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Friday 1 March 2013
Jackson Attorneys Re-sentenced in Largest Commercial Mortgage Fraud Scheme in Mississippi HistoryRead the Press Release
JJackson, Miss – At a re-sentencing hearing today before U.S. District Judge Daniel P. Jordan III, the sentence of Charles H. Evans, Jr., 57, of Jackson, Mississippi, was affirmed, whereby Charles Evans will be required to serve 20 years in prison for his role in one of the largest commercial mortgage fraud crimes in the history of the State of Mississippi. The 14 year prison sentence of his brother and co-conspirator, Jon Christopher Evans, 53, also of Jackson, was also affirmed today. A final order of forfeiture was orally entered by U.S. District Court Judge Daniel P. Jordan, III, against the defendants in the amount of $18,594,221.58. In December, 2012, the defendants were ordered to pay $13,423,571.95 in restitution to numerous victim banks and a title insurance company for their fraudulent scheme.
Defendant Charles H. Evans, Jr. is an attorney who operated The Evans Firm in Jackson, Mississippi, and was an approved attorney for Mississippi Valley Title Company (“MVT”), authorized to provide title opinions and prepare certificates of title for MVT, which MVT used and relied upon in order to issue title insurance policies to banks making loans for the purchase of real estate. His brother and co-defendant, Jon Christopher Evans, is also an attorney in Jackson who served as the registered agent for numerous shell companies in the Jackson area, which were owned, operated, and controlled by the Evans brothers and used to carry out their mortgage fraud scheme.
In 2003, the Evans devised a plan to fraudulently secure mortgage proceeds from banks by misrepresenting to such banks the legal descriptions, title and lien history, and ownership of real estate they were intending to purchase. They began by contracting to purchase multi-acre tracts of land. However, before actually purchasing a particular multi-acre tract, they would covertly and fictitiously subdivide the multi-acre tract on paper, falsify the legal descriptions and title 2 history of the property, and sometimes manufacture false warranty deeds, in order to secure mortgages on the individual, fraudulently-subdivided plots of land from multiple banks using various shell companies owned and controlled by the Evans brothers. Based upon these false documents and misrepresentations, the Evans
brothers were able to borrow a larger amount of money for the purchase of the fictitiously subdivided land than they would have received if the entire tract had been financed legally through a single loan from one bank. The Evans used the excess mortgage proceeds they received from this fraudulent scheme to pay the respective mortgages on the property financed, enrich themselves, and continue their scheme of fraudulently securing mortgage proceeds on covertly and fictitiously-subdivided land using phony legal descriptions and sometimes false warranty deeds. This fraud blossomed into one of the largest
commercial mortgage fraud Ponzi schemes to be carried out in the State of Mississippi.
The Evans continued to acquire property for a number of years by using different banks and appraisal companies, as well as various shell companies which they owned and controlled, and by falsifying the financial statements of Chris Evans in order to continue to secure such fraudulent financing. The scheme
covered property from Madison County, Mississippi, to Southaven, Mississippi, to the State of Texas.
After the Evans could no longer locate suitable property upon which they could execute this scheme, they began “double pledging” their existing property, that is, they began fraudulently securing new, additional mortgages on their already-encumbered property by selling such property to other shell companies that they also owned and controlled and manipulating the certificates of title and lien history (and, in some instances, legal descriptions) of such property in order to misrepresent and conceal encumbrances upon such land to the lending financial institutions and to title insurance companies. As a result, each lending financial institution materially relied upon such misrepresentations, believing it had received
a priority security interest in the subject property as collateral for the respective loan, when in fact it had not. Charles Evans would perform the fraudulent title work for these real property transactions, including the creation of false certificates of title upon which the title insurance commitments would be issued and upon which banks would write mortgages and disburse mortgage proceeds to shell companies owned and controlled by the Evans brothers, and Charles Evans would perform the closings on most, if not all, of the real estate transactions. Contrary to the representations made by Charles Evans in certificates of title, record title to the subject property was almost never transferred into the subsequent entity owned and
controlled by the Evans brothers that actually borrowed the funds and in whose name title was insured. Rather, record title almost always remained in the name of the seller corporation owned and controlled by the Evans. Thus, banks that issued such loans were stuck with outstanding balances owed and no collateral, based upon the Evans’ fraudulent misrepresentations as to the title and lien history of such property.
The Evans continued their fraudulent scheme for over 6 years until the scheme was discovered in September, 2009. Their scheme encompassed over $80 million worth of loans, involved almost 30 shell or fictitious corporations created by the defendants to launder the fraudulently-obtained mortgage proceeds in order to perpetuate and conceal their crimes, and adversely affected almost 50 financial institutions and local governments.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst.###
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Informational: Federal Court ArraignmentRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Billings, on March 1, 2013, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Carolyn S. Ostby, the following individual was arraigned:
JOHN RYAN HUGS, a 32-year-old resident of St. Xavier, appeared on a charge of assault resulting in serious bodily injury. He is currently released on special conditions. If convicted of this charge, HUGS faces possible penalties of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and 3 years supervised release. Assistant U.S. Attorney Marcia Hurd is the prosecutor for the United States. The investigation was conducted by a cooperative effort between the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
The defendant pled not guilty to the charge.
The charge, an indictment, information or complaint, is merely an accusation and all persons named as defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. A pre-trial conference and a trial date will be set and the United States will be required to prove the allegations set forth in the indictment beyond a reasonable doubt.
Four Shreveport Men Indicted for String of Armed Robberies at Businesses in Louisiana and TexasRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La: United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a grand jury indicted four Shreveport men Thursday as part of a 27-count indictment related to a string of robberies last year that took place in Shreveport, Bossier City, Sabine Parish, and Texas.
Myles W. Robinson, 20, is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit robbery, 13 counts of robbery, and 13 counts of using firearms during a crime of violence.
Halston M. Smith, 22, is charged with one count of conspiracy, seven counts of robbery, and seven counts of using firearms during a crime of violence.
James D. Tyson, 22, is charged with one count of conspiracy, one count of robbery, and one count of using firearms during a crime of violence.
Tremario D. Washington, 23, is charged with one count of conspiracy, one count of robbery, and one count of using firearms during a crime of violence.
According to the indictment, the armed robberies took place between June 1, 2012 and Nov. 14, 2012 at 15 businesses with the men stealing more than $17,900. Robinson took part in all the robberies, but perpetrated five of the robberies alone. In some cases a shotgun was used, in other cases a handgun, and sometimes both were used to rob the businesses. The defendants robbed businesses in Shreveport, La., Bossier City, La., Stonewall, La., Oil City, La., and Atlanta, Tx.
Each defendant faces up to 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 or both with five years of supervised release for the conspiracy count; and 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 or both with five years of supervised release for each robbery count. For using firearms during a crime of violence, the first count requires seven years in prison, a fine of $250,000 or both with five years of supervised release. After that, each firearms count requires 25 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 or both with five years of supervised release. A trial date will be set at a later date.
An indictment is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The ATF, Shreveport Police Department, Bossier City Police Department, Atlanta Texas Police Department, Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office, Caddo Parish District Attorney’s Office, DeSoto Parish Sheriff’s Office, DeSoto Parish District Attorney’s Office, and the Bossier Parish District Attorney’s Office took part in the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney James Cowles is prosecuting the case.
Forth Worth Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison on Bank Robbery ConvictionsRead the Press Release
FORT WORTH, Texas — Montray Lorenzo Cato, 29, of Fort Worth, Texas, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge John McBryde to 120 months in federal prison, following his conviction at trial, in November 2012, on two counts of bank robbery, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas. Judge McBryde also ordered that Cato pay $7,747 in restitution.
During summer 2012, Cato robbed two branches of the First Convenience Bank in Fort Worth. Cato committed the June 13, 2012, robbery of the First Convenience Bank, located inside of a Kroger Store at 6650 North Beach Street and the July 28, 2012, robbery of the First Convenience Bank, located inside of a Walmart at 6756 West Vickery. On both occasions the bank robber wore similar clothing and held a cell phone to his ear during the robbery.
Cato was arrested on August 29, 2012, after employees at a First Convenience Bank, located inside of a Kroger Store at 9114 Camp Bowie Boulevard West, recognized Cato loitering in the store and notified the Fort Worth Police Department. After officers located Cato in the store, they escorted him outside and discovered that he had a realistic plastic replica of a firearm in his waistband. In addition, he had no money, credit cards or debit cards on his person that seemed to belie his claim that he was shopping at the Kroger.
The case was investigated by the Fort Worth Police Department and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew Gulde and Megan Fahey prosecuted.
Fort Pierre Man Charged with Failure to AppearRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Fort Pierre, South Dakota man has been indicted by a federal grand jury.
Brent Flood, age 23, was indicted by a federal grand jury on February 13, 2013 for Failure to Appear. Flood appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Moreno on February 25, 2013 and pled not guilty to the indictment. The maximum penalty upon conviction is 5 years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, or both; 3 years of supervised release and an additional 2 years of supervised release upon revocation. Restitution and a $100 special assessment may also be ordered. The charge is merely an accusation, and Flood is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Marshals Service and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn N. Rich is prosecuting the case. Flood was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshal. A trial date has not been set.
Former Usd Basketball Player Brandon Johnson Sentenced for Conspiring to Commit Sports BriberyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Laura E. Duffy announced that Brandon Johnson was sentenced today in federal court in San Diego by the Honorable Anthony J. Battaglia to serve six months in custody, followed by one year of supervised release, for his role in a conspiracy to commit sports bribery in connection with influencing the outcome of University of San Diego (USD) basketball games during the 2009-2010 season and soliciting a USD player to do the same during the 2010-2011 season. Johnson pled guilty to an indictment charging him with conspiring to commit sports bribery on November 15, 2012. To date, eight of the ten defendants indicted have pled guilty.
According to court documents and admissions from co-defendants’ guilty pleas, Brandon Johnson, the all-time points and assists leader at USD, received bribe money to influence the outcome of basketball 2 games during the 2009-2010 season while he was a member of USD’s basketball team. Utilizing Johnson, the conspiracy profited by placing bets at Las Vegas casinos on games Johnson influenced. Co-defendant Steve Goria, who was sentenced to 30 months imprisonment in October 2012, admitted that the conspiracy profited more than $120,000 from the game-fixing scheme. Johnson admitted in his guilty plea that during the 2010-2011 season, he solicited a then-current USD basketball player to influence the outcome of basketball games for bribe money.
Judge Battaglia ordered the defendant to report on May 31, 2013 to begin serving his sentence.
DEFENDANT Criminal Case No. 11CR1345-AJB Brandon Johnson SUMMARY OF CHARGESCount 1: Title 18, United States Code, Section 371 - Conspiracy
INVESTIGATING AGENCYFederal Bureau of Investigation
Former Los Angeles Police Department 911 Operator Sentenced to Six Years in Federal Prison for Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A Lancaster man who worked for the Los Angeles Police Department as a 911 operator has been sentenced to 72 months in federal prison for receiving child pornography.
Brandon Simpson, 28, was sentenced yesterday afternoon by United States District John A. Kronstadt, who said the child pornography found in this case – which included images of infants being sexually assaulted – were beyond “repugnant.”
Simpson was arrested during an investigation into a peer-to-peer network in September 2011, and he pleaded guilty in June 2012 to one count of receiving child pornography. Following a search of Simpson’s residence in 2011 – he resided in Long Beach at the time – investigators reviewed computer files and found hundreds of images of child pornography. In his plea agreement, Simpson admitted that his collection contained more than 600 images. Some of the image involving bondage of very small children, according to a sentencing memorandum filed by prosecutors. “The charges against [Simpson] are serious and involve the exploitation of the most vulnerable people in the community, children,” the memo states.
Simpson was terminated from the Los Angeles Police Department in 2012.
The investigation into Simpson was conducted by the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC), which is made up of agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Los Angeles Police Department.
Release No. 13-028
Former Jenkens & Gilchrist Attorney Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to Eight Years in Prison for Promoting Illegal Tax Shelters That Generated Billions of Dollars in Fraudulent Tax LossesRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that DONNA GUERIN, an attorney, was sentenced today to eight years in prison on conspiracy and tax evasion charges stemming from her work on the design, marketing, and implementation of fraudulent tax shelters that allowed her clients to claim billions of dollars in fraudulent tax losses. GUERIN pled guilty in September 2012 and was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William H. Pauley III.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Donna Guerin abused her position as an attorney to help clients flout the law she swore to uphold, which contributed to the loss of billions of dollars in tax revenue. With her sentence today, she joins the other professionals who built and perpetrated this fraud, but did not find shelter from justice.”
