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15 November 2024
Homosassa Man Indicted for Possessing Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
Ocala, FL – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the return of an indictment charging John Hill (40, Homosassa) with possession of child sexual abuse material. If convicted, Hill faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison.
According to court documents, in February 2024, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received nine cyber tips from a cloud-based storage provider that Hill was involved in the possession of child sex abuse material (CSAM). Search warrants were executed on the storage provider, which revealed multiple images of CSAM had been uploaded to the cloud-based storage from Hill’s cellphone. On September 17, 2024, FBI agents executed a search warrant at Hill’s residence and seized his cellphone. The subsequent examination of Hill’s cellphone revealed multiple images of CSAM involving children as young as six to eight years old.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Citrus County Sheriff's Office. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Belkis H. Callaos.
This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Halfway House Employee Arrested for Sexual Assault of Federal InmateRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Former residential halfway house employee, Tristan Cox, 33, of Atlanta, Georgia, made his initial appearance on November 13, 2024, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Justin S. Anand on federal charges of non-consensual sexual contact with a federal inmate in his custody. Cox was released on a $10,000 bond.
“The Department of Justice takes seriously its commitment to keep inmates and detainees safe from harm within its correctional and detention facilities,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “This commitment to humane treatment extends to contract facilities like halfway houses and to contract employees like Cox. He is charged with grievous conduct that undermined the Department’s efforts and injured someone in our custody.”
“Residential Reentry Centers, or halfway houses, are intended to provide a safe, structured, supervised environment for inmates who are nearing the end of their sentences to help them transition back into society,” said Eric R. Fehlman, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General Southeast Region. “Inmates should never experience assault of any kind at the hands of employees working in custodial settings.”
According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges, and other information presented in court: The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) contracts with various non-governmental organizations to operate Residential Reentry Centers (RRCs), also known as halfway houses, to aid inmates nearing their release date from federal incarceration.
The Department of Justice’s Office of Inspector General received a complaint alleging that Cox, a BOP contract employee working at the Atlanta RRC as a Residence Monitor, sexually assaulted an inmate resident who was under Cox’s care and custody in April 2024. The inmate resident alleged that Cox sexually assaulted him in a supply room during Cox’s overnight shift. DNA evidence tested by the FBI corroborated the inmate resident’s account.
Any sexual contact between a BOP employee and a BOP inmate is a criminal offense prohibited under the federal Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003.
Members of the public are reminded that a criminal complaint and arrest warrant contain only charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges, and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at a trial.
This case is being investigated by the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bret R. Hobson and Brent Alan Gray are prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Former Veterans Affairs Police Officer Sentenced to 1 Year in Federal Prison for Beating Victim Approximately 45 Times with BatonRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A former police officer with the Veterans Affairs Police Department (VAPD) was sentenced today to 12 months in federal prison for violating a victim’s civil rights by using a department-issued baton to illegally strike a man approximately 45 times in 41 seconds at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center.
Juan Anthony Carrillo, 46, of Alhambra, was sentenced by United States District Judge Wesley L. Hsu.
At today’s hearing, Judge Hsu said, “Officers owe a special duty and have a special obligation to keep the trust of the citizens they police.”
Carrillo pleaded guilty on July 26 to one misdemeanor count of deprivation of rights under color of law and specifically, for using excessive force as a law enforcement officer. The 12-month prison sentence is the statutorily maximum available sentence for this offense.
At around 4 a.m. on January 16, 2022, the 34-year-old victim – identified in court documents as “R.V.” – was detained by another VAPD officer on the grounds of the Medical Center. Carrillo arrived to assist the other officer and proceeded to beat R.V. with a VAPD-issued baton up to 45 times in approximately 41 seconds while R.V. screamed in pain. Most, if not all, of the baton strikes were delivered while the other officer was on top of the victim, who was unarmed.
Carrillo was approximately 60 pounds heavier than R.V. and the second officer was approximately 8 inches taller and approximately 85 pounds heavier than the victim.
As a result of the beating, the victim sustained injuries that included cuts on both legs and a broken bone on his right foot.
The FBI, the VA’s Office of Inspector General, and the VA’s Office of Security and Law Enforcement are conducting the investigation in this matter.
Assistant United States Attorneys Susan S. Har and Michael J. Morse of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section prosecuted this case.
Former Marianas High School Teacher Sentenced to 156 Months in Federal Prison for Child Exploitation CrimesRead the Press Release
Saipan, CNMI – SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, announces that on November 13, 2024, David Matthew Frahm, age 47, from Iowa, was sentenced to 156 months imprisonment in the U.S. District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands (NMI) for Possession of Child Pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 2252(a)(5) (B) and (b)(2) and Engaging in Illicit Sexual Conduct in Foreign Places, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 2423(c) and (f). The Court also ordered Frahm to serve an additional five years of supervised release and pay a $200 mandatory assessment fee. The Court deferred a hearing on restitution until December 19, 2024.
As a convicted sex offender under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, Frahm will be required to register in every jurisdiction where he resides, works, and goes to school upon release from prison.
Frahm pled guilty to knowingly possessing a visual depiction of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct, discovered during forensic analysis of a laptop computer. He abandoned the computer in March 2019 before his flight from Saipan. The public school-issued computer contained a digital picture from a defunct Ukrainian company that produced child pornography. The company operated under the guise of an artistic modelling studio but was shut down approximately two decades ago for child exploitation.
Shortly after local and federal law enforcement began investigating Frahm for this charge and other conduct, he fled from the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) to Malaysia where he lived illegally for four years. While in Malaysia, Frahm violated a law designed to punish U.S. citizens who commit sex crimes while traveling or residing abroad. He did so in February 2024 by using his mobile phone to surreptitiously record an eleven-year-old child after exiting a shower. Friends of the victim contacted U.S. authorities, and with assistance from the Royal Malaysian Police, Frahm was detained pursuant to a warrant issued by the District Court for the NMI. He was then escorted by the FBI back to Saipan. On June 8, 2024, federal authorities formally arrested him after landing on U.S. soil.
After sentencing, the Court granted the Government’s motion to dismiss a third count relating to Frahm’s alleged attempt to take pictures of children using a toilet in March 2019, a condition of the plea agreement.
“Frahm preyed on children in the far corners of the Indo-Pacific region,” stated United States Attorney Anderson. “I applaud the work of the FBI in bringing him to justice. This case demonstrates what multi-national partnerships can do to promote public safety. Those who travel outside the United States to exploit children will be held accountable.”
“This sentence sends a clear message that crimes against children will not be tolerated, and that our collective efforts to promote public safety in Hawaii, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands remains steadfast,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Steven Merrill. “We will hold perpetrators accountable for their heinous actions especially when they were entrusted by students and parents alike to serve as role models and not a sexual predator.”
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with the assistance of CNMI Department of Public Safety and Royal Malaysian Police.
Assistant United States Attorney Eric O’Malley prosecuted the case in the District of the Northern Mariana Islands.
This was a Project Safe Childhood (PSC) case, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, PSC marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about PSC, please visit Justice.gov/PSC.
Former Federal Employee Sentenced to 40 Years in Prison for Kidnapping His Wife, Who Was Murdered After Her AbductionRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A former federal law enforcement agency employee was sentenced today to 480 months in federal prison for plotting to abduct and kill his estranged wife, who was strangled to death in 2016.
Eddy Reyes, 38, of Covina, was sentenced by United States District Judge Josephine L. Staton, who at today’s hearing called the crime “heinous” and “a product of pure evil.”
Reyes pleaded guilty on April 19 to one count of kidnapping resulting in death.
Reyes was a civilian employee of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at the time of his wife’s death and when he was arrested in this case in April 2021. He has been in federal custody since his arrest.
“This defendant carried out a despicable, cold-blooded murder of his own wife and now appropriately faces the consequences,” said United States Attorney Martin Estrada. “Our deepest condolences to the victim’s family and our appreciation to the investigators and prosecutors who ensured that justice was done in this case.”
“Mr. Reyes abandoned his commitment to law enforcement and tried to get away with a calculated brutal murder,” said Akil Davis, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “Today’s sentence exemplifies a true commitment to law enforcement and finding justice. May it bring solace to Claudia's family in El Salvador.”
Reyes met the victim, Claudia Sanchez Reyes, in El Salvador in 2014. Reyes eventually married the victim and brought her and their son to the United States. Court documents previously filed in this case allege a history of domestic abuse by Reyes against his wife, who obtained temporary restraining orders against him in 2014 and 2016.
By 2016, Reyes suspected his wife was having an affair and he decided to kill her. Reyes then contacted his estranged half-brother – a one-time gang member and gravedigger in El Salvador identified in court documents as “P.O.,” who is now deceased – about killing Claudia Reyes.
On May 6, 2016, Reyes telephoned his wife at her job and told her that he wanted to take her to dinner that night and told her not to take an Uber home, which was her usual practice. At approximately 8 p.m. that night, Reyes drove a rented Hyundai Santa Fe and picked her up from work, after previously lying to her that the vehicle was a gift.
Instead of taking his wife out to dinner, Reyes drove to his mother’s house in Orange, pulled into the garage and closed the door. Once the door was closed, P.O. jumped from the SUV’s cargo area into the back seat and grabbed the victim, who was in the front passenger seat. P.O. punched Claudia Reyes in the face, cutting her lip, then took a seat belt and strangled her. She was 21 years old. Reyes helped P.O. push the victim’s dead body from the front passenger seat into the SUV’s cargo area.
The following day, Reyes drove to the Santa Ana apartment he shared with his wife, turned on her telephone he had turned off the night before, and, posing as his wife, used her phone to send a text message to one of her co-workers saying she would not be in to work that day. P.O., also using the victim’s phone, texted a paralegal working for the victim’s divorce lawyer that stated she no longer needed the lawyer’s services.
P.O. also used Claudia Reyes’ phone to text her mother and, pretending to be the victim, he wrote that she had met another man, was leaving Reyes and their son, that she was about to disconnect the phone, and wishing her a happy Mother’s Day.
On May 19, 2016, Reyes drove to a parking lot at Los Angeles International Airport and threw in the trash a backpack containing a blanket and rags that P.O. used to wipe down the seatbelt and interior of the SUV where Claudia Reyes was killed.
Reyes filed a missing person report four days later, but, according to the criminal complaint, when contacted by the police, Reyes refused to answer questions, despite having filed the report, until several days later at his lawyer’s office. The police conducted an investigation that revealed co-workers heard Claudia Reyes fighting with her husband on May 6 soon before he picked her up in the rented SUV, according to the affidavit in support of a criminal complaint, which notes detectives later found a drop of Claudia Reyes’ blood in that vehicle and a cadaver dog indicated that a dead body had been in the SUV.
“U.S. Customs and Border Protection does not tolerate misconduct, on or off duty,” said Todd Siegel, CBP Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR), Special Agent in Charge, Los Angeles. “CBP OPR Los Angeles Field Office’s efforts in this case is a testament to CBP’s commitment to preserving the honor of its overwhelmingly professional workforce, and its core values of vigilance, integrity, and service to our country.”
The FBI, the Santa Ana Police Department, and the Orange County Violent Gang Task Force, which is comprised of several federal, state, and local agencies, investigated this matter. Assistance was provided by Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Professional Responsibility, the Irvine Police Department, and the Transnational Anti-Gang Unit of El Salvador.
Assistant United States Attorney Gregory W. Staples of the Orange County Office prosecuted this case.
Former Detroit Riverfront Conservancy CFO Pleads Guilty to Embezzling over $40 million from ConservancyRead the Press Release
DETROIT – William A. Smith, 52, the former Chief Financial Officer for the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, pleaded guilty today to federal charges from a years-long scheme to embezzle over $40 million from the Conservancy, United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison announced.
Ison was joined in the announcement by Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office and Charles Miller, Special Agent in Charge of the IRS-Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI) Detroit Field Office.
Smith pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. Both counts carry a statutory maximum term of twenty years imprisonment.
According to court documents, William A. Smith, of Northville, was employed as the Chief Financial Officer for the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, Inc. (the Conservancy) from 2011 through May 2024. The Conservancy is a 501(c)(3) organization formed with the mission of developing access to the Detroit riverfront. The Conservancy envisions creation of a continuous Riverwalk from the Ambassador Bridge in the west to Gabriel Richard Park in the east, along with plazas, pavilions, and green spaces. Funding for the Conservancy is provided by both private donors and public grants. In his position as Chief Financial Officer of the Conservancy, Smith enjoyed substantial discretion in overseeing and managing the Conservancy’s financial affairs.
According to the plea agreement, beginning no later than November 2012 and continuing until May 2024, Smith orchestrated a scheme to embezzle millions of dollars in funds belonging to the DRFC. The embezzlement scheme took three principal forms:
- First, Smith diverted Conservancy funds from the organization’s bank accounts to a bank account in the name of “The Joseph Group, Inc.,” an entity owned and controlled by Smith. The Joseph Group was not an approved vendor for the Conservancy and provided no goods or services of any kind to the organization. However, between February 2013 and May 2024, Smith transferred approximately $24.4 million from the Conservancy’s bank accounts to an account in the name of the Joseph Group.
- Second, Smith maintained an American Express account in the name of another of the many entities he owned and controlled, this one called “William Smith & Associates LLC.” There were four American Express credit cards issued on this account. Between November 2012 and May 2024, Smith used approximately $14.9 million in Conservancy funds to pay off purchases made on this account. None of these expenditures were authorized by the Conservancy, which maintained other credit card accounts for Conservancy purchases. Smith used the American Express account to purchase furniture, designer clothing, handbags, lawn care services, airline tickets, and other consumer goods and services for himself and his family.
- Third, Smith used Conservancy funds to purchase cashier’s checks from various financial institutions. These cashier check purchases were unauthorized, and Smith used the cashier’s checks for his own purposes without the knowledge or approval of the Conservancy’s Board of Directors.
Smith engaged in various practices to cover up and sustain this massive fraud scheme. In some instances, Smith falsified bank statements that he provided to the Conservancy’s bookkeeper, altering or deleting unauthorized transfers on the statements in order to keep them off of the Conservancy’s books. In at least one other instance, he took out a line of credit with a financial institution (Citizen’s Bank) on behalf of the Conservancy. Smith claimed to be acting with the authorization of the Conservancy’s Board of Directors in taking out this line of credit. In fact, Smith had no such authority, and the documents he provided Citizen’s Bank purporting to show that he had such authorization were forgeries. Smith used the funds from this line of credit (which eventually totaled $5 million) to infuse monies into the Conservancy’s bank accounts to help cover up his substantial embezzlement from those accounts.
According to plea documents, Smith also took complex steps to disguise the origin of the funds he embezzled from the Conservancy. He routinely transferred the stolen Conservancy monies through elaborate chains of intermediate entities, all with the intent of concealing the source and nature of those funds.
The plea agreement states that the financial losses from Smith’s scheme are difficult to quantify with precision. However, Smith agreed to pay no less than $44.3 million in restitution as a result of his conduct.
“William Smith admitted today to perpetrating a financial crime that is astonishing in its scope and impact,” stated United States Attorney Ison. “Smith stole over $40 million dollars from the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy – a non-profit organization dedicated to creating beautiful public spaces that Detroit’s residents and visitors can use and enjoy. Smith not only betrayed the Conservancy’s trust, but he betrayed the trust of the whole community, all so that he could enjoy the trappings of wealth and comfort. I remain shocked at the scale of the fraud and the harm it has caused, and today’s guilty plea is an important step towards holding Mr. Smith accountable for his outrageous conduct.”
"Mr. Smith’s deceitful actions, which spanned for more than a decade, not only broke the trust of his employer, but the entire community,” said Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan. “William Smith used his position of authority to financially profit at the expense of his employer. Today’s guilty plea is a direct result of a tireless work of members from the FBI in Detroit. The FBI remains committed to working with our partners to combat these serious white-collar crimes."
“William Smith held a position of trust and authority in the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, an organization created to help revitalize outdoor spaces for all of the Detroit community. Such an extreme breach of that trust, millions of dollars stolen that would have benefitted the city for years to come, is almost unfathomable,” said Charles Miller, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-CI, Detroit Field Office. “IRS-CI’s role in this kind of investigation becomes even more important due to the complex financial transactions that can take time to unravel. With the guilty plea that was announced today, we know our work to hold Mr. Smith accountable for the outright lies and theft from the conservancy will lead to an appropriate consequence.”
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John K. Neal and Robert A. Moran. The case is being investigated by the FBI and IRS-Criminal Investigations.
Former Decatur Oncologist Sentenced for Illegal Opioid PrescribingRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – A former oncologist in Decatur has been sentenced for illegally prescribing drugs, including oxycodone and hydrocodone, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Steven L. Hofer.
Judge Madeline H. Haikala sentenced Sammy Fuad Becdach, 58, to 24 months in prison followed by a year of home confinement. Becdach was also ordered to pay a $100,000 fine.
According to the plea agreement, Becdach worked as an oncologist in Decatur, Alabama, including during 2018 through 2021, when the illegal prescribing occurred. In August 2022, the Medical Licensure Commission of Alabama revoked Becdach’s medical license for unprofessional conduct related to his romantic relationship with a woman to whom he had written opioid prescriptions and who later died from a drug overdose. Becdach wrote illegal prescriptions for controlled substances to three individuals who were not his patients. The three filled the prescriptions at Becdach’s request and then gave him the pills they received. Becdach gave some pills to women with whom he was romantically involved. The prescriptions included opioids and benzodiazepines.
The DEA investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney J.B. Ward prosecuted the case.
Florida Man Sentenced to 80 Years for Producing and Distributing Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Carlos E. Mendoza has sentenced Brett Avery Tipton (42, Rockledge) to 80 years in federal prison for producing and distributing child sexual abuse material. The Court also ordered Tipton to forfeit the device used in the commission of the offense and to register as a sex offender. Tipton had entered a guilty plea on July 24, 2024.
According to court documents, from approximately 2020 through 2021, Tipton groomed a minor victim (who was 12 years old when they met) and, through online gaming and social media platforms, convinced the victim to create pornographic images and videos of himself for Tipton. In return, Tipton sent gifts and food to the victim. Tipton also used the victim to “bait” other children on the internet into creating child sexual abuse material. Further, Tipton groomed a second minor victim and similarly convinced this victim to send pornographic pictures and videos of himself to Tipton in exchange for gifts. At one point, Tipton met the second victim in person and attempted to lure the victim into a public restroom for oral sex.
Lastly, Tipton was also active in online chat groups, where he shared child sexual abuse material and instructed that other members would need to also share material or be removed.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Emily Chang, Robert Sowell, and Courtney Richardson-Jones.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Fentanyl Trafficker Who Distributed Lethally Potent Doses in the District and Maryland Sentenced to 63 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Mynor Josue Fernandez Alfaro, 24, of Dundalk, Maryland, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 63 months in federal prison for participating in a drug trafficking scheme that distributed thousands of doses of lethally potent fentanyl in Washington D.C. and Maryland.
The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, DEA Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget of the Washington Division, Chief Marcus G. Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department, and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department.
Fernandez Alfaro, aka “Mino,” pleaded guilty on June 21, 2024, to an information charging him with conspiracy to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. In addition to the 63-month prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Ana C. Reyes ordered Fernandez Alfaro to serve four years of supervised release.
According to court papers, Fernandez admitted that, along with co-defendant Edward Steven Monge, 23, of Beltsville, Maryland, he supplied co-conspirator Jennifer Echeverria Flores with more than 4,500 blue pills that contained varying concentrations fentanyl. Echeverria Flores then sold the pills to an undercover law enforcement officer (UC) in five transactions between February and July 2023 in Washington, DC and Maryland. More than half of those pills contained more than what DEA estimates is a lethal concentration of fentanyl, 2 milligrams per pill.
As part of his guilty plea, Fernandez Alfaro admitted that he distributed fentanyl to other redistributors and clients besides Echeverria Flores. Social media posts indicate that Fernandez Alfaro was involved in a lucrative distribution scheme as early as October 2022. Monge advertised the drugs for sale on his social media, while Fernandez Alfaro provided the drugs to customers and coordinated payment through his own CashApp account. Between July 2022 and July 2023, the pair netted more than $150,000 in incoming Cash App transactions, while not otherwise legitimately employed.
Despite this large volume of digital payments, evidence suggests that Fernandez Alfaro and Monge primarily accepted payment for these pills in cash. Fernandez Alfaro’s Instagram account and cell phone contained dozens of photographs of him with significant amounts of cash, boasting of the scheme’s success.
Fernandez Alfaro posted photos to social media accounts where he boasted about his lucrative fentanyl sales.
In addition to his distribution of significant quantities of fentanyl, Fernandez Alfaro, a citizen of El Salvador, used at least four different firearms to protect his supply and profits through intimidation and threats of violence. Many of these firearms appeared to have extended magazines or were military-style rifles.
Co-conspirator Monge was sentenced on May 29, 2024, to 96 months in prison for his role in this scheme.
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.
This investigation additionally was an effort of Montgomery County Police under the Maryland Criminal Intelligence Network (MCIN). MCIN was launched in 2017 and provides grant funding and strategic support through the Office of Crime Prevention, Youth, and Victim Services to MCIN member sites to identify, disrupt, and dismantle criminal organizations through inter-agency collaboration and data sharing to make Maryland safer. The Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention, Youth, and Victim Services (GOCPP) funded this project.
This matter was investigated by the DEA – Washington Division. Valuable assistance was provided by Homeland Security Investigations. It was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Gaelin Bernstein of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney David T. Henek, of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses section. Valuable assistance was provided by former Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jordan Leiter and Javier Urbina.
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Federal Jury Convicts Bahamian Citizen of Child Exploitation CrimesRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced today that Chrystano Peder Carmelo Cooper, age 21, of Freeport, Grand Bahama, was found guilty at trial by a federal jury of four counts relating to the production, distribution, receipt, and possession of child sexual abuse materials.
The jury trial began with testimony on November 12, 2024, and concluded on November 14, 2024, with the guilty verdicts.
During the trial, the United States presented evidence that between December of 2022 and February of 2024, Cooper exploited a minor child through the production and sharing of child sexual abuse while attending college in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
The guilty verdicts were the result of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations.
The Honorable Ronald A. White, Chief U.S. Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, presided over the trial and ordered the completion of a presentence report. The sentencing will be scheduled following completion of the report. Cooper will remain in the custody of the United States Marshal until sentencing.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessie K. Pippin and Jessica Bove represented the United States.
Federal Grand Jury in Louisville Indicts Seven for Methamphetamine, Fentanyl, and Firearm OffenseRead the Press Release
Louisville, KY – A federal grand jury in Louisville returned an indictment on November 5, 2024, charging six men and one woman with methamphetamine and fentanyl conspiracy and distribution charges. One of the defendants was also charged with possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.
U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky, Special Agent in Charge Michael E. Stansbury of the FBI Louisville Field Office, Chief Paul Humphrey of the Louisville Metro Police Department, and Commissioner Phillip Burnett, Jr. of the Kentucky State Police made the announcement.
According to the indictment, 6 defendants are all charged with one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute controlled substances. Beginning as early as February 22, 2024, and continuing through November 4, 2024, the defendants conspired to possess with the intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and 400 grams or more of fentanyl. The defendants charged in the first indictment are:
• Avaron Sims, 32, of Long Beach, California
• Julio Contreras, 34, of Long Beach, California
• Patrick Russo, 30, of Corona, California
• Maleek Spalding, 26, of Louisville
• Dominque Farris, 27, of Louisville
• Jaron Blincoe Robinson, 25, of Louisville
• Amanda Foley, 42, of Louisville.
Spalding is also charged with twelve counts of distribution of fentanyl, one count of distribution of methamphetamine, and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.Farris is also charged with six counts of distribution of fentanyl and five counts of distribution of methamphetamine.
Robinson is also charged with two counts of distribution of fentanyl.
Foley is also charged with one count of distribution of methamphetamine.
Spalding, Farris, and Robinson made their initial court appearance this week before a U.S. Magistrate Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky. The Court ordered Spalding and Farris detained, and Farris released, pending trial.
Sims made his initial court appearance this week before a U.S. Magistrate Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. The Court ordered Sims released pending trial.
Contreras, Russo, and Foley have not yet been arrested and are considered federal fugitives. Anyone with information regarding their location can contact the FBI Louisville office at 502-263-6000 or tips.fbi.gov.
If convicted, each of the defendants face a maximum sentence of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.
There is no parole in the federal system.
This case is being investigated by the FBI, LMPD, and KSP, with assistance from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and the Los Angeles, California Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Dahl is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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El Departamento de Justicia llega a un acuerdo con una compañía de dotación de personal que resuelve acusaciones de discriminación relacionada con la inmigraciónRead the Press Release
El Departamento de Justicia anunció hoy que ha llegado a un acuerdo conciliatorio con Key Fortune, Inc., que opera comercialmente como Express Employment Professionals (Express), una empresa de dotación de personal en Rancho Cucamonga, California. El acuerdo resuelve la determinación del Departamento que Express discriminó a una trabajadora debido a su estatus migratorio al negarse a seguir honrando su documento válido que mostraba su permiso para trabajar en los Estados Unidos. El acuerdo también resuelve la determinación del Departamento que Express se negó a asignarla a un encargo hasta que no presentara un documento específico que mostraba su futuro permiso para trabajar.
«Es ilegal que un empleador requiera un documento específico o que rechace un documento válido que demuestre el permiso de uno para trabajar, debido al estatus migratorio de esa persona», afirmó Kristen Clarke, la Fiscal General Auxiliar de la División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia. «El Departamento se compromete a proteger a los trabajadores de la discriminación relacionada con la inmigración en el proceso de contratación y a eliminar barreras innecesarias para el empleo».
Después de llevar a cabo una investigación basada en una queja, la Sección de Derechos de Inmigrantes y Empleados (IER, por sus siglas en inglés) de la División de Derechos Civiles concluyó que Express discriminó ilegalmente a una trabajadora por su estatus migratoria cuando se negó a seguir honrando su documentación válida actual que indicaba que se le permitía trabajar en los Estados Unidos. En concreto, el Departamento determinó que Express rechazó el Documento de Autorización para Trabajar (EAD) de la trabajadora, que todavía era válida y que no vencería hasta dentro de dos meses adicionales. Express le indicó a la trabajadora que no le asignaría un encargo hasta que no presentara un nuevo EAD. En virtud de la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la ley de Inmigración y Nacionalidad (INA, por sus siglas en inglés), los empleadores no pueden solicitar documentación específica ni rechazar documentación válida que demuestre el permiso de alguien para trabajar debido a su estatus migratorio.
En virtud de los términos del acuerdo, Express pagará sanciones civiles a los Estados Unidos y le ofrecerá pagos retroactivos a la trabajadora afectada. Por otra parte, el acuerdo también requiere que la compañía capacite a su personal en cuanto a los requisitos antidiscriminatorios de la INA, que revise sus políticas de empleo y que se someta a la supervisión por parte del Departamento.
La IER es responsable de hacer cumplir la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la INA. Entre otras cosas, la ley prohíbe la discriminación por motivos de estatus de ciudadanía y nacionalidad de origen en los procesos de contratación, despido o reclutamiento o recomendación por comisión, prácticas documentales injustas y represalias e intimidación.
El sitio web de la IER dispone de información sobre cómo los empleadores pueden evitar la discriminación ilícita al verificar el permiso para trabajar de un trabajador. Aprenda más sobre el trabajo de la IER y cómo conseguir ayuda mediante este vídeo corto. Aquellos aspirantes o empleados que creen haber sido discriminados por motivos de su ciudadanía, estatus migratorio o nacionalidad de origen en los procesos de contratación, despido, reclutamiento o verificación de la elegibilidad para trabajar (Formulario I-9 e E-Verify) o sujetos a represalias pueden presentar una denuncia. El público también puede llamar a la línea directa de la IER para trabajadores al 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TTY para personas con discapacidades auditivas); llamar a la línea directa de la IER para empleadores al 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY para personas con discapacidades auditivas); inscribirse a un seminario en línea gratuito o visualizar una presentación a la carta; enviar un correo electrónico a [email protected]; o visitar los sitios web de la IER en inglés y español. Inscríbase para recibir actualizaciones por correo electrónico desde la IER.
Easton Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that John R. Young, 47, of Easton, Pennsylvania, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl to 360 months of imprisonment and lifetime supervised release, with victim restitution to be determined at a later date, for production of child pornography. Young was also ordered to forfeit various electronic devices.
According to court documents, the FBI had been investigating a site on the dark web dedicated to child pornography. The investigation identified Young as a user of the website who had posted child pornography there.
On October 17, 2023, FBI and other law enforcement agents executed a federal search warrant at Young’s residence and seized various electronic devices. Young’s devices were found to contain thousands of images of child pornography, including one that Young had produced and posted to the website. Young admitted to law enforcement that he was a user of the dark web site and that he produced the image of child pornography found on the website, which involved a child under 10 years old. Young also admitted that he possessed other images of child pornography on his devices. Finally, Young admitted using a secret video recording device disguised to look like a pen to attempt to produce additional child pornography.
On October 17, 2023, the FBI arrested Young, and in June of this year, he pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography.
“Not only was John Young a prolific collector of child pornography, he sexually exploited a child to produce such an image and shared it with other predators,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “His actions are unconscionable. My office and the FBI are working every day to find and bring to justice anyone victimizing children by creating or trading these horrible images of sexual abuse.”
“Children are among the most vulnerable members of our community, and sexual exploitation of them is one of the most devious crimes the FBI investigates,” said Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Philadelphia. “This sentence is testament to the dedication of the Allentown Resident Agency and our partners at the U.S. Attorney's Office in the pursuit of justice for these victims.”
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit projectsafechildhood.gov.
The case was investigated by FBI Philadelphia's Allentown Resident Agency and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John J. Boscia and Kyle Reynolds of the Department of Justice Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section.
East Chicago Man Sentenced to 70 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
HAMMOND- Tommy Lee Tyner, Jr., 41 years old, of East Chicago, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Philip P. Simon after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.
Tyner was sentenced to 70 months in prison followed by 1 year of supervised release.
According to documents in the case, officers responded to a call on June 11, 2022, regarding a male pointing a gun at an individual in Hammond, Indiana. Upon their arrival at the scene, officers observed Tyner exiting a vehicle that contained a firearm. Law enforcement obtained a search warrant for the vehicle and recovered a loaded 9 millimeter pistol. Tyner’s criminal history revealed that he had prior 2012 federal felony convictions for conspiracy to commit robbery affecting interstate commerce, attempted robbery affecting interstate commerce, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and as such he is prohibited from possessing the firearm and ammunition in this case.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Indiana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Task Force and the Hammond Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David J. Nozick.
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.
Distributor of ANOM Hardened Encrypted Devices Sentenced to 63 Months in Prison for Racketeering ConspiracyRead the Press Release
SAN DIEGO – Osemah Elhassen of Sydney, Australia, was sentenced in federal court today to 63 months in prison for participating in a worldwide conspiracy to distribute hardened encrypted communication devices to criminal syndicates to facilitate drug trafficking and other crimes.
Elhassen was one of 17 defendants indicted in San Diego in 2021 in connection with Operation Trojan Shield, an international law enforcement effort in which the FBI secretly operated an encrypted messaging network used by criminals, leading to the arrests of hundreds worldwide.
According to court records, the platform was known as ANOM. While ANOM’s criminal users unknowingly communicated on the system operated by the FBI, agents catalogued more than 27 million messages between users around the world whose criminal discussions were covertly obtained and reviewed by the FBI. The platform was taken down in June 2021. Please see Operation Trojan Shield in 2021.
Elhassen pleaded guilty in May 2024 to Count 1 of a superseding indictment charging him and the others with a racketeering conspiracy in connection with the ANOM enterprise. A citizen of Australia, Elhassen was a Colombia-based distributor of ANOM devices who was also directly involved in drug trafficking and money laundering.
Elhassen admitted that around November 2019, he became a member of the ANOM enterprise. According to his plea agreement, he admitted to helping accomplish the illegal objectives of that enterprise, including drug trafficking, money laundering, and obstruction of justice offenses. To that end, Elhassen distributed ANOM devices to criminal end-users for over a year and a half, and in doing so, facilitated the importation, exportation, and distribution of at least 15 kilograms of cocaine and the laundering of proceeds from the enterprise’s illegal activities.
According to the government’s sentencing filings, Elhassen’s ANOM messages show significant distribution of ANOM devices in Colombia and other places. His messages also show that Elhassen participated in providing ANOM device support and arranging subscription renewals, among other sales and price-setting activity.
Elhassen was arrested in Colombia in June 2021 and was extradited to the Southern District of California in May 2023. He pleaded guilty in May 2024.
“Despite use of sophisticated technology and extreme measures to conceal the criminal enterprise, Mr. Elhassen could not thwart federal investigators,” said U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath. “The sentence today demonstrates that even those who go to the greatest lengths to hide will be held to account.”
“Evidence collected during Operation Trojan Shield showed that distributors of ANOM devices, like Mr. Elhassen, were not merely providing a messaging service but enabling and facilitating Transnational Criminal Organizations,” said FBI San Diego Special Agent in Charge, Stacey Moy. “Today’s sentence should send a strong message to the users and distributors of these types of devices. The FBI will continue to collaborate with domestic and international partners on new and innovative strategies to combat the ever-evolving threat posed by transnational criminal organizations.”
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua C. Mellor, Mikaela L. Weber, and Peter S. Horn. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and the Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section’s Judicial Attaché Office in Bogota provided significant assistance in securing the arrest and extradition of Elhassen. The United States also thanks Colombian law enforcement authorities for their valuable assistance.
Three other defendants in this case have pleaded guilty, including Dragan Nikitovic, aka Dr. Djek; Edwin Harmendra Kumar, aka Edwin Harmendra Valentine; and Miwand Zakhimi, aka Maiwand Zakhimi. They are scheduled to be sentenced in December 2024 and January 2025. A trial for four other defendants is scheduled for March 10, 2025. Eight other defendants in the case are yet to be extradited to the United States, and one is a fugitive.
For further information on investigations and prosecutions of encrypted communication providers, see https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdca/pr/fbi-s-encrypted-phone-platform-infiltrated-hundreds-criminal-syndicates-result-massive (ANOM), https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdca/pr/sky-global-executive-and-associate-indicted-providing-encrypted-communication-devices (Sky Global), and https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdca/pr/chief-executive-communications-company-sentenced-prison-providing-encryption-services (Phantom Secure).
Operation Trojan Shield 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.
DEFENDANT Case Number 21cr1623-JLS-17
Osemah Elhassen Age: 51 Sydney, Australia
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Count 1: Racketeering Conspiracy – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1962(d)
Maximum penalty: Twenty years in prison, and fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gain or loss
INVESTIGATING AGENCIES
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Drug Enforcement Administration
United States Marshals Service
Department of Justice, Office of International Affairs
Australian Federal Police
Swedish Police Authority
Lithuanian Criminal Police Bureau
National Police of the Netherlands
EUROPOL
Court Sentences Florida Woman to Thirty Three Months Imprisonment for Trafficking FentanylRead the Press Release
MOBILE, AL – On November 14, 2024, United States District Court Judge Terry F. Moorer sentenced Christall Doris Peavy of Crestview, Florida, to 33 months imprisonment for Possession with the Intent to Distribute Fentanyl.
Documents filed with the Court established that on March 8, 2023 a deputy with the Conecuh County Sheriff’s Office stopped Peavy on Highway 84 for traffic violations. During the traffic stop Peavy admitted to having various drugs in the vehicle and the deputy decided to search the vehicle. The deputy called for a female officer to come to the scene and perform a pat down of the defendant. A female officer from the Evergreen Police Department arrived and when the officer was performing the pat down she noticed a large bulge in the defendant‘s brassiere.
When the female officer tried to retrieve the item causing the bulge Peavy became very combative and started snatching away and officers had to take Peavy into custody. Officers found that the defendant had a large plastic bag containing four smaller baggies with a powdery white substance in her brassiere. The substance was later tested and found to be fentanyl, weighing approximately 132 grams. Peavy possessed the fentanyl with the intent to distribute it.
The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, the Conecuh County Sheriff’s Office and the City of Evergreen Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney George F. May.
Convicted Felon Out on Bond Charged with Possessing a Machine Gun and Drug Trafficking CrimesRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE –A federal criminal complaint filed today charges Keandre Lamont Johnson a/k/a Keandre L. Waters, 27, of Nashville with possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and unlawful transfer or possession of a machine gun, announced Acting United States Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee Thomas J. Jaworski.
According to the complaint, on March 21, 2024, the Metro Nashville Police Department (“MNPD”) Specialized Investigations Division (“SID”) conducted a surveillance operation on South 7th Street, in the James Cayce Housing Projects in Nashville. During the operation, officers saw Johnson, who they knew had an active warrant for his arrest out of Sumner County and arrested him. While searching Johnson once he was arrested, detectives found a Glock, Model: 27, Caliber: .40, pistol, with a “Glock Switch” Machinegun Conversion Device (“MCD”) in his pants. They also found heroin, bags of white powder, oxycodone, plastic baggies, and $400 in cash. Johnson was charged in Davidson County following this arrest.
Johnson has previously been convicted of aggravated burglary and vehicle theft over $1,000, both of which are felonies.
On November 11, 2024, while out on bond from the March 21, 2024, arrest, Johnson was arrested again and charged with Aggravated Assault, Reckless Endangerment, and Felony Firearms offenses stemming from a shooting in East Nashville.
“We remain vigilant so that those on bond will not put others at risk from their release,” said Acting United States Attorney Thomas J. Jaworski. “These federal charges demonstrate again our office’s commitment to protecting the community from those who wreak havoc while illegally possessing firearms.”
If convicted on the federal charges, Johnson faces 37-46 months in federal prison.
This case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Rachel Stephens is prosecuting the case.
A federal complaint is merely an allegation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Computer Programmer Convicted for Helping Run One of the Biggest Illegal Television Show Streaming Services in the United StatesRead the Press Release
After a two-week trial, a federal jury in Las Vegas yesterday convicted a Cuban citizen and U.S. permanent resident for helping operate an illegal streaming service with one of the largest quantities of infringing works. The defendant, who was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement, is the eighth and final defendant to be convicted in the case.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Yoany Vaillant, 43, worked as a computer programmer for Jetflicks, an online, subscription-based service headquartered in Las Vegas that permitted users to stream and, at times, download copyrighted television episodes without the permission of relevant copyright owners. At one point, Jetflicks claimed to have 183,285 different television episodes, far more than Netflix, Hulu, Vudu, Amazon Prime, Disney+, or any other licensed streaming service. At Jetflicks, Vaillant worked directly with Kristopher Dallmann and Jared Jaurequi, who were convicted of criminal copyright offenses by a different jury earlier this year.
