Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake today sentenced Johnson Olatunji Ogunyemi, age 50, a Nigerian national residing in Owings Mills, Maryland, to 30 months in federal prison, after Ogunyemi pleaded guilty to forgery and false use of a passport, fraud and misuse of a visa, and money laundering.  Judge Blake also ordered Ogunyemi to forfeit $105,561.

The guilty plea and sentence were announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur and Special Agent in Charge Edwin Guard of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) Washington Field Office.

According to his plea agreement, Ogunyemi is a Nigerian national who arrived in the United States on January 31, 2015.  Ogunyemi was authorized to remain until July 30, 2015, but did not leave the U.S.  On August 16, 2017, the New Carrollton Police Department (“NCPD”) arrested Ogunyemi at a bank in New Carrollton, Maryland, after Ogunyemi presented a fraudulent Nigerian passport and visa in the name of Benjamin Smith to the teller to conduct a financial transaction.  During the arrest, NCPD took possession of three Nigerian passports with U.S. visas, all with Ogunyemi’s photo, but in the names of Benjamin Smith, Benjamin Johnson, and John Wale, as well as a Nigerian driver’s license in the name of Benjamin Smith and an Ohio driver’s license in the name of David Durston recovered from Ogunyemi or from the vehicle that he drove to the bank.

As detailed in his plea agreement, on November 10, 2017, Diplomatic Security Service (“DSS”) agents arrested Ogunyemi at his residence in Owings Mills.  When DSS arrived at the residence to execute the arrest warrant, Ogunyemi absconded through a third-floor balcony and attempted to flee.  DSS also executed a search warrant on Ogunyemi’s vehicle and found an additional Nigerian passport and Nigerian Driver’s License containing Ogunyemi’s photo in the name of Ola Badru, as well as mail addressed to Ogunyemi’s other known aliases. The Department of Homeland Security Forensic Laboratory determined that all of the identity documents recovered from Ogunyemi or his vehicles were counterfeit.  Ogunyemi admitted that he assumed at least five identities in the United States, including four for which he possessed altered Nigerian passports, each containing a forged United States visa.

Ogunyemi further admitted that he participated in a fraud scheme.  Specifically, Ogunyemi opened bank accounts in the names of his various aliases, using the false passports and visas, as well as the name of a purported business.  Ogunyemi received wire transfers, check and cash deposits of hundreds of thousands of dollars into the bank accounts that he exercised control over.  Ogunyemi knew that the funds that he received and deposited into his accounts were the proceeds of unlawful activity, including scams against vulnerable individuals and the defrauding of businesses by email hacking and/or by counterfeit checks.  Ogunyemi, using his various aliases, used the proceeds received and deposited into his accounts to conduct financial transactions in an effort to conceal the unlawful source of the funds.  

The amount of money laundered by Ogunyemi as part of the conspiracy was at least $307,300.

United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended DSS for their work in the investigation and thanked the New Carrollton Police Department for its assistance.  Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joan C. Mathias and Tamera L. Fine, who prosecuted the case.

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John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ANTHONY HUNT, 20, of Winsted, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in Hartford to 12 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for selling heroin to a teen overdose victim. 

This matter stems from an ongoing statewide initiative targeting narcotics dealers who distribute heroin, fentanyl or opioids that cause death or serious injury to users.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on June 2, 2017, at approximately 5:41 p.m., members of the Connecticut State Police responded to a family-owned boat in Washington, Connecticut, on the report of a 17-year-old male in cardiac arrest.  Attempts to revive the victim were not successful and he was pronounced deceased.  Law enforcement officers seized various drug and non-drug evidence from the boat, including suspected heroin, miscellaneous pharmaceutical pills and an iPhone.

The State of Connecticut Medical Examiner determined that the victim died from toxicity associated with a number of controlled substances, including heroin and alprazolam (Xanax).

The investigation, which has included witness interviews and analysis of the seized iPhone, revealed that Hunt sold heroin and Xanax to the victim between May 17 and June 1, 2017, and that the victim traveled to Winsted to purchase drugs from Hunt the day before the victim died.

Hunt was arrested on a criminal complaint on March 22, 2018.  On September 13, 2018, he pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, heroin.

This matter was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration New Haven Task Force and the Connecticut State Police.   The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jocelyn Courtney Kaoutzanis.

John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that KAKRA GYAMBIBI, 38, of Darnestown, Maryland, formerly of Connecticut, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to three months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for health care fraud.

