COVINGTON, Ky.– A Richmond, Kentucky man, Lavone Dixon, 36, was sentenced to 312 months in prison, by U.S. District Judge David Bunning, for possession of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute it and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

According to testimony at his trial, on September 17, 2019, Dixon traveled to Dayton, Ohio, to pick up more than three ounces of crystal methamphetamine for distribution.  He was arrested in Grant County, Kentucky, while in route to Richmond with the methamphetamine. Agents executed a search warrant on Dixon’s residence and located three firearms concealed inside.  Dixon was a convicted felon at the time of these offenses and was prohibited from possessing firearms.  Testimony indicated that Dixon had, several times a month since 2016, traveled to Dayton for large quantities of methamphetamine and heroin and distributed those drugs in the Richmond area. 

Dixon was convicted of the charges in May 2021.

Under federal law, Dixon must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence and will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for five years, following his release. 

Carlton S. Shier IV, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Shawn Morrow, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and Col. Phillip Burnett, Commissioner of the Kentucky State Police, jointly announced the sentence.

The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Kentucky State Police, Gateway Area Drug Task Force and the Madison County Drug Task Force, and the Miami Valley Bulk Smuggling Task Force. The United States was represented in the case by Assistant U.S. Attorney Tony Bracke.  

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Miami, Florida – A Highlands County, Florida tax return preparer was sentenced yesterday to 37 months imprisonment for filing fraudulent tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

Benny Aguilar, 49, of Lake Placid, owned and operated B&A Services, a tax preparation business, located in Lake Placid.  From approximately 2014 through 2018, Aguilar filed fraudulent returns for his clients seeking refunds to which the clients were not entitled by reporting fictitious residential energy credits and inflating the federal income tax withholdings.  For each of the years 2014 through 2018, Aguilar submitted approximately 2,235 returns claiming residential energy credits.  At sentencing, it was uncontested that Aguilar’s submission of fraudulent tax returns resulted in a loss amount to the IRS of $2,988,702.00.

U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon also sentenced Aguilar to one year of supervised release and ordered him to pay $92,230.00 in restitution.

Juan Antonio Gonzalez, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Special Agent in Charge Brian Payne, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) made the announcement.

IRS-CI Tampa Field Office investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Diana M. Acosta prosecuted it.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 21-cr-14020.

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RALEIGH, N.C. – Jaylen Nashawn Spivey, of Elizabeth City, was sentenced today to 64 months in prison for possession of a firearm by a felon.  On April 28, 2021, Spivey pled guilty to the charge.    

According to court documents and statements made during hearings, on the afternoon of Thursday, September 17, 2020, the Elizabeth City Police Department responded to a 911 call for a domestic disturbance.  The caller reported that a man had been yelling at a woman and was leaving the scene in a white Dodge Charger.  As officers arrived, the caller advised that the suspect was at the end of the adjacent street.

An officer went to that location and found the defendant Jaylen Spivey sitting alone in the driver’s seat of a car.  Officers approached to ask Spivey about the situation, and when Spivey rolled down his car window, they could smell marijuana.  They noted that Spivey’s clothing matched what the 911 caller had described. 

After detaining Spivey, the officers searched the car.  They recovered a scale and amounts of heroin and marijuana.  On the driver’s side floorboard, partially covered with clothing, officers found a black Ruger 9mm handgun.  In a later interview, Spivey admitted he had purchased the Ruger a couple months before his arrest for his own protection while selling drugs.  Spivey, who has a prior felony conviction for heroin, is a known associate of the Elizabeth City G-Shine Bloods street gang.  

G. Norman Acker, III, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Terrence W. Boyle. The Elizabeth City Police Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Jake D. Pugh prosecuted the case.

Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:20-cr-0044-BO.

GREAT FALLS — A Florida man who admitted to trafficking methamphetamine in Great Falls and to transporting $80,000 in stolen ATVs and other property in a cross-country crime spree that ended in Missouri was sentenced today to 11 years and four months in prison and to be followed by four years of supervised release, Acting U.S. Attorney Leif M. Johnson said.

Harold Goodson Hill, 37, pleaded guilty in July to possession with intent to distribute meth and to interstate transportation of stolen property.

Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided. Chief Judge Morris also ordered $70,364 restitution.

The government alleged in court documents that in September 2020, the Great Falls Police Department responded to a series of theft complaints around town of various items, including an ATV from a pickup truck. While responding to a report, officers found Hill asleep in the driver’s seat of a vehicle and seized stolen items found in the vehicle. In October 2020, law enforcement learned Hill had been selling meth in Great Falls and that he was receiving suspicious packages from Las Vegas to an address he had in Townsend.  Officers stopped Hill after he picked up a package at the Townsend post office, seized the package and determined it contained 1.9 pounds of meth. Hill told agents he had come to Montana from Virginia in April 2020 and admitted to distributing meth. The agents released Hill.

