ALBUQUERQUE – Ruben Cheykaychi, 29, an enrolled member and resident of Kewa Pueblo, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 28 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction on an assault charge.

The BIA arrested Cheykaychi in May 2017, on an indictment charging him with assault with a dangerous weapon with intent to do bodily harm.  According to the indictment, Cheykaychi committed the crime on April 20, 2016, on the Kewa Pueblo Indian Reservation in Sandoval County, N.M.

On Feb. 27, 2018, Cheykaychi pled guilty to the indictment and admitted assaulting his former girlfriend on April 20, 2016, after seeing her vehicle parked in an area of Kewa Pueblo.  In his plea agreement, Cheykaychi stated that, after a failed attempt to engage the victim in conversation, he became upset and began yelling at her.  Cheykaychi admitted retrieving a BB gun, which resembled a real handgun, from his vehicle and holding it to the victim’s head while threatening to shoot her.  He also admitted putting the BB gun in the victim’s mouth while continuing to yell at her and threatening her, and attempting to take her car keys from her to prevent her from escaping.

This case was investigated by Southern Pueblos Agency of the BIA, Office of Justice Services.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Marshall prosecuted the case as part of the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project in the District of New Mexico which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women under a grant administered by the Pueblo of Laguna.  The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both.  The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.

BOSTON – A Dominican national, wanted on murder charges in the Dominican Republic, appeared in federal court in Boston today. 

An arrest warrant charging Daniel Emilio Frias Segura with the 2010 murder of his wife was issued on April 9, 2010, by a Judge in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. U.S. Magistrate Judge Marianne B. Bowler issued a warrant for the arrest of Frias Segura yesterday, and he was arrested today in Lynn by U.S. Marshals with the assistance of the Massachusetts State Police and Lynn Police Department. He appeared in federal court in Boston and was ordered detained pending extradition. Today’s hearing involved the extradition of Frias Segura back to the Dominican Republic to face the charges.

According to Dominican authorities, on April 1, 2010, an individual sailing on the Haina River in the Dominican Republic observed the torso of a female floating in the river. The individual informed Dominican law enforcement, and on April 2, 2010, the female’s decapitated head was found inside two black plastic bags. On April 3, 2010, the female’s legs and left arm were found along the Haina River. On April 3, 2010, an autopsy report concluded that the female had been strangled to death and was subsequently decapitated and dismembered.

According to the Dominican investigation, on the late afternoon of March 31, 2010, a merchant and his employee were driving along a freeway when a young woman jumped out of a vehicle stopped in front of them. The woman ran toward the merchant’s vehicle, screaming that someone wanted to kill her. She sought refuge in the back seat of the merchant’s vehicle, but a man came out of the vehicle the woman had been in and violently removed her from the merchant’s vehicle. The man waived a gun and threatened the merchant and his employee. He told them the woman was his wife and they should not get involved. The merchant and employee each identified Frias Segura as the person claiming to be the victim’s husband. The next day, the torso of Frias Segura’s wife was spotted in the river.

Frias Segura left the Dominican Republic for Puerto Rico the day after his wife’s torso had been spotted in the river. A law enforcement investigation revealed that Frias Segura had been living in Lynn.  

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; John Gibbons, U.S. Marshal of the District of Massachusetts; Colonel Kerry A. Gilpin, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; and Lynn Police Chief Michael Mageary, made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs. Assistant U.S. Attorney Victor Wild of Lelling’s Criminal Division is handling the matter.

The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.   

NEWARK, N.J. – A former U.S. Postal Service (USPS) mail handler today admitted stealing approximately 16 packages containing marijuana, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Akeem Cauthen, 30, of Newark, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of theft of mail. He was released on $40,000 unsecured bond.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

Cauthen was a mail handler at the Northern New Jersey Metro Processing and Distribution Center in Teterboro, New Jersey. From May to November 2017, Cauthen looked for parcels from Arizona, California, or Colorado, and then smelled, opened or poked holes in the packages to search for marijuana. Upon finding marijuana, Cauthen stole the parcels by replacing the original mailing labels with labels containing addresses in Paterson where he later picked them up. Overall, Cauthen obtained approximately $32,000 worth of marijuana.

The theft of mail charge is punishable by a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 24, 2018.

U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents with USPS-Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Matthew Modafferi, Northeast Area Field Office, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jihee G. Suh of the Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.

Defense counsel: Kevin Carlucci Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark

HAMMOND – The United States Attorney for the Northern District of Indiana, Thomas L. Kirsch II, announced an indictment against Qingyou Han, age 59 and Lu Shao, age 51, of West Lafayette, Indiana for engaging in a scheme to defraud the National Science Foundation (“NSF”).  