According to the Indictment previously filed in Manhattan federal court and statements made during GUERIN’s guilty plea and sentencing proceedings:
GUERIN was a partner at Altheimer & Gray (“A&G”), a Chicago law firm, between 1994 and 1998, and later moved with a small group of A&G attorneys to the newly-formed Chicago office of Jenkens & Gilchrist (“J&G”), a Texas-based law firm with offices throughout the United States. At different times between 1999 and 2005, GUERIN was a shareholder or partner at J&G.
Between 1996 and 2004, GUERIN and other attorneys at J&G worked on the design, marketing and implementation of high-fee tax strategies for individual clients. Those strategies, or “tax shelters,” were designed to allow high-net-worth clients to eliminate, reduce, or defer taxes on significant income or gains. GUERIN and other J&G attorneys worked together with brokers from a financial institution, partners and employees of the accounting firm BDO Seidman, and other entities, in marketing and implementing the tax shelters.
Among the fraudulent tax shelters designed, marketed, and implemented by GUERIN and her co-conspirators were “Short Sales,” “Short Options Strategy” (“SOS”), “Swaps,” and “HOMER.” The Short Sale tax shelter was marketed and sold from 1994 through 1999 to at least 290 wealthy individuals, and generated at least $2.6 billion in false and fraudulent tax losses. The SOS tax shelter was marketed and sold from 1998 through 2000 to at least 550 wealthy individuals, and generated at least $3.9 billion in false and fraudulent tax losses. The Swaps tax shelter was marketed and sold in 2001 and 2002 to at least 55 wealthy individuals, and generated more than $420 million in false and fraudulent tax losses.
In return for receiving a fee from tax shelter clients based on a percentage of their purported tax losses – usually 5% for ordinary losses and 4% for capital losses – GUERIN and others at J&G assisted clients in implementing all of the stages of the fraudulent tax shelters, including setting up bank accounts and entities such as corporations and partnerships. GUERIN and others at J&G also provided the tax shelter clients a “more likely than not” legal opinion from J&G.
In addition to her involvement in the marketing and implementation of the fraudulent tax shelters, GUERIN also took part in the illegal back-dating of certain tax shelter transactions when attorneys at Jenkens & Gilchrist realized, after the close of certain tax years, that certain steps of the tax shelter transaction had been done improperly. GUERIN and others helped create documents after the close of the tax year and back-dated them using “as of” dates --- effectively treating the documents as if they had been signed prior to the close of the tax year, in violation of tax accounting rules.
GUERIN was paid in excess of $17 million from 1998 to 2002 as a result of her involvement in the tax shelter conspiracy.
In addition to her prison term, GUERIN, 52, of Scottsdale, Arizona, was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $190 million.
GUERIN and co-defendants Paul Daugerdas, Denis Field, and David Parse were convicted of various tax fraud charges in May 2011 after an 11-week jury trial trial. GUERIN, Daugerdas, and Field were granted a new trial as a result of certain juror misconduct. David Parse is scheduled to be sentenced on March 22, 2013. The retrial of Daugerdas and Field is scheduled to begin on September 9, 2013. The charges against these two defendants are merely accusations, and they are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Former J&G partner Erwin Mayer pled guilty to related charges of conspiracy and personal tax evasion in October 2010. Former BDO Seidman Vice Chairman and board member Charles W. Bee, Jr., pled guilty in June 2009 to related charges of conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), tax evasion, and perjury. Michael Kerekes, another principal of BDO Seidman and also a former member of BDO's TSG and Tax Opinion Committee, pled guilty in February 2009 to related conspiracy and tax evasion charges. Adrian Dicker, a former Vice Chairman of BDO Seidman and TSG member, pled guilty in March 2009 to related conspiracy and tax evasion charges. BDO partner Robert Greisman pled guilty in July 2009 to related conspiracy, tax evasion, and IRS obstruction charges. BDO partner Mark Bloom pled guilty in July 2009 to a related IRS obstruction charge.
Mr. Bharara thanked the IRS and the Tax Division of the Department of Justice for their work on this case.
This case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Complex Frauds Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stanley J. Okula, Jr., and Jason P. Hernandez, and DOJ Tax Division Assistant Chief Nanette L. Davis, are in charge of the prosecution.
Former Fortune 500 Top Executive of Miami Beach Manufacturing Company Pleads Guilty in Multi-Million Dollar Investment SchemeRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Michael B. Steinbach, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, announce that Claudio Eleazar Osorio, a/k/a “Claudio Osorio Rodriguez,” 54, of Aventura, pled guilty on February 28, 2013, before U.S. District Court Judge William Dimitrouleas. Osorio pled guilty to two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1956(h).
Sentencing has been scheduled for May 9, 2013. At sentencing, Osorio faces a maximum possible statutory sentence of up to 20 years in prison on each of the wire fraud conspiracies and 10 years in prison on the conspiracy to commit money laundering.
According to documents filed with the court and statements made in court during the plea, Osorio was the owner and majority shareholder of Innovida Holdings, LLC, a Florida limited liability company, located in Miami Beach. Innovida manufactured fiber composite panels for the construction industry for use in residential, commercial, governmental, and other structures without the need for cement, steel or wood. Innovida purported to be a rapidly expanding and financially strong international operation with facilities in the United States, the United Arab Emirates, Germany, Angola, Tanzania, and other countries.
According to statements made in court, between March 2007 and March 2011, Osorio offered and sold shareholder interests and joint-venture partnerships in Innovida to select individuals and groups, raising more than $40,000,000 from approximately ten (10) investors and investment groups in the United States and abroad. Osorio solicited and recruited investors by making materially false representations and concealing and omitting material facts regarding, among other things, the profitability of the company, the rates of return on investment funds, the use of investors’ funds and the existence of a pending lucrative contract with a third-party entity. Osorio received moneys from investors based on these misrepresentations. Osorio used investor monies for his and his co-conspirators’ personal benefit and to maintain and further the fraud scheme.
According to statements made in court, the second conspiracy to commit wire fraud related to a $10,000,000 loan that Osorio and another applied for and obtained a from the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (“OPIC”), a U.S. government agency that promotes U.S. government investments abroad to foster the development and growth of free markets. The purported purpose of the loan was to build a manufacturing facility and 500 homes in Haiti (“the Haiti project”) for displaced families in the aftermath of the January 2010 earthquake. Osorio and others made materially false representations and omissions concerning, among other things, the profitability of Innovida, the purported use of the loan proceeds, an equity contribution to be made by Innovida, and contracts that Innovida purportedly had obtained with third-party vendors. Osorio used the OPIC loan proceeds to repay investors and for his and his co-conspirators’ personal benefit and to further the fraud scheme.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lois Foster-Steers.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Former Deputy Director of USAID Contractor Sentenced to 51-Month Prison Term for Embezzling More Than $1 Million- Defendant’s Wife Also Sentenced for Her Role in the Crimes –Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Mark Adams, a former deputy director at a private contractor that did business with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), was sentenced today to 51 months in prison on a federal conspiracy charge stemming from the embezzlement of more than $1 million from a program meant to address global health problems.
Adams, 44, and his wife, Latasha Bell, 36, of Fort Washington, Md., each pled guilty in October 2012 before the Honorable Beryl A. Howell, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud. As part of the pleas, they agreed to pay full restitution, and consented to an order forfeiting the amount stolen. The government has already seized about $49,000 in proceeds from the scheme. Upon completion of his prison term, Adams will be placed on three years of supervised release.
Judge Howell said that Adams’s conduct was “downright conniving” and particularly egregious given how the USAID money was supposed to be spent. She also sentenced Bell today to five years of probation, with the first six months to be served under home confinement.
The sentencings were announced by Ronald C. Machen Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and Michael G. Carroll, Deputy Inspector General for the U.S. Agency for International Development.
As part of the plea, Adams and Bell admitted that Adams used his position as deputy director at a private USAID contractor to submit and approve false and fraudulent invoices and thereby obtain money. Adams admitted his false invoices generated more than $1.084 million in fraudulent payments between 2006 and 2010. The bogus invoices claimed to bill for services from Bell and companies controlled by Adams’s friends, such as co-conspirator Everett Lipscomb Jr. However, the work and services claimed on the invoices were not in fact provided.
Adams and Bell received the payments either directly to Bell or indirectly, when Lipscomb and others paid Adams and Bell part of the money they received. Adams and Bell also used fraudulent invoices to pay a home renovation contractor to complete an extensive renovation of their home. In another instance, Adams and Bell received funds that they used to buy a luxury automobile.
Adams admitted that, by approving the bogus invoices, he caused the USAID contractor, and ultimately USAID, to pay these fraudulent bills out of money from USAID’s global health program. The program addresses major global issues, including HIV/AIDS.
“Unethical contractors who steal from the American taxpayer undermine faith in government and the accomplishment of important public priorities,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “These defendants renovated their home and bought two luxury cars with dollars intended to save lives from terrible diseases. Today’s sentences should reassure taxpayers that we are doing all we can to defend government programs from theft, waste, and abuse.”
“I would like to express my appreciation for the exceptional work of our investigators and our partners at the Department of Justice involved with this case,” said Deputy Inspector General Carroll. “This sentencing sends a strong message to those who would steal taxpayer money intended to support USAID global health efforts that the USAID OIG will continue to use all necessary resources of the U.S. government to bring justice to those who would defraud the American taxpayer.”
Lipscomb, 43, of Aliso Viejo, Calif., pled guilty in March 2012 to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and related forfeiture allegations. He admitted that he participated in embezzling about $386,279 as part of the scheme. In addition, he admitted that he set up a shell corporation and bank accounts to receive the fraudulent payments and sent them back to Adams. He also acknowledged creating an e-mail account under a false alias to advance the scheme. Lipscomb was sentenced in November 2012 to a 15-month prison term, to be followed by two years of supervised release. He also must join Adams and Bell in paying restitution.
In announcing the sentences, U.S. Attorney Machen and Deputy Inspector General Carroll commended the work of the special agents from the USAID Office of Inspector General, which investigated the case. They also thanked those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Krishawn Graham and Nicole Wattelet, Forensic Accountant Crystal Boodoo, Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Saler, who handled forfeiture issues, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Hooks, who prosecuted the case.
13-076Former Commander of Mexican State Police and Member of the Gulf Cartel Pleads Guilty to Drug Conspiracy ChargesRead the Press Release
Gilberto Lerma Plata, a former commander of the Mexican State Police and member of the Gulf Cartel, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to import multi-ton quantities of marijuana into the United States, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Administrator Michele M. Leonhart of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Lerma Plata, 50, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly in the District of Columbia.
On July 29, 2011, Lerma Plata was charged with conspiracy to manufacture and distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine and 1,000 kilograms or more of marijuana for importation into the United States. Lerma Plata was arrested in McAllen, Texas, on May 9, 2012.
“As a Mexican police officer, Gilberto Lerma Plata was supposed to protect the public from harm. Instead, he abused his power to further the notorious Gulf Cartel’s violent narcotics trafficking operations,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Raman. “This prosecution is the product of the Justice Department’s unwavering commitment to working with its domestic and foreign law enforcement partners to bring cartel members and associates to justice for their crimes.”
“Using operatives such as former Mexican state police commander Gilberto Lerma Plata, the Gulf Cartel has smuggled huge amounts of dangerous drugs into the United States for far too long, while using violence, intimidation and public corruption to strengthen their ability to traffic drugs,” said DEA Administrator Leonhart. “DEA will continue our aggressive and sustained efforts against the Gulf Cartel and other criminal groups by attacking not only their high level leadership and financial networks, but the drug trafficking facilitators who harm neighborhoods and communities in Mexico and the United States.”
Lerma Plata was employed as the commander of the state police in Miguel Aleman, Tamaulipas, Mexico. According to court documents, Lerma Plata was on the Gulf Cartel’s payroll while he was employed by the state police, and he used his position of authority to engage in drug trafficking activities with the cartel. Intercepted conversations revealed that Lerma Plata and high ranking members of the Gulf Cartel discussed the shipment of large quantities of marijuana for distribution in the United States as well as the transportation from the United States of proceeds from the sales of the drugs and firearms.
