Sioux City, Iowa Police Department, the South Sioux City, Nebraska Police Department, the Woodbury County Iowa Attorney’s Office, and the Dakota County Nebraska Attorney’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Robert Sigler (in Omaha Nebraska) and Forde Fairchild.Portland Man Charged with Aiming a Laser Pointer at AircraftRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Ore. - Stephen Francis Bukucs, 39, a resident of Northeast Portland, was arrested in Portland on Friday evening, October 18, 2013, on charges of aiming a laser pointer at two aircraft. A federal indictment, unsealed this morning by the court, alleges Bukucs aimed a laser pointer at United Airlines Flight 1406 and JetBlue Flight 1205 in Portland on October 13, 2013.
Bukucs is being held in custody at the Multnomah County Detention Center and will have his first court appearance today at 1:30 p.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dennis M. Hubel for arraignment on the indictment.
Knowingly aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft is a felony offense under federal law, carrying a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The arrest is the result of a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Port of Portland Police, and the Portland Police Bureau. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office also provided substantial assistance.
An indictment is only an accusation of a crime, and a defendant should be presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U. S. Attorney Stephen F. Peifer
For more information, please see the attached indictment Here
Philadelphia Man Sentenced on Drug ChargeRead the Press Release
Jackson, Miss - Dwight Deshay Willis, 29, of Philadelphia, Mississippi, was sentenced in U.S. District court today to 82 months in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release for possession with intent to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine, announced U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis. Willis entered a guilty plea before U.S. District Judge Daniel P. Jordan III on July 31, 2013.
Willis was arrested following a traffic stop in August, 2012 when he was found to be in possession of over 200 grams of methamphetamine with a purity of over 90%.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics and the Neshoba County Sheriff’s Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Chalk.###
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Permian Basin Men Convicted in Multi-Million Dollar Bank Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Raymond Holguin, Jr., of Odessa, Texas, faces up to 30 years in federal prison after pleading guilty this morning to defrauding My Community Federal Credit Union of millions of dollars announced United States Attorney Robert Pitman and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Douglas E. Lindquist, El Paso Division.
Holguin, age 35, was the third man to enter a plea to conspiracy to commit bank fraud in connection with this investigation. Michael Franco, age 40, and Gustavo Pizarro, age 37, both of Midland, previously entered guilty pleas to the same charge and are awaiting sentencing.
According to court records, beginning in April 2007, Holguin, Pizarro and Franco engaged in an 18-month-long scheme that defrauded the FDIC-insured financial institution through the issuance of fraudulent car loans. Holguin, operator of Motor City, an auto dealership in Odessa, TX; Pizarro, General Sales Manager at Motor City; and, Franco, a loan officer at My Community Federal Credit Union, all devised a plan to approve car loans for customers who did not meet the credit union’s lending standards. Holguin and Pizarro presented auto loan applications to Franco that included false information such as inflated income. Holguin and Pizarro would also add amenities to the cars that did not exist in an effort to increase the value of the car and receive a larger loan amount. Franco never verified any of the information contained in the loan documents before processing the loans and, in return, was paid a kickback by Holguin for every car loan that was approved. The scheme resulted in Franco approving more than 300 fraudulent car loans on behalf of Holguin and Pizarro which led to a loss at My Community Federal Credit Union of approximately $3.9 million dollars.Franco is scheduled to be sentenced on November 22, 2013 before United States District Judge Robert A. Junell. Pizarro is scheduled for January 9, 2014. A sentencing date for Holguin has yet to be scheduled.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney V. LaTawn Warsaw.
Parkersburg Man with Kilo of Cocaine, Firearm Sentenced to More Than 22 Years in Prison on Federal ChargesRead the Press Release
Curry fired a .40 caliber pistol during attempt to escape police custody
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Parkersburg man who possessed more than a kilo of cocaine during a May drug buy was sentenced today in federal court in Charleston to a total of 22 years and seven months in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Richard Curry, Jr., also known as “Cheese” and “Curtus Javon McDonald,” previously pleaded guilty in July to possession with intent to distribute cocaine and discharging a firearm during a drug trafficking crime. On May 3, 2013, a confidential informant working with the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT) arranged to purchase cocaine from Curry. Police observed Curry, who was driving a tan Hummer SUV at the time, arrive in the parking lot of the informant’s Charleston apartment complex. Curry, 31, later entered the informant’s residence where he was immediately taken into custody by police. Curry, who began resisting arrest, fired a single shot from a Taurus .40 caliber pistol that he had hidden inside of his jacket. No one was injured as a result of the shooting. Police determined that the bullet entered into the floor of the residence.
“Time and time again, Mr. Curry has broken our federal drug laws,” U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin said. “In fact, this is his third felony drug conviction. Now he will have more than 22-plus years in prison to think about what he did.”
Police conducted a search of the defendant and found a package wrapped in electrical tape hidden on Curry’s person. The package contained cocaine weighing 1.2 kilograms.
Police also obtained a search warrant for the defendant’s Hummer SUV. During a search of the vehicle, officers found 68 grams of crack cocaine and 73 grams of cocaine. Officers performed a check of the vehicle’s registration and determined that it had been registered to Curtus Javon McDonald.
On May 6, 2013, Curry appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Dwayne L. Tinsley for an initial appearance on a criminal complaint that was filed against him. During the hearing, Curry represented to the Court that his name was Curtus Javon McDonald. However, after a fingerprint scan was performed on the defendant by the United States Marshals Service, the defendant’s true identity was determined to be that of Richard L. Curry, Jr.
Curry is responsible for distributing cocaine to a confidential informant on at least six other occasions. During the illegal drug transactions, Curry distributed half-kilogram quantities of cocaine in exchange for cash.
In today’s hearing, United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston sentenced the defendant to a total of 271 months in prison: 151 months for one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and 120 months for using, carrying, and discharging a firearm during a drug trafficking crime. Judge Johnston ordered the prison sentences to be served consecutively.
The investigation was conducted by MDENT and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman handled the prosecution.
Omaha Felon Convicted of Possessing a Firearm Sentenced to PrisonRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced today that the Honorable Laurie Smith Camp, U.S. District Court Judge, sentenced Thomas Ray Coonce, 58, to 24 months imprisonment to be followed by 3 years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay a $100 special assessment, following his conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
In July 2011, a cooperating witness working with law enforcement bought ½ gram of methamphetamine from Coonce. After Coonce asked the cooperator if he wanted to buy a gun, Omaha Police officers obtained a search warrant for Coonce’s residence. The warrant was served and officers located 13 firearms and one that had previously been reported stolen. Federal law makes it a felony for anyone who has been convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm.
The Omaha Police Department was responsible for the investigation of this case.
Ohio Woman Pleads Guilty to Submitting More Than $164,000 of False Insurance Claims to the U.S. Postal Service-Falsely Claimed That Parcels Were Damaged or Lost in the Mail-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Levette J. Douglas, 35, of Toledo, Ohio, pled guilty today to a federal charge of conspiracy to commit mail fraud for her role in a scheme that defrauded the U.S. Postal Service out of over $164,000 through the submission of false insurance claims.
The guilty plea, which took place in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, was announced by U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Paul L. Bowman, Special Agent in Charge, Capital Metro Area Field Office, U.S. Postal Service, Office of the Inspector General.
As part of the plea agreement, Douglas agreed to $164,859 in criminal forfeiture and restitution. Under voluntary federal sentencing guidelines, she faces between 21 and 27 months in prison. The Honorable Rudolph Contreras scheduled sentencing for Jan 16, 2014.
