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Newest first across public DOJ and U.S. Attorney press releases.
Friday 1 November 2024
Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Warren, Ann Arbor, Hamtramck, Detroit, and FlintRead the Press Release
DETROIT - United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Warren, Ann Arbor, Hamtramck, Detroit, and Flint for the Tuesday, November 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin, or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office will also be available to receive complaints on Election Day at 313-226-9168. In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the state to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on Election Day. The local FBI field office can be reached by the public at 313-965-2323.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in South CarolinaRead the Press Release
COLUMBIA, S.C. — United States Attorney Adair Ford Boroughs announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in South Carolina for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
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Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in San Juan County, UtahRead the Press Release
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – United States Attorney Trina A. Higgins announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in San Juan County for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will also be available to receive complaints on Election Day at 801-325-3311.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Prince George’s County, MarylandRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Prince George’s County, Maryland for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931. [The U.S. Attorney’s Office will also be available to receive complaints on Election Day at NUMBER or ONLINE PORTAL WEB ADDRESS]
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
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Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in MilwaukeeRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Gregory J. Haanstad announced on November 1, 2024, that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws at several polling locations in the Milwaukee area for the November 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The Department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, and Civil Rights Acts. The Division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The Division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin, or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the Department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931.
The United States Attorney’s Office will also be available to receive complaints on election day at 414-297-4103.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the Department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the Department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence, or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the Department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC using the complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
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Public Information Officer
414-297-1700
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Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Macon-Bibb CountyRead the Press Release
MACON, Ga. – U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Macon-Bibb County for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia will also be available to receive complaints on Election Day at 478-621-2698, or by email at [email protected].
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931
Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Luzerne CountyRead the Press Release
SCRANTON - United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Luzerne County for the November 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will also be available to receive complaints on Election Day. Our District Election Officers will be on duty in this District while the polls are open. AUSA/DEO Michael Consiglio can be reached by the public at the Harrisburg Office number: 717-221-4482; AUSA/DEO James Buchanan can be reached at the Scranton Office number: 570-348-2800; and AUSA/DEO Geoffrey MacArthur can be reached at the Williamsport Office number: 570-326-1935.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
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Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Four South Dakota CountiesRead the Press Release
SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Bennett, Jackson, Minnehaha, and Oglala Lakota Counties for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will also be available to receive complaints on Election Day at (605) 838-9446. The local FBI field office can be reached by the public at (605) 334-6881.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Dallas, Palo PintoRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Leigha Simonton announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Dallas County and Palo Pinto County for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting.
Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Blaine CountyRead the Press Release
BILLINGS — United States Attorney Jesse Laslovich announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Blaine County for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will also be available to receive complaints on Election Day at 406-542-8851.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
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Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Alamance CountyRead the Press Release
GREENSBORO, NC – United States Attorney Sandra J. Hairston for the Middle District of North Carolina (MDNC) announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Alamance County for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin, or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931. The MDNC U.S. Attorney’s Office will also be available to receive complaints on Election Day at 336-332-6362.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
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Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Broward and Miami-Dade CountiesRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Broward County and Miami-Dade County for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
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Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Orange and Osceola CountiesRead the Press Release
Orlando, FL – The Justice Department announced today that the Civil Rights Division will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Orange and Osceola Counties for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will handle this effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel from the Civil Rights Division, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will also be available to receive complaints on Election Day at (904) 301- 6284.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Mecklenburg CountyRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – United States Attorney Dena J. King announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Mecklenburg County for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will also be available to receive complaints on Election Day at 704-344-6222 in Charlotte, and at 828-271-4661 in Asheville.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
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Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Grand RapidsRead the Press Release
GRAND RAPIDS, MI – U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten today announced that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Grand Rapids/Kent County for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will also be available to receive complaints or for the public to share information related to voting rights concerns on Election Day at 616-808-2140 or online at website.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
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Justice Department to Monitor Compliance in Clark CountyRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS – United States Attorney Jason M. Frierson for the District of Nevada announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Clark County for the Nov. 5 general election.
The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.
The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will also be available to receive complaints on Election Day at 702-388-6336.
Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.
More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.
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Justice Department Secures Settlement Agreement with Colorado to Ensure Opportunities for People with Physical Disabilities to Live at HomeRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that it secured a settlement agreement to resolve its lawsuit alleging that Colorado violates Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Supreme Court’s decision in Olmstead v. L.C. by unnecessarily segregating adults with physical disabilities, including older adults, in nursing facilities.
The ADA and the Olmstead decision require state and local governments to administer their services to people with disabilities in the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs. Today’s agreement gives thousands of Coloradans with physical disabilities the opportunity to move out of nursing facilities into the community — or avoid unnecessary nursing facility admission altogether — and receive the services they need at home. Community-based services that can help people live at home include assistance with bathing, dressing, managing medications and preparing meals.
“People with disabilities should not have to give up their lives in the community and be isolated in nursing facilities to get the services they need,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This settlement agreement sends the message that people with disabilities deserve the same kinds of lives as others, and makes clear that our family members, friends, and neighbors with disabilities add value to our lives and strengthen our communities when they can receive the services they need right inside their own home.”
“Today’s resolution will give thousands of Coloradans with physical disabilities the information, resources, and opportunity to live in communities rather than being needlessly isolated. The agreement will also save taxpayer money by reducing state-funded institutionalization,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Matt Kirsch for the District of Colorado. “We commend our Civil Rights Division colleagues for their dedication and focus on this important issue, and we acknowledge the commitments made by the State of Colorado in this agreement.”
The department sued Colorado in September 2023, following a multi-year investigation. The lawsuit alleged that the state failed to provide adults with physical disabilities with the services they need to live at home or avoid moving into a nursing facility. In Colorado, most nursing facility residents and their families are unaware that they can receive services like nursing, personal care and housing assistance in the community. As a result, many move into, or remain in, nursing facilities even though they would prefer to live at home.
To increase community integration for adults with physical disabilities, the state has made significant commitments in this agreement to:
- Help thousands of nursing facility residents move back to the community;
- Identify people at risk of unnecessary nursing facility admission to help them stay in their homes with the services they need;
- Provide people with the information they need to make an informed choice about whether to live in a nursing facility or receive the services they need at home;
- Connect people more quickly to Medicaid long-term care services in the community;
- Increase opportunities for people with disabilities to hire and supervise their own caregivers;
- Support family caregivers;
- Facilitate prompt transitions to the community for interested nursing facility residents, by reducing administrative bottlenecks and problem-solving common transition barriers; and
- Expand and improve services that help people find and keep affordable, accessible housing in the community.
The parties have agreed that the federal district court will retain jurisdiction to enforce the agreement and that an independent monitor will evaluate the state’s compliance.
Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available at www.justice.gov/crt.
Members of the public can report possible civil right violations at www.civilrights.justice.gov.
Justice Department Secures Settlement Agreement with Colorado to Ensure Opportunities for People with Physical Disabilities to Live at HomeRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that it secured a settlement agreement to resolve its lawsuit alleging that Colorado violates Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Supreme Court’s decision in Olmstead v. L.C. by unnecessarily segregating adults with physical disabilities, including older adults, in nursing facilities.
The ADA and the Olmstead decision require state and local governments to administer their services to people with disabilities in the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs. Today’s agreement gives thousands of Coloradans with physical disabilities the opportunity to move out of nursing facilities into the community — or avoid unnecessary nursing facility admission altogether — and receive the services they need at home. Community-based services that can help people live at home include assistance with bathing, dressing, managing medications and preparing meals.
“People with disabilities should not have to give up their lives in the community and be isolated in nursing facilities to get the services they need,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This settlement agreement sends the message that people with disabilities deserve the same kinds of lives as others, and makes clear that our family members, friends, and neighbors with disabilities add value to our lives and strengthen our communities when they can receive the services they need right inside their own home.”
“Today’s resolution will give thousands of Coloradans with physical disabilities the information, resources, and opportunity to live in communities rather than being needlessly isolated. The agreement will also save taxpayer money by reducing state-funded institutionalization,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Matt Kirsch for the District of Colorado. “We commend our Civil Rights Division colleagues for their dedication and focus on this important issue, and we acknowledge the commitments made by the State of Colorado in this agreement.”
The department sued Colorado in September 2023, following a multi-year investigation. The lawsuit alleged that the state failed to provide adults with physical disabilities with the services they need to live at home or avoid moving into a nursing facility. In Colorado, most nursing facility residents and their families are unaware that they can receive services like nursing, personal care and housing assistance in the community. As a result, many move into, or remain in, nursing facilities even though they would prefer to live at home.
To increase community integration for adults with physical disabilities, the state has made significant commitments in this agreement to:
- Help thousands of nursing facility residents move back to the community;
- Identify people at risk of unnecessary nursing facility admission to help them stay in their homes with the services they need;
- Provide people with the information they need to make an informed choice about whether to live in a nursing facility or receive the services they need at home;
- Connect people more quickly to Medicaid long-term care services in the community;
- Increase opportunities for people with disabilities to hire and supervise their own caregivers;
- Support family caregivers;
- Facilitate prompt transitions to the community for interested nursing facility residents, by reducing administrative bottlenecks and problem-solving common transition barriers; and
- Expand and improve services that help people find and keep affordable, accessible housing in the community.
The parties have agreed that the federal district court will retain jurisdiction to enforce the agreement and that an independent monitor will evaluate the state’s compliance.
Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available at www.justice.gov/crt.
Members of the public can report possible civil right violations at www.civilrights.justice.gov.
Jury Convicts San Diego Man in $35 Million Dollar Securities Fraud and COVID-Relief Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
SAN DIEGO – After an eight-day trial, a federal jury has convicted Denny Thakorbhai Bhakta on all 25 counts of securities fraud, bank fraud and money laundering in connection with a $35 million dollar investment fraud scheme and COVID-relief fraud scheme.
Bhakta’s uncle, who was swindled out of $4.5 million, testified during the trial that he came to the U.S. as an immigrant, with only a suitcase and $8 in his pocket, and because of the defendant, he “lost everything he had worked for in 57 years in America. Everything.” Bhatka’s fraud scheme targeting numerous victims, including a childhood friend who lost hundreds of thousands of dollars; a friend of his family who lost $1.6 million; a high school classmate and her father who together lost more than $800,000; a cousin who lost $40,000; and an 88-year-old investor who was defrauded out of $50,000.
“This sophisticated scheme unraveled after several victims came forward and exposed the fraud,” said U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath. “Many of the victims are people who represent the best of us—hard working, honest Americans who made investments based on a trusted relationship. The jury’s verdict is a resounding affirmation that justice will prevail over deceit.”