The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Adrián Rosales and Darrin McCullough of the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section. The investigation in this case was led by the DEA’s Houston Field Division and the DEA Bilateral Investigation Unit.
Former City of Hoboken IT Manager Pleads Guilty to Illegally Intercepting and Disclosing E-mails Intended for Hoboken Mayor and Top City OfficialsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A former management information systems specialist for the city of Hoboken pleaded guilty today for intercepting communications meant for the mayor of Hoboken and top city officials and passing some of those communications on to other officials, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Patrick Ricciardi, 46, of Hoboken, entered a guilty plea – before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas in Newark federal court – to an Information charging him with accessing a computer without authorization, interception of wire and electronic communications and disclosure of intercepted wire and electronic communications.
According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Ricciardi was a longstanding employee of the city of Hoboken and worked as the chief information technology officer for the mayor’s office. As part of his job duties, Ricciardi was responsible for keeping the city’s network running and had access to email accounts within the city’s computer system and other aspects of the city’s computer network.In early 2010, Ricciardi created an archive file on his work computer to intercept and store all emails sent to and from the mayor and certain of the mayor’s employees. Neither the mayor nor any other city employee authorized the storage of the emails or the creation of the file.
During his guilty plea proceeding, Ricciardi admitted he used his access to set up the email accounts of the mayor and two of the mayor’s top lieutenants so all of their incoming and sent emails would be sent to the archive folder.
He also admitted that he read some of the emails in order to spy on the mayor and her assistants, and forwarded them to other current and former city officials.
Ricciardi is scheduled to be sentenced on July 1, 2013, before Judge Salas. Each of the three counts carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of the FBI’s Cyber Crimes Task Force, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge David Velazquez, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Zach Intrater of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Section in the Office’s Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
13-130
Defense counsel: Assistant Federal Public Defender Donald McCauley, Esq.
Ricciardi Information
Former CFO and Two Associates Given Prison Sentences for Multimillion Dollar Insider Trading SchemeRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO - King Chuen Tang was sentenced yesterday for his role in an insider trading scheme in which he and others obtained more than $5 million, United States Attorney Melinda Haag announced.
United States District Judge Jeffrey S. White sentenced Tang to serve one year and one day in prison followed by three years of supervised release. While on supervised release, Tang is to serve six months in home confinement and to perform 1,000 hours of community service. On February 21, 2013, Judge White sentenced two other defendants involved in this scheme, Joseph Seto and Zisen Yu, to six months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. While on supervised release, Seto and Yu are to serve twelve months in home confinement.
Mr. Tang pleaded guilty on March 15, 2010, to one count of conspiracy and one count of insider trading. On September 8, 2011, Seto and Yu each pleaded guilty to conspiracy. According to the plea agreements, in March 2008, Tang was the CFO at a private equity fund. As the CFO, he learned that Tempur-Pedic International, Inc. (Tempur) was planning a pre-announcement before its regularly scheduled earnings announcement. He also learned that his employer was planning to buy up to $50 million in Tempur securities. Tang shared that information with Seto and Yu. Together they traded on the inside information and netted approximately $1.9 million. In a separate scheme, in April 2007, Tang received a tip from his brother-in-law, who was a CFO at another private equity fund. Tang and others traded on that information and made approximately $3.7 million dollars.
Mr. Tang, 42, of Fremont, California, was charged on February 5, 2010, in a two-count Information with conspiracy to commit insider trading, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, and insider trading, in violation of Title 15, United States Code, Sections 78j(b) and 78ff. Mr. Seto, 42, of San Francisco, California, and Mr. Yu, 44, of Fremont, California, were charged on June 22, 2011, in a one-count Information with conspiracy to commit insider trading, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371.
Mr. Tang, Mr. Seto, and Mr. Yu were ordered to begin serving their sentences on April 29, 2013.
Jonathan Schmidt is the Assistant U.S. Attorney who is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Marina Pononmarchuk. The prosecution is the result of a one-year investigation by the FBI.
Former Bookkeeper for Korean Cultural and Freedom Foundation Sentenced to 24 Months for Tax CrimesRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Sookyeong Kim Sebold, aka Sophia Kim, 52, a former resident of McLean, Va., was sentenced to 24 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $133,548 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service for embezzling more than $800,000 from the Korean Cultural and Freedom Foundation (KCFF) and failing to report the income on her tax returns.
Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Tax Division Kathryn Keneally; and Thomas J. Kelly, Special Agent in Charge of the IRS – Criminal Investigation’s Washington, D.C., Field Office, made the announcement after sentencing by United States District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema.
Sebold was convicted on Dec.14, 2012, of filing a false 2005 tax return and tax evasion for the year 2005.
Sebold worked for the KCFF, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting cultural exchange through the sponsorship of the Universal Ballet Company (UBC) and other performing art events. UBC was founded by the Unification Church International (UCI) and Reverend Sun Myung Moon, and KCFF was funded primarily by UCI.
The evidence at trial proved that in 2005, Sebold embezzled more than $400,000 from KCFF’s bank accounts for her own benefit and used these funds for day trading, gambling and other personal expenses. She did not report these funds on her 2005 individual income tax return, resulting in her failure to pay more than $130,000 in taxes. In addition, the evidence at trial established that Sebold had also embezzled funds from KCFF in 2002, 2003, and 2004, for a total of more than $800,000 in unreported income.
This case was investigated by IRS – Criminal Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Mark Lytle and Tax Division Trial Attorney Caryn Finley prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.
More information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/tax.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.justice.gov/usao/vae. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on https://pcl.uscourts.gov.Former Background Investigator for Federal Government Sentenced to Prison Term for Making A False StatementRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Steven J. Sulinski, 54, a former background investigator for the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM), was sentenced today to three months in prison on a charge stemming from his falsification of work on background investigations of federal employees and contractors, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Patrick E. McFarland, Inspector General for the Office of Personnel Management.
Sulinski, of Colorado Springs, Colo., pled guilty in November 2012 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to a charge of making a false statement. He was sentenced by the Honorable Rudolph Contreras. Upon completion of the prison term, Sulinski will be placed on a year of supervised release, including six months that is to be spent on home detention.
Also, as part of the guilty plea, Sulinski agreed to pay $38,238 in restitution to the federal government.
According to a statement of offense submitted to the Court, Sulinski was a Special Agent assigned to the Federal Investigative Services, where his job was to conduct federal background investigations.
Between June 2011 and March 2012, in more than a dozen Reports of Investigations on background investigations, Sulinski represented that he had interviewed a source or reviewed a record regarding the subject of the background investigation. In fact, he had not conducted the interviews or obtained the records of interest. His reports were utilized and relied upon by the agencies requesting the background investigations to determine whether the subjects were suitable for positions having access to classified information, for positions impacting national security, or for receiving or retaining security clearances.
Sulinski’s false representations have required Federal Investigative Services to reopen and rework numerous background investigations that were assigned to him during the time period of his falsifications, at an estimated cost of at least $38,238 to the U.S. government.
Federal Investigative Services has a robust integrity assurance program which utilizes a variety of methods to ensure the accuracy of reported information. The falsification of investigative case work by the defendant was detected through the program.
This is one of numerous cases prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia in the last four years involving false representations by background investigators and record checkers working on federal background investigations. In addition to Sulinski, 13 other background investigators and two record checkers have been convicted of charges.
Federal Investigative Services, through its workforce of approximately 7,300 investigators, is responsible for conducting background investigations for numerous federal agencies and their contractors, on individuals either employed by or seeking employment with those agencies or contractors. Federal Investigative Services conducted more than 2.1 million investigations during the 2012 fiscal year. More than 770,000 of these investigations involved applicants for access or continued access to classified information.
In performing background investigations, the investigators conduct interviews of individuals who have information about the person who is the subject of the review. In addition, the investigators seek out, obtain, and review documentary evidence, such as employment records, to verify and corroborate information provided by either the subject of the background investigation or by persons interviewed during the investigation. After conducting interviews and obtaining documentary evidence, the investigators prepare a Report of Investigation containing the results of the interviews and document reviews, and electronically submit the material to OPM in Washington, D.C. OPM then provides a copy of the investigative file to the requesting agency, which can use the information to determine an individual’s eligibility for employment or a security clearance.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen and Inspector General McFarland praised the efforts of Special Agents Wayne VanVarick and Nathaniel Smith, OPM, Office of the Inspector General, and Philip Kroop, Chief of Integrity Assurance, OPM-Federal Investigative Services. Mr. Machen and Mr. McFarland also acknowledged the work of Paralegal Specialist Shanna Hays and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mary Chris Dobbie and Ellen Chubin Epstein, who investigated and prosecuted this matter.
13-078Forfeiture of More Than $15M Worth of Artwork Sought by U.S. Attorney’s OfficeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – The United States has filed a civil asset forfeiture Complaint seeking a collection of artwork containing more than 2,200 pieces and valued at more than $15 million, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced today.
The Complaint alleges that the artwork – bought with money from the sale of fraudulent credits for renewable fuel – was transported in interstate commerce knowing that it was the proceeds of fraud and was utilized in laundering the proceeds of fraud.
According to the Complaint:
Federal law requires gasoline and diesel refiners and importers to introduce renewable, non-fossil fuel into the national fuel mix. To ensure this, the Environmental Protection Agency created a system of credits known as “Renewable Identification Numbers” – or “RINs” – to track and boost renewable fuel production. The RINs can be obtained by:
· producing renewable fuel;
· importing renewable fuel produced by approved foreign producers;
· purchasing renewable fuel, with associated RINs, from approved domestic producers; and
· purchasing RINs without the underlying renewable fuel.A market for RINs has developed, and thousands of RIN transactions are electronically recorded with EPA every week. Hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of RINs are exchanged every year.
A company known as Green Diesel held itself out as operating a facility in Houston, Texas, that generated biomass-based diesel fuel. It did not, however, actually generate any such biodiesel. From November 2007 through at October 2011, Green Diesel sold RINs to companies such as Shell Oil, BP, CITGO, and Exxon that were invalid because they did not, in fact, represent the production of any biodiesel at all. Purchasers of invalid RINs from Green Diesel have reported losses exceeding $78 million.
The owner of Green Diesel, Philip J. Rivkin, used part of the proceeds of the fraud to purchase at least $18 million worth of artwork, chiefly photographs. On Jan. 30, 2012, Rivkin caused 396 packages of artwork to be transported to a warehouse on Frelinghuysen Avenue in Newark. The artwork was stored there until late June 2012, when it was moved to a warehouse in New York on its way to Spain. On July 12, 2012, it was seized for forfeiture pursuant to a warrant issued by a U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Falk in Newark.