According to the government’s evidence, from April 2010 to July 2013, Douglas and her co-conspirators submitted false claims to the Postal Service for allegedly damaged or lost parcels. As part of this scheme, Douglas and others purchased insurance for approximately 325 parcels that were sent through the mail. They later falsely claimed that the parcels were damaged or lost, often submitting forged or fictitious documents to support their claims.
For example, on one occasion, Douglas submitted a false affidavit purporting to be from a postal letter carrier in support of a claim that a parcel was not delivered. The affiant, allegedly a postal letter carrier with the initials M.M., stated that she had not delivered any parcels to the recipient for several months. The affiant also provided a phone number in case there were questions. That phone number was Douglas’s phone number. In fact, the parcel in question was delivered and the recipient signed a delivery receipt.
As a final part of this scheme, Douglas also mailed to the Postal Service’s accounting department forged internal postal forms purporting to be from Postal Service employees verifying the false claims. In total, the Postal Service paid $164,859 based on these false claims.
In announcing the guilty plea, U.S. Attorney Machen and Special Agent in Charge Bowman commended the investigative work of Special Agent Jason Manning of the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General. They also praised the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Corinne Kleinman and Nicole Wattelet; Criminal Investigator Matthew Kutz; Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Lucas, who worked on forfeiture issues, and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Johnson, who is prosecuting the case.
13-355Ohio Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Charge in June 2013 Incident at White House ComplexDefendant Hoped to Spray-Paint the White House, Crashed Unattended Jeep in Hopes of Diverting Law EnforcementRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Joseph Clifford Reel, 32, of Kettering, Ohio, pled guilty on Oct. 4, 2013 to a federal charge stemming from an incident in which he rigged his Jeep to travel, unattended, toward the White House, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Kathy A. Michalko, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Office of the U.S. Secret Service.
Reel pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to a charge of assaulting, impeding, intimidating, and interfering with an officer or employee of the United States with a dangerous weapon. The plea agreement, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for Reel to be sentenced to 35 months of incarceration, to be followed by five years of supervised release. The plea agreement also calls for Reel to pay $5,345 in restitution to the U.S. Park Service for the damage he caused in the incident. The Honorable Rudolph Contreras scheduled sentencing for Jan. 10, 2014.
According to a statement of offense, signed by the defendant as well as the government, Reel left his residence in Ohio on June 6, 2013, in his 2008 Jeep Patriot, heading to Washington, D.C. for the purpose of spray-painting the “Don’t Tread on Me” snake on the White House residence, believing the action would lead others to “stand up against government.”
On June 9, 2013, shortly after 3 a.m., Reel rigged his Jeep to crash into the White House complex. The vehicle was traveling at about 40 mph upon impact.
Reel, who was not in the Jeep, had affixed a wooden block to the accelerator and reached into the vehicle to shift it into drive. The vehicle, which Reel had parked on Pennsylvania Avenue near the White House, then began moving toward the White House complex, specifically, a Secret Service guard post. At the time, an officer was on-duty and inside the guard booth. At collision, the Jeep hit a light post, a steel bollard, and a steel bike rack, causing $5,345 in damage to property of the U.S. Park Service.
Just before he set the Jeep in motion, Reel called 911 and warned that something was about to be staged at the White House. He made the call in hopes of causing members of law enforcement to convene at the White House complex, intending to create a distraction that would increase his chances of gaining access to the White House residence and spray-painting the “Don’t’ Tread on Me” snake on the building. Instead, Reel was arrested inside the White House Complex, within minutes of the Jeep’s impact.
As part of the investigation, law enforcement searched the Jeep and found hundreds of rounds of ammunition, eight knives of various sizes, two machetes, a hand-held spotting scope, and other items. A spray-paint can was found on the White House complex grounds, near the area where Reel was apprehended.
Reel has been in custody since his arrest.
In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of the Secret Service, which swiftly responded to the incident and investigated the case. He also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and the Dayton Resident Agency of the FBI’s Cincinnati Field Office. Finally, he acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Legal Assistants Ashley Kellam and Donice Adams, Paralegal Specialist Selena Zuhoski, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Maia L. Miller, who is prosecuting the case.
13-356New York Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Distribute CocaineRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that George Abreu, age 36, of New York City, pleaded guilty today to the charge of conspiracy to distribution cocaine hydrochloride before Senior United States District Court Judge Edwin M. Kosik.
According to United States Attorney Peter J. Smith, the charge and guilty plea are part of a continuing investigation into a Pittston area drug ring by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Pennsylvania State Police, and the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office. Abreu appeared today in federal court and admitted to being involved in the supply of between 3.5 and 5 kilograms of cocaine.
Assistant United States Attorney John Gurganus is prosecuting the case.
A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
In this case, the maximum penalty under the federal statute is 20 years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
Navajo Man from Arizona Pleads Guilty to Assaulting Federally Commissioned Tribal OfficerRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Donovan Eric Williams, 24, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Whippoorwill, Ariz., pleaded guilty to an indictment charging him with assaulting a federal officer, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough and Director John Billison of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety.
Williams was arrested on April 24, 2013, based on a criminal complaint charging him with assault with a dangerous weapon. According to the complaint, Williams assaulted a Sergeant of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety by deliberately veering his vehicle into her police vehicle on March 21, 2013, near Church Rock, N.M. Williams subsequently was indicted and charged with assaulting a federal officer who was engaged in the performance of her official duties because the tribal officer possessed a Special Law Enforcement Commission from the BIA at the time of the assault.
In his plea agreement, Williams admitted intentionally assaulting a federal officer on March 21, 2013. Williams acknowledged that, at the time of the assault, he was being pursued by a tribal officer who was attempting to pull his vehicle over and the federal officer was approaching him from the opposite direction. Williams admitted intentionally striking the federal officer’s vehicle even though the officer had pulled her marked police vehicle off to the side of the road to avoid a collision. Williams subsequently learned that the officer was commissioned as a federal law enforcement officer at the time of the assault.
Under the terms of his plea agreement, Williams will be sentenced to 46 months in prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court. Williams is in federal custody and will remain detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the Crownpoint office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacob A. Wishard.
Mathon Principals Sentenced to Lengthy Prison Terms for Operating $166 Million Ponzi Scheme That Targeted Lds Church MembersRead the Press Release
PHOENIX – On Sept. 30, 2013, three defendants - Duane Hamblin Slade, 42, of Austin, Tex.; Guy Andrew Williams, 42, of Mesa, Ariz.; and Brent F. Williams, 66, of Mesa, Ariz. - were sentenced to lengthy prison terms by U.S. District Judge Jack Zouhary, a visiting judge from the Northern District of Ohio, for their roles in operating a $166 million Ponzi scheme that targeted members of their church. Slade was sentenced to 180 months (15 years), Guy Williams was sentenced to 150 months (12.5 years), and Brent Williams was sentenced to 90 months (7.5 years). In addition, Slade was also sentenced to a concurrent 15-year sentence for his participation in a separate fraud scheme, initiated after the cessation of the previous scheme, in which he solicited more money from fellow church members under false pretenses.
U.S. Attorney John Leonardo stated, “This case involves one of the largest, most sophisticated fraud schemes in Arizona history. The defendants bilked hundreds of victims into investing over $166 million into a Ponzi scheme over a period of several years. They preyed on the religious bonds they shared with many of their investors and siphoned millions of dollars out of Mathon through excessive fees and a complicated web of side deals involving companies they secretly owned or controlled. The stiff sentences imposed by Judge Zouhary appropriately hold the defendants accountable for their crimes and send a strong message to others who would engage in such misconduct.”