According to documents in this case, Dr. Qingyou Han, a Purdue University Professor and the Director of the Purdue Center for Materials Processing Research, and his wife Lu Shao, using a company they founded and operated called Hans Tech, applied for and received over $1.3 million in grants from NSF’s Small Business Innovation Research (“SBIR”) and Small Business Technology Transfer (“STTR”) programs and then used the funds at least in part to pay personal expenses and for the enrichment of themselves or their children.  Among other claims, the indictment alleges that SHAO purchased a single family home in her name, signed a lease with herself on behalf of Hans Tech, and paid “rent” to herself from Hans Tech of $3,000 per month using grant funds.  Funds were also purportedly used to pay Han and Shao’s minor children “salaries.”  For example, in 2009, Dr. Han and Ms. Shao falsely represented to NSF that the research project’s “Secretary” and “Technical Assistant” earned $24,000 each via hourly wages and “consulting,” when, unbeknownst to NSF, the supposed employees were approximately 10 and 15 years old and they were Han and Shao’s own children. 

The United States Attorney's Office emphasized that an Indictment is merely an allegation and that all persons charged are presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty in court.

If convicted in court, any specific sentence to be imposed will be determined by the judge after a consideration of federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

This case is the result of an investigation by the National Science Foundation’s Office of Inspector General.  This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jill Koster and NSF OIG Investigative Attorney Sonia Khanzode. 

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            WASHINGTON - The United States filed a civil complaint today to forfeit more than $640,000 in funds from Wang Wei, a/k/a Jack Wang, whose companies allegedly were procuring U.S.-origin items and illegally supplying them to sanctioned entities in Iran.

            The announcement was made by Jessie K. Liu, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and Jill Sanborn, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Minneapolis Division.

            The complaint was filed in the U.S. District of Columbia and seeks the civil forfeiture of one ownership unit in the EB-5 Investment Program Cleveland International Fund - Medical Mart Hotel, set to mature in 2020 and pay out $500,000, and $141,086 allegedly laundered into the United States to Reekay Technology, one of Wang’s sanctioned companies.

            According to the complaint, a law enforcement investigation into an Iranian procurement network revealed that Wang was the Beijing-based owner of several Iranian procurement front companies. On November 12, 2015, the U.S. Department of Commerce sanctioned Wang and his affiliated companies, Sky Rise Technology Ltd, TiMi Technologies Co Ltd, 32 Group China Ltd., Caprice Group Ltd, and Reekay Technology, for supplying U.S.-origin items to an Iranian party associated with the Iranian defense industry and to an Iranian party whose customers include companies designated by the Department of Treasury as Specially Designated Nationals.

            Additionally, on March 21, 2017, the U.S. Department of State sanctioned Wang and his affiliated companies for transfers to Iran’s missile program. 

            The complaint alleges that at Wang’s direction, front companies, located in mainland China and Hong Kong, purchased sensitive U.S. origin technology on behalf of Iranian end users without the licenses required by the U.S. government.  According to the complaint, Wang and his companies conducted more than 100 wire transfers from offshore U.S. dollar accounts worth more than $1.1 million as part of this scheme.  The complaint alleges that at least $641,086 of these wires related to illegal procurements from companies that exported U.S. origin items to Wang, which he failed to disclose were going to Iran.  The remaining approximately $533,063 in transactions reflect Wang conducting U.S. dollar wire transfers between overseas electronics manufacturers, distributors and telecommunications companies to procure items for sanctioned Iranian entities, the complaint alleges. As part of this scheme, a Chinese front company allegedly wired $141,086 to Reekay Technology.  These funds were seized as they transited through the United States for Iranian sanctions violations, and represent one of the defendant properties. 

            The EB-5 visa program provides a method for eligible immigrant investors to become lawful permanent residents (i.e., “green card holders”) by investing at least $500,000 to finance a business in a targeted employment area in the United States that will employ at least 10 American workers.   The Cleveland International Fund (“CiF”) is an Ohio-based regional center offering foreign nationals the opportunity to make investments in the United States for the ultimate purpose of obtaining U.S. citizenship through the EB-5 investment visa program.  Wang is an investor in CiF’s Medical Mart Hotel project, whose members consist of CiF as managing member, as well as individual overseas members who purchase their membership unit for $500,000, pursuant to EB-5 program. As alleged in the complaint, Wang laundered $500,000 into the United States in support of his EB-5 application, which was converted into one ownership unit in the Cleveland International Fund - Medical Mart Hotel, Ltd.  These funds have been invested in a bond which will mature in 2020, and will result in a pay out at that time to Wang.  The government seeks to forfeit Wang’s interest in the bond.