The seized artwork has been appraised by New York Fine Art Appraisers, which concluded that it has a total fair market value of $15,773,128. Among the works sought by the Complaint are:
a. Gelatin silver print titled “Distortion no. 6, Paris” by artist Andre Kertesz. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Philips De Prury & Company as part of a group of photographs. Rivkin paid $42,500 for the piece and wired $60,000 as payment for the group of photographs on Nov. 9, 2010.
b. Gelatin silver print titled “Dunes, Oceano” by artist Edward Weston. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Sotheby’s as part of a group of photographs. Rivkin paid $134,500 for the piece and wired $424,750 as payment for the group of photographs on Nov. 11, 2010.
c. Gelatin silver print titled “Death Valley” by artist Edward Weston. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Sotheby’s as part of a group of photographs. Rivkin paid $16,250 for the piece and wired $424,750 as payment for the group of photographs on Nov. 16, 2010.d. Albumen print titled “Notre Dame” by artist Eugene Atget. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Camera Lucida, LLC as part of a group of photographs. Rivkin paid $130,000 for the piece and wired $1,267,000 as payment for the group of photographs on Feb. 8, 2011.
e. A 1907 platinum print titled “Nude Study, Miss Mabel Cramer” by artist Clarence Hudson White. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Camera Lucida, LLC as part of a group of photographs. Rivkin paid $35,000 for the piece and wired $1,267,000 as payment for the group of photographs on Feb. 8, 2011.
f. A 1930 silver print titled “Equivalent” by artist Alfred Stieglitz. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Lee Gallery for $33,000. Rivkin wired $33,000 as payment for the photograph on February 28, 2011.
g. Gelatin silver print titled “Poplars, Lake George” by artist Alfred Stieglitz. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Joel Soroko Gallery for $51,000. Rivkin wired $51,000 as payment for the photograph on March 7, 2011.
h. Vintage warm-toned matte-surface gelatin silver print titled “Vortograph 1917” by artist Alvin Langdon Coburn. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Camera Lucida, LLC as part of a group of photographs. Rivkin paid $175,000 for the piece and wired $1,400,000 as payment for the group of photographs on March 10, 2011.
i. Vintage gelatin silver contact print titled “From the Shelton, West” by artist Alfred Stieglitz. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Camera Lucida for $150,000. Rivkin wired $150,000 as payment for the photograph on March 31, 2011.
j. Vintage matte gelatin silver print titled “Knees (fragment)” by artist Edward Weston. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Camera Lucida, LLC as part of a group of photographs. Rivkin paid $165,000 for the piece and wired $1,400,000 as payment for the group of photographs on March 31, 2011.
k. An 1894 platinum print titled “The Letterbox” by artist Alfred Stieglitz. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Lee Gallery for $35,700. Rivkin wired the $35,700 payment for the photograph on April 5, 2011.
l. Vintage gelatin silver print titled “Greta Garbo for Vanity Fair Hollywood” by artist Edward Steichen. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Paul Hertzman, Inc. Vintage Photographs for $75,000. Rivkin wired $75,000 as payment for the photograph on April 11, 2011.
m. Waxed palladium print titled “Georgia O’Keeffe” by artist Alfred Stieglitz. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Camera Lucida, LLC for $675,000. Rivkin wired $675,000 as payment for the photograph on April 12, 2011.
n. Gelatin silver print titled “Equivalent, 1925” by artist Alfred Stieglitz. The photograph was purchased by Rivkin from Bruce Silverstein Gallery, LLC as part of a group of photographs. Rivkin paid $55,000 for the piece and wired $150,000 as payment for the group of photographs on April 12, 2011.
Civil forfeiture cases are “in rem” proceedings—proceedings against “things.” In this case, the Complaint is against the seized artwork, not against the persons who committed the underlying unlawful acts or anyone else. The law permits persons claiming an interest in the property an opportunity to appear and present their cases that they are innocent owners of the property and the property should not be forfeited. Whether the United States is entitled to forfeit the property will be determined conclusively. When property is forfeited to the United States, the law allows the U.S. Department of Justice to utilize the property to reimburse victims of the underlying unlawful activity for their losses.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents from the EPA-Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Ivan J. Vikin, Area Office in Dallas, Texas; and special agents from the U.S. Secret Service under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Cynthia Marble in Houston, Texas, and Special Agent in Charge James Mottola in New Jersey, for the investigation that led to the seizure of the artwork.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marion Percell, Chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Unit, in Newark.
13-101
Green Diesel Complaint
Fairbanks Man and Three Women arrested on indictment for drug conspiracy and money launderingRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced today that on February 28, 2013, four residents of Fairbanks, Alaska, were arrested. These individuals were indicted by a federal grand jury in Anchorage on February 20, 2013, on charges of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and oxycodone pills in Fairbanks, as well as conspiracy to launder proceeds of unlawful distribution of controlled substances. The indictment alleges that the conspiracy began in September 2010 and continued through October 2012.
The indictment names Nathan Jackson, 26, Cynthia Hawks, 44, Fabienne Clerc, 22, Hailey Jelinek, 20 and Misty McDonald 25, as defendants. Jackson, Hawks, Clerc, and Jelinek were all arrested on February 28, 2013, McDonald remains at large.
The law provides for a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of $1,000,000.00, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants.
Ms. Loeffler commends the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, the Alaska State Troopers, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the North Pole Police Department for the investigation of this case.An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
FBI Safe Streets Task Force Investigation Results in Charges Against 20 People in Alleged Drug Trafficking OrganizationRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Fred Alverson
Public Affairs OfficerCINCINNATI – A 13-month investigation by the FBI Cincinnati Safe Streets Task Force has resulted in charges against 20 people alleged to be members of a drug trafficking organization in Cincinnati’s East Clifton Avenue area of Over-the-Rhine. FBI tactical teams, Special Agents and task force officers began arresting the defendants this morning.
Carter M. Stewart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio and Edward J. Hanko, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation Cincinnati Field Office (FBI) announced the charges in an indictment and two complaints which were unsealed following the arrests.
The indictment alleges that the individuals conspired to “corner the market” for distribution of heroin in Over-the-Rhine. All are charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin and crack cocaine, a crime punishable by at least ten years and up to life in prison.
Eighteen defendants, all from Cincinnati, are named in an indictment returned on February 20, 2013 and unsealed today are:
Shantez Rembert, aka “Tez, 21, Demico Higgins, aka “Freak””Mico” “Meco”, 32
Frederick Benton III, aka “Red”, 35 Brien Champion, aka “Wienerhead” “B”, 29
David McPherson, aka “Dae Dae”, 38 Eric Brock, aka “E” “Big Head E”, 31
Casey Brock, 28 Antonio Montgomery, aka “Slice”, 27
Eric Gunn, aka “Rambo” “Bo”, 21 Frederick Baskin, aka “Freddy”, 50
Ralph Evans, 21 Damian Finnerson, aka “Dane”, 23
Dwayne Finnerson, aka “Weezy”, 30 Yolanda Rembert, 42
Sholanda Rembert, 25 Shawniece Grant-Cavins, aka “Nae Nae”, 21
Martha Clark, 19 McKinley Barnwell, aka “Kenny”, 60Criminal complaints have been filed against two others, Mario Harris, 27 and Tonya M. Jackson, 31.
U.S. Attorney Stewart commended the cooperative investigation by task force officers which includes FBI agents, Cincinnati Police officers and members of the Ohio State Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karl Kadon is representing the United States in the case.
The indictment also alleges that Higgins distributed a large amount of crack cocaine on a single occasion. The indictment charges some of the individuals with running “stash houses” for the drug trafficking organization, including operations near playgrounds and schools.
The defendants will appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephanie Bowman on Monday, March 4, who will determine whether or not they will be released on bond and schedule dates for future court appearances.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
East St. Louis Man Sentenced on Crack Cocaine ChargesRead the Press Release
Anthony Montez Taylor, 45, of East St. Louis, Illinois, was sentenced in United States District Court in East St. Louis, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today. The Court determined that Taylor was a career offender under the United States Sentencing Guidelines, and then sentenced Taylor to 144 months imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release. The Court also imposed a fine of $400 and a special assessment of $100. Taylor had previously entered a plea of guilty to a single count of Possession with the Intent to Distribute Crack Cocaine.
Information contained in the Stipulation of Facts, which was filed at the time of the plea, shows that on March 5, 2012, officers of the Fairmont City Police Department conducted a business check at a motel in Fairmont City, Illinois. Officers smelled the odor of marijuana coming from a room occupied by Taylor and investigated. During a subsequent search of the room, officers located 42.8 grams of crack cocaine, which Taylor admitted belonged to him.
Evidence in support of the indictment was obtained in an investigation by the Fairmont City Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration. This case was assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Randy G. Massey.
East Hartford Man Sentenced to Eight Years in Federal Prison for Trafficking CocaineRead the Press Release
March 1, 2013David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MIGUEL ALAMO, 36, of East Hartford, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 96 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for trafficking cocaine.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on April 28, 2010, as part of an undercover operation, investigators seized 15 kilograms of cocaine that were intended for delivery to ALAMO. ALAMO was arrested the following day. A subsequent search of ALAMO’s East Hartford residence revealed more than 12 kilograms of cocaine, drug packaging and processing materials, and $27,840 in cash.
ALAMO has been detained since his arrest on April 29, 2010. On June 1, 2011, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess and distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine.
This matter was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, with the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Homeland Security Investigations.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Geoffrey M. Stone.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
[email protected]Eagle Butte Man Sentenced for AssaultRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that an Eagle Butte, South Dakota man convicted of Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury was sentenced on February 25, 2013 by U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange. Mahlon Jeffries, age 26, was sentenced to 48 months in custody, followed by 2 years of supervised release. Jeffries is also to pay $100 to the Victim Assistance Fund.
Jeffries was indicted for Assault with a Dangerous Weapon and Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury by a federal grand jury on September 19, 2012. Jeffries pled guilty to Count II of the Indictment. The charge stems from an incident occurring on December 25, 2011, during which Jeffries assaulted his brother by striking him on the head with a wood and metal yard tool. His brother suffered a left parietal, open, depressed skull fracture and subarachnoid hemorrhage which required emergency surgery to remove bone fragments from his brain.
The investigation was conducted by the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn N. Rich prosecuted the case.
Jeffries was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshal.
Dubuque Man Pleads Guilty to Manufacturing Methamphetamine Which Caused House FireRead the Press Release
A man whose house caught fire from an illegal methamphetamine lab pled guilty on February 28, 2013, in federal court in Cedar Rapids.
Rory Lee Zirkelbach, age 43, from Dubuque, Iowa, was convicted of one count of manufacturing methamphetamine within 1000 feet of a protected location following a prior felony drug conviction.
The evidence at a prior detention hearing showed that on May 31, 2012, Zirkelbach attempted to make methamphetamine on the second floor of his residence on Jackson Street in Dubuque. The methamphetamine lab caught fire. A passing bus driver stopped his bus in front of the house and yelled at a neighbor standing on the front porch that the house was on fire. The neighbor reentered her half of the burning house to rescue her sleeping minor child. During the investigation of the fire, officials found the remnants of the methamphetamine lab which caused the fire. This residence was within 1,000 feet of Fulton Elementary School and Comiskey Park, both protected locations. Zirkelbach was convicted in 1998 of possession with intent to deliver amphetamine and possession with intent to deliver cocaine.
Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Zirkelbach remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing. Zirkelbach faces a mandatory minimum sentence of one year imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of 60 years’ imprisonment, a $4,000,000 fine, a $100 special assessment, and at least six years and not more than life on supervised release following any imprisonment.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel C. Tvedt and was investigated by the Dubuque Drug Task Force consisting of officers from the Dubuque Police Department and the Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office.
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 13-1001.
District Man Sentenced to More Than Five Years in Prison for Robbing A Senior Citizen in Northwest Washington-With Citizens’ Help, Defendant Was Identified and Arrested Soon After the Robbery-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Jerome Clark, 45, of Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to a prison term of five years and two months on a charge stemming from the robbery of a senior citizen in Northwest Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced today.
Clark pled guilty to a charge of robbery in December 2012 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced Feb. 27, 2013 by the Honorable Robert I. Richter. Upon completion of his prison term, Clark will be placed on three years of supervised release. Also, as part of his plea agreement, Clark must pay the victim $1,000 in restitution.
According to the government’s evidence, on Nov. 2, 2012 at about 4:30 p.m., the victim, a 70-year-old man, was exchanging information with a young man after the two had been involved in a traffic accident in the 5100 block of New Hampshire Avenue NW. Clark walked up to the two men and told them that he had seen what happened. Then, as the victim was attempting to get his insurance information for the young man, Clark snatched his wallet, which contained, in part, approximately $1,000 in cash, and ran.
The victim, the young man, and other witnesses, including a mail carrier who was in the area, chased the defendant. The victim fell during the chase, injuring his leg, but the young man and mail carrier continued their pursuit. As Clark kept running, he tossed the wallet. He ran inside his residence, which was nearby, and was arrested soon afterward.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen expressed appreciation to the officers who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department. He also acknowledged the work of those who handled the case at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Debra McPherson, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Natalia Medina, who prosecuted the matter.
13-074District Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Two Robberies, Including One of an Armored Truck-Defendant Also Attempted A Robbery of A Second Armored Truck-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Ricardo Hunter, 55, was sentenced today to 15 years in prison for two armed robberies, one of a business and the other of an armored truck, as well as an attempted armed robbery of an armored truck and a related weapons offense, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.