“Our agency hopes these lengthy prison sentences will deter others from defrauding unsuspecting investors in the future. This scheme serves as an unfortunate reminder that all investors should exercise extreme caution before trusting someone with their hard-earned money” said Dawn Mertz, Special Agent in Charge of the Phoenix Field Office of Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation.
“Postal Inspectors will continue to partner with fellow law enforcement agencies to bring to justice those who use the mail to perpetuate fraud,” said Terry Donnelly, Acting Phoenix Division Postal Inspector in Charge. “The United States Postal Inspection Service remains dedicated to our mission to enforce the laws that defend the nation’s mail system from illegal use and ensure public trust in the mail.”
FBI Special Agent in Charge Douglas G. Price, Phoenix Division stated, “When individuals take advantage and defraud legitimate investors for their own financial gain it erodes the public’s trust. The FBI and our law enforcement partners are committed to holding those accountable who intentionally defraud hard working Americans.”
Slade was convicted of both offenses via guilty plea in June 2013, and the Williamses were convicted following a two-week trial in June 2013. According to the evidence at trial, the defendants served as founders and/or officers of a group of Mesa, Arizona-based investment funds known as the “Mathon” entities, which collected more than $166 million in funds from investors from February 2002 until April 2005. The evidence at trial further showed that Mathon’s investors, the majority of whom were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and hailed from Arizona, Utah, and Nevada, were generally told that their money would be used to make short-term loans to third-party borrowers at a high interest rate and that Mathon had an extensive track record of making such loans. In fact, the defendants and their business partners ran Mathon as a Ponzi scheme - that is, by using the overwhelming majority of incoming money from new investors to pay back initial investors. The defendants and their business partners paid themselves extravagant salaries and bonuses exceeding $10 million and also used their investors’ money to make millions of dollars of “loans” to companies they secretly controlled.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division; the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and the Securities Division of the Arizona Corporation Commission. The prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Peter S. Sexton, Kevin M. Rapp, and Dominic Lanza.
CASE NUMBER: CR-09-1492-PHX-ROS
RELEASE NUMBER: 2013-079_Mathon_etal.For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Man Who Hid Cocaine, Nearly $70,000 in Cash at Charleston Residence Gets 2 ½ Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A 24-year-old man who had 196 grams of cocaine and nearly $70,000 in cash hidden at his Charleston residence in February 2012 was sentenced today to two and a half years in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Gabriel J. Gonzalez previously pleaded guilty in June to possession with intent to distribute cocaine. Gonzalez’s sentence was handed down by United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston in Charleston.
On February 28, 2012, members of the Charleston Police Department executed a search warrant on Gonzalez’s Charleston residence. During the search, police found cocaine, $69,440 in cash, and a set of digital scales. The cocaine seized by law enforcement weighed 196 grams. Gonzalez told police that he intended to sell the cocaine. Gonzalez also told police that the cash inside his residence was proceeds collected from illegal drug transactions.
This case was investigated by the Charleston Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Blaire Malkin handled the prosecution.
Louisville Man Pleads Guilty to Online Enticement and Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – A Louisville Man has pleaded guilty to violating federal child exploitation laws, announced David J. Hale, United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky. Marvin Duane Monk, age 46, entered the guilty pleas before Senior U. S. District Judge Charles R. Simpson, III, in federal court in Louisville, on September 27, 2013. Sentencing in the matter is scheduled before Judge Simpson on January 14, 2014, at 2:00 p.m.
Monk pleaded guilty to a two-count Indictment returned by a federal grand jury on October 2, 2012. Monk was previously charged in a September 6, 2012, Criminal Complaint.
According to court records, on August 19, 2012, Monk’s spouse discovered that he had been engaging in sexual activities with her minor daughter in their Louisville residence. Monk left the residence in Louisville, and moved to a hotel in Clark County, Indiana. Shortly thereafter, he took the minor from Louisville to Indiana with him. Not knowing where her daughter was, the mother contacted the Louisville Metro Police Department and filed a missing person report. She also filed for, and received, an Emergency Protection Order (EPO) against Monk in Jefferson County, Kentucky. The EPO included an order that Monk have no contact with either his wife or the minor stepdaughter.
Two days later, the mother learned that Monk and her daughter were staying at a motel in Clarksville, Indiana. Clark County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to the motel where they found Monk and the minor.
Monk subsequently admitted to law enforcement officers that he brought his stepdaughter to Indiana from her home in Louisville. Monk also admitted to engaging in a sexual relationship with the minor, and to recording the sexual activity. The Clark County Sheriff’s Department executed a search warrant on the motel room. Evidence seized included a video recorder, video tapes, and cellular telephones.
Assistant U. S. Attorney Jo E. Lawless is prosecuting the case. The Louisville Metro Police Department Crimes Against Children Unit, Louisville Division of the FBI, and Clark County (Indiana) Sheriff’s Department, conducted the investigation.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab.
Los Angeles Businessman Sentenced to 27 Months for Fraudulently Importing $30 Million of Chinese-Made TextilesRead the Press Release
San Diego, CA – United States Attorney Laura E. Duffy announced today that Los Angeles-based businessman Sunil Jiwat Mirwani was sentenced to 27 months in prison for evading customs duties on more than $30 million in Chinese-made wearing apparel. The sentence, handed down by U.S. District Judge Michael M. Anello, also required Mirwani to forfeit his interest in over $30,000 in cash, the contents of a Hong Kong-based bank account—plus an inventory of more than 220,000 pairs of blue jeans valued at more than $1 million. In addition, Judge Anello sentenced Mirwani’s corporation, M Trade, Inc., to five years of probation.
According to the evidence presented at a trial in June 2012, Mirwani hired a group of San Diego-based businessmen and logistics professionals to initiate shipments of Chinese-made merchandise from ports in China to the Port of Long Beach, California. When the goods arrived at Long Beach, Mirwani and his conspirators would ensure that the merchandise was classified as “in bond”—a special customs classification meaning that they had to be shipped directly to Mexico. However, rather than complete the shipment to Mexico as promised, Mirwani and his conspirators forged documents and falsified database entries, allowing them to send the merchandise to warehouses in the Los Angelesarea. Mirwani would then sell his jeans, shorts and skirts throughout the United States— effectively tax-free. In this way, Mirwani could sell more jeans at cheaper prices than his law-abiding competitors—including domestic American manufacturers of similar goods who, unlike Mirwani, could not rely on cheap Chinese labor to keep costs low.
Mirwani profited handsomely from the scheme, laundering his ill-gotten gains through a complex web of international wire transfers. According to evidence introduced at trial, Mirwani transmitted nearly $10 million from M Trade, Inc.’s bank account to the account of Mirvana International, a Hong Kong-based company that Mirwani shares with his Hong Kong-based twin brother. In addition, Mirwani transmitted similar sums to the Mirvana International account through a series of intermediary accounts in the United States and Mexico—and even sent money from M Trade Inc.’s account directly to accounts in mainland China. These international wire transfers served to hide Mirwani’s ill-gotten gains as well as to help fund future fraudulent shipments.
Mirwani’s sentencing was the culmination of a years-long effort by prosecutors and special agents. Following a lengthy wiretap investigation, a federal grand jury indicted Mirwani and M Trade, Inc. in June 2012. One year later, in June 2013, Mirwani and M Trade, Inc. were convicted after a one-week jury trial. Yet Mirwani and M Trade, Inc. were just two of 11 defendants charged in July 2012 as part of a larger conspiracy to fraudulently import foreign-made textiles, cigarettes, snack foods, and Salmonella-infected produce. In the past year, several other defendants have pled guilty and been sentenced for their role in the scheme, including Gerardo Chavez, the former President of the San Diego Customs Brokers Association, who is currently serving a 37-month prison sentence. Two defendants—Joel Erasmo Varela Gonzalez and Jose Porter—are fugitives and remain at large.
U.S. Attorney Duffy commended the efforts of special agents and prosecutors: “Thanks to special agents from the Department of Homeland Security and the IRS, working in conjunction with customs officers, a far-reaching commercial fraud conspiracy has been completely dismantled. This prosecution underscores our commitment to protecting the economic health of the United States and ensuring that no one exploits American and international markets for their personal gain.”
“Today’s sentencing serves as a reminder to those who attempt to exploit our commercial trade corridor in San Diego,” said Derek Benner, Special Agent in Charge for ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations in San Diego. “HSI is committed to using our expertise to investigate suspected customs fraud and dishonest business practices in the international trade arena. We will seek the highest penalty possible for those who game the system for their own illicit gain.”
Trial Exhibit 53 – Fraudulently Imported Blue Jeans
Trial Exhibit 52 – Summary of Mirwani’s Wire Transfers
DEFENDANTS Case Number: 12CR3137-MMASunil Jiwat Mirwani
M Trade, Inc.
SUMMARY OF CHARGES AND MAXIMUM PENALTIES
Los Angeles, CACount 1: Conspiracy to Defraud the United States – 18 U.S.C. § 371. Maximum penalties: 5 years in prison, 3 years of supervised release, $250,000 fine and a $100 special assessment
Counts 2 and 4: Entry of Goods by Means of False Statements – 18 U.S.C. § 542. Maximum penalties: 2 years in prison, 1 year of supervised release, $250,000 fine and a $100 special assessment
Count 57: Conspiracy to Launder Monetary Instruments – 18 U.S.C. § 1956(a)(2)(A) and (h). Maximum penalties: 20 years in prison, 3 years of supervised release, $500,000 fine (or a fine worth twice the amount of the laundered money) and a $100 special assessment.
INVESTIGATING AGENCIESImmigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations
Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations
United States Food and Drug AdministrationLogan County Man Pleads Guilty to Fraud in Connection with Sales of Stolen Construction EqupmentRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Fred Alverson
Public Affairs Officer
COLUMBUS – Todd Allen Lamb, 39, of Bellefontaine, Ohio pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to selling stolen construction equipment, including selling equipment to more than one buyer.
Mark D’Alessandro, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Kevin R. Cornelius, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Logan County Sheriff Andrew J. Smith announced the pleas entered today before U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson.
Lamb pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful interstate transportation of stolen motor vehicles, punishable by up to ten years in prison, and one count of wire fraud, which is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Lamb was scheduled to go on trial today on the charges arising from the investigation.
According to court documents, Lamb conducted consignment sales and auctions, including sales over the Internet, of vehicles, equipment and other goods and merchandise under his companies named Almite Services and Almite Auctions. He also sold stolen motor vehicles through the businesses, including a Caterpillar backhoe that he knew was stolen, to a purchaser in Wyoming.
As part of Lamb’s wire fraud scheme, he sold a Mack truck to two different individuals. After he had delivered the truck to the first buyer and was unable to deliver the truck to the second buyer, he falsely told the second buyer that the truck had been stolen from the Port of Jacksonville, Florida. Afterward, Lamb told the second buyer he would refund the purchase price paid and sent to the buyer by an interstate facsimile message a copy of a refund check. The check was never sent to the second buyer.
The plea agreement calls for Lamb to pay $60,000 for the court to use to pay restitution to the victims. The court could order further restitution. Judge Watson will schedule a date for sentencing.
Two others have entered guilty pleas for their role in the scheme. Lamb’s wife, Karen Henry Lamb, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of making false statements relating to transfer of a vehicle title and was sentenced to six months’ probation in October 2012. Daniel J. Huffman, an employee of Lamb’s, pleaded guilty on June 28, 2011 to one count of conspiring with Lamb to transport vehicles stolen in Missouri, Indiana, and Pennsylvania to the Almite businesses in Logan County, Ohio. There, the manufacturers’ identification numbers would be altered for the vehicles to be sold to unsuspecting buyers. Huffman is awaiting sentencing.
Acting U.S. Attorney D’Alessandro commended the investigation by the FBI and Logan County Sheriff’s Office who were assisted by the Ohio State Highway Patrol, the National Insurance Crime Bureau, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco and Explosives (ATF), as well as Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dale E. Williams Jr., and Deborah A. Sanders, who are prosecuting the case.
Leader of Avenues Gang Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison in Federal Racketeering Case for Murder and Ordering A KillingRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – The one-time top leader of the Avenues gang in Northeast Los Angeles and the lead defendant in a federal racketeering indictment who admitted murdering a rival gang member and ordered the killing of one his underlings was sentenced this morning to 25 years in federal prison.
Rudy Aguirre Jr., also known as “Lil Psycho,” 32, who is a high-ranking associate of the Mexican Mafia with strong family ties to the prison gang, was sentenced by United States District Judge George H. Wu.
Aguirre is one of the last defendants to be sentenced in relation to a 2009 racketeering indictment that charged 88 linked to the Avenues street gang in northeast Los Angeles (see: http://www.justice.gov/archive/usao/cac/Pressroom/pr2009/115.html). The wide-ranging racketeering case alleged a host of crimes, including the August 2008 murder of Los Angeles Sheriff’s Deputy Juan Escalante and the killings of several other victims. Most of the other defendants named in the indictment have previously been sentenced, receiving prison terms of up to 25 years. A co-defendant – Carlos Renterria, who admitted that he shot two rival gang members in the head at close range in an attempt to murder them, and that he plotted to murder a fellow Avenues gang member – also received a quarter-century prison term from Judge Wu earlier this month.
According to court documents, including his plea agreement, Aguirre was authorized by the Mexican Mafia to control the activities of the Avenues street gang on the street. As the leader of the Avenues, Aguirre would regularly meet with members of the Mexican Mafia at California penal institutions, where he would receive instructions and authorizations for certain violent crimes, and where he would relay information regarding the activities of the Avenues gang. Among other things, Aguirre was given the authority for designating individuals to collect extortionate “taxes” from drug dealers and others living and working in the area claimed by the Avenues gang. These “taxes” would then be funneled to the Mexican Mafia.
As part of his role in the Avenues, Aguirre shot and killed a rival gang member in 1999. Aguirre was charged with that murder in state court, but the charges against him were dismissed based on pre-trial rulings in that case. Aguirre subsequently was charged with that murder as part of federal case brought under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (the federal RICO statute), and in July he pleaded guilty in the federal case, admitting that he fatally shot the victim in the Cyprus Park area of northeast Los Angeles.
Aguirre also admitted that he authorized the 2008 murder of an Avenues member because he and others believed that man was skimming money that he collected as “taxes” on behalf of the Avenues gang and the Mexican Mafia.
“No matter what steps criminal gangs like the Mexican Mafia and the Avenues use in attempts to control neighborhoods through intimidation and violence, we will ensure that the residents do not need to live their lives and raise their families in fear,” said United States Attorney André Birotte Jr. “I am proud that my office played an instrumental role in bringing justice to a predator responsible for two murders and overseeing a gang that caused so much harm to northeast Los Angeles.”
The federal investigation into the Avenues gang that led to the RICO case was conducted by the Los Angeles HIDTA (High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area) Task Force and the Los Angeles Police Department. The HIDTA group that conducted the investigation is made up of agents and officers from the Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, IRS - Criminal Investigation, the Ontario Police Department, the Riverside Police Department, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department and the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.