            The complaint also seeks a civil monetary penalty against Wang for these sanctions and money laundering violations related to this scheme.

            The claims made in the complaint are only allegations and do not constitute a determination of liability.

            The FBI’s Minneapolis Divison, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) St. Paul, Minnesota, Office, and Department of Commerce are investigating the case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S Attorneys Zia M. Faruqui, Ari Redbord, and Brian P. Hudak, all of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and Department of Justice Trial Attorney David Recker, of the National Security Division. Assistance is being provided by Paralegal Specialist Toni Anne Donato of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

BOSTON – A Texas man involved in a Lawrence-based narcotics trafficking operation was sentenced today in federal court in Boston.

Joel Jahamal Rougeau, 42, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Patti B. Saris to 135 months in prison and three years of supervised release. In November 2017, Rougeau pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine. On Aug. 12, 2015, Rougeau and three co-defendants, Jerri Martinez-Tejeda and Yoelly Carmenatty, both of Lawrence, and Lily Solis, of Texas, were indicted.

In March 2014, an investigation into a drug trafficking organization operating in Massachusetts, California and elsewhere led law enforcement to Martinez-Tejeda. In late May or early June 2015, Martinez-Tejeda hired Rougeau to pick up nine kilograms of narcotics in California and transport them to the Northeast. Solis, who was romantically involved with Rougeau, accompanied Rougeau to translate Spanish to English for him.

On June 4, 2015, law enforcement in Oklahoma intercepted Rougeau and Solis transporting the nine kilograms of fentanyl to Martinez-Tejeda and his partner, Carmenatty, in Lawrence for distribution. After the shipment was seized, Martinez-Tejeda and Carmenatty believed that Rougeau and Solis had faked the encounter with law enforcement in order to steal the fentanyl from them. They hired an “enforcer” from Mexico to go to Oklahoma and kidnap and torture Rougeau and Solis. Their plan was thwarted when Rougeau fled and Solis was taken into custody. Approximately 18 months later, Rougeau was captured in Mexico and turned over to U.S. authorities.

In June 2016, Solis was sentenced to 33 months in prison; in October 2016, Martinez-Tejeda was sentenced to 292 months in prison; and in January 2017, Carmenatty was sentenced to six years in prison. One additional defendant, Michael Bate, was charged in a superseding indictment for his role as a money courier for the drug trafficking organization. Bate was sentenced to three years in prison in November 2016. 

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas E. Kanwit prosecuted the case.

BOSTON – A Heath Street gang member was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for distributing drugs in and around the Mildred C. Hailey Apartments in Jamaica Plain.

Javonte Robinson, a/k/a “Biggie,” and “Big Dog,” 21, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge William G. Young to one year and one day in prison and six years of supervised release. In May 2018, Robinson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine base and to distributing cocaine base within 1000 feet of a public housing facility.

Following a two-year investigation, Robinson and eight co-defendants were charged in January 2018 in connection with illegal drug distribution and firearm possession within and near the Mildred C. Hailey Apartments, formerly known as the Bromley Heath Housing Development.

On March 24, 2017, co-defendant Kevin Smith arranged a drug sale for Robinson, who sold crack cocaine to a cooperating witness near the Mildred C. Hailey Apartments. In sum, Smith and Robinson also accepted responsibility for five additional sales that were not charged in the indictment. All of the sales took place either inside or within a 1000 feet of the Mildred C. Hailey Apartments.

The investigation and arrests sought to reduce violence and improve the quality of life for residents in and around the Mildred C. Hailey Apartments by removing individuals who trafficked drugs and who were actively involved in violence and gang disputes.

Smith is scheduled to be sentenced on July 27, 2018.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Mickey D. Leadingham, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division; and Boston Police Commissioner William Evans made the announcement today. Assistance was also provided by the Boston Housing Authority’s Department of Police and Public Safety.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations.  The remaining defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.       

MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Bradley Allen Bowers, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, has admitted to a firearms charge, United States Attorney Bill Powell announced.

Bowers, age 37, pled guilty to one count of “Possession of an Unregistered Firearm.” Bowers admitted to having an unregistered 12-gauge sawed-off shotgun in May 2017 in Berkeley County.

Bowers faces up to 10 years incarceration and a fine of up to $250,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has made turning the tide of rising violent crime in America a top priority. In October 2017, as part of a series of actions to address this crime trend, Attorney General Sessions announced the reinvigoration of PSN and directed all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to develop a district crime reduction strategy that incorporates the lessons learned since PSN launched in 2001.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Omps-Botteicher is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Martinsburg Police Department investigated.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.