The government further alleged that Hill rented a 26-foot Penske truck in Whitehall on Oct. 29, 2020. A trooper in Missouri ultimately stopped the Penske truck, which was pulling a trailer that had been stolen from Broadwater County. Hill was the driver and sole occupant of the truck. Officers searched the truck and trailer and found five ATVs and a UTV that had been stolen in Montana and South Dakota, along with a Toro lawnmower and other items. The estimated value of the stolen items was $80,000.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica A. Betley and Jeffrey K. Starnes prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, Great Falls Police Department, Russell Country Drug Task Force, Broadwater County Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Postal Service, Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office, South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, Belle Fourche Police Department, South Dakota, Sioux Falls Police Department, South Dakota, and Missouri State Highway Patrol.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a U.S. Department of Justice initiative to reduce violent crime. Through PSN, federal, tribal, state and local law enforcement partners in Montana focus on violent crime driven by methamphetamine trafficking, armed robbers, firearms offenses and violent offenders with outstanding warrants.

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. – U.S. District Judge Max O. Cogburn, Jr. sentenced Solomon Davon Gilliam, 37, of Charlotte today to 108 months in prison for robbing a store owner at gunpoint, announced William T. Stetzer, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.  Judge Cogburn also ordered Gilliam to serve two years of supervised release after he is released from prison.

Richard R. Wells, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division, and Chief Johnny Jennings, of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, join Acting U.S. Attorney Stetzer in making today’s announcement.

According to filed court documents and today’s sentencing hearing, on June 30, 2018, at approximately 2:00 p.m., Gilliam entered Tobacco 2022, a retail store located at 2020 Beatties Ford Road in Charlotte. The store owner, M.D., and Gilliam were alone inside the store at the time. Soon after entering, Gilliam approached M.D. and struck him in the back of the head, causing M.D. to fall down. While holding a pistol in his hand, Gilliam ordered M.D. to hand over his wallet. The victim complied and Gilliam took $500 from the victim’s wallet along with the victim’s phone. Gilliam then threatened to kill M.D. if M.D. did not open the store’s register. The victim opened the register and Gilliam took approximately $2,800 in cash. After ordering the victim to stand in the corner, Gilliam fled the store on foot. Gilliam was later arrested by law enforcement in South Carolina.

In July 2020, Gilliam pleaded guilty to robbery of a business affecting interstate commerce, or Hobbs Act robbery. He is currently in custody and will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. 

The investigation was handled by the FBI and CMPD.  Assistant U.S. Attorney William Bozin, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, prosecuted the case.   

Greenbelt, Maryland – After a five-day trial, a federal jury yesterday convicted Francis Arthur, age 35, of Silver Spring, Maryland, for a money laundering conspiracy and for money laundering in connection with a scheme to defraud victim account holders at a credit union. The jury acquitted Arthur of a wire fraud conspiracy charge.   

The verdict was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Special Agent in Charge Matthew R. Stohler of the U.S. Secret Service Washington Field Office and Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Department of Police.

According to the evidence presented at Arthur’s trial, from October 2016 through April 2017, Arthur and his co-conspirators engaged in financial transactions designed to conceal the nature, source and ownership of the proceeds of a fraud scheme to obtain cash from victim account holders at a Maryland credit union.  Specifically, the evidence showed that the conspirators transferred, withdrew cash, and caused cashiers’ checks to be issued from the proceeds of a fraud scheme.  Arthur and his co-conspirators then used the funds to purchase motor vehicles to conceal that the funds were derived from a fraud scheme. 

Arthur faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for the money laundering conspiracy and for each of five counts of money laundering.   U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm has not yet scheduled sentencing.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the U.S. Secret Service and the Montgomery County Department of Police for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin B. Pulice and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Christian Nauvel, who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Joseph A. DiBruno, Jr., 52, of Gastonia, N.C., was indicted by a federal grand jury on bank fraud charges, announced William T. Stetzer, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. The indictment was unsealed this morning following DiBruno’s arrest and initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge David C. Keesler.

Robert R. Wells, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division, and Tommy D. Coke, Inspector in Charge of the Atlanta Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which oversees Charlotte, join Acting U.S. Attorney Stetzer in making today’s announcement.

According to the indictment, in 2008, DiBruno was sentenced to 262 months in prison after pleading guilty in the Western District of North Carolina to conspiracy to defraud the United States, money laundering conspiracy, and concealment of assets. On April 8, 2020, DiBruno was approved by the federal Bureau of Prisons for placement on home confinement due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The indictment alleges that after his release to home confinement in May 2020, DiBruno obtained or attempted to obtain loans from at least two financial institutions, based on fraudulent statements and false information he submitted on loan applications. For example, on one loan application DiBruno falsely claimed that he had been employed as Director of Data Analytics by a company listed as M.R.S., that he earned an average monthly salary of up to $8,000, and that had he had lived at the residential address listed on the application for over four years, all of which information was untrue. The indictment also alleges that between May 2020 and June 2021, DiBruno submitted at least five fraudulent loan applications to two financial institutions seeking funds totaling over $120,000.

DiBruno is charged with five counts of making false statements to a credit union. Each count carries a penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1million fine.

The details contained in the indictment are allegations.  The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The FBI and USPIS led the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Caryn Finley of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte is prosecuting the case.

BOSTON – A Hull man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston in connection with submitting fraudulent documentation in order to receive CARES Act small business loans.  

Shane Spierdowis, 31, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns scheduled sentencing for Feb. 24, 2022. Spierdowis was indicted on March 30, 2021.

Spierdowis used false Social Security numbers and fraudulent documentation to apply for federally funded Small Business Administration (SBA) loans issued in connection with the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act). Spierdowis obtained an SBA Paycheck Protection Program loan of $101,517 in the name of a Limited Liability Company (LLC), the funds for which were wired to a bank in Massachusetts. Spierdowis provided a fraudulent corporate bank statement reflecting a balance exceeding $220,000 but dated before the pertinent bank account was ever opened.

Spierdowis also obtained an SBA Economic Injury Disaster loan (EIDL) in the amount of $89,900 using a separate LLC. With respect to both loans, Spierdowis used Social Security numbers different from his own. He also submitted fraudulent federal tax forms for both LLCs that included his signature, as president of each LLC, and the purported payment of hundreds of thousands of dollars in wages to LLC employees during each quarter in 2019. In reality, however, for part of Q1 2019 and all of Q2 – Q4 2019, Spierdowis was in federal custody after violating his probation arising from a conviction for conspiracy to commit securities fraud. Spierdowis informed the court of his efforts to obtain work in early 2019 without mentioning anything about his supposed presidency of either LLC.

The charging statute provides for a sentence of up to 20 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 upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.  

Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell and Frederick J. Regan, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service, Boston Field Office, made the announcement. The Hull Police Department provided valuable assistance with the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney William Abely, Chief of Mendell’s Criminal Division, is prosecuting the case.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

PENSACOLA, FLORIDA– John E. Acker, 52, formerly of Santa Rosa Beach, has been charged with 37 counts of wire fraud and 7 counts of money laundering. The indictment was announced today by Jason R. Coody, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, following Acker’s arrest Tuesday night in Lee County, Florida.

The indictment alleges that between 2013 and 2020, Acker solicited and induced numerous individuals and corporations to invest money with him by making various fraudulent misrepresentations, including that the investment was for a real estate or other business-related “deal” with high guaranteed returns. He allegedly told investors the “deal” was for a purchase and sale, or “flip,” of a property or business. Acker is charged with using those funds meant for investments to instead pay for his personal expenses or pay back prior investors whose funds had previously been misused. The indictment also alleges that Acker made other false statements to gain investors’ trust and influence them to invest, such as mischaracterizing or falsifying his relationship with attorneys, business owners, or other prominent members of the community and claiming he had independent wealth from a trust fund. He purportedly used his corporate entities, including Miracle Strip Holdings X LLC, Fujimo Development LLC, and Shipwreck Road LLC, to commit the alleged fraud. Acker is also charged with laundering the proceeds of his investment fraud scheme by making large payments and monetary transfers in excess of $10,000.

Aker’s trial date will be set upon his appearance in the United States District Court in Pensacola.

This case resulted from a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Alicia Forbes and Ryan Love are prosecuting this case.

An indictment is merely an allegation by a grand jury that a defendant has committed a violation of federal criminal law and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

Over 80 Collection Sites Located Throughout West Virginia

Available from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 23rd

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – United States Attorney Will Thompson encourages West Virginians to rid their homes of unneeded  medications during DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day this Saturday, October 23, 2021 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.  The national event offers free and anonymous disposal of unused and unwanted medications that are susceptible to diversion.

According to a report published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a majority of people who misused a prescription medication obtained the medicine from a family member or friend. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that last year, more than 93,000 people died of drug overdoses in the United States, marking the largest number of drug-related deaths ever recorded in a year. Opioid-related deaths accounted for 75 percent of all overdose deaths in 2020.