Hunter, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty in December 2012 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to two counts of interference with interstate commerce by robbery; one count of attempted armored car robbery while armed, and one count of possessing a firearm during a crime of violence. He was sentenced by the Honorable Richard W. Roberts. Upon completion of his prison term, Hunter will be placed on five years of supervised release. In addition, Judge Roberts issued an order of forfeiture in the amount of $35,157 and ordered Hunter to pay the same amount in restitution for the crimes.
According to the government’s evidence, Hunter planned and carried out two brazen robberies, and attempted to conduct a third.
The first robbery took place at about 6 a.m. on Sept. 28, 2010 at the Northeast Washington office of the Old Town Trolley Tours of Washington DC/DC DUCKS. According to the government’s evidence, the manager was preparing to open the business for the day. As the manager was opening the office’s main exterior door, he was approached from behind by Hunter and another man, both of whom wore masks to cover their faces. Hunter was armed with a handgun. The manager was told to open the door, and was advised that if the alarm went off, he “was dead.” Hunter and his accomplice proceeded to rob the office of $6,833 in cash.
The second robbery occurred on the morning of Nov. 22, 2010 at a gas station in the 2800 block of Sherman Avenue NW. According to the government’s evidence, Garda Cash Logistics dispatched an armored truck to deliver and pick up U.S. currency from the gas station. Upon arriving at the station, the armed Garda guard entered the establishment, where he received three bags of money containing $28,324. When he returned to the truck, the guard was approached by Hunter and two other men. One of the men declared, “Give it up,” while he pointed a handgun at the guard’s stomach. This man then took the money bag, while Hunter stole the guard’s loaded handgun. The three robbers then fled the area with the money and the guard’s gun.
In the third incident, in the days before Feb. 12, 2011, Hunter recruited one of his earlier accomplices and another man to assist him in robbing another armored truck. On Feb. 12, 2011, at about 7 a.m., Hunter and one of these men met at Hunter’s residence. From there, Hunter gathered the firearms that were to be used in the robbery, including a 9mm Luger Hi-Point pistol, the handgun that was stolen from the Garda guard, and an AK-47 semiautomatic assault weapon.
Hunter and his accomplice then picked up the third man and they drove around until seeing the armored truck. When the armored truck stopped near an alley in Northeast Washington, D.C., Hunter and one of the accomplices, both of whom were armed with handguns, exited the car and approached it. They were then stopped by law enforcement. The third man remained in the car with the AK-47. Also recovered from the car were black ski masks, black gloves and clear plastic gloves.
At the time of these offenses, Hunter was on parole after serving more than 25 years in prison for murder and other crimes. As such, he will now have a parole hearing at which he could be sentenced to an additional period of incarceration.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen and Assistant Director in Charge Parlave commended the work of the FBI’s Violent Crimes Task Force, which investigated the case with assistance from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also acknowledged the efforts of Paralegal Specialist Jeannette Litz, who provided administrative support, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Andrews, who handled the initial investigation. Lastly they praised Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine K. Connelly, who investigated and indicted the matter, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert Bowman, and Jonathan M. Malis, who assisted in the prosecution.
13-075District Man Pleads Guilty in Sexual Assault Against Woman in Southeast Washington-Defendant Told the Victim: “You Will Always Be Mine”-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A 41-year-old man pled guilty today to a charge stemming from a recent sexual assault against a woman with whom he had a child, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.
The defendant, of Washington, D.C., is not identified here to protect the privacy of the victim and her family. He pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to one count of attempted first-degree sexual abuse. The Honorable Ronna L. Beck scheduled sentencing for May 10, 2013.
According to the government’s evidence, the defendant and the victim once had a romantic relationship and she is the mother of his teenage child. On or about Jan. 10, 2013, he learned that the victim was involved in a romantic relationship with another man, which upset him. That day, he spoke to the victim on the telephone, demanding sex. When she rejected his advances, he showed up at her house in Southeast Washington, sent their child to the store to buy food, and propositioned her again. When the victim rejected his advances and told him that she was seeing someone, the defendant forced her to the bed and sexually assaulted her. During the assault, the defendant told the victim, among other things, that, “you will always be mine.”
In announcing the guilty plea, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the officers and detectives of the Metropolitan Police Department’s Sexual Assault Unit, who investigated the case. He also expressed appreciation to Paralegal Specialists D’Yvonne Key and Kristy Penny, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mervin A. Bourne, Jr., who investigated and prosecuted the case.
13-079District Man Found Guilty of Murder Charges in 2003 Shooting That Killed Two Men-Victims Were Brothers, Shot in Northeast Washington-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Floyd Brooks, 38, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty by a jury today of two counts of first-degree premeditated murder and related weapons offenses for the slayings of two brothers in 2003, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.
A jury returned the verdicts following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Lynn Leibovitz scheduled sentencing for May 10, 2013. Brooks faces a mandatory minimum of 30 years in prison on each of the murder charges.
According to the government’s evidence, in the early morning hours of Dec. 9, 2003, Brooks and Robert Williams, 29, exchanged words regarding drug sales in the Clay Terrace neighborhood of Northeast Washington. A short time later, Brooks returned and opened fire in the 5300 block of Clay Terrace NE, shooting Robert Williams and his younger brother, Raymond Williams, 22, multiple times. He then fled the scene.
Robert Williams died on the scene from his injuries, which included four gunshot wounds to the face. Raymond Williams was transported to Howard University Hospital, where he died a short time later from injuries including four gunshot wounds to the face and one wound to the neck that severed his spinal column at the base of his brain.
Brooks was arrested for the murders in 2009. At the time, he was serving a prison sentence in Maryland on gun charges.
In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the efforts of the current and former Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detectives who investigated the case, as well as the mobile crime scene technicians and others who worked on the matter.
U.S. Attorney Machen also extended his appreciation to those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker; Witness Security Specialists Laverne Forrest and Tanya Via; Paralegal Specialists Fern Rhedrick, Sandra Lane and Alesha Yette; Litigation Technology Specialists Thomas Royal and Anisha Bhatia, and Intelligence Specialist Lawrence Grasso. Finally, he praised the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney VinÁt Bryant, who secured the indictment in the case and prosecuted the matter at trial.
13-077District Man Convicted of First-Degree Murder While Armed and Other Charges in Slaying in Southeast Washington-Attack Took Place on Halloween Night 2009-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Darrell Lee, 24, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty by a jury today of first-degree murder while armed and related firearms charges in a killing that took place on Halloween 2009 in Southeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.
The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Ronna L. Beck scheduled sentencing for May 17, 2013.
According to the government’s evidence, on the evening of Oct. 31, 2009, the victim, Ashton Hunter, 19, was staying with his girlfriend in an apartment building in the 300 block of 37th Street SE. That night, he went outside, expecting to meet one of his acquaintances from his home neighborhood of 7th & O Streets NW. Mr. Hunter went outside and met with Lee, had a conversation with him, and then started to walk back into the apartment building.
As Mr. Hunter approached the building entrance, Lee followed him down the sidewalk, pulled out a gun and shot him several times in the torso. Mr. Hunter died later that night from his injuries.
In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Machen expressed his appreciation to the detectives, officers and others who worked on the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Phaylyn Hunt and Meridith McGarrity; Information Technology Specialists Leif Hickling and Joe Calvarese, Victim/Witness Specialist Debra Cannon, and Supervisory Victim/Witness Specialist Michael Hailey. Finally, he commended the work of former Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Gallun, who obtained the indictment in the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys David Gorman and Richard DiZinno, who investigated and prosecuted the case at trial.
13-080Davenport Man Sentenced After Federal Conviction for Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
DAVENPORT, IA - On March 1, 2013, Arnordo Corderrel Turner, age 25, from Davenport, Iowa, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge John A. Jarvey to 57 months imprisonment after pleading guilty to bank robbery, announced United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt. Turner was also ordered to serve three years supervised release and pay $100 towards the Crime Victims Fund. On June 11, 2013, Turner entered and robbed Northwest Bank and Trust in Davenport, Iowa.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Davenport Police Department, and was prosecuted by the U. S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.
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Dallas Man Admits Possessing More Than 8,000 Images of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Howard Tyson, 45, of Dallas, pleaded guilty this morning, before Chief U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater, to a criminal information charging one count of possession of child pornography. Tyson faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine and a lifetime of supervised release. Judge Fitzwater ordered Tyson to surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on Monday, March 4, 2013, and set a sentencing date of June 14, 2013. Today’s announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
According to documents filed in the case, Tyson used a peer-to-peer file-sharing program to download child pornography from the Internet onto his computer and his wife’s computer. When agents with the U.S. Secret Service executed a federal search warrant at his residence on July 26, 2011, Tyler admitted that he had been downloading child pornography for approximately one year. He said that he downloaded most of the child pornography onto his wife’s laptop computer. A forensic examination of both computers showed that the hard drives contained more than 8,000 images and 20 videos of child pornography. Tyson acknowledged that some of the images were sadistic and that the images and videos were of real prepubescent and pubescent minors.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative, which was launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ and click on the tab “resources.”
The U.S. Secret Service and the Plano, Texas, Police Department are investigating. Assistant U.S. Attorney Camille Sparks is in charge of the prosecution.
Convicted Felon Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Possessing A Stolen Assault RifleRead the Press Release
BRUNSWICK, Ga. – Alex M. Bennett, 32, of Broxton, Georgia, was sentenced yesterday by Chief United States District Judge Lisa Godbey Wood to 15 years in prison for possessing an assault rifle as a convicted felon. He was also sentenced to serve 5 years supervised release upon his release from prison.
Evidence presented during the guilty plea and sentencing hearings revealed that Bennett burglarized a residence in Hazlehurst, Georgia, where he stole an SKS semi-automatic rifle with a 20 round magazine. Because Bennett had three prior convictions for drug offenses and robberies, he was classified as an “armed career criminal” under federal law and faced a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years.
The case was investigated by the Hazlehurst Police Department and the ATF. The case was prosecuted under Project Ceasefire, a joint federal, state and local firearms initiative involving the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the ATF and various local police departments.
United States Attorney Edward Tarver said: “Through project Ceasefire, the United States Attorney’s Office will be relentless in its enforcement of federal firearms laws. Project Ceasefire has proven to be an effective tool in the Department of Justice’s efforts to rid the streets of dangerous felons who carry guns. Felons who possess firearms can expect to be returned to prison. ”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Carlton Bourne prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States. For additional information, please contact First Assistant United States Attorney James D. Durham at (912) 201-2547.
Christie Ann Medicine Tail Sentenced in U.S. District CourtRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Billings, on March 1, 2013, before Chief U.S. District Judge Richard F. Cebull, CHRISTIE ANN MEDICINE TAIL, a 35-year-old resident of Lodge Grass, was sentenced to a term of:
- Prison: 10 months and 6 days (time served)
- Special Assessment: $100.00
- Supervised Release: 4 years
MEDICINE TAIL was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to distribution of methamphetamine.
In an Offer of Proof filed by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marcia K. Hurd, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
Law enforcement had information that MEDICINE TAIL was selling methamphetamine as part of a bigger drug operation in Big Horn County and on the reservations.
On August 19, 2011, MEDICINE TAIL sold a confidential informant methamphetamine for $200 while at MEDICINE TAIL's residence in Big Horn County.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that MEDICINE TAIL will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, MEDICINE TAIL does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.
The investigation was conducted by the Montana Division of Criminal Investigation.
Chicago Man Sentenced to 108 Months' Imprisonment for Thefts of Firearms from Gun ShopsRead the Press Release
A Chicago, Illinois, man was sentenced to a prison term in federal district court in connection with burglaries of several firearms dealers in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.
Denis M. Joiner, 20, of Chicago, Illinois, was sentenced in federal district court in East St. Louis to 108 months’ imprisonment, 3 years’ supervised release, and a $300 special assessment, following his plea of guilty, on November 1, 2012, to an Indictment charging him with: Theft of Firearms from a Federal Firearms Licensee; Conspiracy to Steal Firearms from a Federal Firearms Licensee; and Possession Stolen Firearms.