The evidence at trial showed Bhakta solicited investors in his companies Fusion Hotel Management LLC and Fusion Hospitality Corporation (collectively “Fusion”). Between at least 2016 and up to 2021, Bhakta falsely told investors that Fusion routinely acquired discounted blocks of hotel rooms from Hilton, which Fusion then sold to United Airlines and other companies at a higher price for a significant profit. To support these lies, Bhakta provided fabricated bank statements, fake contracts, and profit and loss statements purporting to show millions in revenue and profit. Instead of buying blocks of hotel rooms with investors’ funds, however, Bhakta used the money he obtained from investors for gambling, to make Ponzi-style payments to other investors, and to pay for Bhakta’s personal expenses, including a Mercedez-Benz S-Class and a Porsche 911 Turbo S.
During the trial, prosecutors introduced evidence that Bhakta was flown into Las Vegas on the Wynn private jet and in just one 7.5-hour gambling binge in 2018, Bhakta lost $1 million at the Wynn Las Vegas. Through casino records, prosecutors demonstrated how Bhakta repeatedly took investors’ money straight to casinos and gambled (and lost) millions of dollars of investor money.
As prosecutors argued at trial, in 2020, Bhakta doubled down on the fraud. Through the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”), Bhakta applied for 18 separate PPP loans totaling $4.4 million. To fraudulently obtain the PPP loans, and unbeknownst to his victim/investors, Bhakta created fake W-2 and other IRS documents and used the names and personally identifying information of his victim-investors to claim them as employees of Fusion and other entities under Bhakta’s control. Bhakta used the more than $4.4 million he received in PPP loans to keep the Ponzi scheme going and to continue gambling and losing money at casinos.
Bhakta was remanded into custody after the jury’s verdict. A sentencing hearing is set for January 25, 2025, at 9:00 a.m. in Courtroom 4D.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kevin Mokhtari and Eric Olah.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has also take civil action against the defendant.
DEFENDANTS Case Number 21cr3352-JLS
Denny Thakorbhai Bhakta Age: 42 San Diego, CA
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Securities Fraud—Title 15, U.S.C. §§ 78j(b), 78ff; Title 17, C.F.R. § 240.10b-5
Maximum penalty: Twenty years in prison and $5 million fine
Bank Fraud—Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1344(2)
Maximum penalty: Thirty years in prison and $1 million fine
Money Laundering– Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1957
Maximum penalty: Ten years in prison and fine twice the amount of the criminally derived property involved in the transaction
INVESTIGATING AGENCIES
Federal Bureau of Investigation
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Los Angeles Regional Office
Johnstown Man Pleads Guilty to Straw Purchasing FirearmsRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A resident of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of violating federal firearms laws, United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan announced today.
Keyshawn Savory, 24, pleaded guilty to six counts before United States District Judge Stephanie L. Haines.
In connection with the guilty plea, the Court was advised that, on or about April 11, May 28, July 15, and August 1, 2021, in the Western District of Pennsylvania, Savory acted as a straw purchaser when purchasing firearms from several federally licensed firearms dealers by stating that the firearms were being purchased for himself, when he actually was purchasing the firearms on behalf of another person.
Judge Haines scheduled sentencing for March 4, 2025. The law provides for a maximum total sentence of up to 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, or both. Under the federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Maureen Sheehan-Balchon is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Savory.
This case was prosecuted under the new criminal provisions of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which Congress enacted and the President signed in June 2022. The Act is the first federal statute specifically designed to target the unlawful trafficking and straw-purchasing of firearms.
Illinois Man Sentenced to Federal Prison After Discharging a Firearm at Gas Station in Cedar RapidsRead the Press Release
A convicted felon who discharged a firearm into the air at a gas station in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in November 2023 was sentenced today to more than six years in federal prison.
Zontavian Demetrius Bush, age 40, from Bloomington, Illinois, received the prison term after a March 27, 2024, guilty plea to possession of firearm by a felon.
At the guilty plea, Bush admitted possessing two firearms. Evidence in the case showed that he discharged a firearm at a gas station during an altercation. Bush has prior convictions for multiple felonies including a drug trafficking offense, multiple domestic offenses, and stalking offenses.
Bush was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams. Bush was sentenced to 70 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
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.
Bush 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 Emily K. Nydle and investigated by the Cedar Rapids Safe Streets Task Force. The task force is composed of representatives from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cedar Rapids Police Department with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 24-cr-14.
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Illinois Man Charged with Threatening Federal Judge Detained in South FloridaRead the Press Release
MIAMI – During an initial hearing in Miami on Oct. 30, an Illinois resident was ordered detained on charges that he threatened a federal judge in the Southern District of Florida.
According to allegations in the six-count indictment, Eric James Rennert, 55, of Champaign, Illinois, transmitted threats to kidnap and injure a U.S. judge and the family of the federal judge, and threatened to assault, kidnap and murder a U.S. judge, with the intent to impede, intimidate, and interfere with the judge’s ability to perform official duties and with the intent to retaliate against the federal judge.
If convicted of interstate transmission of threats, Rennert faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison on each count. If convicted of threatening to assault, kidnap and murder a U.S. judge, Rennert faces up to 10 years in prison on each count. If Rennert is convicted, a federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.
FBI Miami investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elena Smukler and U.S. Capitol Police Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Wheeler III are prosecuting this matter.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case no. 24-cr-20425.
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Habitual Firearms Offender, Prosecuted Under Safe Summer Program, Sentenced to 106 MonthsRead the Press Release
George Henry of Kalamazoo sentenced for felon in possession and drug trafficking offenses
GRAND RAPIDS – U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten today announced that George William Henry, 48, of Kalamazoo was sentenced to 106 months in federal prison for being a felon in possession of firearms and for possessing firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking. Henry was charged as part of Safe Summer 2023, a gun-violence enforcement program under which the U.S. Attorney’s Office committed to prosecute all firearms offenders who possess crime guns (that is, guns previously fired in the commission of a crime). Henry earlier pleaded guilty in May 2024.
“Everyone, no matter where they live, has a right to live free from gun violence,” said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten. “Our Safe Summer program is one tool to make this right a reality. This program keeps us focused on those few individuals – like George Henry – who are driving violence in our communities.”
On January 25, 2023, Police found Henry in his Kalamazoo home with an assault rifle equipped with a bump stock and high-capacity drum magazine, a loaded Taurus 9mm handgun, and cocaine that was packaged for sale. Henry had previously been convicted of several gun and drug felonies.
Henry was also charged with possessing another gun and more drugs on August 9, 2023. These charges were dismissed as part of a plea agreement, but Henry agreed that the court could consider this other conduct as part of the appropriate sentence. This gun, a Smith and Wesson handgun, was linked to a Kalamazoo homicide case earlier in 2023 via the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN).
In addition, during a traffic stop on November 4, 2023, authorities discovered Henry with yet another gun, a Sig Sauer 9mm handgun and a quantity of drugs. This weapon was linked via NIBIN to two Kalamazoo shootings that occurred earlier in 2023.
U.S. Attorney Mark Totten announced the second year of the Safe Summer program on May 23, 2024 in a press release and press conferences in Benton Harbor, Kalamazoo, Lansing, and Grand Rapids. Under this program, the U.S. Attorney’s Office will prosecute all cases that satisfy two criteria. First, the case must involve a federal firearms offense. The two most common offenses are felon in possession, which prohibits previously convicted felons from possessing a gun, and possession of a machine gun, which generally prohibits persons from possessing fully automatic guns. Second, the case must involve a crime gun, which is any gun previously fired in the commission of a crime. These criteria focus federal efforts on the few individuals driving gun violence in their communities.
Gun violence is an acute problem across the United States. In 2021, for the first time ever, firearm-related injuries became the leading cause of death for American children, ages birth to 19, according to the New England Journal of Medicine (see also here). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. firearm homicide rate in 2021 was the highest documented since 1993. While the numbers have declined since 2021, they remain high.
Moreover, while gun violence has the potential to impact everyone, recent studies show that gun violence has a disparate impact on people of color. A study in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that the disparity in shooting injuries among children before and after the pandemic in four major cities approximately tripled as between white children and children of color (Black, Hispanic, Asian).
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement, and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. For more information, visit www.justice.gov/psn.
This case was investigated by the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Timothy VerHey.
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Guthrie Couple Sentenced to Serve more than Three Years Collectively in Federal Prison after Purchasing Vehicles Using Stolen IdentitiesRead the Press Release
OKLAHOMA CITY – KYLER WOMACK, 34, of Guthrie, has been sentenced to serve 21 months in federal prison for conspiring to commit wire fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester.
On February 20, 2024, a federal grand jury returned a three-count Indictment against Womack and co-defendant MEGAN MCKINLEY, 34, charging them with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. According to public record, in September 2023, Womack and McKinley conspired together to purchase three vehicles using the stolen information of other individuals. The couple’s attempted purchase of a fourth vehicle was unsuccessful and led to their arrests. Court records allege the couple possessed the personal information of hundreds of individuals. There is no evidence the couple was responsible for the original theft of the information, and how they came to possess the information is unknown.
Both couples have pleaded guilty to Count 1 of the Indictment, and admitted they conspired together to commit wire fraud by fraudulently purchasing vehicles with stolen means of identification.
On August 27, 2024, McKinley was sentenced to serve 18 months in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release.
At the sentencing hearing November 1, 2024, U.S. District Judge Patrick R. Wyrick sentenced Womack to serve 21 months in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release. In announcing his sentence, Judge Wyrick noted the significant number of stolen identities that Mr. Womack and Ms. McKinley had acquired, and the great harm they could have done if not caught quickly.
This case is the result of an investigation by the Norman Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney D.H. Dilbeck prosecuted the case.
Reference is made to public filings for additional information.
Georgia CPA Sentenced in Syndicated Conservation Easement Tax SchemeRead the Press Release
A Georgia accountant was sentenced today to 28 months in prison for his role in the promotion and sale of abusive syndicated conservation easement tax shelters.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Herbert Lewis was a CPA and return preparer at an Atlanta-based accounting firm. Beginning at least in 2014 and through at least 2019, Lewis promoted and sold tax deductions to his wealthy clients in the form of units in illegal syndicated conservation easement tax shelters organized and created by co-defendants Jack Fisher, James Sinnott and others.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Lewis also knew that, contrary to law, the transactions related to these illegal tax shelters lacked economic substance, that his wealthy clients participated only to obtain a tax deduction and that his clients received only a tax benefit for their participation in the shelters. For example, the scheme entailed the creation of partnerships that would purchase land and land-owning companies and then donate conservation easements over that land or the land itself. A client who purchased units in one of these partnerships had a “vote” ostensibly on what to do with the land the partnership owned. However, Lewis knew that the vote held by the partnership each year was just for optics and that the land invariably would be donated largely as a conservation easement.