According to his resume, Vaillant had 15 years of computer programming experience when he started at Jetflicks and knew 27 computer languages. During the four-and-a-half months that Vaillant worked at Jetflicks he made significant contributions to the operation of the service, including fixing issues affecting the automated downloading, processing, syncing, uploading, and streaming of Jetflicks’ inventory of infringing television episodes.
Evidence at trial showed that Vaillant and his co-conspirators scoured the internet to find infringing television programs from pirate sites around the world — including some of the biggest sites specializing in infringing content such as The Pirate Bay, RARBG, altHUB, and Nzbplanet — using automated software and computer scripts that ran nonstop. Vaillant and his co-conspirators reproduced hundreds of thousands of copyrighted television episodes without authorization and streamed the infringing programs to tens of thousands of paid subscribers located throughout the United States, often providing episodes to subscribers the day after the shows originally aired on television. The vast scale of Jetflicks’ piracy affected every significant copyright owner of a television program in the United States and resulted in millions of dollars of losses to the U.S. television show and streaming industries.
Vaillant was one of eight defendants indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia in 2019 for running Jetflicks. In that case, Vaillant’s co-defendant Darryl Polo, a computer programmer, pleaded guilty to four criminal copyright counts and one money laundering count, which related to Jetflicks as well as another illegal streaming site he operated. Co-defendant Luis Villarino, also a computer programmer, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement at Jetflicks. The court sentenced Polo to four years and nine months in prison and Villarino to one year and one day in prison.
In February 2022, the court transferred the case to the District of Nevada for trial. The court in the District of Nevada subsequently severed Vaillant’s case from the other remaining five defendants — Dallmann, Jaurequi, Douglas Courson, Felipe Garcia, and Peter Huber — and those defendants were tried in Las Vegas last June. Dallmann ran the Jetflicks operation with assistance from Jaurequi and Courson; Garcia was in charge of customer support and helped obtain television show content; and Huber provided computer programming services. A jury found all five defendants guilty of conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement, and Dallmann was also found guilty of three additional counts of criminal copyright infringement and two counts of money laundering by concealment. This was the largest internet piracy case by volume of infringed works — and first illegal streaming case — ever to go to trial.
The court will sentence Dallmann, Courson, Garcia, Jaurequi, Huber, and Vaillant on Feb. 3 and 4, 2025. The court will determine any sentences after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Jason M. Frierson for the District of Nevada; and Assistant Director in Charge David Sundberg of the FBI Washington Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Washington Field Office investigated the case, with assistance from the FBI Las Vegas Field Office.
Senior Counsel Matthew A. Lamberti, Trial Attorney Michael Christin, and Acting Deputy Chief Christopher S. Merriam of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Oliva for the District of Nevada are prosecuting the case.
Computer Programmer Convicted for Helping Run One of the Biggest Illegal Television Show Streaming Services in the United StatesRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS — After a two-week trial, a federal jury in Las Vegas yesterday convicted a Cuban citizen and U.S. permanent resident for helping operate an illegal streaming service with one of the largest quantities of infringing works. The defendant, who was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement, is the eighth and final defendant to be convicted in the case.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Yoany Vaillant, 43, worked as a computer programmer for Jetflicks, an online, subscription-based service headquartered in Las Vegas that permitted users to stream and, at times, download copyrighted television episodes without the permission of relevant copyright owners. At one point, Jetflicks claimed to have 183,285 different television episodes, far more than Netflix, Hulu, Vudu, Amazon Prime, Disney+, or any other licensed streaming service. At Jetflicks, Vaillant worked directly with Kristopher Dallmann and Jared Jaurequi, who were convicted of criminal copyright offenses by a different jury earlier this year.
According to his resume, Vaillant had 15 years of computer programming experience when he started at Jetflicks and knew 27 computer languages. During the four-and-a-half months that Vaillant worked at Jetflicks he made significant contributions to the operation of the service, including fixing issues affecting the automated downloading, processing, syncing, uploading, and streaming of Jetflicks’ inventory of infringing television episodes.
Evidence at trial showed that Vaillant and his co-conspirators scoured the internet to find infringing television programs from pirate sites around the world — including some of the biggest sites specializing in infringing content such as The Pirate Bay, RARBG, altHUB, and Nzbplanet — using automated software and computer scripts that ran nonstop. Vaillant and his co-conspirators reproduced hundreds of thousands of copyrighted television episodes without authorization and streamed the infringing programs to tens of thousands of paid subscribers located throughout the United States, often providing episodes to subscribers the day after the shows originally aired on television. The vast scale of Jetflicks’ piracy affected every significant copyright owner of a television program in the United States and resulted in millions of dollars of losses to the U.S. television show and streaming industries.
Vaillant was one of eight defendants indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia in 2019 for running Jetflicks. In that case, Vaillant’s co-defendant Darryl Polo, a computer programmer, pleaded guilty to four criminal copyright counts and one money laundering count, which related to Jetflicks as well as another illegal streaming site he operated. Co-defendant Luis Villarino, also a computer programmer, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement at Jetflicks. The court sentenced Polo to four years and nine months in prison and Villarino to one year and one day in prison.
In February 2022, the court transferred the case to the District of Nevada for trial. The court in the District of Nevada subsequently severed Vaillant’s case from the other remaining five defendants — Dallmann, Jaurequi, Douglas Courson, Felipe Garcia, and Peter Huber — and those defendants were tried in Las Vegas last June. Dallmann ran the Jetflicks operation with assistance from Jaurequi and Courson; Garcia was in charge of customer support and helped obtain television show content; and Huber provided computer programming services. A jury found all five defendants guilty of conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement, and Dallmann was also found guilty of three additional counts of criminal copyright infringement and two counts of money laundering by concealment. This was the largest internet piracy case by volume of infringed works — and first illegal streaming case — ever to go to trial.
The court will sentence Dallmann, Courson, Garcia, Jaurequi, Huber, and Vaillant on Feb. 3 and 4, 2025. The court will determine any sentences after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Jason M. Frierson for the District of Nevada; and Assistant Director in Charge David Sundberg of the FBI Washington Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Washington Field Office investigated the case, with assistance from the FBI Las Vegas Field Office.
Senior Counsel Matthew A. Lamberti, Trial Attorney Michael Christin, and Acting Deputy Chief Christopher S. Merriam of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Oliva for the District of Nevada are prosecuting the case.
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Chief Financial Officer pleads guilty to $1M embezzlement schemeRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A North Carolina man pled guilty today to defrauding his business partner of approximately $1.2 million.
In September 2015, James Marshall Cesena, 39, and his business partner, identified in court records as E.P., formed a company identified as Company A. E.P. was the majority owner, and Cesena had a minority stake. From September 2015 to August 2023, Cesena served as Chief Financial Officer (CFO). In this role, Cesena managed Company A’s financial matters and controlled Company A’s bank accounts.
Cesena took advantage of his position as CFO to embezzle over a million dollars. Between 2016 and 2023, Cesena directed hundreds of thousands of dollars each year to his personal accounts, while informing E.P. that Company A had cash flow issues and was in financial difficulty. Because of these deceptions, E.P. periodically had to delay or forego receiving her salary.
Cesena used Company A’s credit cards and corporate accounts to make hundreds of thousands of dollars in personal purchases that had not been authorized by the Company A. This included expenditures on vacations, travel and airfare, amusement parks, school, home improvements, and living expenses. From 2020 to 2023, Cesena took out a credit card in E.P.’s name without her knowledge and consent and charged approximately $75,000.
To conceal his fraud, Cesena generated false financial statements, which he provided to E.P. and their business consultant. Cesena also masked his personal expenditures in Company A’s accounting software by labeling them as legitimate corporate expenditures. For example, sizeable payments for alcohol and cruise packages were reported as “Office Expenses.” He then provided these fraudulent records to Company A’s tax preparer. The financial data misreported Company A’s total gross receipts and expenses, and the information was then packaged into corporate tax returns.
To cover Company A’s chronic cash-flow issues caused by his sizeable distributions from corporate accounts, Cesena took out high-interest loans in the name of Company A and E.P., without E.P.’s knowledge or consent. To convince loan officers that he was authorized to take out the loans, Cesena misrepresented that he owned as much as 75% or 80% of Company A. Cesena received at least five loans or lines of credit, on at least one of which Company A ultimately defaulted.
In 2019, Cesena created an email account with Company A’s domain in the name of E.P., which he used to apply for business loans and monitor E.P.’s credit. Cesena used E.P.’s name, date of birth, social security number, and other personal information to fraudulently open accounts or obtain money.
In total, Cesena fraudulently took $1,195,878 through direct transfers, charging personal expenses to Company A’s accounts, and charges to the credit card in E.P.’s name.
Cesena is scheduled to be sentenced on April 9, 2025. He faces up to 20 years in prison. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and David E. Geist, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office's Criminal and Cyber Division, made the announcement after Senior U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga accepted the plea.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jack Morgan is prosecuting the case. Former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Likhitha Butchireddygari assisted in the prosecution of this case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:24-cr-223.
This release was updated to reflect a change in the date of sentencing from Jan. 29, 2025, to April 9, 2025.
Cheyenne man sentenced to 15 years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearmRead the Press Release
Zachary James Hernandez, 43, of Cheyenne, Wyoming, was sentenced to 180 months’ imprisonment with three years of supervised release for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
According to court documents, on March 27, 2023, the Cheyenne Police Department responded to shots fired in the 800 block of West 6th Street in Cheyenne. According to witnesses, the defendant showed up at the residence and began firing shots before demanding that an occupant of the house come out. Once the occupant was out of the house, Hernandez forced her into his vehicle at gunpoint, pointed the gun at another witness, then drove off. Police located the vehicle nearby and initiated a traffic stop. Hernandez was arrested and officers located a Sig Sauer SP 2340 .40-caliber pistol in the vehicle. During questioning, Hernandez admitted to being a felon and to knowing that he was not allowed to possess a firearm.
Hernandez was indicted on July 19, 2023, and transferred to federal custody in June of 2024. He pleaded guilty on Aug. 21. Chief U.S. District Court Judge Scott W. Skavdahl imposed the sentence on Nov. 14. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Cheyenne Police Department investigated the crime. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mackenzie Morrison prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. 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. 23-CR-00101
Chesapeake drug trafficker sentenced to over 16 years in federal prisonRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – A Chesapeake man was sentenced today to 16 years and eight months in prison for manufacturing, distributing, and possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
According to court documents, on Aug. 13, 2023, Chesapeake Police (CPD) responded to four non-fatal overdoses at a hotel in Chesapeake. At least one of the four victims, who mistakenly thought they had ingested cocaine, had to be revived with naloxone (Narcan). CPD was informed that the drugs were sold by a person known as “Eazy,” a local narcotics distributor. CPD identified “Eazy” as Eric Stephon Faulcon, 43.
On Aug. 22, 2023, CPD conducted a controlled purchase of fentanyl from Faulcon, during which he sold 1.44 grams of a mixture of fentanyl and xylazine. On Oct. 3, 2023, Faulcon agreed to sell heroin and fentanyl. With the assistance of another individual, Faulcon sold 1.06 grams of a mixture of fentanyl and xylazine.
On Oct. 17, 2023, CPD executed search warrants at Faulcon’s residence. During the search, investigators recovered 532 grams of fentanyl, 126 grams of methamphetamine, 756 grams of cocaine, a digital scale with residue, packaging materials, $4,732, and a loaded handgun. The firearm, which had been reported stolen, was equipped with an extended magazine and a machinegun conversion device, rendering the firearm capable of fully automatic fire.
Faulcon was previously federally convicted of conspiracy to distribute heroin. Upon his release from the Bureau of Prisons, he continued to engage in criminal conduct which led to convictions for possession of heroin and two armed bank robberies. He was sentenced to 47 years in prison with 29 years suspended. Faulcon was released from prison on Oct. 25, 2021, and was on supervised probation when he committed the crimes for which he was sentenced today.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Anthony A. Spotswood, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Washington Field Division; and Mark G. Solesky, Chief of Chesapeake Police, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Arenda Wright Allen.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristin G. Bird prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-30.
Chefornak woman arrested for airline interferenceRead the Press Release
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – A Chefornak woman was arrested by the FBI late Tuesday night at the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport on criminal charges related to her alleged interference with flight crews on a flight from Bethel to Anchorage.
According to court documents, on Nov.12, Caryn Evan, 38, allegedly acted erratically as the aircraft started its decent into Anchorage. Flight attendants and passengers surrounding the defendant observed her yelling incoherently and striking her husband, who was seated next to her. Flight attendants asked Evan to move to a seat in the back of the cabin, but she refused, and her husband was moved to the back of the cabin after the situation was de-escalated.
Court documents further allege that shortly after the crew de-escalated the situation, a flight attendant was called back again to where Evan was seated and observed her moving uncontrollably, flailing about and interfering with passengers around her. Flight attendants asked for an able-bodied person to assist in controlling Evan, and a nurse volunteered to sit with her.
Court documents further explain that upon landing, a flight attendant went to check on Evan and allegedly found her hitting her head on the seat in front of her and flailing her arms uncontrollably. Flight attendants restrained Evan in flex cuffs after one of the attendants allegedly became concerned for surrounding passengers’ safety.
According to court documents, alcohol was allegedly a factor in Evan’s conduct.
Evan is charged with one count of interference with flight crew members and attendants. The defendant will make her initial court appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kyle F. Reardon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska. If convicted, Evan faces up to 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker of the District of Alaska and Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Day of the FBI Anchorage Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Anchorage Field Office and Anchorage Airport Police Department are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Cody Tirpak is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Career offenders sentenced to prison for meth trafficking and illegally possessing firearmsRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – Two Norfolk men were sentenced for drug-trafficking and firearms convictions.
According to court documents, in December 2023, law enforcement conducted a controlled drug purchase from Javou Jameil Smith, 43, at the residence of Brian Ricardo Hinton, 41, in Norfolk. During the controlled purchase, Smith sold 452 grams of methamphetamine and was in possession of a firearm. Hinton was also present during the controlled purchase.
On Dec. 13, 2023, Chesapeake Police executed a search warrant at Smith’s residence. Smith, who was subject to active arrest warrants in Virginia Beach, attempted to flee and was apprehended after a short pursuit. Investigators searched Smith and recovered 6.05 grams of meth and approximately 1 gram of fentanyl individually packaged for sale. During the search of Smith’s residence, investigators recovered 57 packets containing fentanyl; five tablets containing fentanyl and Xylazine; five tablets containing para-fluorofentanyl, cocaine, and fentanyl; a loaded firearm; digital scales; and materials for the packaging and distribution of drugs.
Police also executed a second search warrant at Hinton’s residence. Investigators located a safe that contained a loaded firearm magazine, a bag with 118 multi-colored tablets containing meth, and a bag containing 13.9 grams of meth. In the same room, investigators found 29 bags of meth. Ten of the 29 bags were tested and confirmed to be 278 grams of meth, with the untested remainder totaling 533.34 grams. Investigators also recovered a firearm, ammunition, packaging materials, and digital scales.
Smith pled guilty on June 14 to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime. On Nov. 5, he was sentenced to 17 years and six months in prison.
Hinton pled guilty on June 17 to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime. On Nov. 13 he was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Anthony A. Spotswood, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Washington Field Division; Ramin Fatehi, Norfolk Commonwealth’s Attorney; Mark G. Solesky, Chief of Chesapeake Police; and Mark Talbot, Chief of Norfolk Police, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Jamar K. Walker.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Graham M. Stolle, an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney with the Norfolk Commonwealth’s Attorney Office, prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case Nos. 2:24-cr-49 (Hinton) and 2:24-cr-51 (Smith).
Camp County man sentenced for trafficking methamphetamine in East TexasRead the Press Release
TYLER, Texas – A Leesburg, Texas, man has been sentenced to over 19 years in federal prison for drug trafficking and firearms violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Damien M. Diggs.
Nathan Paul Hart, 36, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. On November 14, 2024, Hart was sentenced to 170 months for the drug offense and another 60 months for the firearms violation. U.S. District Judge Robert W. Schroeder, III, ordered the sentences be served consecutively for a total of 230 months in federal prison. Hart was also ordered to forfeit $250,000.
According to information presented in court, between August 2019 and August 2021, Hart conspired with others to bring methamphetamine to East Texas for distribution. The offense involved more than 1.5 kilograms of actual methamphetamine. On November 30, 2020, Hart and a co-defendant were involved in a traffic stop where law enforcement located approximately 2 kilograms of methamphetamine and a pistol. Hart also admitted to sending a package containing over $22,000 to California to a co-defendant to purchase drugs.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Texas Department of Public Safety, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service – Criminal Investigations. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Jackson.
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California Gang Member Caught Smuggling 46 Kilograms of Methamphetamine at Charlotte Airport Is Sentenced to 20 YearsRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A member of the Inglewood Family Gangster Bloods was sentenced to 20 years in prison today after he was caught trying to smuggle 46 kilograms of methamphetamine through the Charlotte Douglas International Airport, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Rashad Jamal Blanchard, 47, of Los Angeles, was also sentenced to five years of supervised release upon completion of the prison term.
Cardell T. Morant, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in North Carolina and South Carolina, and Chief Johnny Jennings of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD), join U.S. Attorney King in making today’s announcement.
According to court documents and court proceedings, on February 1, 2023, during an enforcement action at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport, HSI’s Queen City Regional Border Security Task Force conducted a search of Blanchard’s suitcases. Court records show that Blanchard had boarded a flight from Los Angeles to Charlotte and had checked four suitcases. A search of three of the suitcases revealed that each contained multiple black vacuum sealed packages that contained methamphetamine wrapped in comforters. The three suitcases contained a total of 34.6 kilograms of methamphetamine. Court records show that Blanchard’s fourth suitcase had been picked up from the airport’s baggage claim area by another individual who had then driven off in a vehicle. Law enforcement tracked down the vehicle and retrieved the fourth suitcase, which contained an additional 11.4 kilograms of methamphetamine. In total, Blanchard had attempted to smuggle a total of 46 kilograms of methamphetamine through the Charlotte airport.
According to court documents, Blanchard has an extensive criminal record in four states – North Carolina, California, Florida and Virginia. His prior felony convictions include carjacking and bank robbery. When Blanchard was arrested in Charlotte, he was on probation for the bank robbery conviction. He was also on bond pending prosecution in California, where he is charged for allegedly possessing nearly four pounds of methamphetamine and shooting at an individual during a dispute.
On November 28, 2023, Blanchard pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. He is currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney King thanked HSI, CMPD, and the Queen City Regional Border Security Task Force.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Kent of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte prosecuted the case.
Cabot Man Sentenced to over 16 Years in Federal Prison for Being a Felon in Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
LITTLE ROCK—George Tavis Marino, II, a multi-convicted felon, will spend 200 months in federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Jonathan D. Ross, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced the sentence, which was handed down on Wednesday, November 13, 2024, by United States District Judge James M. Moody, Jr.
Marino was indicted on August 1, 2023, on one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. He pleaded guilty on March 21, 2024. Judge Moody also sentenced Marino to five years supervised release.
An investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) revealed that on May 13, 2022, at approximately 9:30 p.m., an Arkansas State Police trooper initiated a traffic stop at 2500 John Hardin Drive, in Jacksonville, Arkansas, on a silver Mazda for illegally displaying white lights to the rear of the vehicle, near the license plate. As the trooper approached the vehicle, he saw the front passenger, later identified as Marino, reach under his seat. At that point, the Trooper instructed Marino to put his hands where he could see them and not to dig around on the floorboard. Marino then raised his hands through the open passenger window.
The trooper advised the driver of the reason for the stop and asked if either of the men was on probation or parole, and both men stated “no.” The trooper asked Marino to exit the vehicle and saw him reach under his seat again. Concerned that he was reaching for a firearm, the trooper reached inside to prevent Marino from moving and told him not to “do anything stupid.” Marino denied having a firearm when asked by the trooper. After repeatedly being instructed to exit the vehicle and not reach for anything, Marino eventually exited through the open passenger window.
Marino repeatedly said, “Don’t do this, man,” tried to cover the trooper’s microphone, and continued to resist. The trooper pulled out his taser and Marino fled after throwing a can of Sprite at the trooper. During a search of Marino’s vehicle, the trooper discovered under the passenger seat a Hi-Point, model C9, 9mm pistol, loaded with five rounds. Marino was eventually located in a Walmart parking lot in Jacksonville and taken into custody.
Marino is classified as an armed career criminal offender due to his violent criminal history, which includes 21 prior felony convictions for crimes such as first degree terroristic threatening, second degree battery, aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, felony fleeing, aggravated assault, possession of narcotics with intent to distribute, and two prior felon in possession of a firearm convictions. Therefore, the maximum penalty Marino faced was not less than 15 years and not more than life in prison, no more than five years supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. There is no parole in the federal system.
The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Erin O’Leary.
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Attorney General Merrick B. Garland Statement on the Passing of Theodore OlsonRead the Press Release
The Justice Department released the following statement from Attorney General Merrick B. Garland today following the passing of Theodore Olson:
“The passing of Ted Olson is an enormous loss for the legal community. Ted was an extraordinary attorney and public servant whose contributions to the Justice Department and the law will long be remembered.
Ted led the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel as Assistant Attorney General and later served as Solicitor General of the United States. One of the great lawyers and appellate advocates of his generation, Ted led those offices with integrity, skill, and dedication to the rule of law, in the best traditions of the Justice Department. He left with the great admiration and respect of the Department’s attorneys.
Ted exemplified what it means to be a principled person. Throughout his career, both in government and private practice, he held steadfast to what he believed was right, regardless of criticism from any quarter. Even more important, throughout his life, he treated everyone with great kindness and decency.
On behalf of the Justice Department, I extend my condolences to Ted’s family and loved ones, and my deep gratitude for his service and his lifetime devotion to the law.”
Armed Drug Trafficker with Infant in His Car Sentenced to 9 YearsRead the Press Release
RALEIGH, N.C. – A Jacksonville man was sentenced to 108 months in prison for armed drug trafficking in Jacksonville after being found in his car with his child, a loaded gun, and drugs. On August 9, 2024, Antwone Hatchell, age 24, pled guilty to possession with the intent to distribute a quantity of cocaine base and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
“Mr. Hatchell is clearly a dangerous individual. Not only did he put his own 2-month-old child in danger, but he was intent to do harm within our community through the trafficking of illegal narcotics. I am thankful to the U.S. Attorney's Office and the members of the Jacksonville Police Department and Onslow County Sheriff's Office for their professionalism and dedication to keeping our community safe,” said Jacksonville Police Chief Jarad Phelps.
According to court documents and other information presented in court, Antwone Hatchell, was caught with illegal drugs and firearms four consecutive times in nine months. In November 2022, he was found in the car with his 2-month-old child, a loaded 9mm handgun with a high-capacity magazine, methamphetamine, cocaine, and marijuana hidden in a diaper bag. In both February and July 2023, he was found asleep in a running vehicle, each time with a loaded gun and multiple types of controlled substances. And on a separate occasion in July, he was pulled over and found with a loaded AR-15 pistol with a large capacity magazine and red dot optic, a loaded 9mm pistol, 17.07 grams of fentanyl, 13.2 grams of cocaine base, and other contraband.
Michael F. Easley, Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. The Jacksonville Police Department and the Onslow County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles E. Loeser prosecuted the case.
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 7:24-CR-11-D.
Arizona Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Drug Conspiracy ChargesRead the Press Release
COLUMBIA, S.C. —Antonie Albert Eaddy, 49, of Arizona, has pleaded guilty in Columbia to conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, 400 grams or more of fentanyl, a quantity of crack cocaine and a quantity of marijuana.
Evidence obtained in the investigation revealed that Eaddy was supplying multiple people in Columbia, Florence, and Lee Counties in South Carolina with cocaine, crack cocaine, marijuana, and fentanyl pills. The police learned of his operation while investigating a person in Columbia who was purchasing cocaine from Eaddy. During their investigation, the police learned that Eaddy was supplying him with cocaine and fentanyl pills. Eaddy was shipping the drugs through the postal service and through couriers who picked up the drugs from Eaddy and transported money and drugs to and from South Carolina. During their investigation, the police, with the help of the United States Postal Inspection Service, seized two packages that contained approximately one kilogram of cocaine, 500 grams of marijuana, five grams of crack cocaine and 344 gross grams of fentanyl pills that was set to be delivered to another co-conspirator in Columbia for a wider distribution. Police also learned that Eaddy was shipping fentanyl pills through the mail to other co-conspirators in Miami, Florida. Three other co-conspirators have pleaded guilty to their involvement in this conspiracy and are awaiting sentencing.
Eaddy faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. He also faces a fine of up to $10,000,000, and at least five years of supervision to follow the term of imprisonment. United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis accepted the guilty plea and will sentence Eaddy after receiving and reviewing a sentencing report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
This operation and 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. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
This case was investigated by Drug Enforcement Administration, United States Postal Inspection Service, Department of Homeland Security, Richland County Sheriff’s Department, and the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney William K. Witherspoon is prosecuting the case.
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13 Arrested after Investigation into Drug Trafficking from New Britain Car DealershipRead the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Robert Fuller, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and New Britain Police Chief Matthew Marino today announced that the following 13 individuals were arrested yesterday on federal criminal complaints charging each with drug distribution offenses:
WILFREDO ORTIZ, aka “Will” and “P,” 44, of Bristol
MICHAEL LUISI, aka, “Mike,” 51, of Berlin
ELI SAMUEL OFARRILL-FERNANDEZ, aka "Eli” and “Maple,” 46, of New Britain
SAMUEL MARTINEZ, aka “Sammy,” 48, of Rocky Hill
TASHIA BRIDGES, aka “Cheena,” 34, of Torrington
DIMAS RODRIGUEZ, aka “Dima” and “D,” 55, of Meriden
JOSE M. ORTIZ, 52, of New Britain
JOSE L. ORTIZ, 47, of New Britain
RICHARD BEAUDOIN, aka “Rich,” 52, of Newington
RICHARD ZINA, aka “Rich,” 42, of Ludlow, Mass.
CURTIS ROOTH, aka “Scooter,” 36, of Portland
JOSE RIVERA, 35, of Rocky Hill
JEMUEL VEGA-GOMEZ, 24, of New BritainAs alleged in court documents and statements made in court, since February 2024, the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force and New Britain Police Department have been conducting an investigation into a drug trafficking organization, headed by Wilfredo Ortiz and Michael Luisi, that was operating out of Supreme Automotive, a car dealership located at 494 Main Street in New Britain. The investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps, physical and electronic surveillance, and approximately 15 controlled purchases of narcotics, primarily cocaine.
In association with yesterday’s arrests, investigators conducted court authorized searches of Supreme Automotive and residences and other locations connected to the drug trafficking organization and seized more than five kilograms of cocaine, more than 200 grams of fentanyl, approximately 30 grams of heroin, a kilogram press, seven firearms, ammunition, approximately $75,000 in cash, and 26 vehicles.
Each defendant is currently charged with possession with intent to distribute/distribution of controlled substances, and conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, which carry a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years. Certain defendants may face additional charges and penalties.
Wilfredo Ortiz, Luisi, Ofarrill-Fernandez, Martinez, Bridges, Rodriguez, Rooth, and Vega-Gomez are currently detained, and Jose M. Ortiz, Jose L. Ortiz, Beaudoin, Zina, and Rivera are released on bond.
U.S. Attorney Avery stressed that a complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force, Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, the U.S. Marshal Service, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles Police, and the New Britain, Hartford, West Hartford, Waterbury, Naugatuck, East Hartford, Brookfield, Milford, Norwich, Orange, North Haven, Meriden, Berlin, and Manchester Police Departments.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Natasha Freismuth, Reed Durham, and David Nelson through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
14 November 2024
Woburn Men Plead Guilty to Migrant Smuggling ConspiracyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Father and son owners of two Woburn, Mass. restaurants, Taste of Brazil—Tudo Na Brasa and The Dog House Bar and Grill, have pleaded guilty to conspiring to smuggle migrants into the United States from Brazil. One defendant has also pleaded guilty to money laundering conspiracy.
Jesse James Moraes, 66, and Hugo Giovanni Moraes, 45, both of Woburn, pleaded guilty to conspiring to encourage and induce an alien to come to, enter, and reside in the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such coming to, entry, or residence is or will be in violation of law, for commercial advantage or private financial gain. Jesse Moraes also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to launder the proceeds of the migrant smuggling conspiracy. U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs scheduled sentencings for Feb. 11, 2025.
The conspiracy involved recruiting undocumented migrants in Brazil to come to the United States through Mexico without authorization in exchange for fees of between $12,000 and $22,000 per person. The migrants were encouraged to make fraudulent claims of asylum and familial relationship (e.g., parent and minor child) in the United States and were given fraudulent information about U.S. points of contact to give to immigration authorities when they were caught in the United States. Once migrants were in the United States, Jesse Moraes and Hugo Moraes helped them secure long term housing, including in apartments owned by relatives of Hugo Moraes. The defendants arranged for some of the migrants to work at Tudo Na Brasa/Taste of Brazil and The Dog House Bar and Grill and paid the migrants either entirely or partly in cash unless and until the migrants obtained identification documents, at which point they would be paid at least partly by check. The defendants encouraged the migrants working for them to obtain false identification documents and referred them to a co-defendant, Marcos Chacon Gil, a/k/a Marquito,” to obtain such false identification documents. The co-conspirators agreed that some of the migrants could pay off some of their smuggling fee once they reached the United States, which they did by direct payment, having their wages withheld, or by collection by relatives and other associates within and outside the United States.
The money laundering conspiracy to which Jesse Moraes pleaded guilty involved transferring funds into and out of the United States with the intent to promote the migrant smuggling conspiracy and conducting financial transactions with the proceeds of the smuggling conspiracy that were designed to conceal the ownership and control of the proceeds.
Members of the public who believe they may be victims of the alleged crimes, or have information or questions about this case, are encouraged to call 888-221-6023, Option 5 or send an email with contact information to [email protected].
The charge of conspiring to encourage and induce an alien to come to, enter, and reside in the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such coming to, entry, or residence is or will be in violation of law, for commercial advantage or private financial gain, provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison per alien smuggled, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of money laundering conspiracy provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $500,000 or twice the amount involved in the transaction, whichever is greater. 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.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Michael J. Krol, Acting Special Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigations in New England; Jonathan Mellone, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General; Harry Chavis, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston; and Woburn Police Chief Robert F. Rufo, Jr., made the announcement today. Valuable assistance in the investigation was provided by the Norwood Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys James D. Herbert, Kelly Lawrence and Samuel R. Feldman of the Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.
Waverly, Iowa, Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Federal Prison for Production and Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Jared Russell Rigdon, 38, from Waverly, Iowa, was sentenced November 13, 2024, to 30 years in federal prison. On March 29, 2024, Rigdon pled guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of a child and one count of distribution of child pornography.
Evidence in the case showed that between January 2022, and March 22, 2023, Rigdon downloaded and distributed files of child pornography using BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer network, as well as Kik. Rigdon admitted that he used a video chat application and a screen-recording application to record dozens of clearly prepubescent children from around the world, whom Rigdon would solicit to engage in sexual and lascivious acts. Forensic review of his electronic devices discovered over 120,000 images of child sexual abuse materials. The videos and images discovered involved material that portrayed sadistic or masochistic conduct and included prepubescent children, infants, and toddlers.
Rigdon was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams. Rigdon was sentenced to 360 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Rigdon is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
The case was investigated by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and the Urbandale Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kraig R. Hamit.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 23-CR-02068. Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.
Venezuelan National Sentenced for Sanctions Evasion SchemeRead the Press Release
MIAMI — George Semerene Quintero (Semerene), 61, of Venezuela, was sentenced today to 30 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release for conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and for his role in a scheme to evade U.S. sanctions imposed on Petróleos de Venezuela S.A. (PdVSA), a Venezuelan state-owned oil company.
“Today, George Semerene Quintero was held accountable in a U.S. court of law for conspiring to circumvent economic sanctions and export controls to aid Nicolás Maduro’s regime in Venezuela in obtaining critical aircraft parts from America,” said U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida. “The prosecution of Semerene reflects our steadfast commitment to holding those who violate sanctions accountable and to vigorously enforcing export controls to protect our nation’s security. Together, with the Bureau of Industry and Security and our law enforcement partners, the U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to ensure that the integrity and intent of U.S. sanctions are preserved.”
“Today, the defendant George Semerene Quintero, is being held accountable for his role in a brazen scheme to illegally funnel American aircraft parts to service planes used by Maduro and his cronies,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “The Justice Department is committed to enforcing the sanctions imposed on the Maduro regime and will not tolerate those who violate the law and undermine our national security.”
“Semerene conspired to illegally procure critical parts from U.S. companies to supply the PdVSA aircraft fleet and tried to hide the transactions through third parties in other countries like Spain and Costa Rica,” said Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod of the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS). “Now, the only procurement he’ll be doing is at the prison commissary.”
According to court documents, between January 2019 and December 2021, after learning of the sanctions imposed on PdVSA, Semerene and his co-conspirators devised a scheme to illegally procure aircraft parts, including bearings, rudder parts, joint slide flexes and actuators, from the United States to service PdVSA’s aircraft fleet in Venezuela, in violation of U.S. sanctions and export controls. Semerene, who was an employee in PdVSA’s procurement department, and his co-conspirators concealed from U.S. companies that the requested parts were destined for Venezuela and PdVSA by utilizing third parties in other countries, including a company in Costa Rica, Novax Group SA, and a company in Spain, Aerofalcon SL, to serve as the purported purchasers and end users for the aircraft parts. Semerene and his co-conspirators carried out this scheme by causing the third-party companies to (1) lie to U.S. parts suppliers; (2) make false declarations on customs forms and shipping documents; (3) fabricate supplier invoices; and (4) provide false end-user certificates. Semerene and his co-conspirators utilized freight forwarders and shipping companies located in the Southern District of Florida to move the parts.
The indictment charging Semerene and nine co-defendants, including three other individuals associated with PdVSA, was unsealed in April, following Semerene’s arrest upon his arrival in the United States. Semerene pleaded guilty on Aug. 20.
BIS investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Stratton for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Ahmed Almudallal of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section (CES) prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Maria Medetis, Chief of the National Security Section for the Southern District of Florida, and CES Deputy Chief Matthew McKenzie provided valuable assistance during the investigation.
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.
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 21-cr-20589.
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Venezuelan National Sentenced for Sanctions Evasion SchemeRead the Press Release
George Semerene Quintero (Semerene), 61, of Venezuela, was sentenced today to 30 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release for conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and for his role in a scheme to evade U.S. sanctions imposed on Petróleos de Venezuela S.A. (PdVSA), a Venezuelan state-owned oil company.
“Today, the defendant George Semerene Quintero, is being held accountable for his role in a brazen scheme to illegally funnel American aircraft parts to service planes used by Maduro and his cronies,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “The Justice Department is committed to enforcing the sanctions imposed on the Maduro regime and will not tolerate those who violate the law and undermine our national security.”
“Semerene conspired to illegally procure critical parts from U.S. companies to supply the PdVSA aircraft fleet and tried to hide the transactions through third parties in other countries like Spain and Costa Rica,” said Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod of the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS). “Now, the only procurement he’ll be doing is at the prison commissary.”
“Today, George Semerene Quintero was held accountable in a U.S. court of law for conspiring to circumvent economic sanctions and export controls to aid Nicolás Maduro’s regime in Venezuela in obtaining critical aircraft parts from America,” said U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida. “The prosecution of Semerene reflects our steadfast commitment to holding those who violate sanctions accountable and to vigorously enforcing export controls to protect our nation’s security. Together, with the Bureau of Industry and Security and our law enforcement partners, the U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to ensure that the integrity and intent of U.S. sanctions are preserved.”
According to court documents, between January 2019 and December 2021, after learning of the sanctions imposed on PdVSA, Semerene and his co-conspirators devised a scheme to illegally procure aircraft parts, including bearings, rudder parts, joint slide flexes and actuators, from the United States to service PdVSA’s aircraft fleet in Venezuela, in violation of U.S. sanctions and export controls. Semerene, who was an employee in PdVSA’s procurement department, and his co-conspirators concealed from U.S. companies that the requested parts were destined for Venezuela and PdVSA by utilizing third parties in other countries, including a company in Costa Rica, Novax Group SA, and a company in Spain, Aerofalcon SL, to serve as the purported purchasers and end users for the aircraft parts. Semerene and his co-conspirators carried out this scheme by causing the third-party companies to (1) lie to U.S. parts suppliers; (2) make false declarations on customs forms and shipping documents; (3) fabricate supplier invoices; and (4) provide false end-user certificates. Semerene and his co-conspirators utilized freight forwarders and shipping companies located in the Southern District of Florida to move the parts.
The indictment charging Semerene and nine co-defendants, including three other individuals associated with PdVSA, was unsealed in April, following Semerene’s arrest upon his arrival in the United States. Semerene pleaded guilty on Aug. 20.
BIS investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Stratton for the Southern District of Florida (SDFL) and Trial Attorney Ahmed Almudallal of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section (CES) prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Maria Medetis, Chief of the National Security Section for SDFL and CES Deputy Chief Matthew McKenzie provided valuable assistance during the investigation.
Vallejo Man Charged with Sexual Exploitation of a Minor and Possession of a Visual Depiction of a Minor Engaging in Sexually Explicit ConductRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — On July 11, 2024, a federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment against John Robert Remlinger, 42, of Vallejo, charging him with sexual exploitation of a minor and possession of visual depiction of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. The indictment was unsealed following Remlinger’s arrest.
According to court documents, between June and August 2021, Remlinger knowingly coerced a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct, and on Jan. 24, 2023, he possessed visual depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
This case is the product of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas M. Fogg is prosecuting the case.
If convicted of sexual exploitation of a minor, Remlinger faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison up to a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison, a lifetime of supervised release, restitution, and a $250,000 fine. If convicted of possession of a visual depiction of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct, Remlinger faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison up to a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, a lifetime of supervised release, plus restitution and a 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.
U.S. Government Employee Charged with Two Counts of Unlawfully Transmitting National Defense InformationRead the Press Release
A U.S. government employee working overseas was charged with unlawfully transmitting two highly sensitive classified documents last month.
According to court documents, Asif William Rahman, 34, held a Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) security clearance as part of his role working for the U.S. government. According to an indictment filed in the Eastern District of Virginia on Nov. 7, Rahman, on or about Oct. 17, retained without authorization two documents classified at the Top Secret/SCI level, which contained information relating to national defense, and transmitted those documents to a person not entitled to receive them.
Rahman made his initial appearance in federal court in Guam on Nov. 14. The court ordered Rahman’s continued detention and removal from the District of Guam for further court hearings in the Eastern District of Virginia.
The FBI is investigating the case with valuable assistance from the U.S. Department of State's Diplomatic Security Service.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia and National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Files Criminal Complaint Against Burtonsville Woman in Connection with Fentanyl Overdose DeathRead the Press Release
First-grade teacher allegedly sold drugs on school property during work hours.
Greenbelt, Maryland – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland has filed a criminal complaint against Sarah Katherine Magid, 34, of Burtonsville, Maryland. Magid is charged with distributing fentanyl that resulted in serious bodily injury and the death of a victim. The criminal complaint was unsealed on November 13, 2024, as Magid appeared in the U.S. District Court in Greenbelt before U.S. Magistrate Judge Gina L. Simms.
Erek L. Barron, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the charge with Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget, Drug Enforcement Administration, Washington Division, and Chief Marc R. Yamada, Montgomery County Police Department.
After the death of the victim in March 2024, law enforcement discovered text messages between the victim and Magid pertaining to the distribution of fentanyl. Specifically, a forensic analysis of the victim’s cell phone revealed a text conversation and subsequent meeting between Magid and the victim. The messages uncovered a drug transaction involving pills that had been pressed to appear like oxycodone hydrochloride 30 mg pills but actually contained fentanyl. After the meeting and transaction, the victim was found deceased. The Washington, D.C., Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined the victim’s cause of death was fentanyl toxicity.
Additionally, in July 2024, a complainant reported to law enforcement that Magid, a Montgomery County first-grade schoolteacher, exited her classroom to sell drugs to people outside of the school. Law enforcement subsequently identified text messages from Magid’s phone indicating that she dealt drugs during work hours.
If convicted, Magid faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years imprisonment up to a maximum sentence of life in federal prison for the distribution of fentanyl resulting in death or serious bodily injury. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine the sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
A criminal complaint is not a finding of guilt. An individual charged by a criminal complaint is presumed innocent unless and/or until proven guilty at later criminal proceedings.
The law enforcement agencies involved in the investigation are all partners in the recently announced Maryland Fatal Fentanyl Overdose Task Force (“MFOTFF”). Led and coordinated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland and the DEA’s Washington Division, the task force is focused on raising awareness of the dangers of fentanyl, as well as creating connections between local, state, and federal authorities to increase prosecutions of overdose-death cases in Maryland. A Public Service Announcement created for MFFOTF is available online.
U.S. Attorney Barron commended the DEA and the Montgomery County Police Department for their work in the investigation and thanked the Metropolitan Police Department and the Montgomery County State's Attorney’s Office for their assistance. Mr. Barron also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Megan S. McKoy and Elizabeth Wright who are prosecuting this federal case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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U.S. Attorney's Office Secures Sentencing for Domestic Violence CaseRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – After receiving credit for 13 months previously served in Tribal custody, a Laguna man was sentenced to serve an additional 27 months in prison for two violent assaults against his intimate partner, a member of the Acoma Pueblo in 2019.
There is no parole in the federal system.
According to court documents, in the first incident on May 30, 2019, Bret Anthony Vallo, 32, a member of the Laguna Pueblo, admitted to approaching the victim from behind during an argument, wrapping his arm around her neck, and strangling her until she lost consciousness.
In a separate incident between July 1 and July 15, 2019, Vallo acknowledged that he escalated another verbal dispute by punching the victim in the face and striking her multiple times with a metal futon leg.
Upon his release from prison, Vallo will be subject to 3 years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez made the announcement today.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs investigated this case with assistance from the Pueblo of Acoma Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Robert James Booth II is prosecuting the case.
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U.S. Attorney's Office Secures Sentencing for Assault Case Against Jemez Pueblo Police OfficerRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A Jemez Pueblo man was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison for a violent confrontation with a police officer that escalated from a call for help to an assault on law enforcement.
There is no parole in the federal system.
According to court documents, on May 29, 2023, a police officer with the Jemez Pueblo Police Department received a report from his sister about an individual in a nearby arroyo who was grunting and screaming for help. Upon investigation, the officer encountered Dylon Scott Sandia, 32, an enrolled member of the Jemez Pueblo, speaking with his sister. When Sandia took an aggressive posture towards the officer’s sister, he intervened and instructed Sandia to go inside. Instead, Sandia became increasingly hostile, yelling slurs at the officer and attempting to headbutt him before physically pushing him.
After being pushed, the officer attempted to detain Sandia. However, Sandia violently resisted, pulling the officer to the ground where he struck him in the stomach and chest while trying to access items from the officer’s duty belt, including his firearm.
In response to the escalating violence, the officer was forced to use pepper spray and a baton to subdue Sandia. He ultimately managed to break free from Sandia’s grip and handcuff him.
Upon his release from prison, Sandia will be subject to three years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.
The FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with the assistance of the Jemez Pueblo Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meg Tomlinson is prosecuting the case.
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U.S. Attorney Obtains Consent Decree Against Liberty Central School District for Violations of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights ActRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that the United States obtained a consent decree against LIBERTY CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT (“LIBERTY”) in a lawsuit for violations of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (“USERRA”) filed on behalf of teacher and U.S. Army National Guard member John Chewens. The consent decree enjoins LIBERTY from future violations of USERRA and requires it to pay Chewens $10,000 in damages, including the $5,992.04 in pay that Chewens did not receive because of LIBERTY’s violations.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Our courageous soldiers, who often leave behind their families and loved ones to serve this country, should not return from their military deployments only to find that they have fallen behind in their civilian jobs. This Office is dedicated to ensuring that service members like Captain John Chewens receive all the protections that USERRA guarantees, and we will hold employers responsible when they refuse to honor those guarantees.”
As alleged in the Complaint filed in Manhattan federal court:
LIBERTY pays teachers according to a salary schedule by which a teacher’s base annual salary is determined by the teacher’s step. Teachers typically progress one step per school year, which results in an increase in the teacher’s compensation.
Chewens began teaching at LIBERTY in the 2016–17 school year, and he was paid at step 1. At the start of the 2017–18 year, he progressed to step 2. Subsequently, he was ordered to report for active duty starting in March 2018, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. As a result of his deployment, he did not return to teaching until April 2019.
When Chewens returned to teaching, LIBERTY denied him the step increase that he would have otherwise received but for his absence during his deployment. As a result, his annual base salary for the 2018–19 school year and subsequent school years was less than it would have been but for his military service.
USERRA guarantees that service members whose employment is interrupted by more than 90 days of military service are, upon their return to the employer, paid at the same rate that they would have earned absent their military service.
The Consent Decree enjoins LIBERTY from violating any provisions of USERRA (including the provisions that prohibit retaliation); requires LIBERTY to compensate Chewens for lost wages and other damages; and requires LIBERTY to incorporate the following statement into its Board of Education policy and to communicate it to members of its executive and administrative staff:
The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (“USERRA”) prohibits employers from discriminating against military service members in employment and hiring. USERRA also guarantees that service members whose employment is interrupted by more than 90 days of military service are, upon their return to the employer, paid at the same rate that they would have earned absent their military service. Even if an employee would not otherwise be eligible to advance a step in the salary schedule because of an absence, the employee must receive a step increase if the employee’s absence is due to his or her military service.
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This case is being handled by the Office’s Civil Rights Unit in the Civil Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Osmond is in charge of the case.
Two Men Sentenced for Methamphetamine TraffickingRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Two men have been sentenced to federal prison for selling methamphetamine in Marshall County.
David Adam Stewart, 42, of Glen Easton, West Virginia, was sentenced to 87 months for the distribution of methamphetamine. Michael J. Lloyd, Jr., 22, of Akron, Ohio, was sentenced to 78 months in prison for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Stewart, also known as “Adam,” was selling methamphetamine from his residence. Lloyd was also selling methamphetamine from Stewart’s residence, as well as from other residences in Marshall County. The investigation included the search of two homes, resulting in the seizure of 275 grams of methamphetamine, 8.5 grams of fentanyl, and cash.
Stewart has prior convictions in Marshall County for selling fentanyl that resulted in death and a firearms charge.
Stewart will serve three years of supervised release following his prison sentence. Lloyd will serve three years of supervised release following his prison sentence.
The Marshall County Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Clayton Reid prosecuted the cases on behalf of the government.
U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey presided.
Trio sentenced to prison for multi-state wire and bank fraud conspiracyRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Three men have been sentenced to prison for their roles in a conspiracy to cash fraudulent checks and obtain pandemic relief benefits using stolen identities.
According to court documents, from at least May 2020 through January 2022, Deandre Merritt, aka Dre, Scam Likely, and John Adams, 29, of Hyattsville, Maryland, coordinated and participated in schemes to cash stolen or altered checks and use the personal identifying information of unwitting victims to fraudulently claim pandemic relief benefits. The conspirators used fake identification documents in both schemes.
Merritt and at least one other coconspirator obtained U.S. Postal Service (USPS) arrow keys, which are universal keys used by mail carriers and collectors that can unlock various USPS collection boxes. Merritt and his co-conspirators stole checks from USPS collection boxes. The conspirators then created fraudulent checks by altering stolen checks or creating new fraudulent checks using the checks’ information such as the payees’ names, addresses, and account numbers, as well as the routing number of the bank.
Merritt conspired with a bank teller who would tell Merritt if a check could be cashed, and Merritt would provide conspirators with checks and direct them to the teller. Among the conspirators Merritt directed to cash checks was Sylvester E. Hawkins II, 31, of Buffalo, New York.
Merritt and Hawkins worked with Trevon Thompson, aka Rell and Zoe Bands, 23, of La Plata, Maryland, and other coconspirators to obtain illegitimate identification documents, including driver licenses and passport documents, in the names of other people, but which pictured Thompson or Hawkins. Merritt and Thompson then used these illegitimate identification documents in various fraudulent schemes, such as obtaining cellphones, opening bank accounts, and obtaining debit cards, credit cards, loans, and lines of credit. Merritt recruited individuals, including drug addicts, to go into banks with the illegitimate identification documents as necessary.
Thompson, Merritt and Hawkins used an illegitimate driver license in the name of an identity theft victim to apply for and receive a loan of approximately $20,833 through the Paycheck Protection Program, a pandemic relief program.
Merritt, Thompson, Hawkins, and other co-conspirators used the fake identification documents and stolen personal identifying information to apply for pandemic and unemployment insurance (UI) benefits intended to assist those who lost their jobs through no-fault of their own or whose employment was negatively impacted by COVID-19.
Over the course of the bank fraud conspiracy, Merritt directed at least 15 individuals into bank branches, and the overall bank fraud conspiracy caused an actual loss of at least $575,579. The overall wire and bank fraud conspiracy related to the fraudulent pandemic and UI benefit applications caused an actual loss of at least $506,308. An additional loss of approximately $20,833 was caused by the fraudulent PPP loan. The conspiracy used the personal identifying information of at least 10 victims.
Thompson pled guilty on Aug. 1 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. On Oct. 18 he was sentenced to two years and nine months in prison.
Hawkins pled guilty on July 17 to conspiracy to commit bank fraud. On Nov. 5 he was sentenced to one year and three months in prison.
Merritt pled guilty on Aug. 27 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. He was sentenced yesterday to five years and six months in prison.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; David E. Geist, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office's Criminal and Cyber Division; Damon E. Wood, Inspector in Charge of the Washington Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Troy W. Springer, Special Agent in Charge, National Capital Region, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General; and Kevin Davis, Fairfax County Chief of Police, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathleen Robeson and Kimberly M. Shartar prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:24-cr-98.
Thurston County man caught twice with drugs and firearms sentenced to 7 years in prisonRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 53-year-old resident of Rochester, Washington was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 7 years in prison for two federal felonies related to his armed drug trafficking activity, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Waylan Graves was arrested twice in a four-month period in 2023, each time with distribution amounts of dangerous drugs and loaded firearms.
On June 1, 2023, Graves was arrested by officers with the Thurston County Narcotics Enforcement Team. Law enforcement served a judicially authorized search warrant on Graves’ home and car. In the home they found fentanyl pills, two firearms (one of them loaded) and nearly $5,000 in cash. In Graves’ car they found a third loaded firearm as well as fentanyl pills, methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin. In the car was more than $10,000 in cash.
Graves was charged with drug and gun crimes in Thurston County Superior Court. He was released on bail. Less than four months later he was arrested a second time for drug trafficking.
On September 20, 2023, Graves was arrested with fentanyl pills, heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine in his car. A loaded semi-automatic pistol was in the void under the center console. Investigations also seized a scale and more than $3,000 cash – proceeds from Graves’ drug dealing.
Graves was indicted federally in October 2023 for possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime. Graves pleaded guilty to these crimes in July 2024.
Prosecutors asked for a seven-year sentence, noting the harm fentanyl in particular has been causing in our community writing, “The drugs that Mr. Graves was distributing have been causing irreparable harm to the community. As the Court is well aware, the influx of fentanyl has left a wake of destruction in the community. In King County alone, there have been 839 overdose deaths as of November 6, 2024, with 624 of those deaths involving fentanyl.”
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Puyallup Police Department, Thurston County Narcotics Enforcement Team, and the Joint Narcotics Enforcement Team.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Casey S. Conzatti and Stephen Hobbs.
Three Philadelphia Men Indicted on Drug Trafficking and Firearm ViolationsRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Franklin Sael Gonzalez, age 25, Ricardo Batista, age 22, and Tazwell Berrios, age 22, all of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, were indicted by a federal grand jury on drug trafficking and firearms charges.
According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, the indictment alleges that Gonzalez, Batista, and Berrios conspired to distribute, and possess with the intent to distribute, more than 40 grams of fentanyl, and cocaine, between October 10 and 15, 2022, in Lebanon, Pennsylvania. The indictment also alleges that Gonzalez, Batista, and Berrios possessed a FN Five-seveN MK2P, 5.7 x 28 mm pistol during and in relation to their drug trafficking activities.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Pennsylvania State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney David C. Williams is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
The maximum penalty under federal law for these offenses is lifetime imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
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Three More Participants Graduate from U.S. District Court’s Alternative Treatment CourtRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – United States Attorney Will Thompson congratulated three recent graduates of the Alternative Treatment Court (ATC) today. United States Magistrate Judge Omar J. Aboulhosn oversees the ATC program for the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia and presided over today’s graduation ceremony.
The ATC program is a collaborative partnership between the U.S. District Court, the U.S. Probation Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Federal Public Defender’s Office, and various community-based treatment providers and organizations. The ATC program is a pre-plea, pre-sentence alternative to conviction or imprisonment for certain individuals charged with federal crimes. The ATC program provides a blend of treatment that focuses on drug and mental health treatment, and alternative sanctions to effectively address offender behavior, rehabilitation, and education and jobs skills training. The U.S. Probation Office provides oversight and monitoring that are integral to the ATC program’s success.
In a video statement, Thompson commended U.S. Magistrate Judge Aboulhosn, the judges of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia and the ATC program’s partners.
“We appreciate the fact that they allow the program not only to exist but to thrive,” Thompson said. “This is something that is done on a volunteer basis. The work and effort they put in makes this program successful and they all deserve recognition today.”
Participants must be individuals whose criminal conduct is believed to be motivated by substance abuse issues, mental health, or other underlying causes that appear to be amenable to treatment through programs available as part of the ATC. Defendants with a history of violent offenses, involved in child exploitation offenses or subject to removal by immigration authorities are among those excluded from participating.
Eligible defendants must participate for at least 12 months, but may be required to participate for up to 24 months.
Today’s graduates are Richard Allen Bowen, 63, of Charleston, Bradley Flowers, 29, of Hurricane, and Joseph Harper, 39, of Beckley. Thompson offered words of encouragement to each graduate.
The three graduates each successfully completed Track Two of the program, which allows them to receive terms of probation. Track One of the program allows for the dismissal of charges against those participants upon their successful completion of the ATC program.
Information about the Alternative Treatment Court program, including the program’s Memorandum of Understanding, is available on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia: https://www.wvsd.uscourts.gov/programs-services/alternative-treatment-court.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case Nos. 2:23-cr-4 (Bowen), 3:22-cr-96 (Flowers), and 5:23-cr-15 (Harper).
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Three Indiana Residents Charged in Nationwide SIM-Swapping ConspiracyRead the Press Release
OAKLAND – An indictment was unsealed today charging three Indiana residents, Indigo Kiara Graham, Cortez Tarmar Crawford, and Trevon Demar Allen with conspiracy in connection with a SIM-swapping operation.
All three defendants were arrested yesterday and made their initial appearances in federal court in South Bend, Ind.
According to the indictment filed on Nov. 7, 2024, Graham, 27, Crawford, 22, and Allen, 30, all currently of Elkhart, Ind., are alleged to have conspired with each other and with additional co-conspirators to unjustly enrich themselves by targeting victims for SIM (subscriber identity module) swaps. A SIM card is an integrated circuit that stores authentication and other information for devices on mobile phone networks. In a SIM swap, a criminal actor causes the SIM card assigned to a victim’s account with a mobile service provider to be changed to a SIM card controlled by the criminal actor. Upon obtaining control of the SIM card that is attached to the victim’s cell phone service, the criminal actor can impersonate the victim to other service providers (such as email providers, cryptocurrency exchanges, and social media accounts) by using the victim’s cell phone number to receive password reset codes.
The indictment describes how, beginning around April 2023 to around May 2024, the defendants allegedly created fraudulent identification documents in victims’ names, performed SIM swaps in exchange for money, and fraudulently obtained two-factor authentication codes, thereby accessing and stealing victims’ money and data, extorting victims for money in exchange for restoring access to data, and concealing the ill-gotten funds through cryptocurrency transactions. Graham and Crawford are also charged with committing aggravated identity theft in connection with one incident involving both Graham and Crawford and a second incident involving only Crawford at a mobile service provider store in El Cerrito, Calif.
All three defendants were released and ordered to appear on Dec. 4, 2024, for their initial appearances before the Honorable Kandis A. Westmore, U.S. Magistrate Judge.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Special Agent in Charge Robert K. Tripp.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of five years of imprisonment, $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release, $100 special assessment, forfeiture, and restitution for the conspiracy charge in count one; Graham and Crawford also face a mandatory minimum sentence of two years of imprisonment to run consecutively to any other sentence and in addition to the sentence for the underlying felony, $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release, $100 special assessment, and restitution for each count of aggravated identity theft with which they are charged.
However, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle J. Kane is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Kathy Tat. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI.
Indigo Kiara Graham Indictment
Three Admit Nearly $350,000 Auto Loan FraudRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – Three people have pleaded guilty to federal charges and admitted fraudulently obtaining nine auto loans worth nearly $350,000.
Willie Roy Carter, 75, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis Thursday to one count of bank fraud and one count of mail fraud. Kizzie Davis, also known as Kizzie Lofton, 46, pleaded guilty October 31 to one count of mail fraud. Her husband, Charles Davis Jr., 57, pleaded guilty October 24 to one count of bank fraud and one count of mail fraud.
Carter, aided by Charles and Kizzie Davis, applied for auto loans between July 23, 2018, and Aug. 1, 2018, using fraudulent purchase and loan documents. Carter did not own or plan to buy the vehicles as represented in the loan applications, however. Carter claimed the cars were being sold by City Limits Auto Sales, a business name registered in Missouri in 2016 by Charles Davis. Carter gave the loan checks to Charles Davis to deposit. Money orders for monthly loan payments were purchased by Kizzie Davis and mailed via the United States Postal Service from Florida to lenders in Missouri to lull the financial institutions into believing the automobile purchases were legitimate and delay the reporting of the fraudulent activity.
The nine loans totaled about $345, 444.
Carter also admitted charging $10,396 on two credit cards that he never paid off.
Charles Davis is scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 28, 2025. Kizzie Davis is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 13, 2025, and Carter five days later.
Each bank fraud and mail fraud charge is punishable by up to 30 years in prison, a $1 million fine or both prison and a fine.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Linda Lane is prosecuting the case.
The United States Attorney’s Office Finds Conditions at Fulton County Jail in Georgia Violate the Constitution and Federal LawRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia and the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division announced its findings concluding that Fulton County and the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office routinely violate the constitutional and statutory rights of persons incarcerated at the Fulton County Jail and fail to adequately protect incarcerated persons from substantial risk of serious harm.
“In Fulton County, people in custody awaiting formal charges or trials frequently must protect themselves from brutal physical attacks, endure frequent excessive force, manage their wellbeing with inadequate food and unsanitary living conditions, and hope they can find access to a strained medical and mental health care program. This is unacceptable,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “Our Constitution requires humane conditions while incarcerated that, at a minimum, ensure people in custody are safe. The findings regarding the Fulton County Jail reveal grave and diffuse failures to safeguard the men and women housed in its facilities, including a disturbing frequency of deaths among incarcerated people. We expect Fulton County and the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office to share our sense of urgency about the seriousness of the violations described in this report and to work cooperatively with our Office and the Department of Justice to remedy these systemic deficiencies in the Jail.”
“Lashawn Thompson’s horrific death was symptomatic of a pattern of dangerous and dehumanizing conditions in the Fulton County Jail,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The Justice Department’s report concluded that Fulton County and the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office allowed unsafe and unsanitary conditions at the Jail. As a result, people incarcerated in the Fulton County Jail suffered harms from pest infestation and malnourishment and were put at substantial risk of serious harm from violence by other incarcerated people — including homicides, stabbings and sexual abuse. The unconstitutional and unlawful conditions at the Fulton County Jail have persisted for far too long, and we are committed to working with Fulton County and the Fulton County Sheriff’s office to remedy them.”
“We cannot turn a blind eye to the inhumane, violent, and hazardous conditions that people are subjected to inside the Fulton County Jail," said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. “Detention in the Fulton County Jail has amounted to a death sentence for dozens of people who have been murdered or who died as a result of the atrocious conditions inside the facility. It’s not just adults but also children who are subjected to conditions and treatment that violate the constitution and defy federal law. Many people held in jails in our country have not been convicted — they are awaiting hearings, trial dates or are serving short sentences for misdemeanors. At the end of the day, people do not abandon their civil and constitutional rights at the jailhouse door. Jails and prisons across the country must protect people from the kind of gross violations and unconstitutional conditions that we have uncovered here. We hope our findings report sounds an alarm that will prompt Fulton County officials to work with the Justice Department to implement the reforms necessary to ensure constitutional conditions going forward.”
The 97-page report details its findings from a comprehensive investigation of the Jail, which is funded and operated by Fulton County and the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office. The investigation included the Main Jail, also known as “Rice Street,” in Atlanta and three annex facilities: the Marietta Annex in Atlanta, the North Annex in Alpharetta, and the South Annex in Union City. The Jail currently houses around 2,000 people and in recent years the population has surpassed 3,000 people.
The report concludes that the conditions of confinement at the Jail do not meet basic constitutional standards. The noted deficiencies include the following:
- Fulton County and the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office fail to protect people from the substantial risk of serious harm from violence by other incarcerated people, including homicides, stabbings, and sexual abuse.
- Officers use excessive force against incarcerated people.
- The Jail houses incarcerated people in constitutionally inadequate living conditions that are unsanitary and dangerous.
- The Jail fails to provide adequate medical and mental health services.
- The Jail’s restrictive housing practices expose people, including 17-year-old children, to substantial harm, discriminate against people with mental health disabilities, and fail to provide incarcerated people due process of law.
- The Jail fails to provide special education services to 17-year-old boys and girls who are entitled to those services while they are incarcerated at the facility.
The unlawful and dangerous practices identified in the report are long-standing and have contributed to multiple deaths and other serious harm:
- From 2022 to the present, six incarcerated people have died in violence at the Jail.
- In 2023, more than 300 stabbings occurred in the Jail which involved contraband and makeshift weapons.
- Four deaths from suicide happened at the Jail in the past four years, including as recently as April of this year.
The United States conducted its investigation under the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (CRIPA), the Americans with Disabilities Act, and 34 U.S.C. § 12601, which prohibit law enforcement officers from engaging in a pattern or practice of conduct that deprives people of rights protected by the Constitution or federal law. These statutes authorize the Attorney General to file a lawsuit in federal court seeking court-ordered remedies to eliminate a pattern or practice of unlawful conduct. Fulton County and the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office have been provided written notice of the supporting facts for the conclusions in the report and the minimum remedial measures necessary to address the alleged violations.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia joined together with the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division’s Special Litigation Section to conduct the investigation.
The case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tiffany Johnson, Aileen Bell Hughes, and Rebeca Ojeda of the Northern District of Georgia.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. To provide information related to the investigation of the Fulton County Jail, please call 1-888-473-4092 or email the Department of Justice at [email protected].
Attachment - Fulton County Jail Findings Report:
fulton_county_jail_findings_report.pdfTexas Man Pleads Guilty of Federal Controlled Substances Act ViolationsRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – SAUL MACEDO-RODRIGUEZ (“MACEDO-RODRIGUEZ”), age 38, a Texas resident, pled guilty on November 13, 2024 before United States District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo to two counts of a superseding indictment charging him with conspiracy to distribute, and possess with intent to distribute, five kilograms or more of cocaine (Count 1) and, possession with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine (Count 5), in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1), 841(b)(1)(A), and 846, announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans.
According to court documents, MACEDO-RODRIGUEZ and other co-conspirators distributed multi-kilogram quantities of cocaine, fentanyl, and heroin within the Eastern District of Louisiana.
For Counts 1 and 5, MACEDO-RODRIGUEZ faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years up to a maximum term of life, a fine of up to $10,000,000.00, at least five years of supervised release, and a mandatory special assessment fee of $100.
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.
This investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration – New Orleans Field Division Office and assisted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Border Patrol, the Gretna Major Crimes Task Force, the Kenner Police Department, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, the St. John’s Parish Sheriff’s Office, the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the New Orleans Police Department. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Lynn E. Schiffman of the Narcotics Unit.