According to court documents, statements made in court and the evidence presented during the trial of her husband, Kwasi Gyambibi, Advantage Pharmacy was a compounding pharmacy located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.  As a compounding pharmacy, Advantage created compound prescription drugs specifically tailored for individual patients who had a medical need for a compound drug, by mixing together individual ingredients in the exact strength and dosage prescribed by the health care provider to meet the unique needs of a patient.  One tube of a compound drug cream prepared and dispensed by Advantage Pharmacy typically cost health care benefit programs thousands of dollars, and some individual tubes of cream cost more than $11,000 for a one-month supply.  Kakra Gyambibi is a physician who worked as a hospitalist at Stamford Hospital, and Kwasi Gyambibi acted as, and eventually became, a sales representative for Advantage Pharmacy.

On January 9, 2019, a grand jury in New Haven returned a 19-count indictment alleging that, in 2014 and 2015, Kwasi and Kakra Gyambibi engaged in a scheme to defraud the State of Connecticut Pharmacy Benefit Plan, TRICARE and other health care programs by submitting prescriptions for compound pharmacy medications prepared and dispensed by Advantage Pharmacy.  Although the prescriptions sent to Advantage Pharmacy contained Kakra Gyambibi’s signature, Kakra Gyambibi did not treat, examine, or even meet with the patients for whom the prescriptions were written.  Based on these false and misleading claims, the victim health care programs paid Advantage Pharmacy for the compound prescription drugs.  Advantage Pharmacy, in tum, paid commissions of between 15 percent to 35 percent to sales representatives, including Kwasi Gyambibi’s close cousin, whom Kwasi Gyambibi considered his brother.

It is alleged that Kwasi and Kakra Gyambibi also induced the victim health care programs to pay Advantage Pharmacy more than $292,000 for their own compound prescription drugs.

The investigation has revealed that this scheme resulted in more than $1.6 million in losses to the victim health care programs.

On January 18, 2019, Kakra Gyambibi pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud. 

On February 22, 2019, a jury found Kwasi Gyambibi guilty of two counts of health care fraud related to fraudulent prescriptions for compound drugs that were submitted to Advantage Pharmacy in March 2015, and found him not guilty of seven counts of health care fraud.  The jury could not reach a verdict on the other 10 counts in the indictment.  Kwasi Gyambibi awaits sentencing.

Judge Meyer will set a hearing to determine restitution at a later date.  The government is seeking $1,650,332.35 in restitution.

Kakra Gyambibi, who is released on a $50,000 bond, is required to report to prison on July 15, 2019.

This investigation has been conducted by New Haven Division of the FBI.  U.S. Attorney Durham thanked the Office of the Attorney General of the State of Connecticut, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Fraud Section, and the Jackson, Mississippi Division of the FBI for their assistance with the investigation.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David J. Sheldon and Christopher W. Schmeisser.

ROCKFORD — A Rockford man was convicted today of aggravated bank robbery after a 3-day jury trial in federal court. 

EDWARD EVERETT JOHNSON III, also known as “Edward Everett,” 34, was found guilty of robbing Chase Bank, 4425 Harrison Ave. in Rockford, on April 20, 2016.

Johnson faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release following imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000, and full restitution.  The Court must impose a reasonable sentence guided by the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines.  Sentencing for Johnson is set for Sept. 9, 2019, at 11:30 a.m.

The conviction was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Jeffrey S. Sallet, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the FBI; and Daniel O’Shea, Rockford Police Chief.  The Rockville City, Md., Police Department, Montgomery County, Md., Police Department, and Amtrak Police Department assisted in the investigation.  The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Monica V. Mallory and Scott R. Paccagnini.

According to the indictment and evidence at trial, Johnson arrived in the parking lot at Chase Bank mid-afternoon on April 20, 2019, driving a taxi mini-van.  At approximately 3:00 p.m., Johnson entered the bank and approached a bank teller, pulled out a handgun and a backpack and told the teller he wanted all the money in her money drawer.  After the teller emptied her drawer and placed the money in the backpack, Johnson left the bank, jumped through the sunroof of the taxi mini-van, and drove it out of the parking lot.  The mini-van was found abandoned in Rockford a few hours later. Later the same day Johnson left the Rockford area and was driven to Chicago by taxi.  