El Dorado, Arkansas – Duane (DAK) Kees, United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, announced that Jerry Kennedy Walsh, age 72, of Magnolia, Arkansas pleaded guilty today to conspiring to misapply over $380,000 from South Arkansas Youth Services without the authority of the non-profit’s Board of Directors.  According to plea documents, the scheme involved steering the non-profit’s funds to an Arkansas state senator, to the lobbying firm of convicted lobbyist Milton “Rusty” Cranford, and to a relative of Cranford.

U.S. Attorney Duane (DAK) Kees for the Western District of Arkansas and Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division made the announcement. 

Walsh of Magnolia, Arkansas, who served as the Executive Director of South Arkansas Youth Services (SAYS) pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Susan O. Hickey to an information charging him with conspiracy to misapply the non-profit’s funds without authority from the Board of Directors. 

As part of his plea, Walsh admitted that beginning in 2013, while serving as Executive Director for SAYS, he agreed to divert SAYS funds to Rusty Cranford and an unnamed Arkansas state senator in exchange for the state senator’s influence in protecting the non-profit’s state contracts with DHS and DYS.  As part of that agreement, Walsh was to provide a monthly “legal retainer” to the Arkansas state senator without the expectation that the senator ever provide any legal work.  Instead, the purpose of the payment was to obtain the senator’s assistance in preserving the contracts in his official capacity.  According to the plea, the amount paid to the senator was negotiated by convicted lobbyist Rusty Cranford and amounted to over $120,000.   

Additionally, as part of the agreement, Walsh was to lock SAYS into a more expensive contract with Cranford’s lobbying firms and employ a relative of Cranford who would have a “no-show” job with SAYS.  Between the new contract with the Cranford lobbying firm and the payment for the no-show job, the non-profit paid out an additional $262,000.    As part of his plea, Walsh admitted that these payments and those to the state senator were not authorized by the SAYS Board of Directors.   

“This plea exposes the depths to which ‘pay to play’ politics has corrupted a non-profit organization which was formed with the best of intentions, to help children,” said U.S. Attorney Kees.  “Unfortunately, there are many victims in a scheme like this.  The people of this state were deprived of the uncorrupted functioning of their government agencies, the non-profit was stripped of funds, and now that the non-profit has been shuttered, the community is deprived of a non-profit dedicated to providing services to their most vulnerable children, those who are incarcerated and in state custody.  I look forward to a day when all politicians exercising influence do so based upon the best interests of the children in their communities and not on who is paying them for no-show jobs.”       

“Jerry Walsh diverted hundreds of thousands of dollars intended to help vulnerable children in southern Arkansas as a part of a corrupt scheme to influence the award of state contracts,” said Assistant Attorney General Benczkowski. “Walsh’s actions ultimately risked destroying the non-profit he helped lead and undermining the public’s confidence in its elected officials.  The Criminal Division and our law enforcement partners are committed to protecting the integrity of charitable programs, rooting out corruption, and ensuring that individuals like Walsh are held accountable for their actions.”

The FBI investigated this case along with the assistance of the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office (Sheriff Mike Loe) and the 13^th Judicial District of Arkansas Prosecuting Attorney’s Office (Prosecuting Attorney John Shepherd).  Assistant United States Attorney Ben Wulff of the Western District of Arkansas and Trial Attorney Marco A. Palmieri of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section are prosecuting the case with the assistance of Deputy Prosecutor Ryan Phillips with the 13^th Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.  This is a combined investigation with the Public Integrity Section of the Department of Justice, the Eastern District of Arkansas, Western District of Arkansas, and the Western District of Missouri. 

WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – John M. Talkington, of New Martinsville, West Virginia, and Miranda Stewart, of Sistersville, West Virginia, have admitted to their roles in a methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin distribution operation that spanned multiple states, United States Attorney Bill Powell announced.

Talkington, age 29, and Stewart, age 23, each pled guilty to one count of “Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess with the Intent to Distribute Controlled Substances.” Talkington and Stewart admitted to conspiring with others to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine, and cocaine base from 2016 to April 2018 in Wetzel County, parts of the southern district of West Virginia, Ohio, and Georgia.

Talkington and Stewart each face up to 20 years incarceration and a fine of up to $1,000,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert H. McWilliams, Jr., and Shawn M. Adkins are prosecuting the cases on behalf of the government. The Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol; Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the Marshall County Drug and Violent Crimes Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative; the West Virginia State Police; the Tyler County Sheriff’s Office; the Wetzel County Sheriff’s Office; the Sistersville Police Department; the Paden City Police Department; and the New Martinsville Police Department investigated. The Columbus, Ohio, Police Department Gang Crimes Unit assisted in the case. 