The federal investigation into the Avenues began after the August 2, 2008 murder of Los Angeles Sheriff’s Deputy Juan Able Escalante, who was shot outside his Cypress Park home as he was getting ready to go to work at the Men’s Central Jail. Based on a collaborative effort by federal and local law enforcement, Deputy Escalante’s murderer, Carlos “Stoney” Velasquez, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole after he pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in state court. Three other Avenues gang members were also convicted in relation to the Escalante murder, and two others are pending trial in state court.
Release No. 13-123
Las Vegas Street Gang Member Sentenced to Life in Prison for Racketeering, Murder, Firearm, and Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS, Nev. A member of the Playboy Bloods street gang was sentenced today to life in prison for the retaliation murder of a man in November 2004 and the armed robbery of a Henderson, Nev. casino in 2002, announced U.S. Attorney Daniel G. Bogden of the District of Nevada and Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
“We will use federal resources to prosecute street gang members who commit cowardly and horrible crimes in our community,” said U.S. Attorney Bogden. “I commend the many law enforcement officers who worked on this investigation and assisted us in ensuring a conviction in this case.”
Jacorey Taylor, aka “Mo-B,” 31, who was convicted by a jury in May 2013, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert C. Jones. Taylor was convicted of engaging in a racketeering (RICO) conspiracy, committing violent crimes in aid of racketeering activity, using a firearm during a crime of violence, participating in a drug conspiracy, and possessing crack cocaine with the intent to distribute. He is the ninth gang member to be convicted out of 10 charged in a RICO indictment filed in 2008. The remaining defendant, Markette Tillman, 31, is awaiting trial.
Taylor and co-defendants Reginald Dunlap, aka “Bowlie,” and Steven Booth, aka “Stevie-P,” were convicted of participating in the murder of Billy Ray Thomas, who was shot multiple times in the back on the morning of Nov. 1, 2004, as he worked on a car in the parking lot of the Pecos Terrace Apartments while waiting to take his girlfriend to work. The defendants murdered Thomas due to their mistaken belief that Thomas was a member of a rival street gang. According to evidence presented at trial, two car loads of Playboy Bloods members and associates, including Taylor, Dunlap, Booth and others, drove through known Crip neighborhoods searching for rivals to retaliate against for the murder of Quaza Burns, a leader of the Playboy Bloods. The victim, Billy Ray Thomas, had no gang affiliation.
Evidence produced at trial also showed that on March 21, 2002, Taylor, armed with an AR-15 style assault rifle, and another man armed with an handgun entered the Klondike Casino in Henderson, forced their way behind the casino cage, and robbed the casino of over $7,000 in currency.
Dunlap and Booth pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy charges during Taylor’s trial and were each sentenced in April 2013 to 20 years in prison. There is no parole in the federal criminal justice system.
According to court documents and evidence produced at trial, the Bloods are a nationally known criminal street gang whose members engage in drug trafficking and acts of violence. The Playboy Bloods is a local “set” or affiliate of the Bloods, with local control and operation within the Las Vegas metropolitan area. Other Bloods sets within the Las Vegas metropolitan area include the Piru Bloods and the West Coast Bloods. A subset of the Playboy Bloods is the Full Throttle Clique, a group made up of Playboy Bloods members who engage in acts of violence, including murder. According to evidence presented at trial, Taylor, Dunlap, and Booth were all members of the “Full Throttle Clique” of the Playboy Bloods. Taylor, along with other Playboy Bloods enterprise members, operated drug houses in the Sherman Gardens Annex (also known as “The Jets”) and the surrounding areas.
Eight other defendants who have been convicted and sentenced, as follows:
- Steven Booth, aka “Stevie-P,” 27, pleaded guilty to RICO conspiracy and was sentenced to 20 years in prison on April 10, 2013
- Reginald Dunlap, aka “Bowlie,” 30, pleaded guilty to RICO conspiracy and was sentenced to 20 years in prison on April 9, 2013
- Demichael Burks, aka “Mikey P,” 29, pleaded guilty to RICO conspiracy and was sentenced to 6½ years in prison on Dec. 3, 2010
- Anthony Mabry, aka “Akim Slim,” 43, pleaded guilty to RICO conspiracy and was sentenced to 14 years in prison on Oct. 20, 2010
- Delvin Ward, aka “D-Luv,” 37, pleaded guilty to RICO conspiracy and was sentenced to 11 years in prison on Sept. 17, 2010
- Terrence Thomas, aka “Seven,” 40, pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy and was sentenced to 10 years in prison on June 16, 2010
- Sebastian Wigg, aka “Rock,” 36, pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy and was sentenced to five years in prison on March 29, 2010
- Fred Nix, aka “June P,” 36, pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy and was sentenced to five years in prison on March 29, 2010
Lafayette Man Sentenced to 60 Months in Prison for Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that Mark Anthony Slade, 55, of Lafayette, was sentenced October 18, 2013 to 60 months in prison and 10 years of supervised release by U.S. District Court Judge Elizabeth E. Foote for knowingly receiving child pornography on his computer. He is also required to register as a sex offender. Slade pleaded guilty on April 17, 2013.
According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, an investigation of local and federal law enforcement authorities determined using computer surveillance software that the defendant was downloading child pornography. He used the internet file sharing program Limewire to download the files. After obtaining a warrant, authorities searched his residence Oct. 29, 2010, and seized the defendant’s computer. Slade was found to have downloaded 10 movies of child pornography. Some of the pornography depicted prepubescent children.
“Distributing and downloading child pornography is a serious crime that is not going to be ignored by this office,” Finley said. “These criminals perpetrate the victimization of children. We will continue to work with our federal, state and local partners to investigate and prosecute those who actively exploit children.”
The Lafayette Police Department and the Department of Homeland Security conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney John Luke Walker prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice launched nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (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 U.S. Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Investigations/Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at (866) DHS-2ICE. Investigators are available at all hours to answer hotline calls. Tips or other information can also be submitted to ICE online at www.ice.gov/exec/forms/hsi-tips/tips.asp Tips may be submitted anonymously.
Kearney Man Sentenced to 20 Years for Child PornRead the Press Release
Project Safe Childhood
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Kearney, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for producing and possessing child pornography.
Austin D. Hurtado, 20, of Kearney, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Fernando J. Gaitan to 20 years in federal prison without parole.
Hurtado pleaded guilty on Feb. 8, 2013, to one count of producing child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography. According to his plea agreement, an FBI agent identified Hurtado’s computer (at his former residence in Smithville, Mo.) as sharing child pornography over the Internet. Using a peer-to-peer file-sharing program, the agent downloaded images of child pornography from Hurtado’s computer on Nov. 21 and 22, 2011.
Hurtado’s two laptop computers were seized by law enforcement officers and a forensic examiner found they contained numerous videos of an 8-year-old child in the shower. Hurtado’s face was visible in at least one of those videos. The forensic examiner also found the same child victim in additional numerous photos and videos of child pornography. Hurtado possessed 191 child pornography videos and more than 80 images of child pornography.
Under the terms of his plea agreement, Hurtado must pay a total of $10,000 in restitution to two of the victims portrayed in those images and movies, or $6,000 if he pays the restitution within 30 days.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore. It was investigated by 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."Jackson County Man Pleads Guilty to Methamphetamine ConspiracyRead the Press Release
A Jackson County, Ill., man pled guilty to an indictment charging conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.
On October 17, 2013, Brian W. Davis, 31, of Desoto, entered a guilty plea to a one-count indictment charging conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine. The offense occurred between June 2012 and November 1, 2012, in Jackson and Union Counties. Davis is currently being held without bond pending a January 30, 2014, sentencing hearing. At that time, he will face a penalty of up to 20 years in prison, a $1,000,000 fine, and 3 years of supervised release.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Amanda A. Robertson.