Evidence at trial indicated that Johnson was identified as the suspect, and an arrest warrant was issued.  Johnson then travelled by Amtrak train for Washington, D.C.  When the train stopped in Rockville, Md., Johnson exited the train.  Amtrak Police Department Officers tracked Johnson’s movements and identified him when he left the train station.  The officers attempted to stop Johnson when he fled on foot.  Johnson was apprehended shortly thereafter and placed into the custody of the Rockville City Police Dept.  The Rockville City Police Dept., assisted by a canine unit from the Montgomery County Police Dept., recovered evidence of the bank robbery at the scene of Johnson’s arrest.

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – A Mexican national who illegally crossed the border to enter the United States was charged with possession with intent to distribute nearly 10 pounds of heroin after a traffic stop along US-93, announced United States Attorney Nicholas A. Trutanich for the District of Nevada.

Mario Alberto Bojorquez-Manrique, 27, was charged in a criminal complaint with one count of possession with intent to distribute heroin.

As alleged, on June 10, 2019, a Nevada Highway Patrol trooper observed a northbound car driving in an unsafe manner on US-93. During a traffic stop, Bojorquez-Manrique was identified as the driver and gave consent to search the vehicle. A narcotics K9 alerted the trooper to the dash area of the car. During a hand search of the car, a socket driver with a socket were found on the passenger side floorboard. The trooper noticed some finger prints and tooling marks on the bolts securing the wiper cover to the car. Six foil wrapped packages of heroin weighing approximately 9.6 pounds were recovered from the vehicle. Law enforcement located Bojorquez-Manrique’s notebook in the car containing entries for over a dozen narcotic runs he has made, as well as the recorded dollar amounts of the transactions.

The maximum penalty is life imprisonment with a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years.

The case was investigated by Drug Enforcement Administration, the Nevada Highway Patrol, and the North Las Vegas Police Department.

 A criminal complaint merely contains an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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A Claremore man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court for maintaining a drug-involved premises, being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, and obstruction of justice by using the threat of physical force against a witness.

U.S. District Judge Gregory K. Frizzell sentenced James Kent Patrick Hill, 58, to 25 years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.

Hill previously pleaded guilty to the charges on March 12, 2019. During the plea hearing, he admitted to maintaining his Claremore residence for the purpose of using controlled substances such as methamphetamine, marijuana, alprazolam and diazepam. Hill further admitted to being a felon in possession of 10 firearms, including shotguns, rifles and pistols and more than 1,000 rounds of associated ammunition. Hill also stated that after he was arrested on Sept. 20, 2018, he threatened the use of force against Corporal John Haning, of the Rogers County Sheriff’s Office, when he reached for and nearly unholstered the Corporal’s firearm while being transported to the Rogers County Jail. By grabbing Haning’s firearm, Hill intended to influence, delay, and prevent the testimony of Haning and others in official proceedings.

“James Hill will have 25 years to reflect on his crimes while he serves his sentence in prison,” said U.S. Attorney Shores. “My team is focused on making northeastern Oklahoma neighborhoods safer by targeting drug and gun related crimes through Project Safe Neighborhoods. James Hill made a bad situation worse when he attempted to grab the service weapon of the deputy who had arrested him. Assaults on law enforcement officers and agents will be prosecuted by my office. If there is jurisdiction over the assault, then criminals should expect to meet a federal prosecutor. There is no better partner than the ATF to help us investigate these types of cases. I’m thankful the Rogers County Deputy in this case did not suffer serious injury or worse.”

Hill was remanded into the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service while awaiting state charges.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Verdigris Police Department and Rogers County Sheriff’s Office are the investigative agencies. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Morgan prosecuted the case

CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051

BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Antonio Broadus, 33, of Buffalo, NY, who was convicted of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, fentanyl, was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy C. Lynch, who handled the case, stated that on February 11, 2018, an individual working for the Drug Enforcement Administration arranged to purchase five grams of fentanyl from the defendant. The following day, the individual met up with Broadus in the parking lot of a retail store on Jefferson Avenue in Buffalo. The two exchanged $420 for the five grams of fentanyl. In addition, the defendant also sold another five grams of fentanyl to a separate individual working with the DEA on January 29, 2018.

Today’s sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ray Donovan, New York Field Office.

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BOISE – Gloudina Robbertse, 50, of Meridian, Idaho, was sentenced to 54 months in federal prison for filing false claims for disability benefits with the California Employment Disability Department (CEDD), U.S. Attorney Bart Davis announced today.  Her daughter, Chantelle Robbertse, 24, a co-defendant in the case, was sentenced to 24 months for her role in the fraud scheme.  U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge also ordered Gloudina and Chantelle Robbertse to pay $475,350.28 in restitution to the CEDD.

According to court records, while living in California, Gloudina and Chantelle Robbertse devised and executed a scheme to defraud the CEDD.  They continued the scheme when they moved to Idaho in April 2017.  Gloudina and Chantelle Robbertse filed false disability claims using the identity of real persons without their knowledge.  Once the claims were approved by the CEDD, a debit card was issued in the name of the claimants being impersonated.  Gloudina and Chantelle Robbertse used commercial mailboxes set up in California and Idaho to receive the debit cards.  Thereafter, Gloudina and Chantelle withdrew money from the debit cards at banks in Idaho and California for their own personal financial gain.

“Identity theft disrupts lives, creates financial havoc and causes undue emotional stress for victims,” said Davis.  “Those who callously defraud individuals will be prosecuted and punished.  I commend the diligent efforts of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) for stopping these identity thieves in their tracks.  The Court’s restitution order ensures any assets will go toward repairing the financial harm caused to the victims in this case.”

“It is widely believed that fraud cases are victimless crimes, but that could not be farther from the truth,” said Brad Bench, Special Agent in Charge of HSI Seattle.  “These individuals stole money that was intended for people in need, some of which solely rely on government programs for life’s necessities.  When someone’s identity is stolen it can take several years to correct the issue.  Often times this leaves victims without the ability to obtain funds they desperately need, from programs meant to assist them, all while struggling to prove their own financial responsibility.  Ultimately, victims and taxpayers bare the largest burden when crimes like this occur.  HSI’s mission to bring these criminals to justice is instrumental to protecting the public and keeping these government programs intact.”

Gloudina Robbertse pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft on December 6, 2018.  On that same day, Chantelle Robbertse pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated identity theft.

This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations.

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BOISE - Rick Guyon, a/k/a, Richard Guyon, a/k/a Rick Garrison, a/k/a Mark Thomas, 59, of Pocatello, Idaho, was sentenced yesterday in United States District Court, to 120 months in prison, for wire fraud, U.S. Attorney Bart M. Davis announced.  U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge also ordered the defendant to pay $1,956,400 in restitution to the victims and to serve three years of supervised release after he is released from prison.  Guyon pleaded guilty to the wire fraud offense on June 28, 2018.

According to court records, from 2015 through 2017, Guyon devised a scheme to defraud individual investors.  The scheme involved soliciting $1,956,400 from investors based on false and fraudulent representations about Guyon’s education, employment history, and financial condition, false and fraudulent representations that the money would be invested in financial markets, and that he would not collect any commissions on the investments.  Once Guyon obtained the money, he spent it on personal expenses.  To cover up what he had done, Guyon provided investors with false and fraudulent monthly account statements showing positive returns on investments.

According to court records, Guyon’s scheme to defraud investors (i) resulted in an actual loss of between $1,500,000 and $3,500,000; (ii) resulted in a substantial financial hardship to investor-victim R.F., who personally lost approximately $1,281,783 and (iii) involved the defendant acting as an organizer and leader of at least three other participants in the scheme.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

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SAN JOSE – Ana Bajo, a/k/a Ana Covarrubias, was sentenced to 14 months in prison for her role in a conspiracy to file fraudulent claims for income tax refunds, announced U.S. Attorney David L. Anderson, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, and Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Special Agent in Charge Kareem Carter.  The sentence was handed down today by the Honorable Lucy H. Koh, U.S. District Judge. 

According to documents and information provided to the court, during 2012, Bajo, 43, of Salinas, conspired with Jacqueline Ramos and Norma Morfin to obtain the personal identifying information of others and use it to file more than 2,300 fraudulent income tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  These returns reported fake wages and fraudulently claimed dependents, education expenses, and tax credits.  In total, the returns sought approximately $9.7 million in refunds, of which the IRS paid more than $7.5 million. Bajo and her co-conspirators directed the fraudulently obtained refund checks into bank accounts that they controlled. 

On July 13, 2017, a federal grand jury indicted Bajo charging her with conspiracy to submit false claims, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 286.  Bajo pleaded guilty to the charge. 

In addition to the prison term, Judge Koh ordered Bajo to pay $1,641,610 in restitution and to serve three years of supervised release, following the completion of her term in prison.  

Bajo was the fourth defendant to be sentenced by Judge Koh for having a role in the tax fraud scheme: Ramos was ordered to serve 60 months in prison, Morfin was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison, and Antonio Ahumada Rivas was ordered to serve 21 months in prison.  

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael G. Pitman and Trial Attorney Christopher Magnani of the Tax Division are prosecuting this case.   This prosecution is a result of an investigation by the IRS Criminal Investigation.
 

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Efrain Diaz Alachan, age 46, and a citizen of El Salvador, was sentenced today to 21 months in prison, for illegal re-entry into the United States.

The announcement was made by United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and Thomas E. Feeley, Director of the Buffalo Field Office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).

As part of his guilty plea entered on February 12, 2019,  Diaz Alachan admitted that he was removed from the United States to El Salvador five times, the most recent removal date being March 15, 2016.  Diaz Alachan admitted that he returned to the United States following the removals without the necessary government permission. 

On December 18, 2018, ICE Officers arrested Diaz Alachan at his residence in Schenectady, New York. 

Diaz Alachan was previously convicted of this same offense, re-entry of a removed alien, in the Northern District of New York in 2011 and 2013, and in the Southern District of Texas in 2015.      

This case was investigated by ICE-ERO and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward P. Grogan.

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Steven Reynolds, age 38, of Auburn, New York, was sentenced today by Chief United States District Court Judge Glenn T. Suddaby to serve 78 months’ imprisonment and 3 years of supervised release for being a felon in possession of firearms, announced United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and John B. DeVito, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).

In May 2018, Reynolds drove a car with a stolen Browning 16-guage shotgun and a stolen Savage .308 caliber rifle to a parking lot in the Auburn area.  While in the parking lot, Reynolds personally moved both firearms from the back of the car he was driving into the back of a Jeep occupied by two other individuals who then drove away with the firearms.  Reynolds is prohibited from possessing firearms as he has two prior New York State felony drug convictions, one in 2005, the other in 2012.

This case was investigated by U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Finger Lakes Drug Task Force, consisting of law enforcement officers from the City of Auburn Police Department and the Cayuga County Sheriff’s Office, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sahar Amandolare and Michael Gadarian.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the U.S. Justice Department’s program to reduce violent crime.  The PSN approach involves collaboration by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, and communities to prevent and deter gun violence and to arrest and prosecute offenders. 

RALEIGH– The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina is promoting the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Elder Justice Initiative (EJI) throughout the Wake County area.  On June 13, 2019, the Eastern District partnered with Meals on Wheels in Wake County to conduct outreach to approximately 1,300 seniors in the area to raise awareness about DOJ’s Elder Justice Initiative and provide facts about elder abuse. Elder abuse includes physical abuse, psychological abuse, sexual abuse, neglect and abandonment, and financial abuse.    

Below are some facts shared with the community about the impact of elder abuse, neglect and exploitation: 

•Elder abuse triples the risk of premature death and causes unnecessary illness, injury, and suffering.

•Victims of elder abused are four times more likely to be admitted to a nursing home and three times more likely to be admitted to a hospital.

•Financial exploitation causes large economic losses for businesses, families, elders, and government programs, and increases reliance on federal and state health care programs, such as Medicare and    Medicaid.

•Older adults with cognitive incapacity suffer significantly greater economic losses than those without such incapacity.

•As a result of providing care for an older adult, some caregivers experience declines in their own physical and mental health.

The mission of the Elder Justice Initiative is to support and coordinate DOJ’s enforcement and programmatic efforts to prevent and combat elder abuse, neglect, financial exploitation and scams that target our nation’s seniors by promoting justice for older adults; helping older victims and their families; enhancing state and local efforts through training and resources; and supporting research to improve elder abuse policy and practice. 

For more information about DOJ’s efforts to prevent and combat elder abuse, please visit the Elder Justice Website at https://www.justice.gov/elderjustice.  Elder fraud complaints may be filed with the FTC at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov or at 877-FTC-HELP. You can also contact the Victim Connect Hotline between 9am-6pm, Monday through Friday, at: 1- 855-4VICTIM (1-855-4842846), or contact the Elder Justice Coordinator at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina at (919) 856-4530.

Gulfport, Miss. – Andres Barrientos-Flores, 33, an illegal alien from El Salvador, pled guilty yesterday before U.S. District Judge Sul Ozerden to unlawful return of an alien after removal, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst, Jere T. Miles, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations in New Orleans, and Gregory K. Bovino, Chief Patrol Agent of the Border Patrol’s New Orleans Sector.    

Barrientos-Flores is scheduled to be sentenced on Thursday, September 5, 2019, at 9:00 a.m., by Judge Ozerden.  He faces a potential two years in federal prison followed by one year of supervised release, a $250,000 fine, and Department of Homeland Security removal proceedings.

On March 26, 2019, on Interstate-10, in Jackson County, an agent of the South Mississippi Metro Enforcement Team observed a 2019 white GMC Yukon traveling in the far-left passing lane below the posted speed limit and impeding the flow of traffic. The agent initiated a traffic stop on the SUV, which was bearing Maryland license plates.  Later, a U.S. Border Patrol Agent arrived on the scene to assist and made contact with the driver and identified Barrientos-Flores as a passenger in the SUV.  Both men were later transported to the U.S. Border Patrol station in Gulfport for further processing and investigation. 

Barrientos-Flores was positively identified by a computer scan of his fingerprints into a Homeland Security Database that automatically accessed his official immigration records. He was determined to have unlawfully returned to the United States after having been previously removed on August 24, 2018.  He was prohibited from entering, attempting to enter, being in the United States, or applying for admission, for a period of 10 years.

U.S. Attorney Hurst praised the cooperation exhibited by the Department of Homeland Security, the United States Border Patrol, Homeland Security Investigations, the South Mississippi Metro Enforcement Team, and the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department.  Assistant United States Attorney Stan Harris is the prosecutor for the case. 

SHREVEPORT, La. –United StatesAttorney David C. Joseph announced thatJames Goldman Grant, 67, of Benton, Louisiana, was sentenced Monday to four years and three months in prison by Chief U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. for possession of child pornography.  He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release and is required to register as a sex offender.

According to information presented in court, law enforcement agents discovered that James Grant’s friend, James Robert Wilson, 34, of Bossier City, Louisiana, had been downloading child pornography.  During a search of Wilson’s home on November 6, 2017, agents found more than 100 images of child pornography on electronic devices.  Wilson admitted to possessing and distributing images and videos of child pornography and also told the agents that he had met with James Grant, a retired Bossier Parish Sheriff’s deputy, at Grant’s home to view and exchange child pornography.  During a search of Grant’s home on November 6, 2017, agents discovered a thumb drive containing approximately 18 videos and 23 images of child pornography.  After his arrest, Grant admitted to meeting with Wilson at his home and admitted to downloading the child pornography to watch together with Wilson while he was there.  James Grant pleaded guilty on February 11, 2019.

James Robert Wilson pleaded guilty on December 11, 2018 for distributing child pornography, and he was sentenced on March 20, 2019 to 188 months in prison, five years of supervised release and is required to register as a sex offender. 

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood combines 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.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) also encourage the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at (866) 347-2423.  Investigators are available at all hours to answer hotline calls.  Tips or other information can also be submitted to ICE online by visiting their website at www.ice.gov/exec/forms/hsi-tips/tips.asp or through the Operation Predator smartphone application www.ice.gov/predator/smartphone-app.  Tips may be submitted anonymously.

The Homeland Security Investigations, FBI, and Louisiana Bureau of Investigation, Cyber Crime Unit, conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Aaron Crawford prosecuted the case.

PROVIDENCE – A Brooklyn, N.Y., clothing and goods wholesaler pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Providence today to charges related to his participation in a conspiracy that sold more than twenty million dollars worth of Chinese-made counterfeit goods to the United States military, government purchasers, and companies that supply the U.S. Government.

Among the items that Ramin Kohanbash, 49, and others arranged to counterfeit were 200 military parkas of a type used by U.S. Air Force personnel stationed in Afghanistan. These parkas were falsely represented to be genuine Multicam®, a fabric which incorporates specialized near-infrared management technology designed to make the wearer more difficult to detect with equipment such as night-vision goggles.

Other items carried labels that made explicit, and false, representations about the product’s safety. In one case, labels on counterfeit hoods intended for military and law enforcement personnel stated that the items were “permanently flame resistant,” and that they met a specific industry standard for flame-resistant attire. In reality, the counterfeit hoods were not flame resistant. 

“Our men and women in uniform confront danger every day to defend this nation and its values.” said U.S. Attorney Weisman. “The uniforms they wear and the gear they carry are meant to protect them as they carry out their mission, not to put them in harm’s way. This case should serve notice that suppliers who do business with the military must comply with the law, or they will be held to account.” 

"Individuals and companies that sell counterfeit goods to the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) endanger the safety and effectiveness of our military," stated Leigh-Alistair Barzey, Special Agent in Charge of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service's (DCIS) Northeast Field Office.  "Today’s guilty plea is the direct result of a joint investigative effort with the General Services Administration OIG, Army CID, Air Force OSI and Homeland Security Investigations, and demonstrate DCIS' ongoing commitment to work with its law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney's Office to protect the integrity of the DoD's procurement process."

Kohanbash admitted to the Court that he and others provided, reviewed, and approved photographs, descriptions, and samples of tags and labels to be attached to the knockoff products, so that the counterfeit versions appeared legitimate. Trademarks and brand names of actual U.S.-made products were added to the foreign counterfeit versions to make them appear legitimate. 

The goods were shipped from China to Kohanbash and sold to other wholesalers who ultimately marketed and sold the knock-off products to military and government buyers as genuine, American-made products.

Under two U.S. laws known as The Berry Amendment and the Trade Agreements Act (“TAA”), goods sold to the military and certain other government buyers are required to be manufactured in the United States and certain other designated countries; China is not one of those countries.  In order to sell the counterfeit goods, Kohanbash provided wholesalers who did business with the government with false certification letters claiming that the goods were made in the U.S., and therefore complied with the Berry Amendment.  In other instances, Kohanbash falsely represented that the goods met TAA requirements. 

Kohanbash further admitted that the Government is entitled to forfeit twenty million dollars representing proceeds of the offenses, along with actual counterfeit goods seized during the investigation.

Kohanbash’s guilty plea to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and trafficking in counterfeit goods is announced by United States Attorney Aaron L. Weisman; Leigh-Alistair Barzey, Special Agent-in-Charge of Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Northeast Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Luis A. Hernandez, General Services Administration Office of Inspector General, New England Regional Investigations Office; Resident Agent in Charge Michael D. Conner, Boston Fraud Resident Agency, US Army Criminal Investigation Command; Jason T. Hein, Special Agent in Charge, Air Force Office of Special Investigations, Office of Procurement Fraud Investigation, Detachment; Homeland Security Investigations Newark, NJ, Special Agent in Charge Brian A. Michael, Troy Miller, Director of Custom and Border Protection, New York Field Office.

Kohanbash is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Court on Chief Judge William E. Smith on January 17, 2020.

Conspiracy to commit wire fraud is punishable by statutory penalties of up to 5 years in federal prison, 3 years supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000; Trafficking in counterfeit goods is punishable by statutory penalties of up to 10 years in federal prison, 3 years supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000.

 The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sandra R. Hebert and Zachary A. Cunha.

SAVANNAH, GA:  Two Georgia men are among nearly 1,700 arrested for child sex exploitation crimes as part of a nationwide Department of Justice initiative.

Steven Andrew Ross, 29, of Savannah, is charged with Attempted Sex Trafficking of a Minor and Attempted Coercion and Enticement of a Minor to Engage in Sexual Activity for incidents in Camden and Chatham counties, and Benjamin Ray, 38, of Honea Path, S.C., is charged with Attempted Coercion and Enticement of a Minor to Engage in Sexual Activity and Felony Offense Involving a Minor Committed by a Registered Sex Offender for incidents in Chatham County, said Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.

The federal charges for which Ray is indicted carry a penalty of 20 years to life in prison, while the charges against Ross carry a penalty of 10 years to life in prison. There is no parole in the federal system, and if released, each defendant would be subject to serve supervised release for five years to life.

“As the perception of sexual exploitation of children continues to move from windowless vans in back alleys to Dark Web sites on the Internet, the investigation and prosecution of these vile crimes must continue to evolve,” said U.S. Attorney Christine. “We are determined, with our law enforcement partners, to find these criminals wherever they try to hide and protect the innocent from victimization.”

Operation Broken Heart, a nationwide operation conducted during April and May by the Internet Crimes Against Children task forces, led to the arrest of nearly 1,700 suspected online child sex offenders. The task forces identified 308 offenders who either produced child pornography or committed child sexual abuse, and identified 357 children who suffered recent, ongoing or historical sexual abuse or were exploited in the production of child pornography.

During the course of the operation, the task forces investigated more than 18,500 complaints of technology-facilitated crimes targeting children and delivered more than 2,150 presentations on internet safety to over 201,000 youth and adults.

“The sexual abuse of children is repugnant, and it victimizes the most innocent and vulnerable of all," Attorney General William P. Barr said. “We must bring the full force of the law against sexual predators, and with the help of our Internet Crimes Against Children program, we will. Over the span of just two months, our ICAC task forces investigated more than 18,000 complaints of internet-related abuse and helped arrest 1,700 alleged abusers. I would like to thank our Office of Justice Programs, all of the task force members, and especially the state and local partners who helped us achieve these important results. We are committed to bringing the defendants in these cases to justice and protecting every American child.”

“Sexual exploitation steals the innocence of children, and the criminals who engage in these acts often inflict life-long trauma on their victims,” said Special Agent in Charge Nick S. Annan of the Atlanta field office of Homeland Security Investigations. “HSI is committed to investigating child exploitation cases as one of its highest priorities, and we deeply appreciate the efforts of our U.S. Attorney partners to protect children from these terrible crimes.”

The ICAC Program is funded through the Department’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) within the Office of Justice Programs (OJP). For more information, visit the ICAC Task Force webpage at www.icactaskforce.org.

Criminal indictments contain only charges; defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The cases in the Southern District of Georgia are being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Savannah Police Department, in conjunction with the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The cases are being prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorney Tania Groover.

BOSTON – A Roxbury man identified as John Doe was convicted yesterday by a federal jury in Boston of using another person’s identity for over 40 years.

John Doe, whose true identity is unknown, was convicted of aggravated identity theft; using a passport obtained through false statements; stealing public funds; and misuse of a Social Security number. U.S. District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock scheduled sentencing for Sept. 18, 2019.

At some point prior to 1975, Doe, who is suspected to be a Dominican national, obtained the birth certificate of a U.S. citizen from Puerto Rico. Initially, Doe did not have the U.S. citizen’s Social Security number, so he created or obtained a counterfeit Social Security card bearing the U.S. citizen’s name with a non-matching Social Security number that was assigned to a different person from Puerto Rico. From 1975 to 1994, Doe used the counterfeit Social Security card to find employment, first in New York, and later in Boston.

In 1994, Doe received a letter from the IRS notifying him that the name on his Social Security card did not match the Social Security number he was using and that he needed to go to a local Social Security Administration (SSA) office to resolve the discrepancy. Doe took the letter to an SSA office in Roxbury, where he deceived an SSA employee into believing that he was the person whose identity he had stolen and that he had forgotten his true Social Security number. Doe gave the employee the name, date of birth, place of birth, and parents’ names on the U.S. citizen’s birth certificate without disclosing that the birth certificate was not his own. The employee entered this biographical information into the SSA computer, which returned a match for the U.S. citizen’s true Social Security number. Through this deception, Doe was able to obtain a Social Security card bearing the U.S. citizen’s true name and true Social Security number.

Doe used this unlawfully obtained Social Security card for the next 18 years, until the U.S. citizen died in Puerto Rico in 2012. At that point SSA learned that someone in Massachusetts was using a deceased person’s Social Security number and began a fraud investigation.

Doe used the stolen identity to work in Boston, obtain and travel on a U.S. passport, apply for unemployment benefits, and obtain public housing benefits for himself and his family.

The charge of aggravated identity theft provides for a mandatory sentence of two years in prison, to be served consecutive to any other sentence imposed, up to one year of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. The charges of using a passport obtained through false statements, and stealing public funds, each provide for a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of misuse of a Social Security number provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Peter C. Fitzhugh, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston; Scott Antolik, Special Agent in Charge of the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Boston Field Division; William B. Gannon, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of State, Diplomatic Security Service, Boston Field Office; Michael Mikulka, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Labor Racketeering and Fraud; and Christina Scaringi, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, Northeast Regional Office, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christine Wichers and David Tobin of Lelling’s Major Crimes Unit are prosecuting the case.

BOSTON – A Boston man was indicted yesterday in federal court in Boston in connection with trafficking fentanyl.  

Anthony Smallwood, 28, was indicted on two counts of distribution of, and possession with intent to distribute, fentanyl, and three counts of distribution of, and possession with intent to distribute, more than 40 grams of fentanyl. On May 22, 2019, Smallwood was arrested and charged by criminal complaint. He has been in custody since.

According to court records, between March and May 2019, Smallwood engaged in five separate drug sales of fentanyl to a confidential informant.

The charges of distribution of, and possession with intent to distribute, fentanyl each provide for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, a minimum of three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $1 million; the charges involving more than 40 grams of fentanyl carry a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 40 years in prison, a minimum of four years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $5 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Office, made the announcement. This case was investigated by the FBI’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Strike Force with valuable assistance from the Boston Police Department and the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen W. Hassink of Lelling’s Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit is 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.