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Tuesday 24 April 2012
Attorney General Eric Holder’s Task Force on Children Exposed to Violence Holds Final Public Hearing in DetroitRead the Press Release
At the final hearing of Attorney General Eric Holder’s National Task Force on Children Exposed to Violence in Detroit, officials from the Justice Department and the city of Detroit underscored efforts to keep kids safe and prevent youth violence. The task force is a key part of Attorney General Holder’s Defending Childhood Initiative to prevent and reduce children’s exposure to violence.
At the hearing, Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West announced the release of a new Justice Department research bulletin showing that 46 percent of victimized children were known to school, police or medical authorities. The bulletin, Child and Youth Victimization Known to Police, School, and Medical Authorities draws from the National Survey of Children’s Exposure to Violence sponsored by the Office of Justice Programs’ Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention with support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“While more children are reporting violence to authorities, many continue to endure the pain of victimization in silence,” said Acting Associate Attorney General West. “Through the work of the Attorney General’s task force, we hope to find more ways to identify those children in need and make sure they have access to effective prevention and treatment options.”
The task force is co-chaired by Joe Torre, chairman of the board of the Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation, and Robert Listenbee, Jr., chief of the Juvenile Unit of the Defender Association of Philadelphia. Co-chair Listenbee, a Detroit-area native, highlighted the urgency and opportunity of the task force’s work.
“I grew up just 20 miles outside of Detroit in Mt. Clemens, Michigan. During my high school years, violence was commonplace,” said Listenbee. “Similar violence still occurs in cities and towns across the country, but today we know so much more about how to address it. The resounding message this task force has heard is that we can – and must – change the norm of violence in children’s lives.”
During the opening session, Detroit Police Chief Ralph Godbee discussed the police department’s work with youth. He was joined by Lawnya Sherrod, a former Detroit gang member turned community organizer, who highlighted her work to get youth out of gangs and to help them graduate from high school and become productive, successful members of the community.
In a panel discussion about successful programs, Wayne County Child and Family Services Director Tadarial Sturdivant described his agency’s efforts to reform the juvenile justice system through a program called First Contact.
“[The program] creates an opportunity to collaborate with the Detroit Police Department and offer services at the street level to support the patrol officer who has first contact with the juvenile,” said Sturdivant. “As an alternative to arrest and detention, [the department] will convey youth to the Juvenile Assessment Center for stabilization, parental contact, brief assessment, transportation home, and referral for voluntary services.”
In a panel about public-private partnerships, Dr. William Bell, President and CEO of Casey Family Programs, discussed the need to meet the “overwhelming circumstances” of violence against children “with deliberate and intentional action.” Bell outlined concrete steps that every city in America could take to build “communities of hope” to reverse these violent trends.
Mary Lee, Deputy Director of PolicyLink, described how place influences many child outcomes. “ Just by knowing his or her zip code, a young person’s health, life expectancy, success in school, adult income¯all of these can be predicted,” noted Lee in her testimony, which described ways to improve the places children live to improve long-term outcomes.
The task force is composed of 13 leading experts, including practitioners, child and family advocates, academic experts and licensed clinicians, who will identify promising practices, programming and community strategies to prevent and respond to children’s exposure to violence. Their findings will inform their final report to the Attorney General in late 2012, which will present policy recommendations and serve as a blueprint for preventing and reducing the negative effects of such violence across the United States.
For more information about Attorney General Holder’s Defending Childhood Initiative and the task force, please visit: www.justice.gov/defendingchildhood.
Related Materials:
Bulletin: Child and Youth Victimization Known to Police, School, and Medical Authorities
Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West Speaks at the Defending Childhood Task Force Meeting
Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs Mary Lou Leary Speaks at the Defending Childhood Task Force Meeting
Monday 23 April 2012
Two Aryan Brotherhood of Texas Gang Members Sentenced in Houston for Violent Crimes in Aid of RacketeeringRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Two members of the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas (ABT) have been sentenced to federal prison for their role in an aggravated assault that took place in Tomball, Texas, in September 2008, Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas announced today.
On April 20, 2012, U.S. District Court Senior Judge Ewing Werlein Jr. sentenced Michael Burkett, 34, aka “Redneck,” to 27 months in prison and Shane Dallmeyer, 31, aka “Lock Jaw,” to 33 months in prison.
Burkett and Dallmeyer, both of the greater Houston area, pleaded guilty to racketeering aggravated assault for their role in the beating of an ABT prospect member.
According to court documents, the defendants were members of the ABT, a powerful race-based, state-wide organization that operated inside and outside of state and federal prisons throughout the United States. 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 court documents, previously, the ABT was primarily concerned with the protection of white inmates and white supremacy/separatism. Over time, the ABT has expanded its criminal enterprise to include illegal activities for profit.
According to court documents, the ABT enforces its rules and promotes discipline among its members, prospects and associates through murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to murder, assault, robbery and threats against those who violate the rules or pose a threat to the enterprise. Members, and oftentimes associates, are required to follow the orders of higher-ranking members, often referred to as “direct orders.”
According to court documents, Burkett and Dallmeyer, along with nine fellow ABT gang members, participated in the beating of an ABT prospect member at the home of another ABT gang leader, Steven Walter Cooke, 48, aka “Stainless,” in Tomball, on Sept. 22, 2008. The ABT prospect, who sustained serious bodily injury, was beaten by ABT gang members because he violated ABT rules of conduct.
Eleven of the 12 co-defendants have pleaded guilty for their roles in the assault. The 12th ABT gang member, David Harlow, 43, aka, “Bam Bam,” was found guilty by Senior Judge Werlein on March 21, 2012, at trial in the Southern District of Texas.
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; the FBI; the U.S. Marshals Service; the Bureau of Prisons; the Texas Ranger Division – Texas Department of Public Safety; the Montgomery County, Texas, Sheriff’s Department; the Houston Police Department-Gang Division; the Tomball Police Department; the Texas Department of Criminal Justice – Inspector General; and the Harris County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office.
The case is being prosecuted by David Karpel of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Hileman of the Southern District of Texas.
Philadelphia Man Sentenced to 400 Months in Prison for Role in Violent Home Invasion Robberies of Business Owners in Four StatesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Tahn Le, 44, of Philadelphia, was sentenced today to 400 months in prison for his participation in a conspiracy to commit violent home invasion robberies of successful Asian business owners in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and Virginia, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Zane David Memeger of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
U.S. District Court Judge Legrome D. Davis also ordered Le to serve five years of supervised release following his prison term and to pay $112,689 in restitution. After a four-day trial, a federal jury in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania found Tahn Le guilty on Jan. 20, 2012, of conspiracy to interfere with interstate commerce through multiple home invasion robberies and related firearms violations. To date, seven co-defendants have pleaded guilty for their roles in the conspiracy and are awaiting sentencing: Teo Van Bui, Buu Huu Truong, Thach Van Nguyen, Den Van Nguyen, Denise Novelli, Sidney Biggs and Hung T. Ngo.
According to evidence presented at trial, Le and his co-defendants targeted successful Asian business owners in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and Virginia for home invasion robberies because they believed that the owners stored significant amounts of business proceeds in their homes. In carrying out the robberies, the defendants brandished handguns, tied up, and in some instances, beat their victims, and stole business proceeds as well as expensive jewelry.
The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorneys John S. Han and Robert Livermore of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section.
The case was investigated by the FBI; the Poconos Township, Penn., Police Department; the Freehold Borough, N.J., Police Department; the Monroe Township, N.J., Police Department; and the Fairfax County, Va., Police Department. Additional assistance was provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Ohio Construction Firm Agrees to Pay $500,000 to Resolve False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
Anthony Allega Cement Contractor Inc., a Cleveland construction firm, has agreed to pay the United States $500,000 to resolve allegations that it knowingly submitted false claims related to a federally-funded construction project, the Justice Department announced today. The United States alleged that Allega submitted false claims that made it appear that the company was in compliance with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program, as required in order to obtain and maintain Allega’s contract with the government. The DBE program provides opportunities to businesses owned by minorities and women, as well as socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, to participate in federally-funded construction and design projects.
Allega was the prime contractor on a project to construct and pave a new runway at Cleveland’s Hopkins International Airport between 2001 and 2006. To obtain and maintain its contract, Allega was required to comply with DOT DBE regulations and to accurately report DBE participation on the project. The United States alleged that Allega claimed that materials and services for the project were provided by a company known as Chem-Ty Environmental, when in fact Chem-Ty was merely a “pass-through” entity used to make it appear as if a DBE had performed the work.
“The Disadvantaged Business Enterprises program helps businesses owned by minorities and women work on federal construction projects,” said Stuart F. Delery, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Those who falsely claim credits under the program in order to obtain federal funds take advantage both of the taxpayers and the businesses that the program is designed to assist.”
The government’s claims were based upon an investigation conducted by the Justice Department’s Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio, DOT’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) and the Federal Aviation Administration.
“When businesses misrepresent those working with them to obtain government contracts, they violate the law and economically harm subcontractors who already face numerous disadvantages in the workplace,” added Steven M. Dettelbach, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio. “This resolution helps to correct that injustice in this instance.”
“Preventing and detecting DBE fraud are priorities for the Secretary of Transportation and the USDOT-OIG,” said Michelle McVicker, OIG regional Special Agent in Charge. “Prime contractors and subcontractors are cautioned not to engage in fraudulent DBE activity and are encouraged to report any suspected DBE fraud to the USDOT-OIG. Our agents will continue to work with the Secretary of Transportation, the Federal Aviation Administrator, and our law enforcement and prosecutorial colleagues to expose and shut down DBE fraud schemes throughout Ohio and the United States.”
The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
The Justice Department’s total recoveries in False Claims Act cases since January 2009 have topped $9.2 billion.
New Jersey Financial Investor and His Company Plead Guilty to Bid Rigging at Municipal Tax Lien AuctionsRead the Press Release
A financial investor who purchased municipal tax liens at auctions in New Jersey, as well as a company in which he was a partner, pleaded guilty today for their roles in a conspiracy to rig bids for the sale of tax liens auctioned by municipalities throughout the state, the Department of Justice announced.
A felony charge was filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey in Newark, N.J., against David Butler of Cherry Hill, N.J. A charge was also filed against DSBD LLC, a New Jersey company responsible for managing tax lien investments in which Butler had a partnership interest. Under the plea agreements, which are subject to court approval, Butler and DSBD have each agreed to cooperate with the department’s ongoing investigation.
According to the felony charges, from at least as early as the beginning of 2005 until approximately February 2009, Butler and his company participated in a conspiracy to rig bids at auctions for the sale of municipal tax liens in New Jersey by agreeing to allocate among certain bidders on which liens to bid. The department said that both Butler and DSBD proceeded to submit bids in accordance with their agreements and purchased tax liens at collusive and non-competitive interest rates.
“The Antitrust Division is committed to holding accountable those who seek to exploit and undermine the competitive process at municipal tax lien auctions,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Sharis A. Pozen in charge of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “The division will continue to work with its law enforcement partners to prosecute those who harm our local communities by engaging in this kind of anticompetitive conduct in municipal tax lien auctions.”
The department said that the primary purpose of the conspiracy was to suppress and restrain competition to obtain selected municipal tax liens offered at public auctions at non-competitive interest rates. When the owner of real property fails to pay taxes on that property, the municipality in which the property is located may attach a lien for the amount of the unpaid taxes. If the taxes remain unpaid after a waiting period, the lien may be sold at auction. State law requires that investors bid on the interest rate delinquent homeowners will pay upon redemption. By law, the bid opens at 18 percent interest and, through a competitive bidding process, can be driven down to zero percent. If a lien remains unpaid after a certain period of time, the investor who purchased the lien may begin foreclosure proceedings against the property to which the lien is attached.
According to the court documents, Butler and DSBD conspired with others not to bid against one another at municipal tax lien auctions in New Jersey. Since the conspiracy permitted the conspirators to purchase tax liens with limited competition, each conspirator was able to obtain liens which earned a higher interest rate. Property owners were therefore made to pay higher interest on their tax debts than they would have paid had their liens been purchased in open and honest competition.
Each violation of the Sherman Act carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine for individuals. The maximum penalty for a corporation is a $100 million criminal fine. The maximum fine for a Sherman Act violation may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victim if either amount is greater than the statutory maximum.
Today’s guilty pleas are the eighth and ninth pleas resulting from an ongoing investigation into bid rigging or fraud related to municipal tax lien auctions. On Aug. 24, 2011, Isadore H. May, Richard J. Pisciotta Jr. and William A. Collins each pleaded guilty to one count of bid rigging in connection with their participation in a conspiracy to allocate liens at New Jersey auctions. On Feb. 23, 2012, Robert W. Stein and David M. Farber also pleaded guilty to conspiring to allocate liens at municipal tax lien auctions in New Jersey. On March 27, 2012, Robert E. Rothman pleaded guilty for his role in a conspiracy to rig bids for the sales of tax liens auctioned by municipalities throughout New Jersey. On April 17, 2012, Stephen E. Hruby also pleaded guilty for his role in a conspiracy to rig bids for the sale of tax liens auctioned by municipalities throughout New Jersey.
Today’s charges are part of efforts underway by President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF). President Obama established the interagency FFETF 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. For more information on the task force, visit www.StopFraud.gov.
The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s New York Field Office and the FBI’s Atlantic City, N.J., office. Anyone with information concerning bid rigging or fraud related to municipal tax lien auctions should contact the Antitrust Division’s New York Field Office at 212-335-8000, visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm or contact the FBI’s Atlantic City Resident Agency at 609-677-6400.Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Against City of Pittsfield, Mass., to Enforce the Employment Rights of a U.S. Navy ReservistRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a settlement with the city of Pittsfield, Mass., to resolve allegations that the city violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) by failing to promote a navy reservist and Pittsfield firefighter, and by retaliating against him after he invoked his rights.
The Justice Department’s complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, alleges that the city violated Pittsfield firefighter Jeffrey Rawson’s rights by passing him over for promotion to lieutenant in the Pittsfield Fire Department because of his military service obligations. In 2009, Rawson took a promotional exam for lieutenant. Based on the results of the examination, Rawson was ranked second on the promotional list. In July 2010, the city informed Rawson that he was being skipped for promotion and that a firefighter ranked lower on the promotional list was instead being promoted to lieutenant. The lower ranked firefighter was promoted in September 2010.
The lawsuit further alleges that, after Rawson filed a USERRA complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service, the city retaliated against him by refusing to reinstate him to the list of firefighters eligible to serve as an acting lieutenant.
Under the terms of the settlement, embodied in a consent decree that has been submitted for approval to the federal district court, the city will promote Rawson to lieutenant retroactive to September 2010. The settlement also requires the city to provide Rawson with over $22,000 in back pay, pension contributions and interest. The settlement further mandates the city to provide USERRA training to city department heads and supervisors on the rights and obligations of covered employees and their employers.
“Our military servicemembers sacrifice tremendously to serve our country,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “This settlement demonstrates our vigilant protection of the employment opportunities of our servicemembers, and our commitment to vigorous enforcement of the laws that protect them.”
“Employers face incredible challenges when an employee leaves his position temporarily to serve our country. However, our servicemembers endure much greater challenges to protect our precious freedom,” said U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz for the District of Massachusetts. “We are pleased that the city of Pittsfield agreed to restore Mr. Rawson’s rights and provide him with the promotion to which he was entitled.”
This case was litigated by the Employment Litigation Section of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the Civil Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.
Civil rights enforcement is a priority of the Department of Justice and District of Massachusetts. The rights of our servicemembers are protected under USERRA, which prohibits civilian employers from discriminating against members of the military, including reservists, with respect to employment opportunities, including promotions, based on their past, current, or future uniformed service obligations. The federal law also prohibits employers from retaliating against service members for exercising their rights under USERRA, including by filing a complaint. Additional information about USERRA can be found on the Justice Department’s websites, www.usdoj.gov/crt/emp and www.servicemembers.gov , as well as the Labor Department’s website at www.dol.gov/vets/programs/userra/main.htm .
Justice Department Files Lawsuit Against the City of Jacksonville, Florida’s Fire and Rescue Department for Race DiscriminationRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today filed a lawsuit against the city of Jacksonville, Fla., alleging that the city is engaged in a pattern or practice of employment discrimination against African-Americans in its fire and rescue department in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The lawsuit challenges the fire department’s use of written examinations for the promotion of firefighters to four ranks – Lieutenant, Captain, and District Chief, all in the suppression line, and Engineer.
“This complaint should send a clear message to all public employers that employment practices that have the effect of excluding qualified candidates on account of race will not be tolerated,” said Thomas Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “At best, these tests measure only a slice of what is necessary to be a supervisor, but they stand in the way of qualified African-Americans advancing in the fire department. The Justice Department will take all necessary action to ensure that such discriminatory practices are eliminated and that the victims of such practices are made whole.”
The United States’ complaint alleges that the examinations impact African-American candidates in two ways. First, African-American candidates for promotion to the four positions pass the examinations at significantly lower rates than white candidates. Second, even those African-Americans who pass the examinations are rarely promoted because the fire department selects candidates for promotion in descending rank-order based primarily upon each candidate’s written examination score and African-American candidates score significantly lower than whites.
Title VII prohibits employment practices that result in a disparate impact on the basis of race unless the employer can prove that such practices really test for what the job requires--are “job related and consistent with business necessity.” The complaint alleges that the City’s examinations do not meet this standard and, thus, qualified African-Americans have been kept out of the promotional ranks unnecessarily.
The Justice Department seeks a court order that would require the city to stop using the challenged examinations, develop selection procedures for promotions that comply with Title VII and provide make-whole relief, including offers of promotion, back pay and retroactive seniority, to individual African-Americans who have been harmed as a result of the city’s use of the examinations.
Additional information about Title VII and other federal employment laws is available on the Civil Rights Division’s Web site at www.justice.gov/crt/ .
Fujikura Ltd. Agrees to Plead Guilty to Price Fixing on<br /> Auto Parts Installed in U.S. CarsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Tokyo-based Fujikura Ltd. has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $20 million criminal fine for its role in a conspiracy to fix prices of automotive wire harnesses and related products installed in U.S. cars, the Department of Justice announced today.
According to a one-count felony charge filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan in Detroit, Fujikura engaged in a conspiracy to rig bids for and to fix, stabilize and maintain the prices of automotive wire harnesses and related products sold to an automaker in the United States and elsewhere. According to the charge, Fujikura’s involvement in the conspiracy lasted from at least as early as January 2006 until at least February 2010. According to the plea agreement, which is subject to court approval, Fujikura has agreed to pay a criminal fine and to cooperate with the department’s ongoing investigation.
“The Antitrust Division will remain vigilant in its efforts to detect and prosecute anticompetitive conduct in this important industry, which affects virtually every American consumer,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Sharis A. Pozen in charge of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “The division has focused its enforcement efforts in industries essential to consumers’ everyday lives, and we, along with our law enforcement partners, have been successful in bringing to justice companies and executives engaged in illegal price fixing conspiracies.”
To date, including Fujikura, eight executives and five companies have been charged and have agreed to plead guilty in the department’s ongoing antitrust investigation into the auto parts industry. Three of the companies have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced to pay criminal fines totaling more than $748 million. Seven of the executives have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced to serve a total of more than 122 months in jail.
Fujikura manufactures and sells automotive wire harnesses, which are automotive electrical distribution systems used to direct and control electronic components, wiring and circuit boards in cars.
According to the charge, Fujikura and its co-conspirators carried out the conspiracy by agreeing, during meetings and conversations in Japan, to allocate the supply of automotive wire harnesses and related products on a model-by-model basis and sold the parts at non-competitive prices to an automaker in the United States and elsewhere.
Fujikura is charged with price fixing in violation of the Sherman Act, which carries a maximum fine of $100 million for corporations. The maximum fine for the company may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine.
The current prosecution arose from an ongoing federal antitrust investigation into price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct in the automotive parts industry, which is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s National Criminal Enforcement Section and the FBI’s Detroit Field Office with the assistance of the FBI headquarters’ International Corruption Unit. Anyone with information concerning the focus of this investigation is urged to call the Antitrust Division’s National Criminal Enforcement Section at 202-307-6694, visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm or call the FBI’s Detroit Field Office at 313-965-2323.
Departments of Justice and Education Reach Settlement with Boston Public Schools to Ensure Equal Opportunites for ELL StudentsRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice and the Department of Education reached agreement with the Boston Public Schools (the district) and its superintendent today to ensure that English Language Learner (ELL) students in Boston receive the services and supports they need to overcome language barriers, as required by the Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974 and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This agreement replaces an interim settlement agreement entered on Oct. 1, 2010, which required the district to implement short-term remedies to ensure that thousands of students improperly excluded from the district’s ELL programs were promptly assessed and provided services.
The agreement reached today governs the district’s transition from these short-term remedies to longer-term policies and programs that expand the coverage of Boston’s ELL program and are designed to ensure that the services provided to ELL students are of high quality, delivered by qualified teachers and tailored to the specific needs of each individual student. The agreement requires the district to continue its efforts to accurately identify and place ELL students, and further ensures that ELL students, who face unique challenges, including students with interrupted former education and students with disabilities, receive assessments and services that are specially designed to address and ameliorate those challenges. The agreement also affords ELL students greater access to the higher-level learning opportunities in the district. To ensure these programmatic changes are effective, the agreement further requires the district to evaluate the effect of these changes on student achievement over time through robust, disaggregated data analyses.
“We applaud the Boston Public Schools for working collaboratively with the United States to develop a comprehensive plan to effectively serve all students who are not proficient in English,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “We believe this plan can guide other school districts seeking to ensure that its English Language Learner programs not only meet the requirements of federal law, but also empower English Language Learner students to strive for success in their education and lives.”
“A key to success is access to a high quality education and today, the Boston Public Schools is promising to provide limited English proficient students an equal opportunity for success by giving them access to programs and services tailored to meet their needs, including access to accelerated programs,” said Russlynn Ali, Assistant Secretary for the Office for Civil Rights at the Department of Education. “The Department of Education is committed to working with the Boston School Committee as it implements this comprehensive plan.”
“ Our education system must provide our children with opportunities to develop into productive citizens regardless of their proficiency in English. When English language learners lack properly trained teachers, those opportunities are curtailed,” said U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz of the District of Massachusetts. “We share the goal of continued improvement to Massachusetts schools and look forward to the progress of this collaborative effort.”
The enforcement of the Equal Educational Opportunities Act and Title VI are top priorities of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt . Enforcement of Title VI is also a top priority of Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. Additional information about the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights is available on its website at www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/index.html .
ATK Launch Systems Inc. Settles False Claims Product Substitution Case for Nearly $37 MillionRead the Press Release
ATK Launch Systems Inc. has agreed to a $36,967,160 settlement with the United States to resolve allegations that ATK sold dangerous and defective illumination flares to the Army and the Air Force. According to the government’s allegations, from 2000 to 2006, ATK delivered LUU-2 and LUU-19 illuminating para-flares to the Defense Department. These flares, which burn in excess of 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit for over five minutes, are used for nighttime combat, covert and search and rescue operations and have been used extensively by American forces in Iraq and Afghanistan in the global war on terror. The government alleged that the flares delivered by ATK were incapable of withstanding a 10-foot drop test without exploding or igniting, as required by specifications, and that ATK was aware of this when it submitted claims for payment.
ATK has agreed to pay the United States $21 million in cash and provide necessary in-kind services worth $15,967,160 to fix the 76,000 unsafe para-flares remaining in the government’s inventory. The settlement resolves a False Claims Act suit filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah.
The lawsuit was initially filed by an ATK employee under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private individuals, called “relators” to bring lawsuits on behalf of the United States and receiv e a portion of the proceeds of a settlement or judgment awarded against a defendant.
“Our men and women in combat deserve equipment that meets critical safety and performance requirements,” said Stuart F. Delery, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division. “This case demonstrates that the Department of Justice will pursue cases where contractors knowingly provide defective equipment that puts the safety of American military service members at risk.”
“This settlement demonstrates our commitment to aggressively go after contractors who recklessly disregard and deliberately ignore critical safety defects in munitions used by America’s uniformed fighting men and women on the front lines of the war on terror,” said David B. Barlow, U.S. Attorney for the District of Utah. “This office fully supported the federal investigators in their efforts to uncover these fraudulent claims and recover the ill-gotten gains for the American taxpayers.”
The investigation team, which was led by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, included the Air Force Office of Special Investigation, the Navy Naval Criminal Investigative Service, the Army Criminal Investigative Command and auditors from the Defense Contract Audit Agency and the Defense Contract Management Agency. Additional technical support was provided by the Army Research Laboratory in Aberdeen, Md., the Army Aviation and Missile Command in Huntsville, Ala., the Naval Sea Systems Command at Crane, Ind. and Portsmouth, R.I., the Defense Standardization Program Office at Fort Belvoir, Va., the Air Force Materiel Command at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio and Hill Air Force Base, Utah, and the Army Materiel Command at Rock Island Arsenal, Ill.
Friday 20 April 2012
Walgreens Pharmacy Chain Pays $7.9 Million<br /> <br /> to Resolve False Prescription Billing CaseRead the Press Release
Walgreens, an Illinois-based corporation operating a national retail pharmacy chain, has paid the United States and participating states $7.9 million to resolve allegations that Walgreens violated the False Claims Act, the Justice Department announced today.
The settlement resolves allegations that Walgreens offered illegal inducements to beneficiaries of government health care programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE and the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), in the form of gift cards, gift checks and other similar promotions that are prohibited by law, to transfer their prescriptions to Walgreens pharmacies. The government investigation alleged that Walgreens had offered government health beneficiaries $25 gift cards when they transferred a prescription from another pharmacy to Walgreens. The company’s advertisements that promoted gift cards and gift checks for transferred prescriptions typically acknowledged that the offer was not valid with Medicaid, Medicare or any other government program. Nevertheless, the government alleged that Walgreens employees frequently ignored the stated exemptions on the face of the coupons and handed gift cards to customers who were beneficiaries of government health programs, in violation of federal law.
“This case represents the government's strong commitment to pursuing improper practices in the retail pharmacy industry that have the effect of manipulating patient decisions,” said Stuart F. Delery, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice.
The allegations were brought to the government by two whistleblowers, known as relators, in two separate whistleblower lawsuits filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act and state False Claims Act statutes. The relators, Cassie Bass, a pharmacy technician formerly employed by Walgreens, and Jack Chin, an independent pharmacist, will receive $1,277,172 from the United States for their role in filing the qui tam actions. The federal share of the settlement is $7,298,124.
“This case vindicates and protects the interests of consumers throughout the nation by ensuring that they remain free from undue influence by large retail chains when making decisions about which pharmacies to entrust their own individual health care,” said André Birotte Jr, U.S. Attorney for Central District of California.
“The law prohibits pharmacies from using their retail clout to lure patients whose prescriptions are subsidized by the government,” said Barbara L. McQuade, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. “Continuity with a pharmacist is important to detect problems with dosages and drug interactions. Patients should make decisions based on legitimate health care needs, not on inducements like gift cards.”
“This settlement makes clear that corporations seeking increased profits over their patients' needs will pay a substantial price,” said Daniel R. Levinson, Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services. “Violating Federal health care laws, as Walgreens allegedly did by offering incentives for new business, cannot be tolerated.”
This resolution is part of the government's emphasis on combating health care fraud and another step for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced by Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius in May 2009. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in that effort is the False Claims Act, which the Justice Department has used to recover more than $6.7 billion since January 2009 in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs. The Justice Department's total recoveries in False Claims Act cases since January 2009 are over $9 billion.
This case was investigated jointly by the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Central District of California and the Eastern District of Michigan, the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units and the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General.
The claims settled by today’s agreement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.
Ohio Attorney Convicted of Tax Fraud and Obstruction of Justice CrimesRead the Press Release
The Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today that attorney Aristotle “Rick” R. Matsa, of Worthington, Ohio, was convicted of numerous tax fraud and obstruction of justice related offenses, including witness tampering and making a false statement. In addition, Rick Matsa and his mother, Loula Z. Matsa, were convicted of conspiracy to obstruct justice, commit perjury, and make false statements, following a five-week trial in Columbus, Ohio, before the Honorable Edmund A. Sargus Jr.
Rick Matsa individually was convicted of one count of a corrupt endeavor to obstruct and impede the IRS, 15 counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false and fraudulent tax returns, that related to five different trusts; one count of willfully failing to file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR); one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice, commit perjury, and make false statements; two counts of witness tampering; one count of submitting a false statement; and one count of obstruction of justice.
According to the indictment, which was returned on June 23, 2010, and the evidence admitted at trial, Rick Matsa, who in addition to being an attorney was also an architect, a real estate broker, and a licensed minister in Ohio, created and operated several nominee entities in order to disguise and conceal his income and assets from the IRS. The false trust return charges relate to filings for at least five separate trust entities during the tax years 2003 to 2005. In fact, the evidence at trial showed that the trusts had been filing similar returns dating back to 1990. Each of the trusts reported receiving significant amounts of interest income each year, generated from funds held in numerous bank accounts, yet no income tax was reported due as a result of fraudulently claimed deductions for distributions on the trust returns that were purportedly paid to a foreign beneficiary each year. However, the evidence at trial showed, instead, that Rick Matsa used funds from those trusts to purchase a 150-acre farm in Hocking County and a home in Worthington, both of which he used as a personal residence.
The evidence at trial also showed that Rick Matsa violated FBAR, the foreign bank account reporting requirements, by failing to disclose his ownership and control over a foreign bank account held in The Netherlands. The evidence at trial was that Rick Matsa maintained more than $300,000 in funds in that undisclosed foreign bank during 2003.
The evidence at trial further showed that after learning of the federal grand jury investigation into his business activities in May of 2006, Rick Matsa, together with Loula Matsa and others, conspired to obstruct the investigation by misleading and concealing evidence from the grand jury, making false statements to the grand jury, creating false documents, tampering with witnesses, and lying to federal investigators.
George Pappas, formerly an attorney in Urbana, Ohio, who previously pleaded guilty to making false statements to federal agents and during the grand jury investigation, testified at trial. Pappas testified that he falsely claimed ownership of Rick Matsa’s law firm, located in the Short North area of Columbus, in their efforts to withhold records from the grand jury.
Rick Matsa’s tenant, P. Maria Galloway, the owner of an art gallery next door to Rick Matsa’s law firm, also testified after pleading guilty to conspiracy to obstruct justice. Galloway testified that she signed numerous documents at Rick Matsa’s direction, including federal income tax returns for Rick Matsa’s law firm and a number of his nominee entities, which Rick Matsa used as part of his scheme to obstruct the IRS.
“Today’s verdict shows that attorneys and other professionals who violate the tax laws or who attempt to obstruct justice will be held accountable for their actions,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Tax Division Kathryn Keneally. “Those who illegally attempt to hide their income and assets from the IRS through fraudulent trusts or offshore bank accounts will be prosecuted and punished.”
“The government will not tolerate abusive tax schemes that use offshore accounts to illegally escape taxes,” said Rick A. Raven, Acting Chief, IRS Criminal Investigation. “Those Americans who file accurate, honest and timely tax returns can be assured that the government will hold accountable those who don’t.”
Rick Matsa faces a maximum potential sentence of 108 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $3.25 million, and five years of supervised release. Loula Matsa faces a maximum potential sentence of five years imprisonment, a fine of $250,000, and three years of supervised release. No sentencing date has yet been scheduled.
Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally, and Mark D’Alessandro, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio on this matter, commended the IRS-Criminal Investigation Special Agents who investigated the case, as well as Tax Division Trial Attorneys Richard M. Rolwing, Jorge Almonte, and Steve Descano who prosecuted the case.
More information about the Justice Department’s Tax Division and its enforcement efforts is available at www.justice.gov/tax .
Kazakhstani National Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering for “Hack and Dump” SchemeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Daniyar Zhaxalyk, 25, a citizen of Kazakhstan who entered the United States on a student visa, pleaded guilty today in Houston to one count of money laundering, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson for the Southern District of Texas.
Zhaxalyk pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Ewing Werlein Jr. in the Southern District of Texas. Zhaxalyk and three co-conspirators were charged in an indictment filed in the Southern District of Texas and unsealed in December 2011.
Zhaxalyk admitted to laundering funds generated in a sophisticated “hack and dump” stock scheme that caused more than $400,000 in losses. The indictment charged that Zhaxalyk’s co-conspirators illegally accessed brokerage accounts to engage in a stock fraud scheme in which the compromised accounts were used to purchase borrowed shares of stock at above-market prices from the defendants’ personal brokerage accounts. Zhaxalyk’s co-conspirators then allegedly repurchased the borrowed shares at the considerably lower market price, returned the borrowed shares to the stock lender and claimed as profit the difference between the market price and the inflated price paid by the compromised victim accounts. Zhaxalyk admitted that he received and made wire transfers and withdrawals of the funds generated from the fraudulent stock sales and supervised other Houston-based students recruited into the scheme to launder funds.
A co-defendant, Alexey Li, also a citizen of Kazakhstan who entered the United States on a student visa, previously pleaded guilty in Houston on March 2, 2012, and is awaiting sentencing. Two other defendants remain at large.
At sentencing, Zhaxalyk will face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
This case was investigated by the St. Louis, San Francisco and Houston offices of the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Ethan Arenson of the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark McIntyre of the Southern District of Texas.
International Competition Network Launches New Initiatives onEnforcement Cooperation, Investigative Process and Working with the CourtsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - The International Competition Network (ICN) launched and approved three new initiatives on international enforcement cooperation, the investigative process in competition cases and working with the courts, the Department of Justice announced today. The ICN also adopted new materials on unilateral conduct investigations, raising anti-cartel awareness and explaining the benefits of competition.
The 11th annual ICN conference, hosted by the Brazilian Competition Policy System, was held on April18-20, 2012, in Rio de Janeiro. More than 450 delegates participated, representing more than 80 antitrust agencies from around the world, and included competition experts from international organizations and the legal, business, consumer and academic communities. Acting Assistant Attorney General Sharis A. Pozen of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Commissioner Edith Ramirez led the U.S. delegates at the conference. The conference showcased the achievements of ICN working groups on mergers, unilateral conduct, cartels, competition advocacy and competition agency effectiveness.
“The ICN has become a central forum for dialogue within the global antitrust community to share experiences and develop practical recommendations,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Pozen. “Its work is enabling more effective and efficient antitrust enforcement worldwide, to the benefit of competition agencies and, ultimately, consumers.”The ICN Steering Group introduced and members approved three new initiatives. The Department of Justice and the Turkish Competition Authority co-chaired the international competition enforcement cooperation initiative, which was presented by the Acting Assistant Attorney General Pozen. The FTC and the European Commission’s Competition Directorate co-chaired the investigative process initiative, which was presented by the Competition Directorate’s Director General Alexander Italianer. The working with courts and judges initiative, co-chaired by the Chilean Competition Tribunal and Poland’s Office of Competition and Consumer Protection,was presented by Malgorzata Krasnodebska-Tomkiel, President of the Polish authority.
The ICN’s working groups also presented their work to the conference. The Merger Working Group, co-chaired by the Department of Justice, the Irish Competition Authority and the Italian Competition Authority, aims to promote best practices in the design and operation of merger review regimes. Acting Assistant Attorney General Pozen led the conference discussion of current trends and developments in merger enforcement, including developments in economic analysis and effective merger remedies.The Cartel Working Group produced a paper on cartel awareness and outreach efforts and compiled comparative information on information exchanges in cartel cases. Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division Scott D. Hammond, led a panel discussion focused on the challenges of bid-rigging enforcement.
The ICN’s Unilateral Conduct Working Group, co-chaired by the FTC, Germany’s Bundeskartellamt and the Swedish Competition Authority, promotes convergence and sound enforcement of laws governing conduct by firms with substantial market power. The working group drafted chapters on the objectives of unilateral conduct laws and on predatory pricing for its workbook for agency investigators. FTC Counsel Cynthia Lagdameo led a panel discussion on predatory pricing by dominant firms.
The Advocacy Working Group finalized a competition advocacy toolkit with guidance tools for agencies and a handbook on conducting market studies. In addition, the group issued a report on raising awareness of the benefits of competition.
The conference also highlighted the work of the Agency Effectiveness Working Group, which is developing a competition agency manual as a resource to enhance agencies’ effectiveness and presented new material on knowledge management and human resources management. Former FTC Chairman William E. Kovacic participated in a discussion on resource management for competition authorities.
The conference’s Brazilian host agencies conducted a special project devoted to effective settlements in competition cases, including cartel, merger and unilateral conduct enforcement areas. FTC Commissioner Ramirez presented remarks and participated in the discussion focusing on settlements of unilateral conduct cases.
“Designing and implementing effective remedies in unilateral conduct cases presents one of the most important, yet daunting challenges competition authorities face,” stated FTC Commissioner Ramirez. “While the right remedy can restore much needed competition in a market, an ill-advised remedy can turn what could be a big victory for consumers into little more than a Pyrrhic victory.”
The conference showcased the ICN Curriculum Project, a project led by the FTC to create a “virtual university” of training materials on competition law and practice. Randolph W. Tritell, Director of the FTC’s Office of International Affairs, presented the curriculum project at the conference.
The ICN also approved new leadership positions. Chairman Eduardo Pérez Motta of the Mexican Federal Competition Commission was selected as the new chair of the ICN Steering Group. He succeeds outgoing chair Chief Executive John Fingleton of the United Kingdom’s Office of Fair Trading. The Department of Justice will co-chair the Cartel Working Group and the FTC will co-chair the Agency Effectiveness Working Group.
The ICN was created in October 2001, when the Department of Justice and the FTC joined antitrust agencies from 13 other jurisdictions to increase understanding of competition policy and promote convergence toward best practices around the world. The ICN now includes 123 member agencies from 108 jurisdictions.
ICN documents are available at www.internationalcompetitionnetwork.org.
Department of Justice Volunteers Mark Earth Day with Community Service at Marvin Gaye ParkRead the Press Release
Marking the ninth annual Earth Day Service Celebration today, Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West and Assistant Attorney General Ignacia S. Moreno marked a day of service, commending volunteers from the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), Washington Parks & People and the DC Green Corps as they continue work on environmental restoration projects near the Community Greening Center in Marvin Gaye Park in Northeast Washington, D.C.
“As a nation, we have taken great strides since the first Earth Day more than 40 years ago, from the landmark environmental legislation of the 1970s to recent efforts to address greenhouse gas emissions,” said Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West. “The story of Marvin Gaye Park’s renewal is an inspiration. Over the past decade, volunteers have removed countless tires and bags of garbage from this area, cleared and reopened miles of trail and streams, and planted thousands of native trees and shrubs. Earth Day provides an opportunity for us to reflect on and celebrate this progress, but it also reminds us that there is much left to be done.”
In her remarks, Assistant Attorney General Moreno said: “Today, on the second anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon explosion and resulting massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, we remember the 11 lives that were tragically lost. We also are reminded that our natural resources are precious and that we must continue to protect these resources and the communities across the nation who rely on them for their livelihood. The Department of Justice will continue to vigorously enforce the federal civil and criminal environmental and natural resources laws that protect our air, land and water from pollution and that preserve our natural resources for the use and enjoyment of generations to come.”
Assistant Attorney General Moreno also announced this morning the publication of ENRD’s Fiscal Year 2011 Accomplishments Report. The full report, which details the division’s work across the nation during FY2011, is posted at www.justice.gov/enrd/Current_topics.html . Among other things, the report details the civil and criminal enforcement of the nation’s environmental laws, resulting in immeasurable benefits for human health and the environment derived from significant reductions in emissions and discharges of harmful pollutants. Other results detailed in the report show:
· Over $625 million in civil and stipulated penalties, cost recoveries, natural resource damages and other civil monetary relief, including almost $420 million recovered for the Superfund.
· More than $10.9 billion in corrective measures through civil court orders and settlements – the highest injunctive relief in any fiscal year to date.
· 52 criminal cases against 77 defendants, obtaining nearly 53 years in confinement and over $31.2 million in criminal fines, restitution, community service funds and special assessments.
A core mission of the division is the strong enforcement of civil and criminal environmental laws to protect our nation’s air, land, water and natural resources. The division’s mission also includes vigorous defense of environmental, wildlife and natural resources laws and agency actions; effective stewardship of our public lands and natural resources; and careful and respectful management of the United States’ obligations to American Indian tribes and their members, including litigation to protect tribal sovereignty, rights and resources. Also in 2011, with colleagues in the Civil Division, ENRD attorneys continued to play an instrumental role in the litigation that followed the catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
2012 will mark the ninth consecutive Earth Day service celebration at Marvin Gaye Park. ENRD has devoted over 5,500 hours of employee time to planting trees, removing trash, laying sod and gardening.
“It's a real honor to have ENRD staff back again this year,” said Washington Parks & People Director Steve Coleman. “Their inspiring dedication and hard work have helped these communities to create a beautiful lasting legacy of environmental reclamation, justice and opportunity for all in this stream valley.
The Community Greening Center is a neighborhood-based nursery for plants and trees as well as an environmental education resource center located near the intersection of 51st Street and Nannie Helen Burroughs Ave., N.E. ENRD volunteers broke ground on the Greening Center last year together with Washington Parks & People and volunteers from the DC Green Corps. This is the first native plant tree staging area in the city.
This year, ENRD volunteers were joined by graduates from the DC Green Corps urban forestry job training program. Tree planting will take place at a nearby public housing complex and on a hillside in the stream valley. Planting trees will provide shade for green space for residents and children who play in the area and more stormwater capture for the stream valley, which is part of the sub-watershed of the Anacostia River. Volunteers will also be adding irrigation systems to the Community Greening Center.
The DC Green Corps, based at the Marvin Gaye Community Greening Center in the Watts Branch sub-watershed of the Anacostia River, will provide a city-wide gateway to 50 different green career tracks in urban and community forestry and forest-based ecosystem and watershed restoration. Helping under-served sub-watershed communities across the city, the Green Corps job program will focus on environmental justice, sustainable native reforestation, riparian buffer planting, invasive removal and green controls of urban systems, such as storm and sewer flows. The Green Corps and Center will develop a referral system to help participants connect to jobs through a wide range of agencies, professional and trade associations, trades, professions and industries.
For more information about Washington Parks & People and Marvin Gaye Park, visit http://www.washingtonparks.net/ .
For more information about Environmental Justice efforts at the Department of Justice, visit http://www.justice.gov/ej/ .
Attorney General Eric Holder Honors Individuals and Organizations for Service to Crime VictimsRead the Press Release
Attorney General Eric Holder today honored award recipients as part of the 29th observance of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week (NCVRW), April 22-28. This year’s theme, “Extending the Vision: Reaching Every Victim” highlights the importance of ensuring services and support to all victims, their families and communities as they heal and seek a successful future. National Crime Victims’ Service Awards honor those working on behalf of crime victims who have earned the esteem of their colleagues in the victim service and criminal justice fields.
“This year’s 12 awardees have touched, improved and even saved lives. Perhaps most impressively, many of today’s award recipients have achieved these results by transforming their own experiences into a positive force for sweeping change,” said Attorney General Holder. “Every one of them deserves the commendation that is being bestowed today – not only for their remarkable contributions in responding to protecting and defending crime victims and their loved ones but also for the examples they have set for others to follow.”
Among those honored today is Hollywood icon Mickey Rooney, who in March 2011, testified before the U.S. Senate at a hearing entitled, “Justice for All: Ending Elder Abuse, Neglect and Financial Exploitation” regarding his emotional, verbal and financial abuse at the hands of his stepchildren. Also honored is Julia Dunkins who turned her own personal tragedy into support for survivors of homicide.
The awards and their recipients, who are nominated by their colleagues and approved by the Attorney General, are:
Allied Professional Award: Recognizes an individual or organization outside the victim assistance field for services or contributions to the victims’ field. Recipient: Dr. Dora Schriro, East Elmhurst, N.Y.; Commissioner, New York City Department of Correction.
Crime Victims Financial Restoration Award: Recognizes individuals, programs, organizations or teams that have developed innovative ways of funding services for crime victims or have instituted innovative approaches for securing financial restoration for crime victims. Recipients: Maricopa County Adult Probation Department’s Financial Compliance Program, (FINCOM) Scottsdale, Ariz. Accepting the award on behalf of FINCOM are Michael Cimino, Barbara Broderick, Stephen Hartley and Kendra Neal. Also receiving the Financial Restoration Award is Wingate Grant, Assistant U.S. Attorney, Eastern District of Virginia, Richmond, Va.
Federal Service Award: Honors exceptional contributions and extraordinary impact on behalf of victims in Indian Country, on military installations, in national parks or other areas governed by federal jurisdiction. Recipients: Roi Holt, Victim Assistance Coordinator, Department of Interior, Washington, D.C. and Michelle Scott, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of North Carolina, Raleigh, N.C.
National Crime Victim Service Award: Honors extraordinary efforts in direct service to crime victims. Recipients: Dr. Linda Ledray, Director, Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner – Sexual Assault Rape Team (SANE-SART) Resource Service, Minneapolis; Victoria Cruz, Senior Domestic Violence Counselor/Advocate, Anti-Violence Project, Brooklyn, N.Y.; and the Girls Educational & Mentoring Services (GEMS), New York, N.Y. Accepting the award on behalf of GEMS is Rachel Lloyd.
Professional Innovation in Victim Service Award: Recognizes the development of effective methods for expanding the reach of victims’ rights and services. Recipient: Common Justice, Brooklyn, N.Y. Accepting the award on behalf of the organization are Danielle Sered and Shameeka Mattis.
Special Courage Award: Recognizes extraordinary bravery in the aftermath of a crime or courageous act on behalf of a victim or potential victim. Recipients: Actor Mickey Rooney, Alhambra, Calif. Accepting on behalf of Mr. Rooney is Bruce Ross. Other award recipients are Julia Dunkins, Executive Director of Survivors of Homicide, Inc. and Justin Fennell, a crime victim and survivor, both from Washington, D.C.
The Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs’ Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) organized the awards presentation. The Attorney General was joined by Acting Assistant General for the Office of Justice Programs Mary Lou Leary and Acting Director for the Office of Victims of Crime Joye Frost at the award ceremony. Descriptive narratives of the contributions of all recipients are available at OVC’s Gallery.
The Office of Justice Programs (OJP), headed by Acting Assistant Attorney General Mary Lou Leary, provides federal leadership in developing the nation’s capacity to prevent and control crime, administer justice, and assist victims. OJP has six components: the Bureau of Justice Assistance; the Bureau of Justice Statistics; the National Institute of Justice; the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention; the Office for Victims of Crime; and the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking. More information about OJP can be found at www.ojp.gov
Alabama Real Estate Investor Agrees to Plead Guilty to Conspiracies to Rig Bids and Commit Mail Fraud for the Purchase of Real Estate at Public Foreclosure AuctionsRead the Press Release
An Alabama real estate investor has agreed to plead guilty and to serve prison time for his role in conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in southern Alabama, the Department of Justice announced today. To date, as a result of the ongoing investigation, three individuals and one company have pleaded guilty.
Charges were filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama in Mobile, Ala., against Lawrence B. Stacy of Mobile. Stacy was charged with one count of bid rigging and one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud. According to the plea agreement, which is subject to court approval, Stacy has agreed to serve six months in prison. Additionally, Stacy has agreed to pay a $10,000 criminal fine and to cooperate with the department’s ongoing investigation.
According to court documents, Stacy conspired with others not to bid against one another at public real estate foreclosure auctions in southern Alabama. After a designated bidder bought a property at the public auctions, which typically take place at the county courthouse, the conspirators would generally hold a secret, second auction, at which each participant would bid the amount above the public auction price he or she was willing to pay. The highest bidder at the secret, second auction won the property.
Stacy was also charged with conspiring to use the U.S. mail to carry out a scheme to acquire title to rigged foreclosure properties sold at public auctions at artificially suppressed prices, to make and receive payoffs to co-conspirators and to cause financial institutions, homeowners and others with a legal interest in rigged foreclosure properties to receive less than the competitive price for the properties. Stacy participated in the bid-rigging and mail fraud conspiracies from at least as early as May 2002 until at least January 2007.
The Antitrust Division will continue to pursue vigorously the perpetrators involved in these real estate foreclosure auction schemes,” said Sharis A. Pozen, Acting Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “Those who eliminate competition from the marketplace and prey on the misfortune of others will be held accountable for their actions.”
FBI Special Agent in Charge of the Mobile FBI office, Lewis M. Chapman recognized the perseverance of agents and prosecutors in this complex investigation. Chapman stated, “This investigation sends the message that real estate fraud including antitrust violations will continue to be pursued in these tough economic times, no matter how intricate the scheme.”
Each violation of the Sherman Act carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine for individuals. The maximum fine for a Sherman Act charge may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victim if either amount is greater than the statutory maximum fine. Each count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine in an amount equal to the greatest of $250,000, twice the gross gain the conspirators derived from the crime or twice the gross loss caused to the victims of the crime by the conspirators.
The investigation into fraud and bid rigging at certain real estate foreclosure auctions in southern Alabama is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s Atlanta Field Office and the FBI’s Mobile Office, with the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Alabama. Anyone with information concerning bid rigging or fraud related to public real estate foreclosure auctions should contact the Antitrust Division’s Atlanta Field Office at 404-331-7100 or visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm.
Today’s charges are part of efforts underway by President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. President Obama established the interagency 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. For more information on the task force, visit www.StopFraud.gov.
Thursday 19 April 2012
Utah Tax Defier Pleads Guilty in Nine-year Scam to Defraud the United States, Is Sentenced to Two-year Prison TermRead the Press Release
Stephen Murphy, a Utah resident, pleaded guilty in federal court in Salt Lake City to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, and was sentenced the same day to 24 months in prison, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. U.S. District Court Judge Dee Benson presided over the plea hearing and sentencing, which took place yesterday.
According to information disclosed at the hearing, Murphy, with the assistance of several tax defier promoters, filed numerous false income tax returns for the years 2002 through 2009, espousing various false and frivolous tax positions. For example, he filed a false return for 2002 reporting zero income and zero tax due, on the ground that he was “not a U.S. person” subject to tax. He filed several subsequent false returns fraudulently claiming income tax refunds, including a false return for 2008 based on fictitious Forms 1099-OID. Also disclosed at the hearing, Murphy established two fake charities, which were actually just names attached to certain of his personal bank accounts. He fraudulently claimed “charitable contribution” tax deductions for funds siphoned to these accounts. As part of his scheme, Murphy submitted Forms W-4 to his employers vastly overstating his withholding allowances, so as to minimize or eliminate tax withholdings from his wages. Murphy admitted that he intended to cause the U.S. Treasury a loss exceeding $200,000.
After accepting the plea, Judge Benson sentenced Stephen Murphy to two years imprisonment and one year of supervised release. Murphy was also ordered to pay restitution to the IRS in the amount of $83,831.
This case was investigated by IRS - Criminal Investigation and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stewart Waltz in the Utah U.S. Attorney’s Office and Trial Attorneys Joseph A. Rillotta and Christopher P. O’Donnell of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
More information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts is available at www.usdoj.gov/tax/.
U.S. Pharmaceutical Company Merck Sharp & Dohme<br /> Sentenced in Connection with Unlawful Promotion of VioxxRead the Press Release
American pharmaceutical company Merck, Sharp & Dohme was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Patti B. Saris in Boston to pay a criminal fine in the amount of $321,636,000 in connection with its guilty plea related to its promotion and marketing of the painkiller Vioxx (rofecoxib), the Justice Department announced today. In December 2011, Merck pleaded guilty to violating the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) for introducing a misbranded drug, Vioxx, into interstate commerce.
Merck’s guilty plea was part of a global resolution involving its illegal promotional activity. In November 2011, Merck entered into a civil settlement agreement under which it will pay $628,364,000 to resolve additional allegations regarding off-label marketing of Vioxx and false statements about the drug’s cardiovascular safety. Of the total civil settlement, $426,389,000 will be recovered by the United States, and the remaining share of $201,975,000 will be distributed to the participating Medicaid states. The settlement and today’s sentencing conclude a long-running investigation of Merck’s promotion of Vioxx, which was withdrawn from the marketplace in September 2004.
Merck’s criminal plea related to the misbranding of Vioxx by promoting the drug for treating rheumatoid arthritis, before that use was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Under the provisions of the FDCA, a company is required to specify the intended uses of a product in its new drug application to FDA. Once approved, the drug may not be marketed or promoted for so-called “off-label” uses – any use not specified in an application and approved by FDA – unless the company applies to the FDA for approval of the additional use. The FDA approved Vioxx for three indications in May 1999, but did not approve its use for rheumatoid arthritis until April 2002. In the interim, for nearly three years, Merck promoted Vioxx for rheumatoid arthritis, conduct for which it was admonished in an FDA warning letter issued in September 2001.
At today’s sentencing, Judge Saris said in substance that off label promotion has been a big problem, she has seen a barrage of off-label marketing cases, and that she hoped that the size of today’s settlement and the fact that the government continues to press these cases will send a signal to the industry that this is not acceptable conduct.
The parallel civil settlement covered a broader range of allegedly illegal conduct by Merck. The settlement resolved allegations that Merck representatives made inaccurate, unsupported, or misleading statements about Vioxx’s cardiovascular safety in order to increase sales of the drug, resulting in payments by the federal government. It also resolved allegations that Merck made false statements to state Medicaid agencies about the cardiovascular safety of Vioxx, and that those agencies relied on Merck’s false claims in making payment decisions about the drug. Finally, like the criminal plea, the civil settlement also recovered damages for allegedly false claims caused by Merck’s unlawful promotion of Vioxx for rheumatoid arthritis.
"The United States will not tolerate unlawful conduct by pharmaceutical companies," said Stuart F. Delery, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department's Civil Division. "As the court's sentence makes clear, those who put profits before patient safety by promoting their products for unapproved uses will be prosecuted and held accountable."
“We are pleased to see this case brought to a conclusion with the recovery of over three hundred million dollars in criminal fines, and a total of almost a billion dollars in combined civil and criminal penalties. The severity of these criminal and civil sanctions should serve as a reminder of this Office, and this department’s unwavering commitment to holding drug companies fully accountable for failures to comply with their public safety and marketing obligations, and to recovering taxpayer funds that have gone towards the purchase of illegally marketed products,” announced Carmen M. Ortiz, U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts. “Any marketing activity that ignores the importance of FDA approval, or that makes unsupported safety claims about a drug is unacceptable, and will be pursued vigorously in both the criminal and civil arena.”
As part of the settlement, Merck also agreed to enter into an expansive corporate integrity agreement with the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and
Human Services (HHS-OIG), which will strengthen the system of reviews and oversight procedures imposed on the company. Although Vioxx is no longer on the market, this ongoing monitoring of Merck’s conduct is aimed to deter and detect similar conduct in the future.
“If all pharmaceutical manufacturers complied with the law, there would be no need for law enforcement actions,” said Susan Waddell, Special Agent in Charge for the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “But until they stop abusing the health care system and putting profits ahead of patient safety, OIG will continue to vigorously pursue corporations that flout the law.”
“Today’s announcement demonstrates the commitment of FDA's Office of Criminal Investigations to pursue investigations of companies that disregard their regulatory obligations and place profits over the public’s health,” said Mark Dragonetti, Special Agent in Charge for the New York Field Office. “We commend the hard work of the U.S. Attorney's Office and our law enforcement counterparts in bringing about this result.”
“In 2004, the FBI began participating in a seven year investigation that led to Merck's decision to plead guilty to a criminal violation of federal law related to its promotion and marketing of Vioxx and to pay nearly a billion dollars in a criminal fine and civil damages,” said Richard DesLauriers, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Boston. “Merck now knows that no corporation is immune from being held accountable for criminal and civil violations of law and also knows why the FBI, its federal law enforcement partners, and the U.S. Attorney's Office have earned a national reputation for leading the government’s effort to detect, deter and prevent health care fraud.”
This case was handled by the Justice Department’s Civil Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts. The investigation was conducted by Office of Inspector General of the Deapartment of Health and Human Services, the FBI, the Office of Criminal Investigations for the FDA, the Veterans Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations, the Office of the Inspector General for the Office of Personnel Management, the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units, and the offices of various state attorneys general.
U.S. Attorney General Holder and Dominican Prosecutor General Jiménez Pena Sign Permanent Agreement to Share Forfeited AssetsRead the Press Release
Attorney General Eric Holder and Dominican Prosecutor General Radhamés Jiménez Peña met today in Washington, D.C., to sign a permanent agreement to share forfeited assets between the governments of the United States and the Dominican Republic. The permanent sharing agreement acknowledges the consistent forfeiture-related cooperation that United States authorities have received from the Dominican Republic and creates a more efficient process for sharing assets with the Dominican Republic.
“The steady stream of forfeiture cooperation we receive from our Dominican law enforcement counterparts has been indispensible to our efforts to recover millions of dollars in criminal assets located abroad,” Attorney General Holder said. “In a world where criminals increasingly operate across borders, strengthening international partnerships is critical. Today’s agreement will serve as a highly beneficial and useful tool for asset sharing in the future.”
The permanent agreement requires the United States and the Dominican Republic to return all fraud and theft proceeds for purposes of making victims whole. It also streamlines the asset sharing process by eliminating the need for individual agreements each time assets are shared in recognition of forfeiture assistance provided by the Dominican authorities. In addition, the agreement is reciprocal, allowing for Dominican sharing with the United States.
Assets shared under the agreement must be used by the recipient country in accordance with domestic laws governing the use of forfeited assets. Dominican law provides that forfeited assets be disbursed to the Office of the Prosecutor General; the National Drug Council; the National Counter Drug Directorate; the National Police; and non-government organizations engaged in efforts to prevent drug abuse.
To date, the Department of Justice has shared a total of $8.67 million in forfeited assets with Dominican authorities on four prior occasions since 2002. This includes a case-specific sharing agreement that was signed on Nov. 14, 2011, to share approximately $7.5 million in forfeited assets with the Dominican Office of the Prosecutor General. The November 2011 agreement represents approximately 20 percent of the estimated $37.5 million in forfeited assets located in the Dominican Republic that stem from a conspiracy led by brothers Carlos, Luis and Jose Benitez, who allegedly defrauded the U.S. Medicare program of approximately $80 million.
The permanent agreement was negotiated on behalf of the United States by the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section’s International Unit in the Justice
Department’s Criminal Division and the Office of International Affairs in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, in cooperation with the FBI’s Attaché in the Dominican Republic and the Department of State.
Justice Department Asks Federal Court to Shut Down Three Philadelphia-area Tax PreparersRead the Press Release
The United States has asked a federal court to bar three Philadelphia-area tax preparers from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today. According to the government complaint in the civil injunction suit, defendants Deron Joe, Edmund Dassin and James Tokpawhiea are Liberian nationals who are legal permanent residents of the United States. The suit alleges that most of the customers of their business, Urban Tax Professionals, are also from Liberia and were referred to the defendants by family or friends.
According to the complaint, the defendants have repeatedly prepared fraudulent federal income tax returns that intentionally understate their customers’ tax liabilities. They are alleged to have falsely claimed the first-time-homebuyer credit and the earned-income tax credit in order to claim large tax refunds. According to the complaint, Joe and Dassin told one of their employees to claim the first-time-homebuyer credit on every return he prepared. The complaint also alleges that the defendants claimed false dependents and fabricated deductions for employee business expenses.
The complaint states that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has disallowed at least $1.4 million in tax credits claimed by the defendants on customer returns.
Claiming bogus tax refunds is one of the IRS’s “Dirty Dozen” tax scams for 2012. In the past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of tax-fraud promoters and unscrupulous tax return preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department website.
Related Documents:
United States v. Deron O. Joe, et al. Complaint for Permanent Injunction and Other ReliefJustice Department Announces Agreement with Orange County, New York, to Protect the Rights of Spanish-speaking Puerto Rican VotersRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced a settlement today with Orange County, N.Y., to protect the rights of Spanish-speaking Puerto Rican voters under Section 4(e) of the Voting Rights Act. Today’s consent decree is intended to resolve concerns that limited-English proficient Puerto Rican voters were being denied their full voting rights because the county failed to provide bilingual ballots and Spanish-language assistance as required by law.
Orange County has agreed that, starting with the April 24, 2012 presidential primary election, it will provide county-wide bilingual ballots at the polls. The consent decree includes additional steps that the county will take to achieve full compliance with Section 4(e) by the next election held in 2012. For example, the county will provide bilingual poll workers and the consent decree would also create a community-based Spanish-language advisory committee, which would allow the local Puerto Rican community to help shape the county’s bilingual election program.
“Puerto Rican voters in Orange County were denied the right to vote when election officials denied language assistance to eligible voters,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “Today’s agreement will ensure that Spanish-speaking voters have equal access to the ballot box and receive critical language assistance as the law requires so their votes will count. I greatly appreciate the cooperation of county officials in working closely with us to reach this resolution.”
U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara said: “The ability of citizens to participate effectively in the electoral process is the cornerstone of our democracy. For many years, Orange County denied Puerto Rican voters their right to meaningfully participate in the electoral process by conducting English-only elections in violation of the Voting Rights Act. The settlement announced today ensures that these citizens have an equal ability to participate in our democracy.”
The consent decree along with a complaint alleging violations of Section 4(e) of the Voting Rights Act was filed with the federal court in the Southern District of New York. The Civil Rights Division brought this action in conjunction with the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
Section 4(e) prohibits jurisdictions from conditioning the voting rights of citizens educated in American-flag schools where the predominant classroom language is other than English, on their ability to read, write, understand, or interpret election-related information in English. Orange County has a significant Puerto Rican population which is protected by Section 4(e) because the primary language in schools in Puerto Rico is Spanish. The 2010 Census data shows that the Puerto Rican population in Orange County has increased by 52.5 percent in the last decade, and there are now more than 29,210 Puerto Ricans in Orange County, constituting 7.8 percent of its total population.
To file complaints about discriminatory voting practices, voters may call the Voting Section of the Civil Rights Division at 1-800-253-3931. More information about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting rights laws is available on the Justice Department website at www.justice.gov/crt/voting/index.php .
Audit of Gulf Coast Claims Facility Results in $64 Million in Additional PaymentsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Department of Justice today released the executive summary of the report by an independent auditor of the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF), the facility set up to process claims in the wake of the April 20, 2010, Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The audit found that the GCCF claims process constituted a significant advance in disaster response. But the audit also identified significant errors that are now being corrected by sending more than $64 million in additional payments to approximately 7,300 individuals and businesses throughout the Gulf region.
“When the Attorney General visited the Gulf last summer, he heard concerns about the GCCF and ordered an independent auditor to evaluate it,” said Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West. “Approximately 7,300 individuals and businesses throughout the Gulf region will now see the benefits of that action, to the tune of over $64 million in additional payments. While there’s no question that the independent GCCF labored under extremely challenging circumstances to get a huge number of payments processed successfully, the fact that this audit has resulted in tens of millions of dollars being made available to claimants who were wrongfully denied or shortchanged underscores the importance of the audit.”
Last summer, the Attorney General visited the Gulf and met with individuals and small business owners whose lives were affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. He acted on those concerns and ordered an independent auditor to evaluate the Gulf Coast Claims Facility. The evaluation is now complete, and the Department of Justice has released the Executive Summary of the auditor’s report.
As a result of the Attorney General’s acting on those concerns, checks totaling approximately $64 million are now being sent to approximately 7,300 claimants who received less than they were entitled to under the GCCF’s procedures.
The auditor also found claimants who were overpaid as a result of errors applying the GCCF’s procedures, but did not attempt to identify all the claimants who were overpaid or quantify those overpayments. The GCCF is not making any effort to recover those overpayments.
The report also noted the unprecedented nature of the spill and the context that surrounded the GCCF’s operations: intense pressure to pay claims quickly, a claimant community that was experiencing significant economic pressures after a very difficult post-spill tourist season, and over a million claims that included many with very complex economic losses. The GCCF paid out $6.2 billion to more than 220,000 claimants before it closed its doors as a result of the settlement between BP and the private plaintiffs.
The evaluation was conducted by BDO Consulting. BDO’s team was selected after interviews with the Department of Justice and the attorneys general from the five Gulf states, and drew on previous experience in the Gulf Coast area assisting clients with claims related to Hurricane Katrina, including in the hospitality, retail, commercial and residential properties, seafood processing, consumer products and transportation industries. As part of this evaluation, BDO evaluated tens of thousands of claims files and searched the GCCF’s entire database of over one million claims to identify other claims that may have suffered from the same errors. BDO is preparing a full report of its findings that will be published later this spring.
Related Materials:
Independent Evaluation of the Gulf Coast Claims Facility Executive Summary (PDF)
Independent Evaluation of the Gulf Coast Claims Facility Report of Findings & Observations (PDF)
Wednesday 18 April 2012
Tennessee Engineering Consultant and Wife Charged with Tax CrimesRead the Press Release
On April 17, 2012, a federal grand jury returned a four count indictment charging Beverly S. Beavers and James E. Beavers of Knoxville, Tenn., with conspiracy to defraud the United States and filing false claims for tax refunds, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.
According to the indictment, Beverly and James Beavers filed a false 2008 personal tax return that was prepared by Penny Jones, a partner in PMDD Services LLC, an Idaho-based tax return preparation firm. Their 2008 return claimed a tax refund of $591,123 to which they were not entitled. Upon receiving the fraudulent refund, the indictment alleges that the Beavers paid $59,405 to Jones and the other principals of PMDD Services. Later, the Beavers allegedly filed amended tax returns for 2006 and 2007, seeking fraudulent tax refunds of $193,056 and $202,625, respectively, for those years.
The Beavers are also alleged to have taken steps to hide their assets from possible IRS collection efforts, including transferring the real estate title to their personal residence and Beverly Beavers’ store to nominee trusts.
Jones, other alleged principals of PMDD Services, and several other persons were charged in the Southern District of Florida in November 2011 with tax crimes, including conspiracy to defraud the United States and filing false claims. That case is scheduled for trial in October 2012. In July 2011, a federal court in Idaho permanently enjoined Penny Jones from filing federal tax returns on behalf of others.
The indictment alleges that Beverly Beavers owned a formalwear store in Knoxville and that James Beavers was previously employed as the research director of an academic engineering institute at the University of Tennessee, and as a private engineering consultant.
If convicted, the defendants each face a maximum potential sentence of 20 years imprisonment and a criminal fine up to $1 million. Both defendants may also be required to pay restitution to the IRS.
An indictment is merely a formal accusation of a crime. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until their guilt is proved beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case was investigated by Special Agents of IRS - Criminal Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Jonathan Marx and Jed Silversmith of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, with the assistance of Assistant United States Attorney Charles E. Atchley Jr. of the Eastern District of Tennessee.
Justice Department Seeks to Shut Down Five South Florida Tax Return PreparersRead the Press Release
The United States has sued to shut down five Florida tax return preparers, the Justice Department announced today. In the civil injunction complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., the government alleges that since at least 2008, Jayvon Copeland, Kisha Andrews, James Daniels, Aundrea Luc and Brandon Johnson have knowingly understated their customers’ federal income tax liabilities and claimed improper tax refunds. The complaint states that the defendants reside in Broward and Miami-Dade County, Fla.
According to the complaint, the defendants fraudulently boosted tax refunds through false claims for the first-time-homebuyer tax credit, phony business expenses, false education expenses and fabricated income or withholdings that inflate a customer’s earned income tax credit. The lawsuit alleges that the defendants inflated customers’ tax refunds in order to extract exorbitant fees from the refunds.
The complaint also alleges that the defendants used stolen identities to prepare and file tax returns claiming fraudulent tax refunds, which the defendants kept. The complaint describes one instance involving a tax return prepared in the name of a man serving a life sentence in prison. According to the complaint, the return claimed a refund based on bogus education expenses and a fraudulent first-time-homebuyer credit. The prisoner allegedly did not know that a tax return was filed in his name.
The lawsuit also accuses the defendants of attempting to conceal their fraud by jumbling or falsifying various identification numbers that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requires tax return preparers to disclose on the returns they prepare. The defendants also allegedly established and operated a web of tax-preparation entities to perpetrate this fraud.
Claiming bogus tax refunds is one of the IRS’s “Dirty Dozen” tax scams for 2012. In the past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of tax-fraud promoters and unscrupulous tax return preparers. Information about these cases is available at www.justice.gov/tax/taxpress2012.htm .
Related Documents:
United States v. Jayvon Copeland, et al. Complaint for Permanent Injunction and Other Relief (PDF)Detroit-Area Patient Recruiter Pleads Guilty to Medicare FraudRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A Detroit-area patient recruiter pleaded guilty today for his participation in a Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Department of Justice, the FBI and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Daron Elder, 28, of Southfield, Mich., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Arthur J. Tarnow in the Eastern District of Michigan to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. At sentencing, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
According to the plea documents, Elder was a patient recruiter for a medical clinic in the Detroit area, Blessed Medical Clinic. Elder paid indigent Medicare beneficiaries cash kickbacks to receive diagnostic tests that he knew were medically unnecessary. In return for the cash kickbacks, the Medicare beneficiaries allowed their identification to be used in the submission of fraudulent claims. The government will argue at sentencing that Elder’s conduct caused the submission of approximately $2.5 million dollars in fraudulent claims to Medicare.
Today’s guilty plea was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan Barbara L. McQuade; Special Agent in Charge Andrew G. Arena of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the HHS Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) Chicago Regional Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Frances Lee Carlson and Philip A. Ross of the Eastern District of Michigan, with assistance from Assistant Chief Gejaa T. Gobena of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. The case was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG, and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan.
Since their inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force operations in nine districts have charged more than 1,190 individuals who collectively have falsely billed the Medicare program for more than $3.6 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, is taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.
Tuesday 17 April 2012
Two Former Executives of California Valve Company Plead <br /> Guilty to Foreign Bribery OffensesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Stuart Carson, the former president of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.-based valve company Control Components Inc. (CCI), and Hong “Rose” Carson, the former CCI director of sales for China and Taiwan, have pleaded guilty to violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), announced the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.The Carsons, who are married and reside in San Clemente, Calif., each pleaded guilty late yesterday before U.S. District Judge James V. Selna in Santa Ana, Calif., to separate one-count superseding informations charging them with making a corrupt payment to a foreign government official in violation of the FCPA. According to court documents, CCI designed and manufactured service control valves for use in the nuclear, oil and gas, and power generation industries worldwide. At sentencing, Stuart Carson, 73, faces up to 10 months in prison. Rose Carson, 48, faces a sentence of three years probation, which may include up to six months of home confinement. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 15, 2012.
On Apr. 8, 2009, the Carsons and four other former executives of CCI were charged in a 16-count indictment for their roles in the foreign bribery scheme. The four former CCI executives charged include Paul Cosgrove, CCI’s former director of worldwide sales; David Edmonds, CCI’s former vice president of worldwide customer service; Flavio Ricotti, the former CCI vice president of sales for Europe, Africa and the Middle East; and Han Yong Kim, the former president of CCI’s Korean office. On Apr. 28, 2011, Ricotti pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA. The trial of Cosgrove and Edmonds is scheduled for Jun. 5, 2012. The charges against Kim are pending as well. An indictment merely contains allegations and defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
In related cases, two defendants previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to bribe officers and employees of foreign state-owned companies on behalf of CCI. On Jan. 8, 2009, Mario Covino, the former director of worldwide factory sales for CCI, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA. On Feb. 3, 2009, Richard Morlok, the former CCI finance director, also pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA. Covino, Morlok and Ricotti are scheduled to be sentenced in November and December 2012.
On July 31, 2009, CCI pleaded guilty to a three-count criminal information charging the company with conspiracy to violate the FCPA and the Travel Act, and two substantive violations of the FCPA. CCI was ordered to pay an $18.2 million criminal fine, placed on organizational probation for three years, and ordered to create and implement a compliance program and retain an independent compliance monitor for three years. CCI admitted that from 2003 through 2007, it made corrupt payments in more than 30 countries, which resulted in net profits to the company of approximately $46.5 million from sales related to those corrupt payments.
The case is being prosecuted by Deputy Chief Charles G. La Bella and Trial Attorney Andrew Gentin of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Douglas McCormick and Gregory Staples of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. The case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and its team of special agents dedicated to the investigation of foreign bribery cases.
Loan Officer Pleads Guilty for Role in Mortgage Fraud Scheme That Resulted in More Than $6.5 Million in LossesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A loan officer for a Florida mortgage company pleaded guilty late yesterday in the Southern District of Florida to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud for his role in a mortgage fraud scheme, Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida and Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Inspector General David A. Montoya announced today.
Alejandro Curbelo, 32, aka Alex Curbelo, of Miami, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard. Curbelo was indicted and arrested on Jan. 24, 2012.According to court documents, from approximately February 2006 through July 2008, Curbelo was employed as a loan officer for Great Country Mortgage Bankers. In this role, he assisted in the sales and financing of condominium units at two complexes in Florida – Dadeland Place and Pelican Cove on the Bay. The borrowers Curbelo assisted at these two complexes were unqualified to obtain mortgage loans due to insufficient income, high levels of debts and outstanding collections.
Curbelo admitted that he conspired with others to create and submit false and fraudulent Federal Housing Administration (FHA) mortgage loan applications and accompanying documents to a lender on behalf of the unqualified borrowers. Curbelo and others offered the borrowers cash back after closing as an incentive for them to purchase the units. These payments were not disclosed properly during the loan application process. According to court documents, the closing costs were paid on behalf of the borrowers by interstate wire. After the loans closed, the unqualified borrowers failed to meet their monthly mortgage obligations and defaulted on their loans.
According to court documents, when the loans went into foreclosure, HUD, which insured the loans, was required to take title to the units and pay the outstanding loan balances to the lenders. As of the date of the plea agreement, the actual loss related to Curbelo’s conduct that was paid by HUD was more than $6.5 million.
Curbelo is scheduled to be sentenced on June 25, 2012. He faces a maximum prison sentence of 20 years.
This case was investigated by the HUD Office of Inspector General, as participants in the Miami Mortgage Fraud Strike Force. Trial Attorney Mary Ann McCarthy of the Fraud Section in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division is prosecuting the case with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.
This prosecution is part of efforts under way by the 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.For more information on the task force, visit www.StopFraud.gov.
Former Executive of New York-Based Tax Liens Company Pleads Guilty to Bid Rigging at Municipal Tax Lien Auctions in New JerseyRead the Press Release
A former executive of a New York-based tax liens company who supervised the purchasing of municipal tax liens at auctions in New Jersey pleaded guilty today for his role in a conspiracy to rig bids for the sale of tax liens auctioned by municipalities throughout the state, the Department of Justice announced.
A felony charge was filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey in Newark, N.J., against former Vice President Stephen E. Hruby, of Hainesport, N.J. Under the plea agreement, which is subject to court approval, Hruby has agreed to cooperate with the department’s ongoing investigation.
According to the felony charge, from at least as early as December 2002 until approximately February 2009, Hruby participated in a conspiracy to rig bids at auctions for the sale of municipal tax liens in New Jersey by agreeing to, and directing others to, allocate among certain bidders which liens each would bid on. Hruby, and those under his supervision, proceeded to submit bids in accordance with their agreements and purchased tax liens at collusive and non-competitive interest rates.
“Today’s guilty plea demonstrates that the Antitrust Division will not tolerate illegal conduct that harms distressed homeowners,” said Sharis A. Pozen, Acting Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “The division will continue to prosecute the perpetrators of anticompetitive bid rigging schemes at municipal tax lien auctions in New Jersey and elsewhere.”
The department said that the primary purpose of the conspiracy was to suppress and restrain competition, in order to obtain selected municipal tax liens offered at public auctions at non-competitive interest rates. When the owner of real property fails to pay taxes on that property, the municipality in which the property is located may attach a lien for the amount of the unpaid taxes. If the taxes remain unpaid after a waiting period, the lien may be sold at auction. State law requires that investors bid on the interest rate delinquent homeowners will pay upon redemption. By law, the bid opens at 18 percent interest and, through a competitive bidding process, can be driven down to zero percent. If a lien remains unpaid after a certain period of time, the investor who purchased the lien may begin foreclosure proceedings against the property to which the lien is attached.According to the court documents, Hruby conspired with others not to bid against one another at municipal tax lien auctions in New Jersey. Because the conspiracy permitted the conspirators to purchase tax liens with limited competition, each conspirator was able to obtain liens which earned a higher interest rate. Property owners were therefore made to pay higher interest on their tax debts than they would have paid had their liens been purchased in open and honest competition.
A violation of the Sherman Act carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine for individuals. The maximum fine for a Sherman Act violation may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victim if either amount is greater than the statutory maximum.
Today’s plea is the seventh guilty plea resulting from an ongoing investigation into bid rigging or fraud related to municipal tax lien auctions. On Aug. 24, 2011, Isadore H. May, Richard J. Pisciotta Jr. and William A. Collins each pleaded guilty to one count of bid rigging in connection with their participation in a conspiracy to allocate liens at New Jersey auctions. On Feb. 23, 2012, Robert W. Stein and David M. Farber each pleaded guilty to one count of bid rigging. On March 27, 2012, Robert E. Rothman pleaded guilty to one count of bid rigging in connection with his participation in this conspiracy.
Today’s charge is part of efforts underway by President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF). President Obama established the interagency FFETF 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. For more information on the task force, visit www.StopFraud.gov.
The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s New York Field Office and the FBI’s Atlantic City, N.J., office. Anyone with information concerning bid rigging or fraud related to municipal tax lien auctions should contact the Antitrust Division’s New York Field Office at 212-335-8000, visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm or contact the Atlantic City Resident Agency of the FBI at 609-677-6400.Former Chief Engineer of South Pacific Tuna Vessel Pleads Guilty to Covering up Environmental CrimesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A former chief engineer from the tuna fishing vessel San Nikunau pleaded guilty today in federal court to violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS), announced Assistant Attorney General Ignacia S. Moreno and U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr.
Rolando Ong Vano served as the chief engineer on the vessel, which was owned and operated by Sanford Ltd., a New Zealand company, during several fishing trips in the South Pacific between March 2006 and July 2011. Sanford Ltd. and another prior chief engineer from the vessel have been charged with obstruction of justice and APPS violations, and are currently awaiting trial.
According to the plea agreement, it was routine practice onboard the vessel to discharge directly into the sea oily bilge waste from the engine room and other areas of the vessel without using required pollution prevention equipment. Before such waste can be discharged into the sea, it must first pass through an oil water separator, and the operation must be recorded in the vessel’s oil record book.
Vano admitted to falsifying the oil record book and lying to U.S. Coast Guard inspectors that the oil water separator was used on the vessel when in fact it was not. The Coast Guard discovered the violations during an inspection of the vessel in American Samoa in July 2011. Sentencing in this matter is currently scheduled for September 2012.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard. The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia and by the Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice.
Monday 16 April 2012
U.S. and Tennessee Announce Clean Water Act Agreement with the City of MemphisRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation and the Office of the Tennessee Attorney General announced today a comprehensive Clean Water Act settlement with the city of Memphis, Tenn. Memphis has agreed to make improvements to its sewer systems to eliminate unauthorized overflows of untreated raw sewage. Memphis estimates such work will cost approximately $250 million.
“The improvements required by this settlement agreement will bring lasting public health and environmental benefits to Memphis residents,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “We will continue to work in partnership with the EPA to enforce the Clean Water Act and will work with municipalities across the country to advance the goal of clean water for all communities.”
“The EPA is working with communities across the country to address sewage overflows that negatively impact the health of residents and impair local water quality,” said Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator for the EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “This collaborative agreement with the city of Memphis will reduce raw sewage overflows, protecting area waterways now and into the future.”
A consent decree, filed today in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee in Memphis, represents the combined efforts of the United States and the state of Tennessee, co-plaintiffs in this settlement, and of the Tennessee Clean Water Network, an intervening plaintiff in this action. The United States and Tennessee previously filed a complaint against Memphis on Feb. 5, 2010, seeking injunctive relief and civil penalties for Memphis’ alleged violations of the Clean Water Act and the Tennessee Water Quality Control Act.
“Sewage overflows are a significant problem that affect water quality in the Southeast and across the entire country,” said Gwen Keyes Fleming, EPA Region 4 Administrator. “This settlement is a collaborative agreement that will result in significant improvements to water quality and provide the Memphis community with a cleaner and healthier environment.”
The major features of the consent decree will require Memphis to implement specific programs designed to ensure proper management, operation and maintenance of its sewer systems to eliminate unauthorized overflows of untreated raw sewage. In order to address the problem of grease buildup within the sewer lines, Memphis developed and will be required to implement a comprehensive fats, oil and grease (FOG) program. Furthermore, the consent decree will require Memphis to develop and implement a continuing sewer assessment and rehabilitation program to ensure that the integrity of sewer infrastructure is appropriately maintained to prevent system failures that would likely result in unauthorized overflows. The consent decree will also require Memphis to perform corrective measures in certain specifically identified priority areas.
In addition to the control requirements, the consent decree will also require Memphis to pay a civil penalty of $1.29 million. Half of this amount will be paid to the United States. At the direction of the state, the other half of the civil penalty will be paid by Memphis through the performance of certain state projects. These projects include implementation of improvements to Memphis’ Geographic Information System (GIS) and implementation of an effluent color study to better delineate limits for the color of Memphis’ permitted discharges to the Mississippi River.
“Today's consent decree sets out a schedule that will ensure the city of Memphis moves forward in making the much needed infrastructure changes to its sewer system,” said Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation Commissioner Bob Martineau. “We’ve been pleased with the city's cooperative tone during these negotiations, while working together to ensure a cleaner, healthier environment for the citizens of Memphis.”
“Violations of the Tennessee Water Quality Control Act due to aging infrastructure have become an all-too-familiar occurrence in various parts of Tennessee,” Tennessee Attorney General Bob Cooper said. “We hope today’s cooperative agreement to improve the Memphis sanitary sewer system will help the overall health of our community, environment and economy.”
Keeping raw sewage and contaminated stormwater out of the waters of the United States is one of the EPA’s national enforcement initiatives for 2011 to 2013. The initiative focuses on reducing sewer overflows, which can present a significant threat to human health and the environment. These reductions are accomplished by obtaining cities’ commitments to implement timely, affordable solutions to these problems, including the increased use of green infrastructure and other innovative approaches.
The United States has reached similar agreements in the past with numerous municipal entities across the country including Mobile and Jefferson County, Ala. (Birmingham); Atlanta and Dekalb County, Ga.; Knoxville and Nashville, Tenn.; Miami-Dade County, Fla.; New Orleans; Hamilton County (Cincinnati), Ohio; Northern Kentucky Sanitation District #1; and Louisville, Ky.
The proposed consent decree with Memphis is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval before becoming effective. A copy of the consent decree lodged today is available on the Department of Justice website at www.justice.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html .
More information about the settlement is available at www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/cases/civil/cwa/memphis.html .
More information on EPA’s national enforcement initiative is available at www.epa.gov/compliance/data/planning/initiatives/2011sewagestormwater.html .
Three Men Found Guilty of Federal Hate Crime Charge Related to the Assault of African-american ManRead the Press Release
A federal jury today convicted Charles Cannon, 26, Michael McLaughlin, 41, and Brian Kerstetter, 32, of a federal hate crime charge related to a racially motivated assault of a 29-year-old African-American man.
The defendants were found guilty of violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which was enacted in October 2009. The evidence at trial established that on Aug. 13, 2011, the defendants approached the victim, who was waiting at a bus stop in downtown Houston. At least one defendant referred to the victim using a racial slur, and the defendants then surrounded and attacked the victim by punching and kicking his face, head and body. The defendants were arrested at the scene after a passerby called 911. All three defendants had tattoos known to reflect an affiliation with white supremacist groups.
“Today’s convictions under the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act show that hate crimes are all too common in this country,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division. “The department will continue to use every available tool to identify and prosecute hate crimes whenever and wherever they occur.
“We hope today’s convictions send a powerful public message,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Stephen L. Morris. “The Matthew Shepherd and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act is a tool the FBI will use to aggressively investigate and prosecute hate crimes as felony offenses.”
The defendants face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. The sentencing is scheduled for July 16, 2012, before the Honorable Kenneth Hoyt, U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of Texas.
This case was investigated by the Houston Division of the FBI in cooperation with the Houston Police Department. Assistance was also provided by the Harris County District Attorney’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Saeed Mody and Special Litigation Counsel Gerard Hogan of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice.
Ohio Insurance Salesman Pleads Guilty to Failing to File Income Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
Thomas Mitchell of Mansfield, Ohio pleaded guilty before United States District Judge George J. Limbert of the Northern District of Ohio to criminal information charging him with willfully failing to file an income tax return with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Justice Department and IRS announced today.
According to the plea agreement and statements made in court, Mitchell, an independent Aflac insurance salesman, failed to file individual income tax returns and pay taxes for the years 1999-2009, despite earning sufficient income during those years. As part of the plea agreement, Mitchell has agreed to pay restitution to the IRS in the amount of $111,639.
Mitchell faces a potential maximum sentence of one year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. Sentencing is set for July 18, 2012.
This case was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation and prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Melissa S. Siskind and Sean R. Delaney of the Tax Division.
Former Partner at Major International Accounting Firm Sentenced to Prison for Tax CrimesRead the Press Release
Stephen A. Favato, a resident of Point Pleasant Beach, N.J., and a former partner in BDO Seidman LLP’s Woodbridge, N.J., office, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for tax crimes, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. In August 2010, a jury sitting in Newark, N.J., found Favato guilty of one count of corruptly endeavoring to obstruct and impede the Internal Revenue laws and one count of aiding and assisting in the preparation and filing of a false income tax return.
During the trial, evidence presented proved that from late 2001 through April 2005, Favato attempted to obstruct the IRS by, among other conduct, advising his client, Daniel Funsch, on how to include false items on the 2002, 2003 and 2004 joint income tax returns for Funsch and his then-wife. Additionally, the evidence proved that Favato knowingly prepared and signed false joint income tax returns for the Funsches for these years, causing over $114,000 of tax loss to the IRS in connection with the Funsches’ filed 2002 return and attempting to cause over $70,000 of tax loss in connection with tax years 2003 and 2004.
The evidence presented at the trial established that Favato advised Funsch to significantly reduce the salary payments that Funsch was receiving from his corporation and to instead have this compensation paid to Funsch’s limited liability company, Great Escape Yachts LLC, in the form of purported lease payments for Funsch’s yacht. However, his corporation had not leased the yacht. This course of action recommended by Favato enabled Funsch to fraudulently deduct his personal yacht expenses as business expenses. In addition, the evidence presented showed that Favato advised Funsch on how to falsely increase his expenses in order to fraudulently eliminate a portion of the gain on three properties that Funsch sold in 2002 and 2004. Finally, the evidence showed that Favato advised Funsch to report inflated charitable contributions on Funsch’s 2003 tax return. The jury acquitted Favato on one count of tax evasion.
The case was investigated by Special Agents of the IRS – Criminal Investigation and prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Patrick J. Murray and Sean Delaney of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts is available at www.usdoj.gov/tax .
Friday 13 April 2012
Two Harlan County, Kentucky, Women Plead Guilty to Federal Hate Crime Against Individual Because of Sexual OrientationRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that two Harlan County women admitted they assisted others in kidnapping and assaulting a gay man because of his sexual orientation.
Today, the U.S. District Court in London, Ky., unsealed guilty pleas, previously entered by 19-year-old Mable Ashley Jenkins and 19-year-old Alexis LeeAnn Jenkins. The defendants pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting kidnapping and aiding and abetting the hate crime assault against Kevin Pennington on April 4, 2011.
The women admitted they lured Pennington into a truck with two other defendants, Anthony Ray Jenkins and David Jason Jenkins. The truck was driven to an Eastern Kentucky state park where Pennington was allegedly assaulted by the male defendants.
Both women waived their right to be indicted and pleaded guilty to the charges. Mable Jenkins pleaded guilty Tuesday and Ashley Jenkins pleaded guilty Wednesday of this week. Their plea agreements remain under seal.
The women admitted to violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. The act expanded federal jurisdiction to include certain hate crimes motivated by a victim’s sexual orientation. This case marks the first Federal convictions in the nation for a violation of this provision of the federal hate crime law.
The Shepard-Byrd law criminalizes certain acts of physical violence causing bodily injury motivated by any person’s actual or perceived race, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or disability.
Alexis and Mable Jenkins will appear for sentencing in August. The kidnapping and hate crime offenses carry maximum penalties of up to life in prison.
The indictments concerning Anthony Jenkins and David Jenkins were returned Wednesday, April 11. Both men pleaded not guilty at their arraignments yesterday and a trial date has been set for June 18. An indictment is only an accusation, and the defendants are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty.
This case was investigated by special agents with the FBI and Kentucky State Police. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hydee Hawkins in the Eastern District of Kentucky and Trial Attorney Angie Cha with the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice.
Justice Department Settles with Air Methods Corporation and Lifemed Alaska Llc to Enforce the Employment Rights to Army National Guard Member in AlaskaRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today announced that it has resolved a lawsuit alleging that Air Methods Corp. and LifeMed Alaska, LLC willfully violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) by discriminating against and failing to reemploy Chief Warrant Officer Third Class Jonathon L. Goodwin of Wasilla, Alaska. The suit was filed in federal district court in Alaska.
Under USERRA, an employer is prohibited from discriminating against service members because of their membership in the military, past military service or future service obligations. In addition, and subject to certain limitations, USERRA requires that service members who leave their civilian jobs to serve in the military be reemployed promptly by their civilian employers in the positions they would have held if their employment had not been interrupted by military service or in positions of comparable seniority, pay and status.
Goodwin has been a member of the Army National Guard for 20 years, with honorable service as both a fixed-wing and helicopter pilot. The Justice Department’s complaint alleged that Goodwin was employed by Air Methods as a helicopter pilot when he was called upon for a nine month period of active duty, including a period of deployment to Iraq. According to the complaint, at the end of his deployment, Goodwin sought to be reemployed by Air Methods and assigned to a contract helicopter pilot position with LifeMed Alaska. The complaint alleged that LifeMed refused to accept Goodwin for the contract position due to LifeMed’s bias against recently returned service members as well as an unwillingness to accommodate Goodwin’s possible future military obligations. The complaint also alleged that Air Methods furthered LifeMed’s discriminatory action by refusing to assign Goodwin to the LifeMed contract and, consequently, failed to offer Goodwin proper reemployment.
Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Air Methods will immediately reinstate Mr. Goodwin, will assign him to the first available position on the LifeMed contract at Wolf Lake Base in Alaska, and will pay him an undisclosed sum of money in back pay and other damages.
“Military reservists provide an important and valuable service to our country, often at great personal sacrifice. No service member should be disadvantaged because he or she answered the call of duty,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department is committed to vigorously enforcing federal laws that protect the employment rights of our service members.”
“Here, in Alaska, we are committed to preserving and protecting the rights of our military and military reserve members. We honor and support their dedication and service to our community and our nation,” said Karen Loeffler, U.S. Attorney for the District of Alaska.
The case stemmed from a referral by the Department of Labor following an investigation by the Department of Labor’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service and was jointly litigated by the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Alaska.
Additional information about USERRA can be found on the Justice Department website: www.servicemembers.gov and www.usdoj.gov/crt/emp , as well as on the Labor Department’s website at www.dol.gov/vets/programs/userra/main.htm .
Five Aryan Brotherhood of Texas Gang Members Sentenced in Houston for Violent Crimes in Aid of RacketeeringRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Five members of the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas (ABT) have been sentenced to federal prison for their role in an aggravated assault that took place in Tomball, Texas, in September 2008, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas.
U.S. District Court Senior Judge Ewing Werlein Jr. today sentenced Zechariah Aaron Johnston, 31, aka “Oz,” to 84 months in prison; Stephen Kyle Knebel, 33, aka “Lil Evil,” to 24 months in prison; Robert Lynn Sheats, 33, aka “Dirty,” to 36 months in prison; and Johnny Ray Nichols, 35, aka “Nick,” to 18 months in prison. On March 23, 2012, Senior Judge Werlein sentenced Rusty Dwayne Plante, 34, aka “Rusty,” to 36 months in prison.
All five defendants pleaded guilty for their role in the aggravated assault of an ABT prospect member. Johnston, Knebel and Nichols each pleaded guilty to racketeering aggravated assault. Plante and Sheats pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit racketeering aggravated assault. All five defendants are from the greater Houston area.
According to court documents, the defendants were members of the ABT, a powerful race-based, state-wide organization that operated inside and outside of state and federal prisons throughout the United States. 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 court documents, previously, the ABT was primarily concerned with the protection of white inmates and white supremacy/separatism. Over time, the ABT has expanded its criminal enterprise to include illegal activities for profit.
According to court documents, the ABT enforces its rules and promotes discipline among its members, prospects and associates through murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to murder, assault, robbery and threats against those who violate the rules or pose a threat to the enterprise. Members, and oftentimes associates, are required to follow the orders of higher-ranking members, often referred to as “direct orders.”
According to court documents, Johnston, Knebel, Plante, Nichols and Sheats, along with seven fellow ABT gang members, participated in the beating of an ABT prospect member at the home of another ABT gang leader, Steven Walter Cooke, 48, aka “Stainless,” in Tomball, on Sept. 22, 2008. The ABT prospect, who sustained serious bodily injury, was beaten by ABT gang members because he violated ABT rules of conduct.
Eleven of the 12 co-defendants have pleaded guilty for their roles in the assault. The 12th ABT gang member, David Harlow, 43, aka, “Bam Bam,” was found guilty by Senior Judge Werlein on March 21, 2012, at trial in the Southern District of Texas.
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; the FBI; the U.S. Marshals Service; the Texas Ranger Division – Texas Department of Public Safety; the Walker County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; the Montgomery County, Texas, Sheriff’s Department; the Houston Police Department-Gang Division; the Tomball Police Department; the Texas Department of Criminal Justice – Inspector General; and the Harris County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office.
The case is being prosecuted by David Karpel of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Hileman of the Southern District of Texas.
Departments of Justice and Education Reach Agreement with the University of California, San Diego to Resolve Harassment AllegationsRead the Press Release
The Departments of Justice and Education reached a settlement agreement with the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), to resolve an investigation into complaints of racial harassment against African-American students on campus. Titles IV and VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 each prohibit harassment based on race.
The complaints alleged multiple incidents of racial harassment on campus, including public displays of nooses and a Ku Klux Klan-style hood, and the hosting of an off-campus party where students were invited to dress as stereotypes of African-Americans. After conducting an extensive investigation into the alleged incidents, and following the receipt of additional complaints of racial discrimination and harassment on campus, the Departments of Justice and Education worked collaboratively with the university to address concerns regarding racial hostility on campus.
UCSD voluntarily entered into a resolution agreement with the departments. Under the terms of the resolution agreement, UCSD will take steps to prevent racial harassment on campus, respond appropriately to harassment that occurs, and eliminate any hostile environment resulting from harassment. The university has agreed to revise its campus policies and procedures related to racial harassment to ensure they are consistent with federal civil rights laws; maintain an Office for the Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination to receive, investigate, and resolve complaints of harassment and discrimination; and provide mandatory trainings for staff and students on the university’s anti-discrimination policies and procedures. The university also voluntarily initiated a number of additional programs to address campus climate issues, and the departments will monitor the implementation of those programs to evaluate their impact on resolving the departments’ concerns.
“Students have a right to seek and obtain an education without facing racial harassment. UCSD, like all colleges and universities, has an obligation to make clear that racial discrimination and harassment on campus will not be tolerated, and this agreement is a significant step in the right direction,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “We commend the university for working with us to address this matter, and we recognize the importance of this agreement in the context of larger efforts by the UC system to create supportive and inclusive learning environments for students. We look forward to working with UCSD as it implements the measures and programs called for in the agreement.”
“We salute UCSD for taking these steps and we hope the entire school community learns from this experience and works together to overcome ignorance and intolerance,” said Russlynn Ali, Assistant Secretary for the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights. “America is a country that has always celebrated its diversity. Nowhere is that more important than in our classrooms and schools – at every level – from the earliest grades to our colleges and universities. The Department of Education and the Department of Justice will continue to work cooperatively with UCSD to ensure that all students are safe from harassment and discrimination.”
The enforcement of Title IV and Title VI are top priorities of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt . Enforcement of Title VI is also a top priority of Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. Additional information about the Office for Civil Rights is available on its website at www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/index.html .
Ammed Direct Llc to Pay $18 Million to United States and Tennessee to Resolve False Claims AllegationsRead the Press Release
AmMed Direct LLC has agreed to pay the United States and the state of Tennessee $18 million plus interest to settle allegations that it submitted false claims to Medicare and Tennessee Medicaid (TennCare), the Justice Department announced today. Under the agreement, AmMed will pay $17,560,997 to the United States and $439,003 to Tennessee.
The United States and Tennessee allege that, from September 2008 through January 2010, the Antioch, Tenn.-based company submitted false claims to Medicare and TennCare for diabetes testing supplies, vacuum erection devices and heating pads. The United States and Tennessee asserted that AmMed widely advertised free cookbooks in order to induce Medicare beneficiaries to contact AmMed or its hired telemarketing firm. Once AmMed confirmed that a beneficiary was covered by Medicare, AmMed representatives improperly attempted to sell the beneficiary supplies that would be paid for by Medicare. Medicare rules prohibit medical businesses from making unsolicited telephone contact with beneficiaries to sell them their products, unless specific exceptions apply.
The United States and Tennessee further alleged that, as a result of AmMed’s improper marketing, many Medicare beneficiaries who called AmMed to receive the advertised free cookbooks returned their diabetic supplies to AmMed. AmMed, however, failed to timely refund the money to Medicare or TennCare. Rather, AmMed allowed the unpaid refunds to accrue from September 2006 until January 2010. Prior to learning of the United States’ and Tennessee’s investigation, AmMed disclosed to the Medicare Administrative Contractors its failure to refund monies for returned supplies and began paying the refunds to Medicare and TennCare.
“Government health care programs have in place important rules that prohibit suppliers from improperly contacting beneficiaries regarding their products,” said Stuart F. Delery, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that companies that bill government health care programs abide by those rules.”
“Enforcement of the False Claims Act remains a top priority of this office,” said Jerry E. Martin, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee. “All Medicare providers must comply with Medicare rules for reimbursement. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee will continue to devote the resources necessary to vigorously protect taxpayers’ interests and aggressively pursue fraud and abuse.”
“We are grateful for the hard work and cooperation of our state and federal agencies in this case,” said Tennessee Attorney General Bob Cooper. “Working to stop healthcare fraud is a major priority for all of us because ultimately everyone pays for this kind of theft.”
The allegations arose from a lawsuit brought under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private citizens with knowledge of false claims against the government to bring an action on behalf of the United States and to share in any recovery. The qui tam action was filed in 2009 in federal district court in Nashville, Tenn., by former AmMed Direct employee Bryan McNeese. The relator will receive approximately $2.88 million as his share of the settlement proceeds.
This resolution is part of the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and another step for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced by Attorney General Eric Holder and Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services in May 2009. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in that effort is the False Claims Act, which the Justice Department has used to recover more than $6.7 billion since January 2009 in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs. The Justice Department’s total recoveries in False Claims Act cases since January 2009 are over $9 billion.
The case was investigated by the Department of Health and Human Services- Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee and the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office. The Justice Department’s Civil Division monitored the investigation.
The claims settled by today’s agreement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.
Thursday 12 April 2012
Two Harlan County, Kentucky, Men Indicted for Federal Hate Crime Against Individual Because of Sexual OrientationRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Two Harlan County, Ky., men were indicted today for their roles in kidnapping and assaulting a gay man because of his sexual orientation, the Justice Department announced today.
A federal grand jury in London, Ky., returned a three-count indictment charging David Jason Jenkins, 37, and Anthony Ray Jenkins, 20, for kidnapping and assaulting Kevin Pennington, and for conspiring with each other and with other unnamed individuals to commit the kidnapping. The indictment charges the men with committing a hate crime in violation of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which expanded federal jurisdiction to include certain assaults motivated by someone’s sexual orientation. This case marks the first federal hate crime charging a violation of the sexual orientation provision of the statute.
The indictment alleges that on April 4, 2011, the two defendants kidnapped and assaulted Kevin Pennington because of Pennington’s sexual orientation. According to the indictment, the defendants enlisted two women to trick Pennington into getting into a truck with the defendants, so that the defendants could drive Pennington to a state park and assault him. According to the indictment, the defendants then drove Pennington a secluded area of the Kingdom Come State Park in Kentucky and assaulted him.
If convicted, the defendants face a maximum penalty of up to life in prison for each charge.
The Shepard-Byrd law, enacted in 2009, criminalizes acts of physical violence causing bodily injury motivated by any person’s actual or perceived race, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or disability.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hydee Hawkins with the U.S. Attorney Office for the Eastern District of Kentucky and Trial Attorney Angie Cha with the Civil Rights Division.
An indictment is only an accusation, and the defendants are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty.
Three Tennessee Men Sentenced for Launching Mortar-Style Fireworks at African-AmericansRead the Press Release
Colton L. Partin, 22, of Apison, Tenn., Kyle C. Montgomery, 23, and James Smiley, 27, both of Chattanooga, Tenn., were sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Curtis L. Collier. Smiley and Montgomery were sentenced to 12 months in prison and three years of supervised release for conspiring to intimidate African-Americans in the free exercise and enjoyment of housing rights secured to them by the laws of the United States. Partin was sentenced to 18 months probation, including six months home confinement. All three men will also serve 300 hours of community service. The men pleaded guilty on Jan. 6, 2012.
In the early morning hours of July 9, 2011, at least four African-American residents of East Lake Courts Public Housing Authority in Chattanooga were on the porch of one of the units. As they conversed, defendants Smiley, Partin and Montgomery drove by several times yelling racial slurs and launched mortar-type fireworks, from a cylinder, directly toward these individuals. The individuals on the porch avoided the explosions, one of which was captured on video by the Chattanooga Housing Authority. Another explosion shattered a window pane in an apartment of an African-American resident of the East Lake Courts. This individual was asleep inside with her infant child and her boyfriend's adolescent siblings.
Based on a 911 call, the Chattanooga Police Department swiftly apprehended and arrested Smiley, Partin and Montgomery. Fireworks, like the ones fired at the individuals on the porch, were photographed and observed in the bed of the truck. Smiley, Partin and Montgomery admitted their involvement to the officers. They further admitted that the explosives were fired toward the individuals in order to intimidate them because they were African-American.
“Today’s sentence sends the clear message that every person in our country has the right to live peacefully in their communities free from hate-fueled acts of violence,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The department is committed to vigorously enforcing our nation’s civil rights laws.”
“This is an example to others that the exhibition of actions based upon racial or any other kind of prejudice will result in federal convictions and confinement, said Bill Killian, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Tennessee. Acts of violence based upon prejudice, regardless of the nature of the prejudice, will be actively prosecuted.”
This case was investigated by the FBI and Chattanooga Police and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Poole of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee and Trial Attorney Myesha Braden of the Civil Rights Division.
Pennsylvania Man Arrested for Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
Stephen Thomas of York, Pa., was arrested on charges of attempted tax evasion, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. On April 4, 2012, a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia returned an indictment charging Thomas with three counts of attempted evasion of his personal income taxes. The indictment was unsealed following Thomas’s arrest.
According to the indictment, in 2004, in the District of Columbia, Thomas formed multiple entities whose names contained the acronym ECG, which stood for ESOP Capital Group. ECG purported to provide financial, business and other management services to companies that were interested in creating ESOPs, which are employee stock ownership plans. In or about 2005 and 2006, Thomas, through ECG, contracted to provide such services to two companies in Maine.
The indictment further alleges that, despite earning income, Thomas did not file his 2005 through 2007 individual income tax returns. In addition, he allegedly evaded assessment of his individual income tax liabilities for those years by diverting cash from the two companies he contracted with in Maine, using nominee bank accounts, titling assets in his spouse’s name and withdrawing substantial amounts of cash.
If convicted, the defendant faces a potential maximum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 on each count.
This case was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation and is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Jessica Moran and Jeffrey Bender of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
Five Indicted in Alabama for Conspiracy to Obtain Tax Refunds Using Stolen IdentitiesRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in the Middle District of Alabama returned a 37-count indictment against Mary Bennett, Milton Bennett, Narendrakumar Patel, Corinthian Bennett and Eugenia Burks for their roles in an identity theft and tax fraud scheme, the Justice Department, the U.S. Secret Service and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. All five are charged with conspiring to commit mail fraud and wire fraud. The indictment also charges various defendants with mail fraud, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, theft of government funds and forgery of state securities. The indictment was returned on Feb. 15, 2012, and unsealed today following the arrests of the defendants.
According to the indictment, the defendants conspired to fraudulently obtain both federal income tax refunds as well as state income tax refunds from several different states by using stolen identities to file false tax returns. Allegedly, fraudulently obtained refund checks were mailed to various addresses used by the conspiracy, while other refunds were obtained through direct deposits into numerous bank accounts controlled by the conspirators. Some of the checks obtained by the scheme allegedly were cashed by Patel, who shared in the proceeds.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, all the defendants face a maximum potential sentence of 20 years in prison for the conspiracy charge. There is also a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison for each wire fraud and mail fraud count, 10 years in prison for each theft of government funds and forgery of state securities count, and a mandatory 2-year sentence for the aggravated identity theft counts. All the defendants are also subject to fines and mandatory restitution if convicted.
The case was investigated by Special Agents of the Secret Service and IRS - Criminal Investigation. Trial Attorney Jason H. Poole of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew O. Schiff are prosecuting the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found at www.justice.gov/tax.
D.C. Federal Court Acts to Halt Alleged “Sham Cemetery” Tax SchemeRead the Press Release
A federal court has permanently barred Michael Strauss from promoting tax shelters, the Justice Department announced today. The government complaint in the case alleged that Strauss, of Herndon, Va., his son Patrick Strauss, of Washington D.C., and Joseph Barreiro of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., promoted and sold several fraudulent tax schemes, including sham cemetery investments. The men allegedly promoted the cemetery schemes to customers located in Northern Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C., using shell companies that they controlled.
Judge Robert L. Wilkins of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia signed the civil injunction order, to which Michael Strauss agreed without admitting the government’s allegations. The order permanently bars Strauss from promoting the cemetery schemes identified in the complaint or any other tax shelter, from marketing business or tax services that facilitate noncompliance with federal tax laws, and from engaging in any fraudulent conduct subject to penalty under the tax laws. The same court previously entered injunction orders against Barreiro and Patrick Strauss, to which they consented without admitting the allegations against them.
The defendants allegedly falsely told their customers that they had purchased “licenses” worth tens of millions of dollars that purportedly gave the shell companies the right to future profits from performing funeral services at two purported cemeteries located in Virginia and New York. According to the complaint, the men also falsely claimed that those companies could deduct a portion of the licenses’ supposed value and then pass on millions of dollars in tax losses to the customers. The government contends that there were no arm’s-length purchases of licenses and that the license values were fabricated to generate fake tax benefits. The defendants also allegedly used fictitious promissory notes to siphon off, for their personal benefit, millions of dollars that they told their customers were being “invested.”
In the past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained hundreds of injunctions to stop the promotion of abusive or fraudulent tax schemes and the preparation of fraudulent tax returns. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department website.
Related Documents:
United States v. Michael A. Strauss, et al.
Order of Permanent Injunction Against Michael A. Strauss (PDF)
Order of Permanent Injunction Against Patrick Strauss (PDF)
Order of Permanent Injunction Against Joseph C. Barreiro (PDF)
Wednesday 11 April 2012
North Hollywood, Calif., Man Sentenced in Los Angeles to 20 Years in Prison for Participating in International Child Pornography RingRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - A North Hollywood man was sentenced today in Los Angeles to 20 years in prison and lifetime supervised release for his participation in an international child pornography ring, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department's Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney André Birotte Jr. of the Central District of California and Assistant Director in Charge Steve Martinez of the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office.
Harout Hagop Sarafian was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Virginia A. Phillips. Sarafian, 27, pleaded guilty in September 2011 to one count of conspiracy to advertise child pornography. On April 2, 2012, co-defendant David Michael Fagerness, 45, of Alpharetta, Ga., was sentenced by Judge Phillips to 15 years in prison and lifetime supervised release for one count of conspiracy to transport child pornography.
Today’s sentence is the result of an international investigation into the “Lost Boy” online bulletin board. The Lost Boy bulletin board, according to court documents and proceedings, was dedicated to men who have a sexual interest in young boys and was established to provide a forum to trade child pornography.
Federal authorities, working in conjunction with a coalition of international law enforcement agencies, shut down the Lost Boy bulletin board approximately three years ago. As a result of the investigation, 16 named defendants, including Sarafian and Fagerness, were charged in the United States and arrested for their roles in the bulletin board. To date, 15 defendants have pleaded guilty or have been convicted at trial and one defendant died in custody. Approximately six more men have been charged with child molestation as a result of the investigation. The investigation also led to the identification of 27 domestic victims of child abuse, some of whom were portrayed in images posted to the Lost Boy bulletin board.
According to court documents and proceedings, law enforcement authorities discovered the Lost Boy bulletin board after receiving information from Eurojust, the judicial cooperation arm of the European Union. Eurojust provided U.S. law enforcement with leads obtained from Norwegian and Italian authorities indicating that a North Hollywood man was communicating with an Italian national about child pornography and how to engage in child sex tourism in Romania. Acting on the information from Europe, the FBI executed search warrants that led to the discovery of the Lost Boy network. Further investigation revealed that Lost Boy had 35 members, 16 of whom were U.S. nationals. Other members of the network were located in countries around the world, including Belgium, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
According to court documents, Lost Boy had a thorough vetting process for new members, who were required to post child pornography to join the organization. Once accepted, members were required to continue posting child pornography to remain in good standing and to avoid removal from the board. According to court documents, Lost Boy members advised each other on techniques to evade detection by law enforcement, which included using screen names to mask identities and encrypting computer data.
International law enforcement efforts involving European law enforcement, the Brazilian Federal Police and other agencies have identified child molestation suspects in South America, Europe and New Zealand. Three suspects in Romania, one in France and another in Brazil have been charged, and offenders have been convicted in Norway and the United Kingdom. Law enforcement efforts have also identified dozens of child victims located in Norway, Romania, Brazil and other nations.
The investigation into the Lost Boy bulletin board was led by the FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, in conjunction with the Los Angeles-based Sexual Assault Felony Enforcement (SAFE) Team. The High Technology Investigative Unit of the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) in the Justice Department's Criminal Division, along with Eurojust, has provided invaluable assistance during the investigation.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joey L. Blanch and Yvonne Garcia of the Central District of California and CEOS Trial Attorney Andrew McCormack.
New Orleans Police Officer Sentenced for Perjury and Obstruction of JusticeRead the Press Release
A former New Orleans Police Department officer Ronald Mitchell was sentenced today to 20 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release by U.S. District Judge Sarah Vance for lying under oath and obstructing justice.
On Dec. 9, 2011, a federal jury found Mitchell guilty of committing perjury and obstructing justice for providing false and misleading information during a civil deposition in connection to a lawsuit filed by the family of Danny Brumfield. According to the evidence presented at trial, Mitchell, while seated in the passenger’s seat of a patrol car, shot and killed Danny Brumfield on Convention Center Boulevard in New Orleans a few days after Hurricane Katrina. In 2007, Mitchell gave sworn deposition testimony stating that his partner stopped the patrol car after Mitchell shot Brumfield. Mitchell’s deposition also stated that after he shot Brumfield, Mitchell exited the patrol car and checked Brumfield’s vital signs. The evidence presented at trial showed that Mitchell never exited the patrol car after he shot Brumfield and did not check his vital signs.
“Today’s sentence brings closure to an incident that occurred during a time when the people of New Orleans needed to rely on their officers,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The department will continue to work with the city on ways to create sustainable reforms within the New Orleans Police Department.”
This case was investigated by the New Orleans Division of the FBI and was prosecuted by former Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Magner, and Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney Christopher Lomax.
Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Against City of New Berlin, Wisconsin, for Blocking Affordable HousingRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice announced today that it has settled its lawsuit against the city of New Berlin, Wis., for race discrimination in violation of the Fair Housing Act.
Filed in June 2011, the lawsuit alleged that the city of New Berlin blocked a 180-unit affordable housing project that a developer, MSP Real Estate Inc., had proposed for the city center area of New Berlin. The city’s planning commission initially approved the project, but reversed course and denied it weeks later, after hundreds of residents objected to it. The suit alleged that opposition was based partly on racial stereotypes and fear that the project’s tenants would be African-American. The lawsuit also charged that the city, in response to public opposition, changed its zoning and land use requirements to bar affordable housing in the city center in the future.
Shortly after the United States filed a motion for preliminary injunction requesting that the court order the city to allow MSP’s affordable housing project , the city agreed to issue the necessary permits to allow MSP’s affordable housing development to be built. The settlement, filed today as a proposed consent decree in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, requires that the city not take any further action to obstruct or delay the affordable housing project. It also requires that the city take affirmative steps to provide for future affordable housing, communicate its commitment to fair housing and establish a mechanism to ensure open and fair housing in New Berlin.
As part of the settlement, the city agreed to modify changes it made to its zoning and land use requirements following public opposition to allow for future additional affordable housing in the city center. The settlement requires the city to provide a minimum of $75,000 to establish a Housing Trust Fund, which will finance projects that promote affordable housing, residential integration and equal housing opportunity. In addition, city officials must develop a Fair Housing Outreach Plan to encourage tenants and developers of affordable housing to come to New Berlin, appoint a fair housing compliance officer, and undergo fair housing training. It also provides for a $5,000 civil penalty to be paid to the United States.
“It is important that people have a choice about where they live and are not excluded from communities because of their race. This settlement makes clear that we will take action against municipalities that violate the law by blocking affordable housing developments not for legitimate reasons but to exclude people based on race,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Division. “Through this innovative settlement, the city of New Berlin will create greater housing opportunities for the people in the Milwaukee area.”
“The lodging today of the proposed consent decree is tremendously important not only for all of the residents of the Greater Milwaukee Area, including those in the City of New Berlin, but also represents the department’s commitment to ensure that the fair housing laws of our nation are enforced fairly and observed uniformly,” James L. Santelle, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. “All Americans benefit from the many positive consequences of providing affordable housing in our communities, including diversity within our populations and enrichment of the lives and livelihoods of our citizens.”
The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability and familial status. Fair housing enforcement is a priority of the Civil Rights Division. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.justice.gov/crt . Individuals who believe that they may have been victims of housing discrimination can call the Housing Discrimination Tip Line at 1-800-896-7743, email the Justice Department at [email protected] , or contact the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development at 1-800-669-9777.
Justice Department Reaches Settlement with Three of the Largest Book Publishers and Continues to Litigate Against <br /> Apple Inc. and Two Other Publishers to Restore Price <br /> Competition and Reduce E-book PricesRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice announced today that it has reached a settlement with three of the largest book publishers in the United States– Hachette Book Group (USA), HarperCollins Publishers L.L.C. and Simon & Schuster Inc.–and will continue to litigate against Apple Inc. and two other publishers–Holtzbrinck Publishers LLC, which does business as Macmillan, and Penguin Group (USA)–for conspiring to end e-book retailers’ freedom to compete on price, take control of pricing from e-book retailers and substantially increase the prices that consumers pay for e-books. The department said that the publishers prevented retail price competition resulting in consumers paying millions of dollars more for their e-books.
The civil antitrust lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Apple, Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin and Simon & Schuster. At the same time, the department filed a proposed settlement that, if approved by the court, would resolve the department’s antitrust concerns with Hachette, HarperCollins and Simon & Schuster, and would require the companies to grant retailers–such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble–the freedom to reduce the prices of their e-book titles.
“As a result of this alleged conspiracy, we believe that consumers paid millions of dollars more for some of the most popular titles,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “We allege that executives at the highest levels of these companies–concerned that e-book sellers had reduced prices–worked together to eliminate competition among stores selling e-books, ultimately increasing prices for consumers.”
“With today’s lawsuit, we are sending a clear message that competitors, even in rapidly evolving technology industries, cannot conspire to raise prices,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Sharis A. Pozen in charge of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “We want to undo the harm caused by the companies’ anticompetitive conduct and restore retail price competition so that consumers can pay lower prices for their e-books.”
The department’s Antitrust Division and the European Commission cooperated closely with each other throughout the course of their respective investigations, with frequent contact between the investigative staffs and the senior officials of the two agencies. The department also worked closely with the states of Connecticut and Texas to uncover the publishers’ illegal conspiracy.
According to the complaint, the five publishers and Apple were unhappy that competition among e-book sellers had reduced e-book prices and the retail profit margins of the book sellers to levels they thought were too low. To address these concerns, they worked together to enter into contracts that eliminated price competition among bookstores selling e-books, substantially increasing prices paid by consumers. Before the companies began their conspiracy, retailers regularly sold e-book versions of new releases and bestsellers for, as described by one of the publisher’s CEO, the “wretched $9.99 price point.” As a result of the conspiracy, consumers are now typically forced to pay $12.99, $14.99, or more for the most sought-after e-books, the department said.
The department alleges the conspiracy began in the summer of 2009. CEOs from the publishing companies met privately as a group about once per quarter. The meetings took place in private dining rooms of upscale Manhattan restaurants and were used to discuss confidential business and competitive matters, including Amazon’s e-book’s retailing practices.
The complaint states that the companies accomplished their conspiracy by agreeing to stop the longstanding practice of selling e-books, as they long sold print books, on wholesale to bookstores, and leaving it to the bookstores to set the price at which they would sell the e-books to consumers. Through their conspiracy, the companies imposed a new model under which the publishers seized e-book pricing authority from all of their retail bookstores and raised prices for e-books.
As stated in the department’s complaint, one publisher’s CEO said, “Our goal is to force Amazon to return to acceptable sales prices through the establishment of agency contracts in the USA. . . . To succeed our colleagues must know that we entered the fray and follow us.”
The publishers also agreed with Apple to pay Apple a 30 percent commission for each e-book purchased through Apple’s iBookstore and promised, through a retail price-matching most favored nation (MFN) provision, that no other e-book retailer would sell an e-book title at a lower price than Apple.
As stated in the department’s complaint, Apple’s then-CEO Steve Jobs said, “the customer pays a little more, but that’s what you [publishers] want anyway.” Based on the commitments to Apple, the publishers imposed agency terms, over some objections, on all other e-book retailers. As a result, no e-book retailer is able to compete by using its commission to discount or reduce the price that the publishers set for their e-book titles or offer any special sales promotions to encourage consumers to purchase those e-books. The department said that the intent and effect of the publishers’ contracts with Apple was to raise the prices that consumers nationwide pay for e-books.
Under the proposed settlement agreement with Hachette, HarperCollins and Simon & Schuster, they will terminate their agreements with Apple and other e-books retailers and will be prohibited for two years from entering into new agreements that constrain retailers’ ability to offer discounts or other promotions to consumers to encourage the sale of the publishers’ e-books. The settlement does not prohibit Hachette, HarperCollins and Simon & Schuster from entering new agency agreements with e-book retailers, but those agreements cannot prohibit the retailer from reducing the price set by the publishers.
The proposed settlement agreement also will prohibit Hachette, HarperCollins and Simon & Schuster for five years from again conspiring with or sharing competitively sensitive information with their competitors. It will impose a strong antitrust compliance program on the three companies, which will include a requirement that each provide advance notification to the department of any e-book ventures they plan to undertake jointly with other publishers and that each regularly report to the department on any communications they have with other publishers. Also for five years, Hachette, HarperCollins and Simon & Schuster will be forbidden from agreeing to any kind of MFN that could undermine the effectiveness of the settlement agreement.
The ongoing litigation against Apple, Macmillan and Penguin seeks to restore price competition among e-book retailers in the sale of the litigating publishers’ e-books. Under the existing agency agreements, Macmillan and Penguin prohibit e-book retailers from exercising any pricing discretion on their titles, and Apple is freed from any price competition with other retailers in selling those e-books.
Hachette Book Group USA has its principal place of business in New York City. It publishes e-books and print books through its publishers such as Little, Brown and Company and Grand Central Publishing.
HarperCollins Publishers, L.L.C. has its principal place of business in New York City. It publishes e-books and print books through publishers such as Harper and William Morrow.
Macmillan has its principal place of business in New York City. It publishes e-books and print books through publishers such as Farrar, Straus and Giroux, and St. Martin’s Press.
Verlagsgruppe Georg von Holtzbrinck GmbH owns Holtzbrinck Publishers LLC, which does business as Macmillan, and has its principal place of business in Stuttgart, Germany.
Penguin Group (USA) Inc. has its principal place of business in New York City. It publishes e-books and print books through publishers such as The Viking press and Gotham Books. Penguin Group (USA) Inc. is the U.S. subsidiary of The Penguin Group, a division of Pearson plc, which has its principal place of business in London.
Simon & Schuster Inc. has its principal place of business in New York City. It publishes e-books and print books through publishers such as Free Press and Touchstone.
Apple Inc. has its principal place of business in Cupertino, Calif. Among many other businesses, Apple distributes e-books through its iBookstore.
The proposed settlement, along with the department’s competitive impact statement, will be published in the Federal Register, as required by the Antitrust Procedures and Penalties Act. Any person may submit written comments concerning the proposed settlement within 60-days of its publication to John R. Read, Chief, Litigation III Section, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 450 Fifth Street, NW, 4th Floor, Washington, DC 20530. At the conclusion of the 60-day comment period, the court may enter the final judgment upon a finding that it serves the public interest.
The court will determine a pretrial schedule for the case against Apple, Macmillan and Penguin once the companies file their responses to the government’s lawsuit.
U.S. v. Apple and Hachette, et al.
Former Employee of Government Contractor Sentenced<br /> in Oklahoma for Child Pornography OffenseRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A former employee of a government contractor was sentenced today to 27 months in prison followed by seven years of supervised release on a child exploitation charge brought under the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act (MEJA), announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma Thomas Scott Woodward.
Keith Strimple, 58, of Tulsa, Okla., pleaded guilty in January 2012 before Chief U.S. District Judge Gregory Frizzell in the Northern District of Oklahoma to one count of attempted possession of a visual depiction of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct.According to court documents and proceedings, Strimple worked as an employee of a government contractor between April and September 2007 at a U.S. military facility at Camp Fallujah, Iraq. During that time period, Strimple admitted that he searched for and downloaded videos of minors that he believed to be as young as 12 years old engaging in sexually explicit conduct and downloaded such images using the contractor’s computer system.
MEJA gives U.S. courts jurisdiction to prosecute crimes committed outside the United States by, among others, employees of a government contractor whose work supports a military mission.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the 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, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
The case was investigated by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and CEOS’ High Tech Investigations Unit, with assistance from the FBI in Tulsa.
The case was prosecuted by CEOS Trial Attorney Keith Becker and Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Cyran of the Northern District of Oklahoma.
Attorney General Holder and Secretary Salazar Announce $1 Billion Settlement of Tribal Trust Accounting and Management Lawsuits Filed by More Than 40 TribesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced the settlement of lawsuits filed by 41 federally-recognized tribes against the United States, in which the tribes alleged that the Department of the Interior and the Department of the Treasury had mismanaged monetary assets and natural resources held in trust by the United States for the benefit of the tribes. The announcement followed a 22-month-long negotiation between the tribes and the United States that has culminated in settlements between the government and tribes totaling more than $1 billion.
These settlements resolve claims dating back more than 100 years and will bring to an end protracted litigation that has burdened both the plaintiffs and the United States. Ending these long-running disputes about the United States’ management of trust funds and non-monetary trust resources will allow the United States and the tribes to move beyond the distrust exacerbated by years of litigation. These settlement agreements represent a significant milestone in the improvement of the United States’ relationship with Indian tribes.
“These settlements fairly and honorably resolve historical grievances over the accounting and management of tribal trust funds, trust lands and other non-monetary trust resources that, for far too long, have been a source of conflict between Indian tribes and the United States,” said Attorney General Holder. “Our commitment to tribes is the cornerstone of the Department of Justice’s policies and initiatives in Indian Country, and these settlements will enable the tribal community to pursue the goals and objectives they deem to be appropriate while marking another step in our shared future built upon mutual respect and strong bonds of trust between tribal governments and the United States.”
“These important settlements reflect President Obama’s continuing commitment to ensuring empowerment and reconciliation for American Indians,” said Secretary Salazar. “It strengthens the government-to-government relationship with Tribal nations, helps restore a positive working relationship with Indian Country leaders and empowers American Indian communities. I want to commend Attorney General Holder, our Interior Solicitor Hilary Tompkins and other key officials who were involved in the long negotiations leading to these historic agreements. I look forward to working with Tribal leaders to further strengthen our government-to-government relationship based on mutual respect and a shared concern for the proper management of tribal trust assets and funds.”
The Department of the Interior manages almost 56 million acres of trust lands for federally-recognized tribes and more than 100,000 leases on those lands for various uses, including housing, timber harvesting, farming, grazing, oil and gas extraction, business leasing, rights-of-way and easements. Interior also manages about 2,500 tribal trust accounts for more than 250 tribes.
Starting in the fall of 2009, lawyers for many of the tribes with litigation pending against the United States wrote to President Obama and asked the administration to engage in expedited settlement discussions with their clients. In April 2010, Associate Attorney General Tom Perrelli, Assistant Attorney General of the Environment and Natural Resources Division Ignacia Moreno, Interior Department Solicitor Hilary Tompkins and Treasury Department General Counsel George Madison met with attorneys for the tribes, and the parties embarked on a settlement process that the tribes termed the “Settlement Proposal to Obama Administration,” or “SPOA,” which led in part to today’s announcement.
In addition to the SPOA process, the Departments of Justice, Interior and Treasury have been engaging in other settlement processes involving other litigating tribes. Those processes have been both positive and productive, resulting in the past settlement of other tribal trust accounting and management cases and the processes will continue for other ongoing cases. The United States is committed to resolving the trust accounting and trust management claims of the tribes in a manner that is fair, honorable and reasonable to the tribes and the United States.
Under the negotiated settlement agreements, litigation will end regarding the Department of the Interior’s accounting and management of the tribes’ trust accounts, trust lands and other natural resources. With monies from the congressionally-appropriated Judgment Fund, which is used to pay settlements or final judgments against the government, the United States will compensate the tribes for their breach of trust claims, and the tribes will waive, release and dismiss their claims with prejudice. The parties have agreed to information sharing procedures that will strengthen the management of trust assets and improve communications between tribes and the Department of the Interior. The settlement agreements also include dispute resolution provisions to reduce the likelihood of future litigation.
The sum total of the settlements with the 41 tribes is approximately $1.023 billion.
The 41 tribes are:
1. Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Reservation
2. Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians
3. Blackfeet Tribe
4. Bois Forte Band of Chippewa Indians
5. Cachil Dehe Band of Wintun Indians of Colusa Rancheria
6. Coeur d'Alene Tribe
7. Chippewa Cree Tribe of the Rocky Boy's Reservation
8. Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation
9. Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes
10. Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Reservation
11. Hualapai Tribe
12. Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians of Arizona
13. Kickapoo Tribe of Kansas
14. Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians
15. Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Indians
16. Makah Tribe of the Makah Reservation
17. Mescalero Apache Nation
18. Minnesota Chippewa Tribe
19. Nez Perce Tribe
20. Nooksack Tribe
21. Northern Cheyenne Tribe
22. Passamaquoddy Tribe of Maine
23. Pawnee Nation
24. Pueblo of Zia
25. Quechan Indian Tribe of the Fort Yuma Reservation
26. Rincon Luiseño Band of Indians
27. Round Valley Tribes
28. Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community
29. Santee Sioux Tribe
30. Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the Fort Hall Reservation
31. Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians
32. Spirit Lake Dakotah Nation
33. Spokane Tribe
34. Standing Rock Sioux Tribe of the Fort Yates Reservation
35. Swinomish Indian Tribal Community
36. Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone Indians
37. Tohono O'odham Nation
38. Tulalip Tribe
39. Tule River Tribe
40. Ute Mountain Ute Tribe
41. Ute Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation