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Thursday 28 March 2024
Lame Deer man admits attempting to coerce and pay for sex with minors on Northern Cheyenne Indian ReservationRead the Press Release
BILLINGS — A Lame Deer man today admitted to attempting to have sex with two minor girls on the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
The defendant, Travis Dean Two Two, Sr., 35, pleaded guilty to attempted coercion and enticement and to attempted sex trafficking of a minor as charged in an indictment. Two Two faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years to life in prison, a $250,000 fine, and five years to a lifetime of supervised release on each charge.
U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing was set for Aug. 1 and Two Two was detained pending further proceedings.
In court documents, the government alleged that from about May 2023 to August 2023, in Lame Deer and Ashland, on the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, Two Two communicated with a 14-year-old girl, identified as Jane Doe 1, through social media. Responding to a tip about the communications, law enforcement obtained messages in which Two Two confirms Doe 1 is 14 and indicates the two of them will have some fun together. Law enforcement obtained permission to take over Doe 1’s account and communicate with Two Two. The communications became increasingly sexual and Two Two requested naked pictures of Doe 1 and made plans to meet with her for sex. Ultimately, Two Two discussed meeting Doe 1 at the Montana Fair in Billings, indicated he wanted to take nude pictures of her and “maybe make a video” of sex acts with her. He noted that he “like[s] them young.” Law enforcement arrested Two Two on Aug. 19 as he was leaving the MontanaFair.
The government further alleged that from about June 2023 until September 2023, at Lame Deer, Two Two attempted to engage a minor girl in commercial sex. In August 2023, law enforcement interviewed a 16-year-old girl, identified as Jane Doe 2, who indicated she had met Two Two in 2021 and that they had communicated though text messages in the summer of 2023. Doe 2 told law enforcement Two Two provided her with marijuana and that in exchange, Two Two began asking for sexual contact, to include a kiss and to grab her butt, which she allowed on a couple of occasions. Two Two later asked for sex in exchange for the marijuana, and Doe 2 rejected this offer.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Zeno B. Baucus is prosecuting the case. The FBI, Montana Division of Criminal Investigation, and Northern Cheyenne Investigative Services conducted the investigation.
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 U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
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Keene Couple Indicted for the Production of Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
CONCORD – A Keene couple has been indicted in connection with their production of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young announces.
Paul Baird, 43, of Keene and Krystal Baird, 38, of Keene were charged by complaint and arrested on March 20, 2024 for the production of child pornography. They were indicted by a federal grand jury on March 27, 2024.
According to the indictment, on or about January 29, 2024, Paul and Krystal Baird knowingly attempted to and knowingly employed, used, persuaded, induced, enticed, and coerced a minor female under the age of 12 years, to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct, using materials that had been mailed, shipped, and transported in and affecting interstate and foreign commerce.
At the time of his arrest, Paul Baird was employed as a bus driver by the Student Transportation of America, which is a school transportation company that services the Contoocook Valley (ConVal) School District.
This investigation is ongoing. Members of the public who have information regarding this case should call the Homeland Security Investigations’ New England Field Division’s Manchester Office at 603-629-2716.
The Homeland Security Investigations is leading the investigation. The Keene Police Department is providing valuable assistance with this investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anna Krasinski is prosecuting the case.
The case is brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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KC Man Sentenced for Cocaine TraffickingRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man who boasted about having associates selling cocaine in several local bars and nightclubs was sentenced in federal court today for distributing cocaine.
Manuel A. Contreras, 33, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs to 11 years and three months in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Contreras to forfeit to the government $40,600, which represents the proceeds of his illegal cocaine trafficking.
On Oct. 26, 2023, Contreras pleaded guilty to five counts of distributing cocaine. According to his plea agreement, Contreras sold more than a kilogram of cocaine to an FBI confidential source over five separate occasions in 2022, for a total of $40,600.
On Oct. 14, 2022, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Contreras’s residence. Officers found a loaded SCCY 9mm semi-automatic handgun, 196.7 grams of cocaine, drug paraphernalia, and $2,526 in cash in his bedroom.
According to court documents, Contreras told the confidential source that he had people who sell cocaine for him at several bars and nightclubs in the Kansas City area.
Contreras also told the confidential source that he had done business with another defendant who was indicted in a separate and unrelated drug-trafficking case. Contreras said he had taken that person’s BMW i8 for a period of time for a drug debt, only returning the car when he was paid $15,000, and that he had taken guns and drugs from this person because he owed Contreras approximately $28,000.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brad K. Kavanaugh. It was investigated by the FBI.
Justice Department’s Investigation into International Commodities Trading Companies’ Foreign Bribery Schemes Results in Six Corporate Resolutions and 20 Individuals ConvictedRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that its long-running investigation into international commodities trading companies that paid bribes to win business with state-owned and state-controlled oil companies in Latin America and Africa has resulted in six corporate resolutions, 20 convictions of individuals, and total fines, forfeitures, and other penalties of more than $1.7 billion.
Since 2017, the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) Unit, in partnership with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the country, the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, and the FBI, has been investigating corruption committed by international commodities trading companies, which paid millions of dollars in bribes to corrupt government officials to secure billions of dollars in business with state-owned enterprises.
Through this work, the Criminal Division has entered into six corporate resolutions, which have included mandatory cooperation, disclosure, and compliance obligations and resulted in total fines, forfeitures, and other penalties of more than $1.7 billion:
- In September 2020, Sargeant Marine Inc., an asphalt company based in Boca Raton, Florida, with an asphalt trading arm, pleaded guilty in the Eastern District of New York to schemes to bribe government officials in Brazil, Venezuela, and Ecuador;
- In December 2020, Vitol Inc., entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) in the Eastern District of New York, admitting to schemes to pay bribes to government officials in Brazil, Ecuador, and Mexico;
- In May 2022, Glencore International AG pleaded guilty in the Southern District of New York to a scheme to pay bribes to government officials in seven countries across Africa and Latin America;
- In December 2023, Freepoint Commodities LLC entered into a DPA in the District of Connecticut and admitted to a scheme to bribe government officials in Brazil;
- In March, Gunvor S.A. pleaded guilty in the Eastern District of New York to a scheme to bribe government officials in Ecuador; and
- Today, Trafigura Beheer B.V. pleaded guilty in the Southern District of Florida to a scheme to bribe government officials in Brazil.
These corporate resolutions are connected to the guilty pleas of 19 culpable individuals, including six government officials, eight corrupt intermediaries, and five trading company employees. In addition, last month, Javier Aguilar, a former trader at Vitol Inc., was convicted on FCPA and money laundering charges following a seven-week trial in the Eastern District of New York.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, thanked the Criminal Division’s partners in these matters, including U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York, U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery for the District of Connecticut, and U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani for the Southern District of Texas. Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Argentieri also thanked the Criminal Division’s law enforcement partners, including the FBI’s International Corruption Unit, New York Field Office, Miami Field Office, and Los Angeles Field Office.
The Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is responsible for investigating and prosecuting FCPA matters. Additional information about the Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal/fraud/fcpa.
Justice Department’s Investigation into International Commodities Trading Companies’ Foreign Bribery Schemes Results in Six Corporate Resolutions and 20 Individuals ConvictedRead the Press Release
MIAMI – The Justice Department announced today that its long-running investigation into international commodities trading companies that paid bribes to win business with state-owned and state-controlled oil companies in Latin America and Africa has resulted in six corporate resolutions, 20 convictions of individuals, and total fines, forfeitures, and other penalties of more than $1.7 billion.
Since 2017, the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) Unit, in partnership with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the country, the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, and the FBI, has been investigating corruption committed by international commodities trading companies, which paid millions of dollars in bribes to corrupt government officials to secure billions of dollars in business with state-owned enterprises.
Through this work, the Criminal Division has entered into six corporate resolutions, which have included mandatory cooperation, disclosure, and compliance obligations and resulted in total fines, forfeitures, and other penalties of more than $1.7 billion:
- Today, Trafigura Beheer B.V. pleaded guilty in the Southern District of Florida to a scheme to bribe government officials in Brazil.
- In September 2020, Sargeant Marine Inc., an asphalt company based in Boca Raton, Florida, with an asphalt trading arm, pleaded guilty in the Eastern District of New York to schemes to bribe government officials in Brazil, Venezuela, and Ecuador;
- In December 2020, Vitol Inc., entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) in the Eastern District of New York, admitting to schemes to pay bribes to government officials in Brazil, Ecuador, and Mexico;
- In May 2022, Glencore International AG pleaded guilty in the Southern District of New York to a scheme to pay bribes to government officials in seven countries across Africa and Latin America;
- In December 2023, Freepoint Commodities LLC entered into a DPA in the District of Connecticut and admitted to a scheme to bribe government officials in Brazil;
- In March, Gunvor S.A. pleaded guilty in the Eastern District of New York to a scheme to bribe government officials in Ecuador; and
These corporate resolutions are connected to the guilty pleas of 19 culpable individuals, including six government officials, eight corrupt intermediaries, and five trading company employees. In addition, last month, Javier Aguilar, a former trader at Vitol Inc., was convicted on FCPA and money laundering charges following a seven-week trial in the Eastern District of New York.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, thanked the Criminal Division’s partners in these matters, including U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York, U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery for the District of Connecticut, and U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani for the Southern District of Texas. U.S. Attorney Lapointe and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Argentieri also thanked the Criminal Division’s law enforcement partners, including the FBI’s International Corruption Unit, New York Field Office, Miami Field Office, and Los Angeles Field Office.
The Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is responsible for investigating and prosecuting FCPA matters. Additional information about the Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal/fraud/fcpa.
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Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission File Statement of Interest in Hotel Room Algorithmic Price-Fixing CaseRead the Press Release
The Justice Department joined by the Federal Trade Commission (collectively the “Agencies”), filed a statement of interest with the District of New Jersey in the case of Cornish-Adebiyi v. Caesars Entertainment, which explains that hotels cannot collude on room pricing and cannot use an algorithm to engage in practices that would be illegal if done by a real person.
Companies across the economy are increasingly using algorithms to determine their prices. When a small group of algorithm providers can influence a major segment of a market, competitors are better able to use the algorithm provider to facilitate collusion. This risk is even greater as markets have become more concentrated across a wide range of industries. Algorithms that recommend prices to numerous competing hotels make it harder for travelers to comparison-shop for the best rate.
In their statement, the Agencies highlight two key aspects of competition law. First, plaintiffs do not need to identify direct communications between competitors to allege an agreement under Section 1 of the Sherman Act, particularly when they allege that an algorithm provider that works with the competitors is acting in concert with them. Competitors cannot lawfully cooperate to set their prices, whether via their staff or an algorithm, even if the competitors never communicate with each other directly. Second, an agreement to use shared pricing recommendations, list prices or pricing algorithms is still unlawful even when co-conspirators retain some pricing discretion. Setting or recommending initial starting prices can still violate the antitrust laws even if those are not the prices that consumers ultimately pay.
The Agencies have a strong interest in protecting consumers from algorithmic collusion, and their statement provides guidance to any firm that uses an algorithm to set prices. The Agencies recently filed a statement of interest in an algorithmic price-fixing case in the residential housing market, and the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division filed a statement of interest and memorandum of law in another real estate algorithmic price-fixing case last year. The division also has an ongoing case alleging that a middleman orchestrated a yearslong conspiracy to share pricing and other sensitive information among meat processing competitors.
Justice Department Seeks to Shut Down Broward County, Florida Tax Return PreparerRead the Press Release
The Justice Department filed a civil injunction suit today to permanently bar Dexter Bataille and his tax return preparation business, Capital Financial Holdings LLC, from preparing federal income tax returns for others. The United States also seeks an order demanding Bataille disgorge his ill-gotten gains earned by preparing fraudulent tax returns.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, alleges that Bataille prepared hundreds of federal income tax returns from 2015 through 2023 that intentionally understated customers’ tax liabilities and overstated the refunds to which they were entitled. The complaint describes the various schemes Bataille allegedly used to, among other things, fraudulently increase customers claims for Earned Income Tax Credits and Additional Child Tax Credits by manipulating customers’ taxable income in fabricating household help income, misreporting their filing statuses or claiming false business income and losses. Bataille’s alleged, systematic fraudulent manipulation of customers’ tax liabilities and refund claims has caused a significant loss in federal tax revenue, estimated to be over $1.5 million for tax year 2021 alone.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
Attorneys from the Tax Division are handling the case.
Taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant against unscrupulous tax preparers. The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax return preparer and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers. The IRS also offers guidance on the credentials and qualifications that taxpayers should seek from their return preparer.
In the past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.
Bataille Complaint.pdfJustice Department Continues Efforts to Stop Unlawful Tax Return PreparersRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today urged taxpayers to choose their return preparers wisely as the April 15 federal tax filing deadline approaches. Unscrupulous preparers who include errors or false information on a tax return could leave a taxpayer open to liability for unpaid taxes, penalties and interest.
“Taxpayers must look out for unscrupulous preparers, who often will promise refunds that are too good to be true,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “If your tax preparer asks you to sign a blank return, refuses to sign your return as your preparer or fails to give you a copy of your return, consult the IRS’s website to make sure that you are not exposing yourself to trouble. Taxpayers are responsible for the information on their tax return, so it is important to choose a tax professional that you trust to prepare your returns correctly.”
“Tax preparers contemplating filing false returns for their customers should know that our criminal prosecutors are prepared for the filing season too,” said Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “As the division’s work this past year reflects, we have the expertise and resources to identify and hold preparers fully accountable for their criminal conduct.”
Over the last year, the Tax Division has worked with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices around the country to bring civil and criminal actions against dishonest tax preparers. These actions seek criminal penalties and civil injunctions to stop ongoing fraud, civil penalties or disgorgement of ill-gotten proceeds. The Justice Department’s message has been clear: those who prepare fraudulent returns will face serious and lasting consequences.
Examples of civil injunctions obtained by the Tax Division over the last and current filing seasons include:
- On March 2, 2023, a federal district court in the Southern District of Florida permanently barred Rudy Aly, Rhonda Hudge, Cindy Odige and TUPS Tax LLC from preparing tax returns for others or owning or operating a tax preparation business. The court also ordered Aly to disgorge approximately $400,000 in proceeds he received from preparing tax returns from 2018 to 2020. The court ordered Hudge to pay about $15,000 and Odige and TUPS Tax to pay $48,000 based on their settlement agreements with the United States.
- On May 17, 2023, a federal district court in the Eastern District of New York permanently barred Melida Portorreal individually and through her business, International Travel Multi & Tax Corp., from preparing returns for others and from owning or operating a tax return preparation business in the future. The government alleged that Portorreal prepared tax returns claiming fabricated business income and expenses, as well as various false tax deductions and false non-deductible expenses for her customers to receive the earned income tax credit and the child tax credit. The government estimated that Portorreal’s actions caused losses to the United States exceeding $3 million over a three-year period.
- On Sept. 1, 2023, a federal court in the Southern District of Texas permanently enjoined a Galveston-area tax preparer Johnathan Perry, doing business as X-Pert Taxes, from preparing tax returns or assisting or directing the preparation or filing of tax returns. The complaint says that Perry, over a six-year period, prepared over 4,000 tax returns that greatly overstated his customers’ tax refunds by claiming fictitious business income and expenses, fabricated household help income and fake education credits or fuel tax credits to which his customers were not entitled. The court also ordered Perry to pay around $325,000 to the United States in ill-gotten tax preparation fees.
The Tax Division has also sought to strip fraudulent preparers of ill-gotten gains and to hold in contempt those who attempt to flout court-ordered restraints on further fraudulent activity. Over the last year, the division has brought cases to court including:
- On March 22, 2023, a federal district court in the Southern District of Florida held that Jeffrey Cadet violated a permanent injunction entered against him in August 2019 that barred him from acting as a federal tax return preparer or requesting, assisting in or directing the preparation or filing of federal tax returns for others. To remedy his contempt, the court ordered Cadet to disgorge $24,410 in ill-gotten fees he received for conduct violating the injunction and ordered him to pay the United States about $7,400 in reimbursement for the attorneys’ fees incurred in investigating and litigating his post-injunction conduct.
- On May 11, 2023, a federal court for the Southern District of Texas permanently barred Houston-area tax return preparer Hollins Ray Alexander from preparing tax returns for others and from owning, operating or franchising any tax return preparation business in the future. The terms of injunction required Alexander to send notices of the injunction to each person for whom he prepared tax returns and to post the injunction in places he conducts business, including social media accounts and websites. Finally, the court ordered Alexander to pay $165,940 to the United States in illicitly obtained tax preparation fees.
- On July 11, 2023, federal court in the Southern District of Florida found Rose M. Chazulle in contempt for violating the injunction that bars her from preparing tax returns. The court found that Chazulle continued to prepare tax returns despite the court’s order entered in 2016 prohibiting her from doing so by using the personal tax identification numbers (PTIN) assigned to her daughter and brother-in-law and electronic filing identification numbers (EFINs) associated with their businesses. As a contempt sanction, the court ordered Chazulle to disgorge $48,100 in tax preparation fees she earned in violation of the injunction.
Criminal convictions against fraudulent preparers obtained by the Tax Division since the 2023 filing season began include:
- In February 2023, Thanh Ngoc Rudin and Seir Havana of California were sentenced to 34 months and 42 months in prison, respectively, for their role in a conspiracy to prepare and file false tax returns for professional athletes. Both were also ordered to pay over $38 million in restitution to the United States.
- In March 2023, Labanda Lody and Jaleesia Sais, Texas return preparers, were sentenced to over four and three years in prison, respectively, for their role in preparing and filing false tax returns on behalf of clients of their return preparation business. Lody and Sais were both ordered to pay nearly $1 million in restitution to the United States.
- In August 2023, Georgina Gonzalez, formerly a Miami-based return preparer, was sentenced to over three years in prison for her role in filing false tax returns that claimed false losses and tax credits on behalf of clients. She was also ordered to pay $423,917 in restitution to the United States.
- In November 2023, Adam Earnest, Christopher Randell and James Klish, return preparers in Jackson, Mississippi, were found guilty for their role in conspiring to file thousands of false income tax returns on behalf of customers of the tax return preparation business where they worked. For their conduct, Earnest was sentenced to more than eight years, Klish more than four years, and Wells to 15 months in prison for their role in a conspiracy to prepare and file false tax returns for their customers.
- In December 2023, Ronald Eugene Watson, a Maryland return preparer, was sentenced to over two years in prison for filing false returns for clients. He was also ordered to pay $268,634 in restitution to the United States.
The Tax Division reminds taxpayers that the IRS has information, tips and reminders on its site for choosing a tax preparer carefully (Choosing a Tax Professional and How to Choose a Tax Return Preparer) and has launched a free directory of credentialed federal tax preparers. The IRS also offers taxpayers tips to protect their identities and wallets when filing their taxes.
In addition, IRS Free File, a public-private partnership, offers free online tax preparation and filing options on IRS partner websites for individuals whose adjusted gross income is under $79,000. For individuals whose income is over that threshold, IRS Free File offers electronic federal tax forms that can be filled out and filed online for free. The IRS has tips on how seniors and individuals with low to moderate income can get other help or guidance on tax return preparation, too.
In the past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained civil injunctions and criminal convictions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.
Justice Department Announces Organizational Assessment of North Miami Police Department under Office of Community Oriented Policing Services’ Collaborative Reform InitiativeRead the Press Release
The Justice Department’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) today announced that it will conduct an organizational assessment of the North Miami Police Department through its Collaborative Reform Initiative. Over approximately the next year, the North Miami Police Department will work with the COPS Office’s Collaborative Reform Initiative Team to focus on:
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Crime Prevention and Analysis
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Community Engagement
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Technology
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Employee Wellness, Training and Development, and Retention
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Resource Analysis and Strategic Planning
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Oversight and Accountability
“The Collaborative Reform Initiative is an important vehicle for law enforcement agencies that want to improve how they operate and how they work with their communities,” said Acting Associate Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer. “The Organizational Assessment process is the most intensive form of review and support we offer under this program, and credit goes to the North Miami Police Department for requesting this assistance.”
“This is a completely voluntary program, and it is always a significant step when a law enforcement executive asks for this type of review,” said Director Hugh T. Clements, Jr of the COPS Office. “We applaud Chief Cherise Gause for making this request. It is not just the agency that benefits from this type of work, but the entire community will reap the benefits of this in-depth examination.”
Regular updates on the team’s work with the North Miami Police Department will be provided as part of the transparency and public accountability of this new organizational assessment effort at cops.usdoj.gov/active-oa-site-north-miami-fl-police-department.
The Collaborative Reform Initiative encompasses three programs offering expert services to state, local, territorial, and Tribal law enforcement agencies: the Collaborative Reform Initiative Technical Assistance Center, Critical Response, and Organizational Assessment programs (complete details of these programs can be found at cops.usdoj.gov/collaborativereform). Managed out of the COPS Office, this continuum of services is designed to build trust between law enforcement agencies and the communities they serve; improve operational efficiencies and effectiveness; enhance officer safety and wellness; build agencies’ capacity for organizational learning and self-improvement; and promote community policing practices nationwide.
The Organizational Assessment program provides the most intensive form of technical assistance on the continuum, involving in-depth assessments and long-term assistance on systemic issues that can challenge community trust and confidence. A continual assessment and implementation process ensures that time and resources are used to focus on identifying areas for improvement, reinforcing agency strengths, and assisting with the implementation of improvements expeditiously. At the same time, the process provides transparency and accountability with routine public reporting. Each engagement will be supported by a multidisciplinary assessment team composed of subject matter experts with diverse experience and perspectives including in law enforcement, community engagement, research and evaluation, program management, and organizational reform.
The COPS Office is the federal component of the Justice Department responsible for advancing community policing nationwide. The only Justice Department agency with policing in its name, the COPS Office was established in 1994 and has been the cornerstone of the nation’s crime fighting strategy with grants, a variety of knowledge resource products, and training and technical assistance. Through the years, the COPS Office has become the go-to organization for law enforcement agencies across the country and continues to listen to the field and provide the resources that are needed to reduce crime and build trust between law enforcement and the communities served. The COPS Office has been appropriated more than $20 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local, territorial, and Tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of approximately 138,000 officers.
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Jury Finds Searcy Man Guilty of Sex Trafficking of A MinorRead the Press Release
LITTLE ROCK—A Searcy man has been convicted of sex trafficking of a child at the conclusion of a two-day trial. On Wednesday, a federal jury found Muhammad Arif, 56, guilty on the sole count in the indictment: sex trafficking of children. Arif was indicted by a federal grand jury on February 4, 2020.
The jury returned their verdict after deliberating for approximately two hours. United States District Judge D.P. Marshall, Jr. presided over the trial and will sentence Arif at a later date.
On August 9, 2019, the Judsonia Police Department received information alleging inappropriate sexual misconduct involving a 15-year-old minor female (Minor). The Minor was interviewed at the White County Child Safety Center. During the interview, the Minor disclosed that sometime during the end of May 2019 she accompanied her dad and his boss, Arif, to a business in Searcy. While there, Arif instructed one of his employees to drive the Minor’s dad to a different job site in Bradford. Because the Minor accompanied her dad that day, she would need a ride home. The Minor stated that Arif volunteered to drive her from Searcy to Judsonia in his private vehicle.
The Minor stated that once alone in the vehicle, Arif stated he would give her $100 in exchange for oral sex. The Minor stated she feared no one would believe her, so she began recording their conversation using her cell phone. During the recording, Arif is heard asking the Minor to promise not to tell anyone and gave her $20. The Minor had another recording from a month later where Arif continues to bring up engaging in sexual activity and asked her not to tell anyone.
On September 21, 2019, Arif was interviewed and acknowledged giving the Minor a ride to Judsonia in his private vehicle. He confirmed that he and the Minor were the only ones in the vehicle and that it was his first time meeting her. Arif acknowledged knowing that the Minor was a minor. During the interview, officers played the recordings and Arif confirmed he was the male on the recording. Arif stated he was embarrassed and began to express his concerns that people he was close would find out about the recordings.
Arif faces a minimum sentence of 10 years to life in federal prison, no less than five years supervised release, and a fine of $250,000.
The investigation was conducted by U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, with assistance from the Judsonia Police Department and the Kensett Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kristin Bryant and Katie Hinojosa.
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Additional information about the office of the
United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, is available online at
https://www.justice.gov/edar
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@USAO_EDAR
Jamaican National Sentenced to Prison for Illegally Reentering the U.S.Read the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that GARFIELD ANTHONY PATTERSON, 49, a citizen of Jamaica residing in East Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in New Haven to six months of imprisonment for illegally reentering the United States after being deported.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Patterson was deported from the U.S. to Jamaica in January 1997 and again in April 2000, and he has sustained convictions in Broward County, Florida, in 1997, for grand larceny in the third degree, and, in 1999, for possession of marijuana, possession of a fraudulently issued driver’s license, and obstruction. Patterson again illegally reentered the U.S. and, in June 2019, was arrested in Middletown, Connecticut, for larceny in the first degree. He was convicted of that offense and, in March 2021, he was sentenced in state court to 18 months of imprisonment, execution suspended after four months, and three years of probation.
On June 15, 2021, a federal grand jury in Hartford returned an indictment charging Patterson with illegally reentering the U.S. On February 23, 2023, a jury in New Haven found him guilty of the offense.
Patterson, who is released on bond, is required to report to prison on May 15. He faces deportation when he completes his prison term.
This matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, with the assistance of the Middletown Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Neeraj Patel.
Jackson Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon While Firing at Officers During a High-Speed PursuitRead the Press Release
Jackson, Miss. – A Jackson man was sentenced to 120 months in prison for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon while firing at officers during a high-speed pursuit.
According to court documents, on July 21, 2021, Jerry Shannon McAlister, 47, failed to yield when officers with the Clinton Police Department attempted to conduct a traffic stop on the vehicle he was driving. This led to a high-speed pursuit into the city of Jackson with McAlister firing shots at an officer during the pursuit. McAlister has previous felony convictions, including a conviction for statutory rape. It is a violation of federal law for a convicted felon to possess any firearm.
U.S. Attorney Todd W. Gee and Special Agent in Charge Joshua Jackson of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) made the announcement.
The ATF and Clinton Police Department investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Allen 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.
Inmate Pleads Guilty to Possessing Weapon at FCI BeckleyRead the Press Release
BECKLEY, W.Va. – Jonathan Webb, 27, an inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) Beckley, pleaded guilty today to possession of a weapon by an inmate at a federal prison.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on June 26, 2023, an FCI Beckley staff member conducted a pat-down search of Webb and found a handcrafted weapon commonly known as a “shank” in his right front pants pocket. The shank was a piece of metal approximately six inches long with a sharpened point on one end and a cloth handle. Webb admitted to possessing the shank, and further admitted that it was designed and intended to be used as a weapon.
Webb is scheduled to be sentenced on July 12, 2024, and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
United States Magistrate Judge Omar J. Aboulhosn presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Timothy D. Boggess is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:24-cr-45.
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Inland Empire Man Who Was Employed as School Bus Driver Charged with Possessing Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
RIVERSIDE, California – A San Bernardino County man who worked as a school bus driver has been charged in federal court with possessing more than 10,000 images of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), the Justice Department announced today.
Donal James Seaver, 49, of Hesperia, made his initial appearance this afternoon in United States District Court in Riverside. A federal magistrate judge ordered Seaver jailed without bond and scheduled an April 16 arraignment for him.
According to an affidavit filed Tuesday with a criminal complaint, law enforcement officials on March 7 executed a search warrant at Seaver’s residence. During the search, law enforcement seized a Samsung Tablet that allegedly contained more than 10,000 images and 13 videos of CSAM.
The tablet’s historical device data show that it was frequently “wiped” – or factory reset – which deleted all data on the device, and had been reset most recently on February 27.
As of March 7, Seaver was employed as a school bus driver for a private company and drove a route that included 10 elementary school students with special needs.
He was arrested and charged in state court prior to a federal criminal case being brought against him.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
If convicted, Seaver would face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.
The FBI and the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department are investigating this matter.
Assistant United States Attorney Sonah Lee of the Riverside Branch Office is prosecuting this case.
Husband and Wife Sentenced to Prison for Roles in Drug Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS – Two individuals from Detroit, Michigan, have been sentenced to prison for conspiring to distribute cocaine, announced U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger.
According to court documents, beginning in January 2022 through May 2023, Ladale Jajaum Solomon, 30, and Leila Darsel Ivery, 30, conspired together to distribute cocaine. On May 16, 2023, Solomon and Ivery flew on separate flights from Los Angeles, California, to Cleveland, Ohio, each with a layover at the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport (MSP). Both Solomon and Ivery were transporting cocaine in their respective checked suitcases. Solomon and Ivery intended to transfer the cocaine after landing in Cleveland. During their respective layovers at MSP, law enforcement determined their suitcases were suspect. After obtaining a search warrant, law enforcement seized a total of approximately 23 kilograms of cocaine from the two suitcases.
Ivery pleaded guilty on November 28, 2023, to one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine. On March 26, 2024, she was sentenced in U.S. District Court by Judge David S. Doty to 57 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.
Solomon pleaded guilty on December 5, 2023, to one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine. He was sentenced today in U.S. District Court by Judge David S. Doty to 120 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the MSP Airport Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Allen A. Slaughter prosecuted the case.
Human smuggling family admits to over $2M money laundering conspiracyRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – Four Mission residents have entered guilty pleas for their roles in a conspiracy to launder monetary instruments and a related conspiracy to transport aliens within the United States, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Luis Enrique Moctezuma-Acosta, 36, Elizabeth Acosta, 52, and Keysi Fuentes-Gavarrete, 27, admitted to laundering over $2 million in monetary instruments. Scarlett Fuentes-Gavarrette, 35, entered her plea March 26 to the same charge. She and her husband - Moctezuma-Acosta - also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transport illegal aliens. All four are either related through blood or marriage.
“In the heart of South Texas, where the borders converge, we confront the stark reality of money laundering and the smuggling of undocumented individuals,” said Hamdani. “From the distant lands of Honduras to the bustling streets of Boston, Massachusetts, this illicit network spans continents, but our resolve to dismantle it remains unwavering. By safeguarding against these criminal enterprises, we not only uphold the rule of law but also ensure the safety and dignity of all members of our community.”
The conspiracy involved a sophisticated network of alien smugglers across the United States utilizing commercial airplanes, tractor-trailers and various other smuggling methods.
An investigation began in November 2019 and revealed the smuggling organization brought approximately 300 undocumented migrants from the Southwest border regions further into the northern parts of the United States. The network spanned from Honduras to as far north as Boston, Massachusetts, with a heavy emphasis on smuggling Brazilian nationals.
On March 9, 2023, Authorities executed multiple search warrants at the properties of Scarlett Fuentes-Gavarrette and Moctezuma-Acosta, at which time they seized over $1.5 million in cash. The locations included their residence and a purported car dealership they operated as a front business. Throughout the investigation, law enforcement also seized approximately $2.69 million in assets and several luxury vehicles, such as a 2023 Escalade, 2021 Ford Shelby Truck, jewelry and several pieces of real property.
U.S. District Chief Judge Randy Crane will impose sentencing June 6. At that time, they all face up to up to 20 years in federal prison. Scarlett Fuentes-Gavarrette and Moctezuma-Acosta also face an additional 20 years. Both convictions also carry fines up to $250,000.
All will remain in custody pending sentencing.
The FBI conducted the investigation with the assistance of Border Patrol, Homeland Security Investigations, Texas Department of Insurance and McAllen Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric D. Flores prosecuted the case. Assisting with forfeiture proceedings is Assistant U.S. Attorney Tyler Foster.
Houston Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Federal Prison for Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
SAN ANTONIO – A Houston man was sentenced in a federal court in San Antonio to 30 years in prison for sexual exploitation of children.
According to court documents, Xzavier Martin-Mari Drescher, 32, revealed his sexual interest in minor females through online conversations with FBI covert employees beginning in May 2022. During one of the conversations, Drescher sent the FBI employee 11 videos of himself in a room with a clothed prepubescent female. Drescher also admitted that he had gone “hands on” with the girl within the past 24 hours.
FBI agents located Drescher in Houston and confirmed he had used his phone to produce multiple videos depicting sexual acts with a prepubescent minor on or about July 9, 2022. Additionally, Drescher’s phone contained other child sexual abuse material that he had received via the Internet.
Drescher was arrested July 15, 2022 and has remained in federal custody. He pleaded guilty Oct. 18, 2023 to one count of sexual exploitation of children, a charge which carries a penalty of 15 to 30 years in federal prison. In addition to the imposed 30-year imprisonment, Drescher was ordered to pay $50,000 restitution to the victim.
“This defendant preyed on a young child by producing sexual abuse material, then sent it into the stream of commerce, using the illicit images for sexual gratification.,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas. “The 30-year sentence imposed by the court appropriately reflects the immense harm and long-term trauma inflicted on children who are sexually exploited by predators.”
“Xzavier Martin-Mari Drescher victimized innocent children,” said Special Agent in Charge Aaron Tapp for the FBI San Antonio Field Office. “Those who exploit and abuse these most vulnerable among us are a danger to society. The FBI is committed to putting them behind bars where they can no longer cause harm.”
The FBI investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracy Thompson prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
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Haverhill Man Arrested and Charged with Filing Fraudulent Pandemic Unemployment Assistance ClaimRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Haverhill man was arrested and charged today in connection with a Massachusetts Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) claim he filed in 2020 for a man who was living in Brazil and who has since been charged with migrant smuggling, among other offenses.
Julio Roncaly Morais, 41, was charged by complaint with mail fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. The defendant was arrested this morning and will appear in federal court at 2:30 p.m. today.
According to the charging document, Julio Morais filed a Massachusetts PUA claim on June 3, 2020, on behalf of Chelbe Willams Moraes, who was living in Brazil when the PUA claim was filed. In the PUA application, Julio Morais allegedly certified under penalty of perjury that Chelbe Moraes was a current resident of Massachusetts and was able and available to work in Massachusetts but was unable to due to the pandemic. As a result of this alleged claim, the Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance paid a total of $5,202 in benefits before suspending payments due to an inability to reach Chelbe Moraes.