In some cases, in order to make it appear that his clients had joined the partnerships before the date of the conservation easement donation, which was necessary to claim the tax benefits, Lewis also instructed and caused his clients to falsely backdate documents — such as subscription agreements and checks — related to the partnerships. In 2019 alone, Lewis assisted 15 clients with claiming false deductions on their 2018 returns.
In total, Lewis assisted in the preparation of tax returns that claimed nearly $14 million in false deductions based on backdated documents, causing a tax loss to the IRS of nearly $5 million.
Lewis earned over $1 million in commissions for his role in promoting and selling the illegal tax shelters to clients. Lewis also concealed the amount of commissions he had earned from selling units in these shelters by not fully reporting the commissions on his personal returns and instead fraudulently reporting commission income he had earned as income on the tax returns of nominee entities in his children’s names.
In addition to his prison sentence, U.S. District Court Judge Timothy C. Batten Sr. for the Northern District of Georgia ordered Lewis to serve three years of supervised release and to pay $4,878,990.90 in restitution.
Nine additional defendants have previously pleaded guilty to criminal conduct related to the syndicated conservation easement tax shelter scheme. These other defendants include appraiser Walter Douglas “Terry” Roberts, accountant Stein Agee, CPA Corey Agee, CPA Ralph Anderson, CPA James Benkoil, CPA Victor Smith, CPA William Tomasello, CPA and attorney Randall Lenz and attorney Vi Bui.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan for the Northern District of Georgia and IRS Criminal Investigation Chief Guy Ficco made the announcement. They also thanked U.S. Attorney Dena J. King for the Western District of North Carolina for her office’s assistance.
IRS Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case.
Trial Attorneys Richard M. Rolwing, Parker Tobin, Jessica Kraft and Nicholas J. Schilling Jr. of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Huber, Deputy Chief of the Complex Frauds Section of the Northern District of Georgia, are prosecuting the case.
Freddie "Bankroll Freddie" Gladney, III Sentenced to over 12 Years in Federal Prison Following Guilty Verdict at Jury Trial on Firearm and Drug Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
LITTLE ROCK—Freddie “Bankroll Freddie” Gladney, III, will spend the next 150 months in federal prison after being convicted of multiple narcotics offenses, including a firearms offense, which involved a conspiracy to distribute large amounts of marijuana in and around central Arkansas. Jonathan D. Ross, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced the sentence, which was handed down today by United States District Judge James M. Moody, Jr.
Following a four-day trial, Gladney, 30, of Helena, was convicted by a federal jury on April 12, 2024. The jury found Gladney guilty of one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana, one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana, one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and one count of using a telephone in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
In addition to the 150 months’ total imprisonment, which is more than twelve years, Judge Moody sentenced Gladney to three years supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system. Gladney was also ordered to pay a $242,000 money judgment as part of his conviction.
Gladney was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 3, 2023, in a 32-count superseding indictment that charged him with numerous offenses related to a conspiracy that was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Two FBI operations, each focused on a rival gang, were created to address violence and drug trafficking in the corridor between Pine Bluff and Little Rock. The investigations focused on rival gangs responsible for violence throughout central Arkansas, with one operation focused on the EBK or Every Body Killas gang and resulting in the indictment of 35 defendants.
An investigation revealed that on April 14, 2022, an Arkansas State Police trooper observed a black truck speeding and conducted a traffic stop in Marion. The trooper noted the odor of marijuana coming from inside the vehicle and asked Gladney to exit the vehicle. Gladney began to exit the vehicle but then reentered and started reaching for something in the vehicle. Because Gladney refused to exit the vehicle, the trooper was forced to remove him.
During a search of Gladney’s vehicle, law enforcement officers located in the passenger seat near the area where Gladney had been reaching, a Romarm/Cugie Model Micro Draco 7.62x39mm caliber firearm and a Polymer 80 Model PF940C, 9mm privately made firearm (also known as a “ghost gun”). Additionally, during a search of the back seat of the vehicle, law enforcement officers located a duffle bag containing 21.4 pounds of high-grade marijuana and $33,662, which was located in the center console along with seven magazines, five of which were extended and fully loaded.
At sentencing, Gladney received a 4-level increase for being an organizer or leader of criminal activity that involved five or more participants. Gladney received a 2-level increase in his guideline range for obstruction of justice related to a May 25, 2021, wiretap call in which he instructed a codefendant to remove guns and scales used for weighing illegal drugs from his Helena residence in anticipation that it would be searched by law enforcement.
GLADNEY III: So where, what you got in the house in Helena?
CODEFENDANT: I got everything out of there.
GLADNEY III: You got everything out of there already?
CODEFENDANT: Yeah.
GLADNEY III: Scales and everything?
CODEFENDANT: Naw, I gotta, gotta, lemme call them. Send em back in to get that. I gotta find out where all they at.
GLADNEY III: Scales and shit. Get everything out the house. Any guns, anything.
CODEFENDANT: Alright, let me..
GLADNEY III: Where that MAK-90 at?
CODEFENDANT: It's not there.
GLADNEY III: Alright get everything else out that house before they go search that b***h.
CODEFENDANT: Alright.
Judge Moody cited the ghost gun in increasing Gladney’s sentence 2.5 years above the guidelines range. Judge Moody noted that based on trial testimony, it was apparent that Gladney’s ghost gun, which did not have a back plate, was either ready to receive a “switch,” or had recently had a “switch” on it, that would turn the ghost gun from a semi-automatic firearm to a fully-automatic firearm. Judge Moody also recognized that Gladney was on probation from a drug and gun case in Memphis at the time he was intercepted on the wiretap in this case.
This investigation 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.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI with assistance from Arkansas State Police, Arkansas Department of Community Corrections, Little Rock Police Department, North Little Rock Police Department, Pine Bluff Police Department, and Jonesboro Police Department. FBI’s GETROCK Task Force was formed in 2017 in response to the escalation in gang and gun violence in Little Rock. The unit’s investigations and operations are coordinated out of FBI Little Rock’s field office, and GETROCK continues to serve as the clearinghouse for gang-related law enforcement activity in Central Arkansas. Additional support was provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Homeland Security Investigations; United States Postal Inspection Service; Arkansas National Guard Counterdrug Joint Task Force; and the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory. These cases are being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Julie Peters, Amanda Fields, and Reese Lancaster.
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Additional information about the office of the
United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, is available online at
https://www.justice.gov/edar
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Fourteen Defendants Indicted in Connection with a Lawrence-Based Drug Trafficking OrganizationRead the Press Release
Fourteen Defendants Indicted in Connection with a Lawrence-Based
Drug Trafficking OrganizationCONCORD – Fourteen defendants have been indicted and eleven have been arrested in connection with a Lawrence-based organization trafficking fentanyl in New Hampshire, U.S Attorney Jane Young announces.
Beginning on October 23, 2024, through October 31, 2024, law enforcement officers arrested the defendants in New Hampshire and Massachusetts on charges of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, namely, fentanyl. The defendants began appearing in federal court last week.
The following defendants have been indicted in connection with this drug trafficking organization:
- Franly Herrera-Herrera, age 24, of Methuen, MA; he is in federal custody.
- Yoefferman Robles Soto, age 22, of Boston, MA; he is in federal custody.
- Jose Herrera, age 22, of Lawrence, MA; he is in federal custody.
- Daniel Mendez Ubri, age 25, of Lawrence, MA; he was released on conditions of supervision.
- Wayestar Concepcion, age 55, of Lawrence, MA; he is in federal custody.
- Andri Pimental Arias, age 21, of Lawrence, MA; he is in federal custody.
- Alexander German, age 27, of Lawrence, MA; he is in federal custody.
- Joseph Post, age 36, of Billerica, MA; he is in state custody on unrelated charges.
- Bruce Wells, age 36, of Colebrook; he is in federal custody.
- Brexton Boudle, age 41, of Colebrook; he is in federal custody.
- Michael Savard, age 39, of Strafford; he is in federal custody.
- Trenton Murphy, age 26, of Kittery, ME; he is in federal custody.
- Jade Markham, age 27, of Concord; she has not yet been arrested.
- Hope Cassin, age 33, of Pembroke; she has not yet been arrested.
The charge of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. Franly Herrera-Herrera and Yoefferman Robles Soto are facing mandatory minimum penalties of 10 years imprisonment based on their involvement in the conspiracy. 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 Drug Enforcement Administration led the investigation. The Colebrook Police Department, the Berlin Police Department, the Nashua Police Department, the Manchester Police Department, the Bedford Police Department, the Hudson Police Department, the Salem Police Department, the New Hampshire State Police, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Department, the Berwick, ME Police Department, the Massachusetts State Police, the Boston Police Department, the Lawrence Police Department, and the Methuen Police Department provided valuable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather Cherniske is prosecuting the case.
This prosecution 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.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Fort Washakie man sentenced for murder in the second degreeRead the Press Release
Ezekiel Frank James Ute, 23, of Fort Washakie, Wyoming, was sentenced to 192 months’ imprisonment with five years of supervised release for second degree murder. U.S. District Court Judge Kelly H. Rankin imposed the sentence on Oct. 31.
According to court documents, on Jan. 2, 2024, a group of five people, including Ezekiel Ute, were drinking alcohol and driving around the Wind River Indian Reservation when Ute began driving recklessly and saying he was going to intentionally wreck the car. When Ute stopped the car, one of the passengers (P1) got out and refused to get back in. The victim also got out to coax P1 back into the car. As they argued, Ute got out and stabbed the victim multiple times.
After the stabbing, Ute forced P1 back into the car then drove away, leaving the victim by the side of the road. The passengers urged Ute to turn around so they could help the victim. Ute eventually drove back, but as soon as P1 and another passenger (P2) got out of the car Ute sped off with the remaining passenger in the back seat. Despite P1 and P2’s attempts to save the victim, he died from his injuries the following morning. In addition to the passengers’ statements, Ute acknowledged during an interview that he may have stabbed the victim while under the influence of alcohol.
Ute was arrested on Jan. 4, indicted on March 13, and pleaded guilty on July 15. This crime was investigated by the FBI and the Bureau of Indian Affairs Wind River Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy W. Gist.
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. PSN is 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, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.
