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9 June 2011
Justice Department Reaches Agreement with California Irrigation District on Bailout from the Voting Rights ActRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced that it has reached an agreement with Alta Irrigation District, a special district in California, that, if approved by the court, will allow for the district to bail out from its status as a “covered jurisdiction” under the special provisions of the Voting Rights Act, and thereby exempt the district from the preclearance requirements of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. The district covers part of several counties, including part of Kings County, which is a jurisdiction subject to Section 5. If granted, this would be the first such bailout for a covered jurisdiction in California. The agreement is in the form of a consent decree filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
Under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, certain covered jurisdictions, determined according to Section 4 of the act, are required to seek preclearance for any changes in voting qualifications, standards, practices or procedures from the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, or from the U.S. Attorney General, prior to their implementation. Section 4 of the act provides that a covered jurisdiction may seek to “bail out,” or remove itself from such coverage, and therefore be exempted from the preclearance requirements, by seeking a declaratory judgment before a three-judge panel in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. A bailout judgment can be issued only if the court determines that the jurisdiction meets certain eligibility requirements for bailout contained in the statute, including a 10-year record of nondiscrimination in voting-related actions. The act also provides that the attorney general can consent to entry of a judgment of bailout only if, based upon investigation, the attorney general is satisfied that the jurisdiction meets the eligibility requirements.
Alta Irrigation District filed its bailout action in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on April 20, 2011. District officials had contacted the attorney general prior to filing its action, indicating that the district was interested in seeking a bailout. The district provided the Justice Department with substantial information, and the department conducted an investigation to determine the district’s eligibility. Based on that investigation, the department is satisfied that the district meets the Voting Rights Act’s requirements for bailout.
“In this case, the department carefully evaluated the information provided by the district, and conducted its own investigation, which has satisfied us that the district is eligible for a bailout,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “I appreciate the cooperation of district officials in providing the department with information that we have requested, and in moving toward a resolution of this matter in the way envisioned by the Voting Rights Act.”
The consent decree details the legal and factual basis for a bailout determination and, if approved, will grant the district’s request. The court will retain jurisdiction of the action for 10 years and can reopen the action upon the motion of the attorney general or any aggrieved person alleging conduct by the district that would have originally precluded the district from bailing out if it had occurred during the 10 year period preceding entry of the consent decree.
Information about bailout, the Voting Rights Act, and other federal voting laws is available on the Department of Justice website at www.justice.gov/crt/voting/. Complaints may be reported to the Voting Section of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division at 1-800-253-3931.
Justice Department Files for Receivership in Virgin Islands Prison Conditions CaseRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - The Justice Department today filed a motion for appointment of a receiver in the U.S. District Court, St. Croix, USVI, to remedy 25 years of non-compliance with court orders by the Virgin Islands Bureau of Corrections (BOC) regarding unconstitutional conditions of confinement at the Golden Grove Adult Correctional and Detention Facility. The United States brought the original complaint under the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (CRIPA).
The department is unaware of any other instance where the Civil Rights Division has sought receivership of a correctional facility.
Despite ongoing efforts by a special master appointed in 2006 by the court to remedy contempt findings, violence at the prison has escalated over the past several months, including multiple stabbings. Alarming amounts of contraband continue to enter in the prison, including weapons, drugs, street clothing and electronics.
The receiver sought by the United States would address numerous ongoing deficiencies, including the BOC’s failure to: maintain adequate staffing, write and train staff on policies and procedures, appropriately classify and separate violent prisoners, systematically prevent and detect contraband, provide adequate medical and mental health care, and provide humane living conditions.
“The deplorable conditions at Golden Grove continue to deteriorate after years of non-compliance with court orders,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “While it is always our preference to work with agencies to make necessary changes, this agency has left us with no choice but to seek the drastic measure of receivership.”
“Receivership is the last resort. We arrive at this juncture only after spending the last 25 years exhausting every other viable alternative,” said Ronald W. Sharpe, U.S. Attorney for the District of the Virgin Islands. “We cannot continue to allow prisoners to live in unsafe, filthy and hazardous conditions without constitutionally required medical and mental health care.”
Civil Rights Division Special Litigation Section Special Counsel Laura Coon and Trial Attorneys Andrew Barrick and Emily Gunston and Virgin Islands Assistant U.S. Attorney Angela Tyson-Floyd lead the department’s enforcement of this civil matter.
Former Detective and Tax Preparer Convicted of Tax Fraud in FloridaRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Inuka Rhaheed, owner of First Premium Financial Services and a former detective with the Fort Pierce, Fla., Police Department, and Wilens Bertrand, a tax preparer at First Premium, on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States. The jury also found Rhaheed guilty of two counts, and Bertrand guilty of one count, of preparing false tax returns
Today’s convictions were announced by Wifredo A. Ferrer, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; John A. DiCicco, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Tax Division; and Rhonda A. Diffenbach, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).
Rhaheed’s wife and business partner, Jacqueline Rhaheed, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to defraud the United States on June 2, 2011.
According to evidence introduced at trial, Inuka and Jacqueline Rhaheed owned and worked at First Premium Financial Services, a tax preparation business with offices in Fort Pierce and Vero Beach, Fla. Wilens Bertrand worked at the Ft. Pierce office of First Premium Financial Services as a tax preparer.
According to the testimony of some of First Premium’s clients, the defendants placed false deductions on client tax returns without the clients’ knowledge or consent. In addition, evidence revealed that First Premium prepared and filed approximately 5,500 tax returns for the 2006-2008 tax years and that approximately 98 percent of those returns made a claim for a tax refund. The resulting total tax loss to the United States, based on expert testimony at trial, was at least $500,000.
According to evidence presented during the trial, clients paid a minimum fee of $300 for tax preparation services at First Premium. Clients included many law enforcement officers, who went to First Premium because they knew Rhaheed was a former law enforcement officer and trusted him and his business to prepare their taxes. In addition, other clients testified that they went to First Premium because of they had heard through word of mouth that First Premium allowed deductions that other tax preparation services would not consider.
Sentencing for all three defendants is scheduled for Sept. 8, 2011 in Fort Pierce. At sentencing, Inuka Rhaheed faces a maximum sentence of 11 years in prison; Wilens Bertrand faces a maximum sentence of eight years in prison; and Jacqueline Rhaheed faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General John A. DiCicco of the Justice Department’s Tax Division commended the investigative efforts of the IRS-CI for their work investigating this case. The case is being prosecuted by Justin Gelfand, Trial Attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Diana M. Acosta of the Southern District of Florida.
Foreign National Pleads Guilty for Role in International Money Laundering Scheme Involving $1.4 Million in Losses to VictimsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A Romanian national pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia for leading a money laundering network for a transnational criminal group based in Eastern Europe, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. According to court documents, in less than one year, the criminal conspiracy netted approximately $1.4 million from U.S. victims.
Roman Teodor, 36, a resident of Romania, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Paul L. Friedman to conspiracy to commit money laundering. Teodor voluntarily surrendered to U.S. authorities on April 10, 2011. At sentencing, scheduled for Aug. 29, 2011, Teodor faces a maximum of 20 years in prison.
According to court documents, Teodor participated in a scheme that operated from July 2005 through November 2006, and involved the posting of fraudulent advertisements on eBay and other websites offering expensive vehicles and boats for sale that the conspirators did not possess. When the U.S. victims expressed interest in the merchandise, they were contacted directly by an email from a purported seller. According to court documents, the victims were then instructed to wire transfer payments through “eBay Secure Traders” — an entity which has no actual affiliation to eBay, but was used as a ruse to persuade the victims that they were sending money into a secure escrow account pending delivery and inspection of their purchases. Instead, the victims’ funds were wired directly into bank accounts in Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Poland that were controlled by Teodor’s co-conspirators.
Teodor was originally charged on Jan. 9, 2008, along with five additional defendants: Georgi Vasilev Pletnyov, Ivaylo Vasilev Pletnyov, Nikolay Georgiev Minchev, Georgi Boychev Georgiev and Antoaneta Angelova Getova. On Dec. 2, 2009, Ivaylo Vasilev Pletnyov and Nikolay Georgiev Minchev were sentenced to 48 months and 30 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in the money laundering conspiracy. On Oct. 8, 2010, Georgi Boychev Georgiev was sentenced to 15 months in prison for his role in this scheme. On April 11, 2011, Georgi Vasilev Pletnyov pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. His sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 22, 2011. The United States continues to work with foreign counterparts in Bulgaria regarding Antoaneta Angelova Getova.
This investigation was conducted by the FBI – Hungarian National Bureau of Investigation Organized Crime Task Force located in Budapest, Hungary (Budapest Task Force). The Budapest Task Force was established by the FBI in April 2000 to address the increasing threat of Eurasian organized crime groups to the United States.
The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Lisa Page of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section. The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance on this case.
Federal Agencies Announce National Initiative to Combat Immigration Services ScamsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The U.S. government unveiled today a multi-agency, nationwide initiative to combat immigration services scams . The Departments of Justice and Homeland Security (DHS), and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are leading this historic effort.
This initiative targets immigration scams involving the unauthorized practice of immigration law (UPIL), which occurs when legal advice and/or representation regarding immigration matters is provided by an individual who is not an attorney or accredited representative.
“ We are dedicated to protecting vulnerable immigrants from those who seek to exploit them,” said U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Alejandro Mayorkas. “Through our sustained outreach, enforcement and education efforts, and our close collaboration with our federal, state and local partners, we will provide the communities we serve with the help needed to combat this pernicious problem.”
This initiative is set upon three pillars—enforcement, education and continued collaboration—designed to stop UPIL scams and prosecute those who are responsible; educate immigrants about these scams and how to avoid them; and inform immigrants about the legal immigration process and where to find legitimate legal advice and representation.
“This coordinated initiative targets those who prey on immigrant communities by making promises they do not keep and charging for services they are not qualified to provide,” said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. “We are attacking this problem both through aggressive civil and criminal enforcement and by connecting qualified lawyers with victims who are trying to navigate a complicated immigration system.”
The Department of Justice, through U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Civil Division’s Office of Consumer Protection Litigation, is investigating and prosecuting dozens of cases against so-called “notarios.” In the last year, the department has worked with investigators at the FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and USCIS, and with state and local partners, to secure convictions—with sentences up to eight years in prison and forfeiture and restitution of more than $1.8 million. This is in addition to the many actions at the state and local levels that have been filed against individuals and businesses engaged in immigration services scams.
ICE has also long been pursuing immigration services fraud cases in part through its 18 Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force offices across the country. In a recent case in West Palm Beach, Fla., ICE Homeland Security Investigations agents arrested an individual on May 26, 2011, who had posed as an attorney and processed more than 3,000 fraudulent immigration applications.
“Notarios and other illegal immigration service providers take advantage of unsuspecting immigrants trying to navigate the immigration system,” said ICE Director John Morton. “ICE will continue to work with our federal, state and local partners to combat notario fraud and protect the integrity of the legal immigration system.”
Meanwhile, FTC has made it easier for consumers to alert law enforcement about these scams by creating a new Immigration Services code in the Consumer Sentinel Network, its online consumer complaint database. “This is a central location for consumers to report complaints and for our law enforcement partners to find and share information about scams,” said FTC Commissioner Edith Ramírez.
Sentinel, as the network is called, is a secure online database that holds more than 6 million consumer fraud complaints. Shared with more than 2,000 law enforcement entities including ICE, the Department of Justice and now USCIS, it has become the primary repository for complaints involving allegations of immigration services scams. Sentinel will serve as an investigative tool for USCIS Fraud Detection and National Security officers, and will bolster communication between organizations on immigration services scam-related cases.
The initiative’s education component will focus on empowering immigrant communities to avoid unscrupulous individuals and businesses engaged in UPIL. USCIS’s efforts will be primarily aimed at providing immigrants with the information they need to make informed choices when seeking legal advice and representation on immigration matters, and reminding them that The Wrong Help Can Hurt.
Today, USCIS unveiled a new brochure, a poster, public service announcements for use on radio and in print publications, billboard and transit ads, and a new Web resource center that includes a video. All printed materials are available in English and Spanish, and materials in 12 additional languages are available online. To bolster this outreach effort, the Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) and FTC will produce and distribute educational materials for different populations that may be affected by immigration services scams.
As part of the initiative’s emphasis on providing qualified legal assistance to this vulnerable population, EOIR’s Recognition and Accreditation program, the Justice Department, USCIS and FTC are working together to increase the number of EOIR-recognized organizations and accredited representatives, particularly in underserved areas. O rganizations and representatives seeking to provide lawful immigration services must be recognized by EOIR
“EOIR is hard at work to increase access for our government partners, nonprofit organizations, and individuals in immigration proceedings,” said EOIR Director Juan P. Osuna. “Through a combination of efforts, including reporting fraud, educating the public and dedicated outreach, we are bolstering our efforts toward growing a force of legitimate legal services providers and getting rid of fraudsters.”
EOIR is improving its Recognition and Accreditation Program by increasing communication with the public, providing easier application processing, and giving timely, accurate information to the public regarding which organizations have representatives available to represent individuals in proceedings.
The department’s Civil Division and Access to Justice Initiative are involved in an effort to train more attorneys to handle the cases of immigration fraud victims. As a result of these efforts, the department announcedthat nongovernmental organizations, working with local partners, will organize a pro bono legal clinic in Baltimore later this summer to assist victims of an enforcement action announced by the FTC today. Driven by a continuing dialogue with the department, the New York City Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association, the New York Office of the Attorney General and nongovernmental organizations, a legal training program will be launched this summer in New York City to expand the pool of lawyers who can assist in immigration matters.
For more information about USCIS’s education initiative, please visit www.uscis.gov/avoidscams or follow us on Twitter, YouTube and the USCIS blog, The Beacon.
A list of federal, state and local immigration services cases and additional information regarding EOIR’s Recognition and Accreditation Program are available on the Department of Justice’s website.
To file a complaint in English or Spanish, visit the FTC’s online Complaint Assistant or call 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357). Like the FTC on Facebook and follow them on Twitter.
Federal Agencies Announce National Initiative to Combat Immigration Services ScamsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The U.S. government unveiled today a multi-agency, nationwide initiative to combat immigration services scams . The Departments of Justice and Homeland Security (DHS), and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are leading this historic effort.
This initiative targets immigration scams involving the unauthorized practice of immigration law (UPIL), which occurs when legal advice and/or representation regarding immigration matters is provided by an individual who is not an attorney or accredited representative.
“ We are dedicated to protecting vulnerable immigrants from those who seek to exploit them,” said U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Alejandro Mayorkas. “Through our sustained outreach, enforcement and education efforts, and our close collaboration with our federal, state and local partners, we will provide the communities we serve with the help needed to combat this pernicious problem.”
This initiative is set upon three pillars—enforcement, education and continued collaboration—designed to stop UPIL scams and prosecute those who are responsible; educate immigrants about these scams and how to avoid them; and inform immigrants about the legal immigration process and where to find legitimate legal advice and representation.
“This coordinated initiative targets those who prey on immigrant communities by making promises they do not keep and charging for services they are not qualified to provide,” said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. “We are attacking this problem both through aggressive civil and criminal enforcement and by connecting qualified lawyers with victims who are trying to navigate a complicated immigration system.”
The Department of Justice, through U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Civil Division’s Office of Consumer Protection Litigation, is investigating and prosecuting dozens of cases against so-called “notarios.” In the last year, the department has worked with investigators at the FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and USCIS, and with state and local partners, to secure convictions—with sentences up to eight years in prison and forfeiture and restitution of more than $1.8 million. This is in addition to the many actions at the state and local levels that have been filed against individuals and businesses engaged in immigration services scams.
ICE has also long been pursuing immigration services fraud cases in part through its 18 Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force offices across the country. In a recent case in West Palm Beach, Fla., ICE Homeland Security Investigations agents arrested an individual on May 26, 2011, who had posed as an attorney and processed more than 3,000 fraudulent immigration applications.
“Notarios and other illegal immigration service providers take advantage of unsuspecting immigrants trying to navigate the immigration system,” said ICE Director John Morton. “ICE will continue to work with our federal, state and local partners to combat notario fraud and protect the integrity of the legal immigration system.”
Meanwhile, FTC has made it easier for consumers to alert law enforcement about these scams by creating a new Immigration Services code in the Consumer Sentinel Network, its online consumer complaint database. “This is a central location for consumers to report complaints and for our law enforcement partners to find and share information about scams,” said FTC Commissioner Edith Ramírez.
Sentinel, as the network is called, is a secure online database that holds more than 6 million consumer fraud complaints. Shared with more than 2,000 law enforcement entities including ICE, the Department of Justice and now USCIS, it has become the primary repository for complaints involving allegations of immigration services scams. Sentinel will serve as an investigative tool for USCIS Fraud Detection and National Security officers, and will bolster communication between organizations on immigration services scam-related cases.
The initiative’s education component will focus on empowering immigrant communities to avoid unscrupulous individuals and businesses engaged in UPIL. USCIS’s efforts will be primarily aimed at providing immigrants with the information they need to make informed choices when seeking legal advice and representation on immigration matters, and reminding them that The Wrong Help Can Hurt.
Today, USCIS unveiled a new brochure, a poster, public service announcements for use on radio and in print publications, billboard and transit ads, and a new Web resource center that includes a video. All printed materials are available in English and Spanish, and materials in 12 additional languages are available online. To bolster this outreach effort, the Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) and FTC will produce and distribute educational materials for different populations that may be affected by immigration services scams.
As part of the initiative’s emphasis on providing qualified legal assistance to this vulnerable population, EOIR’s Recognition and Accreditation program, the Justice Department, USCIS and FTC are working together to increase the number of EOIR-recognized organizations and accredited representatives, particularly in underserved areas. O rganizations and representatives seeking to provide lawful immigration services must be recognized by EOIR
“EOIR is hard at work to increase access for our government partners, nonprofit organizations, and individuals in immigration proceedings,” said EOIR Director Juan P. Osuna. “Through a combination of efforts, including reporting fraud, educating the public and dedicated outreach, we are bolstering our efforts toward growing a force of legitimate legal services providers and getting rid of fraudsters.”
EOIR is improving its Recognition and Accreditation Program by increasing communication with the public, providing easier application processing, and giving timely, accurate information to the public regarding which organizations have representatives available to represent individuals in proceedings.
The department’s Civil Division and Access to Justice Initiative are involved in an effort to train more attorneys to handle the cases of immigration fraud victims. As a result of these efforts, the department announcedthat nongovernmental organizations, working with local partners, will organize a pro bono legal clinic in Baltimore later this summer to assist victims of an enforcement action announced by the FTC today. Driven by a continuing dialogue with the department, the New York City Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association, the New York Office of the Attorney General and nongovernmental organizations, a legal training program will be launched this summer in New York City to expand the pool of lawyers who can assist in immigration matters.
For more information about USCIS’s education initiative, please visit www.uscis.gov/avoidscams or follow us on Twitter, YouTube and the USCIS blog, The Beacon.
A list of federal, state and local immigration services cases and additional information regarding EOIR’s Recognition and Accreditation Program are available on the Department of Justice’s website.
To file a complaint in English or Spanish, visit the FTC’s online Complaint Assistant or call 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357). Like the FTC on Facebook and follow them on Twitter.
8 June 2011
Ship Operator Pleads Guilty to Crimes Related to Pollution from Cargo Ship Traveling to Corpus Christi, TexasRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON -- A ship management company headquartered in Greece that operated a 29,414 - ton cargo ship that made calls in multiple ports in Texas pleaded guilty and was sentenced late yesterday in federal court in Corpus Christi for deliberately concealing pollution discharges from the ship directly into the sea and for failing to notify the U. S. Coast Guard of numerous safety hazards on board the vessel.
Noka Shipping Company Ltd., the operator of the M/V Florin, pleaded guilty to a violation of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships for failing to properly maintain an oil record book as required by federal and international law, as well as, a violation of the Ports and Waterways Safety Act, for failing to report a hazardous condition on board to include excessive amounts of oil in the vessel’s machinery spaces and bilges, excessive oil leaks on the vessel’s main engine and generators, an authorized oil drainage system for the engine room and oil in the vessel’s fire suppression system.
The company was sentenced to pay a $750,000 criminal fine along with a $150,000 community service payment to the congressionally-established National Marine Sanctuary Foundation. The money will be designated for use in the Flower Garden and Stetson Banks National Marine Sanctuary, headquartered in Galveston, Texas, to support the protection and preservation of natural and cultural resources located in and adjacent to the sanctuary.
Noka was also sentenced to five years probation. As a condition of the probation, all ships owned or managed by Noka will be barred from entering U.S. ports and territorial waters for five years.
“Senior officers allowed hazardous conditions to prevail aboard the M/V Florin and maintained false records that concealed the deliberate discharge of oily waste into the ocean in violation of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division at the Department of Justice. “Now Noka will not only pay a significant criminal penalty for breaking laws that help protect our oceans from pollution, but they also will lose the privilege and the profit of conducting commerce in U.S. ports for five years.”
“Pollution prevention acts were put in place to protect our natural resources now and for future generations,” said José Angel Moreno, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas. “It is more than disheartening to see companies knowingly and purposely dumping oil-contaminated waste into those resources; it violates the law. We take those violations seriously and shipping companies will be held accountable.”
“America's waterways are America's treasures and we are committed to protecting them,” said Rear Adm. Roy A. Nash, Eighth District Coast Guard commander. “When companies knowingly fail to adhere to marine anti-pollution laws and create hazardous conditions on their vessels, it affects each and every one of us. The Coast Guard will continue to aggressively enforce these laws and will not rest until all vessels comply with them. I am grateful for the hard work, dedication, and professionalism exhibited by Coast Guard Sector Corpus Christi, the Coast Guard Investigative Service, the U.S. Department of Justice Environmental Crimes Section and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas.”
U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service Special Agent in Charge Damon Rodriguez, Gulf Region, added: “The collaborative efforts on this case by the Department of Justice, the United States Coast Guard and the Coast Guard Investigative Service should send a clear message to those who knowingly violate our nation's environmental laws that such actions will not be tolerated.”
According to the joint factual statement, from at least June 15, 2010 until Sept. 27, 2010, senior engineering officers on board the M/V Florin acting on behalf of Noka used the vessel’s fixed piping system and fire main pump to bypass pollution prevention equipment to discharge oily bilge waste directly overboard into the sea.
Federal and international law requires that all ships comply with pollution regulations that include the proper disposal of oily water and sludge by passing the oily water through a separator aboard the vessel or burning the sludge in the ship’s incinerator. Federal law also requires ships to accurately record each disposal of oily water or sludge in an oil record book, and to have the record book available for the U.S. Coast Guard when the vessel is within the waters of the United States. The M/V Florin called on ports in Corpus Christi and Houston between June 15, 2010 and Sep. 27, 2010.
According to court documents, the engineers knowingly failed to make the required entries into the oil record book including the fact that oily waste had been discharged directly into the ocean using the fire pump and circumventing the internationally required pollution control equipment. The senior engineers also made false entries in the oil record book to conceal the fact that the pollution control equipment had not been used. The crewmembers then attempted to conceal the discharges on Sept. 27, 2010 during a Coast Guard boarding at the port in Corpus Christi, by providing the falsified oil record book to the boarding crew.
With regard to the failure to report the vessel’s safety issues the company knew that before coming to the United States that it was under a legal obligation to notify the Coast Guard of any hazardous condition. According to court documents the vessel was boarded by Coast Guard inspectors on June 15, 2010 in Houston, whereby numerous safety deficiencies were discovered and required to be corrected. However, these deficiencies were not corrected and Noka failed to report these conditions upon the vessel returning to the port of Corpus Christi on Sept. 27, 2010.
The investigation was conducted by the Coast Guard Sector Corpus Christi, Texas and Coast Guard Investigative Service in Corpus Christi. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey S. Miller from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Corpus Christi and Trial Attorney David O’Connell from the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section.
New England Commercial Fisherman Charged with Lacey Act Crimes for Illegally Harvesting Striped BassRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Daniel B. Birkbeck, 46, of North Stonington, Conn., was charged today in federal court with trafficking in and falsifying records for illegally harvested Atlantic Striped Bass (Morone saxatilis).
Commercial fishing for striped bass in both Massachusetts and Rhode Island is governed by a quota system overseen by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission. This quota system was enacted in response to declining Striped Bass populations. Since 2003, Rhode Island’s commercial striped bass quota has been 243,625 pounds and Massachusetts’s commercial striped bass quota has been 1,159,750 pounds. As a result, the Massachusetts commercial striped bass season is open longer than the Rhode Island season.
Among other things, the Lacey Act makes it a crime for a person to knowingly transport and sell fish in interstate commerce when the fish was taken or possessed in violation of state law. The Lacey Act also makes it a crime for a person to knowingly make or submit a false record, account, or label for fish which has been transported in interstate commerce.
The indictment, filed today in U.S. District Court in Boston, charges that Birkbeck, who is licensed as a commercial fisherman in both Rhode Island and Massachusetts, harvested striped bass in Rhode Island waters after the Rhode Island commercial fishing season had closed and transported those fish to a fish dealer in Massachusetts for sale during the 2009 and 2010 commercial fishing seasons. The indictment charges that Birkbeck then falsely reported to the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries that he had legally harvested the striped bass in Massachusetts waters. The indictment charges that Birkbeck illegally harvested and sold 12,140 pounds of striped bass.
If convicted, Birkbeck faces a maximum penalty of five years’ in prison and a $250,000 fine per count, as well as forfeiture of the automobile and boat that he used to illegally harvest and transport the striped bass from Rhode Island to Massachusetts for sale.
An indictment is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case is being investigated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Law Enforcement and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement. The prosecution is being handled by the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.
New England Commercial Fisherman Charged with Lacey Act Crimes for Illegally Harvesting Striped BassRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Daniel B. Birkbeck, 46, of North Stonington, Conn., was charged today in federal court with trafficking in and falsifying records for illegally harvested Atlantic Striped Bass (Morone saxatilis).
Commercial fishing for striped bass in both Massachusetts and Rhode Island is governed by a quota system overseen by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission. This quota system was enacted in response to declining Striped Bass populations. Since 2003, Rhode Island’s commercial striped bass quota has been 243,625 pounds and Massachusetts’s commercial striped bass quota has been 1,159,750 pounds. As a result, the Massachusetts commercial striped bass season is open longer than the Rhode Island season.
Among other things, the Lacey Act makes it a crime for a person to knowingly transport and sell fish in interstate commerce when the fish was taken or possessed in violation of state law. The Lacey Act also makes it a crime for a person to knowingly make or submit a false record, account, or label for fish which has been transported in interstate commerce.
The indictment, filed today in U.S. District Court in Boston, charges that Birkbeck, who is licensed as a commercial fisherman in both Rhode Island and Massachusetts, harvested striped bass in Rhode Island waters after the Rhode Island commercial fishing season had closed and transported those fish to a fish dealer in Massachusetts for sale during the 2009 and 2010 commercial fishing seasons. The indictment charges that Birkbeck then falsely reported to the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries that he had legally harvested the striped bass in Massachusetts waters. The indictment charges that Birkbeck illegally harvested and sold 12,140 pounds of striped bass.
If convicted, Birkbeck faces a maximum penalty of five years’ in prison and a $250,000 fine per count, as well as forfeiture of the automobile and boat that he used to illegally harvest and transport the striped bass from Rhode Island to Massachusetts for sale.
An indictment is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case is being investigated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Law Enforcement and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement. The prosecution is being handled by the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.
Maryland Couple Charged with Domestic Servitude of Filipina WomanRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON- A federal grand jury in Greenbelt, Md., indicted Alfred Edwards and Gloria Edwards, both of Upper Marlboro, Md., on charges arising from a scheme to compel the labor and domestic service of a Filipina national.
The indictment was announced by Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez of the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein and Special Agent in Charge Richard A. McFeely of the FBI.
“Human trafficking robs victims of their freedom and dignity and it will not be tolerated in our nation,” said Assistant Attorney General Perez. “We will prosecute all cases of human trafficking to the fullest extent of the law.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to work with the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and federal and state agencies and nonprofit organizations, in conjunction with Maryland’s Human Trafficking Task Force, to locate human trafficking victims and prosecute perpetrators,” said U.S. Attorney Rosenstein.
According to the five count indictment, the couple enticed the victim to come to the United States to work as their domestic servant. According to the indictment, the defendants lured the victim, an impoverished, uneducated, mother of eight children, using false promises of a salary that would support her children in the Philippines. The defendants procured a fraudulent visa to allow the victim to enter the United States; confiscated the victim’s documents after she arrived; and compelled her labor for 13 hours a day over a period of 10 years, using a scheme of threats, assaults, withholding of documents, withholding of pay and a peonage contract to coerce the victim’s continued service.
The defendants are also charged with immigration violations.
The charges in the indictment are merely accusations and all defendants are presumed innocent until convicted in a court of law.
If convicted, the defendants each face a maximum sentence of up to 50 years in prison and $250,000 in fines.
This case is being investigated by the Baltimore Division of the FBI and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Lenzner and Senior Special Counsel Susan French of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.
Justice Department Opens Investigation into the <br /> Portland, Oregon, Police BureauRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Ore., – The Justice Department announced today that it has opened a civil investigation into allegations of use of excessive force by members of the Portland, Ore., Police Bureau (PPB), in accordance with the pattern or practice provision of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994.
The Justice Department will seek to determine whether there are systemic violations of the Constitution or federal law by officers of the PPB. During the course of the investigation, the Justice Department will consider all relevant information, particularly the efforts that Portland has undertaken to ensure compliance with federal law. The Justice Department has taken similar steps involving a variety of state and local law enforcement agencies, both large and small, in jurisdictions such as New York, Ohio, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, the District of Columbia, Louisiana and California.
Today’s announcement is separate from any potential federal criminal investigation involving PPB.
The Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, Special Litigation Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon are jointly investigating this matter. The department welcomes any information from the community. If you have any comments or concerns, please feel free to contact us at [email protected] or 1-877-218-5228.
Florida Radiology Clinic and Former Owners to Pay $3 Million to Resolve Medicare False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Midtown Imaging LLC, a radiology clinic, and its former owners Midtown Imaging P.A. and PBC Medical Imaging have agreed to pay $3 million to resolve allegations that the clinic violated the False Claims Act, the Justice Department announced today. The West Palm Beach clinic is alleged to have submitted false claims to Medicare during the period 2000 through 2008 by entering into certain leasing and professional services agreements with referring physicians and physician groups that violated the Anti-Kickback Statute and Stark Law.
The Anti-Kickback Statute, among other things, prohibits offering, paying, soliciting or receiving remuneration to induce referrals of items or services covered by Medicare, Medicaid or other federally-funded programs. The Stark Law prohibits a hospital from profiting from patient referrals made by a physician with whom the hospital has an improper financial arrangement. Both the Anti-Kickback Statute and the Stark Law are intended to ensure that a physician’s medical judgment is not compromised by improper financial incentives and are based solely on the best interests of the patient.
“The Justice Department is committed to investigating cases that threaten the integrity of the Medicare program,” said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The department will continue to protect patients by pursuing federal health care providers that have improper financial relationships with referring physicians.”
“We are deeply satisfied with today’s settlement and encourage potential whistleblowers to come forward with evidence of wrongdoing affecting the Medicare program,” said Wifredo Ferrer, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. “We are committed to fighting fraud and abuse to help preserve scarce Medicare funds for those who need it the most, the sick and the elderly.”
Midtown Imaging was named as a defendant in a suit brought in 2009 by two former Midtown Imaging radiologists under the whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private citizens with knowledge of fraud against the government to bring a lawsuit on behalf of the United States and to share in any recovery. The lawsuit alleged that Midtown Imaging entered into prohibited financial relationships with certain physicians and physician groups. Under the civil settlement announced today, the whistleblowers, Dr. Teresa M. Cortinas and Dr. Walter E. Wojcicki, will receive $600,000.
The case was handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. The investigation was conducted by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General.
This resolution is part of the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and another step for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced by Attorney General Eric Holder and Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the HHS in May 2009. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in that effort is the False Claims Act, which the Justice Department has used to recover more than $5.7 billion since January 2009 in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs. The Justice Department’s total recoveries in False Claims Act cases since January 2009 are more than $7.3 billion.
7 June 2011
Patient Recruiter Sentenced to 77 Months in Prison in Connection with $9 Million Medicare Fraud Scam in DetroitRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Miami resident Reynel Betancourt, 51, was sentenced today to 77 months in prison for his participation in a $9 million Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS).
U.S. District Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga of the Southern District of Florida also sentenced Betancourt to three years of supervised release following his prison term and ordered him to pay approximately $6 million in restitution, jointly and severally with his co-defendants. Betancourt was originally charged by indictment in the Eastern District of Michigan and after his arrest in Miami, he consented to have his case transferred to the Southern District of Florida for his plea and sentencing.
Betancourt pleaded guilty on March 29, 2011, to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and to one count of money laundering conspiracy. According to the plea documents, beginning approximately in March 2006, Betancourt entered into an agreement with the owners of Dearborn Medical Rehabilitation Center (DMRC) to recruit patients for DMRC, a business that purported to provide infusion and injection therapy services to Medicare patients.
Betancourt admitted to paying patients to sign paperwork claiming that they had received injection therapy services and specialty medications that they did not receive. DMRC billed the Medicare program for more than $9 million in purported infusion therapy treatments, which Betancourt admitted were not medically necessary and not provided. Additionally, Betancourt admitted that he laundered the proceeds of the Medicare fraud conspiracy through two sham corporations that he created solely for the purpose of concealing the fraud proceeds.
The sentencing was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade for the Eastern District of Michigan; Special Agent in Charge Andrew G. Arena of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the HHS Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Chicago Regional Office.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip A. Ross and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas W. Biemers of the Eastern District of Michigan and Trial Attorney Gejaa T. Gobena of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. The case was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG, and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan.
Since their inception in March 2007, Medicare Fraud Strike Force operations in nine locations have charged more than 1,000 defendants who collectively have falsely billed the Medicare program for more than $2.3 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.
North Carolina Man Pleads Guilty to Terrorism ChargeRead the Press Release
RALEIGH, N.C. – Zakariya Boyd, aka “Zak,” pleaded guilty today in federal court in New Bern, N.C., to one count of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists, announced Todd Hinnen, Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security; George E.B. Holding, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina; M. Chris Briese, Special Agent-in-Charge of the FBI Charlotte Division; and John F. Khin, Special Agent-in-Charge, Southeast Field Office, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS).
Boyd, 22, a U.S. citizen and resident of North Carolina, was first charged along with seven other defendants in a federal indictment returned on July 22, 2009. He was arrested on July 29, 2009 and the indictment was unsealed. On Sept. 24, 2009, a federal grand jury returned a superseding indictment in the case.
According to the superseding indictment, from before November 2006 through at least July 2009, Boyd conspired with the other named defendants and others to provide material support and resources to terrorists, including currency, training, transportation and personnel. The object of the conspiracy, according to the indictment, was to advance violent jihad, including supporting and participating in terrorist activities abroad and committing acts of murder, kidnapping or maiming persons abroad.
The indictment alleges that, as part of the conspiracy, Boyd and other defendants prepared themselves to engage in violent jihad and were willing to die as martyrs. They also allegedly offered training in weapons and financing, and helped arrange overseas travel and contacts so others could wage violent jihad overseas. In addition, as part of the conspiracy, the defendants raised money to support training efforts, disguised the destination of such monies from the donors, and obtained assault weapons to develop skills with the weapons. Some defendants also allegedly radicalized others to believe that violent jihad was a personal religious obligation.
“With his plea today, Zakariya Boyd will be held accountable for his role in this conspiracy to provide material support to terrorism. This case is yet another example of an individual who joined the terrorist cause from within our borders and underscores the dedication of prosecutors, analysts and agents at all levels of our government who work tirelessly to identify such individuals and bring them to justice,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Hinnen.
U.S. Attorney Holding said, “Today, Mr. Boyd stepped into an American courtroom and was afforded the rights and privileges of a system of which he would have destroyed. His decision to plead guilty sets him on a different path -- a path consistent with the rights and safety of the citizens of the United States, both at home and abroad.”
“This case shows extremists in this country are just as willing to do us harm as those overseas. The FBI and our law enforcement partners will keep seeking out and stopping anyone who plans to attack the United States,” said FBI Special Agent-in-Charge Briese.
“The Defense Criminal Investigative Service continues to partner with the Raleigh FBI JTTF to bring these home grown terrorists to justice,” said DCIS Special Agent-in-Charge Khin. “In concert with other law enforcement partners, DCIS protects America’s national security interests by aggressively investigating threats to the safety and security of Department of Defense personnel and facilities.”
At sentencing, Boyd faces a potential 15 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release for conspiring to provide material support to terrorists.
Boyd’s father and co-defendant, Daniel Patrick Boyd, pleaded guilty on Feb. 9, 2011, to one count of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and one count of conspiracy to murder kidnap, maim and injure persons in a foreign country. Trial for the remaining co-defendants in custody is scheduled for September 2011.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI Raleigh-Durham Joint Terrorism Task Force, which includes the FBI, the DCIS, the North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement, the Raleigh Police Department, the Durham Police Department and the North Carolina Information Sharing and Analysis Center.
The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Bowler and Barbara D. Kocher of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina, and Trial Attorney Jason Kellhofer of the Counterterrorism Section in the Justice Department’s National Security Division.
Connecticut Man Sentenced to 310 Months in Prison on Child Sex Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Jarell Sanderson, of New Britain, Conn., was sentenced today to 310 months in prison on child sex trafficking charges, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney David B. Fein of the District of Connecticut.
Sanderson, 31, pleaded guilty on Jan. 20, 2011, to one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of children and two counts of sex trafficking of children before U.S. District Judge Mark R. Kravitz in New Haven, Conn. Sanderson also was sentenced to five years of supervised release following his prison term.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Sanderson and co-defendant Hassanah Delia recruited two 14-year-old girls to work as prostitutes. In July 2009, Sanderson and Delia transported the girls to hotels in Hartford and East Hartford, Conn., where the girls engaged in sexual conduct with men in exchange for money that was paid either to Sanderson or Delia. The men who paid to engage in sexual conduct with the girls had responded to an advertisement placed on a website by Sanderson by calling a phone that was answered by Delia, who then set up appointments for the girls.
Delia, of East Hartford, Conn., pleaded guilty to two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion on Dec. 7, 2010. Delia’s sentencing is scheduled for June 23, 2011.
Sanderson will be required to pay restitution to the minor victims in an amount to be determined after further court proceedings.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David E. Novick and Trial Attorney Alecia Riewerts Wolak of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section. The investigation was conducted by the FBI and the East Hartford Police Department.
Cincinnati Man Pleads Guilty to Selling More Than $1 Million in Counterfeit Tax Preparation SoftwareRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A Cincinnati man pleaded guilty yesterday to selling more than $1 million worth of counterfeit financial and tax preparation software through an Internet auction site, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Carter Stewart for the Southern District of Ohio; Tracey E. Warren, Acting Special Agent in Charge for the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI); Dugan T. Wong, Assistant Inspector in Charge for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and J. Mark Batts, Acting Special Agent in Charge for the FBI’s Cincinnati Division.
Brandon C. Davis, 31, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Herman J. Weber in the Southern District of Ohio to one count of mail fraud , one count of copyright infringement and two counts of filing a false income tax return.
According to court documents, Davis purchased by downloading or on a CD, Quicken and Turbo Tax software manufactured by Intuit Inc., with accompanying labels and packaging that were protected by copyright. Davis copied the original software multiple times to CDs, without permission, and created counterfeit packaging and labeling for the CDs. According to court documents, Davis sold the counterfeit Intuit software on eBay, received payment and then mailed the counterfeit software to the purchaser via the U.S. Postal Service. Within the packaging, Davis sometimes included a false disclaimer claiming that he was merely acting as a broker for another seller. Davis also falsely represented on the online eBay auctions that he was selling original Intuit software, but instead he sold counterfeit Intuit software, usually at prices below manufacturer’s suggested retail price.
Davis failed to report the income from the counterfeit software sales when he filed his income tax returns for 2008 and 2009.
At sentencing, Davis faces maximum penalties of 20 years in prison for the mail fraud charge, five years in prison for the copyright infringement charge and up to three years in prison for each tax charge. Davis agreed to a money judgment and tax lien of $80,074 and to pay restitution in an amount to be determined by the court. He also agreed to forfeit all computer items used to manufacture and distribute the fake software, a 2006 Hummer and $192,117 that was seized from his bank accounts. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 22, 2011.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy S. Mangan of the Southern District of Ohio and Trial Attorney Tara M. Swaminatha of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section.
The enforcement action announced today is an example of efforts being undertaken by the Department of Justice Task Force on Intellectual Property (IP Task Force). Attorney General Eric Holder created the IP Task Force to combat the growing number of domestic and international intellectual property crimes, protect the health and safety of American consumers, and safeguard the nation’s economic security against those who seek to profit illegally from American creativity, innovation and hard work. The IP Task Force seeks to strengthen intellectual property rights protection through heightened criminal and civil enforcement, greater coordination among federal, state and local law enforcement partners, and increased focus on international enforcement efforts, including reinforcing relationships with key foreign partners and U.S. industry leaders. To learn more about the IP Task Force, go to www.justice.gov/dag/iptaskforce
California Man Pleads Guilty to Filing False Liens Against Federal EmployeesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Thanh Viet Jeremy Cao of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., pleaded guilty today in Las Vegas before Judge Kent J. Dawson to six counts of filing false liens against employees and officers of the federal government, the Justice Department, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Office of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) announced.
According to the plea agreement, Cao was a named defendant in a civil fraud action brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) related to an investment scheme; he was also identified as the owner of an asset seized by the U.S. Secret Service related to this fraud. Cao was additionally under investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California and the U.S. Secret Service for criminal offenses arising from the investment scheme, and also was under investigation by the IRS-Criminal Investigation Division for tax returns he prepared for himself and others that claimed large refunds based upon fictitious tax withholdings.
In response to these proceedings and investigations, Cao filed 22 false liens in the public records of the state of Nevada and Clark County, Nev., against SEC attorneys, U.S. District Court Judges, U.S. District Court Magistrate Judges, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California, Assistant U.S. Attorneys, U.S. Secret Service special agents and special agents of the IRS. Each lien alleged that the lien victims were “debtors” of Cao for hundreds of millions of dollars. According to the plea agreement, Cao admitted that all 22 liens were false and agreed that the liens should be expunged from the public record.
Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 21, 2011 in Las Vegas.
This case was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation and TIGTA, and prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Christopher Strauss and Joseph Rillotta of the Department of Justice’s Tax Division.
More information about the Justice Department’s Tax Division and its enforcement efforts can be found at www.usdoj.gov/tax.
6 June 2011
Project Safe Childhood Operation Announced Following Indiana Man’s Guilty Plea to Multiple Child Exploitation OffensesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – David R. Bostic, of Bloomington, Ind., pleaded guilty today to multiple charges of sexual exploitation of children relating to his participation in an international conspiracy to sexually exploit children through the trading of child pornography, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Hogsett of the Southern District of Indiana and Michael Welch, Special Agent in Charge for the FBI’s Indianapolis Division. To date, a related operation has led to the identification and apprehension of 20 suspects in the United States and abroad and the rescue of more than a dozen children.
Bostic, 25, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson in the Southern District of Indiana. Law enforcement agents arrested Bostic on Nov. 17, 2010, following the execution of a search warrant at his residence in Bloomington, which uncovered evidence that Bostic produced child pornography and was a member of a group that traded sexually explicit images of children, primarily babies and toddlers. Within days of his arrest, an operation was launched to identify and apprehend other members of the group.
According to court documents, Bostic engaged in the sexual exploitation of children on multiple occasions to produce sexually explicit images of the minors, including four females, between the ages of two months and three years, as well as a male who was four years old. Bostic distributed the images to the group with whom he traded child pornography.
“David Bostic and his co-conspirators committed horrific acts of abuse and exploitation against infants and toddlers, and then distributed images of these acts to others around the world,” said Assistant Attorney General Breuer. “The crimes to which Mr. Bostic pleaded guilty today are among the most heinous imaginable, and we are aggressively pursuing others in connection with this operation. We will deal swiftly and harshly with predators who exploit the most vulnerable in our society.”
“Among the most important missions of this office is to keep Hoosier children safe from those who would prey upon them,” said U.S. Attorney Hogsett. “The production of child pornography is a heinous crime against a child, because it perpetuates the sexual abuse of that child for as long as the images exist, particularly where, as here, the images are distributed to like minded individuals. This then fuels the twisted fantasies of those individuals, and endangers children around them.”
“This investigation required the cooperation of local, state, federal and international law enforcement partners,” said Special Agent in Charge Welch. “These partners will continue to aggressively pursue those who would do harm to the most innocent victims of all and to ensure there is no safe haven on the internet for pedophiles.”
Bostic is charged in two separate cases filed under seal in February 2011 and unsealed today at his plea hearing. A criminal information charges Bostic with 36 counts of the sexual exploitation of children for his production of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. An indictment charges Bostic with one count of conspiracy to distribute child pornography, one count of conspiracy to sexually exploit children through the international trading of child pornography, 22 counts of distribution of child pornography and five counts of sexual exploitation of children. The indictment also charges Domminich Shaw, 31, a resident of the United Kingdom; Richard Szulborski, 20, of East Texas, Penn.; Shaun Kuykendall, 32, of Summerville, S.C.; and two other individuals currently charged only as Person 1 and Person 3.
Bostic pleaded guilty to all counts in the criminal information and indictment. Bostic faces a minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and maximum sentence of 30 years in prison for each count of sexual exploitation of children and conspiracy to commit sexual exploitation of children, 10 years in prison for each count of possession of child pornography, and 20 years in prison for each count of distribution of child pornography and conspiracy to distribute child pornography. Bostic also faces a lifetime of supervised release and up to a $250,000 fine.
The other defendants charged in the indictment are pending trial. They are presumed innocent and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steven D. DeBrota and A. Brant Cook of the Southern District of Indiana and Trial Attorney Michael Grant of the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. The case was investigated by the FBI; the Indiana State Police; the Kokomo, Ind., Police Department; and the Brownsburg, Ind., Police Department.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov .
Latin Kings Member Sentenced to Life in Prison for <br /> Racketeering Conspiracy, Murder, Robbery and Gun OffensesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Chinua Shepperson, aka “Nu,” “NuNu” and “King Nu,” 28, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today in Greenbelt, Md., by U.S. District Judge Alexander Williams to life plus 10 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise known as the Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation (Latin Kings), murder in aid of racketeering, robbery, using a gun during a crime of violence and murder resulting from use of a gun during a crime of violence.
The sentence was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Theresa R. Stoop of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - Baltimore Field Division; Chief J. Thomas Manger of the Montgomery County, Md., Police Department; Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy; Interim Chief Mark Magaw of the Prince George’s County, Md., Police Department; and Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Angela Alsobrooks.
According to court documents, the Latin Kings is a violent street gang with thousands of members across the country and overseas. The Latin Kings have a detailed and uniform organizational structure, which is outlined – along with various “prayers,” codes of behavior and rituals – in a written “manifesto” widely distributed to members throughout the country. Members of the Latin Kings are also traditionally given “King Names” or “Queen Names,” which are names other than their legal names by which they are known to members of the gang and to others. At the local level, groups of Latin Kings are organized into “tribes,” including the Royal Lion Tribe, MOG, Sun Tribe and UTL.
According to evidence presented during Shepperson’s two-week trial, Shepperson conspired with other Latin Kings members to engage in gang activities from a date unknown until November 2009. Specifically, according to evidence presented at trial, Shepperson and other gang members participated in the armed robbery of a prostitute at a motel in Laurel, Md., on Dec. 14, 2007. In addition, evidence at trial showed that on April 25, 2008, Shepperson conspired with other gang members to rob John Realpe Montoya of cocaine and fatally shot him several times in the head, behind the Marylander Condominiums in Langely Park, Md. Shepperson was convicted at trial on March 14, 2011.
All 18 co-defendants previously pleaded guilty to the racketeering conspiracy.
The ATF-led Regional Anti-Gang Enforcement (RAGE) Task Force, which includes the Gaithersburg, Md., Police Department; the Montgomery County Department of Police; the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office; the Prince George’s County Police Department; the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney’s Office; the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office; the Maryland National Capital Park Police - Prince George’s County Division; and the Maryland State Police; s well as the New York City Police Department , the U.S. Secret Service and the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation provided assistance in the investigation and prosecution.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emily Glatfelter and David Salem, and Trial Attorney Lara M. Peirce with the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section.
Justice Department Resolves Citizenship Status Discrimination <br /> Claim Against Canvas CorporationRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a settlement agreement with Canvas Corporation, a vending company based in Woodbury, N.Y., that contracts with various concessionaires at stadiums around the United States , to settle allegations that Canvas Corporation engaged in a pattern or practice of citizenship status discrimination by preferring to hire only U.S. citizens.
The case originated when a lawful permanent resident responded to a Canvas Corporation job advertisement seeking U.S. citizen applicants for vendor positions. According to the department’s findings, Canvas Corporation rejected the resident because she is not a U.S. citizen. Under the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), a person or entity may not discriminate against certain protected individuals in the hiring process based on their citizenship status unless required by law, regulation, executive order, or government contract. The department’s investigation revealed that Canvas Corporation posted several job advertisements requiring U.S. citizenship and had a pattern or practice of rejecting non-U.S. citizen applicants, even though U.S. citizenship was not legally required.
Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Canvas Corporation has agreed to pay $10,397 in back pay to the charging party, and $13,400 in civil penalties. Canvas Corporation has also agreed to receive training on the INA’s anti-discrimination provision and to maintain and submit designated employment records to the United States for the two-year term of the agreement.
“Federal law protects people who are authorized to work in the United States from facing discriminatory barriers when they are seeking employment,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The department is committed to protecting the right to work through the enforcement of the anti-discrimination provision of the INA and to educating the public about their rights and responsibilities.”
The Civil Rights Division’s Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC) is responsible for enforcing the INA anti-discrimination provision, which prohibits employers from discriminating against work-authorized individuals on the basis of citizenship status or national origin in hiring, firing, recruitment or referral for a fee.
For more information about protections against employment discrimination under federal immigration law, call OSC’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TDD for hearing impaired), OSC’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-362-2735, TDD for hearing impaired), or 202-616-5594; email [email protected] ; or visit the website at www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc/ .
Federal Court Bars Philadelphia Tax Firm and Owner from Preparing Federal Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A federal court has barred a Philadelphia tax preparation firm and its owner from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today. Friday James, who according to the government complaint is from Landsdowne, Pa., and his business agreed to the permanent injunction order without admitting the allegations against them.
The court had preliminarily enjoined the defendants earlier this year after finding that James “negligently or willfully understated tax liability on many of the federal income tax returns he prepared for his clients.” In a memorandum accompanying that injunction order, the court identified James’s business as Frika Tax Services in Philadelphia. At that time the court found that James had claimed the first-time-homebuyer tax credit for customers who did not qualify for it and claimed deductions for business and miscellaneous expenses that were “erroneous, unrealistic or unreasonable.”
In the permanent injunction order, the court required James to provide the government with a list of names and identifying information for all persons for whom he prepared federal tax returns or refund claims for tax years 2008 through 2010.
Return preparer fraud is one of the Internal Revenue Service’s “Dirty Dozen” tax scams for 2011. In the past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of tax fraud promoters and unscrupulous tax return preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department website .
California Man Sentenced to Four Years in Prison for Conspiring to Violate the Clean Air ActRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The owner and manager of a California condominium complex were sentenced today for conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act’s asbestos work practice standards during the renovation of a 204-unit apartment building in Winnetka, Calif., in 2006 – work that caused asbestos to be released into the complex and the surrounding community.
Charles Yi, of Santa Clarita, Calif., was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson to four years in prison. John Bostick, also of Santa Clarita, was sentenced to six months home confinement, 150 hours of community service, and three years probation. Yi was convicted after a two week trial in March 2011 when a jury found him guilty of five felony offenses, including conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act. Bostick pleaded guilty in February 2011 to conspiracy to violate the Clean Air Act.
The jury also convicted Yi of failing to notify the Environmental Protection Agency and the South Coast Air Quality Management District about a renovation containing asbestos, failing to provide a properly trained person during a renovation containing asbestos, failing to properly remove asbestos and failing to properly dispose of asbestos wastes.
Yi was the owner of the now-defunct Millennium Pacific Icon Group and Bostick was its vice-president. Millennium Pacific owned the Forest Glen apartment complex in Winnetka that was being converted into condominiums in 2006. Knowing that asbestos was present in the ceilings of apartments in the Forest Glen complex, Yi, Bostick, and the project manager, Joseph Yoon, hired a group of workers who were not trained or certified to conduct asbestos abatements. The workers scraped the ceilings of the apartments without knowing about the asbestos and without wearing any protective gear. The illegal scraping resulted in the repeated release of asbestos-containing material throughout the apartment complex and the surrounding area because Santa Ana winds were blowing during the time of the illegal work. After the illegal asbestos abatement was shut down by an inspector from the South Coast Air Quality Management District, the asbestos was cleaned up at a cost of approximately $1.2 million. Yoon pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges in June 2010. Yoon is scheduled to be sentenced in July 2011.
The federal Clean Air Act requires those who own or supervise the renovation of buildings that contain asbestos to adhere to certain established work practice standards. These standards were created to ensure the safe removal and disposal of the asbestos and the protection of workers.
The case against Yi, Bostick and Yoon was investigated by the EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division, the California South Coast Air Quality Management District and the California Department of Toxic Substances Control. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bayron T. Gilchrist of the Environmental Crimes Section and Senior Trial Attorney David P. Kehoe of the U.S. Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division.
Attorney General Eric Holder Welcomes Donald B. Verrilli Jr. <br /> as Solicitor General of the United StatesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder today welcomed Donald B. Verrilli Jr. as the next Solicitor General of the United States. Verrilli was confirmed today by the U.S. Senate, 72-16. President Obama nominated Verrilli in January 2011.
“I’m honored today to welcome Don back to the department as the next Solicitor General of the United States,” said Attorney General Holder. “He will play a vital role in enforcing the nation’s laws, determining the cases in which Supreme Court review will be sought by the government and formulating the positions the government will take before the court.”
The Attorney General also thanked Principal Deputy Solicitor General Neal Katyal for serving as Acting Solicitor General for the past year.
“Neal has served with distinction and integrity as Acting Solicitor General, and I am grateful for his dedication to the country,” the Attorney General said.
The Office of the Solicitor General supervises and conducts government litigation in the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as considers all cases decided adversely to the government in the lower courts to determine whether they should be appealed and, if so, what position should be taken. The Solicitor General leads the government’s oral arguments before the Supreme Court. The United States is involved in approximately two-thirds of all the cases the U.S. Supreme Court decides on the merits each year.
Since February 2010, Verrilli has served in the White House Legal Counsel’s office as a senior and deputy counsel to the President. Prior to that, Verrilli served as Associate Deputy Attorney General at the department from February 2009 to January 2010.
Verrilli entered private practice in 1988, spending more than two decades at Jenner & Block LLP in Washington, D.C., where his practice focused on First Amendment, telecommunications, and intellectual property law, as well as pro bono matters. He also held numerous leadership positions at Jenner & Block, including serving as a member of the firm’s governing Policy Committee and as chair of its Diversity Committee.
At Jenner & Block, Verrilli was co-chair of the firm’s Supreme Court practice group from 2000 until his departure in 2009. He has participated in more than 100 cases before the Supreme Court and has argued twelve. He also has participated in approximately 90 cases in the U.S. Courts of Appeal and state supreme courts, arguing over 30 of these appeals.
Verrilli has also served for over 15 years as an adjunct professor of constitutional law at the Georgetown University Law Center, focusing on First Amendment law. Verrilli received the Frederick Douglass Award from the Southern Center for Human Rights in 2006, and the Arthur Von Briesen Award from the National Legal Aid and Defenders Association in 2004.
He served as a law clerk to the Hon. William J. Brennan, Jr. of the U.S. Supreme Court and to the Hon. J. Skelly Wright of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
Verrilli received his J.D. from Columbia Law School where he was a Kent Scholar and Editor-in-Chief of the Columbia Law Review, and received a B.A. with honors from Yale University.
Attorney General Eric Holder Welcomes Denise O'Donnell as Director of Bureau of Justice AssistanceRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder today welcomed Denise O’Donnell as the Justice Department’s Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). O’Donnell was sworn in today following President Obama’s appointment in December 2010.
“I am pleased to welcome Denise back to the Department of Justice,” said Attorney General Holder. “She will play a critical role in providing the necessary tools and resources to state, local and tribal authorities to strengthen communities and our criminal justice system.”
The BJA Director advises and assists the Attorney General and the Department of Justice in formulating and implementing departmental policies and programs to better support state, local and tribal law enforcement across the country. BJA provides leadership, services, and funding to communities by streamlining the administration of grants; offering training and technical assistance to prevent crime, drug abuse, and violence; and developing collaborative partnerships between federal, state, local and tribal authorities.
In 1985, O’Donnell joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of New York as a criminal prosecutor. She was promoted to Appellate Chief in 1990 and named First Assistant U.S. Attorney in 1993. As First Assistant, O’Donnell worked on the national investigation that developed crucial evidence against Timothy J. McVeigh, who was convicted of orchestrating the 1995 bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building.
O’Donnell was appointed U.S. Attorney by President Bill Clinton in 1997 and became the first woman ever to hold the position of top federal prosecutor in upstate New York. She served as vice chair of the U.S. Attorney General’s Advisory Committee in Washington, D.C., where she was a member of the Investigations & Intelligence, Northern Border and Civil Rights subcommittees. In her role as U.S. Attorney for the Western District of New York, O’Donnell helped establish a program to prevent housing discrimination and was instrumental in creating the first Hate Crimes Task Force in the Western District of New York.
O’Donnell entered private practice in 2001, becoming a litigation partner at Hodgson Russ LLP. At Hodgson Russ, she concentrated on government investigations; health care law; civil fraud and false claims act litigation; money laundering and financial crimes; and corporate ethics and compliance.
In recent years, O’Donnell has served as the New York State Deputy Secretary for Public Safety, overseeing 11 homeland security and criminal justice agencies. She also has served on the Conviction Integrity Advisory Panel for the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office; the Criminal Justice Council of the New York City Bar Association; and the Criminal Justice Section of the New York State Bar Association.
O’Donnell has also taught at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo and served as a lecturer with the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Education.
A native of Buffalo, N.Y., O’Donnell was the first person in her family to graduate from college. She obtained a master’s degree in social work from SUNY Buffalo, and she graduated summa cum laude from the University at Buffalo Law School.
3 June 2011
New Jersey Waste Management Company, Owner and Three Others Arrested for Illegal Dumping Conspiracy in Upstate New YorkRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The owner of a New Jersey solid waste management company and three of his associates were arrested today on federal charges that they conspired to transport and dump thousands of tons of asbestos contaminated debris at an upstate New York farm containing wetlands, announced Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and Richard S. Hartunian, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of New York.
Julius DeSimone, 69, of Rome, N.Y., Donald Torriero, 54, of Wellington, Fla., Cross Nicastro II, 59, of Frankfort, N.Y., and Dominick Mazza, 60, of Tinton Falls, N.J., were arrested for the illegal dumping in Frankfort in 2006, as detailed in the seven count indictment. Dominick Mazza’s New Jersey-based company, Mazza & Sons Inc., was also indicted. Arrests were made at residences in New York, New Jersey and Florida early today. The defendants made their initial appearances in federal courts in the Northern District of New York, Southern District of Florida, and District of New Jersey. The arraignment has tentatively been set for June 13, 2011, in Syracuse, N.Y.
The indictment describes a scheme to illegally dump thousands of tons of asbestos-contaminated, pulverized construction and demolition debris that was processed at Eagle Recycling’s and Mazza & Sons Inc.’s, New Jersey-based solid waste management facilities. That asbestos-contaminated debris was then transported to and dumped at Cross Nicastro II’s farm in Frankfort – much of which contained federally-regulated wetlands. Dumping and excavating operations were managed on-site by Julius DeSimone.
According to court documents, Donald Torriero and other conspirators concealed the illegal dumping by fabricating a New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) permit and forging the name of a DEC official on the fraudulent permit. Once the conspirators learned that they were under investigation, they began a systematic pattern of document concealment, alteration and destruction by destroying and secreting documents responsive to grand jury subpoenas and falsifying and submitting environmental sampling to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The indictment charges the defendants with conspiracy to defraud the United States, violate the Clean Water Act and Superfund laws, and commit wire fraud. Donald Torriero is also charged with wire fraud associated with his fabrication and transmission of the fake permit the conspirators used to conceal the dumping. Mazza & Sons Inc., and its owner, Dominick Mazza, are charged with violating the Superfund law’s requirement to report the release of toxic materials and obstruction of justice. Dominick Mazza and Julius DeSimone are charged with making false statements to EPA special agents. This indictment is related to the guilty pleas entered by Jonathan Deck and Eagle Recycling on Sept. 3, 2009 and April 11, 2011 respectively.
The conspiracy and substantive Clean Water Act, Superfund, and false statements counts of the indictment each carry a maximum possible term of incarceration of five years and a fine of $250,000, twice the gross gain to the defendants, or twice the gross loss to a victim. The obstruction of justice and wire fraud counts of the indictment each carry a maximum possible term of incarceration of 20 years and similar fines.
An indictment is a mere accusation and all defendants are presumed innocent until and unless convicted in a court of law.
This case was investigated by criminal investigators with the New York State Environmental Conservation Police, Bureau of Environmental Crimes; special agents from the EPA's Criminal Investigation Division and the Internal Revenue Service; investigators from the New Jersey State Police, Office of Business Integrity Unit; the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection; and the Ohio Department of Environmental Protection. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig A. Benedict, of the Northern District of New York, and Todd W. Gleason of the Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.
Former Senator and Presidential Candidate John Edwards Charged for Alleged Role in Scheme to Violate Federal Campaign Finance LawsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - A federal grand jury today returned a six-count indictment against former U.S. Senator and Presidential candidate John Edwards for allegedly participating in a scheme to violate federal campaign finance laws, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney George E.B. Holding for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
The indictment, returned in the Middle District of North Carolina, charges Johnny Reid Edwards, 57, of Chapel Hill, N.C., with one count of conspiracy to violate the federal campaign finance laws and to make false statements to the Federal Election Commission (FEC); four counts of accepting and receiving illegal campaign contributions from two donors in 2007 and 2008; and one count of concealing those illegal donations from the FEC. Edwards is scheduled to make his initial appearance in federal court in Winston-Salem, N.C., at 2:30 p.m. EDT before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick Auld.
“Today, a federal grand jury returned a six-count indictment against former Senator John Edwards for violating federal election laws during his campaign for President of the United States,” said Assistant Attorney General Breuer. “Mr. Edwards is alleged to have accepted more than $900,000 in an effort to conceal from the public facts that he believed would harm his candidacy. As this indictment shows, we will not permit candidates for high office to abuse their special ability to access the coffers of their political supporters to circumvent our election laws. Our campaign finance system is designed to preserve the integrity of democratic elections – for the presidency and all other elected offices – and we will vigorously pursue abuses of the kind alleged today.”
“Democracy demands that our election system be protected, and without vigorously enforced campaign finance laws, the people of this country lose their voice,” said U.S. Attorney Holding. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Department of Justice are committed to the prosecution of individuals who abuse the very system of which they seek to become a part.”
“Public servants are held to the same laws as everyone else in this country. The position sought does not exempt anyone, even those running for President of the United States,” said Chris Briese, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in North Carolina.
“Public officials hold positions of trust and get no free pass to ignore the law,” said Victor S. O. Song, Chief, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation (CI). “Today’s indictment demonstrates IRS’ commitment to work with our law enforcement partners to ensure our public officers remain trustworthy and adhere to the highest levels of integrity.”
According to the indictment, while a candidate for President of the United States, Edwards conspired with other individuals to accept and receive campaign contributions in excess of limits imposed by the Federal Election Act in an effort to protect and advance his candidacy from disclosure of an ongoing extra-marital affair and the resulting pregnancy. The indictment alleges that between 2007 and 2008, Edwards accepted and received more than $900,000 as part of this effort.
The Federal Election Act limits the amount an individual may contribute to any candidate for federal elected office in order to limit the influence any one individual may have on the outcome of a federal election. The Federal Election Act established that the most one individual could contribute for the 2008 presidential primary election was $2,300. According to the indictment, the Federal Election Act’s contribution limit applies to anything of value provided for the purpose of influencing a federal election, including contributions to a candidate and his/her campaign; expenditures made in cooperation, consultation or concert with, or at the request or suggestion of, a candidate or his/her campaign; and payments for personal expenses of a candidate unless those payments would have been made irrespective of his/her candidacy.
The Federal Election Act, according to the indictment, also requires each presidential campaign committee to file periodic campaign finance reports with the FEC, which are made available to the public. In these reports, the committees were required to identify each person who, during the relevant reporting period, contributed more than $200 to the committee, along with the date and the amount of the contribution. According to the indictment, these reports are intended to provide citizens with a transparent record of the amount and sources of all campaign contributions and to assist voters in making informed decisions at the polls.
According to the indictment, the payments at issue were used to facilitate Edwards’ extra-marital affair, and to conceal it and the resulting pregnancy from the public. The indictment alleges that the funds were used to pay for the living and medical expenses of the individual with whom Edwards was having the affair, and to pay for the travel and accommodations necessary to hide this individual from the news media and the public so that Edwards’ candidacy would not be damaged. According to the indictment, Edwards knew that the public revelation of the affair and pregnancy would undermine his image and force his campaign to divert personnel and resources away from campaign activities to respond to criticism and media scrutiny.
The indictment alleges that Edwards and his co-conspirators concealed the alleged unlawful contributions from the FEC and the public by causing the John Edwards for President Committee to file with the FEC false and misleading campaign finance reports that failed to disclose the illegal contributions.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
If convicted, Edwards faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the conspiracy charge. He faces five years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each count of accepting and receiving illegal campaign contributions, and a maximum of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the charge of concealing the alleged illegal donations.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert J. Higdon Jr. and Brian S. Meyers of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina, as well as Deputy Chief Justin V. Shur and Trial Attorneys David V. Harbach II and Jeffrey E. Tsai of the Public Integrity Section in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. The case is being investigated by the FBI and IRS-CI.
Edwards Indictment
Florida Man Pleads Guilty to Three Counts <br /> of Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Wesley William Brandt, 46, of Davenport, Fla., pleaded guilty today to three counts of production of child pornography, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida Robert E. O’Neill and Susan McCormick, Special Agent-in-Charge for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Brandt pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas G. Wilson in the Middle District of Florida. According to court documents and proceedings, in February 2008, Brandt, posing as a 17-year-old boy, began communicating online with a 13-year-old girl from Colorado. During these communications and through the use of other online personas, Brandt threatened and coerced the Colorado victim to produce sexually explicit photographs of herself and her 6-year-old sister. Specifically, Brandt threatened to create a public website and post sexually explicit images of the victim if she did not send him additional sexually explicit images of herself. Brandt was also introduced to the 13-year-old female cousin of the Colorado victim and similarly threatened and coerced her to produce sexually explicit photographs of herself. A subsequent search of Brandt’s home yielded computers and computer storage devices containing multiple images of child pornography.
For each count, Brandt faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, as well as the possibility of lifetime supervised release. Brandt also faces a fine of $250,000.
This case was investigated by ICE’s HSI . This case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Andrew M. McCormack of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Stacie B. Harris of the Middle District of Florida.
2 June 2011
Two New Jersey Dietary Supplement Companies and Their Principals Found Guilty of Criminal ContemptRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A Trenton, N.J., jury Wednesday found Paterson, N.J.-based dietary supplement companies Quality Formulation Laboratories Inc. and American Sports Nutrition Inc., as well as their owner, Mohamed S. Desoky, and managers Ahmad Desoky Esq. and Omar Desoky, guilty of multiple counts of criminal contempt of court for violating a consent decree, the Justice Department announced today. The decree was entered by the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey on March 16, 2010. The decree, which resolved a civil action filed by the Justice Department as the result of an investigation by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), mandated Mohamed S. Desoky and the two companies shut down all manufacturing and distribution activities of food products.
The defendants’ businesses manufactured and distributed food products and supplements, including many varieties of protein powder mixes, as well as other powder mixes and dietary supplements. The products were distributed under the American Sports Nutrition brand and many other private labels to locations throughout the United States.
The complaint in the civil case that led to court order alleged that the defendants, which included Mohamed S. Desoky, Quality Formulation Laboratories Inc., and American Sports Nutrition Inc., adulterated food by manufacturing it without following FDA’s regulations regarding current good manufacturing practice (CGMP) requirements, and causing the adulteration of food by preparing it under insanitary conditions whereby it may have become contaminated with filth (as a result of rodent activity) or may have been rendered injurious to health (as a result of cross-contamination with a major food allergen).
The complaint alleged that the defendants caused misbranding of food because the food contained a major food allergen (milk) not declared on the product labels. The civil complaint went on to allege that defendants’ failure to have adequate sanitizing and cleaning operations and follow their own procedures for manufacturing products on dedicated equipment, may have led to food being contaminated with this major food allergen by virtue of "cross-contamination" or "cross-contact" in the manufacturing process. The civil complaint alleged that during an FDA inspection of the defendant’s facility in December 2008 and January 2009, FDA investigators observed a dead rodent - cut in half- on a blender motor platform; a dead rodent, surrounded by rodent excreta pellets in an area used to store near-finished product; and, on two occasions, a live rodent running through the blending room. Additionally, the complaint alleged that investigators observed bags of raw ingredients that were gnawed through by rodents and covered in rodent urine and excreta pellets.
The consent decree that settled the civil action required that defendants shut down their manufacturing operation and not reopen there or elsewhere without first correcting these violations and getting FDA’s approval to reopen. The criminal contempt charges alleged that Ahmad Desoky and Omar Desoky, with knowledge of the court’s order, assisted their father, Mohamed S. Desoky, in violating the order, and thus were criminally liable for the violations even though they were not named as defendants in the original civil case.
The petition for criminal contempt charged all five defendants with violating the decree almost immediately upon its entry by setting up operations at a separate location in Congers, N.Y., to which they transported their employees and equipment. In addition, the petition alleged that the defendants violated the decree by failing to notify FDA of this relocation of their operations. All five defendants were found guilty of these charges.
The petition also alleged that Quality Formulation Laboratories Inc., Mohamed S. Desoky, Ahmad Desoky and Omar Desoky continued receiving and manufacturing operations at their Paterson facility despite the court’s order. These defendants were found guilty of this charge as well.
Finally, the petition alleged that Quality Formulation Laboratories Inc., Mohamed S. Desoky and Ahmad Desoky received and distributed product at their Paterson facility between September 2010 and January 2011, in violation of the court’s order. The jury found these defendants guilty of this count.
“When those responsible for manufacturing and distributing food and nutritional supplements don’t follow the FDA’s standards, the health and safety of the American people are put at risk,” said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. “These defendants thumbed their noses at a court order to shut down and clean up their facility – a facility that was plagued with cross-contamination, living and dead rodents, and other unsanitary conditions. The jury’s verdict sends a strong message to those who seek to ignore court orders enforcing important food safety laws.”
The prosecution of these defendants was handled by the Trial Attorneys David Sullivan and Patrick Runkle of the Justice Department’s Office of Consumer Protection Litigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Howard Wiener of the District of New Jersey. Shannon Singleton, FDA Associate Chief Counsel for Enforcement, supported the matter, which was investigated criminally by the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, New York Field Office, and civilly by the FDA’s New Jersey District Office.
Sentencing has been scheduled by the court for Sept. 7, 2011.
Pasadena, Texas, Man Pleads Guilty for Role in Murder SchemeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A Pasadena, Texas, man pleaded guilty today to charges related to a homicide that took place in Atascosa County, Texas, in May 2008, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney John E. Murphy for the Western District of Texas.
Frank Lavelle Urbish Jr., 39, aka “Thumper,” pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez to committing a violent crime in aid of racketeering activity. Specifically, Urbish accepted responsibility for his role in the murder of Mark Davis Byrd Sr.
According to information presented in court, Urbish was a member of the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas (ABT), a powerful race-based, statewide organization that operates inside and outside of state and federal prisons throughout Texas and the United States. The ABT enforces its rules and promotes discipline among its members, prospects and associates through murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to murder, assault, robbery and threats against those who violate the rules or pose a threat to the enterprise. Members, and oftentimes associates, are required to follow the orders of higher-ranking members, often referred to as “direct orders.”
According to court documents, Byrd, an ABT prospect member, was murdered by Jim Flint McIntyre, 43, aka “Q-Ball,” of Houston, and Michael Dewayne Smith, 30, aka “Bucky,” of Houston, for allegedly stealing drugs he was ordered to deliver to a customer on behalf of the ABT. According to court documents, Byrd was murdered as a result of a “discipline” ordered by Urbish. Byrd’s body was discovered in Atascosa County on May 4, 2008.
Smith, an ABT member, pleaded guilty on May 11, 2011, to murder and conspiracy to commit murder in the racketeering-related death of Byrd. McIntyre, a fellow ABT gang member, pleaded guilty to the same charges on Feb. 11, 2011.
At sentencing, Urbish, Smith and McIntyre all face life in prison. Sentencing for Urbish is scheduled for Sept. 7, 2011. Smith is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 17, 2011, and McIntyre is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 19, 2011.
This case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Texas Rangers; the Texas Department of Public Safety; the Atascosa County Sheriff’s Department; and the Beaumont, Texas, Police Department.
The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney David Karpel of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Shearer for the Western District of Texas, in full cooperation with the Atascosa County District Attorney’s Office.
New York Battery Manufacturer to Pay $2.7 Million for False Pricing Information Provided to U.S. ArmyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Newark, N.Y.-based Ultralife Corporation, formerly known as Ultralife Batteries Inc., has agreed to pay $2.7 million to resolve allegations that the battery manufacturer violated the False Claims Act, the Justice Department announced today.
The settlement resolves allegations that the Upstate New York company failed to provide current, accurate and complete cost and pricing data related to three contracts with the U.S. Army to provide Ultralife’s lithium-manganese dioxide non-rechargeable batteries that are used in a variety of military applications. In each of the three contracts at issue, Ultralife was alleged to have knowingly provided government contracting personnel with false certifications concerning the company’s cost and pricing information, which was not current, accurate and complete as required by law. As a result of the defective price disclosures, the Army paid inflated prices for the batteries it purchased.
“Contractors who improperly pass inflated costs on to the American taxpayers undermine the public’s trust,” said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This case demonstrates the Justice Department’s commitment to holding accountable contractors who attempt to overcharge the government for purchases.”
“Those who work for the government as contractors have a duty of honesty to the American taxpayers, said U.S. Attorney for the Western District of New York William J. Hochul Jr. “We will continue to use the False Claims Act and all other civil legal tools at our disposal to address contractors that seek to avoid their disclosure obligations when selling products to the United States government.”
“The American taxpayer expects the Department of Defense and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service to be champions of fiscal accountability and acquisition integrity,” said Edward T. Bradley, Special Agent in Charge, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Northeast Field Office. “Today’s settlement is evidence of the commitment of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service to vigorously investigate procurement fraud allegations."
The case was handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York and the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. The investigation was conducted by the Defense Contract Audit Agency, the DCIS and the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command.
Justice Department Settles Lawsuit with Maricopa County Sheriff’s OfficeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today announced that it has entered in to a court-enforceable agreement with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) and Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio resolving a longstanding dispute over access to information related to the department’s Title VI investigation of the sheriff’s office. The settlement comes after MCSO allowed officials from the Justice Department to conduct more than 220 interviews and review hundreds of thousands of pages of documents. Prior to the litigation, MCSO refused to cooperate in full with the investigation.
On Sept. 2, 2010, the department filed a lawsuit after exhausting all cooperative measures to gain access to MCSO’s documents and facilities, as part of the department’s investigation of alleged discrimination in MCSO’s police practices and jail operations. Since March 2009, the department attempted to secure voluntary compliance with the department’s investigation and did not receive full compliance until the lawsuit was filed.
MCSO has now cooperated with the investigation by permitting the department to interview Sheriff Arpaio, command staff, deputies, detention officers and first line supervisors, as well as jail inmates. MCSO has also allowed tours of its facilities and has responded to each of the department’s original document requests. Under the terms of the agreement, MCSO will continue to provide the department with access to sources of information that the department determines are pertinent to its Title VI investigation.
“After numerous requests for access to information, the department was forced to resort to litigation to compel the sheriff’s office to provide us with full access to facilities, staff and documents, as required by federal law,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “We are pleased that since the filing of our lawsuit, the sheriff’s office has reversed course and provided the department with information we have been seeking. Today’s settlement shows that the Department of Justice is ready to take action against any recipient of federal funds that fails to cooperate with a civil rights investigation.”
“This is a positive development after delay upon delay by the Sheriff’s Office,” said Dennis Burke, U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona. “We are working aggressively to review the facts and complete this investigation.”
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination in federally assisted programs on the ground of race, color or national origin. Recipients of federal funds, such as MCSO, are obligated to provide the department with access to information and facilities pertinent to an investigation under Title VI. The department’s investigation of MCSO involves alleged violations of the prohibition on national origin discrimination in Title VI; the pattern or practice provisions of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968; and the pattern or practice provisions of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994.
The department’s investigation remains open and ongoing. For more information on the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt
Former Owner of Illinois Technology Companies Pleads Guilty in Multi-State Scheme to Defraud the Federal E-Rate ProgramRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A former owner of two Illinois-based technology companies has pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to defraud the federal E-Rate program by providing bribes and kickbacks to school officials in Arkansas, Illinois and Louisiana, the Department of Justice announced today.
Gloria Harper was originally charged in U.S. District Court in New Orleans on Nov. 18, 2010, for her role in the conspiracy to defraud the E-Rate program. Harper, a former co-owner of Global Networking Technologies Inc. (GNT) and former owner of Computer Training Associates (CTA), pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in New Orleans to the conspiracy charges.
As a result of the Antitrust Division’s investigation into fraud and anticompetitive conduct in the E-Rate program, including today’s plea, a total of seven companies and 24 individuals have pleaded guilty, been convicted at trial or entered civil settlements. Those companies and individuals have been sentenced to pay criminal fines and restitution totaling more than $40 million. Fifteen individuals have been sentenced to serve jail time.
The department said that Harper, who acted on her own behalf and on behalf of GNT and CTA, participated in the conspiracy beginning on or about December 2001 through September 2005. According to the court document, Harper participated in the conspiracy to provide bribes and kickbacks to school officials and employees responsible for the procurement of Internet access services at certain schools in Arkansas, Illinois and Louisiana. In return, those individuals ceded control of the E-Rate competitive bidding process to Harper and a co-conspirator, ultimately allowing them to ensure E-Rate contracts at these schools were awarded to their companies.
The schools and school districts affected by the conspiracy are: in Arkansas – Gould and Holly Grove public school districts; in Illinois – Antioch Center, Fairfield Center, Ingleside Center, St. Mary’s Center, Waukegan Center, Zion Center and Niles Terrace Center; and in Louisiana – All Saints School, St. Augustine High School, St. David School and St. Monica School.
The E-Rate program was created by Congress in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, and is administered by the Universal Service Administrative Company, under the oversight of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The program provides subsidies to economically disadvantaged schools and libraries. Depending on the financial needs of the applicant schools, the program pays 20 to 90 percent of the cost for Internet access and telecommunications services, as well as internal computer and communications networks.
Harper is charged with conspiracy, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 criminal fine for individuals. The maximum fine may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either amount is greater than the statutory maximum fine.
The plea announced today resulted from an investigation by the Department of Justice Antitrust Division’s Dallas Field Office, the FBI’s Dallas Field Office and the FCC’s Office of Inspector General, with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana. Anyone with information concerning violations of the E-Rate program is urged to call the Antitrust Division’s Dallas Field Office at 214-661-8600 or visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm.
Federal Court Bars Florida Man from Promoting Alleged “Form 1099-OID” Tax Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A federal court in Ft. Meyers, Fla., has barred Gregory Boone of Riverview, Fla., from promoting an alleged tax fraud scheme, the Justice Department announced today. Boone consented to the civil injunction order without admitting the allegations against him.
The government complaint alleged that Boone, who allegedly uses the business names Provident Holdings International LLC and PHI LLC, promoted an abusive tax scheme in which he filed false Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Forms1099-OID to assist his customers in submitting federal income tax returns containing false claims for tax refunds. The complaint further alleged that Boone filed nearly 5,000 false tax forms and that the IRS issued at least eight erroneous refunds totaling $1.2 million. The court’s order bars Boone from preparing tax forms for others and requires him to provide his customers with a copy of the injunction order.
Claiming bogus tax refunds based on false Forms 1099-OID is one of the IRS’s “Dirty Dozen” tax scams for 2011. The Justice Department recently announced the filing of criminal charges against a resident of Lauderhill, Fla., in connection with her alleged participation in a fraudulent tax refund scheme involving false Forms 1099-OID.
In the past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained hundreds of injunctions to stop the promotion of tax fraud schemes and the preparation of fraudulent returns. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department website.
1 June 2011
Two Former Shenandoah, Pennsylvania, Police Officers Sentenced for Falsifying Information About the Beating of a Latino ManRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced that Matthew Nestor and William Moyer were sentenced today for falsifying information related to the investigation into the beating death of Luis Ramirez. Ramirez died on July 14, 2008, as a result of injuries he suffered after being attacked by four high school football players from Shenandoah, Pa., three of whom were convicted of federal hate crimes related to Ramirez’s death and were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 55 months to 9 years.
On Jan. 27, 2011, a federal jury found Nestor, the former chief of the Shenandoah Police Department, guilty of filing a report that contained materially false information with the intent of misleading the federal investigation. Moyer, the former lieutenant at the Shenandoah Police Department, was found guilty of making false statements to FBI agents concerning information provided by a witness at the scene.
Nestor was sentenced today to 13 months in prison, followed by one year of supervised release. Nestor was also ordered to pay a $100 special assessment and perform 50 hours of community service. Moyer was sentenced to three months in prison, followed by one year supervised release. Moyer was also ordered to pay a $100 special assessment and perform 20 hours of community service.
“Americans rely on their law enforcement officials to protect public safety and serve justice, but these officers chose to obstruct the very investigation they were charged with conducting,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. “The Department of Justice will take action against anyone who interferes with the enforcement of our hate crimes laws, especially when those interfering with such enforcement are also violating their oaths to uphold the law.”
This case was investigated by the FBI, and was prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Myesha Braden and Shan Patel of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
Pittsburgh Crips Gang Member Pleads Guilty to Racketeering ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A Pennsylvania man pleaded guilty today in federal court to charges of conspiring to conduct a racketeering enterprise related to his membership in a Pittsburgh Crips criminal enterprise, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney David J. Hickton of the Western District of Pennsylvania.
Nicklas Gay, 23, aka “GK,” pleaded guilty before Senior U.S. District Judge Gustave Diamond to one count of conspiracy to engage in a racketeering conspiracy.
According to the guilty plea, Gay and others participated in a pattern of racketeering activity that included multiple acts involving robberies at gun point; attempted murders; distribution of controlled substances, including cocaine, heroin and crack cocaine; and acts of obstruction of justice and witness intimidation.
According to court documents, Gay was a member of the Northview Heights/ Fineview Crips, a criminal street gang operating out of the Northview Heights public housing facility in the Northside neighborhood, and in the nearby Fineview neighborhood of Pittsburgh. The gang had been operating in Northside since 2002, and in 2003 it formed an alliance with the Brighton Place Crips to expand the gang’s drug trafficking territory and increase the gang’s capability for violence. The Brighton Place Crips is a criminal street gang formed in the early 1990s that controlled the area of Brighton Place and Morrison Street, also known as the Mad Cave, and Federal Street in the Northside area of Pittsburgh.
The Brighton Place/Northview Heights Crips gang maintained exclusive control over drug trafficking in these neighborhoods through continuous violence and intimidation of rivals and witnesses. Members of the gang support each other through payment of attorneys’ fees and bonds, as well as payments to jail commissary accounts and support of incarcerated members’ families.
In addition, the Brighton Place/Northview Heights Crips gang maintains an ongoing feud with the Manchester Original Gangsters, a criminal street gang located in the Manchester area of the Northside Section of Pittsburgh. Brighton Place/Northview Heights Crips gang members identify themselves by wearing blue, using Crips gang hand signals, and using phrases such as “Cuz,” “C-Safe,” “Loc” and “G.K.” According to court documents, members and associates of the gang obtain greater authority and prestige within the gang based on their reputation for violence and their ability to obtain and sell a steady supply of illegal drugs.
According to court documents, Gay acted as a “hustler” or distributor of controlled substances including heroin, cocaine and crack cocaine, for the gang. He also acted as a “soldier/ gorilla” or enforcer for the gang, providing protection for the enterprise through the commission of violent crimes.
Also today, Michael Wade, 25, aka “Swade,” and Michael Henson, 29, aka “Henne,” members of the Northview Heights/ Brighton Place Crips, were sentenced to 70 and 110 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in the criminal enterprise. Wade and Henson pleaded guilty on Feb. 2, 2011, and Feb. 1, 2011, respectively, to one count of conspiracy to engage in racketeering before Judge Diamond.
Gay, Wade and Henson are three of 26 defendants charged in February 2010 with being members of, and conducting racketeering activity through, the Brighton Place/Northview Heights Crips gang. This prosecution resulted from a Project Safe Neighborhoods Task Force investigation that began in 2005. To date, more than half of the Brighton Place/ Northview Heights Crips members who were charged in this indictment have pleaded guilty to racketeering charges.
Gay faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 7, 2011, at 11:00 a.m. EDT.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Charles A. Eberle and Troy Rivetti of the Western District of Pennsylvania and Trial Attorney Kevin Rosenberg of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section. The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the city of Pittsburgh Bureau of Police; the Allegheny County, Penn., Police Department; and the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office.
National Advisory Committee on Violence Against Women <br /> Holds Meeting in Washington, D.C.Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Susan B. Carbon, Director of the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW), will convene the second meeting of the National Committee on Violence Against Women (NAC) on THURSDAY, JUNE 2, 2011 at 9:00 A.M. EDT.
The NAC was chartered to provide Attorney General Eric Holder and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius with practical and general policy advice concerning improvements to the nation’s response to violence against women. The NAC’s members will continue deliberations and dialogue focused on children and youth exposed to violence and successful intervention and prevention strategies.
The agenda for the meeting includes facilitated discussions and presentations from experts, advocates and federal agency representatives on issues affecting children and youth, their families and communities.
WHO: Susan B. Carbon, Director, Office on Violence Against Women
National Advisory Committee Members attending the meeting include:
Dr. Jeffrey L. Edleson, Maria Jose Fletcher, Neil Irvin,
Amber Johnson, Monika Johnson Hostler, Debbie Lee,
Betsy McAlister Groves, Carol Post, Francine Sherman,
The Honorable Melvin Stoof, Jerry Tello, Joe Torre,
Gabrielle Union, Dr. Sujata Warrier WHAT: Opening Session and Interview Availability
National Committee on Violence Against Women Meeting WHERE: The Fairfax at Embassy Row
Ballroom
2100 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington
OPEN PRESS WHEN: THURSDAY, JUNE 2, 2011
9:00 A.M. – 10:30 A.M. EDT
Media Interviews
10:30 A.M. EDTNOTE: All media must present government-issued photo I.D. (such as a driver’s license) as well as valid media credentials. Media interested in interviewing National Advisory Committee Members MUST contact Joan LaRocca at 202-307-6873.
Justice Department Reaches Agreement with Louisiana Private School to Ensure Effective Diabetes Care for StudentsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON-- The Justice Department today announced a settlement agreement with the Alexandria Country Day School in Alexandria, La., to resolve allegations that the school denied a six-year-old girl with Type I diabetes admission to the school after her parents requested that the school supervise her in daily diabetes care practices . The parents said they had asked the school to supervise their daughter in her testing her blood glucose level and administering insulin using her insulin pump, in addition to other daily diabetes care practices. Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability, including diabetes, in private schools.
According to the agreement, the school will not discriminate against individuals with, and will ensure that reasonable modifications to the policies and procedures will be made where necessary to ensure students with diabetes are provided an equal opportunity to attend and to participate in all programs, services or activities. The school will evaluate the application of each child with diabetes applying to attend the school on a case by case basis, and will make reasonable modifications to permit children with diabetes to participate in the programs.
“Schools have a responsibility to make reasonable modifications to policies so that all students with disabilities can enjoy their programs and activities, unless doing so would result in a fundamental alteration in the program,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “I applaud the school for working with us to address this matter, and we hope this agreement serves as a reminder for other private schools about the requirements of the ADA.”
“I congratulate the school administration for dealing with this serious issue which affects so many members of our community,” said Stephanie A. Finley, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Louisiana. “ The U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Department and the Obama Administration are committed to ensuring that all individuals in this country can go to schools, public and private, and participate in all of the programs that are available .”
Today’s settlement follows an amicus curiae brief filed by the department on May 13, 2011, in a case before the California State Supreme Court that challenges a federal court settlement agreement between the American Diabetes Association and the State Superintendant of Education.
That agreement allowed professional school employees to be trained and then to monitor administration of insulin for students with diabetes in certain situations when a school nurse is not available. Many California schools have no nurses due to budget constraints, and without this agreement some students likely would not receive insulin doses that are both medically necessary and required by federal laws protecting students with disabilities. The American Nurses Association filed the case challenging the agreement, arguing that a nurse must be present in all situations to monitor insulin administration. The department’s brief addresses the question of whether California’s Nursing Practice Act, as interpreted by the California Court of Appeals and applied to this case, is preempted by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, Title II of the ADA, or the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
The department’s brief argued that under the conditions described in the settlement, federal law requires that a trained school professional be permitted to administer insulin. Interpretation of state nurse practitioner acts may also affect people with disabilities who need basic assistance with health or physical conditions to live independently, where basic assistance can be provided by trained, non-medical personnel.
The enforcement of the ADA is a top priority of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt.
Justice Department Files Suit Against Colorado Couple for Face Act ViolationsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today filed a civil complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado against Kenneth and JoAnn Scott for violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE Act).
According to court documents, from August 2009 to the present, Kenneth Scott has engaged in 10 separate incidents of physical obstruction against patients and staff attempting to enter or exit the Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains (PPRM) facility in Denver. In addition, JoAnn Scott has used physical force against two different individuals seeking to obtain reproductive health services at the PPRM. The FACE Act prohibits the use of force against, or the physical obstruction of, any person providing or obtaining reproductive health services, or those seeking to do so, with the intent to intimidate or interfere with that person.
“The law protects the rights of individuals who seek to obtain or provide reproductive health services to do so without hazardous physical obstructions and the fear of physical assaults,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The right to free speech does not include the right to physically obstruct or use force against individuals seeking or providing reproductive health services, and we will continue to aggressively enforce the FACE Act.”
This civil action was filed by the Civil Rights Division Special Litigation Section Deputy Chief Julie Abbate and Trial Attorneys Je Yon Jung and Aaron Fleisher.
Florida and Arkansas Residents Charged for Involvement<br /> in Multi-Million Dollar Fraudulent Tax Refund SchemeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Laura Barel of Lauderhill, Fla., has been charged with one count of filing a false claim and two counts of aiding and abetting the filing of a false claim, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. The federal complaint against Barel was unsealed on May 24. In a related case, a federal grand jury returned an indictment on May 25, 2011, charging Philip Butcher, formerly of Rogers, Ark., with two counts of filing false claims.
The complaint against Barel alleges that she recruited clients on behalf of co-conspirator #1 and two entities -- PMDD Services and Forever Grace. According to the complaint, co-conspirator #1 has prepared at least 275 fraudulent individual tax returns for clients around the United States during 2008 and 2009. These returns collectively requested more than $120 million in fraudulent refunds. Some of these refunds were paid by the IRS, others were not. The complaint alleges that the IRS has paid out more than $4.7 million as a result of the scheme.
The complaint states that co-conspirator #1 held herself out to be a professional tax preparer and collected information from clients pertaining to all of their debt obligations such as credit card debt, car loans, mortgage obligations and lines of credit. Co-conspirator #1 took the amounts of the outstanding debts and created fraudulent tax documents which she titled “Form 1099-OID Original Issue Discount.” She would create fraudulent Forms OID purporting to convert taxpayers’ debts into interest income purportedly withheld by the lender. The taxpayers reported the withheld income as interest income on their Form 1040. As a result, the taxpayers were owed astronomical refunds because the entire amount of the OID “income” was reported as withheld taxes – not just a portion to cover the taxes owed, as is common with a taxpayer’s Form W-2. In other words, this OID scheme fraudulently inflated the taxpayer’s income and withheld income to create a fraudulent and enormous refund purportedly due to the taxpayer.
The complaint alleges that co-conspirator #1 and PMDD Services required that their clients pay 10 percent of any refund received from the IRS back to PMDD Services. According to the complaint, Barel then received 1.5 percent of the total refund, which was deposited into a bank account controlled by her. The complaint also alleges that Barel filed her own fraudulent OID tax return requesting a refund of $662,906.
Phillip Butcher, a client of PMDD Services and a former resident of Rogers, Ark., was indicted by a grand jury in Fort Smith, Ark., for filing a 2008 individual income tax return which sought a fraudulent tax refund of $672,781. According to the indictment, PMDD Services prepared the tax return and filed false Forms 1099-OID with the IRS on Butcher’s behalf. The indictment further alleges that Butcher paid more than $67,000 to PMDD Services shortly after receiving his refund. The indictment also alleges that after Butcher received the fraudulent $672,781 refund he requested on his first tax return, he filed an amended 2008 individual income tax return claiming an additional fraudulent refund of $1,456,696.
If convicted, Barel faces a maximum potential sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum fine of $750,000. Butcher faces a maximum potential sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $500,000.
A complaint and an indictment are merely allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
More information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/tax/.
Florida Physician Sentenced to Four Years in Prison for Fraudulent Lobbying and Fund Raising ConspiracyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON — A Florida physician was sentenced today to four years in prison for his role in a fraud scheme involving lobbying and fund raising for political candidates and organizations, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
Alan D. Mendelsohn, 52, of Broward County, Fla., was also ordered by U.S. District Judge William J. Zloch to serve two years of supervised release following his prison term. Mendelsohn pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy on Dec. 10, 2010.
According to courts documents, Mendelsohn entered into an agreement with a lobbyist and campaign consultant to create political entities for the purpose of raising money in support of political parties and candidates for political office in Florida. Between 2002 and 2007, Mendelsohn engaged in various lobbying activities that raised several million dollars in contributions for these political organizations, as well as for a pre-existing political entity for which Mendelsohn was an officer.
In pleading guilty, Mendelsohn admitted that from 2003 through 2008, he and his co-conspirator agreed to siphon approximately $330,000 from the political entities in direct and third party payments for Mendelsohn’s benefit. Mendelsohn also admitted that from 2003 through 2005, he caused certain lobbyists and, in some cases, their clients to make contributions totaling $50,000 to a private school his children attended in exchange for lobbying services. The funds were then used to pay tuition for Mendelsohn’s children. Mendelsohn caused another client to send a $75,000 wire transfer to a car dealer to purchase a car for Mendelsohn’s personal use, in exchange for his lobbying services. As Mendelsohn admitted, none of this income was reported to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as required.
From 2003 through mid-2006, Mendelsohn also admitted that he knowingly mischaracterized personal expenses totaling approximately $163,770 as business deductions, which had the result of illegally reducing the amount of income paid to Mendelsohn that his medical practice reported to the IRS in each of those years.
In total, Mendelsohn underreported his taxable income by more than $600,000 based on the various schemes. Moreover, Mendelsohn admitted that he caused the political entities, as well as certain corporations used to facilitate the conspiracy, to file false federal tax returns and information, and required state disclosure reports that mischaracterized these payments.
As part of the scheme, Mendelsohn also admitted that from 2003 through 2005, he and his co-conspirator used $82,000 from the political entities to make multiple payments to a person associated with a Florida state senator. Mendelsohn admitted that he knew some or all of the payments were benefitting the public official by allowing the public official to receive money without paying taxes on the money.
In addition, Mendelsohn admitted that beginning in late April and early May 2007, he contacted a Florida businessman, who previously had made large contributions to the political entities at Mendelsohn’s request, to solicit additional contributions that would be used by one of the entities to support a candidate for the Florida legislature. According to court documents, in order to persuade the contributor to make the payments, Mendelsohn told the contributor that he had reached an agreement with a senior public official in the Florida state government to use his office to have federal authorities close an investigation of the contributor and his businesses. Mendelsohn admitted that his representation to the contributor was false and that, at various times, he falsely told the contributor that the official and an intermediary were taking action on the contributor’s behalf. Ultimately, the contributor provided Mendelsohn with two checks totaling $150,000, made payable to one of the political entities.
Finally, Mendelsohn admitted that he falsely told FBI agents that the $75,000 payment for the car was a gift and not income from lobbying services. Similarly, Mendelsohn admitted that he lied to FBI agents when he claimed that he had never received any personal benefits from the political entities for which he raised money.
This case was prosecuted by Senior Trial Attorney Mary K. Butler, Trial Attorney Eric G. Olshan and Deputy Chief Justin V. Shur of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section. This case was investigated by the Miami Division of the FBI and the Criminal Investigation Division of the IRS.
31 May 2011
Two Iraqi Nationals Indicted on Federal Terrorism Charges in KentuckyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON -- An Iraqi citizen who allegedly carried out numerous Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attacks against U.S. troops in Iraq and another Iraqi national alleged to have participated in the insurgency in Iraq have been arrested and indicted on federal terrorism charges in the Western District of Kentucky.
The arrests in Bowling Green, Ky., and the criminal complaints and indictment unsealed today were announced by Todd Hinnen, Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security; David J. Hale, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky; Elizabeth A. Fries, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Louisville Division; and the members of the Louisville Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF).
Waad Ramadan Alwan, 30, and Mohanad Shareef Hammadi, 23, both former residents of Iraq who currently reside in Bowling Green, were charged in a 23-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Bowling Green on May 26, 2011. Alwan is charged with conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals abroad; conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction (explosives) against U.S. nationals abroad; distributing information on the manufacture and use of IEDs; attempting to provide material support to terrorists and to al-Qaeda in Iraq; as well as conspiracy to transfer, possess and export Stinger missiles. Hammadi is charged with attempting to provide material support to terrorists and to al-Qaeda in Iraq, as well as conspiracy to transfer, possess and export Stinger missiles.
Alwan and Hammadi were arrested on May 25, 2011, on criminal complaints and made their initial appearances today in federal court in Louisville, Ky. Each faces a potential sentence of life in prison if convicted of all the charges in the indictment. Both defendants were closely monitored by federal law enforcement authorities in the months leading up to their arrests. Neither is charged with plotting attacks within the United States.
“Over the course of roughly eight years, Waad Ramadan Alwan allegedly supported efforts to kill U.S. troops in Iraq, first by participating in the construction and placement of improvised explosive devices in Iraq and, more recently, by attempting to ship money and weapons from the United States to insurgents in Iraq. His co-defendant Mohanad Shareef Hammadi is accused of many of the same activities. With these arrests, which are the culmination of extraordinary investigative work by law enforcement and intelligence officials, the support provided by these individuals comes to an end and they will face justice,” said Todd Hinnen, Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security.
“The filing of these charges in Bowling Green, Kentucky, underscores the readiness of federal law enforcement authorities and our partners in the Joint Terrorism Task Forces to effectively pursue and prosecute terrorists wherever in the United States they may be found,” said David J. Hale, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky. “Whether they seek shelter in a major metropolitan area or in a smaller city in Kentucky, those who would attempt to harm or kill Americans abroad will face a determined and prepared law enforcement effort dedicated to the investigations and prosecutions necessary to bring them to justice. The dismantling of terrorist networks is the first priority of this office and the Department of Justice.”
“These arrests were the culmination of extremely well-coordinated, diligent and tireless efforts by the FBI and our law enforcement partners working on the JTTFs. My thanks to all those who assisted in this case,” said Elizabeth A. Fries, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Louisville Division. “I want to remind the public that the FBI is responsible for protecting the civil rights of all persons in our communities. Just as we vigorously investigate terrorism cases, the FBI will vigorously pursue anyone who targets Muslims or their places of worship for backlash-related threats or violence in the wake of these arrests.”
According to the charging documents, Alwan entered the United States in April 2009 and has lived in Bowling Green since his arrival. Hammadi entered the United States in July 2009 and, after first residing in Las Vegas, moved to Bowling Green.
Prior Activities in Iraq
In September 2009, the FBI launched an investigation into Alwan. Later, the FBI began using a confidential human source (CHS) who met with and engaged in recorded conversations with Alwan, beginning in August 2010, and with Hammadi, beginning in January 2011. In a number of meetings with the CHS, Alwan allegedly discussed his prior activities as an insurgent in Iraq from 2003 until his capture by Iraqi authorities in May 2006, including his use of IEDs and sniper rifles to target U.S. forces and details about various attacks in which he participated.
For example, in recorded conversations with the CHS, Alwan allegedly stated that he used to procure explosives and missiles while an insurgent in Iraq; that his insurgent group conducted strikes daily; and that he used IEDs in Iraq hundreds of times. At one point, Alwan allegedly drew diagrams of four types of IEDs for the CHS and provided verbal instructions on how to build these devices. He also discussed occasions in which
he had used these types of IEDs against U.S. troops. Asked whether he had achieved results from these devices in Iraq, Alwan allegedly replied, “Oh yes,” mentioning that his attacks had “f--ked up” Hummers and also targeted Bradley fighting vehicles.
According to the charging documents, the FBI has been able to identify two latent fingerprints belonging to Alwan on a component of an unexploded IED that was recovered by U.S. forces near Bayji, Iraq. Alwan had allegedly advised the CHS that he lived in that area of Iraq and worked at the power plant in Bayji. Alwan had also allegedly told the CHS how he had used a particular brand of cordless telephone base station in IEDs. Alwan’s fingerprints were allegedly found on this particular brand of cordless base station in the IED that was recovered in Iraq.
In additional conversations with the CHS, Alwan also described IED attacks on U.S. troops that he participated in with others, including an associate whom Alwan said had lost an eye when an IED exploded prematurely. According to the charging documents, U.S. forces recovered an unexploded IED near Bayji from which a latent fingerprint belonging to this associate was later recovered. The charging documents allege that this associate was detained by U.S. troops in June 2006 and had a false eye.
The charging documents also allege that Hammadi has discussed his prior experience as an insurgent in Iraq and has told the CHS about prior IED attacks in Iraq in which he participated. In one conversation with the CHS, Hammadi allegedly described how he had been arrested in Iraq, explaining that authorities captured him after the car he was driving in got a flat tire shortly after he and others had placed IEDs in the ground.
Activities in the United States
According to the charging documents, beginning in September 2010, Alwan expressed interest in helping the CHS provide support to terrorists in Iraq. The CHS explained that he shipped money and weapons to the mujahidin in Iraq by secreting them in vehicles sent from the United States. Thereafter, Alwan allegedly participated in operations with the CHS to provide money, weapons – including machine guns, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, Stinger missiles and C4 plastic explosives – as well as IED diagrams and advice on the construction of IEDs, to what he believed were the mujahidin attacking U.S. troops in Iraq.
For instance, in November 2010, Alwan allegedly picked up machine guns and rocket-propelled grenade launchers from a storage facility in Kentucky and delivered them to a designated location believing they would be shipped to al-Qaeda in Iraq. In January 2011, the charging documents allege, Alwan recruited Hammadi to assist in the material support activities. Alwan allegedly described Hammadi to the CHS as a relative of his whose work as an insurgent in Iraq was well known.
Later that month, Alwan and Hammadi allegedly delivered money to a tractor-trailer, believing the money would ultimately be shipped to al-Qaeda in Iraq. In February 2011, the pair allegedly assisted in the delivery of additional weapons, including sniper rifles and inert C4 plastic explosives, to a tractor-trailer believing that these items would be shipped to al-Qaeda in Iraq. Finally, in March 2011, Alwan and Hammadi allegedly picked up two inert Stinger missiles from the storage facility and delivered them to a tractor-trailer believing these items would be shipped to al-Qaeda in Iraq.
Neither the Stinger missiles nor any of the other weapons or money delivered by Alwan or Hammadi in connection with the CHS in the United States were provided to al-Qaeda in Iraq, but instead were carefully controlled by law enforcement as part of the undercover operation.
In closing, Mr. Hale noted, “Let me be clear that this is not an indictment against a particular religious community or religion. Instead, this indictment charges two individuals with federal terrorism offenses.”
Mr. Hale commended the investigative efforts of the Louisville Division of the FBI and the Louisville JTTF, which is comprised of the following full-time member agencies: Louisville Metro Police, Kentucky State Police, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Marshals Service. Also assisting were full-time members of the Lexington JTTF, which includes the University of Kentucky Police and Lexington-Fayette County Police. The U.S. Department of Defense also provided assistance in this investigation, as well as U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Bowling Green Police Department.
The prosecution is being handled by Trial Attorney Larry Schneider from the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bryan Calhoun and Mike Bennett from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky.
The public is reminded that charges contained in an indictment or criminal complaint are merely allegations, and that defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Kansas Man Convicted of Visa FraudRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A Kansas man who previously resided in Rwanda was convicted today of visa fraud, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director John Morton.
After a five-week trial and three days of deliberation, a federal jury in the District of Kansas found Lazare Kabaya Kobagaya, 84, of Topeka, Kan., guilty of one count of visa fraud. The jury was unable to reach a verdict with regard to one count of immigration fraud, resulting in the court declaring a mistrial on that count.
Based on court documents and information presented at trial, the jury found that Kobagaya lied during his immigration process about where he resided from 1993 to 1995. The government alleged that Kobagaya lied when he stated that he lived in Burundi rather than Rwanda during this time period. During trial, the government argued that the lie was material because it prevented the government from examining Kobagaya’s activities during the 1994 genocide that occurred in Rwanda.
Kobagaya faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.
The case was prosecuted by Senior Trial Attorneys Christina P. Giffin, Steven C. Parker and Deputy Chief Robert G. Thomson of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section (HRSP), with support from Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Metzger for the District of Kansas. The case was investigated by ICE Homeland Security Investigations Resident Agent in Charge in Wichita, Kan.
Justice Department Settles Allegations of Immigration-Related Employment Discrimination Against American Academy of PediatricsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today reached a settlement agreement with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), an organization of 60,000 pediatricians based in Elk Grove Village, Ill., resolving allegations that the organization impermissibly allowed postings on its www.PedJobs.org website that limited applications to U.S. citizens and certain visa holders. AAP has agreed to pay $22,000 in civil penalties.
According to the department’s findings, PedJobs’ employment postings for doctors, nurses and other professionals impermissibly limited applications to U.S. citizens and certain visa holders, even though other work authorized immigrants should have been allowed to apply as well. The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) generally prohibits recruiters or referrers for a fee from discriminating on the basis of citizenship status.
Under the terms of the settlement agreement, AAP will monitor its job postings to ensure that work authorized individuals are treated equally. AAP has also agreed to train its PedJobs personnel about its non-discrimination responsibilities under the INA, and to provide periodic reports to the department for three years.
“No one who has the right to work in the United States should be deterred from applying for a job because of a discriminatory posting,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “Companies that derive revenue from job postings have responsibilities under the anti-discrimination provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act, and we look forward to working with those companies to achieve and to maintain compliance.”
The INA includes a provision designed to protect work-authorized immigrants . When Congress enacted this provision as part of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, it sought to strike a balance between immigration worksite enforcement and the civil rights of workers. While employers are banned from hiring unauthorized workers, they must also treat all work-authorized individuals the same regardless of citizenship status or national origin.
The Civil Rights Division’s Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC) is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA, which protects work authorized individuals against discrimination in hiring, firing and recruitment or referral for a fee on the basis of citizenship status and national origin. The INA also protects all work-authorized individuals from discrimination in the employment eligibility verification process and from retaliation.
For more information about protections against employment discrimination under federal immigration law, call OSC’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TDD for hearing impaired), OSC’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TDD for hearing impaired); e-mail [email protected] ; or visit OSC’s website at www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc .
Justice Department Reaches Americans with Disabilities Act Settlement with Wells FargoRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today a comprehensive settlement agreement under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with Wells Fargo & Company to ensure equal access for individuals with disabilities to Wells Fargo’s services nationwide, including its nearly 10,000 retail banking, brokerage and mortgage stores, over 12,000 ATMs, and its telephone and website services.
The agreement resolves numerous ADA complaints filed by individuals who are deaf, are hard of hearing or have speech disabilities who allege that Wells Fargo would not do business with them over the phone using a telecommunications relay service. Instead, the individuals were directed to call a TTY/TDD line that asked them to leave a message, which went unanswered. Wells Fargo started addressing these customers’ concerns before the Justice Department investigation began. Once the department opened an investigation, Wells Fargo worked cooperatively to achieve a comprehensive settlement addressing all ADA issues in its retail banking and financial services.
“Individuals who have disabilities must not be denied equal access to the services offered by financial institutions simply because of their disability. Wells Fargo has shown that it is committed to equal access and effective communication with its customers who have disabilities,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The department is aware that other major financial institutions are refusing to communicate with individuals with disabilities who use relay services to communicate by telephone. These refusals are discrimination, and other financial institutions must follow Wells Fargo’s example and accept relay calls immediately.”
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to working with the Civil Rights Division to help ensure that businesses in this district fully comply with the ADA,” said Melinda Haag, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California, which is where Wells Fargo is headquartered.
Wells Fargo will pay up to $16 million to compensate individuals harmed by certain violations of Title III of the ADA. The department will be administering a claims process to distribute these funds. Individuals who believe they were harmed by Wells Fargo’s failure to comply with ADA requirements may get information about filing a claim by sending an email to [email protected] or by calling 1-866-708-1273 (voice) or 1-866-544-5309 (TTY). Information on the claims process is also available on the ADA home page at www.ada.gov .
Wells Fargo will also pay a $55,000 civil penalty to the United States. In addition, Wells Fargo affirms its commitment to advancing the interests of individuals with disabilities by paying a total of $1 million in charitable donations to non-profit organizations that will assist veterans with disabilities resulting from injuries sustained while serving in Iraq or Afghanistan to live independently in the community.
Finally, the agreement requires Wells Fargo to take the following steps to improve access for customers with disabilities:
- Remove physical barriers to access, as required, at its retail stores across the nation and remedy all other instances of discrimination under Title III of the ADA that are identified during the claims process.
- Provide appropriate auxiliary aids and services, including qualified sign language interpreters, computer-assisted real time transcription, qualified readers and documents in Braille, large print, and other alternate formats to persons with disabilities when necessary to ensure effective communication throughout its financial services and programs.
- Adopt and enforce a policy on effective communication with individuals who are deaf, are hard of hearing, are blind or have low vision for all Wells Fargo retail stores and financial services nationwide, post a summary of the policy on its website and distribute the policy to current and new employees and contractors.
- Accept calls made through a relay service operator by customers who are deaf, are hard of hearing or have speech disabilities on an equivalent basis to calls from other customers. This includes eliminating special security provisions applied to relay calls and using the same caller verification procedures whether or not a customer uses a relay service.
- Maintain staffing of phone lines dedicated to TTYs / TDDs, wherever provided, on a basis equivalent to telephone lines that are not dedicated to TTYs / TDDs.
- Ensure that its ATMs and websites are accessible to individuals with disabilities.
- Establish a toll-free ADA comment/complaint line so customers with disabilities have an easy avenue for alerting Wells Fargo to concerns about disability-related problems accessing goods, services and facilities.
- Hire a full-time national ADA coordinator to coordinate Wells Fargo’s efforts to comply with its responsibilities under the ADA and this agreement, including the investigation of ADA complaints received on its ADA comment/complaint line.
- Provide staff training on the ADA and Wells Fargo’s obligations to provide effective communication to individuals with disabilities.
- Post and maintain in a conspicuous location in all Wells Fargo banking stores a notice stating that individuals with disabilities have a right under the ADA to request a sign language or oral interpreter or other auxiliary aids or services.
Title III of the ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities by businesses that serve the public. Among other things, the ADA requires financial institutions, accountants, lawyers, doctors and other businesses to provide auxiliary aids and services that are necessary for effective communication. For individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing, auxiliary aids include qualified sign language or oral interpreters, use of relay services, computer-assisted real time transcription, and, for simple communications, the exchange of written notes. For individuals who are blind or have low vision, auxiliary aids include qualified readers, assistance in filling out forms and written materials provided in alternate formats, such as Braille, large print, audio recordings or accessible electronic formats such as email or HTML.
Those interested in finding out more about this agreement or businesses’ obligations under the ADA may call the Justice Department's toll-free ADA Information Line at (800) 514-0301 or (800) 514-0383 (TDD), or access its ADA website at www.ada.gov. ADA complaints may be filed by email to [email protected]. For the settlement and fact sheet on this announcement, please visit www.ada.gov/wells_fargo/.
- Remove physical barriers to access, as required, at its retail stores across the nation and remedy all other instances of discrimination under Title III of the ADA that are identified during the claims process.
Attorney General Eric Holder, Justice Department and Administration Officials Join with Actors from HBO’s the Wire for Launch of Drug Endangered Children Public Awareness CampaignRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder announced today the launch of a public awareness campaign at a Federal Interagency Drug Endangered Children (DEC) Task Force event to bring attention to the challenges faced by children and families affected by drug abuse and highlight the work being done across the country to address these issues. Following opening remarks by Deputy Attorney General James Cole, Administrator Michele M. Leonhart of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) moderated a panel discussion, featuring Attorney General Holder and actors Jim True-Frost (“Prez”), Wendell Pierce (“Bunk”) and Sonja Sohn (“Kima”) from the HBO hit series, The Wire. Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) Director Gil Kerlikowske delivered closing remarks.
Focused on protecting children from drug abuse and exploitation, the public awareness campaign will emphasize the important role law enforcement officials, health professionals, educators and community leaders play in helping first responders identify whether a child is endangered by drugs, as well as the resources available to assist vulnerable children.
“This public awareness campaign will highlight the risks posed to drug endangered children across the country and empower communities to better serve children exposed to drug abuse, trafficking and addiction by their parent or childcare provider,” said Attorney General Holder. “Protecting youth from exposure to drug abuse is a key priority for this department, and we are unwavering in our commitment to raising awareness about this vital mission and continuing our efforts to assist the most vulnerable victims of the illicit drug industry.”
“In collaboration with our federal, state, local and tribal partners, we are creating a more cohesive strategy to support communities to better respond to the special needs of drug endangered children,” said Deputy Attorney General Cole. “The DEC public awareness campaign will help strengthen our multi-faceted approach to serve children and families devastated by drug abuse.”
“Protecting drug endangered children is an essential tool to combating crime and safeguarding our communities,” said DEA Administrator Leonhart. “Children exposed to drug abuse are more than 50 percent more likely to be arrested as juveniles, so it is critical that we play an active role in preventing children’s exposure to drug abuse, as well as better serving children who are victims of drug abuse when it does occur.”
“Too many of our Nation’s children are at serious risk from drug use and its devastating consequences,” said Gil Kerlikowske, Director of National Drug Control Policy. “This task force will help break the cycle of abuse and neglect by providing vital services for drug endangered children. By offering valuable tools and encouraging collaboration across local organizations, we will be better able to rescue, protect and serve the victims of drug-related crimes.”
The DEC Task Force includes more than eight federal agencies and more than 80 participants. Following the task force’s kick-off meeting in May 2010, the DEC Task Force established multidisciplinary, multijurisdictional teams to assist communities with at-risk children. These teams include representatives from law enforcement, child protective services, health professionals, educators, victim services specialists, child advocates and the courts.
In coordination with the public awareness campaign, the DEC Task Force will launch a website providing resources to federal, state, local and tribal partners to better serve children endangered by drugs. The website can be viewed at: www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/Children.
27 May 2011
Vice President of Fraudulent Physical Therapy Company Pleads Guilty to Medicare FraudRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A Miami-area resident who was an owner and vice-president of a fraudulent physical therapy company in Lakeland, Fla., pleaded guilty today for his role in a scheme to defraud Medicare, the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS) announced. Andres Cespedes, 44, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Pizzo in Tampa to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. According to court documents, Cespedes was the vice-president of Dynamic Therapy Inc. Cespedes and his co-conspirators purchased Dynamic from its prior owners, and transformed it into a fraudulent enterprise. Dynamic purported to provide physical therapy services to Medicare beneficiaries, but in reality obtained patient information through kickbacks and bribes, and billed Medicare for physical therapy that never occurred. According to court documents, from fall 2009 to summer 2010, Cespedes submitted and caused the submission of $757,654 in fraudulent claims to the Medicare program by Dynamic. Cespedes admitted that he and his co-conspirators paid and caused the payment of kickbacks and bribes to Medicare beneficiaries in order to obtain their Medicare billing information, and used it to submit claims to Medicare for physical therapy services that were never provided. According to court documents, the owners and operators of Dynamic also stole the identities of a physical therapist and Medicare beneficiaries in order to submit additional false claims to Medicare. Cespedes admitted that he knew the Medicare beneficiaries, on whose behalf claims were submitted to Medicare by Dynamic, never received the services billed to Medicare. At sentencing, Cespedes faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. A sentencing date has not been set. Today’s guilty plea was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Robert E. O’Neill of the Middle District of Florida; Steven E. Ibison, Special Agent-in-Charge of the FBI’s Tampa Division; and Special Agent-in-Charge Christopher Dennis of the HHS Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Office of Investigations’ Miami office. This case was prosecuted by Acting Assistant Chief Benjamin D. Singer of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Christina M. Burden of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida. The case was investigated by the HHS-OIG, Defense Criminal Investigative Service and FBI, and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida. Since their inception in March 2007, Medicare Fraud Strike Force operations in nine locations have charged more than 1,000 defendants who collectively have falsely billed the Medicare program for more than $2.3 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers. To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.Texas Resident Sentenced to 70 Months in Prison for $17 Million Scheme to Defraud the U.S. Export-Import BankRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – An El Paso, Texas, resident was sentenced yesterday to 70 months in prison for his role in a scheme to defraud the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) of more than $17 million, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division; Osvaldo L. Gratacos, Inspector General of the Ex-Im Bank; and Manuel Oyola-Torres, Special Agent in Charge for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in El Paso.
Jose Velasco, 40, was also sentenced by Judge Reginald Walton in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., to three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $17.9 million in restitution and $17.9 million in forfeiture. Velasco pleaded guilty on Sept. 24, 2010, to a criminal information charging him with one count of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States.
According to court documents, Velasco was the owner of Alamo Freight Forwarding, a company located in El Paso that purported to be a freight forwarding company specializing in the export of heavy equipment to Mexico. Velasco admitted that he and others conspired to defraud the Ex-Im Bank. From April 2004 through November 2007, Velasco purported to act as a freight forwarder in approximately 13 loan transactions with various lending banks whose loans were insured or guaranteed by Ex-Im Bank. The transactions involved a total of approximately $17.9 million. As part of the fraud scheme, Velasco and others prepared and submitted false documents to Ex-Im Bank falsely stating that goods and equipment had been purchased and shipped to buyers in Mexico. Velasco and others prepared false commercial invoices, bills of sale, bills of lading, and false Mexican Customs documents called “Pedimentos.” According to court records, all of the fraudulent loans in which Alamo Freight Forwarding was involved subsequently defaulted, causing Ex-Im Bank to pay claims losses to the lending banks in the amount of $17.9 million.
The case is being prosecuted by Senior Trial Attorney Peter B. Loewenberg and Senior Litigation Counsel Patrick Donley of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. The case is being investigated by the Ex-Im Bank Office of Inspector General and ICE HSI in El Paso.
Federal Court Shuts Down Georgia Tax Return PreparersRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A federal court has permanently barred two women from preparing federal income tax returns for others and from operating their tax preparation business, the Justice Department announced today. Judge J. Randal Hall of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia entered the civil injunction order against Endia Delores Nipper, Jessie Mackie, and their business, TDNS Tax Service, which according to the government complaint, is located in Augusta, Ga. Nipper and Mackie agreed to the entry of the injunction.
In its amended complaint, the government alleged that Nipper fabricated or inflated earned income tax credit claims on tax returns that she prepared for her customers. The government also alleged that Nipper prepared numerous tax returns claiming the credit but failed to comply with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) “due diligence” requirements for verifying whether her customers were eligible for the credit and in what amount.
In the past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained hundreds of injunctions to stop the promotion of tax fraud schemes and the preparation of fraudulent returns. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department website.
EVA Airways Corporation Agrees to Plead Guilty and to Pay $13.2 Million Fine for Price Fixing on Air Cargo ShipmentsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON — EVA Airways Corporation has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $13.2 million criminal fine for its role in a conspiracy to fix prices in the air cargo industry, the Department of Justice announced today.
According to a one-count felony charge filed today in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Taiwan-based EVA participated in a conspiracy to fix particular cargo base rates or fees charged to customers for certain international air shipments, including to and from the United States from at least as early as January 2003 until at least Feb. 14, 2006. Under the plea agreement, which is subject to court approval, EVA has agreed to cooperate with the department’s antitrust investigation.
As a result of the department’s investigation into price fixing in the air transportation industry, including EVA, a total of 22 airlines and 21 executives have been charged. To date, more than $1.8 billion in criminal fines have been imposed and four executives have been sentenced to serve prison time. Charges are pending against the remaining executives.
EVA transports a variety of cargo shipments, including sensitive equipment used to manufacture liquid crystal display (LCD) panels, perishable commodities such as cherries and pet food, and consumer goods, on scheduled flights within Taiwan and internationally, including to and from the United States.
According to the charges, EVA and co-conspirators carried out the conspiracy by agreeing during meetings, conversations and other communications on particular cargo base rates or fees to be charged for certain international air shipments. As part of the conspiracy, the department said that EVA and co-conspirators levied cargo rates in accordance with the agreements reached, and monitored and enforced adherence to the agreed-upon cargo rates.
EVA is charged with price fixing in violation of the Sherman Act, which carries a maximum fine for corporations of $100 million. The maximum fine may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine.
Today’s charge is the result of a joint investigation into the air transportation industry being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s National Criminal Enforcement Section, the FBI’s Washington Field Office, the Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Postal Service’s Office of Inspector General. Anyone with information concerning price fixing or other anticompetitive conduct in the air transportation industry is urged to call the Antitrust Division’s National Criminal Enforcement Section at 202-307-6694, visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm or call the FBI’s Washington Field Office at 202-278-2000.
26 May 2011
Wisconsin Man Charged with FACE Act ViolationsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today that Ralph Lang, 63, Marshfield, Wis., was charged today in a complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Madison, Wis., with attempting to injure, intimidate and interfere with other persons because those persons were providing reproductive health services.
As set out in the complaint, Lang traveled from Marshfield to Madison on May 25, 2011. While loading his handgun, he discharged a bullet through the door of his hotel room into the room across the hall. Madison Police responded and Lang was arrested for reckless endangerment. In statements to police, he admitted that he had traveled to Madison to kill individuals performing abortions. Lang will have his initial appearance in U.S. District Court on Friday, May 27, 2011.
Today’s charge is a result of an investigation conducted by the FBI and the Madison Police Department. Prosecution of this case is being handled by U.S. Attorney John W. Vaudreuil and Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Altman, in conjunction with the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.