The investigation was funded in part by the federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Program (OCDETF). The OCDETF program supplies critical federal funding and coordination that allows federal and state agencies to work together to successfully identify, investigate, and prosecute major interstate and international drug trafficking organizations and other criminal enterprises.

U.S. Magistrate Judge James E. Seibert presided.
 

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Three members of a family from Mason, Ohio, have pleaded guilty to conspiring to launder nearly $3 million in proceeds from two fraudulently purchased life-insurance policies, which were taken out on another relative.

Patricia Stevenson, 57, and her daughter Candace G. Stevenson, 30, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court here today to one count of money laundering conspiracy. Mitch G. Stevenson, 53, pleaded guilty on June 28.

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Ryan L. Korner, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation, announced the pleas entered before Chief U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus Jr.

According to court documents, in 2009, Mitch Stevenson bought life insurance policies on a relative. The life-insurance applications claimed the relative was healthy, weighed 170 pounds and had an annual income of $133,000. In fact, the relative was ill, weighed nearly 400 pounds and was unemployed. Mr. Stevenson knew the applications were fraudulent at the time they were submitted. When the relative died, Candace and Patricia Stevenson, who were the beneficiaries of the policies, collected checks from the insurance company totaling $2,908,326.90. At Mitch Stevenson’s direction, Candace and Patricia Stevenson opened eight different bank accounts in an attempt to conceal the source of the funds.

“The defendants engaged in a complex sequence of transactions designed to conceal and disguise the ownership of the proceeds of the life-insurance fraud,” Glassman said.

Court documents also say the family members used the proceeds to buy a 2012 Bentley GT Convertible for approximately $247,000 and used approximately $284,000 as a down payment on a land contract on a home in Mason, Ohio. Other transactions included approximately $16,000 to World of Decor and nearly $33,000 to Facet Jewelry.

“The conduct detailed in this case is egregious. They went to great lengths to conceal the proceeds they received from the fraudulent life insurance policies,” said Ryan L. Korner, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office.”

A federal grand jury indicted the three in June 2017. Money laundering conspiracy is a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Judge Sargus will schedule a date for sentencing.

As part of the plea, the defendants have agreed to pay the $2.9 million to the victim life insurance company. They have also agreed to forfeit to the United States the home in Mason, Ohio, that was purchased with the proceeds of the fraud.

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the IRS Criminal Investigation, and Assistant United States Attorney Peter K. Glenn-Applegate, who is prosecuting the case.

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            WASHINGTON – Keith Young, 46, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 20  years in prison on federal drug trafficking and firearms charges, after a search by law enforcement last year recovered from his residence more than two kilograms of heroin laced with fentanyl, a loaded firearm, 170 rounds of ammunition, and multiple extended magazines.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Thomas L. Chittum III, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Division of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Young was found guilty by a jury on April 27, 2018, of one count of possession with the intent to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin and one count of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a person previously convicted of a crime punishable by in excess of 12 months in prison. The verdict followed a trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson. Following his prison term, Young will be placed on 10 years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, on April 25, 2017, the ATF executed a search warrant in the 500 block of Newcomb Street SE, and was assisted by agents and officers of MPD’s Narcotics and Special Investigations Unit, the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force, and the Uniformed Division of the U.S. Secret Service.

            Young was present at the residence when the search was executed. In Young’s bed, agents located a loaded .45-caliber semi-automatic firearm with an extended magazine under a pillow. Throughout the residence, law enforcement recovered 170 rounds of ammunition in four calibers, and five ammunition magazines, including multiple extended magazines. In the living room, law enforcement found two large plastic bins that were filled with drug manufacturing paraphernalia, such as, sifters, blenders, digital scales, playing cards, cutting agents, masks, gloves, and various sized storage bags. Additionally, hidden inside a section of the basement ceiling, law enforcement found a blue box and black bag.  When agents opened the box and bag, they found in excess of two kilograms of heroin, valued at approximately $180,000. The Secret Service examined evidence for fingerprints and suspected DNA. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) later confirmed that the heroin contained fentanyl.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu, Special Agent in Charge Chittum, and Chief Newsham commended the work and collaboration of those who investigated the case from the ATF and MPD. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, the U.S. Secret Service, and the DEA.

            They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Jeannette Litz, Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Lucas, who assisted with forfeiture issues, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Crane, who assisted with the investigation. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Macchiaroli and David Misler of the Violent Crime and Narcotics Section, who tried the case.

St. Croix, VI –Winston DeCastro, 45, of St. Croix, was sentenced in the District Court on July 19, 2018, on the charge of aiding and abetting the distribution of cocaine base, also known as "crack cocaine", United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced.

Chief Judge Wilma A. Lewis sentenced DeCastro to 60 months (5 years) imprisonment, followed by 4 years of supervised release, a $2,000 fine, and a $100 special assessment. DeCastro pled guilty to the charge on March 20, 2018.

A federal grand jury had previously returned an indictment against DeCastro, aka Moo Moo, on September 15, 2015. According to court documents, on April 21, 2015, DeCastro supplied crack cocaine to a co-defendant, Bruce McIntosh. DeCastro then transported McIntosh to McDonalds at the LaReine Shopping Center in St. Croix for the purposes of selling the cocaine to a buyer. Upon arrival, McIntosh exited DeCastro’s vehicle and sold the cocaine to the buyer for $1,800. Laboratory testing revealed that the drugs were cocaine base, a Schedule II controlled substance, with a net weight of 65.2 grams.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Task Force Officers with the Virgin Islands Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel H. Huston.

U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that STEFEN DAIGLE, age 31, of New Orleans pled guilty today to one count of conspiring to traffic 500 grams or more of a mixture containing methamphetamine in the Eastern District of Louisiana.  DAIGLE faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison, a maximum life sentence, a fine of up to $10,000,000 and at least 5 years of supervised release.  

U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the United States Postal Inspection Service, Louisiana State Police, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, Texas Department of Public Safety, Texas Highway Patrol, Montgomery County (Texas) Sheriff’s Office, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, AMTRAK Police, and the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office.  Assistant United States Attorney Brandon S. Long is in charge of the prosecution.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – On July 19, 2018, Randall Scott Jenkins, 55, of Maryville, Tennessee, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to an Information charging him with two counts of aggravated theft of pre-retail medical products from City Drug Co., and one count of unlawfully possessing firearms and ammunition while being an unlawful user of a controlled substance.     

Sentencing is set for 10:00 a.m., Thursday, December 13, 2018.  Jenkins faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, for each of the aggravated drug theft charges.  He also faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 on the firearms charge.  Additionally, he will be subject to supervision by U.S Probation for up to three years upon his release from prison.

According to the plea agreement on file with U.S. District Court, since approximately 2002 Jenkins was a licensed pharmacist and co-owner of City Drug Co.  In April 2018, surveillance cameras caught him, on two separate occasions, stealing bottles of pre-retail oxycodone from the controlled substance vault of the business.  Jenkins had no prescription for the oxycodone and subsequently admitted to stealing the drugs to satisfy his own personal addiction to the painkillers. 

In May 2018, law enforcement agents questioned Jenkins about additional stolen prescription painkillers, including empty prescription bottles.  While Jenkins admitted to having a drug addiction problem, he told investigators he did not keep “trophies,” referring to the empty prescription painkiller bottles. That same day, a bottle containing oxymorphone and a bottle containing oxycodone were found in his home, and a loaded semi-automatic pistol was found in his vehicle.  Jenkins had no valid prescription for either drug.  Later in May 2018, a federal search warrant executed at his home in Maryville, Tennessee, revealed hydrocodone in an unlabeled pill bottle, oxycodone in two pre-retail pill bottles hidden under clothes in his master bedroom, and 19 firearms and ammunition. 

“The U.S. Attorney’s office will continue to use all criminal and civil remedies available under federal law to combat the rapidly growing drug crisis in America,” said U.S. Attorney J. Douglas Overbey.  “Prescription opioids, such as oxycodone and oxymorphone, are potent, powerful, addictive and easily abused painkillers which are only available by a prescription issued by a licensed physician for a legitimate medical purpose. Our office will prosecute aggressively individuals in the health care industry, including physicians and pharmacists, who choose to abuse their authority and commit unlawful actions in furtherance of the opioid epidemic in east Tennessee,” added U.S. Attorney Overbey.

“This case reflects the level of cooperation between the men and women of the Drug Enforcement Administration and our law enforcement partners, as we work together to stop the diversion of dangerous pharmaceuticals,” said D. Christopher Evans, Special Agent In Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Louisville Field Division.  “The DEA is proud to participate in the Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit, and remains committed to using every weapon in our arsenal to combat America’s deadly opioid epidemic.”

Agencies involved in this investigation include DEA-Tactical Diversion Squad and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.  Assistant U.S. Attorney David Lewen, Jr. represents the United States in court proceedings.

In August 2017, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the formation of the Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit to help combat the devastating opioid crisis that is ravaging families and communities across America. This unit focuses specifically on opioid-related health care fraud using data to identify and prosecute individuals that are contributing to this prescription opioid epidemic. Federal prosecutors, working with FBI, DEA, HHS, as well as state and local partners, will help target and prosecute these doctors, pharmacies, and medical providers who are furthering this epidemic to line their pockets. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee was one of 12, out of 94 districts across the country, chosen to participate in this program.

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NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – A Newport News man was sentenced today to 45 years in prison for his role in a 2009 murder in Newport News.

Bryan Lamar Brown, 31, was convicted following a jury trial on April 17, along with co-defendants Mark Xavier Wallace of Williamsburg and Joseph James Cain Benson of Boston, for their respective roles in the 2009 murder of Louis Joseph Jr., in Newport News.

According to court documents, Joseph was beaten and shot multiple times at his Denbigh home while he babysat a five-year-old child. Brown, Benson and Wallace planned to commit a home invasion of Joseph to obtain money and drugs. Brown transported the co-defendants to Joseph’s house and also supplied the two firearms to commit the murder. After the murder, Brown drove the co-defendants away from the scene. Shortly thereafter, Brown had the firearms used in the murder transported to New York City to be resold for profit. Unbeknownst to Brown, law enforcement had a court authorized wiretap and overheard Brown setting up the deal to get rid of the murder weapons.

Benson and Wallace are scheduled for sentencing on July 24 and August 6, respectively.

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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime. 

G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Martin Culbreth, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office, and Steve R. Drew, Chief of Newport News Police, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Raymond A. Jackson. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lisa R. McKeel and Howard J. Zlotnick prosecuted the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:17-cr-45.

Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Ari Fitzwater (619) 546-8756, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily Gibbons (619) 546-8419, Assistant U.S. Attorney Connie Wu

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY– July 19, 2018

SAN DIEGO – Five crew members were sentenced in federal court this week for smuggling 1,205 pounds of cocaine across the ocean in low-profile vessels, including a captain who received a 17-year term.

Two of the defendants had previously been convicted of similar crimes in the Middle District of Florida. United States District Judge Roger T. Benitez sentenced the defendants to spend between 84-210 months in prison. 

On September 17, 2017, captain Jorge Ortiz-Salazar and crewmembers Elpidio Enriquez and Laureano Benitez-Montano were spotted traveling in the Eastern Pacific Ocean aboard a low-profile vessel loaded with cocaine. Meanwhile, another boat captain, defendant Luis Alberto Corado-Polanco, and crew member Juan Jose Valiente-Tomes, were traveling in a go-fast vessel intending to rendezvous with the other crew onboard the low-profile vessel. United States Coast Guard Cutter JAMES launched a helicopter to intercept the defendants’ vessels.

When the Coast Guard helicopter intercepted the low profile vessel, Ortiz-Salazar abandoned it by jumping onto Corado-Polanco’s go-fast vessel. Corado-Polanco then attempted to outrun the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard helicopter issued orders to stop, and then issued warning shots, both of which were ignored. Ultimately the go-fast vessel was stopped when the Coast Guard fired disabling shots at its engines. The Coast Guard later recovered approximately 1,205 pounds of cocaine from the low profile vessel. 

Three defendants are Colombian nationals and two defendants are Guatemalan nationals. Three defendants admitted to conspiring to distribute the cocaine.  Of those three defendants, Laureano Benitez-Montano was sentenced to 84 months in custody; Luis Alberto Corado-Polanco was sentenced to 96 months in custody; and Juan Jose Valiente-Tomes was sentenced to 84 months in custody. The Court found that Corado-Polanco, as captain of the go-fast vessel, created a potentially dangerous situation by fleeing from law enforcement. The other two defendants admitted to possession with intent to distribute the cocaine while onboard a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.  Of those defendants, Elpidio Enriquez was sentenced to 180 months in custody and Jorge Ortiz-Salazar was sentenced to 210 months in custody. 

“As we see more and more smugglers taking to the ocean, hoping to go undetected in the vast territory of the Eastern Pacific Ocean, we have redoubled our efforts and committed more resources to this problem,” said U.S. Attorney Adam Braverman. “We are at the forefront of our nation’s war against drugs and will continue to work together with our law enforcement partners at the Coast Guard and the DEA to dismantle violent and dangerous transnational organized crime networks that are using the high seas as a Narco expressway.”

“The Coast Guard’s mission of interdicting drug smugglers in the Eastern Pacific Ocean is extraordinarily challenging, but it is essential to protect our nation from the international flow of illegal drugs and the transnational organized criminals that thrive from the drug trade,” said Rear Adm. Peter Gautier, Commander of the 11th Coast Guard District.  “The Coast Guard will be steadfast in our role to dismantle transnational drug trafficking networks by intercepting their vessels, seizing their drugs and bringing the traffickers to court to answer for their crimes.”

“These men were brazen in fleeing from the U.S. Coast Guard, but today they were acquainted with Lady Justice,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Karen Flowers. “As she stands in judgement, let those who threaten our nation be reminded that when law enforcement joins forces, they face no greater enemy.”

This case is the result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a partnership that brings together the combined expertise and unique abilities of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, dismantle and prosecute high-level members of drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations and enterprises.

DEFENDANTS                                                       

Case Number 17cr3293                                           

Elpidio Enriquez                                                         Age: 62                                               Colombia

Laureano Benitez-Montano                                        Age: 43                                               Colombia

Case Number 17cr3328                                           

Luis Alberto Corado-Polanco                                     Age: 39                                               Guatemala

Juan Jose Valiente-Tomes                                           Age: 49                                               Guatemala

Jorge Ortiz-Salazar                                                    Age: 42                                               Colombia

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine Onboard a Vessel Subject to the Jurisdiction of the United States – Title 46, U.S.C., Section 70503

Maximum Penalty: Life in prison and $10,000,000 fine

Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine Intended for Unlawful Importation – Title 21, U.S.C., Sections 959, 960, and 963

Maximum penalty: Life in prison and $10,000,000 fine

AGENCY

Drug Enforcement Administration

United States Coast Guard

United States Attorney Erica H. MacDonald today announced the sentencing of BRYAN SCOTT ERICKSON, 40, to 75 months in prison and 10 years of supervised release for receiving child pornography. ERICKSON, who pleaded guilty on March 19, 2018, was sentenced earlier today before U.S. District Judge Patrick J. Schiltz in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

“This case is the product of outstanding investigative work by dedicated law enforcement professionals,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Katharine Buzicky. “I am proud to work alongside individuals who are committed to tackling some of the most difficult cases in pursuit of justice for vulnerable, young victims of exploitation.”

According to the defendant’s guilty plea and documents filed in court, ERICKSON used an online application called Kik to trade child pornography in groups dedicated to sharing images of child sexual abuse. In 2016, Homeland Security agents conducted an undercover investigation of child pornography trading on Kik and identified ERICKSON as a Kik user that was sharing child pornography. Homeland Security agents executed a search warrant at ERICKSON’S home and seized numerous computers and electronic devices. The forensic investigation revealed that ERICKSON had approximately 600 online chats with a man who claimed to have sex with his own children. ERICKSON asked the man for “advice” about when to start molesting children, and what sexual acts to engage in with children of various ages.

This case is the result of an investigation conducted by Homeland Security Investigations, with support from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Assistant United States Attorney Katharine T. Buzicky prosecuted this case.

Defendant Information:

BRYAN SCOTT ERICKSON, 40

La Crescent, Minn.

Convicted:

• Receipt of child pornography, 1 count

Sentenced:

• 75 months in prison
• 10 years of supervised release

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United States Attorney’s Office, District of Minnesota: (612) 664-5600

MISSOULA - Allen Harwood, 41, and Dezmen Patron, 20, both of Missoula, were sentenced today to 138 months and 126 months in prison respectively to be followed by 5 years of supervised release.  Both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. US District Judge Donald W. Molloy handed down the sentences.

Beginning in September of 2017 and continuing through February 6, 2018, Harwood and Patron distributed methamphetamine around the Missoula area.  They would most often get the methamphetamine from Eastern Washington and return to Missoula to sell the methamphetamine out of Harwood’s residence.  Harwood and Patron also carried firearms and exchanged firearms for methamphetamine on several occasions.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Tara Elliott and investigated by the FBI’s Montana Regional Violent Crime Task Force.

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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.   Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.

LITTLE ROCK—Mario Green, a multi-convicted felon, will spend the next 100months in federal prison for illegally possessing ammunition. Cody Hiland, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced the sentence, which was handed down today by United States District Judge James M. Moody, Jr.

Green, 35, of Monticello, pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of ammunition on December 12, 2017. At that hearing, Green admitted that on July 25, 2016, he got into an argument with a female acquaintance while at a residence in Jacksonville. After ripping a cell phone out of this acquaintance’s hand, the acquaintance alleged that Green punched her in the face and pulled out a gun, telling her that he would kill her. When police officers arrived, they found a non-functioning firearm in the couch that was loaded with nine rounds of Remington .25 caliber ammunition and five rounds of Winchester .25 caliber ammunition.

Green admitted that he had previous convictions for aggravated assault and terroristic threatening, as well as a previous conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm, and could not legally possess ammunition. Green also has convictions for misdemeanor battery and domestic battery.

At Thursday’s sentencing hearing, Judge Moody noted Green’s violent, repeat criminal history in pronouncing the 100-month sentence, which will result in more than eight years in prison without the possibility of parole.

The investigation into Green was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), and the Jacksonville Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Kristin Bryant is prosecuting the case.

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