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29 January 2025
Mescalero Man Pleads Guilty to Sexual Abuse of a MinorRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A Mescalero man pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a teen 20 years his junior.
According to court documents, Thomas Lee Chaffins, 35, an enrolled member of Mescalero Apache Tribe, admitted to sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl on September 27, 2024, in Otero County, New Mexico, on the Mescalero Apache Indian Reservation.
Chaffins will remain detained pending sentencing, which has not yet been scheduled. At sentencing, Chaffins faces up to 15 years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.
The Las Cruces Resident Agency of the FBI’s Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Assistant United States Attorneys Matilda McCarthy Villalobos and Alyson Hehr are prosecuting the case.
View the Plea Agreement (Chaffins)_3.pdf# # #
Marion Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison for Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Jeffrey Alan Bradley, age 51, from Marion, Iowa, received the prison term after an August 8, 2024 guilty plea to one count of receipt of child pornography.
Evidence in this case demonstrated that Bradley received at least 7,086 images and 1,048 videos of child sexual abuse material. These depictions of child sexual abuse material included prepubescent minors, children engaged in sexual acts with animals, sadistic and masochistic conduct, and infants or toddlers. Bradley used sophisticated software to download these images, which he then organized into folders on his computer hard drive. When Bradley was arrested, he resisted arrest by reaching for a loaded firearm he had stored in his pants, refusing to comply with law enforcement commands, and trying to pull away from officers.
Bradley was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams. Bradley was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment and was ordered to make $39,000 in restitution to the victims in the case. He must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
Bradley is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Devra T. Hake and investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 24-CR-40.
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Lubbock Man Pleads Guilty to Cyber Stalking Ex-GirlfriendRead the Press Release
An 29-year-old man who sent sexually explicit images of his ex-girlfriend to her father, brother, and employer pleaded guilty to cyberstalking, announced acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Chad Meacham.
Huston Tyler McLearen, of Lubbock, was indicted in November 2024. He pleaded guilty Wednesday to cyber staking before U.S. Magistrate Judge Amanda “Amy” R. Burch.
“Cyberstalking is a uniquely vicious crime with devastating impacts on its victims. And unfortunately, online intimidation and harassment can quickly escalate to physical violence,” said U.S. Attorney Chad Meacham. “We applaud this victim for pushing past her fear and shame and reporting her experience to law enforcement. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas is proud to stand up for her.”
"The defendant’s alarming behavior was countered by the bravery of his victim who so courageously reported him to law enforcement despite the threats he made to kill her," said FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners will continue to do everything in our power to seek justice for victims and their families, hold perpetrators accountable and protect others from harm."
According to court documents, in June 2024, Mr. McLearen’s ex-girlfriend – identified in court documents as Jane Doe – submitted a tip to the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center (NTOC) stating that Mr. McLearen had been harassing her, her family, her friends, and her work colleagues.
During an interview with law enforcement, Ms. Doe said that after she broke up with Mr. McLearen and moved out of their shared apartment, he hounded her with texts and calls urging her to kill herself and threatening to share sexually explicit photographs of her online.
Cell phone records confirmed that Mr. McLearen called the victim as many as 39 times per day.
Ms. Doe showed officers social media profiles Mr. McLearen created to share lewd images of her with the public. Officers later uncovered posts in which Mr. McLearen claimed Ms. Doe was “looking for a man that would pay for sex.”
In a recorded phone call, Mr. McLearen admitted to an acquaintance that he also sent nude images of the victim to her own brother and father as well as her employer.
In the same phone call, introduced into evidence at Mr. McLearen’s detention hearing, the defendant described women as devils who deserve to be tortured, killed, and raped, and remarked that if the conditions were right, he would kill Jane Doe.
“It would be a bullet shot going through her window,” he said.
Mr. McLearen now faces up to five years in federal prison. His sentencing date has not yet been set.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Texas Tech University Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Rancourt is prosecuting the case.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline urges victims of cyberstalking to implement a safety plan. For more information, click here or dial 1-800-799-SAFE (7233).
Lowell Man Pleads Guilty to Drug Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Lowell man pleaded guilty yesterday to his role in a drug trafficking conspiracy with the Asian Boyz street gang.
Erickson Dao, a/k/a “Silent,” 32, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 50 grams and more of methamphetamine, and one count of possession with intent to distribute 500 grams and more of cocaine. U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton scheduled sentencing for May 13, 2025.
Dao was a drug supplier in an extensive trafficking network involving Asian Boyz gang member, Bill Phim. Between February 2022 and April 2022, Dao delivered counterfeit pills made to resemble the pharmaceutical product, Adderall, to Phim on at least five occasions. Phim then sold the pills to an undercover federal agent for more than $11,000. Chemical testing confirmed that the pills were not actually Adderall but a dangerous compound of methamphetamine and caffeine, instead. When investigators searched Dao’s residence, they discovered hundreds more counterfeit “Adderall” pills and large quantities of cocaine.
The charges of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 50 grams and more of methamphetamine, and possession with intent to distribute 500 grams and more of cocaine, each provide for a sentence of at least five years and up to 40 years in prison, at least four years and up to life of supervised release, and a fine of up to $5 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
Phim has pleaded not guilty and is pending trial.
U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley, Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division and Superintendent Greg Hudon of the Lowell Police Department made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Billerica, Haverhill, North Andover and Salem Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Fred M. Wyshak, III of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit is prosecuting the case.This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities and measuring the results.
This case is also part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendants in the case are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Lexington Man Sentenced for Fentanyl Trafficking and Conspiracy to Launder Drug ProceedsRead the Press Release
LEXINGTON Ky. – A Lexington man, Jamele Mundy, 35, was sentenced on Monday, to 156 months in prison, by U.S. District Judge Karen Caldwell, for possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, conspiracy to commit money laundering offenses, and concealment money laundering.
According to his guilty plea agreements and other Court records, Mundy participated in a multi-jurisdictional, international money laundering and drug trafficking organization. In doing so, Mundy received kilogram quantities of fentanyl and cocaine base (“crack” cocaine) for distribution in Lexington. In May 2023, DEA executed a search warrant at a stash house being operated by Mundy. There, they seized 3.132 kilograms of fentanyl, 2.314 kilograms of cocaine base, and $67,315 in cash. The residence also contained plastic blenders with drug residue, a metal kilogram press, heat sealing machines, and a digital scale.
Mundy would process these narcotics for further distribution, using the kilogram press and heat-sealing machine at the residence. He would then collect the money from the sale of these drugs and contact his source of supply, to return the proceeds. Mundy participated in this money laundering of drug proceeds by delivering bulk cash to others, who were responsible for converting it to cryptocurrency and sending those proceeds to members of the drug trafficking organization. In February 2023, Mundy delivered $147,540 in drug proceeds for laundering.
Under federal law, Mundy must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence. Upon his release from prison, he will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for five years. Mundy was also required to forfeit the $67,315 that was seized from his residence.
Carlton S. Shier, IV, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, and Jim Scott, Special Agent in Charge, DEA, Louisville Field Division, jointly announced the sentence.
The investigation was conducted by the DEA. Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Bradbury is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
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Leader of a Drug Trafficking Organization Pleads Guilty for Trafficking CocaineRead the Press Release
CONCORD – A man from Puerto Rico, formerly living in Manchester, pleaded guilty today in federal court for leading a conspiracy to distribute cocaine, Acting U.S. Attorney Jay McCormack announces.
Lewistone Baez Miranda, age 50, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, cocaine. Baez Miranda is the third of six defendants charged in this conspiracy to plead guilty. U.S. District Court Judge Joseph Laplante scheduled sentencing for May 7, 2025. The defendant was indicted on December 20, 2023.
According to the plea agreement and statements made in court, the defendant was the leader a drug trafficking organization that shipped cocaine from Puerto Rico to Manchester, New Hampshire. The defendant’s son, based in Puerto Rico, used fictitious information to send packages of cocaine through the United States Postal Service to Manchester at the direction of the defendant. The cocaine was often packaged in 500-gram or 1,000-gram bundles and hidden inside children’s games. The defendant employed co-conspirators to retrieve the packages of cocaine for him in Manchester. The defendant also sent suspected drug proceeds to his son in Puerto Rico, in one instance sending him a parcel containing $11,000. Between September 2020 and December 2021, the defendant’s drug trafficking organization shipped over 5.6 kilograms of cocaine from Puerto Rico to Manchester for redistribution.
The charging statute provides a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, at least three (3) years of supervised release, and a maximum fine of $1,000,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
The United States Postal Inspection Service led the investigation. Valuable assistance was provided by the Manchester Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Gingrande is prosecuting the case.
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Leader of Drug Trafficking Organization Pleads Guilty to Numerous Drug Distribution ChargesRead the Press Release
BOSTON – One of the leaders of a large-scale drug trafficking conspiracy operating in and around the South Shore area of Massachusetts has pleaded guilty to multiple federal drug offenses in federal court in Boston.
Giovanni Pina, 27, of Brockton, pleaded guilty to one count of possessing with intent to distribute and distributing 500 grams and more of methamphetamine; one count of distributing and possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine on a premises where a minor was present and/or resided; and one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, 100 grams or more of a fentanyl analogue and 500 grams or more of cocaine. U.S. Senior District Court Judge William G. Young scheduled sentencing for April 30, 2025. Pina was charged by complaint in February 2023 and subsequently indicted by a federal grand jury in March 2023.
Beginning in at least January 2021 through at least November 2021, Pina served as one of the leaders of a large-scale drug trafficking conspiracy that distributed fentanyl, fentanyl analogue and cocaine in and around the South Shore area – including in the Brockton, Quincy and Weymouth communities. Part of that conspiracy involved a Weymouth “stash house.” During a search of the stash house location in January 2021, two kilo presses; extensive drug paraphernalia, including blenders, digital scales and packaging equipment; more than 10 kilograms of fentanyl, fentanyl analogue and cocaine; three firearms; ammunition; two high-capacity magazines; and a speed loader were recovered.
Additionally, Pina participated in a number of recorded drug deals with a cooperating witness in January and February 2023. One recorded drug deal occurred on or about Jan. 12, 2023, at a residence in Brockton, during which the deal and in the presence of a minor, Pina provided the witness with a box containing orange pills in exchange for cash. Subsequent lab testing confirmed that the pills consisted of over 2,000 grams of a mixture and substance of methamphetamine. On or about Jan. 25, 2023, Pina participated in another recorded drug deal with the cooperating witness in a vehicle in Taunton. During the deal, Pina provided the witness with a box that contained a large amount of orange pills in exchange for cash. Subsequent lab testing confirmed that the pills consisted of over 2,500 grams of a mixture and substance of methamphetamine.
The charge of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, 100 grams or more of a fentanyl analogue and 500 grams or more of cocaine provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of at least 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $10 million. The charge of possession with intent to distribute and distribution of 500 grams or more of a mixture and substance of methamphetamine provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $10 million. The charge of distributing and possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine on premises where a minor was present and/or resided provides for an additional consecutive term of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Quincy Police Chief Mark Kennedy made the announcement today. Valuable assistance in the investigation was provided by the Massachusetts State Police; Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department; and the Quincy, Weymouth, Braintree, Randolph, Brockton, East Bridgewater and Bridgewater Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kaitlin R. O’Donnell of the Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF
Lead Defendants Plead Guilty to RICO Conspiracy to Transport, Hire, and Harbor Unauthorized WorkersRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Seven defendants, including an owner, president, chief financial officer, and controller of a Joplin, Mo., corporation, have pleaded guilty in federal court to their roles in a racketeering conspiracy to transport, hire, and harbor undocumented workers in several Midwestern states.
“This case sends a clear and unequivocal message: employing unauthorized workers will not be tolerated and will be met with severe consequences,” said Mark Zito, HSI Kansas City Special Agent in Charge. “Our investigation uncovered a blatant and systemic disregard for our nation’s employment laws. Those who engage in such unlawful practices not only undermine the integrity of our labor market but also exploit vulnerable individuals. HSI Kansas City is relentless in our pursuit to dismantle these illegal operations and hold violators accountable to the fullest extent of the law. If you break the law, you will face the full force of our investigation and prosecution.”
Jose Luis Bravo, 54, of Claremore, Oklahoma; Jose Guadalupe Razo, 54, of Carl Junction, Mo.; Anthony Edward Doll, 46, and Miguel Tarin-Martinez, 46, both of Joplin, Mo.; Alejandro Castillo-Ramirez, 43, a citizen of Mexico; Jaime Ramirez-Ceja, 46, a citizen of Mexico; and Veronica Razo de Lara, 50, of Great Bend, Kansas, have pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Roseann A. Ketchmark.
Each defendant admitted they were part of a RICO (racketeer influenced and corrupt organizations) conspiracy from Jan. 1, 2018, to Aug. 10, 2021, that transported and employed Mexican, Guatemalan, and El Salvadoran nationals who were not authorized to live or work in the United States. Conspirators also harbored and encouraged the unauthorized workers to remain and reside in the United States by providing them with housing and, in certain circumstances, fraudulent identification documentation.
Bravo is the partial owner of Specialty Foods Distribution, a corporation based in Joplin. Specialty Foods Distribution is a wholesale Mexican food products and restaurant supply company. Razo is the president of Specialty Foods Distribution; Doll is the chief financial officer; Tarin-Martinez is the controller.
Bravo, Razo, Doll, and Tarin-Martinez created and maintained a network of restaurants operating under multiple LLCs in Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas, and Oklahoma that were serviced by Specialty Foods Distribution. The defendants conspired to staff these restaurants with unauthorized workers. Castillo-Ramirez, Ramirez-Ceja, and Razo de Lara managed three of the enterprise-affiliated restaurants that employed unauthorized workers. By utilizing unauthorized workers — a workforce not available to law-abiding business owners — the defendants obtained an unfair and illegal competitive business advantage.
In addition to transporting, harboring, and hiring unauthorized workers, the racketeering activity involved evasive and fraudulent actions. Specifically, to maintain high levels of unauthorized employees at the enterprise-affiliated restaurants, the defendants kept certain unauthorized workers off official payroll records; required certain unauthorized workers to work at times when federal officials were unlikely to conduct inspections; failed to collect or maintain complete and accurate Form I-9 documentation; falsely attested to the accuracy of information on Form I-9 documentation; submitted inaccurate wage and hour reports to state officials; and facilitated fraudulent identification documentation being produced, transported, and provided to unauthorized workers.
Bravo specifically admitted that, as part of the RICO conspiracy, he facilitated the production and transportation of two fraudulent U.S. permanent resident cards from Claremore to Butler, Mo., as well as personally transported three unauthorized workers from Claremore to the state of Kansas. Bavo has agreed to forfeit to the government approximately $5.7 million, comprising the forfeiture of proceeds he obtained from the RICO enterprise as well as property that afforded a source of influence over the RICO enterprise. The forfeiture agreement involves liquidation of five financial accounts; the government obtaining cash in lieu of Bravo’s interest in 12 real properties; and the government obtaining cash in lieu of Bravo’s interest in portions of 24 individual companies or corporations, including a portion of SFD, which Bravo admitted afforded a source of influence over the RICO enterprise.
Razo specifically admitted that he conspired to harbor five unauthorized workers at enterprise-affiliated restaurants in Great Bend, and encouraged and induced three unauthorized workers at SFD to reside in the United States in violation of the law. Razo has agreed to forfeiture in the form of liquidation of one bank account and a money judgment in the amount of approximately $130,700, representing the proceeds he obtained from the RICO enterprise.
Doll specifically admitted to encouraging unauthorized workers to reside in the United States by conspiring to create a Missouri LLC for the purpose of opening a new restaurant where certain unauthorized workers could gain employment, and conspiring to harbor unauthorized workers by taking steps to ensure unauthorized workers did not utilize established timeclock payroll systems at certain enterprise-affiliated restaurants. Doll has agreed to forfeiture in the form of liquidation of two bank accounts and a money judgment in the amount of approximately $132,300, representing the proceeds he obtained from the RICO enterprise.
Tarin-Martinez specifically admitted to encouraging unauthorized workers to reside in the United States in violation of the law in Springfield, Mo., and in Pittsburg, Kan. Tarin-Martinez has agreed to forfeiture in the form of a money judgment in the amount of approximately $23,094, representing the proceeds he obtained from the RICO enterprise.
Castillo-Ramirez specifically admitted to harboring two unauthorized workers at an enterprise-affiliated restaurant in Augusta, Kan. Castillo-Ramirez also admitted to encouraging the two unauthorized workers to reside in the United States in violation of the law by providing the unauthorized workers with employment, keeping them out of the established payroll system, and paying them in cash or by local check.
Ramirez-Ceja specifically admitted to encouraging two unauthorized workers to reside in the United States in violation of the law by providing the workers with employment at an enterprise-affiliated restaurant in Lebanon, Mo., allowing the unauthorized workers to utilize fraudulent identification documents, and providing the unauthorized workers with housing. Additionally, Ramirez-Ceja admitted to making false attestations on two Form I-9 documents.
Razo de Lara specifically admitted to conspiring to harbor four unauthorized workers at an enterprise-affiliated restaurant in Great Bend. As part of the conspiracy, Razo de Lara agreed to keep unauthorized workers out of the established payroll system, pay the unauthorized workers in cash, and have certain unauthorized workers complete work at times when federal agents were unlikely to inspect the restaurant.
Under federal statutes, each of these defendants is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing hearings will be scheduled after the completion of presentence investigations by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rudolph R. Rhodes IV, Leigh Farmakidis, and Nicholas Heberle. It was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from IRS-Criminal Investigations, Kansas Bureau of Investigation, Kansas Department of Labor, Kansas Department of Revenue, Kansas Highway Patrol, and Missouri State Highway Patrol.
Knife assault on woman on Rocky Boy’s Indian Reservation sends Box Elder man to prison for more than five yearsRead the Press Release
GREAT FALLS — A Box Elder man who admitted to assaulting a woman by cutting her face with a knife during an argument on the Rocky Boy’s Indian Reservation was sentenced today to five years and seven months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said today.
The defendant, Colten Tyrone Small, also known as Colton Swan, 22, pleaded guilty in September 2024 to assault with a dangerous weapon and assault resulting in serious bodily injury.
Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided.
In court documents, the government alleged that in the early morning hours of May 3, 2023, Small punched the victim, identified as Jane Doe, in the face while he held a butcher knife in a residence in Box Elder, on the Rocky Boy’s Reservation. A witness to the assault told law enforcement that Small sliced Doe’s face in the residence. Small and Doe argued, and the fight got more aggressive. After Small cut Doe’s face, the witness beat up Small. There was some fentanyl and alcohol use occurring at the time. Doe was treated at Northern Montana Hospital in Havre for facial injuries from the knife.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case. The FBI and Rocky Boy’s Law Enforcement conducted the investigation.
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Jacksonville Man Sentenced to Four Years in Prison for Possessing A Firearm as A Convicted FelonRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States District Judge Brian J. Davis has sentenced Christopher O’Neal Houser (44, Jacksonville) to four years in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Houser entered a guilty plea on October 15, 2024.
According to court documents, on February 2, 2024, Houser sold a sawed-off shotgun to another felon. At the time that he possessed and sold the shotgun, Houser had prior felony convictions for possession of methamphetamine and grand theft, which prohibited him from legally possessing firearms. He also had convictions for sexually assaulting multiple women in 2002, and for misdemeanor battery in 2019.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Clay County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Brenna Falzetta.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safe for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Jacksonville Man Pleads Guilty to Possession and Transfer of A Destructive DeviceRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that Shane Allen Gibson (45, Jacksonville) today pleaded guilty to possession of a destructive device and transfer of a destructive device to a convicted felon. Gibson faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison for the possession charge and up to 15 years in federal prison for the transfer charge. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to the plea agreement, on April 20, 2023, Gibson possessed and transferred an improvised explosive bomb, a destructive device under federal law, to an individual who he knew to be a convicted felon. The destructive device was one of three homemade explosive devices given by Gibson to the convicted felon. Laboratory testing revealed that the device contained explosive powder and numerous screws and fasteners within an aerial shell and pyrotechnic fuse. An examiner from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives concluded that igniting the fuse would, after a short delay, cause blast, thermal, and fragmentation effects capable of causing damage, injury, and death to persons nearby.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rachel Lasry.
Illinois Man Pleads Guilty to Immigration CrimeRead the Press Release
BECKLEY, W.Va. – Joseph Sanchez, 33, of Fairbury, Illinois, pleaded guilty today to participating in an immigration marriage fraud conspiracy.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in or around August 2021, Sanchez was living in Greenbrier County, West Virginia. A foreign national who worked at a convenience store near Sanchez’s residence offered to pay Sanchez if he found a woman willing to marry the foreign national so he could obtain lawful permanent resident status, commonly known as a Green Card. Sanchez ultimately agreed to the request in exchange for $10,000 in cash. The understanding was that $5,000 would be paid upon the marriage being final, and another $5,000 would be paid once the foreign national received his Green Card.
Sanchez arranged to have his sister-in-law marry the foreign national. Sanchez told his sister-in-law about the purpose of the arrangement and the financial benefits associated with it. The sister-in-law had only occasionally interacted with the foreign national, as a customer at his convenience store. The sister-in-law and Sanchez had no social connections to the foreign national beyond frequenting the convenience store.
In September 2021, Sanchez’s sister-in-law and the foreign national were married in White Sulphur Springs. In March 2023, Sanchez traveled with the sister-in-law and the foreign national to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The purpose of the trip was for the sister-in-law and the foreign national to attend an interview with U.S. immigration officials to trick those officials into believing the marriage was entered into in good faith and that the relationship between the sister-in-law and the foreign national was genuine. The scheme was unsuccessful, and the foreign national’s application was denied.
Sanchez is scheduled to be sentenced on May 30, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
United States Magistrate Judge Omar J. Aboulhosn presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan T. Storage is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:24-cr-198.
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Hot Springs Man Sentenced to More Than 10 Years in Federal Prison for Methamphetamine and Firearms PossessionRead the Press Release
HOT SPRINGS – An Arkansas man has been sentenced to 123 months in Federal Prison for Possession of Methamphetamine with the Intent to Distribute and Possession of a Firearm in furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Offense. The Honorable Chief Judge Susan O. Hickey presided over the sentencing hearings, which took place in the United States District Court in Hot Springs.
According to court records, on March 7, 2023, Darryl Lavell Williams, age 30, of Hot Springs, was observed by Hot Springs Police Department Officers walking along East Grand Avenue carrying a black backpack. Officers recognized Williams and knew that he had an active warrant from the Arkansas Parole Board. As Officers approached Williams, he ignored their commands and attempted to dispose of the backpack by throwing it off a bridge. Williams was taken into custody and the backpack was located. A search of the backpack revealed a loaded Jimenez 9mm handgun and 47 grams of methamphetamine.
On June 5, 2024, Williams pleaded guilty to Possession of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of Methamphetamine with Intent to Distribute and Possession of a firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime.
U.S. Attorney David Clay Fowlkes made the announcement.
The Hot Springs Police Departments Special Investigation Division investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Trent Daniels prosecuted the case for the United States.
Related court documents may be found on the Public Access to Electronic Records website at www.pacer.gov.
Helena man sentenced to more than seven years in prison for conviction of firearm crimeRead the Press Release
GREAT FALLS — A Helena man who admitted to a firearm crime after a welfare check led to him being arrested on a warrant while attempting to flee officers was sentenced today to seven years and three months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
The defendant, Scott Hamilton, 44, pleaded in October 2024 to receipt of a firearm and ammunition with intent to commit a felony.
Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided.
In court documents, the government alleged that at 4 a.m. on Dec. 20, 2023, law enforcement officers stopped a man wearing dark clothing and carrying a duffel bag on Montana Highway 12 for a welfare check. The man, identified as Hamilton, told officers he had car trouble and was walking to East Helena. Officers learned there was an active warrant for Hamilton out of Broadwater County. When officers attempted to arrest Hamilton, he fled across the highway and dropped his bag as he ran. Officers pursued and arrested Hamilton and recovered the duffle bag. Inside the duffle bag were two firearms, a .22 caliber revolver and a 9mm pistol, and numerous rounds of ammunition. Hamilton had prior felony convictions and was prohibited from possessing firearms.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Lewis and Clark County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.
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Helena man admits conspiracy to distribute large quantities of meth, fentanylRead the Press Release
GREAT FALLS — A Helena man accused of trafficking large quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl he received from suppliers in California and Oregon admitted to a conspiracy charge today, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
The defendant, Charles Clifford Hamlin, 61, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances. Hamlin faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and at least five years of supervised release.
Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing was set for June 5. Hamlin was detained pending further proceedings.
In a plea agreement filed in the case, the parties agreed that Hamlin would serve a sentence within a stipulated range of 15 years to 20 years in prison.
In court documents, the government alleged that the Missouri River Drug Task Force and United States Postal Service began investigating Hamlin after they intercepted a package intended for Hamlin in August 2021. The package contained approximately three pounds of meth. Over the next several years, investigators spoke with numerous sources who identified Hamlin as a large-scale narcotics distributor. Two sources worked with Hamlin to bring meth from California to Montana, and one source went to Oregon to obtain meth for Hamlin to distribute. The sources stated the deliveries to Hamlin ranged from between one pound to three pounds.
Another source told investigators about receiving ounces of meth and “rolls” of fentanyl pills regularly from Hamlin. Hamlin received deliveries every two and one-half weeks from a source in Oregon. Each delivery was approximately seven pounds of meth, 4,000 to 7,000 fentanyl pills, two ounces of cocaine and two ounces of heroin.
In December 2023, law enforcement conducted a traffic stop on Hamlin and his truck was searched based on a suspected probation violation. Officers located approximately 18 grams of meth in his gas tank flap. Investigators also made controlled buys of meth and fentanyl pills from Hamlin. In February 2024, law enforcement stopped an individual in Powell County, and the person had nine pounds of meth and 6,200 fentanyl pills. Approximately six pounds of the meth was destined for Hamlin.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case. The Missouri River Drug Task Force, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Helena Police Department, Lewis and Clark County Sheriff’s Office, Montana Division of Criminal Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration and Montana Highway Patrol conducted the investigation.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.
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Guatemalan National Charged with Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
Fort Myers, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the return of an indictment charging Edgar Rolando Suruy-Xiquin, a/k/a Marvin Martinez-Vazquez (30, Guatemala), with illegal reentry by a deported alien. If convicted, Suruy-Xiquin faces a maximum penalty of two years in federal prison. Suruy-Xiquin was arraigned on the charges on January 28, 2025. His trial is set for March 3, 2025.
According to the indictment, Suruy-Xiquin was previously deported from the United States on four occasions. Following his most recent removal, he did not receive the consent of the Attorney General or the Secretary of Homeland Security to reapply for admission to the United States. On January 13, 2025, Suruy-Xiquin was found to be voluntarily in the United States.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case is being investigated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick L. Darcey.
Grand Jury Returns Seven IndictmentsRead the Press Release
MADISON, WIS. - A federal grand jury in the Western District of Wisconsin, sitting in Madison, returned the following indictments today. You are advised that a charge is merely an accusation, and a person named as defendant in an indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
LAS VEGAS MAN CHARGED WITH COCAINE TRAFFICKING AND ILLEGAL FIREARMS POSSESSION
Enrique Rodriquez possessed over 5 kilograms of cocaine
Enrique Rodriguez, 41, Las Vegas, Nevada, is charged with distributing cocaine, possessing cocaine intended for distribution, possessing a firearm as a felon, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. The indictment alleges that on June 6, 2024, Rodriguez distributed 500 grams or more of cocaine. The indictment also alleges that on January 16, 2025, Rodriquez possessed 5 kilograms or more of cocaine intended for distribution, illegally possessed a firearm as a felon, and possessed the firearm to further a drug trafficking crime.
If convicted, Rodriguez faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 5 years in prison and a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison for the count charging distribution of over 500 grams of cocaine. The count involving 5 kilograms or more of cocaine carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum penalty of life in prison. The felon in possession charge carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison. The charge of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 5 years in prison and a maximum penalty of life.
The charges against Rodriguez are the result of an investigation conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration in Madison and Milwaukee, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the ATF Madison Crime Gun Task Force, Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation, the Dane County Sheriff’s Office, and the Madison Police Department. The ATF Madison Crime Gun Task Force consists of federal agents from ATF and Task Force Officers (TFOs) from local agencies including the Dane County and Clark County Sheriff’s Offices and the Fitchburg, Madison, Sun Prairie, and La Crosse Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven P. Anderson is handling the case.
MARSHALL MAN CHARGED WITH DRUG AND GUN CRIMES
Deontrae C. McIntosh, 21, Marshall, Wisconsin, is charged with distributing cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl; possessing cocaine and fentanyl intended for distribution; possessing a firearm and ammunition as a felon; and possessing a firearm in connection with a drug trafficking crime.
The indictment alleges that McIntosh distributed cocaine on September 23, 2024, and on September 27, 2024. The indictment alleges that McIntosh distributed cocaine and heroin on October 4, 2024. The indictment further alleges that on November 6, 2024, McIntosh distributed cocaine and fentanyl, possessed cocaine and fentanyl intended for distribution, and possessed a loaded Glock 23, 40 caliber semi-automatic handgun as a felon and in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
If convicted, McIntosh faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each drug charge. The felon in possession charge carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison. If convicted of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, McIntosh faces a penalty of not less than 5 years in prison with a maximum of life in prison.
The charges against McIntosh are the result of an investigation conducted by the Dane County Narcotics Task Force and the ATF Madison Crime Gun Task Force. U.S. Attorney Timothy M. O’Shea is handling the case.
CHIPPEWA FALLS MAN CHARGED WITH TRAFFICKING METHAMPHETAMINE AND FENTANYL
Jason Barnard, 39, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, is charged with distributing methamphetamine and fentanyl and with possessing methamphetamine and fentanyl intended for distribution. The indictment alleges that on October 6, 2024, Barnard distributed a mixture of fentanyl and methamphetamine. The indictment further alleges that Barnard distributed 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. Finally, the indictment alleges that on December 6, 2024, Barnard possessed 500 grams or more of methamphetamine and 40 grams or more of fentanyl, all intended for distribution.
If convicted of the charge involving 50 grams or more of methamphetamine or 40 grams or more of fentanyl, Barnard faces a minimum penalty of 5 years in prison and a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison. If convicted of the charge involving 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, Barnard faces a minimum penalty of 10 years and a maximum penalty of life in prison. The other distribution charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
The charges against Barnard are the result of an investigation conducted by the West Central Drug Enforcement Task Force, Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation, and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Anderson is handling the case.
WAUSAU MAN CHARGED WITH COCAINE TRAFFICKING AND ILLEGALLY POSSESSING FIREARMS
Johntay L. Johnson, 39, Wausau, Wisconsin, is charged with maintaining a drug involved premise, distributing cocaine, and possessing firearms as a felon. The indictment alleges that between December 19, 2023, and November 21, 2024, Johnson used his residence in Wausau to store, manufacture, and distribute illegal drugs. The indictment further alleges that Johnson distributed cocaine on nine occasions in 2024 and possessed three firearms as a felon on September 10, 2024.
If convicted of the drug counts, Johnson faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each count. If convicted of the felon in possession count, Johnson faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.
The charges against Johnson were the result of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Central Wisconsin Narcotics Task Force comprised of agents from the FBI, Wisconsin State Patrol, Wisconsin Department of Criminal Investigation, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, Marathon County Sheriff’s Office, Portage County Sheriff’s Office, Mountain Bay Police Department, Wausau Police Department and Wisconsin National Guard Counter Drug Program. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven P. Anderson is handling the case.
SUN PRAIRIE MAN CHARGED WITH ILLEGALLY POSSESSING FIREARM AND AMMUNITION
Cashius Carter, 20, Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, is charged with possessing a firearm and ammunition as a felon. The indictment alleges that Carter possessed a loaded Glock 9mm handgun and Federal 9mm ammunition between June 21, 2024, and September 26, 2024.
If convicted, Carter faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.
The charge against him is the result of an investigation conducted by the Fitchburg Police Department and the ATF Madison Crime Gun Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Corey Stephan is handling the case.
FITCHBURG MAN CHARGED WITH ILLEGALLY POSSESSING FIREARM
Malcolm Whiteside, 29, Fitchburg, Wisconsin, is charged with possessing a firearm as a felon. The indictment alleges that Whiteside possessed a loaded Glock Model 27 pistol on August 12, 2024.
If convicted, Whiteside faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.
The charge against Whiteside is the result of an investigation conducted by the Monona Police Department, Madison Police Department, Wisconsin State Patrol, and the ATF Madison Crime Gun Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chadwick M. Elgersma is handling the case.
MADISON MAN CHARGED WITH DRUG CRIMES
Gregory P. Robinson, 41, Madison, Wisconsin, is charged with distributing cocaine, possessing cocaine and fentanyl intended for distribution, and maintaining a drug trafficking place. The indictment alleges that Robinson distributed cocaine on four occasions in June 2024. The indictment also alleges that on June 25, 2024, Robinson possessed cocaine, 400 grams or more of a mixture containing fentanyl and cocaine, and 40 grams or more of fentanyl, all intended for distribution. Finally, the indictment alleges that Robinson maintained a drug trafficking place from June 13, 2024, to June 25,2024.
If convicted of the charge involving 400 grams or more, Robinson faces a minimum penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life in prison. If convicted of the charge involving 40 grams or more, Robinson faces a minimum penalty of 5 years and a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison. The distribution charges, the possession of cocaine charge, and the maintaining a drug trafficking place charge all carry maximum penalties of 20 years in prison.
The charges against Robinson are the result of an investigation conducted by the Dane County Narcotics Task Force, the Madison Police Department, and the ATF Madison Crime Gun Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Colleen Lennon is handling the case.
CHIPPEWA FALLS MAN CHARGED WITH TRAFFICKING METHAMPHETAMINE
Leroy T. McNamara, 61, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, is charged with distributing methamphetamine. The indictment alleges that McNamera distributed 50 grams or more of methamphetamine on July 8, 2024, and July 24, 2024.
If convicted, McNamara faces a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison on each charge.
The charges against McNamara are the result of an investigation conducted by the West Central Drug Task Force and the Chippewa County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Megan Stelljes is handling the case.
General President of International Union of Operating Engineers Pleads Guilty and Agrees to ResignRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON –James T. Callahan, the International President of the International Union of Operating Engineers, pleaded guilty to knowingly filing false annual reports with the United States Department of Labor. These reports, called LM-30s, are required by law and must be truthful and complete.
The plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin, Jr. for the District of Columbia.
Callahan, of Lindenhurst, NY, appeared before U.S. District Court Judge Ana C. Reyes of the U.S. District Court for the District of the District of Columbia who accepted his plea of guilty. Judge Reyes will determine any sentence for Callahan after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Judge Reyes scheduled sentencing for May 19, 2025.
The Operating Engineers represents nearly 400,000 heavy machinery operators on construction and industrial sites throughout the United States and Canada. From 2011 to the present, Callahan has served as General President of the Operating Engineers at its headquarters in Washington, D.C.
In pleading guilty, Callahan admitted that he filed LM-30 reports that omitted his receipt of goods and services from an advertising firm that Callahan and the Union used to place ads. From 2015 through 2023, Callahan requested from the advertising firm and received free tickets to nearly 100 sports, concert, and theater events, as well as hospitality packages associated with those events. Those tickets and amenities were worth at least $315,000 and properly belonged to the Operating Engineers. Callahan did not reveal the existence of those tickets and did not obtain authorization from the Union’s Executive Board to use them. Callahan used many of those tickets personally and provided other tickets to members of his family and persons who were not members of the Operating Engineers.
As a condition of his plea, Callahan agreed to repay the Operating Engineers $315,000 for the tickets and resign as General President immediately.
The United States Department of Labor (DOL), Office of Labor Management Standards and DOL-Office of Inspector General, are investigating the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Brian Kelly and Trial Attorney Vincent Falvo of the Criminal Division’s Violent Crime and Racketeering section are prosecuting the case.
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Gainesville Man Pleads Guilty to Attempted Online Enticement of A Minor to Engage in Sexual ActivityRead the Press Release
Ocala, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that Alberto Christian Quiroz (32, Gainesville) has pleaded guilty to attempted enticement of a minor to commit sexual acts. Quiroz faces a minimum sentence of 10 years, up to life, in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to court documents, Quiroz was an employee of a care agency that was contracted with the Florida Department of Children and Families to provide services for children. On July 26 and 27, 2024, Quiroz used an online messaging service to communicate with an undercover detective portraying a 14-year-old girl. Quiroz arranged to meet the undercover detective at an Ocala restaurant for sexual activity. Agents arrested Quiroz when he arrived at that location.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Ocala Police Department, and the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William S. Hamilton.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Former federal prosecutor named U.S. Attorney for Southern DistrictRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Acting Attorney General James McHenry has named Nicholas J. Ganjei as U.S. Attorney of the Southern District of Texas (SDTX).
“I am humbled by the honor and am excited to lead the SDTX,” said Ganjei. “This opportunity to once again serve the American people is both a tremendous responsibility and a great privilege. This office will play a critical role in ensuring our border is secure and the American people are kept safe. I look forward to working alongside some great prosecutors, staff and law enforcement partners.”
U.S. District Judge Drew Tipton swore in Ganjei just after 12 p.m. before SDTX staff, several federal judges and court personnel.
Ganjei is a former longtime federal prosecutor who previously served as acting U.S. Attorney and First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas.
He joined the Department of Justice in 2008 as an Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) on the U.S. – Mexico border. As an AUSA, Ganjei prosecuted organized crime, immigration, narcotics and human trafficking cases, as well as fraud, public corruption and white collar matters.
As U.S. Attorney, Ganjei will be the chief law enforcement officer for one of the largest districts in the United States. The SDTX typically prosecutes more cases against more defendants than most other USAOs nationwide, representing 43 counties and nine million people and covering 44,000 square miles. This district currently comprises seven U.S. District Court divisions with federal district courts in Houston, Galveston, Victoria, Corpus Christi, Brownsville, McAllen and Laredo. The U.S. Attorney's office, headquartered in Houston, has branch offices in all seven divisions.
Before joining the Department, Ganjei clerked for the Honorable Richard Allen Griffin and Ralph R. Erickson of the Sixth and Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, respectively. Ganjei has also taught on the subjects of civil, criminal and constitutional law at both the collegiate and law school level.
Most recently, Ganjei was chief counsel to U.S. Senator Ted Cruz and the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Constitution, where he oversaw all legal matters related to criminal justice, border security, judicial nominations, antitrust, intellectual property and religious liberty.
Former U.S. Senator Robert Menendez Sentenced to 11 Years in Prison for Bribery, Foreign Agent, and Obstruction OffensesRead the Press Release
Danielle R. Sassoon, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that former U.S. Senator ROBERT MENENDEZ, WAEL HANA, a/k/a “Will Hana,” and FRED DAIBES, were sentenced to 11 years, more than eight years, and seven years in prison, respectively, for bribery, foreign agent, and obstruction of justice offenses. MENENDEZ, HANA, and DAIBES were convicted on July 16, 2024, following a nine-week jury trial before U.S. District Judge Sidney H. Stein, who imposed today’s sentences.
U.S. Attorney Danielle R. Sassoon said: “The sentences imposed today result from an egregious abuse of power at the highest levels of the Legislative Branch of the federal government. Robert Menendez was trusted to represent the United States and the State of New Jersey, but instead he used his position to help his co-conspirators and a foreign government, in exchange for bribes like cash, gold, and a luxury car. The sentences imposed today send a clear message that attempts at any level of government to corrupt the nation’s foreign policy and the rule of law will be met with just punishment.”
According to the Superseding Indictment (“Indictment”), the evidence at trial, and public filings:[1]
MENENDEZ, at the time the Indictment was unsealed, was the senior U.S. Senator from New Jersey and the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (“SFRC”). Shortly after MENENDEZ began dating his now-wife Nadine Menendez, then known as Nadine Arslanian (“Nadine Menendez”), in 2018, Nadine introduced MENENDEZ to her long-time friend HANA, who is originally from Egypt. HANA lived in New Jersey, and maintained close connections with Egyptian officials. HANA was also a business associate of DAIBES, a New Jersey real estate developer and long-time donor to MENENDEZ, and Jose Uribe, who worked in the New Jersey insurance and trucking business.
Between 2018 and 2022, MENENDEZ and Nadine Menendez agreed to and did accept hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of bribes from HANA, DAIBES, and Uribe. These bribes included gold, cash, a luxury convertible, payments toward Nadine Menendez’s home mortgage, compensation for a low-or-no-show job for Nadine Menendez, home furnishings, and other things of value. In June 2022, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) executed a court-authorized search warrant at the New Jersey home of MENENDEZ and Nadine Menendez. During that search, the FBI found many of the fruits of this bribery scheme. Over $480,000 in cash — much of it stuffed into envelopes and hidden in clothing, closets, and a safe — was discovered in the home. Some of the envelopes contained the fingerprints of MENENDEZ or DAIBES. Agents also found home furnishings provided by HANA and DAIBES, the luxury vehicle paid for by Uribe parked in the garage, as well as over one hundred thousand dollars’ worth of gold bars in the home, which were provided by either HANA or DAIBES.
In exchange for these and other things of value, MENENDEZ agreed and promised to use his power and influence as a Senator to seek to protect HANA’s, Uribe’s, and DAIBES’s interests and to benefit foreign countries. Through this corrupt relationship, MENENDEZ agreed to take a series of official acts. First, MENENDEZ took actions to benefit the Government of Egypt and HANA, including by improperly seeking to pressure an official at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) in an attempt to protect a business monopoly granted to HANA by Egypt, and by secretly representing the interests of Egypt by, among other things, ghostwriting a letter for Egypt to be provided to his own Senate colleagues and providing non-public information and assistance to Egypt. Second, MENENDEZ took actions seeking to disrupt a criminal investigation undertaken by the Office of the New Jersey Attorney General (“NJAG”) related to Uribe and his associates. Third, MENENDEZ recommended that the President nominate a U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey whom MENENDEZ believed he could influence to disrupt a federal criminal prosecution undertaken by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey (“USAO-DNJ”) of DAIBES, and took actions to assist DAIBES by acting for the benefit of the Government of Qatar. Finally, MENENDEZ conspired and endeavored to obstruct justice in connection with the federal investigation into this scheme.
Promised Actions to Benefit Egypt and Pressure the USDA
Shortly after she began dating MENENDEZ in 2018, Nadine Menendez worked with HANA to introduce Egyptian government officials to MENENDEZ. Those introductions helped establish a corrupt agreement in which HANA, with assistance from DAIBES, provided bribes to MENENDEZ and Nadine Menendez in exchange for MENENDEZ’s agreed and promised actions to benefit Egypt and HANA, among others.
As part of the scheme, MENENDEZ, among other things, provided sensitive, non-public U.S. government information to Egyptian officials and otherwise took steps to secretly aid the Government of Egypt. For example, in or about May 2018, MENENDEZ provided Egyptian officials with non-public information regarding the number and nationality of persons then serving at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, Egypt. Although this information was not classified, it was deemed highly sensitive because it could pose significant operational security concerns if disclosed to a foreign government or made public. Without telling his professional staff or the State Department that he was doing so, on or about May 7, 2018, MENENDEZ texted that sensitive, non-public embassy information to his then-girlfriend Nadine Menendez, who forwarded the message to HANA, who forwarded it to an Egyptian government official. Later that same month, MENENDEZ ghost-wrote a letter on behalf of Egypt to other U.S. Senators advocating for them to release a hold on $300 million in aid to Egypt. MENENDEZ sent this ghost-written letter to Nadine Menendez, who forwarded it to HANA, who sent it to Egyptian officials.
At various times between 2018 and 2022, MENENDEZ also conveyed to Egyptian officials, through Nadine Menendez, HANA, and/or DAIBES, that he would approve or remove holds on foreign military financing and sales of military equipment to Egypt in connection with his leadership role on the SFRC. For example, in or about July 2018, following meetings between MENENDEZ and Egyptian officials, which were arranged and attended by Nadine Menendez and HANA, MENENDEZ texted Nadine Menendez that she should tell HANA that MENENDEZ was going to sign off on an almost hundred-million-dollar weapons sale to Egypt. Nadine Menendez forwarded this text to HANA, who forwarded it to two Egyptian officials, one of whom replied with a “thumbs up” emoji.
In exchange for MENENDEZ’s agreement to take these and other actions, HANA promised Nadine Menendez payments, including from IS EG Halal Certified, Inc. (“IS EG Halal”), a New Jersey company that HANA operated with financial support and backing from DAIBES. IS EG Halal had no revenue until the spring of 2019, when the Government of Egypt granted IS EG Halal a monopoly on the certification of U.S. food exports to Egypt as compliant with halal standards, despite the fact that neither HANA nor his company had any experience with halal certification. The monopoly generated revenue for HANA, through which he paid Nadine Menendez as promised.
Because the monopoly harmed U.S. interests, including revoking the ability of multiple U.S. companies to certify meat and resulting in increased costs for U.S. meat suppliers, in or about April and May 2019, the USDA and the U.S. Embassy in Cairo contacted the Government of Egypt and sought reconsideration of its grant of monopoly rights to IS EG Halal. After being briefed on the USDA’s objections to IS EG Halal’s monopoly by HANA and Nadine Menendez, on May 23, 2019, MENENDEZ called a high-level USDA official, the Undersecretary of Agriculture for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs (“Official-1”), and insisted that the USDA stop opposing IS EG Halal’s status as the sole halal certifier. When Official-1 attempted to explain why the monopoly was detrimental to U.S. interests, MENENDEZ reiterated his demand that the USDA stop interfering with IS EG Halal’s monopoly. Official-1 did not accede to MENENDEZ’s demand, and sought to reassure his staff against the pressure MENENDEZ attempted to apply, but IS EG Halal nevertheless kept its monopoly.
After financially benefitting from IS EG Halal’s monopoly, HANA, at times with the assistance of DAIBES, provided payments and other things of value in furtherance of the scheme. For example, in or about July 2019, after the mortgage company for the residence of Nadine Menendez initiated foreclosure proceedings, HANA caused IS EG Halal to pay approximately $23,000 to bring the mortgage current. HANA did so after a series of discussions with Nadine Menendez, as well as Uribe and DAIBES, about various options for bringing the mortgage current. Later in 2019, HANA and DAIBES caused IS EG Halal to issue three $10,000 checks to a “consulting” company MENENDEZ helped Nadine Menendez create as supposed payment for a low-or-no-show job. As the scheme continued, including through the additional actions described below, MENENDEZ and Nadine Menendez received additional bribes, including gold and cash.
Promised Actions Seeking to Disrupt the NJAG Criminal Case
Also in 2019, HANA and Uribe offered to help buy a new Mercedes-Benz C-300 convertible worth more than $60,000 for MENENDEZ and Nadine Menendez. In exchange, MENENDEZ agreed and sought to interfere in the NJAG’s criminal insurance fraud prosecution of an associate of Uribe and a related investigation involving an employee of Uribe. On multiple occasions in 2019, Uribe, HANA, and/or Nadine Menendez briefed MENENDEZ regarding the NJAG’s insurance fraud prosecution and investigation. Following those briefings, and in exchange for the promise of the luxury convertible, MENENDEZ contacted the then-New Jersey Attorney General (“Official-2”) at least twice. During those communications, MENENDEZ attempted to pressure Official-2 to resolve the prosecution more favorably to Uribe’s associate. Official-2 considered MENENDEZ’s actions inappropriate, did not agree to intervene, and did not pass on that MENENDEZ had contacted him in order to insulate his staff against any outside influence from MENENDEZ. Ultimately, in the regular course, the prosecution was resolved with a plea allowing for no jail time for Uribe’s associate and the investigation never resulted in any charges against Uribe’s employee.
In exchange for MENENDEZ’s agreed and promised actions, Uribe provided Nadine Menendez with $15,000 cash for the down payment on the luxury convertible in April 2019. Thereafter, Uribe made monthly payments to Mercedes-Benz for the convertible between 2019 and June 2022. Uribe only stopped making those monthly payments after the FBI approached MENENDEZ, Nadine Menendez, and Uribe in connection with this investigation.
Promised Actions Seeking to Disrupt the USAO-DNJ Criminal Case and to Benefit DAIBES and the Government of Qatar
In October 2018, the USAO-DNJ charged DAIBES with federal criminal charges for obtaining loans under false pretenses from a New Jersey-based bank he founded. Between December 2020 and 2022, MENENDEZ agreed and promised to attempt to influence the pending federal prosecution of DAIBES in exchange for cash, furniture, and gold bars that DAIBES provided to MENENDEZ and Nadine Menendez. In furtherance of this aspect of the scheme, MENENDEZ recommended that the then-President nominate an individual (“Official-3”) as U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey whom MENENDEZ believed he could influence with respect to DAIBES’s case. MENENDEZ requested a political advisor contact Official-3 in an attempt to influence the outcome of DAIBES’s case.
MENENDEZ’s political advisor did not contact Official-3 regarding DAIBES’s case, and USAO-DNJ did not treat the case any differently as a result of MENENDEZ’s actions. The parties to DAIBES’s case agreed to resolve the case with a plea agreement that provided for a probationary sentence. In exchange for MENENDEZ’s participation in the bribery scheme, DAIBES provided MENENDEZ and Nadine Menendez with multiple things of value, including two one-kilogram gold bars.
In addition, in exchange for some of the gold and other things of value from DAIBES, MENENDEZ knew that DAIBES also expected MENENDEZ to take action to benefit the Government of Qatar, and thereby benefit DAIBES, who was seeking millions of dollars in investment from a fund with ties to the Government of Qatar. Among other things, MENENDEZ made multiple public statements supporting the Government of Qatar and provided DAIBES with these statements so that DAIBES could share them with Qataris officials connected to an investment fund with which DAIBES was looking to do business. For example, on or about August 20, 2021, MENENDEZ used an encrypted messaging application to send DAIBES the text of a press release in which MENENDEZ praised the Government of Qatar, and several minutes later texted DAIBES, “You might want to send to them. I am just about to release.”
Obstruction of Justice and Attempts to Cover-Up the Scheme
In or about 2022, following service of subpoenas issued by a federal grand jury sitting in the Southern District of New York on MENENDEZ, Nadine Menendez, Uribe, and IS EG Halal, Nadine Menendez met with Uribe. At that meeting, Nadine Menendez and Uribe agreed that if law enforcement asked about the payments Uribe had made for the Mercedes-Benz convertible, they would falsely say those payments had been a loan. Later, in or about December 2022, MENENDEZ and Nadine Menendez sought to return both the bribe money that HANA had caused IS EG Halal to pay to the mortgage company in July 2019 to avoid foreclosure on Nadine Menendez’s home and the payments Uribe made for the convertible, and, in doing so, MENENDEZ and Nadine Menendez falsely characterized the return of the bribe money as repayments for loans in documents that were produced to the grand jury. The next year, in September 2023, in an attempt to avoid charges being brought, MENENDEZ caused his then-counsel to give a presentation at the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan falsely stating that MENENDEZ had been unaware of the mortgage and car payments until receipt of the subpoenas in 2022, and that these payments from HANA and Uribe were loans, even though MENENDEZ knew such statements to be false.
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A chart containing the names of the defendants, the charges they were convicted of, and the sentences they received is set forth below.
Uribe, 57, of Clifton, New Jersey, previously pled guilty pursuant to a cooperation agreement to conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud, honest services wire fraud, conspiracy to commit obstruction of justice, obstruction of justice, tax evasion, and wire fraud. Sentencing for Uribe is scheduled for April 24, 2025.
Charges remain pending against Nadine Menendez, who is presumed innocent and is scheduled to go to trial on March 18, 2025.
Ms. Sassoon praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI. Ms. Sassoon also thanked the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation for its invaluable assistance on the investigation and the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, Counterintelligence and Export Control Section for its support of the case.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Public Corruption Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eli J. Mark, Paul M. Monteleoni, Lara Pomerantz, Daniel C. Richenthal, and Catherine Ghosh, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Christina Clark, are in charge of the prosecution, with the assistance of Paralegal Specialists Arjun Ahuja, Jayda Foote, and Braden Florczyk, and former Paralegal Specialists Connor Hamill and Rachel Wechsler.
DefendantAgeConvictionsSentenceROBERT MENENDEZ71
Conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud, conspiracy to commit extortion under color of official right, two counts of conspiracy to obstruct justice, two counts of bribery, three counts of honest services wire fraud, three counts of extortion under color of official right, conspiracy for a public official to act as a foreign agent, public official acting as foreign agent, and obstruction of justice.[2]11 years; $922,188.10 forfeitureWAEL HANA, a/k/a “Will Hana”41
Conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud, bribery, two counts of honest services wire fraud, and conspiracy for a public official to act as a foreign agent.[3]97 months in prison; $1,250,000 fine; $125,000 forfeitureFRED DAIBES67
Conspiracy to commit bribery while released on bail, conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud while released on bail, conspiracy to obstruct justice, two counts of bribery while released on bail, two counts of honest services wire fraud while released on bail.7 years in prison; $1,750,000 fine[1] With respect to Nadine Menendez, against whom charges remain pending, the entirety of the text of the Indictment and the description of the Indictment set forth herein constitute only allegations, and every fact should be treated as an allegation.
[2] The Court ruled that MENENDEZ’s conspiracy for a public official to act as a foreign agent charge was subsumed by the bribery conspiracy count, and did not impose a separate sentence for it.
[3] As with MENENDEZ, the Court ruled that HANA’s conspiracy for a public official to act as a foreign agent charge was subsumed by the bribery conspiracy count, and did not impose a separate sentence for it.
Former High-Ranking FDNY Official Pleads Guilty to Bribery ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Danielle R. Sassoon, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that ANTHONY SACCAVINO pled guilty today to conspiring to solicit and receive bribes in his role as Chief of the New York City Fire Department (“FDNY”) Bureau of Fire Prevention (“BFP”). SACCAVINO pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman and is scheduled to be sentenced on May 14, 2025.
U.S. Attorney Danielle R. Sassoon said: “Anthony Saccavino betrayed the City agency he was chosen to lead by repeatedly selling access to the Bureau of Fire Prevention’s services in a pay-to-play bribery scheme. This Office will continue to ensure that City officials who place their own interests above those of the public will be held accountable.”
According to the Indictment, plea agreement, and statements made in court:
From 2021 to 2023, SACCAVINO repeatedly abused his position as a Chief of the BFP by participating in a scheme to solicit and receive $190,000 in total bribe payments from a former FDNY firefighter named Henry Santiago, Jr. In exchange for those bribe payments, SACCAVINO used his authority within the BFP to improperly “expedite” BFP inspections and plan reviews for Santiago’s customers. SACCAVNO personally profited $57,000 as part of this scheme. To carry out this conspiracy, SACCAVINO lied to his BFP subordinates to justify otherwise improper expediting requests. SACCAVINO also lied to law enforcement when interviewed about his involvement in the scheme.
If you believe you have information related to bribery, fraud, or any other illegal conduct by FDNY or BFP employees, please contact [email protected] or (212) 825-2402. If you were involved in such conduct, please consider self-disclosing through the SDNY Whistleblower Pilot Program at [email protected].
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SACCAVINO, 59, of New York, New York, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to solicit and receive a bribe, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. Under the terms of his plea agreement, SACCAVINO agreed to forfeit $57,000.
The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.
Ms. Sassoon praised the outstanding work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New York City Department of Investigation.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Public Corruption Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica Greenwood, Matthew King, and Daniel H. Wolf are in charge of the prosecution.
Former Federal Correctional Officer Charged with Attempting to Smuggle Contraband into Metropolitan Detention Center in BrooklynRead the Press Release
Earlier today, a complaint was unsealed in federal court in Brooklyn charging former federal correctional officer Najee Jackson with attempting to smuggle contraband into the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn (MDC-Brooklyn). Jackson was arrested this morning and is scheduled for an initial appearance this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Vera M. Scanlon.
John J. Durham, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Ryan T. Geach, Special Agent in Charge, Department of Justice, Office of the Inspector General (DOJ-OIG), announced the arrest.
“As alleged, Najee Jackson violated his duty and abused his position of trust as a correctional officer by attempting to smuggle contraband into the very institution he was sworn to protect,” stated United States Attorney Durham. “The smuggling of contraband into a jail endangers correctional officers and inmates. Disrupting corruption in any form at MDC-Brooklyn will continue to be a priority of my Office, working in tandem with our federal law enforcement partners.”
“Jackson’s alleged attempt to smuggle contraband into the Brooklyn prison compromised the safety and security of the institution,” stated DOJ-OIG Geach, “The Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General is committed to bringing to justice any Federal Bureau of Prisons employee who abuses their authority and attempts to smuggle illegal contraband into federal prisons.”
As alleged in the complaint, Jackson became a correctional officer at MDC-Brooklyn in November 2023. On January 21, 2025, Jackson arrived at the jail around 12:15 a.m. to begin working a night shift. Before entering MDC-Brooklyn, staff members are required to pass through a screening area consisting of a metal detector and a conveyor belt that passes through an x-ray machine. Staff members entering the facility are also required to place their personal belongings on the conveyor belt to pass through the x-ray machine, and to walk through the metal detector. Jackson placed various personal belongings into a bin on the conveyor belt, and then walked through the metal detector, triggering the alarm. After making several failed attempts to clear the metal detector, Jackson removed his Bureau of Prisons-issued protective vest, which was found to contain vacuum‑sealed bags of marijuana, cigarettes, two lighters and rolling papers. Two days later, Jackson resigned from the Bureau of Prisons.
The charges in the complaint are allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, Jackson faces a maximum sentence of five years’ imprisonment.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Public Integrity Section. Assistant United States Attorney Russell Noble is in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
NAJEE JACKSON
Age: 32
Brooklyn, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 25-MJ-18 (VMS)
Former FBI Employee Sentenced for Paycheck Protection Program FraudRead the Press Release
SAN ANTONIO – A former FBI employee was sentenced in a federal court in San Antonio to three months of home confinement and five years of probation for one count of wire fraud related to fraudulent use of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
According to court documents, Christopher James Phillips, 41, of Schertz, formed Phillips Global Realty LLC on Dec. 20, 2019 and submitted a PPP application on May 29, 2020, using his FBI-issued credentials to confirm his identity. In his application, Phillips represented that he employed two individuals and had an average monthly payroll of $15,000. Additionally, he submitted an IRS Form 941 (Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return) for the fourth quarter of 2019, claiming a payroll of $50,000 over the three-month period. IRS records indicate that Phillips did not file such a form any time between 2019 and 2022, meaning the Form 941 he submitted as part of his PPP loan application was fraudulent and the representations were false.
Phillips also certified that PPP funds would be spent only on authorized expenses, to include payroll, utilities, rent and mortgage interest. On June 2, 2020, he received $37,500 in PPP funds. Six days later, on June 8, Phillips wired $25,000 to a personal trading account and subsequently lost all of it due to trading activities. On June 9, 2020, he made a $5,117 payment toward his personal auto loan. On June 16, 2020, he paid approximately $8,500 toward his home mortgage.
Phillips was indicted Jan. 3, 2024 for one count of wire fraud and one count of engaging in monetary transaction over $10,000 using criminally derived proceeds. He was arrested Jan. 5, 2024 and released that day on a $30,000 bond. Phillips pleaded guilty to the wire fraud charge Sept. 18, 2024. In addition to his home confinement and probation, Phillips was ordered to pay $39,771 in restitution.
“The United States government will aggressively prosecute criminals, even if those individuals work within our own ranks,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas. “As a result of his actions, Phillips is now a convicted felon and will spend the next five years under the watchful eye of the United States Probation Department. This sentencing should send a message to all government personnel who would consider using their position for personal gain. This office will carry out its duty and seek to hold you accountable for betraying the invaluable trust of the American people.”
The FBI investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Simmons prosecuted the case.
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Former Cincinnati resident sentenced to 2 years in prison for fraud related to pandemic relief fundsRead the Press Release
CINCINNATI – A woman who formerly resided in Cincinnati was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 24 months in prison for crimes related to pandemic relief fraud.
Lashawnda Alexander, 40, currently of Katy, Texas, was convicted of three counts of wire fraud following a jury trial in August 2024.
According to court documents and trial testimony, in June 2020, Alexander submitted several fraudulent COVID-19 relief loan applications.
Specifically, on June 23, 2020, Alexander applied for an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) for business “Lashawnda Alexander.” Alexander stated in the application that the business employed 10 employees and had $125,000 in gross revenue in the year prior to January 31, 2020. Minutes later using the same device another application was submitted in the name of a family member claiming that the business employed 10 employees and had $120,000 in gross revenue.
The next day, on June 24, 2020, Alexander applied for an EIDL for business “TressD LLC,” a hair and nail salon that she said employed 15 employees and made gross revenue of $175,000 during the prior year.
In total, Alexander attempted to obtain at least $137,500 and ultimately received $91,000 in EIDL funds, including $20,000 in grants. On June 25, 2020, Alexander electronically signed an EIDL loan authorization and agreement for business TressD LLC certifying that the representations made in the loan application were true, correct and complete. Alexander’s applications, however, contradicted her 2019 tax return.
In the following months, Alexander bought a Mercedes Benz SUV and moved to Texas all while continuing to collect pandemic unemployment assistance from the Ohio Department of Job & Family Services.
Alexander was indicted by a federal grand jury in July 2022.
Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Yvonne Dicristoforo, Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service, announced the sentence imposed on Jan. 28 by U.S. District Judge Matthew W. McFarland. Assistant United States Attorneys Ebunoluwa A. Taiwo and Anthony Springer represented the United States in this case. The case was investigated by members of the Financial Crimes Working Group Pandemic Fraud Committee.
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Foreign operator of bulk carrier convicted for concealment of pollution and falsification of recordsRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI – A Greek shipping company has pleaded guilty and was sentenced for violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS) and falsification of records, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
Eurobulk Ltd. admitted to violating APPS in April 2023 during a port call by the Good Heart in the port of Corpus Christi as well as falsification of records during that same port call.
U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos has now ordered the company to pay a criminal fine of $1.125 million. The company must also serve a four-year-term of probation during which it will be subject to an environmental compliance plan with a monitorship to ensure future compliance.
“It is crucial that we strive to eliminate threats to our waters through holding overseas corporations accountable,” said Ganjei. “Our office will continue to seek justice when foreign vessels fail to comply with the APPS and then seek to cover it up. The environmental harm inflicted and falsification of records merit the sentence imposed today.”
“This outcome directly reflects our dedication to holding those who violate laws designed to prevent pollution of the marine environment accountable," said Rear Admiral David Barata, commander of the USGC’s Eighth District. “The Coast Guard and our partners remain resolute in our mission to protect our waters, and we encourage the public to continue reporting any suspicious activities as every report is essential in our ongoing effort to preserve the health of our marine ecosystems.”
The charges arose out of a United States port call in which a crew member of the Liberia-flagged Motor Vessel Good Heart presented false records to the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) to conceal illegal transfers and discharges of oily bilge water from the vessel.
The Good Heart’s former chief engineer, Greek national Christos Charitos, 72, previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced for an APPS charge for failing to record discharges in the vessel’s Oil Record Book (ORB). Christos was ordered to pay a $2,000 fine.
According to court documents and statements made in court, the Good Heart is an ocean-going bulk carrier registered in Liberia that Eurobulk operated. On at least two occasions in April 2023, Charitos ordered lower ranking engine personnel to discharge the contents of the duct keel (a pipe tunnel that begins in the engine room and runs forward under the cargo holds) directly into the sea without using the Oily Water Separator (OWS). The discharges contained oil.
Also in April 2023, Charitos ordered the second engineer to make a fresh water connection to the OWS. By making such a connection, the oil content meter on the OWS was “tricked” so that the OCM could not verify the actual oil content of the discharge from the OWS. All of these discharges should have been recorded in the ORB. However, no entries were made.
The USCG’s Investigative Service (CGIS) investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Marck and Liesel Roscher and Senior Trial Attorney Kenneth E. Nelson of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section of the Department of Justice prosecuted the case.
Fentanyl Dealer Sentenced to 5 Years for Selling a Deadly Dose that Killed a U.S. Army PrivateRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Jaron Johnson, 23, of Washington D.C., was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 60 months in federal prison in connection with selling a fatal dose of fentanyl in May 2022 to an American soldier. The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin, Jr., DEA Acting Special Agent in Charge Ibrar A. Mian of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Washington Division, and Special Agent in Charge Jake Cameron of the Washington Field Office, Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division.
Johnson pleaded guilty on August 17, 2024, to unlawful distribution of fentanyl. In addition to the five-year prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Christopher R. Cooper ordered Johnson to serve three years of supervised release.
According to court documents, Johnson distributed what he knew to contain fentanyl to a U.S. Army private. Approximately 14 hours after the sale, the soldier died. The cause of death was determined to be a mixture of fentanyl, dextromethorphan (cough medicine), and chlorpheniramine (allergy medicine), with an enlarged heart as a contributing factor. However, toxicology results revealed standard doses of dextromethorphan and chlorpheniramine, which are not typically fatal.
When the soldier’s phone was searched, investigators found a text message conversation between the soldier and a phone number which was linked to Johnson. The messages show that the soldier discussed meeting with Johnson to purchase “blues” and “30s,” which is often slang for pills containing fentanyl. On May 23, 2022, Johnson sent a message to the soldier which included a picture of a hand holding a bag of light blue pills. The soldier died on May 26, 2022.
On May 25, 2023, Johnson was arrested at an airport in Baltimore upon his return from California. A search of his checked luggage revealed he had been carrying approximately 33 pounds of suspected marijuana.
This case was investigated by the DEA’s Washington Division and Army’s Criminal Investigation Division. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Solomon Eppel of the Violence Reduction and Traffic Offenses Section (VRTO), with valuable assistance provided by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alicia Long and Will Hart, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
23cr157
Federal Grand Jury Indicts Man for Allegedly Attempting to Extort Money from Chicago RestaurateurRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A federal grand jury has indicted a man for allegedly threatening and assaulting a Chicago restaurateur to collect a debt the man claimed he was owed.
An indictment returned Monday in U.S. District Court in Chicago charges JAWAD FAKROUNE, also known as “Angelino Escobar” or “Anjelino Escobar,” 45, of Morocco, with extortion. Arraignment is scheduled for Feb. 5, 2025, at 10:30 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Manish S. Shah.
In 2023 and 2024, Fakroune privately loaned approximately $405,000 to the restaurateur to start a new restaurant in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago, according to a criminal complaint previously filed in the case. The restaurateur repaid a portion of the loan, but in November 2024 Fakroune and the restaurateur engaged in a dispute regarding the amount of money still owed, the complaint states. On the evening of Nov. 25, 2024, Fakroune went to the restaurant, threatened the restaurateur over the manner and nature of the repayments, and claimed that $1.5 million was still owed, the complaint states. Fakroune then choked, kicked, and punched the restaurateur, while continuing to demand money and threatening the restaurateur’s life and the lives of his family members, the complaint states.
The indictment was announced by Morris Pasqual, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI, and Ramsey E. Covington, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation Chicago Field Office. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sean Hennessy and Richard M. Rothblatt.
The public is reminded that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
fakroune_complaint.pdf 0025_-_0000_-_indictment_as_to_jawad_fakroune_1_counts_1-2.pdfFayette County Woman Pleads Guilty to Fentanyl CrimeRead the Press Release
BECKLEY, W.Va. – Kayla Nicole Dent, 34, of Mount Hope, pleaded guilty today to distribution of fentanyl.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on January 23, 2024, Dent sold approximately 1.5 grams of fentanyl to a confidential informant in exchange for $140 at Dent’s residence. Dent admitted to the transaction and to arranging it with the confidential informant beforehand.
Dent is scheduled to be sentenced on May 29, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release, and a $1,000,000 fine.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Beckley/Raleigh County Drug and Violent Crime Unit, which consists of officers from the West Virginia State Police, the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department, and the Beckley Police Department.
United States Magistrate Judge Omar J. Aboulhosn presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorneys Brian D. Parsons and Alexander A. Redmon are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:24-cr-140.
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Ecuadorian National Pleads Guilty to Armed Fentanyl TraffickingRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that Alberto Ismael Salinas Valencia (20, Orlando) has pleaded guilty to distributing fentanyl and possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. Salinas Valencia, who is present illegally in the United States, faces a minimum penalty of 15 years, up to life, in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to the plea agreement, between August 2023 and August 2024, Salinas Valencia ran an online business selling firearms, fentanyl, and cocaine in the Orlando area. An undercover law enforcement officer found Salinas Valencia’s online store and set up several undercover transactions. Over the course of the investigation, Salinas Valencia sold the undercover officer several firearms, including two machineguns, fentanyl pills, and cocaine.
Examples of firearms and pills Salinas Valencia sold to the undercover officer
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Richard Varadan.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Drug Trafficker Pleads Guilty to Possessing a Massive Amount of MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Gilberto Contreras has pleaded guilty to possessing with intent to distribute nearly 1,000 pounds of methamphetamine.
“Contreras distributed massive quantities of dangerous drugs that posed a significant threat to the health and safety of our communities,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Richard S. Moultrie, Jr. “Our office is grateful for the diligent work of our federal and local law enforcement partners who work tirelessly to remove these poisons from our streets and to hold accountable those who peddle them.”
“This case represents the continued commitment of the DEA to identify and hold accountable those who engage in the distribution of dangerous drugs, such as methamphetamine,” said Jae Chung, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Division.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Moultrie, the charges and other information presented in court: On July 2, 2024, DEA special agents received information about a local methamphetamine trafficker with multiple kilograms of methamphetamine for sale. The investigation led agents to a parking lot in Clayton County, Georgia, where the agents encountered Contreras. Law enforcement stopped Contreras’s vehicle a short time later and located a black trash bag containing approximately 44 pounds of methamphetamine. Agents then searched Contreras’s residence and backyard in Ellenwood, Georgia and located approximately 915 pounds of methamphetamine and $40,000 in cash.
Gilberto Contreras, 54, of Ellenwood, Georgia, is scheduled to be sentenced on May 13, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. before U.S. District Judge Thomas W. Thrash, Jr.
This case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration with valuable assistance provided by the Clayton County Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Dwayne A. Brown, Jr. is prosecuting the case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: www.justthinktwice.gov.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Dominican Republic Native Sentenced to 63 Months in Prison for Fentanyl Distribution and Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Jose Ricardo Pena, age 58, a native and citizen of the Dominican Republic, was sentenced to 63 months’ imprisonment by U.S. District Court Judge Jennifer P. Wilson for distribution of fentanyl and illegal reentry by a previously deported alien. Following his term of imprisonment, Ricardo-Pena will face deportation for a third time.
According to Acting United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, Ricardo-Pena was arrested in Boston, Massachusetts in 2011, and deported to the Dominican Republic on or about August 31, 2011. At some point after deportation, he illegally re-entered the United States and was arrested in Dauphin County on October 16, 2015, for drug trafficking charges. He was ultimately convicted in the Dauphin County Court of Common Pleas of conspiracy and possession with intent to deliver heroin and was sentenced to concurrent terms of 7-14 months imprisonment. Following that conviction, he was arrested by ICE and charged in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania with illegally re-entering the United States. On February 8, 2017, he was convicted of that charge, sentenced to time served and on May 7, 2017, he was deported for a second time to the Dominican Republic.
At some point after that deportation, Pena again illegally re-entered the United States. On four separate occasions in 2023, Pena distributed fentanyl outside an apartment complex located in Harrisburg. On August 23, 2023, he sold 22 grams of fentanyl; on September 5, 2023, he sold 40 grams of fentanyl; on September 14, 2023, he sold 53 grams of fentanyl; and on October 10, 2023, he sold 40 grams of fentanyl. In total, this equates to more than 4,700 individual doses of fentanyl.
“Fentanyl is a deadly poison that devastates communities and shatters families. The arrest and sentencing of Jose Ricardo Pena, a criminal illegal alien who was previously removed, are a testament to our unwavering commitment to combating the devastation that it causes,” said Special Agent in Charge of HSI Philadelphia Edward V. Owens. “The diligent work by our investigative team and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania in uncovering and stopping the distribution networks of this lethal drug have saved lives and strengthened our communities. Pena will be deported after serving his prison sentence.”
This matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Pennsylvania State Police. Assistant United States Attorney Scott Ford prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
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Delaware County Man Indicted on Social Security Fraud ChargesRead the Press Release
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Brian Gill, age 59, of Andes, New York, has been indicted for Social Security fraud. The charge relates to Gill’s concealment of work activity at a tree service company he owned and operated while he was obtaining disability benefits from the Social Security Administration.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman and Amy Connelly, Special Agent in Charge of the Social Security Administration, Office of the Inspector General, New York Field Office.
The Social Security Fraud charge carries a maximum term of 5 years in federal prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of supervised release of up to three years. Gill could also be ordered to pay restitution to the Social Security Administration for the funds fraudulently collected. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.
The charges in the indictment are merely accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty. This case is being investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General and is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Paul Tuck.
Defendant Extradited to Face Charges Related to International Bank Fraud and Money Laundering Ring That Caused over $60 Million in LossesRead the Press Release
Danielle R. Sassoon, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Patrick J. Freaney, the Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Office of the United States Secret Service (“USSS”), announced today that ERICK JASON VICTORIA-BRITO was extradited from the Dominican Republic and will appear in a federal courtroom in Manhattan later today. VICTORIA-BRITO is charged in a two-count Indictment with conspiring to commit bank fraud and money laundering from December 2017 through November 2022. In connection with the scheme, VICTORIA-BRITO and other members of the charged conspiracy registered over 1,000 fake businesses, used those fake businesses to open bank accounts to receive money stolen through business e-mail compromise schemes, and then laundered that money. Members of the conspiracy caused over $60 million in actual losses and attempted to steal over $150 million.
U.S. Attorney Danielle R. Sassoon said: “As we allege, Erick Jason Victoria-Brito and his co-conspirators ran an international bank fraud and money laundering scheme designed to help carry out business email compromise scams. These scams cause significant harm to businesses, nonprofits, and even local governments. As the successful extradition of Erick Jason Victoria-Brito shows, this Office and our partners will not rest until every individual responsible is held accountable.”
USSS Special Agent in Charge Patrick J. Freaney said: “This alleged scheme rained down financial ruin upon unwitting businesses and individuals. While the suspects operated with impunity across the nation and beyond, the U.S. Secret Service and its partners remained steadfast in building a strong case — no matter where the evidence took them. I commend the investigators and prosecutors for their commitment to disrupting this type of insidious fraud on behalf of all those victimized by it.”
As alleged in the Indictment, Superseding Indictments, and court filings:[1]
From at least December 2017 through at least November 2022, a group of individuals perpetrated a massive, international bank-fraud and money-laundering scheme (the “Fraud and Money Laundering Scheme”) designed to obtain and launder the proceeds of business e-mail compromise schemes. In a business email compromise scheme, a scheme member fraudulently induces a company or individual to send money to a bank account controlled by that scheme member or the scheme member’s compatriots.
The Fraud and Money Laundering Scheme operated across borders and preyed on businesses large and small. Between 2020 and 2021 alone, participants in the scheme stole tens of millions of dollars, targeting victims that included a major American sports organization, a publicly traded healthcare company, and a prominent international nonprofit organization, along with multiple city governments, law firms, construction companies, and investment funds. Participants in the Fraud and Money Laundering Scheme registered over 1,000 fake businesses, then used those businesses to open bank accounts. Those bank accounts then received the proceeds of business email compromise schemes. Once the stolen funds reached those fraudulent bank accounts, participants in the Fraud and Money Laundering Scheme worked quickly to take advantage of the international banking system by either withdrawing the money or helping to launder it by wiring it to overseas banks, thereby preventing victims from recouping their losses. The co-conspirators accomplished that primarily by wiring stolen money to banks in China, outside the reach of American banks. During the course of the charged conduct, members of the conspiracy participated in inflicting over $60 million in actual losses and attempted to inflict losses of over $150 million.
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VICTORIA-BRITO, 30, of Hollywood, Florida, is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by a judge.
Ms. Sassoon praised the outstanding investigative work of the New York City Police Department, USSS, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and Homeland Security Investigations. Ms. Sassoon further thanked the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations for their assistance. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance in securing the extradition from the Dominican Republic of Victoria-Brito.
This case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas S. Burnett and Amanda C. Weingarten are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Indictment and Superseding Indictments are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment and Superseding Indictment, and the description of the Indictment and Superseding Indictment set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described herein should be treated as an allegation.
Charleston Man Sentenced to Prison for Federal Gun CrimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Ricky Steve John, 50, of Charleston, was sentenced today to three years and three months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on March 20, 2024, a law enforcement officer responded to a report of a break-in at a church in the West Side neighborhood of Charleston and detained John after seeing him in the area. The officer found that John had an outstanding warrant and arrested him. After John was placed in custody, an unloaded Ruger model EC9 9mm semiautomatic pistol fell out of his pant leg.
Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from possessing a firearm or ammunition. John knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of his prior felony conviction for voluntary manslaughter in Kanawha County Circuit Court on July 21, 2016.
John has a long criminal history that also includes prior convictions for aggravated vehicular assault, theft, and possession of a weapon. The investigation of the current offense established that John possessed three different firearms over approximately six weeks that he traded or attempted to trade for drugs or other firearms. Two of those firearms were stolen from vehicles on Charleston’s West Side.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Charleston Police Department-Special Enforcement Unit and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Senior United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorneys Samuel D. Marsh and Alexander A. Redmon prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-136.
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California Food Distributor Settles False Claims Act Liability Relating to Self-Disclosure of Small Business Contracting ViolationsRead the Press Release
GS Foods Group Inc. (GS Foods), headquartered in Ontario, California, has agreed to pay $949,696.90 to resolve False Claims Act liability in connection with bidding on contracts reserved for small businesses when GS Foods did not qualify as a small business. The contracts involved supplying food to facilities operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons and U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement. In connection with the settlement, the United States acknowledged that GS Foods took significant steps entitling it to credit for cooperating with the government.
“Businesses that participate in federal small business contracting programs must ensure that they comply with applicable rules and regulations relating to eligibility,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “When businesses run afoul of small business contracting requirements, they can mitigate the consequences by making timely self-disclosures, cooperating with investigations, and taking appropriate remedial measures.”
The settlement resolves allegations that, between Oct. 1, 2018 and March 8, 2024, GS Foods did not qualify as a small business because of its affiliation with certain other companies. The United States alleged that subsidiaries of GS Foods, GoodSource Solutions Inc., and Dori Foods Inc., bid on contracts and orders that had been expressly reserved, or set-aside, exclusively for small businesses. As a result, GoodSource Solutions and Dori Foods allegedly obtained contracts for which they were not eligible. GS Foods timely self-reported the conduct to the Department of Justice, Office of Inspector General (DOJ-OIG), and cooperated with the Justice Department’s investigation, including, for example, by identifying key witnesses and documents and making employees available for interviews. The company also took remedial measures, including updating its code of conduct, establishing an Ethics and Compliance Management Committee, establishing the position of Chief Compliance Officer, and developing and implementing additional employee training.
“It is a disservice to small businesses when contracts that were expressly set aside to create opportunities for small businesses are awarded to ineligible organizations,” said Special Agent in Charge Andrew Hartwell of DOJ-OIG, Fraud Detection Office. “The Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General is committed to playing our part to maintain the integrity of small business contracts.”
The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section and DOJ-OIG. Fraud Section Senior Trial Counsel Jonathan H. Gold handled the matter.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
Burlington Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Federal Prison for Meth Conspiracy ChargeRead the Press Release
DAVENPORT, Iowa – A Burlington man was sentenced today to 20 years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
According to public court documents, Giovani Denario Timmons, 24, participated in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Burlington between December 2019 and November 2021. Timmons served as a source of supply along with Kendric Centrall Childs, 25. Timmons facilitated the transportation of methamphetamine to Iowa, including approximately 362 pounds of methamphetamine seized during a January 2020 traffic stop in Arizona. This traffic stop was the Arizona Department of Public Safety’s largest single seizure of ice methamphetamine at the time.[1] Timmons’s eight co-defendants, including Childs, were sentenced in 2022.
After completing his term of imprisonment, Timmons will be required to serve a five-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.
United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. This case was investigated by the Burlington Police Department, Southeast Iowa Narcotics Taskforce, West Burlington Police Department, Des Moines County Sheriff’s Office, Henry County Sheriff’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Iowa Department of Public Safety-Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Drug Enforcement Administration, Muscatine County Sheriff’s Office, Johnson County Drug Taskforce, Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Lee County Drug Taskforce, Muscatine County Drug Taskforce, Iowa State Patrol, and Arizona Department of Public Safety.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.
[1] https://www.azdps.gov/news/releases/933.
Browning man sentenced to more than three years in prison for burning woman with hot knife on Blackfeet Indian ReservationRead the Press Release
GREAT FALLS — A Browning man who admitted to burning a woman on the hand with a hot knife in a residence on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation was sentenced today to three years and five months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
The defendant, Dale Ray Racine, 32, pleaded guilty in September 2024 to assault with a dangerous weapon.
Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided.
The government alleged in court documents that in the early morning hours of Feb. 14, 2024, Racine was drinking at a residence in Browning. The victim, Jane Doe, also was present. At some point, Racine placed a knife in a wood stove until it was red hot. Racine removed the knife from the fire and burned Doe with it. Doe reported to law enforcement and medical providers that Racine was trying to brand her neck. Doe held up her hand to stop the branding, at which point Racine intentionally burned her hand. Doe was treated for second-degree burns to her hand. Racine committed the assault one month after having been released from federal prison and while on supervision for an assault he committed in 2021 in which he repeatedly struck a man in the head with a metal pipe.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case. The Blackfeet Law Enforcement Services and FBI, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service, investigated the case.
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Brooklyn Man Charged with Sexual Exploitation of a ChildRead the Press Release
Earlier today, an indictment was unsealed charging Ramel Warner with sexual exploitation of a child. The defendant was arrested this morning and arraigned before Magistrate Judge Vera M. Scanlon. He was detained pending trial.
John J. Durham, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and James E. Dennehy, Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), announced the arrest and charge.
“As alleged, while babysitting a seven-year-old boy, the defendant horrifically abused him, filmed the acts and subsequently distributed it on the dark web,” stated United States Attorney Durham. “Our Office will continue to work tirelessly with our law enforcement partners to bring to justice anyone who abuses children.”
Mr. Durham expressed his appreciation to the New York City Police Department for their assistance on the case.
“Ramel Warner is alleged to have used his access to a young child, while babysitting him at his own home, to film himself sexually assaulting the child. Warner's alleged actions are unconscionable, and we believe there may be more victims. We ask anyone with information regarding his actions to please come forward, so that we can further investigate and aid his victims. The FBI is committed to ensuring the safety of children and holding their abusers accountable in the criminal justice system,” stated FBI Assistant Director in Charge Dennehy.
As set forth in court filings, in approximately 2022, the defendant raped the young son of a family friend in the child’s own home when he was supposed to be babysitting him. The defendant recorded six videos of his sexual abuse of the child, one of which was over four minutes long. The videos the defendant created depict him anally penetrating the child and performing oral sex on him. Those videos were subsequently distributed on the dark web.
The government believes the defendant has worked at afterschool programs in Brooklyn public schools, including a dance group for minor children operating out of a Brooklyn middle school. Anyone with information about sexual exploitation by the defendant should contact the FBI at [email protected].
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
The charges in the indictment are allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, the defendant faces a minimum sentence of 15 years and a maximum sentence of 30 years.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by the Office’s General Crimes Section. Assistant United States Attorney Vincent Chiappini is in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
Ramel Warner
Age: 23
Brooklyn, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 25-CR-32
25-cr-32_ramel_warner_indictment.pdfBridgewater Man Sentenced to More than Six Years in Prison for Cocaine TraffickingRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Bridgewater man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for possessing and distributing cocaine.
Kevin Mercado, 38, was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Court Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to 78 months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. In October 2024, Mercado pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.
In 2019, an investigation began into a drug trafficking organization selling cocaine and fentanyl in the southeastern part of Massachusetts, including Brockton. From March 2020 through November 2023, 11 controlled purchases of drugs were made from Mercado. In November 2023, a search was conducted at Mercado’s apartment in Bridgewater where nearly a kilogram and a half of cocaine and cocaine base, three digital scales, a money counter and $16,086 in drug proceeds were found. An additional search of Mercado’s SnapChat account showed communications evincing regular access to large quantities of cocaine and willingness to cook cocaine into crack cocaine. In 2010, Mercado was sentenced to 48-months in federal prison after being convicted of two counts of distribution of cocaine base.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by Massachusetts State Police and the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey E. Weinstein of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case.
This operation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations to disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Boone County Man Sentenced to Prison for Child Pornography CrimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Trenton Alan Cremeans, 24, of Seth, was sentenced today to three years and six months in prison, to be followed by 20 years of supervised release, for possession of prepubescent child pornography. Cremeans must also register as a sex offender.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on January 17, 2024, Cremeans possessed child pornography on his cell phone. When combined with child pornography also possessed in his Snapchat accounts, Cremeans possessed a total of approximately 373 images and 31 videos of child pornography. These images and videos included depictions of prepubescent minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, and some of the images depicted sadistic and masochistic abuse. Cremeans further admitted that he downloaded these images and videos online, and used his cell phone to search online for child pornography and related information by using specific search terms, including terms that specifically sought child pornography depicting infants and toddlers.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Senior United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Rada Herrald prosecuted the case.
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 Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-41.
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Billings man sentenced to 10 years in prison for trafficking meth, possessing gun on Rocky Boy’s Indian ReservationRead the Press Release
GREAT FALLS — A federal judge today sentenced a Billings man who admitted to armed trafficking of methamphetamine and other substances on the Rocky Boy’s Indian Reservation to 10 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
The defendant, David Victor Fast Horse, 36, pleaded guilty in September 2024 to possession with intent to distribute meth and to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided.
In court documents, the government alleged that on Aug. 30, 2022, tribal law enforcement conducted a traffic stop of a pickup truck on Upper Road on the Rocky Boy’s Indian Reservation because officers believed the driver had a tribal warrant for her arrest. A man jumped out of the front passenger seat and began running. A Rocky Boy’s police officer caught up with the man, later identified as Fast Horse, and found him retreating around a shed. Officers retraced Fast Horse’s path and located a green pistol and black case hidden near a woodpile where he had emerged. Fast Horse said he was given the gun and case and told to run. Officers opened the case and found 18 blue pills, which tested for a mixture of substances, two small baggies with a small amount of meth, a digital scale and a car key. Fast Horse later admitted he sold meth, but not fentanyl, and that he had come to Rocky Boy’s to buy drugs from his friend. Fast Horse is prohibited from possessing firearms because of a prior federal felony conviction for burglary.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case. The Rocky Boy’s Police Department, FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Marshals Service, Drug Enforcement Administration and Billings Police Department conducted the investigation.
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Austin Man Charged with Smuggling Dozens of Firearms into Mexico Through Eagle PassRead the Press Release
DEL RIO, Texas – An Austin man was arrested in Eagle Pass on criminal charges related to his alleged smuggling of firearms from the United States into Mexico.
According to court documents, Victor Hugo Diego-Avellaneda, 39, was attempting to leave the U.S. and enter Mexico at the Eagle Pass Port of Entry on Jan. 19. He made a negative declaration regarding possession of weapons, ammunition and currency, and was referred to a secondary inspection. A criminal complaint alleges that Customs and Border Protection officers located 40 rifles, six shotguns, one pistol, 80 magazines, and two rifle scopes stored in two large duffel bags. Diego-Avellaneda allegedly claimed that he was being paid approximately $100 for each firearm he smuggled into Mexico, and that 11 of the firearms belonged to him.
Diego-Avellaneda is charged with one count of smuggling goods out of the United States. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in federal prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas made the announcement.
Homeland Security Investigations is investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua Garland and Katherine Gorski are prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Armed Drug Trafficker Sentenced to over Twenty Years in Federal Prison for Fentanyl, Meth, and Cocaine Charges After High-Speed Police ChaseRead the Press Release
INDIANAPOLIS— Lamone Lauderdale, 37, of Indianapolis, has been sentenced to 248 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute controlled substances and carrying a firearm during a drug trafficking crime.
According to court documents, on January 19, 2022, a Zionsville Police Department K9 officer pulled Lamone Lauderdale over for speeding. A K9 sniff indicated the presence of controlled substances in the vehicle. When Lauderdale was asked to step out of the car, he fled and led officers on a high-speed pursuit down US-421. Lauderdale eventually came to a stop after striking two other vehicles and popping his tire on a median near Michigan Road in Indianapolis. Lauderdale then fled on foot carrying a black bag.
Lauderdale was eventually found and arrested but was no longer carrying the black bag. Officers located the abandoned bag, which contained 170 grams of methamphetamine, 60 grams of fentanyl, 111 grams of cocaine, a pill press, a digital scale, a 9mm handgun, and 11 rounds of live ammunition.
A later search of Lauderdale’s vehicle recovered an additional 22 grams of methamphetamine, another digital scale, another handgun and five rounds of ammunition.
“Traffickers of deadly drugs, armed with deadly weapons, are a poison in our communities,” said John E. Childress, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “Those who choose to endanger our families to further their own greed will be identified and prosecuted. With our federal, state, and local partners, we are committed to ensuring dangerous criminals are taken off our streets and held accountable for their actions. I commend the talented professionals at the Zionsville Police Department and ATF, and our federal prosecutor, for their efforts to apprehend and successfully prosecute this dangerous criminal.”
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Zionsville Police Department and investigated this case. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge James R. Sweeney II.
Acting U.S. Attorney Childress thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Jayson W. McGrath, who prosecuted this case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
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Arizona Woman Sentenced for Fentanyl and Methamphetamine ConspiracyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Susan Lehr announced that Tijuana Johnson, age 39, of Phoenix, Arizona was sentenced on January 29, 2025, in federal court in Omaha, Nebraska for her role in a fentanyl and methamphetamine drug conspiracy. United States District Judge Brian C. Buescher sentenced Johnson to 120 months’ imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. After Johnson is released from prison, she will begin a 3-year term of supervised release.
On January 17, 2023, Omaha DEA received an anonymous tip that Robert Johnson (‘RJ’) was selling fentanyl pills and meth in the Omaha area. On April 19, 2023, a federal search warrant was executed on Johnson’s home in Omaha that he shared with codefendant Whitney Washington. Law enforcement recovered methamphetamine, a Taurus 9mm handgun, $7,000 in drug proceeds and narcotics trafficking paraphilia. All narcotics were sent to a forensic laboratory for testing and confirmed as to weight and substance.
The investigation identified Tijuana Johnson as the mailer of several packages from Tempe, Arizona, to Johnson’s home address, each carrying meth, fentanyl or a combination of both. On December 17, 2022, Tijuana Johnson mailed a package containing controlled substances to Robert Johnson’s Omaha address. A January 23, 2023, search warrant was executed on a package addressed to Whitney Washington that contained approximately 3,900 grams of meth and 1,166 grams of fentanyl “M 30” blue pills. The meth tested at 93% pure and 1,079 grams fentanyl 4-ANPP. Codefendant Robert Johnson’s fingerprints were found on the exterior of the box. Video surveillance showed that Tijuana Johnson mailed the package and her license plate information was confirmed. Phone records and CashApp transactions revealed numerous contacts between Tijuana and Robert from 2022 through April 2023.
Codefendant Robert Johnson pled guilty to possessing with the intent to distribute meth and use or possession of a firearm with drug trafficking. He will be sentenced March 19, 2025.
Codefendant Whitney Washington pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and will be sentenced February 19, 2025.
This case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service
28 January 2025
Woman Sentenced for Fraud Scheme Involving Claims for Unnecessary Respiratory Tests Submitted with COVID-19 TestsRead the Press Release
A California woman was sentenced today to nine years in prison for her role in fraudulently submitting claims to governmental and private insurance programs during the COVID‑19 pandemic for expensive respiratory pathogen panel (RPP) tests that were medically unnecessary and never ordered by health care providers.
According to court documents, Lourdes Navarro, 66, of Glendale, and Imran Shams owned and controlled Matias Clinical Laboratory, doing business as Health Care Providers Laboratory (HCPL). Navarro and Shams conspired to obtain nasal swab specimens that enabled HCPL to test for COVID-19, as well as to obtain testing orders from physicians and other medical professionals. The specimens were collected from, among others, residents and staff at nursing homes, assisted living facilities, rehabilitation facilities, and similar types of facilities, and from students and staff at primary and secondary schools, for the purported purpose of conducting screening tests to identify and isolate individuals infected with COVID-19. However, Navarro and Shams caused HCPL to perform RPP tests on most of the specimens, even though only COVID-19 testing had been ordered and there was no medical justification for conducting RPP tests on asymptomatic individuals who needed only COVID-19 screening tests. Through HCPL, Navarro and Shams billed approximately $369 million for the RPP tests to Medicare, the Health Resources and Services Administration COVID-19 Uninsured Program, and a private health insurance company, and were reimbursed approximately $46.7 million for fraudulent claims.
Navarro was also ordered to forfeit $11,662,939 in funds that the government had previously seized from three bank accounts. The total amount seized and forfeited from Navarro and Shams is $14,518,485. Navarro also was ordered to pay $46,735,400 in restitution.
Navarro pleaded guilty on Oct. 5, 2023, to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud. Shams pleaded guilty on Jan. 24, 2023, in the Central District of California to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and concealment of his exclusion from Medicare and was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Jan. 30, 2024. In addition, on May 29, 2024, Shams was sentenced to five years in prison in connection with his 2017 plea in the Eastern District of New York to conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks, and defrauding the United States by obstructing the lawful functions of the IRS, of which three years were ordered to run consecutive to the Central District of California sentence.
Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Assistant Director in Charge Akil Davis of the FBI Los Angeles Field Office, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Rochelle Wong of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Los Angeles Regional Office made the announcement.
The FBI and HHS-OIG investigated the case.
Trial Attorneys Gary A. Winters and Raymond E. Beckering III of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Maxwell Coll for the Central District of California handled the financial penalties.
The Justice Department’s COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force marshals the resources of the department in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The task force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the department’s response to the pandemic, visit www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
West Mifflin Felon Sentenced to More Than 16 Years in Prison for Firearms and Drug Trafficking ViolationsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, Pa. - A resident of West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 200 months of imprisonment on his conviction of violating federal firearms and narcotics trafficking laws, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.
United States District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan imposed the sentence on Giante Hilliard, 32, on January 27, 2025.
According to information presented to the Court, Hilliard—who previously had been convicted of a number of felony offenses in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, including aggravated assault, possession of unlicensed firearms, and terroristic threats—was involved in an exchange of gunfire outside of a McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, bar on March 28, 2023. Video of the incident shows that, moments after Hilliard and another individual left the bar and started to drive off, a third person shot at the car they occupied. Hilliard returned fire from the vehicle’s passenger seat, with several muzzle flashes visible in the video. Federal law prohibits possession of a firearm or ammunition by a convicted felon.
In a second incident, Hilliard was the passenger in a vehicle that law enforcement attempted to stop on May 8, 2023. Rather than complying, the driver rammed three law enforcement vehicles—allowing one of the officers to observe Hilliard with a black firearm—and sped off. Shortly after, law enforcement located the disabled vehicle abandoned near a convenience store. Nearby surveillance video showed the driver and Hilliard leaving the disabled vehicle together, and then splitting up, with Hilliard holding a black bag that he attempted to conceal under a dumpster. The black bag was recovered by law enforcement and found to contain a loaded Smith & Wesson handgun and approximately 300 doses of what laboratory results later confirmed was a heroin and fentanyl mixture. Ballistic testing of the handgun against nearly a dozen 40 caliber casings from the March 28 shooting determined the firearm to be a match with the one used by Hilliard in that earlier incident. Hilliard’s fingerprints were found both on the firearm ’s magazine and on some of the paper in which the narcotics were wrapped. The gun previously had been reported stolen. Based on evidence recovered in connection with this May 8 incident, including analysis of cell phones seized from within the disabled vehicle, the government obtained an arrest warrant for Hilliard.
In a third incident, on May 31, 2023, Hilliard posted on social media a video of himself with another firearm. Based on information from that video and other evidence gathered during the investigation, the government obtained a search warrant for a residence where Hilliard was hiding out and the vehicle that he had been seen driving. Law enforcement surrounded the house, but Hilliard refused to come out until several hours after officers fired multiple rounds of tear gas into the home. A subsequent search of the residence resulted in the seizure of a substantial quantity of controlled substances that laboratory testing later confirmed to be a heroin and fentanyl mixture. In the vehicle, investigators also discovered another loaded firearm—a “ghost gun” without a serial number.
Assistant United States Attorneys Brendan T. Conway and Douglas C. Maloney prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
Acting United States Attorney Rivetti commended the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Allegheny County Police, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, and numerous other police departments for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Hilliard.
Washington, DC Man Sentenced to 2 Years in Aggravated Identity Theft CaseRead the Press Release
Burlington, Vermont – The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont stated that on January 28, 2025, Andrew Chaves, 25, of Washington, DC, was sentenced by Chief United States District Judge Christina Reiss to a term of two years’ imprisonment to be followed by a one-year term of supervised release. Chaves previously pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft.
According to court records, Chaves stole two federal government vehicles from November 2023 to January 2024. He took one vehicle from a U.S. Forest Service facility in Manchester, Vermont and another from a U.S. Army facility in Lodi, New Jersey. Chaves drove both vehicles through multiple states, including Vermont, while making unauthorized purchases on credit cards he had stolen. As part of his plea, Chaves has agreed to pay over $25,000 in restitution to the United States government and his other victims. The statute of conviction prescribes a mandatory sentence of two years’ imprisonment consecutive to all other sentences. Chaves has pending state charges in Vermont, Pennsylvania and Washington, DC.
Acting United States Attorney Michael P. Drescher commended the collaborative investigatory efforts of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, the U.S. General Services Administration, Office of Inspector General, the United States Forest Service, the Vermont State Police, the U.S. Marshals Service and the U.S. Federal Protective Service.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Colin Owyang. Chaves was represented by Assistant Federal Public Defender Sara Puls and defense attorney Sarah Star, Esq.
Washington man admits illegal possession of firearms after being removed from Amtrak train in MontanaRead the Press Release
MISSOULA —A Washington man with a bank robbery conviction admitted today to illegally possessing firearms after law enforcement removed him from an Amtrak train in Libby and found him in possession of multiple guns, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
The defendant, Mallory Nehemiah Brown, 43, of Auburn, Washington, pleaded guilty to prohibited person in possession of a firearm. Brown faces a maximum of 15 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto presided. Sentencing was set for May 29 before U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Brown was detained pending further proceedings.
The government alleged in court documents that in 2004, Brown was convicted of bank robbery in federal district court in California and prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition. On Jan. 8, 2024, Brown boarded an Amtrak train in Seattle, Washington, with a black duffel bag and several long boxes. Brown placed his bags and boxes on the luggage rack. The train was bound for Washington, D.C., with a stop in Chicago, Illinois. On Jan. 9, 2024, the train stopped in Libby based on a complaint by other passengers about Brown. Law enforcement removed Brown from the train. The train conductor located Brown’s bags. Inside, he discovered four firearms, ammunition, magazines, a suppressor, eight firearms receivers, night vision goggles, a tactical vest and other assorted accessories. The four firearms were identified as a .22LR HV rifle, which had a serial number; a 12-gauge pump shotgun with an obliterated serial number; a 12-gauge semi-auto shot gun with no visible serial number; and a 9mm semi-auto pistol with no visible serial number. Brown denied the bags belonged to him, however, several Amtrak employees identified Brown as the person who loaded the bags on the train. One of the boxes had a shipping label on it addressed to “Mallory Brown.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Libby Police Department, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, FBI and Montana Probation and Parole conducted the investigation.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.
Venezuelan National Arrested Outside Veterans Medical Center for Possessing Fraudulent Green Cards and Social Security CardsRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the filing of a criminal complaint charging Jhuliana Ceclilia Noriega Ron (36, Venezuela) with possessing a fake U.S. Permanent Resident Card, commonly known as a Green Card. If convicted, Noriega Ron faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison.
According to the complaint, on January 27, 2025, a police officer with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) pulled over Noriega Ron after she had cut across multiple lanes of traffic in her car at the Bay Pines VA Medical Center. The officer asked Noriega Ron for her driver license, but Noriega Ron did not have a valid one. Noriega Ron instead provided a Venezuelan passport and gave consent for the officer to search her vehicle. Inside, officers found two fake Green Cards and two fake Social Security cards in the center console. One fake Green Card and one fake Social Security card were in Noriega Ron’s name. The United States Border Patrol informed the VA police that Noriega Ron had entered the United States illegally and without documentation at Eagle Pass, Texas in September 2023.
A complaint is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Department of Veterans Affairs - Office of Inspector General, the Veterans Affairs Police, and the United States Border Patrol. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam W. McCall.