Pleadings filed with the Court indicate that Joiner, together with three other Chicago men, burglarized DT Enterprises, also known as “Hunting Stuff,” in Salem, Illinois, on December 24, 2011, stealing 124 firearms, which they then took back to Chicago to sell. Law enforcement agents in Chicago learned of the conspirators’ identities after Joiner and a codefendant were caught shooting firearms into the air on January 1, 2012. After arresting one of the co-defendants for the shooting, agents were able to match fingerprints from a tote box left at the scene to those of the four suspects. Agents also learned that tote boxes such as the one found at the scene were sold at Lowe’s in Carbondale; the agents then recovered security videos from Lowe’s showing the four suspects selecting and paying for such totes and other items at Lowe’s on December 23, 2011. The four suspects in the Lowe’s video also appeared in DT Enterprises’ security video loading guns into the tote boxes.
One co-defendant, Kevin Winford, was sentenced November 2, 2012, to 70 months’ imprisonment for his role in the crimes; another co-defendant, Antoine White, was sentenced November 16, 2012, to 78 months’ imprisonment. The fourth conspirator, Earl Warner, was murdered in Chicago in January, 2012. Joiner’s sentence was higher than the others due to a greater criminal history and due to Joiner’s reckless flight from authorities prior to arrest.
Other gun shops victimized by the co-conspirators were: Maxon Shooters Supplies, Des Plaines, Illinois (190 guns stolen); Rinks Gun & Sport, Inc., Lockport, Illinois (34 guns stolen); Fletcher Gun, Waukeesha, Wisconsin (29 guns stolen); Deb’s Gun Range, Hammond, Indiana (30 guns stolen); The Gun Doctor, Roselle, Illinois (48 guns stolen).
The judge ordered restitution to all of the aforementioned victims.
The case was investigated by members of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen B. Clark.
Chatwin Pleads to Bank Fraud; Brandishing Firearm; Plea Agreement Includes Recommendation for 12-Year SentenceRead the Press Release
SALT LAKE CITY – A man who led law enforcement officers on a high-speed chase through Sandy, Murray and West Valley City in August pleaded guilty Friday afternoon in federal court to bank fraud and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. The plea agreement includes a stipulated sentence of 12 years followed by 60 months of supervised release.
Joseph Lee Chatwin, age 41, of Salt Lake City, and a co-defendant, Shauntae Leah Stratton, age 24, of Salt Lake City, were charged with access device fraud; aggravated identity theft; bank fraud; possession of stolen mail; and possession of unauthorized access devices. In addition to those charges, Chatwin also was charged with possession of a controlled substance; assaulting, resisting, and impeding officers; using a firearm during a crime of violence; and possession of a firearm by a restricted person in the 11-count indictment returned in October.
Chatwin and Stratton were initially apprehended on July 17, 2012, by Farmington police officers inside a stolen motor home at the Lagoon campground. Both defendants attempted to flee from police. Stratton was recaptured a short time later. Chatwin was arrested later in a shed. However, he later kicked out the window of a police car and escaped. The U.S. Marshals’ Joint Criminal Apprehension Team developed information in early August that Chatwin was at a home in Sandy. Officers tried to arrest him as he left the residence but he evaded arrest and led officers on the high speed pursuit. Officers were successful in spiking the tires of the car he was driving. Chatwin was subsequently arrested after brandishing a firearm at the Marshals.
As a part of the plea agreement, Chatwin admitted that he and Stratton stole a purse early in May from a victim identified as O.P. in the court document. They later saw a motor home for sale by owner and used a cell phone from O.P.’s stolen purse to negotiate the purchase price of the motor home. They later met in person with the owner of the motor home and finalized a purchase price of $30,000. Using O.P.’s personal information from the stolen purse, Chatwin says his co-defendant, with his knowledge and approval, opened a bank account in O.P.’s name at U.S. Bank using funds from a stolen check from two other victims. Chatwin said the co-defendant also obtained a cashier’s check at U.S. Bank payable to the owner of the motor home for $30.00. Chatwin admitted they altered this check to be payable in the amount of $30,000 and used the fraudulent check to pay for the motor home.
As Chatwin was attempting to leave a home in Sandy in early August, officers attempted to arrest him. He admitted he evaded them and almost struck a law enforcement vehicle as he was driving in a church parking lot. He admitted he then led police on a lengthy high-speed chase through Sandy, Murray and West Valley City areas until officers spiked the tires of the car he was driving. Chatwin admitted that he exited the car and was approached by Deputy U.S. Marshals who instructed him to stop. He brandished a 9 mm Ruger handgun, which was observed by the Marshals. He was arrested by the Marshals.
The final amount of victim restitution in the case will be determined at sentencing. However, Chatwin has agreed that the amount of restitution ordered in the case will include all relevant conduct.
Sentencing for Chatwin has been set for June 3. A change of plea hearing has been scheduled for Stratton on March 5 at 10:30 a.m. in Judge Robert J. Shelby’s courtroom.
The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Salt Lake City. Several agencies have participated in the investigation including the West Jordan Police Department, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Unified Police Department, and West Valley City and Farmington Police Departments, among others.
Centreville Man Sentenced for Firearm OffenseRead the Press Release
Michael A. Cooper, 27, of Centreville, IL, was sentenced on March 1, 2013, in United States District Court in East St. Louis, on one count of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Previously Convicted Felon, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.
Cooper was sentenced to 72 months in prison, three years of supervised release, fined $500 and ordered to pay $100 special assessment. He also forfeited the firearms. Cooper, who had previously pled guilty, admitted that he had possessed several guns, knowing that he was a convicted felon and that it was illegal for him to possess the guns.
Court documents revealed that on October 21, 2011, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant for a bedroom in a residence occupied by Cooper. During the search of the dwelling, firearms were discovered and seized.
Prior to October 21, 2011, Cooper had been convicted of a felony.
The investigation was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Metropolitan Enforcement Group for Southwestern Illinois.
This was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel T. Kapsak.
California Man Arrested in Federal Sex Trafficking CaseRead the Press Release
A Long Beach, Calif., man was arrested yesterday arraigned this afternoon on federal sex trafficking charges that allege he worked with a previously charged defendant to coerce women to work as prostitutes.
Marquis Monte Horn, also known as “Taylor,” 34, was named in an eight-count superseding indictment returned by a federal grand jury on Wednesday. The indictment includes charges of one count of conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking, and one count of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion.
The second man charged in the case – Roshaun Nakia Porter, 37, also of Long Beach – was arrested and indicted on sex trafficking charges in April 2012.
According to the superseding indictment, Horn used websites such as www.modelmayhem.com to recruit victims to work in a prostitution organization by claiming he and Porter were running an upscale escort service in which women could make $500 per day. Horn, Porter and others used various coercive tactics to induce the victims into engaging in prostitution. For example, they allegedly developed a romantic relationship with some victims, falsely promised victims they would only be working as an escort, falsely promised financial assistance for the victims and their families, falsely promised help to obtain lawful immigration status in the United States, and isolated some victims from their friends and family.
The indictment further alleges that Horn recruited one victim into the prostitution organization who was subsequently beaten, whipped and forced to engage in prostitution by Porter.
Investigators believe that there are additional, as-yet unidentified victims in this case. Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to contact the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office at (310) 477-6565.
Horn was arraigned on the indictment this afternoon in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana, Calif.
If convicted of the charges in the indictment, Horn would face a statutory maximum penalty of life in federal prison.
Porter has previously pleaded not guilty in this case and was ordered to be held without bond. A trial for Porter is scheduled for May 7, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Josephine Staton Tucker.
This week’s superseding indictment in the result of an ongoing investigation being conducted by the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Department of Justice’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Burlington County, N.J., Woman Sentenced to One Year of Home Confinement, Five Years of Probation, for Trying to Hide CashRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A Burlington County, N.J., woman was sentenced today to 12 months of home confinement and five years of probation for making cash deposits totaling more than $700,000 in amounts of less than $10,000 each in order to avoid having banks file a report on her deposits, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Sandra Mastoris, 58, of Chesterfield, N.J., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joel A. Pisano to an Indictment that charged her with structuring more than $700,000 in cash deposits from 2008 to 2009. Judge Pisano imposed the sentence today in Trenton federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
By the beginning of 2008, Mastoris had accumulated a cash hoard of more than $700,000. Beginning in May 2008 and continuing in 2009, Mastoris deposited that cash hoard in amounts of less than $10,000 because she was aware that banks were required to report cash transactions that involved amounts of more than $10,000, and she wanted to avoid having the banks file such reports. Making deposits of cash in amounts of less than $10,000 in order to avoid having banks file Currency Transaction Reports constitutes the criminal offense of “structuring.”
Mastoris made cash deposits into 13 different accounts at five different banks. Between May 1, 2008, and Dec. 31, 2009, Mastoris made more than 200 cash deposits of less than $10,000 into accounts at JPMorganChase, Bank of America, PNC Bank, Sovereign Bank and Grand Bank. On Aug. 29, 2008, for example, Mastoris made cash deposits of $9,900 into an account at the Bank of America, $5,000 into one account at JPMorganChase, $4,500 into a second account at JPMorganChase, and $8,500 into an account at PNC Bank.
In addition to the home confinement and probation, Judge Pisano ordered Mastoris to forfeit $70,000.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of IRS–Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Shantelle P. Kitchen in Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s sentence.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bohdan Vitvitsky of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit.
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Defense Counsel: Vincent P. Sarubbi Esq., Haddonfield, N.J.Bismarck Man Sentenced for Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
BISMARCK – U.S. Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon announced that on March 1, 2013, Rodney A. Milner, 52, Bismarck, N.D., pleaded guilty and was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Daniel L. Hovland on a charge of distribution of materials involving the sexual exploitation of minors.
Judge Hovland sentenced Milner to 10 years in federal prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release. Milner was ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Crime Victim’s Fund.
From an unknown time up until Sept. 2011, Milner used his home computer to send images of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) - Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Bismarck Police Department, the N.D. Bureau of Criminal Investigation, with the assistance of the Burleigh County State’s Attorney’s Office.
This case was brought as a 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 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.Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary Delorme prosecuted the case.
Big Spring, Texas, Man Pleads Guilty in Connection with Bomb Threat HoaxRead the Press Release
LUBBOCK, Texas --- Jordan Weston Hamilton, 24, of Big Spring, Texas, appeared yesterday before U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings and pleaded guilty to the federal charge of false information and hoaxes, stemming from a bomb threat he made in December 2012. Hamilton, who remains in custody, faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. Judge Cummings ordered a presentence investigation report with a sentencing date to be set after the completion of that report. Today’s announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
According to documents filed in the case, on December 17, 2012, at approximately 10:05 a.m., Hamilton called the Howard County, Texas, 9-1-1 emergency call center. Hamilton admits that he intentionally conveyed false and misleading information to the emergency call center when he stated there was a bomb located in the Science room at the Big Spring High School. Hamilton also admits that emergency officials in Big Spring, reasonably believing the false and misleading information he conveyed, evacuated and searched the Big Spring High School for a bomb. No bomb was located at the school.
The case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Cunningham, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Lubbock, Texas.
Bergen County, N.J., Man Admits Role in Two Separate Fraud SchemesRead the Press Release
Ran Multi-Million Dollar Ponzi Scheme, Swindled Elderly, Disabled Widow
NEWARK, N.J. – A Bergen County, N.J., man who claimed to run New Jersey-based hedge funds using a secret computer program to invest in foreign currency admitted today he defrauded victims out of millions of dollars, defrauded an elderly, disabled widow out of her life savings, and evaded payment of taxes, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
George Sepero, 40, of Glen Rock, N.J., pleaded guilty to a Superseding Information charging him with wire fraud conspiracy, wire fraud, and tax evasion before U.S. District Judge Jerome B. Simandle in Camden federal court. Two conspirators, Carmelo Provenzano and Daniel Dragan, previously pleaded guilty before Judge Simandle.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:Beginning in 2009, Sepero, Dragan and Provenzano claimed to run a series of hedge funds in New Jersey, luring investors with the prospect of extraordinary profits in foreign currency trading. The defendants made numerous misrepresentations and omissions to induce their victims to invest in “Caxton Capital Management” and “CCP Pro Consulting Inc.” Sepero claimed that he and his conspirators owned and controlled a proprietary computer algorithm for trading foreign currencies; that they had used the algorithm to achieve returns of more than 170 percent in the prior two years; and that any investment funds would be highly liquid and could be withdrawn on days’ notice.
Investors sent the defendants a total of more than $3.5 million. Sepero and the others invested little or no money in foreign currency or any other investment vehicle, instead diverting the vast majority of victims’ investments to pay prior victims in Ponzi-scheme style and to finance extravagant personal expenditures.
Sepero and his co-conspirators spent investor money on credit card bills averaging $25,000 per month; bar tabs of $18,241, including a $4,000 tip; $14,034 on separate nights at “Drai’s Hollywood” nightclub in Los Angeles; and flights to Paris and elsewhere. Sepero bought a custom Ford pickup truck costing more than $80,000.
The defendants e-mailed victims fake statements showing their principal had been invested in the foreign currency markets and was achieving substantial results. Many of these e-mails were purportedly sent by an individual named “Mel Tannenbaum,” a fictional character of Provenzano’s invention.
The defendants also e-mailed to several investors “screen shots” of a computer-based trading program, which they claimed represented the investors’ funds being traded in the currency markets. In reality, the shots reflected trading in fictional accounts set up by the conspirators to dupe investors.
The wire fraud conspiracy count to which Sepero pleaded is punishable by a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for June 14, 2013.
Sepero also pleaded guilty to conducting a wholly separate fraud scheme:
Sepero worked as a financial planner at a financial institution for several years, but was fired in 2006 because of investigations into his churning of clients’ accounts. One of his clients was an elderly, demented, paraplegic woman with the initials M.V. Sepero took control of M.V.’s annuity account, which was the sole means that M.V. had to provide for her retirement and nursing expenses.
Notwithstanding his termination from the financial institution, Sepero lied to M.V. and her family, and told them that he was still authorized to manage the annuity account. When M.V. had money to add to the annuity account, M.V. – at Sepero's direction – handed it over to Sepero, with checks made payable not to the administrator of the account, but rather to Sepero’s company, “Casa Nostra Enterprises.” Instead of transferring the money to the annuity account, however, Sepero spent it on his own expenses: credit card and other bills, mortgage payments, and car payments, among other things.
To hide the fraud, Sepero fabricated a bogus account statement, showing that the annuity account was worth more than $700,000, when, for the period covered by the bogus statement, the annuity account actually contained $16.57.
Sepero placed recorded phone calls to the administrator of the annuity account, during which he impersonated both M.V.’s son and her husband, who had been dead for more than three years at the time Sepero made the calls.
Sepero also pleaded guilty to tax evasion for the tax year 2010, as he derived income from his fraudulent activities, but did not file a tax return and deposited his victims’ money into his companies’ accounts.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge David Velazquez in Newark, and special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Shantelle P. Kitchen, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. He also thanked the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s New York Regional Office, under the direction of David Meister.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Kelly and Zach Intrater of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit and Evan Weitz of the Office’s Asset Forfeiture Unit in Newark.
This case was brought in coordination with President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes.
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Sepero Superseding Information
Bahamian Man Arrested and Charged for Attempting to Smuggle $1.2 Million to the BahamasRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Miami Field Office, announced that Rohan Spicer, a Bahamian national, was arrested and charged for allegedly attempting to smuggle approximately $1.2 million to the Bahamas. A bond hearing has been scheduled for 10:00 a.m. Monday, March 4, 2013, before U.S. Magistrate Judge William Matthewman.
According to court documents, Spicer traveled from the Bahamas to the United States by boat, arriving on February 25. HSI agents observed Spicer transfer items from the rear of his sport utility vehicle onto the boat on February 27. Spicer completed a U.S. Customs and Border Protection Vessel Entrance or Clearance Statement in which he declared that he was transporting household goods and speakers. Subsequently, Spicer’s boat was interdicted and boarded approximately six nautical miles east of the Palm Beach Inlet, at which time Spicer advised the officers that he was enroute to Freeport, Grand Bahamas, and that he was in possession of approximately $20,000.00 in U.S. currency that he had failed to declare one hour earlier at the Port of Palm Beach.
A Customs and Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office (PBSO) search of the vessel and cargo lead to the discovery and seizure of approximately $1.2 million in cash, packaged in $50,000 bundles of various dominations. The cash was hidden within merchandise, stereo speakers, and luggage discovered aboard the vessel.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the ICE-HSI, CBP Office of Air and Marine Operations, CBP/Office of Field Operations, CBP/U.S Border Patrol, PBSO, and the Village of Tequesta Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie Evans.
A complaint is only an accusation, and a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
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.
Aryan Brotherhood of Texas Gang Member Pleads Guilty to Federal Racketeering ChargesRead the Press Release
A member of the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas gang (ABT) pleaded guilty today to racketeering charges related to his membership in the ABT’s criminal enterprise, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas.
Christopher James Morris, aka, “Rockstar,” 37, of Dallas, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Sim Lake in the Southern District of Texas to one count of conspiracy to participate in racketeering activity.
On Feb. 22, 2013, Morris’s co-conspirator Chad Ray Folmsbee, aka, “Polar Bear,” 30, of Houston, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to participate in racketeering activity.
According to court documents, Morris, Folmsbee and other ABT gang members and associates, agreed to commit multiple acts of murder, robbery, arson, kidnapping and narcotics trafficking on behalf of the ABT gang. Morris, Folmsbee and numerous ABT gang members met on a regular basis at various locations throughout Texas to report on gang-related business, collect dues, commit disciplinary assaults against fellow gang members and discuss acts of violence against rival gang members, among other things.
By pleading guilty to racketeering charges, Morris and Folmsbee have admitted to being members of the ABT criminal enterprise.
According to the superseding indictment, the ABT was established in the early 1980s within the Texas prison system. The gang modeled itself after and adopted many of the precepts and writings of the Aryan Brotherhood, a California-based prison gang that was formed in the California prison system during the 1960s. According to the superseding indictment, previously, the ABT was primarily concerned with the protection of white inmates and white supremacy/separatism. Over time, the ABT expanded its criminal enterprise to include illegal activities for profit.
Court documents allege that the ABT enforced its rules and promoted discipline among its members, prospects and associates through murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to murder, arson, assault, robbery and threats against those who violate the rules or pose a threat to the enterprise. Members, and oftentimes associates, were required to follow the orders of higher-ranking members, often referred to as “direct orders.”
According to the superseding indictment, in order to be considered for ABT membership, a person must be sponsored by another gang member. Once sponsored, a prospective member must serve an unspecified term, during which he is referred to as a prospect, while his conduct is observed by the members of the ABT.
At sentencing, Morris and Folmsbee each face a maximum penalty of life in prison. Morris and Folmsbee are both scheduled for sentencing on Sept. 26, 2013.
Morris and Folmsbee are two of 35 defendants charged with conducting racketeering activity through the ABT criminal enterprise, among other charges. Ben Christian Dillon, 40, of Houston and James Marshall Meldrum, 40, of Dallas each pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy on Jan. 31, 2013.
This case is being investigated by a multi-agency task force consisting of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Drug Enforcement Administration; FBI; U.S. Marshals Service; Federal Bureau of Prisons; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations; Texas Rangers; Texas Department of Public Safety; Montgomery County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Houston Police Department-Gang Division; Texas Department of Criminal Justice – Office of Inspector General; Harris County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Tarrant County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Atascosa County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Orange County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Waller County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Fort Worth, Texas, Police Department; Alvin, Texas, Police Department; Carrollton, Texas, Police Department; Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office; Atascosa County District Attorney’s Office; and the Kaufman County, Texas, District Attorney’s Office.The case is being prosecuted by the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of Texas.
Armed Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
Michael J. Moore, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, announces the sentencing in the United States District Court, Macon Division, of Kerivonte Davis, age 26 of Wrightsville, Georgia,and Jimmy Brown age 25 of Fort Valley, Georgia. Mr. Davis and Mr. Brown entered guilty pleas in October and November, 2012 respectively. Both defendants were sentenced on February 27, 2013 for Armed Bank Robbery and Brandishing a Firearm During a Crime of Violence, in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Sections 2113(a) and (d) and 924(c)(1)(A)(i) and (ii). The defendants appeared before the Honorable C. Ashley Royal, United States District Court, Macon, Georgia.Mr. Davis was sentenced to 188 months imprisonment for two counts of Armed Bank Robbery to be followed by a consecutive sentence of imprisonment of 84 months for Brandishing a Firearm During an Armed Bank Robbery, for a total prison sentence of 272 months. Mr. Brown was sentenced to 63 months imprisonment for Armed Bank Robbery to be followed by a consecutive sentence of imprisonment of 84 months for Brandishing a Firearm During an Armed Bank Robbery, for a total prison sentence of 147 months.
A third defendant, Gregory Green age 27 of Byron, Georgia, was previously sentenced by Judge Royal to a total prison term of 113 months.
On May 28, 2010, while wearing masks and carrying firearms, the three entered the Atlantic Southern Bank in Lizella, Georgia, ordered the employees to the ground and stole more than $13,000.00. On December 16, 2010, defendants Davis and Green, again wearing masks and carrying firearms, entered the Atlantic Southern Bank in Bonaire, Georgia, and stole more than $23,000.00.
United States Attorney Michael Moore said, “It is an act of pure cowardice to hide behind a mask and a gun while terrorizing innocent people. I will not tolerate it, and my office will spare no resource in making sure that this type of crime is met with the full force of the law.”
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney, Verda M. Colvin and Jennifer Kolman prosecuted the case for the Government. For additional information contact Sue McKinney, Public Affairs Specialist, at 478-621-2602.
Anchorage Residents charged with wire fraud, theft of honest services, money laundering and false tax returnsRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska - U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced today that Anchorage resident Kenneth Browning, 60, was charged with wire fraud, theft of honest services, money laundering, and false tax returns. The same indictment also charges Anchorage resident Jerald Briske, 74, with 22 counts of wire fraud. The offenses charged occurred from May, 2008, through April, 2010.
According to the indictment, Browning was employed as a Federal Property Allocation Officer with the State of Alaska, Department of Administration, Division of General Services, Property Management Office. In this position, Browning was responsible for allocating surplus federal property to qualified state recipients. Briske was a corporate officer for Coast Line Enterprises Inc., a used equipment selling, salvage and mining business run by Briske and located in Anchorage, Alaska.
The indictment alleges a scheme between Browning and Briske whereby Browning would illegally divert surplus federal property intended for qualified state agencies or non-profits to Briske, knowing that Briske was not qualified to receive the property. Briske, in coordination with Browning, would then sell the fraudulently obtained surplus federal property to other businesspeople in Alaska and elsewhere, and both Briske and Browning would share the illegally obtained proceeds derived from this scheme.The indictment alleges that Browning and Briske conducted 22 separate transactions as part of the scheme to defraud. As a result of the scheme, Browning received approximately $140,150 in illegally obtained payments from Briske. It is alleged that Briske obtained approximately $220,870 worth of property to which neither he nor Coast Line Enterprises Inc., were entitled.
Browning is also charged with 22 counts of theft of honest services fraud for defrauding the state of Alaska. He is also charged with one count of money laundering by using proceeds of the scheme to purchase a 2004 Ford Mustang convertible. Browning is also charged with four counts of filing false tax returns for failing to report income from the scheme on his tax returns.The maximum penalty for both wire fraud and theft of honest services is 30 years imprisonment with a $250,000 fine. The maximum penalty for money laundering is 10 years imprisonment with a $250,000 fine. Filing false tax returns carries a three year term of imprisonment and a fine of $100,000. An arraignment date has been set for March 27th, 2013.
Ms. Loeffler commends the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the investigation of this case.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Thursday 28 February 2013
Woonsocket Drug Trafficker Sentenced to 60 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Felix Reyes, 20, of Woonsocket, was sentenced today to 60 months in federal prison for possession of crack cocaine with the intent to distribute, announced United States Attorney Peter F. Neronha and Woonsocket Police Chief Thomas S. Carey.
At sentencing, U.S. District Court Chief Judge Mary M. Lisi also ordered Reyes to serve 5 years of supervised release upon completion of his prison term. Reyes pleaded guilty on December 4, 2012, to one count of possession with the intent to distribute cocaine base.
According to information presented to the court, Reyes was arrested by Woonsocket Police in March 2012 following a brief foot chase, after an officer on routine patrol noticed Reyes acting in a suspicious manner. As the officer approached Reyes he fled, discarding a small package which police quickly retrieved. The package contained nearly 39 grams of crack cocaine. Reyes was arrested following a brief struggle.