Insurance Agent Sentenced for Failing to Pay Withheld TaxesRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced that John Stanley Clabaugh, Jr., 69, of Lincoln, Nebraska, was sentenced today in Lincoln, to 6 months in prison by United States District Judge John M. Gerrard, for failing to pay over withholding and FICA taxes. After prison, Clabaugh will serve 3 years of supervised release, with an additional 6 months of home confinement. Judge Gerrard also ordered that Clabaugh pay restitution in the amount of $135,109.92.
Clabaugh was the owner/operator of an insurance agency located in Crete, Nebraska. He and a secretary were the only full time employees, although there have been occasional part time employees. Clabaugh always withheld the federal income tax and FICA taxes from his and his employees’ paychecks, until 2001 when he stopped paying these withheld funds over to the IRS. These taxes are required to be reported and paid to the IRS on a quarterly basis, and Clabaugh also stopped filing the required quarterly forms. The total ‘trust fund’ taxes withheld from employee paychecks for the period of time covered by the indictment was $135,330.
"Business owners have a responsibility to withhold income taxes for their employees and then remit those taxes to the Internal Revenue Service," said Sybil Smith, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation. “We are committed to pursuing those who violate the employment tax laws.”
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations Division.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found at www.justice.gov/tax.Henderson, Kentucky Man Sentenced to 97 Months in Prison for Multiple Bank RobberiesRead the Press Release
OWENSBORO, Ky. – A Henderson, Kentucky man was sentenced today, to 97 months in federal prison and ordered to pay restitution by Chief District Judge Joseph H. McKinley, Jr., for robbing six financial institutions and money laundering, announced David J. Hale, United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky.
James Allen Morris, age 54, plead guilty on July 26, 2013, to the federal superseding indictment that charged him with using force, violence, and intimidation in the robbery of six financial institutions, located in Henderson County, Kentucky, between July 23, 2010 and January 17, 2013.
Specifically, Morris admitted to robbing the following financial institutions: on January 17, 2013, Green River Credit Union, located at 902 Second Street, Henderson, Kentucky of $32,414; on August 22, 2012, Independence Bank, located at 2610 Zion road, Henderson, Kentucky of $10,400; on August 22, 2012, Bank of Henderson, 2003 Stapp Drive, Henderson, Kentucky of $11,559; on July 11, 2012, Green River Credit Union, 902 Second Street, Henderson, Kentucky of $1,596; on May 24, 2011, U.S. Bank, 501 Barrett Boulevard, Henderson, Kentucky of $6,000; and on July 23, 2010, Integra Bank, 9720 U.S. HWY 41 N., Poole, Kentucky of $2,770.
Further, Morris admitted to one count of money laundering for knowingly depositing the proceeds of bank robbery at three separate branches of the same bank located in Henderson, Kentucky. The separate deposits were designed to conceal the fact that the deposits were bank robbery proceeds taken from the Green River Credit Union.
Morris was ordered by Judge McKinley to pay restitution to the victims.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Judd and was investigated by the Henderson Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Hazleton Man Pleads Guilty to Robbing Three BanksRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Shawn Luther Kelley, age 35, of Hazleton, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty today to the robbery of three financial institutions before Senior United States District Court Judge A. Richard Caputo.
According to United States Attorney Peter J. Smith, Kelley appeared in Federal Court in Wilkes-Barre and admitted to committing the following robberies: the PNC BANK, located at 499 Susquehanna Boulevard, Hazle Township, Pennsylvania, on April 16, 2012; the CHOICE ONE COMMUNITY FEDERAL CREDIT UNION, located at 983 North Sherman Court, Hazleton, Pennsylvania, on April 20, 2012; and the CITIZENS BANK located at 40 West Broad Street, West Hazleton, Pennsylvania, on April 24, 2012. Kelley was arrested shortly after the Citizens Bank robbery on April 24, 2012.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Pennsylvania State Police, Hazleton Police Department and West Hazleton Police Department. Prosecution has been assigned to Assistant United States Attorney John Gurganus.
A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
In this case, the maximum penalty under the federal statute is 60 years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
Frontman in Rock Band Sentenced to 7 Years in Federal Prison After Pleading Guilty in Multi-Million Dollar Loan Fraud CaseRead the Press Release
SANTA ANA, California – The singer in a Los Angeles-based rock band called Lights Over Paris was sentenced today to seven years in federal prison for submitting false documents to banks to fraudulently obtain millions of dollars in loans, money that he used to fund his musical project and his lavish lifestyle.
Robert Brandon Mawhinney, 30, of Anaheim, was sentenced earlier today by United States District Judge Cormac J. Carney.
Mawhinney pleaded guilty on April 22 to four counts of making false statements to federally insured banks and one count of money laundering. The very next day, according to prosecutors, Mawhinney made additional false statements to another financial institution in an attempt to obtain more credit – conduct that resulted in Judge Carney revoking his bond and remanding him into custody.
“For approximately three and a half years [Mawhinney] obtained and assisted others to obtain substantial loans from multiple banks through fraud,” prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memorandum filed in court. “In order to obtain and maintain the loans, [the] defendant made myriad false statements to the victim banks and presented numerous false documents, including fabricated financial statements and tax returns bearing the forged signatures of identity-theft victims. Even [the] defendant’s family members’ documents weren’t safe; for instance, [Mawhinney] used his grandfather’s Schwab account statements to create some of the fraudulent statements showing inflated balances that he gave to the victim banks.”
Mawhinney, who used the stage name Robb “TaLLLLL” University, obtained more than $11 million in credit after applying for loans by submitting phony brokerage statements that falsely showed that he had almost $8 million in assets. The phony statements were altered versions of real statements from brokerage accounts that actually contained less than $10,000. Mawhinney told bank officials that he needed the money to fund his music business and to purchase recording equipment. According to investigators, Mawhinney used the money from the loans to pay for travel, entertainment and a luxury tour bus that cost well over $750,000. The victim banks were Comerica, JP Morgan Chase, Zions Bank and Bank of America.
Mawhinney “used the millions of dollars that he fraudulently obtained for the selfish purpose of funding his fantasy of being a rock star,” according to the government’s sentencing memo. Judge Carney said today that Mawhinney’s motives for the crimes were “ego and greed.”
In a related case, Mawhinney helped two associates fraudulently obtain more than $1.7 in loans for their music business.
When Mawhinney defaulted on his loans, the victim banks sustained actual losses of over $8.4 million. When his associates defaulted on their loans, lending institutions suffered losses of approximately $1.75 million.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and IRS - Criminal Investigation.
Release No. 13-124
Frederick Business Man Pleads Guilty to Illicitly Selling Drug Paraphernalia and Tax FraudRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Ronald J. Dalessandro, age 49, of Frederick, Maryland pleaded guilty today to two counts of selling drug paraphernalia and filing a false income tax return.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Kelly of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Antoinette V. Henry of the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations.
According to his plea agreement, Dalessandro owned and operated The Needle Beast, a company through which he marketed and sold hypodermic needles and syringes on the internet to individual consumers around the country, who sought to enhance their physiques by self-administering anabolic steroids by injection. Dalessandro advised his customers on the most popular sizes ordered by his previous customers for self-administering anabolic steroids by injection. Dalessandro advertised his company on other websites focused on bodybuilding, anabolic steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs.Dalessandro displayed on his websites numerous disclaimers stating that the products he sold were “for medical, industrial, or vetrinary [sic] use only.” He used these disclaimers to avoid regulatory and law enforcement scrutiny, knowing that his customers intended to use the syringes and needles to inject themselves with body-enhancing substances, including anabolic steroids.
From the sale of needles and syringes through The Needle Beast website, Dalessandro received annual revenues of at least $68,432.93, $105,313.84 and $133.257.78 in 2006, 2007, and 2008, respectively. However, Dalessandro filed false income tax returns for these years which reported substantially less income than he earned, in that he did not report all of the income earned from the illicit sales of syringes and needles.
Dalessandro faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison followed by a year of supervised release for each of the offenses and a fine of $250,000. U.S. District Judge George L. Russell III scheduled sentencing for January 31, 2014 at 11:30 a.m.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the IRS Criminal Investigation and FDA, Office of Criminal Investigations for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert K. Hur and Kelly O'Connell Hayes, who are prosecuting the case.Four East Bay Individuals Indicted and Arrested on Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
OAKLAND – Oscar Gaxiloa-Vicencio, Rafael Verduzco-Perez, Jesus Campos-Zaragoza, and Jorge Gonzalez-Herrera, made their initial appearances on October 16, 2013, in U.S. District Court following law enforcement action on Tuesday October 15, 2013, for various narcotics charges, announced United States Attorney Melinda Haag, Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s San Francisco Division, Administrator Michele M. Leonhart of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s San Francisco Division, and Sheriff David Livingston of Contra Costa County.
According to the Indictment, Gaxiloa-Vicencio, 41, of Oakley, Verduzco-Perez, 38, of Antioch, Campos-Zaragoza, 36, of Concord, and Gonzalez-Herrera, 47, of Pittsburg, were charged with one or multiple counts of the following: conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute methamphetamine, conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, possession with intent to distribute and distribution of methamphetamine, or possession with intent to distribute and distribution of cocaine. Moises Soltero-Pelayo a/k/a “El Burro”, 25, of Brentwood, Calif., is currently incarcerated but charged under the same Indictment.
Aaron Wegner is the Assistant United States Attorney who is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Jeanne Cartensen. The prosecution is the result of a one year joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, and Contra Costa County’s Office of the Sheriff, with assistance from the Antioch Police Department.
This case is the product of an extensive investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, which is a focused multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force investigating and prosecuting the most significant drug trafficking organizations throughout the United States by leveraging the combined expertise of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
Please note, an indictment contains only allegations against an individual and, as with all defendants, name must be presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
(Gaxiola-Vicencio et al indictment )
Former Scranton Couple Sentenced for Conspiracy to Defraud the Estate of Deceased AuntRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a Scranton couple convicted of conspiracy to defraud the estate of a deceased aunt was sentenced on October 17 by Senior U.S. District Court Judge Edwin M. Kosik.
Tamara Santarelli was sentenced to 70 months’ imprisonment and three years of supervised release. Victor J. Santarelli, III, was sentenced to 57 months’ imprisonment and three years of supervised release. Judge Kosik further ordered that both defendants jointly pay $74,390.55 in restitution.
According to United States Attorney Peter J. Smith, between May 2006 and August 2007, Victor J. Santarelli, III and Tamara Santarelli, both formerly of Scranton, engaged in a scheme to defraud the estate of Victor’s deceased aunt, Joanne Striminsky, including a plan to have previously named beneficiaries changed to themselves on multiple insurance contracts held by their aunt who passed away on January 4, 2007.
The defendants gained control of the victim by assuming Power of Attorney and Executor status under a will that they drafted. After assuming control, the Santarellis’ had the 82 year-old victim (who suffered from Alzheimers) involuntarily committed to a psychiatric unit of a local hospital and then, under the guise of Power of Attorney, went about taking all of her assets, including her house.When the victim died midway through the Santarellis’ scheme, they had her body buried in an unmarked grave.
Tamara and Victor Santarelli were indicted in February 2011. They were convicted in October 2011 of conspiring to defraud the estate of a deceased aunt, mail and wire fraud.
The investigation was conducted by the United States Postal Inspection Services, Philadelphia Division. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Olshefski.Former President of National Charity Arrested and Charged in $4 Million Fraud and Money Laundering SchemeRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Ore. – Amanda Marshall, U. S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, today announced the arrest of Beaverton resident, Brian J. Brown, 56, former president of National Relief Charities, and the unsealing of an indictment charging Brown with conspiring to defraud National Relief Charities of $4 million and conspiring to commit money laundering violations with the proceeds of the fraud scheme. FBI and IRS agents arrested Brown Sunday morning, October 20th, at Portland International Airport as Brown returned to the United States from Thailand and Japan.
The indictment, returned under seal on October 9th, alleges that in late 2005, when Brown stepped down as the president of National Relief Charities, a national charity dedicated to improving the quality of life for Native Americans, he established a nonprofit company called Charity One, Inc., dba American Indian Education Endowment Fund. Brown then allegedly induced National Relief Charities to fund Charity One, Inc. with $4 million from 2006 through 2009, which Brown represented would be used to fund educational scholarships for Native Americans. Instead, Brown and unnamed coconspirators allegedly used the entire $4 million for their personal benefit.
The indictment further alleges that Brown established the principal office for Charity One, Inc. in Beaverton, Oregon and that National Relief Charities, which also maintained an office in Beaverton, mailed monthly checks for $100,000 or $200,000 from its offices in Beaverton, Oregon and in Sherman, Texas to Charity One, Inc. To facilitate the fraud scheme, Brown allegedly gave National Relief Charities false financial statements showing Charity One, Inc. was properly using the money.
Brown appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dennis J. Hubel and entered not guilty pleas to the charges. Magistrate Judge Hubel released Brown pending trial subject to release conditions including surrendering his passport to the federal Pretrial Services office and GPS monitoring. Brown’s trial is scheduled to begin on December 17, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon.
“Anyone who defrauds a charity for their own personal gain should expect to be found, caught and prosecuted. This conduct harms the charity, its donors, and, most importantly, the intended recipients of the fraudulently diverted funds,” said U.S. Attorney Marshall.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Criminal Investigation Division of the Internal Revenue Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth D. Uram is handling the prosecution of the case.
Former Part-Owner of Litigation Funding Company Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Defrauding Business Partners in $869,492 Kickback ConspiracyRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – The former part-owner and underwriter for New York-based litigation funding company The Law Funder LLC was sentenced today to 30 months in prison for participating in a kickback scheme that defrauded his former business partners of $869,492, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Mathew Sheldon, 39, of New York, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Dennis M. Cavanaugh to a superseding information charging him with conspiracy to commit wire fraud through the deprivation of honest services. Judge Cavanaugh imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements in court:
The Law Funder, which extends loans to plaintiffs in pending civil litigation, did business with Montclair Funding Group LLC (MFG) – at one time headquartered in Union City, N.J. – and its owner, Rory Donadio, 43, of New York. MFG was a broker between plaintiffs seeking advances against potential recoveries in pending litigation and private entities such as Law Funder. In exchange for a broker’s fee, MFG would, among other things, gather necessary information and documents in support of funding opportunities so Law Funder could evaluate whether to fund a case and for how much. Sheldon was a 25 percent owner in Law Funder and supervised the underwriting process for the company.
Sheldon admitted that from February 2005 through July 2009, he conspired with Donadio to design and execute a secret kickback scheme. Sheldon would offer certain of Law Funder’s investment opportunities to MFG in exchange for personally receiving a portion of each broker’s commission Law Funder paid MFG. Sheldon and Donadio agreed to conceal their fee-splitting arrangement from Law Funder and Sheldon’s three partners. The kickback scheme resulted in $869,492 in fraudulent payments to Sheldon, which were paid by wire transfer and other means.
Sheldon also admitted that he and Donadio concealed the scheme by using code, such as “Giants” or the letter “G” in records referring to related transactions. He acknowledged he regularly communicated with Donadio to identify the coded transactions and calculate the amount payable to Sheldon pursuant to the kickback scheme.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Cavanaugh sentenced Sheldon to three years of supervised release, ordered him to pay $869,492 in restitution and forfeit $869,492.Donadio also has pleaded guilty in connection with the scheme and awaits sentencing.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, and inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Newark Division, under the direction of Maria L. Kelokates, with the investigation leading to today’s sentence.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph B. Shumofsky, Mala Ahuja Harker and Jenny Kramer of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit, and Evan Weitz of the Office’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Unit.
This case was brought in coordination with President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The task force was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. Attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed nearly 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,900 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, please visit www.stopfraud.gov.
13-405
Defense counsel: Patrick N. McMahon Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
Former Orthodontist Convicted of Tax and Fraud ChargesRead the Press Release
Tried to Bilk $36 Million from the IRS
ALBANY, NEW YORK – A federal jury in Albany returned its verdict today convicting GLENN RICHARD UNGER (62, of Ogdensburg, NY) of the following offenses: obstructing and impeding the Internal Revenue Service (IRS); filing false claims against the United States; tax evasion; and passing fictitious obligations announced Richard S. Hartunian, United States Attorney, Northern District of New York, Toni M. Weirauch, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, New York Field Office, and Andrew W. Vale, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Albany Division. Sentencing is scheduled for March 10, 2014 before Senior U.S. District Judge Thomas J. McAvoy.
U.S. Attorney Hartunian stated, “This trial detailed the callous contempt for state and federal authority that is the hallmark of the sovereign citizen movement. Like other sovereign citizens, GLENN RICHARD UNGER filed numerous false claims for refunds, tried to avoid paying his fair share of taxes, filed false documents with the Saratoga County Clerk’s office and attempted to pay a debt with a phony promissory note. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively investigate and prosecute anyone who refuses to honor every citizen’s duty to file honest tax returns and pay their taxes. I congratulate the IRS CID, the FBI, the New York State Police, and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration for their diligence, professionalism, and hard work in bringing about a just and appropriate verdict.”
Special Agent-in-Charge Toni Weirauch said, “The prosecution of individuals who brazenly attempt to obstruct the Internal Revenue Service and prevent it from performing its mission is vital to maintaining public confidence in our tax system. This verdict conveys a strong message to those who contemplate abusing the tax system: They will be investigated, prosecuted and convicted. It also reassures the honest American taxpayer that the government is committed to making sure that everyone pays their fair share.”
SAC Vale stated, “The FBI is committed to vigorously investigate individuals like Mr. Unger who steal from the federal government for financial gain through schemes designed to avoid payment of taxes and other obligations owed the federal government. The victims of such schemes are the hardworking taxpayers in America, and we will continue to pursue these sovereign citizen movements, which result in damages for law-abiding citizens.”
The evidence at trial showed that between 2007 and 2011, UNGER filed 14 false tax returns claiming that he earned substantial income reported, had substantial withholdings on that income, and was entitled to $36 million in tax refunds. Despite numerous warning letters from the IRS that his returns were frivolous, he continued filing false tax returns.
In addition to obstructing the IRS by filing false and fraudulent claims for refund, the evidence at trial also showed that UNGER attempted to evade payment of taxes he owed to the IRS. During 2004 and 2005, UNGER earned income and failed to file tax returns reporting that income. The IRS assessed taxes for those two years and also assessed penalties for filing frivolous tax returns. After the IRS filed a tax lien against UNGER, UNGER attempted to file a false document with the Saratoga County Clerk’s office attempting to release the lien. Evidence at trial also showed that UNGER tried to pay off a debt to another orthodontist with a fictitious document purported to be worth $200,000.00.
As a result of the convictions, the defendant is facing a total statutory maximum term of imprisonment of 25 years and a maximum fine of $250,000.00
This prosecution resulted from an investigation conducted by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, New York Field Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Albany Field Office, the New York State Police, and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ransom P. Reynolds (NDNY) and Jeffrey Bender (DOJ Tax Division).
Former Office Manager Pleads Guilty to Embezzling More Than $400,000 from Law Firm-Defendant Handled Payroll and Accounts Payable for Firm-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Bernard Chung, 31, of Falls Church, Va., pled guilty on Oct. 7, 2013 to a federal wire fraud charge stemming from his embezzlement of more than $400,000 from the law firm where he worked as an office manager, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.
Chung entered the plea in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The Honorable Thomas F. Hogan scheduled sentencing for Jan. 16, 2014. The charge carries a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison and financial penalties. The parties have agreed that, under federal sentencing guidelines, Chung faces a likely range of 30 to 37 months of incarceration and a fine of up to $60,000. He also will be required to pay restitution.
According to facts presented to the Court by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sherri L. Schornstein, Chung worked from 2009 until August 2012 as the office manager for North Star Intellectual Property Law, LLC, a law firm that is based in downtown Washington, D.C. His duties included setting up the firm’s computer systems and network, creating a paperless environment, payroll, and bill payments.
Beginning in February 2010, and continuing until July 2012, Chung devised a scheme to defraud the firm, ultimately embezzling $407,062. He generated the money by issuing excessive salary payments to himself, inflating his regular paychecks, and other means. He was able to hide his activities in large part because his employment position authorized him to handle the payroll and accounts payable, creating a mechanism that he could exploit for his own financial benefit.
In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Machen and Assistant Director in Charge Parlave commended the work of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, which investigated the case. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Donna Galindo and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sherri L. Schornstein, who is investigating and prosecuting the case.
13-357Former Coca-Cola Employee Charged with FraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Jeffrey David Shamp has been arraigned on federal charges of fraud and money laundering. He was indicted by a federal grand jury on Oct. 15, 2013.
“This defendant is charged with using corporate American Express gift checks to pay personal expenses,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “We will continue to ferret out those who abuse positions of trust for personal gain.”
“The United States Secret Service and our law enforcement partners work tirelessly to thoroughly investigate cases like this. We will continue to take an aggressive approach towards those who violate the faith and trust of businesses to further their financial crime activity,” said Reginald G. Moore, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Secret Service, Atlanta Field Office.
“Mr. Shamp used deceit and fraud, in the misuse of a marketing tool intended to promote the good name of Coca-Cola, for his own personal benefit,” stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation. “IRS-CI is committed to unraveling financial transactions and money laundering schemes where individuals attempt to conceal the true source of their money.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: Jeffrey Shamp worked for The Coca-Cola Company from approximately July 2002, to November 2011, most recently as a Senior National Account Executive based in Massachusetts. In his position, Shamp was authorized to order American Express (“Amex”) gift checks to be used as part of a sales incentive program for Coca-Cola’s customers. From approximately November 2005, through September 2011, Shamp fraudulently obtained Amex gift checks under the false pretense that the checks would be used as part of Coca-Cola’s sales incentive program, when in fact Shamp used them to pay for over $400,000 in personal expenses.
Shamp, 40, of Cincinnati, Ohio, was arraigned today before United States Magistrate Judge E. Clayton Scofield III.
The wire fraud charges in this case each carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. The money laundering charges each carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. In determining the actual sentence, the Court will consider the United States Sentencing Guidelines, which are not binding but provide appropriate sentencing ranges for most offenders.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the United States Secret Service and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney Steven D. Grimberg and Intern Ryan Freeman are prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the HomePage for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is www.justice.gov/usao/gan.