Chelbe Moraes is currently charged in a separate case in the District of Massachusetts for alleged forced labor conspiracy, encouraging and inducing an alien to come to, enter and remain in the United States for the purpose of commercial advantage or private financial gain, knowing and in reckless disregard of the fact that such coming to, entry, and residence is or will be in violation of law and conspiring to do so; money laundering conspiracy and money laundering.
The charges of mail fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy provide for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000 and up to three years of supervised release. 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, Special Agent in charge for the Homeland Security Investigations New England Field Office; Jonathan Mellone, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General; and Harry Chavis, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston. Valuable assistance was provided by the Woburn and Norwood Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kelly Begg Lawrence, James D. Herbert, and Samuel R. Feldman of the Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Greenbrier County Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Gun CrimeRead the Press Release
BECKLEY, W.Va. – Jason Michael Tucker, 43, of Frankford, pleaded guilty today to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on December 30, 2022, Tucker sold a Ruger model Wrangler .22LR caliber revolver to a confidential informant for $125 in the Frankford area of Greenbrier County. Tucker admitted to the transaction, and further admitted to selling a quantity of heroin to the confidential informant at the same location a few hours before the transaction.
Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Tucker knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of his prior felony convictions for possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver in Monroe County Circuit Court on August 30, 2018, and for delivery of a controlled substance-marijuana in Greenbrier County Circuit Court on April 22, 2005.
Tucker is scheduled to be sentenced on July 26, 2024, and faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Greenbrier Valley Drug and Violent Crime Task Force. The Greenbrier Valley Drug and Violent Crime Task Force is composed of members of the West Virginia State Police, the Greenbrier County Sheriff’s Department, and the Lewisburg Police Department.
United States Magistrate Judge Omar J. Aboulhosn presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Andrew D. Isabell is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:24-cr-17.
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Fugitive from Jamaica Sentenced to More Than Four Years for Aggravated Identity Theft and Fraud Involving Cellphone SchemeRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – Senior U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis has sentenced Rohan Conrad Campbell (50, Jamaica) to four years and six months in federal prison for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. The court also ordered Campbell to forfeit $4,207, which represents the proceeds of his offenses, and pay restitution of $80,208.08 to the victims he defrauded. Campbell entered a guilty plea on December 13, 2023.
According to the plea agreement and public records, on August 5, 2017, Campbell entered a cellphone store in Clay County and used a fraudulently established account and a counterfeit Washington state driver license, both in the name of a victim, and obtained multiple cellphones. On August 15, 2017, Campbell visited another cellphone store in Clay County to collect cellphones he had fraudulently ordered using another victim’s identity. A store employee recognized Campbell and called the Clay County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO). Upon arriving and making contact with Campbell, Campbell provided a deputy with a counterfeit Washington state driver license in the identity of a third victim. As a deputy was talking with him, Campbell attempted to flee but was apprehended. Further investigation by the CCSO and the U.S. Secret Service determined that Campbell had set up numerous fraudulent accounts using counterfeit identification documents in the identity of 10 different victims. He obtained thousands of dollars of cellphones from multiple stores in Florida.
Campbell was arrested on May 31, 2018. After being released on pre-trial supervision, he fled the jurisdiction in August 2019 and a warrant was issued for his arrest. Campbell remained a fugitive for more than three years until law enforcement in Florida arrested him in early 2023.
This case was investigated by the Clay County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Secret Service – Jacksonville Field Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin C. Frein. The asset forfeiture was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer M. Harrington.
Fresh Express Abandons Proposed Acquisition of Dole’s Packaged Salad Business in Response to Antitrust Division’s ConcernsRead the Press Release
Today, Fresh Express Acquisition LLC’s, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chiquita Holdings Limited (Chiquita), announced its decision to abandon its proposed $308 million acquisition of Dole plc’s Fresh Vegetables division. The abandonment comes in response to the department’s concerns about competition in the packaged salad market.
The Justice Department issued the following statement from Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Antitrust Division:
“At a time when food companies are already overcharging Americans for groceries, today’s abandonment preserves lower prices and availability for an essential kitchen staple. This merger would have reduced the number of competitors from three to two and raised grocery prices for food products that are purchased by 85% of American households. I am grateful for the tireless efforts of the Antitrust Division’s lawyers, economists, paralegals and professional staff who made this result possible.”
Packaged salad represents $3.2 billion in spending by grocers and their customers each year.
Four Gun Traffickers Plead Guilty to Conspiring to Traffic Firearms into BrooklynRead the Press Release
Earlier today, David Mccann and Calvin Tabron pleaded guilty at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, New York to conspiring to traffic firearms. Mccann also pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute fentanyl. Today’s proceedings took place before United States District Judge William F. Kuntz, II. Co-defendants Raymond Minaya and Tajhai Jones pleaded guilty to conspiring to traffic firearms earlier this month. When sentenced, Mccann faces up to 40 years in prison, Minaya faces up to 20 years in prison, and Jones and Tabron each face up to 15 years in prison. The defendants were charged in January 2023 in the first case in New York to publicly charge the gun trafficking provisions of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Frank A. Tarentino, III, Special Agent-in-Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Edward A. Caban, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the guilty pleas.
“With these guilty pleas, the defendants have admitted to bringing dozens of deadly weapons and dangerous drugs, including fentanyl, to the streets of Brooklyn,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “This Office will vigorously use all tools available, such as Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, to ensure that no one is able to illegally feed the cycles of gun violence and drug abuse in our community.”
“These pleas resonate public sentiment that gun and drug trafficking will not be tolerated. These deadly weapons have been removed from circulation, saving lives along the way. I commend our law enforcement teams from the DEA Group D-41, NYPD and the U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of New York for their diligent work,” stated DEA Special Agent-in-Charge Tarentino.
“Today’s guilty pleas underscore the unwavering commitment of our investigators to disrupt the flow of illegal guns and deadly drugs coming into our communities,” stated NYPD Commissioner Caban. “I thank our colleagues at the DEA for their partnership, and I commend our NYPD undercover officer for their diligent work, performed under the most dangerous of circumstances. I also applaud everyone at the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York for delivering this prosecution to its righteous conclusion.”
According to court filings and facts presented during the plea proceedings, the gun-trafficking operation involved the sale of at least 50 illegal firearms over multiple transactions in Brooklyn between January 2022 and August 2022. The defendants conducted these firearms sales in broad daylight in a public park, in shopping center parking lots, and in vehicles in and around the New York City Housing Authority’s Breukelen Houses complex, located in Canarsie, Brooklyn, across from a church, and blocks away from a preschool and grade school. Two members of the gun-trafficking operation obtained the firearms in Virginia and then transported them to New York to be sold on the streets of Brooklyn. Some of the firearms the defendants sold had defaced serial numbers or were made from ghost gun kits, making them harder for law enforcement to trace. Two defendants also engaged in significant narcotics trafficking conspiracies, including a fentanyl distribution conspiracy that introduced thousands of lethal doses of fentanyl into the community.
Firearms sold in the conspiracy have also been linked to several shootings in Brooklyn. For example, on June 22, 2022, a defendant sold an undercover officer a Glock 30, .45 caliber handgun. The investigation revealed that this gun was used in an August 21, 2021 shooting in Bedford-Stuyvesant during which armed perpetrators shot into a large crowd gathered for a family day celebration. In total, eight individuals were struck by gunfire. Another gun trafficked by a defendant—a Glock 43, 9 millimeter caliber handgun—is linked to a December 18, 2021 shooting of an individual in Canarsie, in the blocks surrounding the Breukelen Houses complex. That individual sustained multiple gunshot wounds to his body, including his right hand, shoulder, neck, and the base of his skull.
This prosecution is among the first in the country, and the first in New York, to charge the gun trafficking provisions of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which Congress and the President enacted in June 2022.
Assistant United States Attorneys Adam Amir, Irisa Chen, and James R. Simmons are in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendants:
DAVID MCCANN
Age: 29
Brooklyn, New YorkTAIJHAI JONES
Age: 29
Portsmouth, VirginiaRAYMOND MINAYA
Age: 27
Brooklyn, New YorkCALVIN TABRON
Age: 26
Virginia Beach, VirginiaE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 23-CR-8 (WFK)
Former fugitive sentenced for transporting over 65 into United StatesRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 30-year-old Mission resident has been sentenced for his role in a conspiracy to transport non U.S. citizens via commercial tractor-trailers, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Daniel Cantu Jr. pleaded guilty Aug. 23, 2022. He was originally set to be sentenced in late 2023, but failed to appear. He remained a fugitive until February.
U.S. District Judge Drew B. Tipton has now ordered Cantu to serve a total of 110 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. At the hearing, the court heard evidence about how Cantu was directly involved in the transportation of more than 65 people via commercial tractor-trailers in 2021. Additionally, the court heard that Cantu has continued his involvement in criminal activity in the Rio Grande Valley, including additional alien transporting attempts while on bond in this case. In handing down the sentence the court noted the seriousness of the offense due to the large number of undocumented individuals the organization attempted to smuggle into the United States as well as the dangerous way in which they were doing so.
“The transportation of undocumented migrants across the U.S. southern border is a rapidly growing threat,” said Hamdani. “It is made worse by traffickers such as Daniel Cantu Jr., whose organization uses the cover of legitimate traffic to mask this criminal conduct and attempts to profit by transporting migrants.”
The organization as a whole is responsible for transporting over 200 aliens from South Texas and further into the United States as part of the conspiracy.
From August 2021 through December 2021, law enforcement intercepted five related smuggling attempts at the Falfurrias Border Patrol checkpoint and identified four men responsible for coordinating these smuggling events. Those men – Cantu, Jose Guadalupe Garcia Jr., Jesus Francisco Mares and Jose Antonio Cardona - were responsible for finding trucks, trailers and drivers as well as loading the vehicles with undocumented aliens.
Over the course of the conspiracy from July 2021 through April 2022, authorities estimate this trafficking organization transported or attempted to transport over 200 people further into the United States, most concealed in commercial trailers.
Garcia, 23, Alton, and Mares, 23, Mission, previously received 36 and 15 months, respectively, while Cardona, 30, Mission, is currently a fugitive. A warrant remains outstanding for his arrest.
Cantu will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Marshals Service conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley Martin prosecuted the case.
Former State Representative and Friend Charged for Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A former State Representative and her longtime friend are facing federal charges for long-term scheme to defraud the U.S. government. Sheryl Williams Stapleton, 66, of Albuquerque, and Joseph Johnson, 72, of Chantilly, Virginia, are schedule to appear in federal court for an initial appearance on April 9, 2024.
The indictment alleges that from about July 1, 2013, through June 30, 2020, Stapleton used her position at Albuquerque Public Schools (APS) as Director of the Perkins Project and Career and Technical Education (CTE) Coordinator to direct approximately 40% of APS’s non-personnel CTE funding to Robotics Management Learning Systems (Robotics), a company owned and operated by her close personal friend, Johnson, for use of and support for the CyberQuest software in APS classrooms.
Stapleton reviewed and approved Robotics’ invoices and directed other APS employees under her supervision to approve those invoices. APS then issued checks to Robotics and mailed them to a post office box in Albuquerque. At Johnson’s request, Stapleton personally retrieved the checks from the post office box and deposited them into the Robotics bank account. In return, Johnson provided blank checks for the Robotics business checking account.