According to information presented to the court, Reyes was previously convicted in state court on a drug charge, and is currently awaiting trial in state court on drug, assault and weapons charges.
Reyes has been detained since his arrest in March 2012.
The federal drug case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gerard B. Sullivan.
Contact: 401-709-5357
[email protected]Woman Sentenced to Serve 60 Months in Federal Prison for Conspiracy to Commit FraudRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Laura E. Duffy announced that Kathleen Wurts was sentenced today in federal court in San Diego to serve 60 months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, and bank fraud, in connection with a $17 million Internet fraud scheme. Ms. Wurts entered a guilty plea to one count of the indictment in April 2012. United States District Judge John A. Houston also ordered that Wurts serve a three year term of supervised release following her release from custody. Due to the number of victims, the location of victims worldwide, and the complexity of the case, Judge Houston found that restitution was indeterminate.
In her plea, Wurts admitted that through at least April 2010, she engaged in a conspiracy to defraud individuals who used Internet websites (such as Craigslist and Yahoo!) to find employment, purchase and sell items, and rent and purchase real property. According to court documents, Wurts' co-conspirators mailed her counterfeit money orders and travelers' cheques from outside the United States (Nigeria, Abu Dhabi, and the United Kingdom) and provided her with stolen bank account and credit card numbers via emails and chat logs. Once received, Wurts created hundreds of fraudulent checks using the stolen bank account numbers. She then mailed the counterfeit money orders, travelers' cheques, and fraudulent checks to the victims using stolen credit card information to pay for the postage. The victims generally expected to receive a fixed amount for, as an example, the items they were selling, however, Wurts mailed them a money order, travelers’ cheque, or check in an amount that exceeded the asking price. The victims were then directed to deposit the monetary instruments into their own accounts, keep a certain percentage “for their trouble” and wire-transfer the excess portion of the stolen amount to an overseas account. Wurts received more than $800,000 in counterfeit money orders and travelers' cheques and created more than $17.2 million in fraudulent checks using stolen bank account numbers. Wurts mailed these fraudulent monetary instruments to victims and paid more than $13,000 for the postage using stolen credit card numbers.
This case was investigated by federal agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations and the United States Postal Inspection Service.
DEFENDANT Criminal Case No. 11CR1952-JAH Kathleen Wurts SUMMARY OF GUILTY PLEATitle 18, United States Code, Section 1349 - Conspiracy to Commit Mail, Wire, and Bank Fraud
INVESTIGATING AGENCIESImmigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations
United States Postal Inspection ServiceWoman Charged with Theft of Government PropertyRead the Press Release
A grand jury returned a one-count indictment charging Gayle P. Braxton, 66, with theft of government property, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The indictment alleges that Braxton stole and converted to her own use $121,734 in Social Security payments made to a deceased payee which were deposited into a joint bank account of the deceased payee and Braxton.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Phillip J. Tripi, following investigation by agents of the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government's burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Woman Accused of Stealing More Than $40,000 in Government BenefitsRead the Press Release
A grand jury returned a seven-count indictment charging India N. Parker, 36, with several crimes related to the theft of more than $40,000 in government benefits.
Parker was indicted on two counts of theft of government property and five counts of making false statements. The indictment alleges that Parker stole and converted to her own use, $40,236 in Social Security payments made to a deceased payee and $1,393 in food stamp benefits.
The indictment further alleges that Parker made false statements to agency representatives by stating that her daughter had been living with her when, in fact, Parker knew that her daughter was deceased during the relevant time frames.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Phillip J. Tripi, following investigation by agents of the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General.
Wilson, N.C. Man Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Distributing Counterfeit Viagra and Cialis in CharlotteRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Chief U.S. District Judge Robert J. Conrad, Jr. sentenced today Awni Shauaib Zayyad, 56, of Wilson, N.C. to two years in prison for five federal offenses related to the possession and sale of counterfeit Viagra and Cialis pills, announced Anne M. Tompkins, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Judge Conrad also ordered Zayyad to serve two years under court supervision following his release from prison and to pay a $10,000 fine and $500 special assessment fee.
U.S. Attorney Tompkins is joined in making today’s announcement by Brock D. Nicholson, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Atlanta and the Carolinas, Chief Rodney D. Monroe, of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD), and Dr. Duane Satzger, Acting Forensic Chemistry Center Director of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Cincinnati Office.
In February 2012, a federal jury convicted Zayyad of one count of conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit prescription medications containing counterfeit trademarks, two counts of trafficking in counterfeit prescription medications bearing counterfeit trademarks, and two counts of selling and holding for sale counterfeit prescription medications with intent to defraud and mislead. Viagra and Cialis, manufactured respectively by Pfizer and Eli Lilly, are prescription medications for the treatment of erectile dysfunction (ED) that lawfully may be distributed to the public only through licensed pharmacies based upon a doctor’s prescription. Trial evidence established that the counterfeit Viagra and Cialis pills Zayyad distributed contained active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) of the ED medications, although in unknown strength and with unknown non-API additives.
Evidence presented at Zayyad’s trial showed that Zayyad sold over 500 counterfeit Viagra pills on June 24, 2010, at a convenience store in Charlotte. According to trial records, on August 23, 2010, Zayyad was en route to Charlotte in a vehicle registered in his wife’s name to sell more counterfeit pills at the same Charlotte convenience store. Law enforcement agents stopped Zayyad’s vehicle in Mecklenburg County before Zayyad could arrive at his destination. Court evidence indicated that law enforcement found 500 counterfeit Viagra pills and over 200 counterfeit Cialis pills hidden in the vehicle.
Evidence from court proceedings established that Zayyad had possessed and/or distributed over 2,000 counterfeit Viagra pills and almost 400 counterfeit Cialis pills during the course of the investigation in 2010. The counterfeit Viagra and Cialis pills had a combined wholesale value exceeding $40,000. Evidence introduced also established that there is a risk of great bodily injury to consumers who purchase and use counterfeit prescription medications outside of a doctor’s care and outside of licensed pharmacies, especially where counterfeit prescription medications contain active pharmaceutical ingredients of unknown strengths, with unknown additives, manufactured in unknown and untraceable clandestine facilities.
The defendant was ordered to self-report to the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. Federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.
The investigation was led by ICE-HSI, with assistance from CMPD and FDA. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tom O’Malley of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte.
Two Ohio Men and Youngtown Company Are Indicted for Violating the Clean Water ActRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging two Ohio men and a Youngstown-based company each with one count of violating the Clean Water Act, said Steven M. Dettelbach, the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
Benedict W. Lupo, 62, of Poland, Ohio, Michael L. Guesman, 34, of Cortland, Ohio, and Hardrock Excavating LLC are each accused of illegally discharging brine and oil-based drilling mud into a stormwater drain on numerous occasions. The drain flowed into an unnamed tributary of the Mahoning River and ultimately into the Mahoning River, according to the indictment.
The conduct took place between Nov. 1, 2012 and Jan. 31, 2013, according to the indictment.
“Clean, fresh water is our greatest resource in Northern Ohio,” Dettelbach said said “We will aggressively investigate and prosecute cases in which people pollute Ohio’s streams, rivers and lakes.”“We will continue to assist in the federal prosecution of this case but we will also pursue with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources any other violations of Ohio’s environmental protection laws,” said Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine. “This case is a reminder that we should look at making state law equal to federal law when it comes to protecting the waters of Ohio.”
ODNR Director Jim Zehringer said: “As an agency that focuses strongly on protecting Ohio’s natural resources, ODNR takes illegal dumping of oilfield waste into Ohio waters very seriously, and this type of action will not be tolerated. We will continue to work with our local, state and federal partners to take swift and severe action when someone willingly–and with malice–decides that their private interests outweigh the rules and laws that serve the public and keep our environment safe.”
“This incident is very disappointing and one of a small percentage of egregious environmental violations we see at Ohio EPA that must be prosecuted criminally,” Ohio EPA Director Scott Nally said. “In this particular case, the evidence suggests multiple instances of deceptive and illegal conduct, without regard to human health and the environment. This general disregard for the law will not be tolerated in Ohio and we will work with our partners at the local, state and federal agencies to make sure the responsible parties are held accountable. ”
“As the nation increases its use of natural gas, exploration companies must ensure that the waste water resulting from the drilling process is treated and disposed of safely and legally,” said Randall Ashe, Special Agent in Charge of EPA’s criminal enforcement program in Ohio. “These defendants are alleged to have knowingly and repeatedly discharged stored brine and oil-based drilling mud into a stormwater drain which ultimately flowed into the Mahoning River. This case demonstrates that if companies and their senior managers try to save money by circumventing environmental laws, they will be vigorously prosecuted.”
According to the indictment and related court documents:
Hardrock Excavating LLC is owned by Lupo and located at 2761 Salt Springs Road in Youngstown. The company provides services to the oil and gas industry in Ohio and Pennsylvania, including the storage of brine and oil-based drilling mud. There are approximately 58 mobile storage tanks at the facility and each holds approximately 20,000 gallons.
Lupo, who owns Hardrock, directed employee Guesman to empty some of the waste liquid stored at the facility into a nearby wastewater drain on or about Nov. 1, 2012, according to the indictment.
Lupo directed Guesman to conduct this activity only after no one else was at the facility and only after dark, according to the indictment.
Guesman, at the direction of Lupo, emptied some of the waste liquid at the facility into the nearby stormwater drain using a hose on numerous occasions over the next several months, according to the indictment.
The last time Guesman emptied some of the waste liquid into the drain was on or about Jan. 31, 2013. The waste liquid that night included a mixture of brine and oil-based drilling mud. A sample of the discharge taken that night was black in color and a subsequent analysis showed the presence of several hazardous pollutants, including benzene and toluene, according to the indictment.
This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brad Beeson following an investigation by the Ohio EPA, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, U.S. EPA, the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the Youngstown Department of Public Works and the Youngstown Fire Department.
The statutory maximum for violating the Clean Water Act is for individuals is three years in prison, one year of supervised release and a fine of $50,000 per day of violation or $250,000, whichever is larger. For corporations, the statutory maximum is five years of probation and a fine of $50,000 per day of violation or $500,000, whichever is larger.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record (if any), the defendant’s role in the offenses and the characteristics of the violations. In all cases, the sentences will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases they will be less than the maximum.
An indictment only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Two Men Sentenced to Prison for Cocaine TraffickingRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Two men were sentenced on Wednesday, February 27, 2013, in U.S. District Court for their part in a cocaine trafficking conspiracy, announced Anne M. Tompkins, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. U.S. District Judge Max O. Cogburn, Jr., sentenced Ildefonso Madrid Flores, 28, of Mexico, to 151 months in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release. David Kennedy, 37, of Charlotte, was sentenced to 30 months in prison and will serve four years under court supervision following his prison term.
U.S. Attorney Tompkins is joined in making today’s announcement by Harry S. Sommers, Special Agent in Charge of the Atlanta Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which oversees the Charlotte District Office; Greg McLeod, Director of the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI); Chief Rodney D. Monroe of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD); and Chief Tim W. Ledford of the Mint Hill Police Department (MHPD).
In May 2012, following a three day trial, a federal jury found Flores guilty of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine. According to evidence presented at trial, law enforcement seized two kilograms of cocaine from a vehicle in which the drug transaction occurred. Flores expected to receive $70,000 as payment for the drugs. Also, according to trial evidence, Flores possessed two cell phones. One of the cell phones was subscribed in Flores’ name for his personal use. Flores used the second cell phone to coordinate drug trafficking with his co-conspirators. That phone was subscribed under the name “Tony Montana,” the infamous character from the movie “Scarface.” Trial evidence showed that the co-conspirators had distributed a total of approximately 26 kilograms of cocaine.
Kennedy pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine in April 2012. The third co-defendant, Robert Shanley, 34, of Charlotte, pleaded guilty to the same charge in December 2011. Shanley was sentenced in July 2012 to 57 months in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release. In November 2011, a fourth co-conspirator, Joshua Poulin, 34, of Clover, S.C., pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and was sentenced to 133 months in prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release.
Flores and Kennedy have been in local federal custody and will be transferred to the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. Federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.
The investigation was handled by the DEA, SBI, CMPD, and MHPD. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven R. Kaufman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte.