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23 January 2013
Convicted Felons Operating Grow House in San Leandro, Illegally Possessing Firearms Sentenced to 72 Months and 87 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
OAKLAND, Calif. – Today, Van Do Nguyen was sentenced to 72 months in prison and Loc Huynh was sentenced to 87 months for conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute marijuana, possession with the intent to distribute marijuana, and being felons in possession of firearms, United States Attorney Melinda Haag announced.
Huynh and Nguyen were arrested on Jan. 10, 2012, after complaints from citizens led to an investigation by the San Leandro Police Department. Huynh pled guilty on Oct. 31, 2012, and Nguyen pled guilty on Nov. 7, 2012.
In their plea agreements, Huynh and Nguyen admitted that from August 2011 through January 2012, they operated a marijuana grow house at 3471 Carrillo Drive in San Leandro, Calif. They were found in possession of 82 mature marijuana plants, almost one kilogram of marijuana packaged for sale, a Norinco US 7.62 caliber rifle with a high capacity magazine, a Romak-Romarm 7.62 caliber assault rifle that had been stolen, and a .45 caliber Smith & Wesson semiautomatic pistol. Nguyen admitted that he also possessed a .40 caliber Smith & Wesson semiautomatic pistol. In addition, approximately $10,000 in cash, a 9mm Bryco Arms semiautomatic pistol, and more than 100 rounds of various caliber ammunition were found at 3471 Carrillo Drive and seized by law enforcement.
Nguyen, 27, of Alameda, Calif., had previously been convicted in 2005 for carrying a loaded firearm in public. Huynh, 20, of Oakland, had been convicted in 2011 for assault with a deadly weapon not a firearm.
The sentences were handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton who also sentenced the defendants to three-year periods of supervised release. Nguyen and Huynh were indicted, with others, by a federal grand jury on June 7, 2012. Co-defendant Vincent Nguyen pled guilty on Oct. 31, 2012, and is scheduled to be sentenced on March 6, 2013.
Brian C. Lewis is the Assistant U.S. Attorney who is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Janice Pagsanjan. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Controller Pleads Guilty to Participating in Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of Indiana County pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, as well as charges of mail fraud and tax fraud, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Cheryl Diane Brooks, 43, of Clymer, Pa., pleaded guilty to seven counts before Chief United States District Judge Gary L. Lancaster.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that between 2007 and 2012, Brooks, a controller at Falcon Drilling Company in Indiana, Pa., conspired with another person to embezzle funds from Falcon Drilling, causing a loss to Falcon totaling nearly $10,000,000. The government represented to the court that Brooks and another person perpetrated the embezzlement by using forged checks, fake invoices to fictitious or real vendors, and false statements to auditors. Brooks obtained approximately $557,000 from the embezzlement scheme.
Judge Lancaster scheduled sentencing for May 31, 2013. The law provides for a total sentence of 74 years in prison, a fine of $1,300,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Gregory C. Melucci is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The United States Postal Inspection Service and Internal Revenue Service conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Brooks.
Consultant for the Florida Department of Transportation Charged with Accepting A BribeRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Michael B. Steinbach, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Marlies T. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Transportation, Office of Inspector General, announce the filing of an Information charging defendant Ron Capobianco, Jr., 40, of Pompano Beach, FL, with committing bribery in connection with programs receiving federal funds, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 666.
According to the Information, Capobianco, Jr. worked as a construction engineering and inspection consultant at Metric Engineering, Inc., (Metric), which specialized in the transportation industry. The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) contracted with Metric to provide many services, including designing, inspecting, and troubleshooting the construction of roads, signs, and traffic signals. Capobianco, Jr. was assigned as the FDOT District 4 Signalization and Lighting Liaison. As such, he acted as FDOT’s project manager for many signalization and lighting projects. Capobianco, Jr. had a team of employees that assisted him in supervising and inspecting contractors performing FDOT work. Because of his position and expertise, Capobianco, Jr. was consulted as an FDOT expert on certain aspects of signalization and lighting construction, including the use of video detection cameras for traffic signalization and control.
According to the Information, around 2009, FDOT began a road construction project along Highway 1 in the Florida Keys (the Marathon Key project), which was designed to improve traffic flow.
The Information alleges that Capobianco Jr. agreed to accept a bribe from a subcontractor working on this project. More specifically, the Information alleges that around May 2009, an agent of the subcontractor offered to pay Capobianco, Jr. $5,000 if the subcontractor could receive at least $25,000 for the installation of the video detection equipment. Capobianco, Jr. agreed to the subcontractor’s $25,000 estimate for the installation of the video detection devices, thus enabling the subcontractor to make a significant profit. The subcontractor’s estimate was approved and subsequently paid by the State of Florida after the installation of the video detection equipment. In or about May 2009, Capobianco, Jr. met with an agent of the subcontractor in Plantation, Florida and was paid $4,000 in cash for his assistance to the subcontractor on the Marathon Key project.
U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer stated, “Corruption in the procurement process is unacceptable, especially when it affects programs receiving federal funds. It is crucial that businesses compete on a level playing field, without improper outside influences or the payment or receipt of bribes. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to prosecute those who steal from programs receiving federal funds.”
“This investigation reveals how business is not to be conducted in the United States. The FBI is committed to investigating not just corrupt acts, but the individuals who are behind them,” said Michael B. Steinbach, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Miami Division. “We encourage anyone who may have information about corruption to come forward and report it. That information is critical to our work.”
“Individuals in positions of public trust are expected to work in an ethical manner,” said Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI). “Accepting a bribe corrupts the system, and IRS Criminal Investigation is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to enforce the law and hold individuals accountable who engage in this type of fraud.”
“The charges filed today are an example to all who would misuse their positions as caretakers of the public trust,” said Marlies T. Gonzalez, Regional Special Agent in Charge, U.S. DOT OIG. “We will continue to vigorously investigate and work with our law enforcement and prosecutorial colleagues to see that those who violate the public trust are punished to the fullest extent of the law.”
Defendant Capobianco, Jr. made his initial appearance in federal court this morning before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barry Seltzer.
If convicted of the charges in the Information, defendant Capobianco, Jr. faces a statutory maximum term of imprisonment of up to 10 years.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI, IRS-CI, and the U.S. Department of Transportation, Office of Inspector General, in connection with the investigation of this matter. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffrey N. Kaplan.
Attachments: Information (PDF)
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Charlotte Woman Sentenced to More Than Three Years in Prison for $730,000 Mail Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A Charlotte woman was sentenced on Tuesday, January 22, 2013, by U.S. District Court Judge Frank Whitney to 41 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release for carrying out a six-year mail fraud scheme against her employer, announced Anne M. Tompkins, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. The defendant was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $737,733.
U.S. Attorney Tompkins is joined in making today’s announcement by Roger A. Coe, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division.
According to filed court documents and court proceedings, Maureen Barbara Mallon, 67, of Charlotte, pleaded guilty in July 2011 to one count of mail fraud. Court documents show that Mallon was employed by an insurance company in Charlotte, as the company’s accounts payable/receivable manager and later as its office manager. From 2004 to 2010, Mallon engaged in a scheme to defraud her employer, court records indicate. According to court documents, Mallon’s position at the insurance company gave her full access to the company’s operating account and made her responsible for various administrative and financial tasks, including processing invoices and remitting payments of insurance premiums to insurance companies underwriting client policies for Mallon’s employer.
Court records indicate that beginning in March 2004 Mallon began issuing duplicate insurance premium payments from her employer’s operating accounts. According to court documents, Mallon would mail one check to the underwriting insurance company and deposit a duplicate check into her personal bank account. Filed court documents show that the duplicate company check was usually made payable to “Amwins Brokerage of the Carolinas,” which was an underwriting insurance company that did business with Mallon’s employer. To facilitate the deposit of the fraudulent checks, Mallon changed the name on the personal bank account to “Maureen B Mallon DBA Amwins Brokerage,” court records show.
According to court records and proceedings, over the course of six years, Mallon deposited approximately $730,000 into her personal bank account, and used the money for personal expenditures, including vehicle expenses and residential rental payments. Mallon was ordered to self-report to the Federal Bureau of Prisons to begin her sentence upon the designation of a federal facility. All federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.
The investigation was handled by the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark T. Odulio of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte.
Chamness Technology, Inc. Sentenced for Discharge of PollutantRead the Press Release
DES MOINES, IA B Chamness Technology, Inc. (CTI) was sentenced today to pay a $100,000 fine for the discharge of a pollutant announced United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt. United States Magistrate Judge Ross A. Walters also sentenced CTI to serve a term of two years supervised probation, which includes conditions that CTI perform community service and develop a compliance and ethic program. The Court also imposed a $125 crime victim fund assessment.
On November 1, 2010, the Iowa Division of Natural Resources responded to a complaint of a discharge in the Palestine Creek in Wapello County. An investigation revealed that leachate water and storm water runoff had been discharged from an umbilical hose at CTI’s compost facility located outside Eddyville, Iowa. A CTI employee caused the discharge by failing to attach the umbilical hose and ensure the umbilical hose was connected to a spray irrigator at the facility. The leachate water and storm water runoff entered the Palestine Creek and flowed to the Des Moines River. The discharge was not permitted and the employee acted within the scope of employment and intended at least in part to benefit CTI through the employee’s actions.
The case was investigated by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Iowa Division of Natural Resources, and was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.
(Download Press Release )
California Economist Found Guilty on All Counts in Manhattan Federal Court of Tax Evasion and Mail Fraud ChargesRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that DAVID GILMARTIN, a Ph.D. economist, was found guilty today in Manhattan federal court of tax fraud charges stemming from his failure to file income tax returns, report more than $1.7 million in income, and pay over $1.5 million in taxes, penalties, and interest for the years 1989 through 2010. GILMARTIN was convicted after a one-week jury trial before U.S. District Judge Miriam G. Cedarbaum.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara stated: “David Gilmartin repeatedly and systematically flouted the tax laws, and during his journey through the criminal justice system he got to see other people’s tax dollars at work, all the way through his conviction. With his conviction today, he trades his status as tax evader for tax felon. This Office will continue to prosecute tax cheats of all stripes and will not tolerate those who think the laws do not apply to them.”
According to the Indictment and the evidence presented during the trial:
GILMARTIN, who has a Ph.D. in economics, worked from 1989 to 2010, as an economist, performing computer analysis for a variety of companies, some of which were located in New York. Despite being paid compensation for every tax year during that 22-year period, GILMARTIN failed to file tax returns with the IRS as required, and evaded paying more than $1.5 million in taxes, penalties, and interest. GILMARTIN claimed that he did not have to file income tax returns or pay income taxes. He based his views in large part on the conduct of others who evaded paying taxes, and who are currently in prison on various tax charges.
GILMARTIN took various steps to evade his tax obligations and obstruct the IRS’s ability to collect back taxes. He used a false Social Security Number, submitted IRS forms to certain employers fraudulently claiming to be exempt from taxes, and caused checks that were paid to him as compensation to be cashed against a personal bank account rather than be deposited. GILMARTIN also caused checks paid to him as compensation to be made payable to a finance company, in order to pay down a personal line of credit and to prevent the IRS from seizing, pursuant to bank levies, the funds paid to him as compensation. GILMARTIN also engaged in a scheme to defraud New York out of state income taxes.
Over the years, GILMARTIN ignored many warnings and statements of courts, the IRS, and New York tax authorities, and associates who told him that he was required to file and pay income taxes. GILMARTIN admitted to an undercover agent earlier this year that he “may be living in prison next year.”
GILMARTIN, 69, of Phelan, California, faces five years’ incarceration on the tax evasion and charge and 20 years’ incarceration on the mail fraud charge. GILMARTIN also faces three years’ incarceration on the tax obstruction charge, and one year each on the failure to file and pay taxes charges.
United States District Judge Miriam G. Cedarbaum set April 30, 2013 as the sentencing date for GILMARTIN.
Mr. Bharara praised the work of the New York Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations.
The prosecution was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Stanley Okula, and Nanette L. Davis, Assistant Chief with the Northern Criminal Enforcement Section of the Tax Division of the Department of Justice.
U.S. v. David Gilmartin S1 Indictment
CHARGING DOCUMENTS: U.S. V. Nikita Kuzmin, U.S. V. Mihai Ionut Paunescu, and U.S. V. Deniss CalovskisRead the Press Release
U.S. v. Nikita Kuzmin Information
U.S. v. Deniss Calovskis S4 Indictment
U.S. v. Mihai Ionut Paunescu Complaint
U.S. v. Mihai Ionut Paunescu Indictment
U.S. v. Nikita Kuzmin ComplaintBrothers from Newport News Plead Guilty to Receipt of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Andrew Lee Liesman, and his twin brother, Randall Scott Liesman, both 25, of Newport News, pled guilty January 22, 2013, to receipt of child pornography.
Neil H. MacBride for the Eastern District of Virginia, made the announcement after the pleas were accepted by United States District Magistrate Judge Lawrence R. Leonard.
The Liesman brothers were indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of distribution, receipt and possession of child pornography, as well as numerous charges of obscene visual representations of the sexual abuse of children. A search warrant was obtained after they distributed child pornography to undercover officers. They were arrested following execution of the search warrant and both confessed to downloading child pornography. Both men face up to 20 years in prison and a lifetime of supervised release when they are sentenced on April 23, 2013.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.justice.gov/usao/vae. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on https://pcl.uscourts.gov.
The case was investigated by FBI and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa R. McKeel is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.Brooklyn Park Man Sentenced for Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS—Earlier today in federal court, a 52-year-old Brooklyn Park man was sentenced for executing a scheme to defraud Medicaid out of more than $500,000. United States District Court Judge David S. Doty sentenced Allwell Tam Inimgba to 18 months in prison on one count of health care fraud. Inimgba, was charged on September 21, 2012, and pleaded guilty on October 9, 2012.
In his plea agreement, Inimgba admitted that from January of 2006 to March of 2009, he executed a scheme to defraud Medicaid, a federal health benefit program, by billing it for services supposedly provided by Registered Nurses (“RNs”), when that was not the case. At the time, Inimgba was the responsible billing party for Victory Home Care, Inc. (“Victory”), a home health care agency that provided, or purported to provide, RN services to Medicaid recipients.
During the time period noted above, Inimgba billed Medicaid for more than 20,000 hours of services supposedly provided to various clients by RNs, and Medicaid paid Victory more than $1,400,000 as a result of those claims. However, RNs provided far less care than noted in Victory’s claims. In fact, approximately $513,734 awarded to Victory was ultimately found to be for work not done by RNs.This case was the result of an investigation by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Minnesota Department of Health, and the Minnesota Attorney General Office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Genrich.
According to the Justice Department, health care fraud investigations have been growing, and the Department has formed a senior-level task force to tackle the problem nationwide. The Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team, represented by the Department of Justice and Health and Human Services, will look at how to share more effectively real-time intelligence data on health care fraud patterns as well as critical information about health care services, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices. In 2008, the Justice Department filed criminal charges in 502 health care fraud cases involving 797 defendants.
In Minnesota, the U.S. Attorney’s Office is also participating in a task force with the Minnesota Attorney General Office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit that focuses on home health care fraud. That task force includes the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, and other federal, State and local law enforcement partners.
For more information, visit http://www.stopmedicarefraud.gov/Brecksville Man Ordered to Forfeit $1 Million, Sentenced to Nine Months Home DetentionRead the Press Release
A Brecksville man was sentenced today to nine months of home detention with electronic monitoring, ordered to perform 40 hours of community service by United States District Court Judge Dan Aaron Polster, who also entered the final order of forfeiture in the amount of $1 million arising from his conviction on one count of conspiracy to hire undocumented workers, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
Ravindra Telluri, age 42, of Brecksville, Ohio, was also sentenced to five years of supervised release.
Telluri previously pleaded guilty before United States District Court Judge Dan Aaron Polster on October 17, 2012, at which time Telluri paid $1 million to the United States to satisfy the forfeiture based upon the proceeds he received as a result of his criminal activity.
Telluri is a lawful permanent resident of the United States and a citizen of India, according to court records. He also withdrew his application to obtain United States citizenship by naturalization and agreed to no longer work in any employment position involving the recruiting or hiring of undocumented workers.
“We will continue to prosecute those employers who would hire undocumented workers,” Dettelbach said. “While the H-1b temporary worker visa program can be a valuable tool in a company’s hiring practices, abuse of the system will not be tolerated.”
Between January 1, 2008 and October 14, 2010, Telluri was the sole owner and operator of two information technology firms, Hytech Consulting, Inc., and InterOne Corp., both companies located in Seven Hills, Ohio. The firms hired and then placed computer programmer analysts at client firms to serve as computer consultants. The two companies were subsequently sold and Telluri is no longer an owner or operator, according to court documents.
During the time period charged in the criminal information, Telluri engaged in a conspiracy with two unindicted coconspirators in India to recruit and hire citizens of India to come to the United States as temporary specialty occupation workers in the area of information technology as computer programmer analysts, according to the information.
Federal laws permit companies to recruit and hire qualified temporary specialty occupation workers utilizing H-1b visas issued by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). As part of the process, there must exist an actual position for the person to be hired and a Labor Condition Application from the Department of Labor certifying that hiring a temporary alien worker at the location of the employment will not adversely affect the existing workforce in that geographic area of the country.
It was part of the conspiracy that Telluri was aware at the time of hiring undocumented workers that false documentation purportedly from client companies previously had been submitted as part of the process of submitting petitions for issuance of H-1b visas, and that as a result, he hired workers who were not lawfully authorized to be so employed, according to the information.“Our goal is to protect opportunities for the nations’s legal workers and level the playing field for those businesses that play by the rules,” said William Hayes, Acting Special Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigations Detroit, which covers Michigan and Ohio. “Employers who willfully violate our nation’s hiring laws gain an unfair economic advantage over their law-abiding competitors. They will be held accountable for their actions as evident in the significant financial penalties as a result of today’s sentencing.”
“Today’s sentencing should serve as a stern warning to those who intentionally submit false labor certification applications to the U.S. Department of Labor. The defendant in this case devised an international scheme to fraudulently obtain H-1b visas for foreign workers. The Office of Inspector General will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to combat these types of crimes,” said James Vanderberg, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, Officer of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations.
“U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) immigration officers serve on the front lines protecting our Nations’s security and, as this case so aptly demonstrates, are actively involved in the detection of fraud and abuse,” said Mark Hansen, USCIS District Director in Cleveland. “We remain committed to protecting the immigration system from those who would seek to exploit it and, together with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, will strive to maintain the integrity of our national immigration system.”
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Phillip J. Tripi, Gregory C. Sasse, and James L. Morford, following an extensive joint criminal investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, and the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Boston Man Charged with Multiple Bank RobberiesRead the Press Release
BOSTON - A Boston man was charged yesterday with robbing two banks in Boston and Somerville.
Michael Tucker, 45, was indicted on two counts of unarmed bank robbery.
It is alleged that on Oct. 10, 2012, around 3:30 p.m., a man entered Citi Bank on Stuart Street in Boston, handed the teller a note and stated that he had a gun. The teller handed $2,396 to the man, who then fled the bank.
On Oct. 13, 2012, around 11:20 a.m., a man entered the Citizens Bank in Union Square, Somerville. While at the teller’s station the man shouted, “This is a robbery.” The man passed a note to the teller demanding money. After the teller then handed him $1,720 he fled the bank leaving the demand-note behind.
It appears to be the same man, whose image was captured on bank surveillance videos, that robbed both banks.Following the robbery of the Citizens Bank and based on the images captured by both bank’s surveillance video system, the Somerville Police Department released a photograph of Tucker, as the suspect wanted in the robbery. On Oct. 15, 2012, the FBI’s Violent Crimes Task Force received a call from a Detective of the Westwood Police Department, who was conducting an unrelated investigation for a recent breaking and entry of a gas station, and suspected the man involved might be Tucker. The FBI’s Violent Crimes Task Force then compared surveillance photos from each incident with Tucker’s RMV photograph concluding that it was the same individual. On Oct. 16, 2012, the FBI, acting on a tip, located and arrested Tucker in a motel in southern New Hampshire.
The maximum sentence under the statue is 20 years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, a $250,000 fine and restitution.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Richard DesLauriers, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Boston Field Division; John Gibbons, U.S. Marshal of the U.S. Marshal’s Service; and Chief Paul T. Donovan of the Salem New Hampshire Police Department, made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth G. Shine of Ortiz’s Major Crimes Unit.
The details contained in the Indictment are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Belcourt Man Pleads Guilty to Sexual AbuseRead the Press Release
BISMARCK – U.S. Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon announced that on Jan. 23, 2013, Nodin J. Azure, 24, Belcourt, N.D., pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to a charge of sexual abuse.
On May 24, 2011, Azure went into a bedroom where the victim was sleeping and proceeded to have sexual intercourse with the victim. When the victim awoke, she pushed Azure off of her, fled the residence, and drove to the hospital.
The charge of sexual abuse carries a statutory maximum penalty of life in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Indian Affairs – Turtle Mountain Agency.
Sentencing for Azure has been scheduled for May 20, 2013, in U.S. District Court in Minot, N.D., at 10:00 a.m.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandi Sasse Russell is prosecuting the case.
Atlanta Man Sentenced for Smuggling Cocaine from Caribbean Through Hartsfield-Jackson International AirportRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Lincoln E. Son, 38, of Atlanta, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Orinda D. Evans, to serve 16 years, 8 months in federal prison on charges of conspiring to import cocaine into the United States aboard international commercial flights.
As a member of a Caribbean-based drug-trafficking organization, Son recruited Delta employees at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport to pick suitcases filled with cocaine from checked baggage ramps, bypass U.S. Customs inspection, and smuggle the luggage off airport property.
United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said, “Putting a stop to the use of commercial airlines for smuggling is important, not only because narcotics themselves are a threat to the health and safety of our citizens, but also because airline smuggling of any kind poses a threat to the security of aviation in our country. Today’s sentence should serve as a reminder that those who are caught in international smuggling activity of any kind will pay a heavy price.”
“The integrity of our nation’s airport security systems is of paramount importance to Homeland Security Investigations,” said Brock D. Nicholson, Special Agent in Charge of HSI Atlanta. “The special agents HSI has assigned to Hartsfield-Jackson have a keen eye for spotting criminal conspiracies like this one that seek to exploit what they believe are weaknesses in the system. They will not succeed on our watch.”
“Investigations and results like these are the results of extraordinary teamwork,” noted Atlanta’s High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Director, Jack Killorin.
Son was sentenced to 16 years, 8 months in prison to be followed by 5 years of supervised release. Son was convicted of these charges on October 26, 2012, upon his plea of guilty.According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Lincoln Son, a native of the U.S. Virgin Islands, was part of a Caribbean-based drug-trafficking organization. In February 2010, the U.S. Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations - Atlanta, received information indicating that a Caribbean-based drug trafficking organization was smuggling large amounts of cocaine into Atlanta, using suitcases laden with cocaine placed on board Delta Air Lines flights from St. Lucia, St. Maarten, and Trinidad and Tobago. Once the flights arrived at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Delta ramp workers intercepted the cocaine-laden suitcases, circumvented U.S. Customs inspection, and smuggled them off airport property.
HSI identified Son, who had recruited the Delta personnel to intercept the cocaine laden suitcases, smuggle them off airport property, and deliver them to Son. In February 2012, Son was indicted on charges of conspiring to import cocaine, conspiracy to possess cocaine with intent to distribute, and for attempted possession of cocaine with intent to distribute. Son entered his plea of guilty to all three charges on October 26, 2012.
This case was investigated by Special Agents of the U.S. Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, together with Delta Air Lines Security personnel.
Special Assistant United States Attorney Jane Swift Borucki, who is a Gwinnett County Assistant District Attorney assigned to Atlanta’s High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, prosecuted the case.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: www.justthinktwice.com.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Information Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the HomePage for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia is www.justice.gov/usao/gan.
Arnoldo Ayala Guevara Cazarez Sentenced to 235 Months in Prison for Methamphetamine ConspiracyRead the Press Release
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. - On Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013, Arnoldo Ayala Guevara Cazarez, 49, was sentenced by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, U.S. District Judge, to serve 235 months in federal prison for his leadership role in trafficking in methamphetamine. Guevara pleaded guilty on June 5, 2012 to conspiring to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine.
Guevara, his brother, Jose Cruz Guevara and his nephew, Habraham Enrique Guevara, conspired to bring four pounds of high quality Mexican methamphetamine from Oklahoma City to sell in upper East Tennessee. All four pounds were found at the Guevara family home in Limestone, Tenn. One pound was 92.9 percent pure and qualified as meth ice. Arnoldo Guevara was the main source of supply for the four pounds of methamphetamine. He set the price and directed the activities of others with regard to the transportation and ultimate delivery of the methamphetamine. Overall, the investigation resulted in the conviction of six individuals, all natives of Sinaloa, Mexico, who were illegally present in the United States. Arnoldo Guevara is an illegal alien from Mexico who had been deported from the United States on four prior occasions, but was living in Oklahoma during the period of this conspiracy. Habraham Enrique Guevara was previously sentenced to 84 months in prison for his role as a translator, lookout and transporter in the conspiracy. Jose Cruz Guevara is set for sentencing on March 4, 2013.
U.S. Attorney William C. Killian stated, “The quantity of methamphetamine seized in this case was the second largest prosecuted in federal court in the northeast division of the Eastern District of Tennessee. Methamphetamine is a highly addictive drug and the presence of high quality Mexican methamphetamine in Washington County presented a real danger to the safety of that community.”
The indictment and subsequent conviction of Guevara was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Homeland Security Investigations, Washington County Sheriff’s Office and Second Judicial District Drug Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Helen Smith and Wayne Taylor represented the United States in the prosecution.
Ambridge Man Sentenced to 3 Years in Prison for Stolen Credit Card Information SchemeRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of Beaver County has been sentenced in federal court to 36 months incarceration on his conviction of conspiring to use stolen credit card account numbers, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
United States District Judge Arthur J. Schwab imposed the sentence on Calvin Smith, 43, of Ambridge, Pa.
According to the information presented to the court, Smith conspired with others to steal identities and account information belonging to American Express and Discover Card account holders to purchase merchandise at retail stores in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio between December 2010, and June 2011. Losses from the fraud total approximately $249,000.
Assistant United States Attorney Gregory C. Melucci prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
Officers from the United States Postal Inspection Service and United States Secret Service, along with agents from the Western Pennsylvania Financial Crimes Task Force (WPFCTF) conducted this investigation. The WPFCTF was established in February 1995 as a collaborative, multi-agency effort to effectively combat financial crimes, including identity fraud, in Western Pennsylvania. Partnering in this effort are the United States Attorney's Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania, the United States Secret Service, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Department of Homeland Security, the Allegheny County District Attorney's Office, the Allegheny County Police Department, the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police and the Pennsylvania State Police.
32 Chicago Area Defendants Allegedly Obtained Nearly $874,000 in Fraudulent Unemployment Insurance BenefitsRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — Thirty-two Chicago area defendants have been charged separately with fraudulently obtaining thousands of dollars each in unemployment benefits from the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES), federal law enforcement officials announced today. In each case, the defendants allegedly lied about their eligibility for benefits by either falsely claiming to be unemployed or underreporting their income, and fraudulently obtained benefits ranging from $19,399 to $38,798. Altogether, the charges allege that IDES was defrauded out of nearly $874,000.
Twenty-seven of the defendants were charged with felony theft of federal funds, and five were charged with misdemeanor theft counts in 32 separate criminal informations or grand jury indictments filed as recently as yesterday in U.S. District Court in Chicago. According to the charges, each defendant applied for unemployment insurance benefits, falsely certified their continuing eligibility to receive payments, and fraudulently collected benefits to which they were not entitled while gainfully employed in various occupations.
In Illinois, unemployment insurance benefits typically are funded primarily by contributions from employers, with IDES’ administrative costs funded primarily by the federal government. During periods of high unemployment, however, the U.S. Treasury also funds unemployment payments.
The charges were announced by Gary S. Shapiro, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; James Vanderberg, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General; and Thomas P. Brady, Inspector-in-Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service in Chicago. The U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General assisted with the investigation of one defendant, a mail carrier. The federal agencies conducted the criminal investigations following referrals of suspected fraud from IDES.
“The unemployment insurance program is intended to provide financial assistance to workers who are unemployed due to no fault of their own. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate those who allegedly engage in fraudulent schemes against this and other Department of Labor programs,” Mr. Vanderberg said.
“Unemployment insurance benefits provide assistance to families during difficult times. When a person is not entitled to use these benefits, and they mislead and misuse the system, they jeopardize the integrity of a program meant for honest and deserving families. There are consequences for committing unemployment insurance fraud and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service takes this alleged criminal activity very seriously,” Mr. Brady said.
In each case, restitution is mandatory and the felony theft counts carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, while the misdemeanor theft counts carry a maximum penalty of a year in prison and a $100,000 fine. The indictments and informations contain only charges and are not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The defendants and alleged fraud amount in each case follow:
KANYA BOOSE, 37, of Chicago, $32,567; (AUSA Philip Fluhr, Jr.); ANTOINETTE BURRELL, 63, of Chicago, $29,652 (AUSA Naana Frimpong); ANTHONY COLLINS, 56, of Chicago, $25,280; (AUSA Raj Laud); ERIC CRIBBS, 40, of Matteson, $20,423; (AUSA Katherine Sawyer); JEREMIAH DOBINE, 32, of Chicago, $25,600 (AUSA Matthew Hiller); MARIA GUZMAN, 48, of Chicago, $38,271 (AUSA Ryan Fayhee); MANUSYA HEINRICHS, 44, of Buffalo Grove, $27,950, misdemeanor (AUSA Paul Tzur); LASANDRA HERRON, 45, of Chicago, $20,200 (AUSA Boling Haxall); NICOLE HOLCOMB, 30, of Chicago, $27,168 (AUSA Sawyer); NICOLE HOWELL, 40, of Park Forest, $25,985 (AUSA Sawyer); ALLEN JONES, 45, of Kankakee, $21,242. Jones was charged with, and pleaded guilty to, a misdemeanor, and is awaiting sentencing on March 26. (AUSA Nicole Kim); THEARS JUDKINS IV, 29, of Chicago, $32,831 (AUSA Frimpong); JOSEPH J. KUBAT III, 51, of Westmont, $28,222, misdemeanor (AUSA Kate Zell); OLYMPIA LOVE, 31, of Flossmoor, $26,562 (AUSA Hiller); JAMIE MASTERSON, 26, of Carpentersville, $27,049 (AUSA Tzur); CHRISTOPHER McDONALD, 34, of Chicago, $20,740 (AUSA Laud); DARLENE McGEE, 41, of Joliet, $23,560 (AUSA Haxall); JOSEPH MORGANFIELD, 48, of Bolingbrook, $26,054 (AUSA Zell); MANUEL NIEVES, 35, of LaGrange, $25,216 (AUSA Haxall); THEAROS NOU, 40, of Chicago, $27,170 (AUSA Christopher Stetler); TONY ROBINSON, 50, of Chicago, $25,935 (AUSA Hiller); CAREY SILLS, 64, of Chicago, $36,615 (AUSA Fayhee); COURTNEY SMITH, 41, of Lockport, $31,055 (AUSA Fluhr); CURTIS SMITH, 58, of Chicago, $32,494 (AUSA Laud); STEVEN STEINBERG, 61, of Buffalo Grove, $19,680. Steinberg was charged with, and pleaded guilty to, a misdemeanor. He paid full restitution and was sentenced to a year’s probation. (AUSA Stetler); LAUREL STEVENS, 46, of Chicago, $23,392 (AUSA Stetler); SHAWN SUTTON, 46, of Chicago, $24,257 (AUSA Fluhr); MICHAEL THORNTON, 47, of Chicago, $35,697 (AUSA Frimpong); GREGORY THRASHER, 36, of Calumet, $25,240 (AUSA Sawyer); MARK VANDENBARK, 38, of Naperville, $19,399, misdemeanor (AUSA Zell); NELDA WARD, 41, of Chicago, $38,798 (AUSA Bill Thomas); and
LORETTA WASHINGTON, 35, of Alsip, $29,685 (AUSA Fayhee).
22 January 2013
Williamsville Woman Pleads Guilty to Credit Card FraudRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today Christine Whitney, 35, of Williamsville, N.Y., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Court Judge Richard J. Arcara to using an unauthorized access device. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine or both.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross., who handled the case, stated that between January 20, 2012 and March 15, 2012, Whitney fraudulently obtained a Discover credit card in the name of another person who resided outside New York State. The defendant then used the card to make unauthorized ATM withdrawals at local area banks and unauthorized purchases at various retail stores in the Western District of New York. Whitney illegally obtained cash and merchandise totaling approximately $8,000.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Inspector in Charge Kevin Niland.
Sentencing is scheduled for May 13, 2013 at 12:30 p.m. before Judge
Arcara.Washington Man Sentenced to Ten Years for Sex TraffickingRead the Press Release
Joseph McDaniels, 43, of Shoreline, Wash., was sentenced today in U.S. District Court for interstate transportation of a 22 year old woman for purposes of prostitution. Judge James L. Robart sentenced McDaniels to 10 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Requirements during the supervised release include registration under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, sexual deviancy evaluation and treatment, restrictions and monitoring of his use of computers and restrictions on contact with minors.
On Sept. 28, 2012 McDaniels pleaded guilty to interstate transportation for prostitution. The indictment alleged that between August 2011 and April 2012, McDaniels compelled the woman to engage in commercial sex acts through force, fraud and coercion and that McDaniels transported her between Washington state and Oregon for purposes of prostitution.
According to court filings, McDaniels is a registered sex offender and had completed serving a 15-year sentence for a series of robberies in the mid-1990’s when he was released from state prison in early 2011. Only a few months later, McDaniels met and recruited the woman, preying upon her youth and drug addiction to coerce her into engaging in acts of prostitution.
According to court documents, McDaniels advertised the woman on Backpage.com, transported her to prostitution dates, took all of her money and supplied her with drugs. He threatened to harm her and her family, and in December 2011, McDaniels was arrested and later convicted in state court for assaulting the woman. He was arrested again in May 2012 after he had taken her to Portland, Ore., for prostitution, and then attempted to have the woman withdraw a state-issued no contact order against him.
“The exploitation and sexual abuse of a vulnerable young woman is intolerable and the Justice Department will continue to prosecute and seek justice for victims of such abhorrent crimes,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.
“We will continue our battle against human trafficking in western Washington,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Washington Jenny A. Durkan. “We are fortunate to have committed local, state and federal officers working together to find and stop sexual predators like the defendant. Today the court ensured that other young women will not be exploited by him.”
This case was investigated by the Kent Police Department, Auburn Police Department, and the FBI’s Innocence Lost Task Force, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ye-Ting Woo and Trial Attorney Daniel H. Weiss of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.
The FBI’s Innocence Lost Task Force provides a rapid and effective investigative response to reported federal crimes involving the victimization of children. The task force strives to reduce the vulnerability of children to acts of sexual exploitation and abuse and strengthens the capabilities of federal, state and local law enforcement through training programs and investigative assistance.
Washington Man Sentenced to Ten Years for Sex TraffickingRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Joseph McDaniels, 43, of Shoreline, Wash., was sentenced today in U.S. District Court for interstate transportation of a 22 year old woman for purposes of prostitution. Judge James L. Robart sentenced McDaniels to 10 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Requirements during the supervised release include registration under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, sexual deviancy evaluation and treatment, restrictions and monitoring of his use of computers and restrictions on contact with minors.
On Sept. 28, 2012 McDaniels pleaded guilty to interstate transportation for prostitution. The indictment alleged that between August 2011 and April 2012, McDaniels compelled the woman to engage in commercial sex acts through force, fraud and coercion and that McDaniels transported her between Washington state and Oregon for purposes of prostitution.According to court filings, McDaniels is a registered sex offender and had completed serving a 15-year sentence for a series of robberies in the mid-1990’s when he was released from state prison in early 2011. Only a few months later, McDaniels met and recruited the woman, preying upon her youth and drug addiction to coerce her into engaging in acts of prostitution.
According to court documents, McDaniels advertised the woman on Backpage.com, transported her to prostitution dates, took all of her money and supplied her with drugs. He threatened to harm her and her family, and in December 2011, McDaniels was arrested and later convicted in state court for assaulting the woman. He was arrested again in May 2012 after he had taken her to Portland, Ore., for prostitution, and then attempted to have the woman withdraw a state-issued no contact order against him.
“The exploitation and sexual abuse of a vulnerable young woman is intolerable and the Justice Department will continue to prosecute and seek justice for victims of such abhorrent crimes,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.“We will continue our battle against human trafficking in western Washington,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Washington Jenny A. Durkan. “We are fortunate to have committed local, state and federal officers working together to find and stop sexual predators like the defendant. Today the court ensured that other young women will not be exploited by him.”
The FBI’s Innocence Lost Task Force provides a rapid and effective investigative response to reported federal crimes involving the victimization of children. The task force strives to reduce the vulnerability of children to acts of sexual exploitation and abuse and strengthens the capabilities of federal, state and local law enforcement through training programs and investigative assistance.
This case was investigated by the Kent Police Department, Auburn Police Department, and the FBI’s Innocence Lost Task Force, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ye-Ting Woo and Trial Attorney Daniel H. Weiss of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.Vermilion Woman Sentenced to Five Months in Prison for Tax ViolationsRead the Press Release
Terry E. Branco was sentenced today to five months imprisonment for corruptly endeavoring to obstruct and impede the due administration of the federal tax laws, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The sentence was imposed in Cleveland by United States District Judge James S. Gwin, who also ordered Branco to pay restitution of unpaid taxes totaling $47,475 for the years 2004 through 2007.
According to court records, Branco is 65 years old and resides in Vermilion, Ohio.
Branco previously pleaded guilty to an Information pursuant to a written plea agreement which described her course of conduct over several years, including the following. For tax years 2004 through 2007, Branco filed frivolous and false U.S. individual tax returns in which she stated that her total adjusted gross income for each year was zero dollars ($0). Her actual total adjusted gross income was $109,403, $87,440, $93,277 and $113,845 for the 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007 tax years, respectively.
Branco also signed a form in 2006 on which she falsely claimed she was not a resident of the United States. In 2008, following an IRS audit and assessment of taxes owed, Branco sent a purported “commercial affidavit” to the IRS claiming that the IRS was not an agency of the United States, was “perpetuating a fraud,” and was “not licensed to do business.” She also stated that failure to rebut the affidavit would result in the “filing of a commercial lien, involuntary bankruptcy and/or tort claim.” Branco then filed a Notice of Default and Affidavit of Notice with a county recorder in Utah, reflecting an intent to encumber real estate owned by an IRS employee whose name was on notices sent to her by the IRS, according to the plea agreement.
The case was handled by Tax Division Trial Attorney Andrew P. Young and Assistant U.S. Attorney John M. Siegel, following investigation by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Akron, Ohio, and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, Cleveland, Ohio.
United States Attorney's Office in Conjunction with Royal Oak Public Schools Welcome the Detroit Tigers Winter Caravan to Hold A Forum on Anti-Bullying “Strike Out Bullying - Strategies for Protecting Your Child“Read the Press Release
The United States Attorney's Office, along with Royal Oak Public Schools join the Detroit Tigers Winter Caravan in an effort to increase awareness about bullying prevention. The Detroit Tigers’ “Strike Out Bullying” initiative in partnership with the Detroit Newspapers In Education, the Department of Justice’s Anti-Bullying Prevention initiative as well as the Royal Oak Schools’ prevention efforts aim to bring attention to the widespread and often underreported problem of bullying in schools.
Bullying creates a climate of fear in schools, playgrounds and neighborhoods. Victims of bullying suffer from a wide range of psychological and school-related problems including depression, anxiety, low self-esteem and even suicide. One of the key components critical to the success of any anti-bullying effort is community outreach. In an effort to bring law enforcement and the community together to discuss this very important issue, a town hall meeting entitled "Strike Out Bullying - Strategies for Protecting Your Child" will be held at Royal Oak Middle School, 709 N. Washington Avenue, Royal Oak, Michigan 48067 on Thursday, January 24, 2013, from 5:00 p.m. until 6:15 p.m. Royal Oak Schools Superintendent Shawn Lewis-Lakin has graciously offered to host the town hall and United States Attorney Barbara McQuade along with Fox Sports Detroit broadcaster Mario Impemba will moderate the event.
Highlighted speakers will include Barbara L. McQuade, United States Attorney, FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert D. Foley, III and 2012 American League Champions Alex Avila and Phil Coke. Avila and Coke a will speak about bullying and how children can root out this serious problem.
United States Attorney McQuade stated, "Preventing bullying, both online and in person, is part of our violent crime reduction strategy. We do not accept that subjecting children to harassment and intimidation is a necessary part of growing up. Instead, we want to give children strategies for dealing with bullying so that they can be successful students."FBI Special Agent in Charge Foley stated, "Raising awareness about the dangers of bullying and intimidation in schools is a crucial part of the FBI's anti-bullying philosophy. Our goal is to educate students about the importance of stopping bullying and supporting a safe and friendly environment for learning. The FBI is committed to working together to ensure students make healthy choices and continue to respect one another's differences."
Royal Oak Schools Superintendent Lewis-Lakin stated, "Royal Oak Schools strives to be a community of excellence, a place where all students experience success. We welcome opportunities to work collaboratively in private and public partnerships on initiatives that address critical student needs. We welcome this opportunity to work together with the Detroit Tigers and the U.S. Attorney's Office on making our schools positive, safe, bully-free zones for student success."
This is a free, ticketed event however, tickets are no longer available. The event is open to the media. If you have any questions, please contact Gina Balaya, Public Information Officer, United States Attorney’s Office at [email protected] or call (313) 226-9758.
Two Sentenced for Transportation and Attempted Sale of Stolen Matisse PaintingRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Michael B. Steinbach, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, announced today’s sentencing of Pedro Antonio Marcuello Guzman, 46, of Miami, Florida, and Maria Martha Elisa Ornelas Lazo, 50, of Mexico City, Mexico, on charges relating to the July 17, 2012 interstate transportation and attempted sale of the stolen Henri Matisse painting, “Odalisque in Red Pants,” in Miami Beach, Florida.
At today’s hearing, U.S. District Judge Donald M. Middlebrooks sentenced Pedro Marcuello to 33 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Maria Ornelas was sentenced to 21 months in prison, to be followed by three years supervised release. The defendants pled guilty on October 30, 2012 to charges relating to the transportation, possession and attempted sale of the stolen Henri Matisse painting.
According to court documents, between December 2011 and July 13, 2012, Marcuello, in a series of meetings with undercover agents of the FBI, negotiated the sale of an original Henri Matisse painting entitled “Odalisque in Red Pants,” which had been stolen from the Caracas Museum of Contemporary Art in Caracas, Venezuela, around December 2002. During these meetings, Marcuello agreed to sell the stolen painting to the undercover agents for approximately $740,000.00, and also agreed to have the painting transported by courier to the United States from Mexico, where the painting was stored. The courier was identified by Marcuello as co-defendant Ornelas. Thereafter, on July 16, 2012, Ornelas transported the stolen Matisse painting to Miami from Mexico City. According to court documents, the following day both Marcuello and Ornelas produced the Matisse painting titled “Odalisque in Red Pants” to undercover agents as part of the purported sales transaction. At the time of the purported sales transaction, both Marcuello and Ornelas knew the Matisse painting had been stolen.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI. Mr. Ferrer would also like to thank the FBI Legal Attaché in Caracas and Paris, the Department of Justice Office of International Affairs, and the Department of Justice Attaché in Paris. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elisa Castrolugo.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Three Men Charged with Hate Crime for Attack on African American Woman and White Man in CaliforniaRead the Press Release
Billy James Hammett, 28, and Perry Sylvester Jackson, 27, were arrested today in Yuba County, Calif., on federal hate crime charges for their racially motivated attack on an African American woman and white man in Marysville, Calif., on April 18, 2011. A third defendant, Anthony Merrell Tyler, 32, has turned himself in to authorities in Sacramento, Calif.
The defendants were charged in a three-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of California and unsealed today. They are charged with one count of conspiracy and two counts of violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. The Shepard-Byrd Act 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.
The indictment alleges that when an African American woman accompanied by a white male drove into the parking lot of a convenience store, Jackson shouted a racial epithet at the male. Hammett then approached the driver’s side of the car, using a racial epithet to refer to the African American driver, while Jackson and Tyler attacked from the other side of the car. The indictment further alleges that Hammett and Jackson punched and kicked the African American woman driver and white male passenger and that Tyler smashed the car windshield with a crowbar and used racial epithets again.
If convicted, the defendants could face a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 on the conspiracy charge, and 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 on each of the two hate-crime charges.
This case is being investigated by the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney R. Steven Lapham for the Eastern District of California and Trial Attorney Chiraag Bains from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Social Worker Indicted for Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y.--U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that a federal grand jury in Buffalo has returned a five-count indictment charging Nina Jafari, a licensed clinical social worker, 62, of Amherst, N.Y., with health care fraud. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years years in prison, a fine of $250,000 or both.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo, who is handling the case, stated that according to the indictment, the defendant defrauded Blue Cross Blue Shield of Western New York. The scheme involved Jafari submitting reimbursement claim forms to Blue Cross Blue Shield for services that were not rendered. The amount totaled approximately $125,000.
The indictment is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Christopher M. Piehota.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Sioux Falls Man Sentenced for Great Western Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
US Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Sioux Falls man charged with bank robbery was sentenced on January 18, 2013, by US District Judge Karen E. Schreier. Alvione Anthony Jones, age 22, was sentenced to 70 months in custody and ordered to pay over $1,600 in restitution.
Jones was indicted for bank robbery by a federal grand jury on July 10, 2012. In June of 2012, the bank manager for the Great Western Bank, located at North Sycamore Avenue in Sioux Falls, arrived at the bank and prepared to open the bank for business. In the parking lot of the bank, Alvione Anthony Jones approached him. After some conversation, Jones displayed what appeared to be a black handgun. He then forced the manager into the bank and directed him to open the bank safe. The safe was opened, and Jones received over $60,000 in various US denominations. Jones then fled the scene. Law enforcement later located Jones in his apartment where they found various items that were used in the robbery. Jones was interviewed and admitted his participation in the robbery of the Great Western Bank. He pled guilty to bank robbery on October 29, 2012.
This case was investigated by the Sioux Falls Police Department and the FBI. Assistant US Attorney Dennis R. Holmes prosecuted the case.
Jones was immediately turned over to the custody of the US Marshal.
Second Fort Deposit, Ala., Officer Sentenced to 37 Months in Prison for Federal Civil Rights Violations in Connection with Thefts on HighwayRead the Press Release
Former Fort Deposit, Ala., police officer Carlos Tyson Bennett, 37, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller to 37 months in prison, two years of supervised release and ordered to pay $500 in restitution. Bennett was sentenced for stealing money from motorists during traffic stops, with another former Fort Deposit police officer, Jessie Alan Fuller, on Interstate 65 in 2009.
Bennett pleaded guilty on Aug. 29, 2012, to one count of conspiracy against rights and four counts of deprivation of rights under color of law. During his plea, Bennett admitted that he and Fuller conspired to pull over vehicles under the guise of legitimate law enforcement activity and to steal cash from drivers and passengers in violation of their Fourth Amendment rights. Bennett acknowledged that he and Fuller worked together, acting with each other’s knowledge and cooperation and typically sharing the stolen money. In May and June 2009, Bennett committed four specific thefts, taking between $100 and $200 per victim. Bennett further acknowledged that he and Fuller tried to cover up their conspiracy when authorities began to investigate.
Fuller previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy and one count of deprivation of rights under color of law. He was sentenced to 37 months in prison on Aug. 28, 2012.
“This defendant betrayed the public trust when he took advantage of his position of authority to steal from those he pledged to serve,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Division. “The Department of Justice is committed to prosecuting those who abuse their authority and violate the Constitution.”
“Police officers are here to protect public, not exploit the public,” stated U.S. Attorney George L. Beck Jr. “When law enforcement officers take advantage of people they are supposed to be serving, they must be punished. This case shows that my office will continue to do everything under law to protect public from criminals, even when the criminal is a law enforcement officer.”
This case was investigated by the Alabama Bureau of Investigation; the Butler County, Ala., Sheriff’s Office; and the Lowndes County, Ala., Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gray Borden for the Middle District of Alabama and Trial Attorney Chiraag Bains from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
Second Fort Deposit, Ala., Officer Sentenced to 37 Months for Federal Civil Rights Violations in Connection with Thefts on HighwayRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama - Former Fort Deposit, Ala., police officer Carlos Tyson Bennett, 37, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller to 37 months in prison, two years of supervised release and ordered to pay $500 in restitution. Bennett was sentenced for stealing money from motorists during traffic stops, with another former Fort Deposit police officer, Jessie Alan Fuller, on Interstate 65 in 2009.
Bennett pleaded guilty on Aug. 29, 2012, to one count of conspiracy against rights and four counts of deprivation of rights under color of law. During his plea, Bennett admitted that he and Fuller pulled over vehicles under the guise of legitimate law enforcement activity and stole cash from drivers and passengers in violation of their Fourth Amendment rights. Bennett acknowledged that he and Fuller worked together, cooperating with each other, and typically sharing the stolen money. In May and June 2009, Bennett committed four specific thefts, taking between $100 and $200 per victim. Bennett further acknowledged that he and Fuller tried to cover up their crimes when authorities began to investigate.
Fuller previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy and one count of deprivation of rights under color of law. He was sentenced to 37 months in prison on Aug. 28, 2012.
“This defendant betrayed the public trust when he took advantage of his position of authority to steal from those he pledged to serve,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Division. “The Department of Justice is committed to prosecuting those who abuse their authority and violate the Constitution.”
“Police officers are here to protect public, not exploit the public,” stated U.S. Attorney George L. Beck, Jr.. “When law enforcement officers take advantage of people they are supposed to be serving, they must be punished. This case shows that my office will continue to do everything under law to protect public from criminals, even when the criminal is a law enforcement officer.”
This case was investigated by the Alabama Bureau of Investigation; the Butler County, Ala., Sheriff’s Office; and the Lowndes County, Ala., Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gray Borden for the Middle District of Alabama and Trial Attorney Chiraag Bains from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
PRESS CONTACT: Clark Morris
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: (334) 551-1755
Fax: (334) 223-7617Sean Dennis Pleads Guilty to Fraudulently Issuing Postal Money OrdersRead the Press Release
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Sean Thomas Dennis, 29, formerly of La Follette, Tenn., pleaded guilty on Jan. 18, 2013, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Knoxville, to an indictment charging him with fraudulently issuing U.S. Postal Money Orders. Sentencing has been set for 10:30 a.m., Apr. 8, 2013, before the Honorable Thomas W. Phillips, U.S. District Judge.
In conjunction with his guilty plea, Dennis, a former U.S. Postal Service employee, admitted to issuing money orders without having first receiving or paying the full amount required for their issuance. Between October 2010 through January 2011, Dennis embezzled $32,096.21 from the U.S. Postal Service by fraudulently issuing 43 money orders. He told federal investigators that committed these acts to obtain money to finance his drug addiction.
This conviction was the result of an investigation by the United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank M. Dale, Jr. represented the United States.
San Francisco International Airport Passenger Pleads Guilty to Smuggling CocaineRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO – Emmanuel Amankwa, a passenger who was transiting San Francisco International Airport (SFO) on his way out of the country, pleaded guilty last week to possessing with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, United States Attorney Melinda Haag announced.
Amankwa was arrested on Oct. 23, 2012, at SFO while attempting to board a flight to Japan. A subsequent investigation by officers from the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol and agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) revealed that Amankwa was carrying 995 grams of cocaine in 100 latex-wrapped pellets inside his body. Amankwa was attempting to smuggle the cocaine into Japan.
Amankwa was charged by complaint on Oct. 23, 2012. A federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment on Nov. 8, 2012. He pleaded guilty on Jan. 17, 2012.
Under the terms of a plea agreement between the government and Amankwa, Amankwa faces a sentence of 60 to 80 months in federal prison, followed by four years of supervised release. He also must pay $16,178 in restitution for the medical costs associated with collecting the cocaine pellets he had ingested. Notwithstanding this agreement, the court will determine and impose a sentence on Amankwa after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White is scheduled to impose sentence on April 11, 2013.
(Amankwa Indictment )
Removed Alien Charged with Unlawfully Re-entering U.S.Read the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A citizen of Mexico has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on a charge of violating federal immigration laws, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
The one-count indictment named Pedro Armando Castro, 57, of Mexico, as the sole defendant.
According to the indictment, on or about Sept. 23, 2012, Castro was found at the Westmoreland County Prison in Greensburg, Pa., after having unlawfully re-entered the United States following removal on or about Oct. 24, 2002.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney James T. Kitchen is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Provider of Home Health Care Services Sentenced for Medicaid FraudRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – Janice W. Holland, 42, of Suffolk, Va., was sentenced today to 51 months in prison for health care fraud and alteration of records, and a mandatory consecutive sentence of 24 months in prison for aggravated identity theft, for a total sentence of 75 months. She was also ordered to pay restitution to the Virginia Medicaid program in the amount of $630,339.30.
Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli made the announcement after sentencing by Senior United States District Judge Robert G. Doumar.
Holland pled guilty on September 18, 2012. According to court documents, Holland owned and operated A Caring Hand Home Health Care Services Inc., a business located in Suffolk that was authorized to provide respite care to Medicaid recipients. Respite care is designed to provide temporary, substitute care for a Medicaid recipient that is normally provided by the family or another unpaid primary caregiver of the recipient. These services are provided on a short-term basis because of the emergency absence or need for routine or periodic relief of the primary caregiver. Between January 2008 and October 2011, Holland filed approximately 939 false and fraudulent claims with the Virginia Medicaid program, representing that respite care had been provided by her company to 30 Medicaid recipients, when in fact no such care had been provided. She filed these claims using, without authority, the recipients’ names, dates of birth and Medicaid identification numbers. As a result, Holland obtained health care benefit payments in the approximate amount of $630,339.30, to which she was not entitled. She also altered and falsified her office records to conceal and cover up her false billings.
This case was investigated by the FBI and the Office of the Virginia Attorney General, Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Assistant United States Attorney Alan M. Salsbury and Special Assistant United States Attorney David W. Tooker prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.justice.gov/usao/vae. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on https://pcl.uscourts.gov.Previously Convicted Child Pornographer Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland - U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett sentenced Otha Royal Palmer, age 58, of Hagerstown, Maryland, today to 10 years in prison, followed by lifetime supervised release for possession of child pornography. Judge Bennett ordered that upon his release from prison, Palmer must register as a sex offender in the place where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein and Special Agent in Charge Stephen E. Vogt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
According to the plea agreement, Palmer has two previous child pornography convictions, including a 2001 federal conviction for interstate transportation of child pornography, and was registered as a sex offender.
In the fall of 2011, law enforcement learned that Palmer was accessing and posting comments about child pornography, including his preference for four to seven year old girls, on an internet website. On December 20, 2011, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Palmer’s residence and seized his desktop computer. A subsequent forensic examination of the computer revealed over 600 images of children, including children under the age of 12, engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
The case was investigated by the FBI-led Maryland Child Exploitation Task Force (MCETF), with members from10 state and federal law enforcement agencies. The Task Force coordinates with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the Maryland State Police Child Recovery Unit to identify missing and abused children.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the "resources" tab on the left of the page.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the FBI and the Maryland Child Exploitation Task Force for its work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Antonio J. Reynolds and Michael C. Hanlon, who prosecuted the case.
Pharr Man Handed Sentenced for Involvement in Straw Purchase of FirearmsRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – Alejandro Mendoza, 19, of Pharr, has been handed a federal prison sentence for making false statements in the acquisition of firearms from Federal Firearms Licensees (FFL), commonly known as straw purchasing, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today along with Melvin King, special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Mendoza pleaded guilty Aug. 31, 2012.
Today, U.S. District Judge Randy Crane handed him a 30-month-term of imprisonment to be followed by two years of supervised release.
In July 2012, ATF agents discovered information regarding several firearms purchases made by Mendoza. Subsequent investigation determined he had, in fact, purchased four AK-47 rifles. He admitted he provided false information on ATF forms that the firearms were purchased for himself, when he knew they were actually for another individual.
Previously released on bond, Mendoza was permitted to remain on bond and was ordered to voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility Feb. 11, 2013.
The investigation was conducted by the ATF. Assistant United States Attorney Juan Villescas prosecuted the case.
Parmelee Man Arraigned on Sexual Assault ChargeRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Parmelee man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Aggravated Sexual Abuse of a Child.
Randy Never Misses A Shot, age 48, was indicted by a federal grand jury on January 16, 2013. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Moreno on January 18, 2013, and pled not guilty to the indictment. The maximum penalty upon conviction is any term of years up to life imprisonment, a $250,000 fine or both. The charge is merely an accusation, and Never Misses A Shot is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy Morley is prosecuting the case. Never Misses A Shot was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshal. A trial date has not yet been set.
Notorious Lawrence Gang Member Pleads Guilty to Illegal Firearm PossessionRead the Press Release
BOSTON - A Lawrence gang member pleaded guilty today to illegally possessing a firearm and 84 rounds of ammunition.
Orlando Valle, 26, pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition before U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton. The maximum sentence under the statute is 10 years in prison, to be followed by up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentencing is scheduled for April 30, 2013.
On Nov. 21, 2011, troopers with the Massachusetts State Police, detectives with the Lawrence Police Department, and an agent from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives went to 282 Farnham Street in Lawrence to arrest Valle on an outstanding warrant. In the process of arresting Valle, one of the officers saw a black handgun on a heater in the defendant’s bedroom. Lawrence detectives obtained a search warrant and seized a .22 caliber firearm; 84 rounds of .22 caliber ammunition; mail, bills, and other documents showing Valle lived in the apartment; a written constitution for the Immortal Outlaws street gang; and several cellular telephones. Lawrence detectives later recovered several photographs of Valle holding firearms, including a photograph of Valle holding what appeared to be the gun found in his bedroom. The Lawrence Police Department had previously identified Valle as a member of the Immortal Outlaws, a violent street gang operating in Lawrence and elsewhere.“This conviction should send a clear message that law enforcement officials are working together, and are focused on violent offenders and firearm crime,” said U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz. “I commend the investigators and prosecutors whose persistence and hard work resulted in the removal of a known gang member from the streets of Lawrence.”
Chief John Romero of the Lawrence Police Department said, “This conviction of a well-known Lawrence gang member will send a strong message: we will not tolerate illegal gun possession and gun violence in Lawrence. We will continue to work to end gun violence in Lawrence by targeting those who possess, sell, and or use illegal guns.”
The case against Valle commenced with state charges brought by Essex County District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett following Valle’s arrest in Lawrence and was then referred for federal prosecution.
This case was one of several federal prosecutions brought in the past year targeting violent crime in Lawrence committed by gang members, armed kidnapping and home invasion crews, large-scale drug traffickers, and others. These cases have been investigated by a working group of federal and state law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, ATF, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Massachusetts State Police, the Lawrence Police Department, and others.
U.S. Attorney Ortiz; Guy Thomas, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Boston Field Division; Richard DesLauriers, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Colonel Timothy P. Alben, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; and Chief Romero of the Lawrence Police Department, made the announcement today. This case is being prosecuted by Christopher Pohl of Ortiz’s Organized Crime Strike Force Unit.Northwood Man Found Guilty of Copyright Violation Related to Video GamesRead the Press Release
A jury returned a guilty verdict against Jeffrey J. Reichert, age 27, of Northwood, Ohio, in connection with a oneicount indictment that charged him with violating the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The indictment charged that the defendant knowingly manufactured, imported, offered to the public, or otherwise trafficked in technology, products, services, devices, components or parts thereof, which were primarily designed to circumvent technological measures designed to effectively control access to a work copyrighted under Title 17 of the United States Code, for purposes of commercial advantage or private financial gain. Specifically, the defendant was charged with trafficking in modification chips (also known as “Mod Chips”) which are primarily designed to circumvent the technological measures designed into video game consoles (such as the Nintendo Wii) to prevent access to copyrighted works.
The defendant will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald C. Nugent on March 26, 2013, after the completion of a presentence investigation by the U.S. Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert W. Kern and Chelsea Rice of the Cleveland U.S. Attorney’s Office, following an investigation by the Cleveland Office of the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Nebraska Man Sentenced for AssaultRead the Press Release
US Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Valentine, Nebraska, man convicted of Assaulting a Federal Officer was sentenced on January 17, 2013, by US District Judge Roberto A. Lange. Blake Bordeaux, age 22, was sentenced to 148 days in custody with credit for time served and $25 to the Victim Assistance Fund.
The conviction stems from an incident that took place on August 27, 2011, when Bordeaux assaulted a federal officer.
The investigation was conducted by Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Assistant United States Attorney Marie H. Ruettgers prosecuted the case.
Bordeaux was immediately turned over to the custody of the US Marshal.
Murder Charges Added for 2011 New Year Day Robbery and Killing on Red Lake Indian ReservationRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS—A federal superseding indictment unsealed earlier today charges a previously indicted man with murder in connection to the deaths of a couple on the Red Lake Indian Reservation on New Year’s Day 2011. Twenty-one-year-old Kevin John Needham, previously charged with one count of robbery, has now also been charged with two counts of murder in the first degree and two counts of murder in the second degree. The superseding indictment, originally filed under seal on January 15, 2013, was unsealed today, after Needham’s initial court appearance on the murder charges.
The charges against Needham’s four co-defendants remain unchanged. All four were indicted on two counts of murder in the first degree, two counts of murder in the second degree, and one count of robbery. The four co-defendants include Geshik-O-Binese Martin, age 30; Edward McCabe Robinson, age 28; David John Martin, age 46, of Columbia Heights; and George Allen Martin, age 24, of Red Lake. All four are in federal custody.
The original indictment alleges that on January 1, 2011, Needham, Robinson, and the Martins killed Craig David Roy and Darla Ann Beaulieu while stealing money and illegal drugs from Roy’s reservation residence. The bodies of Beaulieu and Roy were found in the remains of the house, which was destroyed by fire on that day. Autopsies determined that both victims were killed as a result of multiple stab wounds and not the fire itself.If convicted of murder, Needham, Robinson, and the Martins face potential maximum penalties of life in federal prison. They also face a potential maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison on the robbery charge. Because the federal criminal justice system does not have parole, convicted offenders spend virtually their entire prison sentences behind bars. Of course, actual sentences are determined by federal district court judges.
This case is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Red Lake Tribal Police Department, with assistance from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and the State Fire Marshal. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Deidre Y. Aanstad and Nathan P. Petterson.
Because the Red Lake Indian Reservation is a federal-jurisdiction reservation, some of the crimes that occur there are investigated by the FBI in conjunction with the Red Lake Tribal Police Department. Those cases are prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.An indictment is a determination by a grand jury that there is probable cause to believe that offenses have been committed by a defendant. A defendant, of course, is presumed innocent until he or she pleads guilty or is proven guilty at trial.
Minneapolis Felon Sentenced for Possessing A .32-caliber PistolRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS—Earlier today in federal court, a 34-year-old Minneapolis felon was sentenced for possessing a .32-caliber pistol. United States District Court Judge Joan N. Ericksen sentenced Bryant Duane Griffin to 240 months in prison on one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Griffin was indicted on May 15, 2012, and was convicted on September 14, 2012.
The evidence presented at trial proved that on March 25, 2012, Griffin possessed the gun while on a Metro Transit bus. On that date, police received a call at approximately 1:00 a.m. The caller reported that a man with a gun was riding a city bus. Officers located the bus and the man. He was later identified as Griffin. They found the gun under a seat in front of him.
Because he is a felon, Griffin is prohibited under federal law from possessing a firearm at any time. His prior Hennepin County convictions include fifth-degree possession of a controlled substance (1999) and attempted terroristic threats (2001). In addition, he was convicted of second-degree sale of a controlled substance in Stearns County (2008) and third-degree sale of a controlled substance in Benton County (2008). Since three of those prior offenses were crimes of violence or major drug crimes, Griffin was subject to the federal Armed Career Criminal Act. That act mandates a minimum of 15 years in federal prison. Since the federal criminal justice system does not have parole, Griffin will serve virtually his entire sentence behind bars.
This case was the result of an investigation by the Brooklyn Park Police Department, the Metro Transit Police Department, and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John E. Kokkinen, Kimberly A. Svendsen, and Surya Saxena.Man Indicted for Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, today announced that a grand jury returned a one-count indictment charging Audiel Sanchez-Colin, 37, with illegally reentering the United States following his deportation.
The indictment alleges that Sanchez-Colin was previously removed or deported from the United States to Mexico on February 22, 2008, and October 7, 2009.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Phillip J. Tripi, following investigation by agents of the U.S. Border Patrol.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government's burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Las Vegas Man sentenced to prison for interstate travel to promote prostituutionRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska B U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced today that a man from Las Vegas was sentenced in federal court in Anchorage for one count of Interstate Travel to Promote Prostitution. Brandon Michael Gadson traveled to Anchorage in July of 2010, with three women, the youngest of whom was 19 years old, and another man for the purpose of trafficking the women on the internet. After arriving, Gadson paid for the hotel rooms for two of the women, and his credit card was used to post explicit advertisements on the internet that the women were available for commercial sex acts. The Vice Squad of the Anchorage Police Department conducted a “sting” operation and Detectives with that unit arrested the three women in less than an hour from the start of the operation. When arrested, Gadson had approximately $10,000 in his pocket, but the three women had only insignificant amounts of cash in their possession.
Gadson, 32, of Las Vegas, Nevada, was sentenced January 18, 2013, by United States District Court Judge Sharon M. Gleason, to 18 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. During his period of supervised release, Gadson is restricted from use of the internet without his probation officer’s permission. The sentence imposed was in accordance with the United States Sentencing Guidelines for this crime.
According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel R. Cooper, Jr., Gadson appeared in at least three videos published on YouTube, all of which lyricized the degradation of women through sex trafficking, and promoted the exploitation of women through physical force. In his sentencing remarks, Cooper noted the Alaska State Legislature’s recent recognition that prostitution is in reality sex trafficking.
In imposing sentence, Judge Gleason termed Gadson’s conduct demeaning to women, and called his crime reprehensible. Judge Gleason found that Gadson was a long time trafficker, essentially living off of women, and so proud of his conduct that he had the word “Pimp” tattooed on the side of his neck. Judge Gleason noted that the tattoos and videos in which Gadson appears are despicable ways to project his sense of self to his family and children. Judge Gleason also said that Gadson’s conduct towards the women he had trafficked, and the videos in which he appeared, were despicable, as was his living off them. Moreover, Judge Gleason found that the assaultive behavior described in the police reports with respect to Jane Doe 1 was egregious.
U.S. Attorney Loeffler stated: “The United States Attorney’s Office, in conjunction with the Anchorage Vice Squad and the Federal Bureau of Investigations’ Innocence Lost Task Force, has prioritized the investigation and prosecution of sex trafficking, with particular emphasis on trafficking and exploitation of children and Native Alaskans. We will work with our State, Local and Federal partners to continuously and systematically attack this most exploitive of crimes.”
Ms. Loeffler commends the Vice Squad of the Anchorage Police Department for the investigation of this case, with the support of the Federal Bureau of Investigations’ Innocence Lost Task Force.
Justice Department Sues to Stop South Carolina Tax Return Preparers Engaged in Earned Income Credit SchemeRead the Press Release
The United States has asked a federal court in Florence, S.C., to permanently bar Susann Allen of Darlington County, S.C., and Rachel D. Watson of Florence County, S.C., from preparing federal income tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today. According to the government complaint, Allen and Watson have prepared federal income tax returns at a number of businesses in South Carolina including, most recently, Fludd’s Express Tax Service and Gold Valley Pawn. The complaint alleges that they have prepared returns that unlawfully understate income tax liabilities and overstate refunds through a variety of schemes.
The government complaint alleges that Allen and Watson prepared returns that unlawfully claim the Earned Income Tax Credit by reporting fictitious Schedule C businesses or business income or fictitious dependents. The complaint also alleges that Allen and Watson fabricated or inflated deductions. According to the complaint, the Internal Revenue Service has examined 32 returns prepared by Watson and six prepared by Allen and found that every single one overstated their client’s refund. The total excessive refund of those returns is alleged to be greater than $100,000. Altogether, the government complaint alleges that Allen’s and Watson’s activities may have resulted in millions of dollars of loss to the United States.
Over the past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained hundreds of injunctions to stop tax fraud promoters and dishonest tax return preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department website.
Related Materials:
United States v. Susann Allen, et al.
Complaint (PDF)Indiana Resident Sentenced to Serve 34 Years in Federal Prison for Child Exploitation CrimesRead the Press Release
DENVER – Steven Raines, age 35, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, was sentenced today by U.S. District Court Judge R. Brooke Jackson to serve 412 months (over 34 years) in federal prison for attempted coercion and enticement (to engage in unlawful sexual activity with a minor child) and distribution of child pornography, United States Attorney John Walsh and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Kumar Kibble announced. Following his prison sentence, Raines was ordered to serve a life time on Supervised Release. He appeared at the hearing in custody, and was remanded immediately after.
Raines was first charged by Criminal Complaint on July 2, 2012. He was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver on July 9, 2012. He pled guilty on October 24, 2012. He was sentenced on January 22, 2013.
According to the stipulated facts contained in the plea agreement, on April 1, 2012, an HSI Special Agent based in Glenwood Springs, Colorado was chatting online in an undercover capacity. Specifically, the agent’s undercover persona was that of a single mother of two daughters under the age of 16. The agent entered a chat room, accessible by anyone, whose topic focused on sex with children. While in the chat room the undercover agent engaged in a chat with an individual who expressed interest in having sex with the undercover and the two minor children. The individual went on to say that he had been searching for 20 years for someone like the undercover who would provide sexual access to her children, and that he discovered that he was a “pedo” when he was 15. He also said that he had been previously accused of molesting a child to whom he had access, and that he previously attempted to meet someone like the undercover agent in person, but the person failed to show up.
The individual continued chatting and emailing the undercover using his smart phone for the next three months. He told the undercover that he did not have a computer. Eventually investigators identified the individual as 35-year old Steven Raines, who lived in Fort Wayne, Indiana. As the chats between Raines and the undercover progressed, Raines began to send pictures, some of which depicted child pornography. Eventually Raines and the undercover agent began to make plans for him to travel to Colorado in order to have sex with, or rape, the two young girls. The defendant’s main interest, however, was one of the children who was under the age of 6. He discussed wanting to father a child with the undercover agent. Raines also discussed other children he knew from church or his neighborhood, in whom he had a sexual interest and with whom he attempted to have some sort of contact.
As the travel plans were finalized, Raines stated that he was going to bring his child pornography collection with him to Colorado in order to “teach” the girls and stated an interest in producing child pornography with the undercover agent and the two minor girls. The content of the child pornography he was bringing featured mostly prepubescent females engaged in sexual acts and included sadistic or masochistic conduct. During the communications between Raines and the agent he made statements about both of his children, and about sexually molesting a minor child to whom he had access, and that he produced images of child pornography of his sexual abuse of that child.
The defendant began his travel to Colorado on June 29, 2012. He sent texts to the undercover agent during the duration of the trip. On June 30, 2012, near Topeka, Kansas, the defendant’s van broke down. He rented a vehicle to complete his journey. On June 30, 2012, the defendant arrived at a residence in Garfield County, Colorado, which was the address provided to him by the undercover agent. After his arrival he was taken into custody. Agents and officers seized the defendant’s cell phone, which has the capacity to take photographs and video, contained approximately 130 images and 84 videos of child pornography. During a lawful search of Raines’ home, agents and officers found various discs containing child pornography. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children identified 23 known series of child pornography featuring real child victims among the images the defendant had on his cell phone and in his email.
“Sexually exploiting children carries extraordinarily severe penalties – decades in federal prison, followed by a life term of Supervised Release,” said U.S. Attorney John Walsh. “It is a top priority of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Department of Justice to protect children by prosecuting predators such as Raines.”
“This significant prison sentence removes another child predator from the streets for decades to come, which helps protect children everywhere,” said Kumar C. Kibble, special agent in charge of HSI Denver. “Unfortunately, there are many predators like Steven Raines who pretend to lead normal lives. But our HSI special agents, partnering with other law enforcement agencies, go to extraordinary lengths to help protect and rescue these child victims, while also targeting and prosecuting those who prey on them.”
This case was investigated by HSI and the Garfield County Sheriff’s Office. The HSI Resident Agent in Charge’s Office in Indianapolis, and the United States Attorney’s Office in Fort Wayne, Indiana, also played an important role in this investigation and prosecution.
Raines was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michelle Heldmyer and ICE Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lillian Alves with support from Assistant U.S. Attorney Alecia Riewerts Wolak.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about PSC, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ For more information about Internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/resources.html and click on the tab “resources.”
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Huntington Man Sentenced to 2 Years in Federal Prison for Oxycodone Distribution SchemeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that a Huntington man was sentenced to two years in federal prison for aiding and abetting the possession with intent to distribute oxycodone. Rayshawn Allah Wells, 22, previously pleaded guilty in September 2012. Wells admitted that on April 14, 2010, he and an associate distributed approximately 2 ½ 80-milligram oxycodone pills to a confidential informant working with the U.S. 119 Task Force. Wells further admitted that on April 14, 2010, he and an associate distributed three 80-milligram oxycodone pills to an informant. Wells admitted that both illegal pill transactions occurred in Holden, Logan County, W.Va.
On April 14, 2010, members of the U.S. 119 Task Force executed a search warrant at a Holden residence and arrested the defendant and other known individuals. At the time the search warrant was executed, law enforcement agents seized approximately 127 80-milligram tablets. The defendant admitted that he had $1,040 cash on his person that included bills used in earlier controlled transactions.
Wells admitted that he and co-defendant Kawan Michael Wells brought oxycodone pills from Huntington, W.Va. to Logan County for the purpose of distributing them. Kawan Wells, 24, previously pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting the possession with intent to distribute oxycodone. Kawan Wells was sentenced in December 2012 to five years’ probation.
This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers in communities across the Southern District.
The U.S. 119 Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Hanks handled the prosecution. The sentence was imposed by United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston.
Huntington Couple Sentenced to Federal Prison for Illegal Firearm PossessionRead the Press Release
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that a Huntington couple was sentenced to federal prison for illegal firearm possession. Steven Ray Pauley, 32, of Huntington, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Pauley previously pleaded guilty September 2012. On June 11, 2012, the defendant was observed outside of Coaches Inn Motel in West Huntington in possession of a firearm. Officers with the Huntington Police Department and the ATF approached the defendant and found a loaded .38 caliber revolver on the defendant’s waistband. Pauley was arrested.
Steven Pauley was convicted in July 2003 in the Circuit Court of Cabell County of felony first degree robbery and did not have his rights to possess a firearm restored.
In a related matter, Pauley’s wife and co-defendant, Molly Sue Pauley, 41, of Huntington, was sentenced to three years and two months in prison for aiding and abetting a felon in possession of a firearm. Molly Pauley previously pleaded guilty in September 2012. Ms. Pauley admitted that on June 11, 2012, she illegally possessed a .38 caliber firearm. Ms. Pauley further admitted that she met Steven Pauley in the 800 block of 25th Street in Huntington and gave him the firearm. Ms. Pauley admitted that she was aware that her husband was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of a prior felony conviction.
Ms. Pauley was also prohibited from possessing firearms because of her January 2001 conviction in the Circuit Court of Wayne County (W.Va.) for attempt to commit a felony. Ms. Pauley was also previously convicted of theft of property in the Circuit Court of Hamblen County, Tennessee in November 2005 and felony theft of property in the Circuit Court of Montgomery County, Alabama in July 2009.
The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Huntington Police Department River Cities Gun Crimes Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph F. Adams handled the prosecutions. The sentences were imposed by United States District Chief Judge Robert C. Chambers.
The cases were brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide commitment to reduce gun crime in the United States by networking existing local programs targeting gun crime.
Head of Alien Smuggling Organization Gets More Than 12 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – Jose Aguirre-Nunez, 46, the head of an extensive alien smuggling organization operating in and around Starr County to Harris County, Texas, has been sentenced to a total of 150 months in federal prison, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today. Another defendant, Higinio Barrientos-Perez, 43, who was a caretaker of the aliens while being held at a stash house in Roma, will be sentenced this Thursday.
Aguirre-Nunez pleaded guilty on March 22, 2007, to conspiracy to transport illegal aliens and conspiracy to commit money laundering and received respective sentences of 150 and 150 months to be served concurrently. Aguirre-Nunez, who is a permanent resident, is expected to face deportation upon completing their federal prison sentences.
Evidence proved that on June 30, 2005, Border Patrol (BP) agents discovered 26 aliens from Honduras and El Salvador at a house in Roma after one of them escaped and contacted law enforcement authorities. Agents arrested Barrientos-Perez after the aliens identified him as the person in charge of the stash house.
During the subsequent investigation, agents discovered that two days earlier BP agents found two Honduran aliens in the brush near Falfurrias. These Honduran aliens told agents that their guide left them and a female behind when the female could no longer continue walking and that the female alien died. The autopsy determined she had died of dehydration. The Honduran aliens stated they ran out of water while they walked in the brush looking for help and that in order to survive they had to drink their own urine. The investigation lead agents to the husband of the deceased female who told agents he contracted with Aguirre-Nunez to transport his wife from Honduras to Houston.
The evidence collected during the investigation revealed that the Aguirre-Nunez alien smuggling organization transported several hundred illegal aliens from Starr County to Harris County, Texas. Between 2001 to 2005, the organization received approximately $400,000 through Western Union and/or MoneyGram which represented the payment by family members for the smuggling of illegal aliens.
Aguirre-Nunez headed the organization and was responsible for contacting the Mexican alien smugglers, arranged for foot guides to cross the aliens into the United States and deliver them to stash houses in Starr County. Aguirre-Nunez also coordinated the transportation of the aliens to Harris County by hiring drivers to transport the aliens, foot guides to walk the aliens around the checkpoint and scouts to check for law enforcement while the aliens were being transported in vehicles.
Aguirre-Nunez and nine members of his organization were indicted for their role in this alien smuggling organization. All have pleaded guilty and been sentenced.
Marciano Andres Avellaneda, 29, was a foot guide that walked aliens around the border patrol checkpoint and Miguel Angel Alarcon-Candelario, was the foot guide that left the Honduran female behind in the brush who later died. Both, who are illegal aliens from Mexico, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transport illegal aliens and were sentenced 54 and 105 months in prison, respectively.
Omar Wilfredo Guerrero-Sosa, 33, Rosalba Garcia-Perez, 38, also illegal aliens from Mexico, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens and were sentenced to respective 44 and 80 month terms of imprisonment. Guerrero-Sosa was a guide that crossed the aliens into the United States and took them to the Roma stash house, while Garcia-Perez, was a scout for law enforcement as well as took over Aguirre-Nunez’s responsibilities when he was not in Starr County.
Lizzette Barrera-Moreno, a U.S. citizen from Harris County, and Myra Yesenia Villarreal, 31, Guadalupe Perez, 67, Soraya Barrera-Morales, 49, all of Starr County, Texas, all also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens. Perez drove vehicles north of the Border Patrol checkpoint and left them by the side of the road for the aliens to use to travel to Harris County and was ordered to serve 78 months in prison. Villarreal was a scout for law enforcement, while Barrera-Morales took food to the aliens who were held at the stash house in Roma. Both Villarreal and Barrera-Morales also picked up money sent by the family of the illegal aliens through Western Union. They will serve 40 and 37 months in prison, respectively. Barrera-Moreno, who leased the stash house in Roma, was sentenced to three years probation.
The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anibal J. Alaniz.
Ft. Hall Woman Sentenced for Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily InjuryRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Christopher A. Crofts announced today that on January 18, 2013, Echo Pocatilla, a 30-year-old enrolled Shoshoni-Bannock from Ft. Hall, Idaho, appeared in Federal District Court for sentencing before United States District Judge Scott Skavdahl on a single count of assault resulting in serious bodily injury. The charge carried a maximum penalty of ten years imprisonment, a $250,000.00 fine, or both; supervised release of not more than three years; restitution; and a $100.00 special assessment. Pocatilla was sentenced to 37 months imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay a $100 special assessment and $12,034.00 in restitution. The charge stemmed from a stabbing which occurred on September 23, 2011, on the Wind River Indian Reservation. The case was investigated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs with assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Frederick and Carey Gonzales Facing Federal Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Frederick Gonzales, 42, and his wife Carey Gonzales, 36, both of Albuquerque, N.M., were arrested on federal child pornography charges on Jan. 18, 2013. The couple made their initial appearances in federal court in Albuquerque this morning. They remain in custody pending detention hearings which are scheduled for 1:30 p.m. tomorrow.
Frederick and Carey Gonzales previously were arrested on state child pornography charges on Jan. 11, 2013. At the time, Frederick Gonzales was the incoming president of Albuquerque’s Young America Football League (YAFL), and Carey Gonzales was employed as a kindergarten teacher’s aide by the Albuquerque Public Schools (APS). Since then, YAFL has removed Frederick Gonzales from his position with the organization, and APS has fired Carey Gonzales.
Frederick and Carey Gonzales are charged in federal criminal complaints that were filed on Jan. 18, 2013. Frederick Gonzales is charged with distribution, receipt and possession of visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. If convicted of those charges, he faces a maximum penalty of not less than five years and not more than 20 years in prison. Carey Gonzales is charged with possession of visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of ten years of imprisonment or twenty years of imprisonment if the child pornography depicts prepubescent children.
Charges in criminal complaints are merely accusations. All criminal defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Charlyn E. Rees, and was investigated by the following members of the New Mexico Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force: the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office, the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office, the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the New Mexico Regional Computer Forensic Lab.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.
The case also was brought as part of the New Mexico ICAC Task Force’s mission, which is to locate, track, and capture Internet child sexual predators and Internet child pornographers in New Mexico. There are 64 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies associated with the ICAC Task Force, which is funded by a grant administered by the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office. Anyone with information relating to suspected child predators and suspected child abuse is encouraged to contact federal or local law enforcement.
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Former Texas State Parole Officer Admits <br /> Taking Bribes from Assigned ParoleeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A former Texas state parole officer pleaded guilty today in Dallas for taking bribes from one of her assigned parolees in exchange for not reporting his parole violations, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division.
Nichelle Derricks, 37, of Cedar Hill, Texas, pleaded guilty to one count of honest services wire fraud before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renee Harris Toliver of the Northern District of Texas, who then recommends U.S. District Judge Ed Kinkeade accept the plea.
According to court documents, while serving as a Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) parole officer, Derricks and one of her assigned parolees developed an improper relationship in which Derricks secretly used her official position with TDCJ to enrich herself and others by soliciting and receiving cash payments, gifts, furniture, household goods and items, food and beverages and other things of value from the parolee in exchange for favorable official action benefitting the parolee. The scheme, according to court documents, was conducted without the authorization, knowledge or approval of TDCJ and contrary to TDCJ procedures and requirements.
As part of her plea, Derricks admitted she repeatedly failed to report the parolee for violating the terms of his parole, including, among other things, failing to report him for traveling outside Texas without prior, written approval and for engaging in prohibited financial transactions.
Derricks faces a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the honest services wire fraud charge. She is scheduled to be sentenced on April 24, 2013.
The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Edward P. Sullivan and Jeffrey E. Tsai of the Justice Department Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section. The case was investigated by the FBI Dallas Field Office, with assistance from the U.S. Secret Service and the TDCJ Office of Inspector General.Former Niagara Falls Building Commissioner Pleads Guilty to Corruption ChargeRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y.-- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Guy A. Bax, 66, of Niagara Falls, N.Y., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara, to corruptly accepting gratuities in connection with his role as the Building Commissioner for the City of Niagara Falls. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 or both.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr., who is handling the case, stated that between 2007 and early 2009, the defendant, in his capacity as Acting Building Commissioner for the City of Niagara Falls, routinely recommended and promoted John Gross and his company, David Gross Contracting, to individuals and entities seeking permits and approvals from the city. Bax also created a perception that it would be in the best interest of those seeking permits from the City to use Gross and his company and if they did so, they would have an easier time obtaining the approvals they sought. In exchange for, and as a reward for Bax's practice of steering business to John Gross and David Gross Contracting, the defendant received, at no cost, various items of value from John Gross and David Gross Contracting. The items included home repairs and maintenance services at Bax's personal residence, such as the remodeling of his bathroom and plowing of his driveway, an expense paid trip, free golf outings, and other benefits.
"As we have said in the past, this Office intends to root out public corruption wherever it occurs," said U.S. Attorney Hochul. "Every person or business is entitled to a level playing field when it comes to dealings with Government officials. Public employees, for their part, may not illegally or personally benefit from their position. While instances of public corruption are fortunately rare in Western New York, such will be treated firmly and decisively when they come to our attention."
John Gross was sentenced to 33 months in prison in January 2012 for mail fraud and filing a false tax return.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Christopher M. Piehota, Special Agent-in-Charge, Buffalo, Division, and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Toni Weinrauch, Special Agent-in-Charge.
Sentencing is scheduled for May 10, 2013, at 12:30 p.m. before Judge Arcara.