Case No. 24-CR-00040
Former Troy City Council Member Sentenced for Identity TheftRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Kim McPherson, age 63, of Troy, New York, was sentenced today to 1 year of probation, and to pay a $1,500 fine, for identity theft in connection with her casting of absentee ballots in two other people’s names in elections held in 2021.
United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman and Craig L. Tremaroli, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), made the announcement.
McPherson successfully ran for re-election to the Troy City Council in 2021, first in the Working Families Party primary and then in the general election. In pleading guilty in June 2022 to the unlawful possession and use of a means of identification of another person, she admitted that in the primary election, she unlawfully cast an absentee ballot in the name of another person, and that in the general election, she unlawfully cast absentee ballots in the names of two people other than herself.
As part of her plea agreement, McPherson resigned from the Troy City Council.
The FBI investigated this case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett prosecuted this case.
Former Stilwell Teacher Sentenced to Thirty-Five Years for Aggravated Sexual Abuse of A ChildRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Lawrence Fourkiller, age forty-eight, of Stilwell, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 420 months imprisonment, followed by a life-time term of supervised release, for one count of Aggravated Sexual Abuse of a Child in Indian Country.
The charge arose from an investigation by the Stilwell Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The FBI investigation was opened following the submission of an online tip from a concerned third party.
Fourkiller pleaded guilty to the charge on April 11, 2024. According to investigators, between August 2020 and May 2021, Fourkiller, while employed as a teacher at Stilwell Elementary School, sexually abused a student under the age of twelve. During the investigation, the FBI set up a designated tip-line which led to the discovery of twelve additional victims. The crime occurred in Adair County, within the boundaries of the Cherokee Nation Reservation, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
“As a teacher, the defendant violated the trust of his position and preyed upon innocent children,” said FBI Oklahoma City Special Agent in Charge Doug Goodwater. “Today’s sentencing holds him accountable for his crimes and he will not be able to harm another child. The FBI and our law enforcement partners remain committed to protecting the most vulnerable members of our community.”
“The defendant used his position as a teacher to prey upon and attempt to silence his victims,” said United States Attorney Christopher J. Wilson. “Fortunately, one disclosure led to others, and the defendant’s despicable acts were exposed. It is the mission of the United States Attorney’s Office to hold offenders accountable and to pursue justice for victims, and I commend the work of our law enforcement partners and prosecutors in fulfilling that mission on this case.”
The Honorable John C. Coughenour, Senior U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, sitting by assignment, presided over the hearing in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Fourkiller will remain in the custody of the U.S. Marshal pending transportation to a designated United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve a non-paroleable sentence of incarceration.
Assistant United States Attorneys Caila M. Cleary and Morgan Muzljakovich represented the United States.
Former Miami-Dade Corrections Officer Pled Guilty to $150,000 COVID-19 FraudRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Yesterday, Daniel Fleureme, 56, of Miami-Dade County, a former Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Department (MDCRD) Corrections Officer, pled guilty to wire fraud for defrauding a COVID-19 relief program by fraudulently obtaining an Economic Injury Disaster Loan from the U. S. Small Business Administration (SBA).
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who were suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. One source of relief provided by the CARES Act were Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) to eligible small businesses experiencing substantial financial disruptions. These EIDLs were provided directly to borrowers by the SBA.
On July 27, 2020, Fleureme, while he was employed full-time by MDCRD as a Corrections Officer, submitted to the SBA a false and fraudulent EIDL application claiming to be the 100% owner of a sole proprietorship operating under the company legal and DBA names of “Daniel Fleureme.” In this fraudulent application, Fleureme claimed that he had owned the business since its creation on Feb. 15, 2017, and stated that the business had three employees as of Jan. 31, 2020. Fleureme’s EIDL application also falsely certified that for the 12-month period prior to Jan. 31, 2020, his sole proprietorship had gross revenues of $450,000 and a cost of goods sold of only $97,000. As a result of this fraudulent EIDL application, Fleureme received approximately $150,000 in EIDL proceeds from the SBA.
He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 7, 2025, at 11:00 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez in Miami. Fleureme faces up to 20 years in prison for the wire fraud conviction. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Markenzy Lapointe and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, Inspector General Felix Jimenez of the Miami-Dade County Office of Inspector General (M-DC OIG), and Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite, U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General (SBA OIG), Eastern Region, made the announcement.
The FBI’s Miami Area Corruption Task Force, which includes task force officers from the M-DC OIG, working in conjunction with SBA OIG, investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward N. Stamm is prosecuting the case.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice 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, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
On Sept. 15, 2022, the Attorney General selected the Southern District of Florida’s U.S. Attorney’s Office to head one of three national COVID-19 Fraud Strike Force Teams. The Department of Justice established the Strike Force to enhance existing efforts to combat and prevent COVID-19 related financial fraud. The Strike Force combines law enforcement and prosecutorial resources and focuses on large-scale, multistate pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations and transnational actors, as well as those who committed multiple instances of pandemic relief fraud. The Strike Force uses prosecutor-led and data analyst-driven teams to identify and bring to justice those who stole pandemic relief funds. Additional information regarding the Strike Force may be found at https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-covid-19-fraud-strike-force-teams.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-20407.
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Former Maryland Police Officer Convicted of Obstruction of Justice Related to Sex with Teen in CustodyRead the Press Release
A federal judge this week convicted a former Fairmount Heights, Maryland, police officer on one count of obstructing justice by writing a false police report.
U.S. District Court Judge Deborah Boardman for the District of Maryland found Martique Vanderpool guilty following a 3-day bench trial that ended on Oct. 24. The judge found that former officer Vanderpool falsified a police report with intent to impede an investigation into an incident on Sept. 6-7, 2019, during which he and another officer arrested a 19-year-old woman and took her in handcuffs to the locked and otherwise-empty Fairmount Heights police station, where the officers uncuffed her and Vanderpool told her to “make this right” before having sex with her while she was in custody.
“Martique Vanderpool obstructed justice to cover up his own serious police misconduct,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This former officer’s conduct is a betrayal both of the young woman who was in his care and of the entire law enforcement profession. With this verdict comes accountability for his crime.”
“When those sworn to uphold the law choose instead to violate it, it undermines the very foundation of our society,” said Assistant Director Chad Yarbrough of the FBI Criminal Investigative Division. “Martique Vanderpool abused his power and violated his oath as a police officer. He betrayed the community that put their trust in him and will now face the consequences of his actions.”
According to evidence at trial and findings of fact made by the judge, Vanderpool and his partner, former Officer Phillip Dupree arrested the young woman for speeding and learned that she was rushing to get to her young son, who had been injured in an accident. Upon learning that the young woman had only a learner’s permit, Dupree asked her to get out of the car, at which point the young woman had a panic attack and Dupree took her to the ground and handcuffed her. In “an apparent state of mental distress,” the handcuffed young woman ran into the street and then banged her head on the side of the car she had been driving.
The officers had the car towed from the scene and transported the young woman to the Fairmount Heights police station, even though the station had no holding cell or booking facilities and officers were not supposed to take prisoners there. The officers took the young woman inside, in handcuffs, and then removed the cuffs. Vanderpool told her “We gotta make this right,” and then had sex with her on a couch in the main room of the station. Afterward, the officers drove the young woman to a tow lot where the car, which was registered to someone else, was returned to her.
According to the judge’s findings, Vanderpool then falsified an incident report to create a misleading impression that the officers and the young woman never left the scene of the traffic stop and that the car was returned to the registered owner. The report purposely omitted that the officers took the young woman from the scene to the police station; that Vanderpool had sex with her; and that the officers caused the car to be towed and later coordinated the release of the car to her. The report also purposely misstated that the car was returned to the registered owner.
The judge, in finding that the false report was intended to interfere with an investigation that was within the jurisdiction of the FBI, noted that the young woman was a teenager, was slight of build, was in a state of panic, was forced to the ground by an officer, had her car towed, said that she needed to get to her son, was taken in handcuffs to the police station and was told to “make this right.”
A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Feb. 20, 2025. Vanderpool faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Vanderpool’s partner, Phillip Dupree, was recently convicted in an unrelated case of committing a federal criminal civil rights violation by using unreasonable force during an unrelated arrest.
The FBI Baltimore Field Office investigated the case.
Deputy Chief Bobbi Bernstein and Trial Attorney Tara Allison of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division prosecuted the case, with assistance from Trial Attorney Betsy Hutson of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
Former Louisville, Kentucky, Metro Police Officer Found Guilty of Federal Civil Rights Crimes Related to the Breonna Taylor CaseRead the Press Release
A federal jury in Louisville, Kentucky, today convicted a former Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) officer for violating the civil rights of Breonna Taylor during the execution of a search warrant in March 2020 that led to the tragic death of Taylor in her home.
Brett Hankison, 46, was convicted on one count of civil rights abuse. Count one charged him with depriving Taylor of her constitutional rights when he fired five shots through a bedroom window that was covered with blinds and a blackout curtain. The jury found that Hankison used a dangerous weapon in the commission of the offense, and that his conduct involved an attempt to kill, although his shots did not strike Taylor. Hankison was found not guilty on count two, which charged him with depriving three of Taylor’s neighbors of their constitutional rights by firing five more shots through a sliding glass door that was also covered with blinds and a curtain.
“Today, Brett Hankison was found guilty by a jury of his peers for willfully depriving Breonna Taylor of her constitutional rights,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “His use of deadly force was unlawful and put Ms. Taylor in harm’s way. This verdict is an important step toward accountability for the violation of Breonna Taylor’s civil rights, but justice for the loss of Ms. Taylor is a task that exceeds human capacity.”
“This defendant is being held accountable for his willful and heinous use of deadly force that endangered the life of Breonna Taylor,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Breonna Taylor’s life mattered. We hope the jury’s verdict recognizing this violation of Ms. Taylor’s civil and constitutional rights brings some small measure of comfort to her family and loved ones who have suffered so deeply from the tragic events of March 2020. We hope that communities use this moment to say her name and to engrave on their hearts and minds Breonna Taylor’s life and enduring legacy. The Justice Department will continue to vigorously defend the civil rights of every person in this country to be free from unlawful police violence.”
According to evidence at trial, during the execution of the warrant at Taylor’s home, officers knocked on Taylor’s door and announced themselves as police at approximately 12:45 a.m. No one answered the door, and the officers saw no indication that anyone in the home was awake or had heard their announcement. The police then rammed the door open and Taylor’s boyfriend, believing that intruders were breaking in, fired his handgun one time at officers, two of whom fired back, hitting and killing Taylor.
Hankison was not one of the officers who fired from the doorway. He fired separately, from the side of the building, through a sliding glass door and a bedroom window, both of which were covered with closed blinds and curtains. Evidence showed that several of Hankison’s shots passed through Taylor’s apartment, pierced the interior walls and narrowly missed a young couple with a five-year-old child living next door to Taylor. Other shots flew over Taylor’s head as she lay on the floor of her apartment.
At trial, numerous law enforcement witnesses testified that officers are trained never to fire their weapons at a target they cannot see. Officers who were on the scene for the execution of the warrant, and others who responded later, testified that Hankison violated LMPD training and the principles of law enforcement when he fired blindly into a crowded apartment complex. The Commander of LMPD’s SWAT unit, who responded to the scene shortly after the shooting, testified that he was in “shock and disbelief” when he learned that Hankison had fired into the covered windows in Ms. Taylor’s home. The jury also heard from her neighbors, who were nearly hit by Hankison’s bullets.
Hankison will be sentenced on March 12, 2025. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Two other LMPD officers remain charged in connection with the search warrant executed at Taylor’s home. Former Detective Joshua Jaynes, 40, and LMPD Sergeant Kyle Meany, 35, are charged with federal civil rights and obstruction offenses for their roles in preparing and approving a falsified search warrant affidavit that resulted in the warrant that led to Taylor’s death. A trial will be set for a later date, and they are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Another former LMPD officer, Detective Kelly Goodlett, previously pleaded guilty to conspiring with Jaynes to falsify the affidavit used to obtain a search warrant for Taylor’s home and to cover up their actions after Taylor’s death. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 29, 2025.
The FBI Louisville Field Office investigated the case.
Special Litigation Counsel Michael J. Songer and Trial Attorney Anna Gotfryd of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section prosecuted the case.
Former Kalispell assisted living employee admits diverting pain medicationRead the Press Release
MISSOULA — A former employee at an assisted living facility in Kalispell today admitted allegations that she tampered with packaging and took pain medications intended for patients, U.S Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
The defendant, Nicole Elice Anderson, 39, of Post Falls, Idaho, pleaded guilty to unlawfully obtaining controlled substances as charged in an indictment. Anderson faces a maximum of four years in prison, a $250,000 fine and one year of supervised release.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto presided. Sentencing was set for March 12, 2025 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. Anderson was released pending further proceedings.
In court documents, the government alleged that from approximately February 2023 to March 2023, Anderson obtained oxycodone and hydrocodone by fraud and deception. In March 2023, Drug Enforcement Administration agents were alerted to a drug diversion at Prestige Assisted Living in Kalispell in which 120 hydrocodone tablets for a patient had been substituted with Tylenol. Seven medication cards had evidence of tampering. Prestige staff identified Anderson as one of two employees who had access to the drugs when they were taken. Staff also discovered a tampered oxycodone blister pack. Management interviewed Anderson and the other employee, and both submitted to drug tests. Anderson quit before the results came back. Anderson’s test was positive for oxycodone. The other employee was negative for the same drug.
The investigation determined that Anderson was prescribed a significant amount of hydrocodone, but not oxycodone, between February 2021 and March 2023 from seven different providers. In addition, witnesses described Anderson checking out medications for patients who did not receive the drugs. Anderson admitted to multiple coworkers that she was prescribed hydrocodone for back pain, was addicted to the drug and routinely ran out of her prescription. Anderson asked several staff members for pain medications. Anderson later started working at an assisted living facility in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. In June 2023, the Coeur d’Alene Police Department responded to a reported theft of hydrocodone from the facility. Management found multiple medication packs had been tampered with and that hydrocodone and hydromorphone pills had been replaced with Tylenol and anti-anxiety medication.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case. The DEA conducted the investigation.
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Former Bookkeeper Sentenced to Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
A woman who stole over $450,000 from a family‑owned business was sentenced October 30, 2024, to two years in federal prison.
Leann Marie Rouse, age 51, from Toledo, Iowa, received the prison term after a May 31, 2024 guilty plea to one count of wire fraud.
Evidence disclosed at the sentencing hearing showed that Rouse was hired as a bookkeeper in July 2011 for a trucking company in Traer, Iowa . As bookkeeper, Rouse had access to, and control of, the trucking company’s financial accounting software and she handled payroll. From January 2015, through August 20, 2020, Rouse issued approximately 242 unauthorized checks to herself from the trucking company, stealing at least $453,672.68. Rouse hid her fraud by using the trucking company’s financial accounting software to change the entries in the software to reflect that the unauthorized funds were business expenditures related to various entities that did business with the trucking company.
Rouse was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Leonard T. Strand. Rouse was sentenced to 24 months’ imprisonment, and she was ordered to make $453,672.68 in restitution to the trucking company. She must also serve a three‑year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Rouse was released on the bond previously set and is to surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on a date yet to be set.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Dillan Edwards and Devra Hake and investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Tama County Sheriff’s Office.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 23-CR-00023-LTS.
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Foreign National Charged with Multiple Drug CrimesRead the Press Release
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – A federal grand jury in Salt Lake City returned an indictment charging a foreign national living in Utah with multiple drug crimes after he was arrested for allegedly possessing narcotics.
Luis Refugio Brindas Guzman, 27, of Salt Lake County, was initially charged by complaint on October 4, 2024, in the District of Utah.
According to court documents, in July 2024, the FBI Wasatch Metro Drug Task Force, began a criminal investigation of Guzman and other members of a drug trafficking organization suspected of distributing large quantities of narcotics in the District of Utah. In October 2024, undercover officers arranged to purchase a large quantity of methamphetamine. Guzman arrived at the site of the purchase in a Nissan Rogue. During the search of the Nissan Rogue, agents seized approximately 6,682 grams of field-tested positive methamphetamine, two grams of field-tested positive heroin, and a marijuana roach (the end of a joint). Guzman was arrested.
Agents then executed a search warrant at Guzman’s residence and seized approximately 7,145 grams of field-tested positive methamphetamine, 1,215 grams of field-tested positive heroin, 3,587 grams of field-tested positive fentanyl, and a 9mm handgun. The fentanyl was estimated at approximately 35,000 fentanyl pills.
Guzman is charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, possession of heroin with intent to distribute, possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute, alien in possession of a firearm and ammunition, and reentry of a previously removed alien. His initial appearance on the indictment was October 31, 2024, before a U.S. Magistrate Judge at the Orrin G. Hatch United States District Courthouse in downtown Salt Lake City.
United States Attorney Trina A. Higgins for the District of Utah made the announcement.
The case is being investigated by the FBI Wasatch Metro Drug Task Force (WMDTF).
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah 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.An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Federal Jury Convicts Sumter Man of Gun TraffickingRead the Press Release
COLUMBIA, S.C. —A federal jury in Columbia has convicted Kelsey Antonio McCallum, 27, of Sumter, of illegally trafficking firearms.
Evidence presented at trial revealed that McCallum and his sister, Daeja Hodge, conspired to purchase firearms and resale those firearms for profit. At least 13 times from 2020-2022, McCallum made false statements to acquire firearms at dealers in Columbia, Sumter, and the Upstate. McCallum also purchased firearms from Georgia. During each purchase, McCallum falsely stated that the firearms were intended for his personal use, knowing that he intended to sell them. McCallum would then illegally transport the firearms to Maryland and sell them there. McCallum and Hodge acquired over 100 firearms during this scheme. Most of those firearms ended up in the hands of felons prohibited from possessing firearms or at crime scenes in the Baltimore area. A few firearms were also sold in North Carolina. At trial, the Government introduced more than 30 firearms and ammunition found by law enforcement in the Baltimore area.
Hodge pleaded guilty to her role in the offense prior to McCallum’s trial.
McCallum faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. He also faces a fine of up to $250,000, restitution, and three years of supervision to follow the term of imprisonment. United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis will sentence McCallum after receiving and reviewing a sentencing report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
This case was made possible by investigative leads generated from the ATF’s National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN). NIBIN is the only national network that allows for the capture and comparison of ballistic evidence to aid in solving and preventing violent crimes involving firearms. NIBIN is a proven investigative and intelligence tool that can link firearms from multiple crime scenes, allowing law enforcement to quickly disrupt shooting cycles. For more information on NIBIN, visit https://www.atf.gov/firearms/national-integrated-ballistic-information-network-nibin
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.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in South Carolina and Maryland, investigated the case along with assistance from numerous local agencies in South Carolina, Georgia, Maryland, and North Carolina. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher D. Taylor and William K. Witherspoon are prosecuting the case.
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El Dorado Convicted Sex Offender Indicted for Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a single-count indictment against Kevin Dail Meadors, 56, of El Dorado Hills, charging him with receipt of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, between July 1, 2023, and Dec. 9, 2023, Meadors knowingly received visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The indictment alleges that Meadors suffered a prior conviction for committing lewd and lascivious acts with a child under the age of 14, which affects the potential penalties he faces in this case.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office, and Sacramento Valley Hi-Tech Crimes Task Force. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Nchekube Onyima and Assistant U.S. Attorney Shea J. Kenny are prosecuting the case.
If convicted, Meadors faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in prison, a maximum statutory penalty of 40 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
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 those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about internet safety education.
El Departamento de Justicia monitoreará los lugares de votación en 27 estados para asegurar el cumplimiento con las leyes federales de derechos electoralesRead the Press Release
El Departamento de Justicia anunció hoy que monitoreará el cumplimiento con las leyes federales de derechos electorales en 86 jurisdicciones en 27 estados en las elecciones generales del 5 de noviembre.
El Departamento de Justicia hace cumplir las leyes federales de derechos electorales que protegen el derecho de acceso a las urnas de todos los ciudadanos. El Departamento envía personal del departamento periódicamente a monitorear elecciones en comunidades a través de todo el país.
Para las elecciones generales, el Departamento monitoreará el cumplimiento de las leyes federales de derechos electorales el Día de las Elecciones en 86 jurisdicciones, incluyendo:
- Bethel Census Area, Alaska;
- Dillingham Census Area, Alaska;
- Kusilvak Census Area, Alaska;
- North Slope Borough, Alaska;
- Northwest Arctic Borough, Alaska;
- Apache County, Arizona;
- Maricopa County, Arizona;
- Pima County, Arizona;
- Yuma County, Arizona;
- San Joaquin County, California;
- Broward County, Florida;
- Miami-Dade County, Florida;
- Orange County, Florida;
- Osceola County, Florida;
- Cobb County, Georgia;
- DeKalb County, Georgia;
- Fulton County, Georgia;
- Gwinnett County, Georgia;
- Macon-Bibb County, Georgia;
- Jefferson County, Kentucky;
- Kenton County, Kentucky;
- City of Everett, Massachusetts;
- City of Fitchburg, Massachusetts;
- City of Leominster, Massachusetts;
- City of Lowell, Massachusetts;
- City of Malden, Massachusetts;
- City of Methuen, Massachusetts;
- City of Quincy, Massachusetts;
- City of Salem, Massachusetts;
- Prince George’s County, Maryland;
- City of Ann Arbor, Michigan;
- City of Detroit, Michigan;
- City of Flint, Michigan;
- City of Grand Rapids, Michigan;
- City of Hamtramck, Michigan;
- City of Warren, Michigan;
- Hennepin County, Minnesota;
- City of Minneapolis, Minnesota;
- Ramsey County, Minnesota;
- Covington County, Mississippi;
- Scott County, Mississippi;
- Warren County, Mississippi;
- City of St. Louis, Missouri;
- Blaine County, Montana;
- Alamance County, North Carolina;
- Mecklenburg County, North Carolina;
- Wake County, North Carolina;
- Bergen County, New Jersey;
- Middlesex County, New Jersey;
- Union County, New Jersey;
- Bernalillo County, New Mexico;
- Cibola County, New Mexico;
- Clark County, Nevada;
- Queens, New York;
- Cuyahoga County, Ohio;
- Portage County, Ohio;
- Allegheny County, Pennsylvania;
- Luzerne County, Pennsylvania;
- Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania;
- City of Pawtucket, Rhode Island;
- City of Providence, Rhode Island;
- City of Woonsocket, Rhode Island;
- Charleston County, South Carolina;
- Bennett County, South Dakota;
- Jackson County, South Dakota;
- Minnehaha County, South Dakota;
- Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota;
- Atascosa County, Texas;
- Bexar County, Texas;
- Dallas County, Texas;
- Frio County, Texas;
- Harris County, Texas;
- Hays County, Texas;
- Palo Pinto County, Texas;
- Waller County, Texas;
- San Juan County, Utah;
- Hanover County, Virginia;
- Henrico County, Virginia;
- Loudoun County, Virginia;
- City of Manassas, Virginia;
- City of Manassas Park, Virginia;
- Prince William County, Virginia;
- Town of Lawrence (Rusk County), Wisconsin;
- City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin;
- Town of Thornapple, Wisconsin; and
- City of Wausau, Wisconsin;
La División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia coordinará este esfuerzo conjunto. Los monitores incluirán a personal de la División de Derechos Civiles, otras divisiones del Departamento, las Oficinas de los Fiscales Federales y observadores federales de la Oficina de Administración de Personal de EE. UU. Durante todo el Día de las Elecciones, el personal de la División se mantendrá en contacto con los oficiales electorales estatales y locales.
La Sección de Votación de la División de Derechos Civiles hace cumplir las leyes federales civiles que protegen el derecho al voto, incluyendo la Ley del Derecho al Voto, la Ley Nacional de Inscripción de Votantes, la Ley Ayudemos a Estados Unidos a Votar, la Ley de Votación para los Uniformados y los Ciudadanos en el Extranjero y la Ley de Derechos Civiles. La Sección de Derechos en Razón de Discapacidad de la División hace cumplir la Ley para Estadounidenses con Discapacidades (ADA, por sus siglas en inglés) para asegurar que las personas con discapacidades tengan igualdad de oportunidades de votar plenamente. La Sección Penal de la División hace cumplir las leyes federales penales que prohíben la intimidación de votantes y la supresión del voto por razón de raza, color, origen nacional o religión.
Personal de la División de Derechos Civiles estará disponible durante todo el Día de las Elecciones para recibir preguntas y quejas del público relacionadas a posibles vulneraciones de las leyes federales de derechos electorales. Estos reportes podrán presentarse mediante la página web del Departamento en www.civilrights.justice.gov o por teléfono al número gratuito (800) 253-3931 (disponible en español).
Las personas que tengan preguntas o quejas relacionadas a la ADA pueden llamar a la línea directa de información sobre la ADA al (800) 514-0301 o (833) 610-1264 (TTY) o someter su queja a través del enlace en la página web del Departamento sobre la ADA en www.ada.gov.
Denuncias relacionadas a disturbios en un lugar de votación siempre deben reportarse a los oficiales electorales locales (incluyendo a los funcionarios con sede en ese lugar de votación). Denuncias relacionadas a violencia, amenazas de violencia o intimidación en un lugar de votación deben reportarse inmediatamente a la policía local llamando al 911. Estas denuncias deben reportarse al Departamento una vez se hayan puesto en contacto con las autoridades locales.
Información adicional sobre la votación y las elecciones, incluyendo documentos guías y otros recursos, está disponible en Voting | Voting and Elections. Aprenda más sobre la Ley del Derecho al Voto y otras leyes federales electorales en Civil Rights Division | Sección de votación | United States Department of Justice.
Eau Claire Man Sentenced to 2 Years for Trafficking Fentanyl and MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
MADISON, WIS. – Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Mario R. Aviles, 27, Eau Claire, Wisconsin, was sentenced October 30, 2024 by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to 2 years in federal prison for distributing fentanyl and methamphetamine. That prison term will be followed by 3 years of supervised release. Aviles pleaded guilty to this charge on July 16, 2024.
The government’s investigation revealed that Hector Jimenez-Sosa was the leader of a methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine trafficking organization in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. He received large quantities of controlled substances through the mail from his sources in California. Between August and October 2023, law enforcement officers purchased methamphetamine and fentanyl pills from Jimenez-Sosa and his associates on multiple occasions using a confidential informant. The drug sales took place at two workshops operated by Jimenez-Sosa.
Aviles, Jimenez-Sosa’s nephew, was identified as an important member of Jimenez-Sosa’s organization. Aviles sold drugs himself and was also present when Jimenez-Sosa sold drugs. For example, on September 19, 2023, a confidential informant purchased 60 grams of methamphetamine and 20 fentanyl pills from Aviles at Jimenez-Sosa’s shops in Eau Claire. On October 3, 2023, the confidential informant purchased an additional 20 fentanyl pills from Aviles at one of Jimenez-Sosa’s shops. During that drug sale, the confidential informant and Aviles talked about the prior methamphetamine sale as well as a potential future deal for a larger quantity of methamphetamine.
On December 8, 2023, Jimenez-Sosa was arrested at his residence and Aviles was arrested at one of Jimenez-Sosa’s shops. Search warrants were executed at Jimenez-Sosa’s residence and shops. Officers located cocaine, marijuana, ammunition, and drug trafficking supplies.
At sentencing, Judge Conley noted that Aviles’ growing contribution to his uncle’s drug trafficking organization was significant and he arrived at the sentence after weighing Aviles’ conduct against his lack of prior criminal record among other mitigating factors.
Co-defendant Hector Jimenez-Sosa pleaded guilty to distributing 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and was sentenced by Judge Conley on September 25, 2024, to 10 years in federal prison.
The charges against Aviles and Jimenez-Sosa were the result of an investigation conducted by the West Central Drug Task Force, Eau Claire Police Department, Eau Claire County Sheriff’s Department, Drug Enforcement Administration, and United States Postal Inspection Service. The Eau Claire County District Attorney’s Office also assisted with the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven P. Anderson prosecuted this case.
Drug Trafficking Biddeford Couple SentencedRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Maine: A Biddeford man and woman were sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Portland for their roles in a fentanyl trafficking conspiracy in southern Maine.
U.S. District Judge John A. Woodcock, Jr. sentenced Michael Bolster, 49, to a total of 72 months in prison on one count of conspiring to distribute fentanyl and two counts of distributing fentanyl, followed by five years of supervised release. Michael Bolster pleaded guilty on January 18, 2024.
Jessica Bolster, 42, was sentenced to a total of 60 months in prison on one count of conspiring to distribute fentanyl and one count of distributing fentanyl, followed by four years of supervised release. Jessica Bolster pleaded guilty on February 21, 2024.
According to court records, the Bolsters conspired together and with others to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl. In July 2023, the Bolsters sold fentanyl to a confidential source on three separate occasions. The sales were for approximately 9 grams, 30 grams and 29 grams of fentanyl, respectively. In August 2023, investigators executed a search warrant at the Bolsters’ residence and seized two large bundles of suspected fentanyl made up of small baggies wrapped for individual sale totaling approximately 542 grams. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) lab tested a sample of the substance and confirmed the presence of fentanyl. Just 2 milligrams of fentanyl is considered a potentially lethal dose.
Darwin Mateo, 25, is currently serving a 36-month sentence.
The DEA investigated the case.
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Drug Courier Sentenced to 57 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JOSE MARTIN CHAVEZ-VALENCIA, 37, of Bergenfield, New Jersey, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport, to 57 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for trafficking heroin.
According to court documents and statements made in court, The Drug Enforcement Administration New Haven Task Force arranged to purchase three kilograms of a mixture of heroin and fentanyl from Chavez-Valencia’s associates. On September 26, 2022, Chavez-Valencia drove to a parking lot in West Haven to complete the transaction. Chavez-Valencia was taken into custody, and a search of his vehicle revealed approximately three kilograms of heroin. Investigators subsequently located and seized nearly two kilograms of heroin that Chavez-Valencia also had possessed.
Chavez-Valencia has been detained since his arrest. On March 4, 2024, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin.
This investigation is being conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration New Haven Task Force, which includes members from the DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, Connecticut State Police and the New Haven, Waterbury, East Haven, Branford, West Haven, Ansonia, Meriden, Naugatuck, and Shelton Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brendan J. Keefe and Nathaniel J. Gentile.
Defendant Pleads Guilty to Federal Kidnapping and Carjacking ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – David Zanders, 22, of Washington D.C., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to one count of federal kidnapping and one count of carjacking, stemming from an incident on May 1, 2022, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves; FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist, of the Washington Field Office's Criminal and Cyber Division; and Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department.
U.S. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth scheduled a sentencing hearing for March 4, 2024. The defendant was arrested on November 18, 2022, and has been detained ever since.
According to the court documents, in the early morning hours of May 1, 2022, Zanders and a conspirator kidnapped two males outside of a nightclub located at 645 Florida Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. The pair posed as an Uber and the two male victims subsequently got into the defendant’s vehicle. Shortly thereafter, Zanders pulled over on a neighborhood street in Washington, D.C., pointed a firearm at the two victims and robbed them of their phones and money. The victims were then driven around so the kidnappers could attempt to withdraw money using the victims’ credit cards. One of the victims was able to escape at a gas station in Washington D.C., when Zanders and the other suspect were looking for an ATM. After the first victim escaped, the second victim was driven to a supermarket in Maryland. The defendant and his cohort then retrieved money from an ATM at the supermarket using the second victim’s ATM card. The second victim was then driven to another location in Maryland and released.
That same evening, Zanders, his cohort and a third individual met at 955 Longfellow Street, NW, Washington, D.C. Zanders had arranged a meeting with two additional victims where he was purporting to sell his vehicle but was, in fact, going to take their vehicle. When the two victims arrived in their vehicle, a 2019 green Dodge Charger, Zanders pulled out a gun, threatened to shoot the third victim, and demanded his phone, money and keys. The additional suspects turned towards the fourth victim and demanded the car keys. The fourth victim complied and one of the suspects then drove away with the 2019 green Dodge Charger. Zanders and the additional suspect then drove away in their own vehicles and fled the scene.
Zanders faces a statutory maximum sentence of life in prison for kidnapping and 15 years for carjacking. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Graves, SAC Geist, and Chief Smith commended the MPD officers and FBI agents who collaborated on the investigation as members of MPD’s Violent Crime Suppression Unit and FBI’s Washington Field Office’s Violent Crimes Task Force. Valuable assistance was provided by the Prince George’s County Police Department.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shehzad Akhtar and Assistant U.S. Attorney Cameron Tepfer and by former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Renaud. The case was initially investigated and indicted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Strong.
Court Permanently Stops Texas Professional and Business from Organizing and Selling “Tax Plans”Read the Press Release
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas entered permanent injunctions today against Charles Dombek and The Optimal Financial Group LLC barring them from promoting any tax plan that involves creating or using sham management companies, deducting personal non-deductible expenses as business expenses or assisting in the creation of “captive” insurance companies. The injunctions also prohibit Dombek from preparing any federal tax returns for anyone other than himself and Optimal from preparing certain federal tax returns reflecting such tax plans. Dombek and Optimal consented to entry of the injunctions.
According to the government’s complaint, Dombek is a licensed CPA and served as Optimal’s manager and president. Allegedly, Dombek and Optimal promoted a tax scheme throughout the United States to illegally reduce customers’ income tax liabilities by using sham management companies to improperly shift income to be taxed at lower tax rates, improperly defer taxable income or claim personal expenses as bogus business deductions. As alleged by the government, Dombek promoted himself as the “premier dental CPA” in America. The complaint further alleges that in promoting the schemes, Dombek and Optimal made false statements about the tax benefits of the scheme that they knew or had reason to know were false, then prepared and signed tax returns for their customers reflecting the sham transactions, expenses and deductions. The government contended that the total harm to the treasury from the scheme could have been $10 million or more.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
Each year the IRS highlights some of the tax scams that put taxpayers at risk of losing money, personal information, data and more. In the IRS’s most recent list, it specifically warned taxpayers “to beware of promoters peddling bogus tax schemes aimed at reducing taxes or avoiding them altogether.”
Working with the IRS, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers and tax scheme promoters over the past decade. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.
Dombek PI.pdf Optimal Financial PI.pdfCompound Ingredient Supplier Medisca Inc., to Pay $21.75M to Resolve Allegations of False and Inflated Average Wholesale Prices for Ingredients Used in Compounded PrescriptionsRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that Medisca Inc. (Medisca), has agreed to pay $21.75 million to resolve allegations concerning the establishment of false and inflated Average Wholesale Prices (AWPs) for two ingredients used in compound prescriptions. Medisca’s pricing scheme allegedly caused pharmacies that purchased those ingredients to submit false prescription claims to the Defense Health Agency, which administers the TRICARE Program for the Department of Defense and the Department of Labor’s Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (federal health care programs).
“We will not tolerate fraudulent pricing schemes targeting health care programs that support veterans and other federal beneficiaries,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “As today’s settlement demonstrates, we will hold accountable not just those who submit false claims, but all who participate in schemes designed to defraud the American taxpayers.”
Compounding pharmacies purchase ingredients or chemicals from ingredient suppliers, such as Medisca, to prepare and fill compound prescriptions for patients who require a specially made prescription that is not generally available in the marketplace. Medisca knew that compound prescription reimbursement under federal health care programs was based in part on the AWPs it reported to various price listing agencies. The United States alleged that Medisca knowingly inflated the AWPs for resveratrol (NDC No. 38779-2863) and mometasone furoate (NDC No. 38779-2413) in order to increase the reimbursement that its pharmacy customers received from the federal healthcare programs for using those Medisca ingredients.
Medisca acquired resveratrol from manufacturers for approximately $0.37 per gram. It repackaged and sold resveratrol for under $2 per gram. Medisca reported an AWP for resveratrol at $777 per gram, creating a spread of over $775 for each gram of resveratrol used by a pharmacy customer in a compound prescription reimbursed by the federal healthcare programs. Medisca acquired mometasone furoate from manufacturers for under $8 per gram. It repackaged and sold that ingredient to compound pharmacies for over $1,000 per gram. Medisca reported an AWP for mometasone furoate at over $7,300 per gram, thereby creating a spread of approximately $6,300 for each gram of the ingredient used by a pharmacy customer in a compound prescription reimbursed by the federal healthcare programs.
Medisca allegedly used the high AWPs it reported and the resulting profit potential it created for its customers as an inducement to its compound pharmacy customers to purchase those ingredients. Medisca’s alleged fraudulent pricing scheme enabled its pharmacy customers to bill federal healthcare programs inflated amounts – often thousands of dollars per prescription – for compound formulations containing those ingredients.
“The systems establishing federal reimbursements for compounded pharmaceuticals should not be viewed by companies as an opportunity to artificially inflate reimbursements from federal payors such as TRICARE,” said U.S. Attorney Damien M. Diggs for the Eastern District of Texas. “When companies seek to manipulate the system for their own gain, the Eastern District of Texas will hold them accountable.”
“When federal healthcare programs are defrauded it hurts all Americans,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas. “My office is committed to using the False Claims Act (FCA) to hold individuals and companies accountable for the impact their actions have on our critical programs. Taxpayers deserve honest pricing and assurances that the government is never overcharged.”
“This settlement sends a clear message about the unwavering commitment of the Defense Criminal Investigation Service (DCIS) to protect the integrity of TRICARE, the Department of Defense’s health care benefit program which serves our U.S. military, their family members, and military retirees,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Ryan Settle of the Department of Defense – Office of Inspector General, DCIS Southwest Field Office. “Health care providers who use fraudulent means to seek financial gain at the expense of TRICARE and the taxpayer will be diligently investigated and held accountable.”
The settlement resolves claims brought under the whistleblower or qui tam provisions of the FCA by Doug McMakin against Medisca. Mr. McMakin is a pharmacist who owned and operated a compounding pharmacy that dispensed compounded prescriptions. Under the FCA, private parties may sue on behalf of the government for false claims for government funds and receive a share of any recovery. Mr. McMakin will receive $3,425,625 from the proceeds of the settlement. The lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. McMakin v. Medisca Inc. (EDTX).
The resolution of these matters was the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, and the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Eastern District of Texas and the Western District of Texas, with investigative support from the DCIS, U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General (USPS OIG) and the Department of Labor.
The investigation and resolution of these matters illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the FCA. Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse and mismanagement can be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services at 800-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477).
Senior Trial Counsel Sanjay Bhambhani and Trial Attorney John Deck of the Civil Division, Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Kruger for the Western District of Texas and Assistant U.S. Attorney James Gillingham for the Eastern District of Texas handled the matter, with investigative assistance from Special Agents Nicholas Koechig of DCIS and Timothy Jones of USPS OIG.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only. There has been no determination of liability.
Settlement
Cincinnati man who structured financial transactions from pandemic fraud proceeds sentenced to 4 years in prisonRead the Press Release
CINCINNATI – Nii A. Tei, 47, of Cincinnati, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 48 months in prison for structuring financial transactions to evade reporting requirements. Tei was also ordered to pay approximately $161,000 in restitution to the Small Business Administration and forfeit bank account balances, currency, watches and other items seized by law enforcement pursuant to warrants obtained during the investigation.
According to court documents, Tei held himself out as someone who could prepare PPP loan applications for others for pay. In the PPP loan applications Tei prepared, he inflated the average monthly payroll and number of employees associated with each business. Tei charged substantial fees for preparing PPP applications.
In total, Tei submitted more than 60 PPP loan applications and lenders funded 30 of them, with a total value of more than $1.2 million. Tei earned between $1,500 and $7,000 per loan and spent his proceeds on travel, luxury goods and foreign remittances.
In August 2020, Tei structured proceeds from this scheme at his bank in Cincinnati in an attempt to conceal the source of these funds and evade reporting requirements to the federal government.
He was charged federally in September 2022 and pleaded guilty in April 2024.
Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Lesley C. Allison, Inspector in Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS); Yvonne Dicristoforo, Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service; and other members of the Financial Crime Working Group Pandemic Fraud Subcommittee announced the sentence imposed on Oct. 31 by Senior U.S. District Court Judge Susan J. Dlott. Assistant United States Attorney Ebunoluwa A. Taiwo is representing the United States in this case.
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Christmas Day Robbery Gets Woman Prison TermRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Derricka Burton, 20, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to six years in prison for a Christmas Day robbery, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
The Honorable Robert Salerno sentenced Burton to six years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Burton was found guilty on June 20, 2024 of two counts of robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery, following a jury trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
According to the government’s evidence, at around 2:38 p.m. on December 25, 2023, Burton and three co-conspirators saw the victims, a couple spending time together at the Alethia Tanner Park, located at 227 Harry Thomas Way Northeast. Video footage showed Burton and her co-conspirators huddle together before two of her co-conspirators walked up to the victims and robbed them. Burton’s co-conspirators pointed a gun at the victims and demanded the victims’ Canada Goose brand jacket, cellphone, and other items. The co-conspirators then walked back to Burton and the other co-conspirators. The group conferred with each other and left together. As they did so, one of the co-conspirators dropped some of the stolen property, which Burton picked up before she left with the group. Police arrested Burton on February 12, 2024.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Toogun and Katrenia Shelly, who prosecuted the case.
Chattanooga Man Sentenced for Firearm and Explosives ViolationsRead the Press Release
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – On November 1, 2024, Anthony Christopher Lively, 41, of Chattanooga, was sentenced to 54 months in prison by the Honorable Travis R. McDonough, United States District Judge, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Following imprisonment, Lively will be on supervised release for three years.
As part of the plea agreement filed with the court, Lively agreed to plead guilty to possession of an unregistered firearm silencer and unregistered destructive devices, in violation of the National Firearms Act (“NFA”), 26 U.S.C. §§ 5841. 5861(d), and 5871.
According to filed court documents, in August of 2022, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Lively’s Chattanooga home. Investigators located and seized a Grand Power Stribog, Model SP9A1, 9-millimter, short-barrel rifle (8-inch barrel length) equipped with a foldable stock and a fully loaded magazine; multiple firearm magazines; multiple lists detailing explosive components and parts; and assorted ammunition. Further investigation revealed that prior to the execution of the warrant, Lively enlisted a family member to remove contraband from his home. From that family member’s home, law enforcement located and seized a firearm silencer; improvised explosive devices, commonly referred to as “pipe bombs” and “Molotov cocktails”, an improvised incendiary device, commonly referred to as a “Molotov cocktail”, and various fuzes, initiators, and other explosives-related components. Lively later admitted to purchasing and modifying the short-barrel rifle and firearm silencer and constructing the pipe bombs and Molotov cocktail. He also admitted that he directed his family member to remove the items from his home. The firearms and devices were not registered, to Lively or otherwise, in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, as required by the NFA.
U.S. Attorney Francis M. Hamilton III of the Eastern District of Tennessee made the announcement.
The criminal indictment was the result of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations-Chattanooga Office; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Chattanooga Field Office; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Chattanooga Police Department Bomb Squad and Special Victims Unit; and the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office
Assistant United States Attorney Kevin T. Brown represented the United States.
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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Chatham County man sentenced to federal prison for receiving child pornographyRead the Press Release
SAVANNAH, GA: A Chatham County man has been sentenced to more than eight years in federal prison after pleading guilty to receiving images of child sexual abuse.
David Johnathan Perry, 43, of Savannah, was sentenced to 97 months in prison after pleading guilty to Receipt of Child Pornography, said Jill E. Steinberg, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. U.S. District Court Chief Judge R. Stan Baker also ordered Perry to pay $55,000 in restitution and to serve 15 years of supervised release upon completion of his prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
“Protecting our most vulnerable citizens is essential, and that includes preventing the spread of sexual abuse material depicting children,” said U.S. Attorney Steinberg. “We commend the work of our law enforcement partners for their success in identifying and eliminating these threats.”
As described in court documents and testimony, the Georgia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force received multiple CyberTip reports identifying child sexual abuse material stored in a Google account registered to Perry’s residence. Investigators searched the residence and seized multiple electronic devices found to contain thousands of images and videos depicting child pornography.
“Every time one of these images is shared or viewed it revictimizes an innocent child and makes the healing process start over again, that is why stopping those who traffic in these disturbing images of abuse so important,” said Steven N. Schrank, acting special agent in charge of HSI Atlanta that covers Georgia and Alabama. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to detect, investigate and prosecute those who seek to exploit our most vulnerable population.”
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Savannah Police Department, and prosecuted for the United States by Southern District of Georgia Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason W. Blanchard.
Anyone with information on suspected child sexual exploitation can contact the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 800-843-5678, or https://report.cybertip.org/.
Bộ Tư Pháp sẽ Giám Sát Các Cuộc Bỏ Phiếu ở 27 Tiểu Bang nhằm Tuân Thủ Luật về Quyền Bỏ Phiếu Liên BangRead the Press Release
Hôm nay, Bộ Tư Pháp thông báo rằng Bộ đang lên kế hoạch giám sát việc tuân thủ luật về quyền bỏ phiếu liên bang tại 86 khu vực pháp lý ở 27 tiểu bang cho cuộc tổng tuyển cử diễn ra vào ngày 5 tháng 11.
Bộ Tư Pháp thực thi luật về quyền bỏ phiếu liên bang trong đó bảo vệ quyền của tất cả công dân đủ điều kiện trong việc tiếp cận lá phiếu. Bộ thường xuyên điều động nhân viên giám sát việc tuân thủ luật dân quyền liên bang trong hoạt động bầu cử ở các cộng đồng trên toàn quốc.
Đối với cuộc tổng tuyển cử, bộ sẽ giám sát việc tuân thủ luật về quyền bỏ phiếu liên bang vào Ngày Bầu Cử tại 86 khu vực pháp lý, bao gồm:
- Bethel Census Area, Alaska;
- Dillingham Census Area, Alaska;
- Kusilvak Census Area, Alaska;
- North Slope Borough, Alaska;
- Northwest Arctic Borough, Alaska;
- Apache County, Arizona;
- Maricopa County, Arizona;
- Pima County, Arizona;
- Yuma County, Arizona;
- San Joaquin County, California;
- Broward County, Florida;
- Miami-Dade County, Florida;
- Orange County, Florida;
- Osceola County, Florida;
- Cobb County, Georgia;
- DeKalb County, Georgia;
- Fulton County, Georgia;
- Gwinnett County, Georgia;
- Macon-Bibb County, Georgia;
- Jefferson County, Kentucky;
- Kenton County, Kentucky;
- City of Everett, Massachusetts;
- City of Fitchburg, Massachusetts;
- City of Leominster, Massachusetts;
- City of Lowell, Massachusetts;
- City of Malden, Massachusetts;
- City of Methuen, Massachusetts;
- City of Quincy, Massachusetts;
- City of Salem, Massachusetts;
- Prince George’s County, Maryland;
- City of Ann Arbor, Michigan;
- City of Detroit, Michigan;
- City of Flint, Michigan;
- City of Grand Rapids, Michigan;
- City of Hamtramck, Michigan;
- City of Warren, Michigan;
- Hennepin County, Minnesota;
- City of Minneapolis, Minnesota;
- Ramsey County, Minnesota;
- Covington County, Mississippi;
- Scott County, Mississippi;
- Warren County, Mississippi;
- City of St. Louis, Missouri;
- Blaine County, Montana;
- Alamance County, North Carolina;
- Mecklenburg County, North Carolina;
- Wake County, North Carolina;
- Bergen County, New Jersey;
- Middlesex County, New Jersey;
- Union County, New Jersey;
- Bernalillo County, New Mexico;
- Cibola County, New Mexico;
- Clark County, Nevada;
- Queens, New York;
- Cuyahoga County, Ohio;
- Portage County, Ohio;
- Allegheny County, Pennsylvania;
- Luzerne County, Pennsylvania;
- Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania;
- City of Pawtucket, Rhode Island;
- City of Providence, Rhode Island;
- City of Woonsocket, Rhode Island;
- Charleston County, South Carolina;
- Bennett County, South Dakota;
- Jackson County, South Dakota;
- Minnehaha County, South Dakota;
- Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota;
- Atascosa County, Texas;
- Bexar County, Texas;
- Dallas County, Texas;
- Frio County, Texas;
- Harris County, Texas;
- Hays County, Texas;
- Palo Pinto County, Texas;
- Waller County, Texas;
- San Juan County, Utah;
- Hanover County, Virginia;
- Henrico County, Virginia;
- Loudoun County, Virginia;
- City of Manassas, Virginia;
- City of Manassas Park, Virginia;
- Prince William County, Virginia;
- Town of Lawrence (Rusk County), Wisconsin;
- City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin;
- Town of Thornapple, Wisconsin; and
- City of Wausau, Wisconsin;
Phòng Dân Quyền của Bộ Tư Pháp sẽ điều phối nỗ lực này. Đội ngũ giám sát viên sẽ bao gồm nhân sự từ Phòng Dân Quyền, các phòng khác trực thuộc bộ, Văn Phòng Chưởng Lý Hoa Kỳ và các cán bộ quan sát liên bang từ Văn Phòng Quản Lý Nhân Sự. Xuyên suốt Ngày Bầu Cử, nhân sự của phòng sẽ giữ liên hệ với các quan chức bầu cử của tiểu bang và địa phương.
Ban Bỏ Phiếu của Phòng Dân Quyền thực thi các điều khoản dân sự của quy chế liên bang bảo vệ quyền bỏ phiếu, bao gồm Đạo Luật về Quyền Bỏ Phiếu, Đạo Luật Đăng Ký Cử Tri Quốc Gia, Đạo Luật Giúp Người Mỹ Bỏ Phiếu, Đạo Luật Bỏ Phiếu Khiếm Diện cho Công Dân Cư Trú Ở Nước Ngoài và Quân Nhân cũng như Đạo Luật Dân Quyền. Ban Quyền của Người Khuyết Tật của phòng thực thi Đạo Luật Người Mỹ Khuyết Tật (Americans with Disabilities Act, ADA) để đảm bảo rằng người khuyết tật có cơ hội bỏ phiếu đầy đủ và bình đẳng. Ban Hình Sự của phòng thực thi các quy chế hình sự liên bang trong đó cấm hành vi hăm dọa và đàn áp cử tri dựa trên chủng tộc, màu da, nguồn gốc quốc gia hoặc tôn giáo.
Vào Ngày Bầu Cử, nhân sự của Phòng Dân Quyền sẽ sẵn sàng hoạt động cả ngày để tiếp nhận những thắc mắc và khiếu nại từ công chúng có liên quan đến hành vi vi phạm luật về quyền bỏ phiếu liên bang có thể xảy ra. Quý vị có thể báo cáo thông qua trang web của bộ tại địa chỉ www.civilrights.justice.gov hoặc bằng cách gọi số điện thoại miễn phí 800-253-3931.
Những cá nhân có thắc mắc hoặc khiếu nại liên quan đến ADA có thể gọi đến đường dây nóng cung cấp thông tin ADA miễn phí của bộ theo số 800-514-0301 hoặc 833-610-1264 (TTY) hoặc gửi khiếu nại thông qua liên kết có trên trang web về ADA của bộ tại địa chỉ www.ada.gov.
Phải luôn báo cáo các khiếu nại liên quan đến bất kỳ hành vi gây rối nào tại địa điểm bỏ phiếu cho các quan chức bầu cử địa phương (bao gồm cả các quan chức có trụ sở làm việc tại địa điểm bỏ phiếu). Phải báo cáo ngay các khiếu nại liên quan đến nạn bạo lực, đe dọa bạo lực hoặc hăm dọa tại địa điểm bỏ phiếu cho các cơ quan cảnh sát địa phương bằng cách gọi số 911. Ngoài ra, cũng phải báo cáo các khiếu nại này cho bộ sau khi đã liên hệ với các cơ quan tại địa phương.
Thông tin bổ sung về bỏ phiếu và bầu cử, bao gồm tài liệu hướng dẫn và các nguồn lực khác, đều có sẵn tại địa chỉ www.justice.gov/voting. Tìm hiểu thêm về Đạo Luật về Quyền Bỏ Phiếu và các luật bỏ phiếu khác của liên bang tại địa chỉ www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.