Stapleton used the blank checks to write approximately 233 checks from Robotics for her own benefit, totaling approximately $1,152,506.00, or 35% of the funds APS paid to Robotics. Specifically:
- Stapleton wrote about 60 checks totaling about $286,772.20 from Robotics to S. Williams & Associates, a company Stapleton owned and controlled.
- Stapleton wrote about 56 checks totaling about $313,123.48 from Robotics to Taste of the Caribbean, an Albuquerque restaurant that Stapleton owned, and her family members operated.
- Stapleton wrote about 104 checks totaling about $479,960.86 from Robotics to Ujima Foundation, a nonprofit entity that Stapleton and Johnson operated and controlled together.
- Stapleton wrote about 11 checks totaling about $72,649.16 from Robotics to other parties providing goods and services to Stapleton, including for a remodeling of Stapleton’s house.
On March 26, 2024, a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Stapleton and Johnson with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, 13 counts of mail fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and five counts each of bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds.
Stapleton is additionally charged with one count of fraud and false statements and nine counts of money laundering.
“New Mexicans deserve public systems that serve them and public servants who are honest, effective, and worthy of our trust,” said U.S. Attorney Uballez. “Fraud against the government is just a fancy way to say that someone is stealing your hard-earned tax dollars. Public corruption is a fancy way of saying that they abuse your trust to do so. When public officials steal from our pockets and from our children, we will restore your faith in our public systems through vigorous investigation and zealous prosecution.”
“Rooting out public corruption remains one of IRS Criminal Investigation’s highest priorities,” said Carissa Messick, Acting Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Phoenix Field Office. “Today’s indictment underscores our commitment to work in a collaborative effort with our federal partners, promoting honest and ethical governing at all levels, and prosecuting those who allegedly violated the public’s trust.”
“This former lawmaker and educator along with her friend are charged with cheating the most innocent of victims – Albuquerque school children -- as well as America’s taxpayers whose hard-earned dollars fund vital education programs,” said Adam Shanedling, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Education Office of Inspector General’s Western Regional Office. “OIG Special Agents will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively pursue those who seek to enrich themselves at the expense of our nation’s students. America’s students, their families, and taxpayers deserve nothing less.”
“Violations of public trust by public officials, a position of trusted authority, is a true cancer to society. Our citizens have the right to expect that public officials conduct themselves in a fair, honest, and impartial manner. Standing in defiance of public corruption is a fundamental priority for the FBI," said FBI-Albuquerque Special Agent in Charge Raul Bujanda. "There is no level of acceptable corruption. We ask anyone with information regarding such matters to contact their nearest FBI field office or resident agency so that we can bring them to justice.”
If convicted, Stapleton and Johnson both face 20 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez, Carissa Messick, Acting Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation Phoenix Field Office, Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, and the U.S. Department of Education made the announcement today.
The IRS Criminal Investigation Phoenix Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the FBI Albuquerque Field Office and U.S. Department of Education - Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy Peña is prosecuting the case.
View the IndictmentAn 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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Former School Bus Driver Sentenced to 9 Years for Cyberstalking a ChildRead the Press Release
CONCORD – An Eliot, Maine, man was sentenced today in federal court in Concord for cyberstalking an 8-year-old boy, U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young announces.
Michael Chick, age 40, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Landya McCafferty to 9 years in prison and 3 years of supervised release. On February 1, 2024, Chick pled guilty to one count of cyberstalking stemming from his course of conduct targeting an 8-year-old child who was a student on Chick’s school bus route.
“Michael Chick’s crimes caused unimaginable pain and fear for the survivor and his family. It is only because of their bravery and diligence that the defendant’s crimes were uncovered,” said U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young. “While Michael Chick’s incarceration will not erase the trauma he inflicted, it will hopefully provide some measure of justice for the survivor and his family.”
“Michael Chick used his access to children as a bus driver to manipulate a child, striking fear across multiple communities he worked. We cannot undo the pain Chick inflicted but we hope the end of this case marks a chance for a new beginning for those he harmed and a time to heal,” said Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigations in New England.
Over the course of several months, Chick told the survivor elaborate lies about a secret organization that would harm the survivor and his family unless the survivor complied with certain demands. Chick harassed and intimidated the survivor, telling him that he would be kidnapped and tortured and his family murdered if he did not do as “the organization” directed. Chick gave the survivor several cell phones, directing the survivor to call Chick on the phones when he was alone.
Unbeknownst to the survivor and his family, Chick also followed and photographed them in public, placed GPS tracking devices on their vehicles, made surreptitious recordings of the survivor on the school bus, and went to the family’s home in the middle of the night, even taking photographs of the inside of their home through the windows. Chick used the information he collected to further harass and intimidate the survivor, manipulating the survivor into believing that the organization was watching and following him.
Homeland Security Investigations led the federal investigation. Valuable assistance was provided by the Greenland Police Department, the Eliot, Maine, Police Department, the Old Town, Maine, Police Department, New England State Police Information Network, the New Hampshire Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and the Massachusetts State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kasey Weiland is prosecuting the case.
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Former Orange County Education Official Pleads Guilty to Embezzling Nearly $16 Million from School District That Employed HimRead the Press Release
SANTA ANA, California – The former senior director of fiscal services at an Orange County public school district pleaded guilty today to embezzling approximately $15.9 million from the district over several years.
Jorge Armando Contreras, 53, of Yorba Linda, pleaded guilty to one count of embezzlement, theft and intentional misapplication of funds from an organization receiving federal funds, a felony offense that carries a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.
Law enforcement so far has seized approximately $7.7 million in personal and real property traced to the scheme, including a home in Yorba Linda, a 2021 BMW automobile, 57 luxury designer bags (mostly Louis Vuitton), various pieces of jewelry, designer clothes and shoes, and eight bottles of Clase Azul Ultra luxury tequila.
Contreras was the senior director of fiscal services at Magnolia School District, which serves students in Anaheim and Stanton. In this role, Contreras, whom the school district hired in 2006, managed the district’s fiscal operations. The schools in this district educate children from preschool through sixth grade – 81% of whom are classified as socio-economically disadvantaged.
According to his plea agreement, Contreras managed and had access to various school district bank accounts as well as the student body bank account. Contreras caused checks from these accounts to be deposited into his personal bank account.
Contreras wrote checks in small dollar amounts written to “M S D,” with the letters spaced out, and, after receiving the proper signatures from others, would include fictitious names and increase the amounts of the checks and deposit the checks into his personal bank account via ATMs. To conceal his fraud, Contreras provided bank reconciliation packets to others at the school district with falsified bank statements and records.
In total, Contreras admitted to embezzling approximately $15,920,042 from the school district.
The school district placed Contreras on administrative leave in August 2023 and filed a lawsuit against him in Orange County Superior Court.
United States District Judge Fred W. Slaughter scheduled a July 25 sentencing hearing for Contreras, who is free on $450,000 bond.
The FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation, and the United States Department of Education’s Office of Inspector General are investigating this case.
Assistant United States Attorneys Billy Joe McLain of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section, Brett A. Sagel of the Corporate and Securities Fraud Strike Force, and James E. Dochterman of the Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section are prosecuting this case.
Former Lawyer Charged with Failure to Pay TaxesRead the Press Release
Ocala, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that Michael Brady Scoma (51, Clermont) has been charged by information with three counts of failure to pay taxes. If convicted, Scoma faces up to three years in federal prison.
According to court records, Scoma is a former personal injury lawyer. Between 2013 and 2019, he reported his income to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Based on his reported income, Scoma owed the IRS $702,341.76 in tax liabilities. After the IRS unsuccessfully attempted to collect the outstanding amount from him multiple times, Scoma agreed to refinance his home and use the proceeds to pay his tax liabilities. Once Scoma completed the refinancing, however, he used the resulting $800,000 for personal expenses, including gambling, instead of paying his tax liabilities.
An information is merely an allegation that a defendant has committed a federal criminal offense. Every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case is being investigated by the IRS – Criminal Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Hannah Nowalk.
Former Employee Pleads Guilty to Robbing Danville Food LionRead the Press Release
ROANOKE, Va. – A former Danville Food Lion employee, who pulled a gun on a Food Lion cashier and robbed the store of more than $1,200 in cash, pled guilty yesterday to federal charges.
Christopher Rashard Harris, 30, pled guilty to one count of Hobbs Act Robbery.
According to court documents, on June 28, 2023, Harris entered the Food Lion grocery store where he used to be employed, placed two bags of Cheetos on the counter, and gave the cashier a $1 bill and some change. When the cashier opened the register, Harris pulled out a firearm, pointed it at the cashier, and said, “back the fu*k up.” The cashier put his hands up and backed away from the register while Harris grabbed the entire cash drawer and ran out with the contents, approximately $1,217.
On July 6, 2023, law enforcement arrested Harris who confessed to robbing the store and described where he had abandoned the cash drawer, which was later recovered.
United States Attorney Christopher R. Kavanaugh and Craig B. Kailimai, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, made the announcement.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason M. Scheff 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.
Florida man arrested, charged with firearms traffickingRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Jeshua Lion Myers a/k/a Dually, 28, a citizen of Canada, the United States, and the Bahamas, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint with trafficking in firearms, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Adler, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, Myers stated to an individual working with Canadian law enforcement that he could fulfill large orders of firearms, which would be sourced at various stores and websites out of the United States and imported into Canada. Myers arranged to bring the firearms to the Buffalo area, so that they could then be smuggled into Canada, and sold with a massive profit margin. On December 20, 2023, Homeland Security Investigations Border Enforcement Security Task Force coordinated a controlled purchase of 19 firearms from Myers for $33,000. Myers also provided assorted magazines, ammunition, and other weapons components. Shortly after this purchase, Myers made arrangements to meet the individual working with Canadian law enforcement in Miami, Florida, to purchase additional firearms to be smuggled back to Canada.
Myers made an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael J. Roemer and was detained.
The complaint is the result of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations Border Enforcement Security Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew Scarpino, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge Bryan DiGirolamo, New York Field Division, and the Ontario Provincial Police. Additional Assistance was provided by Homeland Security Investigations, Miami, Florida.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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Florida Man Admits Role in $4.6 Million Kickback Scheme Related to Genetic TestingRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Florida man admitted his role in a conspiracy to receive kickbacks and bribes from laboratories in exchange for referrals of patient DNA samples and genetic tests, Attorney for the United States Vikas Khanna announced today.
Jeffrey Tamulski, 50, of Tampa, Florida, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Brian R. Martinotti in Newark federal court on March 26, 2024, to a superseding information charging him with conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States in connection with a scheme to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute. Tamulski and five co-defendants were previously charged by indictment in September 2019 in connection with the conspiracy and a related health care fraud scheme.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
On behalf of certain laboratories, Tamulski recruited outside marketing groups, including Ark Laboratory Network LLC, a company owned by Tamulski’s conspirators, to refer patients’ DNA samples to the laboratories for genetic tests. Tamulski and certain conspirators entered into kickback agreements with laboratories under which the laboratories paid Ark bribes in exchange for delivering DNA samples and orders for genetic tests. Ark concealed these kickback arrangements by issuing sham invoices to laboratories that purportedly reflected services provided at an hourly rate even though the parties had already agreed upon the bribe amount, which was based on the revenue the laboratories received from Medicare or an amount paid for each DNA sample. From January 2018 through January 2019, Medicare paid these laboratories approximately $4.6 million for genetic tests that resulted from the referrals and DNA samples that Ark delivered to the laboratories in exchange for bribes. In turn, the laboratories paid Ark at least $1.8 million in bribes.
The charge to which Tamulski pleaded guilty carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gross grain or loss from the offense whichever is greatest. Tamulski’s sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 6, 2024.
Co-defendants Kacey C. Plaisance, of Altamonte Springs, Florida; Kyle D. McLean, of Arlington Heights, Illinois; Edward B. Kostishion, of Lakeland, Florida; and Jeremy Richey, of Mars, Pennsylvania, previously pleaded guilty and all are awaiting sentencing.
Matthew Ellis, of Gainesville, Florida, was charged in connection with a related health care fraud scheme and his case is still pending; the charges and allegations against Ellis are merely accusations, and he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Attorney for the United States Khanna credited special agents of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Naomi Gruchacz; and special agents of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Mahoney, with the investigation leading to the guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bernard J. Cooney of the National Security Unit and George L. Brandley of the Health Care Fraud Unit.
tamulski.sinformation.pdfFederal Jury Convicts Worcester Couple of Conspiracy to Launder Wire Fraud ProceedsRead the Press Release
CONCORD – A man and woman from Worcester, Massachusetts were convicted today by a federal petit jury in Concord for conspiracy to launder wire fraud proceeds after an eight-day trial, United States Attorney Jane E. Young announces.
Nafise Quaye, 47, and Sunna Sepetu, 37, both of Worcester, Massachusetts were convicted of one count of conspiracy to money launder. United States District Court Judge Samantha Elliot scheduled sentencing for both defendants on July 8, 2024.
“This verdict demonstrates the seriousness with which the United States Department of Justice takes frauds committed against vulnerable people through the internet,” said United States Attorney Jane E. Young. “The defendants knowingly accepted millions of dollars in wire fraud proceeds from a vulnerable victim in the United States and sent those proceeds overseas to the fraud perpetrator. Prosecuting people in the United States who facilitate the execution of international frauds committed on the internet is essential to frustrating the networks that pray on vulnerable members of our society.”
Between 2013 and 2019, the defendants received approximately $3.2 million in proceeds from a fraud victim located in Texas. These proceeds were sent to bank accounts established by the defendants for various shell companies. The defendants then sent those fraud proceeds to the perpetrator of the fraud operating in Africa, while keeping a portion of the proceeds for themselves.
The investigation was led by Homeland Security Investigations within the United States Department of Homeland Security. Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Rombeau is prosecuting the case.
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Federal Grand Jury Indicts Two D.C. Residents with Kidnapping and Carjacking ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Brian Allison, 54, and Angel Hall, 23, both of Washington, D.C., were charged today by indictment, filed in U.S. District Court, with kidnapping, carjacking, and transportation of a stolen vehicle, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Scott of the Washington Field Office, and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
According to the indictment, on February 1, 2024, the pair carjacked the victim, kidnapped the victim, and transported the victim across the state line in the victim’s 2021 Chevrolet Malibu. According to documents filed in D.C. Superior Court, just after midnight on February 2, 2024, the victim reported the incident telling police that just over an hour earlier, the defendants approached as the victim was walking through the parking lot of the Subway food store at 4518 Benning Road, SE. Defendant Allison had a gun and demanded the victim’s keys. After the victim complied, Allison demanded the victim’s wallet and phone, and then ordered the victim into the car. The defendants drove the victim to a tobacco store in Capitol Heights, Maryland where they used the victim’s bank card to withdraw $500. The defendants drove around for approximately 10 minutes before parking the car in the 5700 block of Southern Avenue Southeast. Before exiting the vehicle, defendant Allison wiped down the interior of the car and the keys, then left the victim in the car and walked away. The defendants are in custody.
This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office's Violent Crimes Task Force and the Metropolitan Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emory Cole and David Lawrence.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Farmington Man Charged with Sexual AbuseRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A Farmington man faces federal charges for engaging in sexual acts with a child under the age of 16. Daniel Washburn, 29, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, appeared in federal court for an initial appearance where the Court temporarily detained him pending a detention hearing, which is scheduled for April 1, 2024.
The indictment alleges that in February 2019, Washburn engaged in a sexual act with a victim who had not attained the age of 16 and was at least four years younger than Washburn.
Washburn is charged with sexual abuse of a minor. If convicted, Washburn faces up to 15 years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, announced the charges today.
The Farmington Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Police Department and Navajo Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant United States Attorney Mia Ulibarri-Rubin is prosecuting the case.
View the IndictmentAn 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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Eleventh and Twelfth Defendants Plead Guilty in Large-Scale Sacramento Cocaine and Heroin Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Maurice Bryant, 53, of Antelope, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to traffic at least 5,000 grams of cocaine and 280 grams of cocaine base, and Steven Hampton, 64, of Sacramento, pleaded guilty today to one count of possession with intent to distribute at least 500 grams of cocaine, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, Bryant and Hampton are among the 15 federal defendants arrested in 2021 and charged in a 45-count indictment for trafficking narcotics as part of a DEA-led multi-agency operation targeting cocaine and heroin traffickers in North Sacramento. Bryant was intercepted during wiretaps in 2018 and 2019 trafficking kilograms of cocaine and cocaine base and was arrested in possession of two firearms and a bullet proof vest. Hampton was intercepted trafficking cocaine, cocaine base, and heroin, and arrested in possession of 949 grams of heroin, 567 grams of cocaine, and 34 grams of cocaine base.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the California Department of Justice, the California Highway Patrol, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office, and the Sacramento Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cameron L. Desmond is prosecuting the case.
Bryant and Hampton are scheduled to be sentenced on July 11, 2024, by U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley. Bryant faces at least 10 years in prison and a maximum of life in prison and a $10 million fine. Hampton faces at least five years in prison and a maximum of 40 years in prison and a $5 million fine. The actual sentences, however, will 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.
Five defendants have already been convicted and sentenced for crimes related to the conspiracy: Jason Tolbert, 45, of Sacramento; Charles Carter, 36, of Sacramento; Michael Hampton, 57, of Vallejo; Arlington Caine, 48, of Rio Linda; and Bobby Conner, 51, of Sacramento.
Five more defendants have pleaded guilty and await sentencing in April and May 2024: Andre Hellams, 40, of North Highlands; Jerome Adams, 56, of North Highlands; Dwight Haney, 52, of Sacramento; Tyrone Anderson, 43, of Sacramento; and Mark Martin, 63, of Sacramento.
Charges remain pending against the following defendants: Yovanny Ontiveros, 41, of Sacramento; Alex White, 61, of North Highlands; and Wilmer Harden, 52, of Elk Grove. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This prosecution is part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. The Sacramento Strike Force is a co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations to disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations. The specific mission of the Sacramento Strike Force is to identify, investigate, disrupt, and dismantle the most significant drug trafficking organizations (DTOs) and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) shipping narcotics, firearms, and money through the Eastern District of California, thereby reducing the flow of these criminal resources in California and the rest of the United States. The Sacramento Strike Force leads intelligence-driven investigations targeting the leadership and support elements of these DTOs and TCOs operating within the Eastern District of California, regardless of their geographic base of operations.
East Bay Man Pleads Guilty to Selling $3.5M Counterfeit Electronics Used in Sophisticated Military Weapons SystemsRead the Press Release
OAKLAND — Steve H.S. Kim pleaded guilty today to a scheme to defraud the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) by selling over $3.5 million worth of fan assemblies to the DLA that were either counterfeit or misrepresented to be new. The plea was accepted by the Hon. Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr., United States District Judge.
“Through his company, Kim delivered counterfeit products to our armed services and tried to pass off non-conforming products with fake invoices,” said U.S. Attorney Ismail Ramsey for the Northern District of California. “Swindling our military is a sure way to find oneself in jail. This office is always on the lookout for fraudsters and will prosecute anyone caught cheating our military by providing products that endanger our service people or compromise our readiness.”
“The defendant sold counterfeit and deficient fan assemblies for use in military systems to increase his profit,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Criminals who cheat the U.S. military by selling deficient or counterfeit goods put our national security at risk. This case demonstrates the Justice Department’s commitment to protecting the military supply chain and Americans’ security.”
According to court documents, Kim, 63, of Alameda County, and Company A sold counterfeit fan assemblies to the DLA, including used and surplus fan assemblies that he claimed were new. To trick the DLA into accepting the fan assemblies, Kim created counterfeit labels – some of which used Company B’s registered trademarks – that he attached to the fan assemblies he sold to the DLA. When the DLA questioned Kim about the origin of the fan assemblies he sold to the DLA, Kim concealed his scheme by giving the DLA fake tracing documents that he created and often signed using a false identity. Some of these counterfeit fans were installed or intended to be installed with electrical components of a nuclear submarine, a laser system on an aircraft, and a surface-to-air missile system.
“The Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the law enforcement arm of the DoD Office of Inspector General, is fully committed to protecting the integrity of the DoD supply chain,” said Special Agent in Charge Bryan D. Denny of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) Western Field Office. “Supplying counterfeit products to the DoD endangers the mission and betrays the public’s trust. This investigation demonstrates DCIS’ ongoing commitment to working with its law enforcement partners to hold individuals who defraud the DoD accountable.”
“NCIS and our law enforcement partners work diligently to thwart attempts to infiltrate the DoD supply chain with potentially damaging counterfeit product,” said Special Agent in Charge Greg Gross of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) Economic Crimes Field Office. “This case highlights the efforts of the investigative team to expeditiously shut down such a scheme and prevent possible grievous harm to our ability to conduct effective combat operations.”
“This case reflects HSI’s core mission set of investigating national security threats as well as protecting global trade and government supply chains,” said Special Agent in Charge Tatum King of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). “In this case, the serious risks posed to mission readiness were especially alarming. HSI appreciates the joint efforts of NCIS, DCIS, and Army CID, together with the Justice Department, in bringing the violator to justice.”
“The result of this joint investigation underscores the importance of our federal law enforcement partnerships and shows that by working together we can identify, prosecute, and dismantle businesses that supply the U.S. military with fraudulent parts and services,” said Special Agent in Charge Keith K. Kelly of the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division’s (Army CID) Fraud Field Office. “Our army communities and the public can rest assured that we are committed to pursuing anyone that would defraud the U.S. government for their own personal gain and put combat readiness at risk.”
Kim pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of trafficking in counterfeit goods. Judge Gilliam scheduled a hearing for Kim’s sentencing for July 17. Kim and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on the wire fraud count and 10 years in prison on the trafficking in counterfeit goods count. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
DCIS, NCIS, HSI, and Army CID are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine Lloyd-Lovett for the Northern District of California, Criminal Division Fraud Section Assistant Chief Kyle C. Hankey, and Trial Attorneys Louis Manzo and David D. Hamstra of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case. Assistant Chief Adrienne Rose and Senior Counsels Jason Gull and Matthew A. Lamberti of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section provided substantial assistance with the investigation.
Dubuque Man Who Trafficked Hundreds of Pounds of Ice Methamphetamine Sentenced to Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
A man who trafficked over 300 pounds of ice methamphetamine in the Dubuque, Iowa, area was sentenced today to more than 11 years in federal prison.
Jason Laufenberg, age 39, from Dubuque, Iowa, received the prison term after an October 5, 2023 guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine and 50 grams of actual (pure) methamphetamine, a controlled substance.
Evidence at the sentencing hearing showed that from 2019 to 2021, Laufenberg and co-conspirators trafficked over 300 pounds of ice methamphetamine in the Dubuque, Iowa, area. Each pound cost Laufenberg about $3,500.
Laufenberg was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand. Laufenberg was sentenced to 135 months’ imprisonment and must also serve a 4-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Laufenberg is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Devra T. Hake and was investigated by the Dubuque Drug Task Force, Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office, Dubuque Police Department, Quad City Metropolitan Enforcement Group, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, United States Postal Inspection Service, and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Criminalistics Laboratory.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 23-CR-1008. Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.
Disturbance Call Results in Fort Dodge Man Pleading Guilty to Federal Firearm and Methamphetamine ChargesRead the Press Release
Nicholas Janvrin, 32, from Fort Dodge, Iowa, was convicted of illegally possessing a firearm and conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Janvrin pled guilty March 27, 2024, in federal court in Sioux City.
Janvrin was previously convicted of burglary, third degree, in the Iowa District Court for Hamilton County, in 2021. This type of conviction prohibits Janvrin from possessing any firearm.
At the plea hearing, evidence showed that on August 1, 2023, law enforcement was called to a local hotel in Webster City regarding a disturbance and observed Janvrin. Janvrin was arrested for outstanding arrest warrants. During a search of the hotel room, law enforcement officers seized a Smith & Wesson .22 revolver and drug paraphernalia from a bag in the room. The Iowa DCI Criminalistics Laboratory matched DNA from a known sample of Janvrin to the handle of the firearm and a toothbrush. Evidence further established Janvrin’s involvement in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine from January 2023 through August 2023. Janvrin obtained at least 40 pounds of methamphetamine from a source in Des Moines to distribute in the Fort Dodge area.
Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Janvrin remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing. On the firearm conviction, Janvrin faces a possible maximum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and not more than three years of supervised release following any imprisonment. On the conspiracy conviction, Janvrin faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, and at least five years of supervised release following imprisonment.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and was investigated by the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Iowa DCI Laboratory, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 23-3026. Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.
District Man Sentenced to Nine Years in Connection with 2023 Armed Carjacking in Northeast and Armed Robbery in NorthwestRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Honorable Errol Arthur sentenced Eric Vaughn, 21, of Washington, D.C., to nine years in prison in connection with an armed robbery in Northwest Washington, D.C., an armed carjacking in Northeast Washington, D.C., and a robbery that occurred in Southeast Washington, D.C. The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
In February of 2024, Vaughn pleaded guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to robbery, carjacking, and attempted robbery. According to the government’s evidence, on November 13, 2023, at approximately 3:57 p.m., Vaughn and three other suspects followed the victim from the Shaw Metro station to the 1700 block of 7th Street, Northwest. Vaughn, and the three other suspects, all of whom were wearing masks, approached the victim and demanded the victim’s shoes, while one or more of the suspects pointed a firearm at the victim. After the victim complied and his shoes were taken, Vaughn and the other three suspects ran down a nearby alleyway.
The government’s evidence also established that at approximately 7:00 p.m. on November 13, 2023, Vaughn and the three other suspects emerged from a dark, wooded area and approached the victim, who was standing at the back of their car in the parking lot of the Costco located at 2441 Market Street, Northeast. When Vaughn and the three other suspects approached the victim and demanded the keys to the victim’s car, one or more of the suspects Vaughn was with, pointed a firearm at the victim. When the victim complied, Vaughn took the victim’s car keys and entered the driver’s seat, while the other three suspects also got into the car. Vaughn then drove the victim’s vehicle out of the Costco parking lot. When police attempted to stop the carjacked vehicle near the intersection of 17th Street, NE and C Street, NE, Vaughn refused to pull over and fled from police. An MPD helicopter followed the vehicle as the vehicle fled from police until the vehicle came to a stop in the 100 block of Chesapeake Street SW. At that point, Vaughn and the other three suspects fled from the scene. Vaughn was apprehended nearby and placed under arrest.
Additionally, on June 28, 2023, in the 2500 block of Alabama Avenue SE, Vaughn, acting alone, attempted to rob the victim of their cellphone. Specifically, the victim was seated aboard a Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Bus when Vaughn approached the victim and snatched the victim’s cell phone out of their hands. Vaughn then ran off of the Metrobus with the victim’s cell phone.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Smith commended the work of the investigators from the Metropolitan Police Department and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Benjamin Helfand and Rashmika Nedungadi, who investigated and prosecuted this case.
District Man Guilty of Multiple Counts of First-Degree Sexual Abuse, Kidnapping, and AssaultRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Bryant Phillips, 53, of Washington DC, was convicted today of two counts of first-degree sexual abuse, kidnapping, and multiple assault counts. The verdict, announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Pamela A. Smith, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), follows a four-day trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Anthony Epstein scheduled sentencing for June 28, 2024.
According to the evidence and testimony presented at trial, between June 5-8, 2022, Phillips held his intimate partner hostage at his apartment in Northeast Washington DC. While there he physically and sexually assaulted her multiple times causing extensive injuries.
Phillips faces the potential of life imprisonment without the opportunity of release. If he were to be released, Phillips would be required to register as a sex offender for the remainder of his life.
In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Niki Holmes and Dana Joseph with assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney’s Bryan Han.
Dental clinic manager admits to employment tax violationsRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – The son of a local dentist has pleaded guilty for failing to pay taxes withheld from employee wages, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Jonathan Louis Lepow was the manager of his father’s dental practice, Kenneth A. Lepow DDS Inc., located in Houston. The clinic had approximately 51 employees during the relevant time period from 2015 to 2017. Lepow was involved in the financial decision making at the clinic. In particular, he was responsible for accounting for and paying employment taxes to the IRS.
As part of his plea, Lepow admitted during the first quarter of 2015, he failed to pay $544,272 in IRS trust fund taxes collected from the clinics’ employees. Instead of paying these amounts to the IRS, Lepow used the money to pay vendors and transferred funds to accounts of other entities he was involved in establishing.
Lepow has agreed to pay $495,847 as part of his plea.
U.S. District Judge Charles R. Eskridge has set sentencing for Aug. 22. At that time, Lepow faces up to five years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine.
IRS Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation. Former Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) Quincy Ollison prosecuted the case, and Assistant AUSA Adam Goldman handled the plea hearing.
Co-Conspirators Sentenced to Prison for Roles in Gang-Related Murders of Three Athens ResidentsRead the Press Release
MACON, Ga. – Two metro Atlanta residents who pleaded guilty to federal conspiracy charges for their roles in the gang-related shooting deaths of three Athens, Georgia, residents were sentenced to prison this week.
Shabazz Larry Guidry, aka “Lil Larry,” 29, of Decatur, Georgia, was sentenced to serve 20 years in prison to be followed by four years of supervised release after he previously pleaded guilty to Racketeer Influenced and Corruption Organization (RICO) Conspiracy.
Robert Maurice Carlisle, aka “Different,” 37, of Lithonia, Georgia, was sentenced to serve 15 years in prison to be followed by four years of supervised release after he previously pleaded guilty to Racketeer Influenced and Corruption Organization (RICO) Conspiracy.
Chief U.S. District Judge Marc Treadwell handed down the sentences on March 27. There is no parole in the federal system.
“These sentences conclude a lengthy investigation and complex prosecution of all those involved in the murderous conspiracy that took the lives of three Athens men whose murders have caused unbearable pain for their families and friends,” said U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary.
“While these sentences won’t ease the pain felt by the victim’s families and friends, this does send a message of hope to our community that we will fight for the rights of those targeted by violent street gangs,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Dismantling violent criminal organizations is a priority for the FBI, and a goal we share with our law enforcement and prosecution partners across the country.”
“While these sentences will never undo the loss of the affected families, it sends a message that justice will prevail,” said Athens-Clarke County Police Chief Jerry Saulters. “We are grateful to our officers for their continued support of this case and those involved in the prosecution. Our community is safer because of your efforts.”
Three co-conspirators were found guilty on all counts on Aug. 17, 2023, and were sentenced to prison this year:
Philmon Deshawn Chambers, aka “Dolla Phil,” 35, of Atlanta, was sentenced to serve two consecutive Life terms plus 120 months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release on March 20. Chambers was found guilty of Racketeer Influenced and Corruption Organization (RICO) Conspiracy; Violent Crime in Aid of Racketeering - Murder (VICAR-Murder); Carry and Use of a Firearm During and In Relation to a Crime of Violence; and Causing the Death of a Person Using a Firearm.
Andrea Paige Browner, aka “Drea,” 29, of Athens, was sentenced to serve two concurrent sentences of 30 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release on March 20. Browner was found guilty of Racketeer Influenced and Corruption Organization (RICO) Conspiracy; Violent Crime in Aid of Racketeering - Murder (VICAR-Murder); and Causing the Death of a Person Using a Firearm; and
Lesley Chappell Green, aka “Grip,” 35, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, was sentenced to life in prison on Feb. 20. Green was found guilty of Racketeer Influenced and Corruption Organization (RICO) Conspiracy.
According to court documents, Chambers held a “Position of Authority” within the national Gangster Disciples criminal organization, which included overseeing members of the “Enforcement Team.” Enforcement Teams within the Gangster Disciples are directed to discipline gang members for violations of gang rules through physical assault or murder. Co-defendant Green was a member of the Enforcement Team and held the title of “Assistant Chief Enforcer.” Co-defendant Browner was a member of the “Sisters of the Struggle” (SOS), a parallel female component of the Gangster Disciples, and held a leadership position in the gang.
Evidence presented at trial proved that on Dec. 10, 2018, Gangster Disciples member Walter Brown was murdered in Athens, Georgia. Chambers and Browner sought retaliation for Brown’s death and believed three unnamed Athens residents were responsible. On Dec. 14, 2018, Browner met Rodriquez Apollo Rucker, of Athens, at a downtown Athens hotel and learned that Rucker was related to one of the individuals she believed killed Brown. Browner sent text messages directing Chambers to travel to the motel, which he did. Chambers then followed Rucker home and shot and killed him. Browner notified an associate of the Gangster Disciples that she and Chambers would be leaving town because the police would be looking for them.
Browner was taken into custody in Mt. Enterprise, Texas, on Dec. 15, however Chambers, who had been in the vehicle with Browner, fled from law enforcement. Chambers was suspicious that someone was cooperating with law enforcement and focused his suspicions on Derrick Ruff and Joshua Jackson who were, in fact, not cooperating with law enforcement. Chambers incorrectly concluded that Ruff and Jackson were “snitches” and directed Green, who held a subordinate position on the Enforcement Team, to carry out the murders of Ruff and Jackson.
Text messages and intercepted phone calls between Chambers, Green, Carlisle and Guidry revealed that Ruff and Jackson were lured by Green, as directed by Chambers, to drive from Athens to Lawrenceville, Georgia, to break into storage sheds and steal items to send to Chambers as “aid and assistance” as he was hiding out from law enforcement in a Gangster Disciple “safe house” in Killeen, Texas. The ruse worked, and Ruff and Jackson were murdered on Dec. 19 and their bodies concealed in the storage unit until March 17, 2019, when police with the assistance of cadaver sniffing dogs located them. Additional messages between Chambers, Green, Carlisle and Guidry showed that they conspired to dispose of the victims’ bodies, which included potentially burning the bodies or dumping the bodies in a landfill. Law enforcement recovered the bodies and made arrests before these plans could be carried out.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
The case is being investigated by the FBI Athens Resident Agency Middle Georgia Safe Streets Gang Task Force, the Athens-Clarke County Police Department and the Gwinnett County Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Morrison of the Middle District of Georgia and Trial Attorney Kenneth Kaplan, formerly of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section, are prosecuting the case with assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney Stuart Walker of the Middle District of Georgia.
Charlotte Tax Preparer Is Sentenced to Prison for Scheme to Obtain $780,000 in Fraudulent Coronavirus Relief Funds and Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Zadih Cadyma, 66, of Charlotte, was sentenced today to 30 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for fraudulently obtaining $780,000 in COVID-19 pandemic relief loans and money laundering, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Cadyma was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $762,952.
Robert M. DeWitt, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in North Carolina, andDonald “Trey” Eakins, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Charlotte Field Office, join U.S. Attorney King in making today’s announcement.
According to court documents, Cadyma was a tax return preparer who owned and operated CFE Tax Services in Charlotte and other registered businesses. From 2020 to 2021, Cadyma applied for 10 fraudulent COVID-19 loans from the Economic Injury Relief Disaster Loan Program (EIDL) and three Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans for his businesses under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. In the loan applications, Cadyma made false representations about his businesses, including gross revenues, monthly payroll expenses, number of employees, and other covered operational expenditures. As a result, Cadyma fraudulently received $550,000 under the EIDL program and $230,000 in PPP loan proceeds. Contrary to claims Cadyma made on the loan applications that the funds would be used for legitimate and permissible business purposes, Cadyma used the loan proceeds for his own benefit and to support his lifestyle, including to purchase a new luxury vehicle.
On April 27, 2023, Cadyma pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney King thanked the FBI and IRS-CI for their investigation of the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Graham Billings prosecuted the case.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866‑720‑5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
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Bridgeport Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Robbery OffenseRead the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ANDY MARTE, also known as “AD,” 30, of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to a federal robbery offense.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on April 28, 2023, Marte and two associates drove to a Bridgeport apartment building where they intended to carry out a robbery at an apartment where they believed they would find drugs and drug proceeds. Marte instructed his two associates, one of whom carried a crowbar, to carry out the robbery while he remained in the car and to serve as a getaway driver. He subsequently contacted a third associate, who arrived to participate in the robbery. After failing to enter the apartment, Marte’s three associates returned to the vehicle, where they were encountered by law enforcement. Officers searched the vehicle and its occupants and seized two handguns, which Marte had brought to the robbery, and the crowbar.
Marte pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act Robbery, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years. Judge Meyer scheduled sentencing for June 20.
Marte has been detained since his arrest on April 28, 2023.
This investigation is being conducted by FBI’s Bridgeport Safe Streets Task Force and the Bridgeport Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ross Weingarten and Karen Peck.
Bridgeport Man Charged with Narcotics Trafficking OffensesRead 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, today announced that a federal grand jury in Hartford returned an indictment yesterday charging JERMEL BATES, also known as “Mel Kitty” and “Kitty,” 28, of Bridgeport, with narcotics trafficking offenses.
As alleged in the indictment, court documents, and statements made in court, in the early morning hours of June 25, 2023, Bates crashed his vehicle into a parked car in Bridgeport and fled the scene on foot. Law enforcement conducted an inventory search of Bates’ vehicle and found plastic bags containing approximately 550 blue/green fentanyl pills stamped “M/30,” more than 500 wax paper folds containing heroin, fentanyl, and cocaine, and approximately 78 grams of crack cocaine.
Bates was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on March 19, 2024. It is further alleged that, in conjunction with his arrest, investigators searched his person and his Newfield Avenue apartment and found plastic bags with thousands of blue-green fentanyl pills, hundreds of wax paper sleeves containing fentanyl, and a bag containing crack cocaine.
The indictment charges Bates with two counts of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances. If convicted, based on the type and quantities of controlled substances identified in each count of the indictment, Bates faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of five years and a maximum term of imprisonment of 40 years, on each count.
U.S. Attorney Avery stressed that an indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Bates has been detained since his arrest.
This matter is being investigated by the FBI Bridgeport Safe Streets Task Force, the Bridgeport Police Department, and the Norwalk Police Department. The Task Force is composed of personnel from the FBI, Connecticut State Police, and the Bridgeport, Norwalk, and Trumbull Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel P. Gordon.
Brevard County Man Sentenced to More Than 16 Years for Fentanyl DistributionRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Wendy W. Berger has sentenced E’Chavion Semaj Flewellen (24, Cocoa) to 16 years and 8 months in federal prison for distribution of 40 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of fentanyl. Flewellen entered a guilty plea on January 4, 2024.
According to court documents, from June through August 2023, Flewellen distributed fentanyl six times – with one transaction involving cocaine – to a confidential source working for the Drug Enforcement Administration. From these controlled buys, Flewellen was responsible for distributing 27.96 grams of cocaine and 187.24 grams of fentanyl mixtures to the DEA confidential source.
Following Flewellen’s arrest, a search warrant was executed on his residence, during which agents located an additional 14.6 grams of fentanyl, over 50 grams of cocaine, and 263 grams of pure methamphetamine. Additionally, agents located a loaded Shadow Systems 9mm handgun, a loaded Smith & Wesson 9mm handgun, and an unloaded FEG 9mm handgun, as well as hundreds of rounds of ammunition. As part of the plea agreement, Flewellen has agreed to abandon all rights to the handguns and associated ammunition that were seized from his residence.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Melbourne Police Department, the West Melbourne Police Department, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Megan Testerman.
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.
Billings man sentenced to more than nine years in prison for fentanyl trafficking, firearm possessionRead the Press Release
BILLINGS — A Billings man convicted of armed trafficking of fentanyl in the community was sentenced today to nine years and nine months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
The defendant, Cameron Dimich-Laster, 27, pleaded guilty in December 2023 to possession with intent to distribute controlled substances and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided.
In court documents, the government alleged that in September 2023, law enforcement received information that a male person named “Cam” was selling large amounts of fentanyl. Law enforcement believed the person could be Dimich-Laster, who was on state felony probation and had an active arrest warrant for being a probation absconder. Agents observed Dimich-Laster coming and going from a Billings residence over an extended period and driving a BMW. Officers made a traffic stop on Dimich-Laster, who was detained and handcuffed. In a probation search of his vehicle, officers located a .380-caliber handgun, a loaded magazine, a single live round of .380 ammunition, fentanyl pills and $755 in U.S. currency. Law enforcement also searched the residence and located cocaine, a digital scale, ammunition, $1,075 in U.S. currency in the bedroom where Dimich-Laster had been staying. In a search of a small secondary residence Dimich-Laster had been using on the same lot, officers located fentanyl pills, $440 in U.S. currency and a digital scale.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Colin M. Rubich prosecuted the case. The Billings Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations and Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force conducted the investigation.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
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Belen Man Pleads Guilty to Robbing Six BusinessesRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A previously convicted felon pleaded guilty in federal court to committing armed robberies of six Albuquerque businesses over a span of six days in 2023. At the time of the offenses, the defendant was wanted for a violation of the terms of his federal supervised release.
Brandon Sanchez, 30, of Belen, pleaded guilty to six counts of interference with commerce by threats and violence by robbing six Albuquerque businesses:
- Jan. 4, 2023: Little Caesars at Montgomery and San Pedro.
- Jan. 4, 2023: Subway at San Mateo and McLeod.
- Jan 8, 2023: Little Caesars at Montano and Fourth Street.
- Jan 9, 2023: Starbucks at San Mateo and Pan American.
- Jan. 9, 2023: Big 5 Sporting Goods at Wyoming and Paseo.
- Jan 9, 2023: Domino’s at Holly and San Pedro.
At the time, Sanchez was on federal supervised release for a 2022 conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, for which he served 27 months in prison.
The Court ordered that Sanchez remain in detention pending sentencing, which has not been scheduled. At sentencing, Sanchez faces up to 20 years in prison as to each count, followed by 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, made the announcement today. The FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the United States Marshals Service and Albuquerque Police Department. The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico is prosecuting the case.
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Beckley Man Pleads Guilty to Fentanyl CrimeRead the Press Release
BECKLEY, W.Va. – Algie Kenya Scales, 50, of Beckley, pleaded guilty today to distribution of fentanyl.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on February 23, 2023, Scales sold approximately 2.7 grams of fentanyl in Beckley for $300. Scales admitted to the transaction and further admitted to selling approximately 5 grams of fentanyl for $625 on March 2, 2023, and to selling approximately 4.7 grams of fentanyl for $600 on March 8, 2023. Both of these additional transactions occurred at a predetermined location in Beckley.
Scales is scheduled to be sentenced on July 12, 2024, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release, and a $1 million fine.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Beckley/Raleigh County Drug and Violent Crime Unit, which consists of officers from the West Virginia State Police, the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department, and the Beckley Police Department.
United States Magistrate Judge Omar J. Aboulhosn presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Alexander A. Redmon is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:23-cr-167.
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Bear Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison for Second Conviction Involving Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
Wilmington, Del. – A Delaware resident was sentenced on March 25, 2024, to 10 years in federal prison for possessing child sexual abuse material (“CSAM”), announced David C. Weiss, U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware. Following his time in prison, he will spend 10 years on federal supervised release. Chief U.S. District Judge Colm F. Connolly pronounced the sentence.
According to court documents, a task force consisting of Homeland Security Investigations, the Delaware State Police, and Delaware Internet Crimes Against Children investigated James Pickett, 26, of Bear, Delaware, after receiving a cyber tip indicating he uploaded a video of CSAM to the Internet in August 2021. Law enforcement later found approximately 4,468 media files suspected to contain CSAM on Pickett’s electronic devices. The files found on Pickett’s devices included images and videos of prepubescent minors and material portraying sadistic or masochistic conduct and other depictions of violence. Pickett had previously been convicted in October 2019 in the State of Delaware for dealing in CSAM and served two years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Weiss stated, “Our office is dedicated to protecting children and prosecuting those engaging in the sexual exploitation of minors through the heinous shadow industry that produces, distributes, and collects child sexual abuse material. I thank Homeland Security Investigations and our Delaware law enforcement partners who tirelessly pursued this case.”
“HSI is at the forefront in the fight to end child sexual exploitation. Our global reach, significant Agent experience and extensive knowledge of the cyber domain, allow us to rapidly develop cases such as the one against James Pickett,” said Special Agent in Charge of HSI Philadelphia William S. Walker. “Our outstanding relationship with the Delaware State Police and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware has garnered incredible success and we know that our cooperation will continue to do so as we work to protect our children.”
Homeland Security Investigations, the Delaware State Police, and the Delaware Internet Crimes Against Children investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Briana Knox and Bryan C. Williamson prosecuted this case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the District of Delaware or on PACER by searching for Case No. 22-CR-1-CFC.
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 U.S. Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices across the country and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section of the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Baltimore Woman Admits to Fentanyl TraffickingRead the Press Release
ELKINS, WEST VIRGINIA – Daniela Marie Giancoli, age 34, of Baltimore, Maryland, has admitted to supplying fentanyl to dealers in West Virginia.
Giancoli pled guilty to a charge of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl. According to court documents and statements made in court, Giancoli supplied large amounts of fentanyl to dealers in Grant County and elsewhere. Nearly 9,000 fentanyl pills, weighing more than two kilograms, were found during the investigation. Giancoli and Michael Matthews, co-defendant, worked together out of their Baltimore apartment to sell drugs to more than 10 dealers in the area.
Giancoli is facing up to 20 years in federal prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Matthews pled guilty in 2023 and will be sentenced in April.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Warner prosecuted the case on behalf of the government.
The Potomac Highlands Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael John Aloi presided.