For more than a decade, DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day has helped Americans easily rid their homes of unneeded medications—those that are old, unwanted, or no longer needed—that too often become a gateway to addiction. Working in close partnership with local law enforcement, Take Back Day has removed more than 7,000 tons of medication from circulation since its inception. These efforts are directly in line with DEA’s priority to combat the rise of overdoses plaguing the United States.

“The United States is in the midst of an opioid epidemic—drug overdoses are up thirty percent over the last year alone and taking more than 250 lives every day,” stated DEA Administrator Anne Milgram. “The majority of opioid addictions in America start with prescription pills found in medicine cabinets at home. What’s worse, criminal drug networks are exploiting the opioid crisis by making and falsely marketing deadly, fake pills as legitimate prescriptions, which are now flooding U.S. communities. One thing is clear: prevention starts at home. I urge Americans to do their part to prevent prescription pill misuse: simply take your unneeded medications to a local collection site. It’s simple, free, anonymous, and it can save a life.”

“A record number of West Virginians tragically lost their lives to drug overdose last year,” said United States Attorney Will Thompson.  “I urge all West Virginians within the Southern District to clean out their medicine cabinets and drop off unnecessary, unused or expired medications at a nearby collection site this Saturday. Those participating in National Prescription Drug Take Back Day will be helping to prevent prescription medications from being diverted and abused.  I thank DEA for organizing this life-saving biannual event.”

“With more Americans dying from drug overdoses than ever before, DEA’s Drug Take-Back Day is one way that folks can help make their communities safer, simply by disposing of their unneeded or expired medications,” said Special Agent in Charge Todd Scott, who heads the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s Louisville Division.  “We’re providing a safe and convenient way to help keep potentially harmful medications out of the wrong hands.”

DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is more important than ever before. Last month, DEA issued a Public Safety Alert and launched the One Pill Can Kill public awareness campaign to warn Americans of a surge in deadly, fake prescription pills driven by drug traffickers seeking to exploit the U.S. opioid epidemic and prescription pill misuse. Criminal drug networks are shipping chemicals from China to Mexico where they are converted to dangerous substances like fentanyl and methamphetamine and then pressed into pills. The end result—deadly, fake prescription pills—are what these criminal drug networks make and market to prey on Americans for profit. These fake, deadly pills are widely available and deadlier than ever. Fake pills are designed to appear nearly identical to legitimate prescriptions such as Oxycontin®, Percocet®, Vicodin®, Adderall®, Xanax® and other medicines.Criminal drug networks are selling these pills through social media, e-commerce, the dark web and existing distribution networks.

Along with the alert came a warning that the only safe medications are ones prescribed by a trusted medical professional and dispensed by a licensed pharmacist. Any pills that do not meet this standard are unsafe and potentially deadly. DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day reflects DEA’s commitment to Americans’ safety and health, encouraging the public to remove unneeded medications from their homes as a measure of preventing medication misuse and opioid addiction from ever starting.

On Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021, DEA and its partners will collect tablets, capsules, patches, and other solid forms of prescription drugs. Liquids (including intravenous solutions), syringes and other sharps, and illicit drugs will not be accepted. DEA will also continue to accept vaping devices and cartridges provided lithium batteries are removed.

A location finder and partner toolbox are available at www.DEATakeBack.com for easy reference to nearby collection sites. Beyond DEA’s Take Back Day, there are also opportunities to regularly and safely dispose of unneeded medications at more than 13,000 pharmacies, hospitals, police departments, and businesses working to help clean out medicine cabinets throughout the year.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia.

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DENVER –The Center for Severe Weather Research (CSWR), a nonprofit organization in Boulder, Colorado, has paid over $2.4 million to resolve allegations that it engaged in fraud related to grants it received from three federal agencies: the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), an agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce.

CSWR conducted scientific weather research popularly known as “storm chasing” with its “Doppler on Wheels” fleet.  The United States alleges that from 2004 to 2020, CSWR improperly requested payments from federal grants for expenses that CSWR had not incurred.  The United States also contends that CSWR had inadequate internal controls for the federal funds it received, including inadequate documentation and controls over large cash transactions.

The settlement announced today also resolves allegations that the principals of CSWR, Joshua Wurman and Ling Chan, improperly obtained payments to which they were not entitled.  Those allegations, which relate primarily to rental payments for CSWR offices in their personal residence, are resolved with Dr. Wurman and Ms. Chan’s repayment to the United States of $203,776.       

“Our office works to protect taxpayers by stopping people who wrongfully obtain federal grant money,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Matt Kirsch. “We will pursue both organizations and individuals if they improperly obtain federal funds or fail to track those funds with adequate safeguards and controls.”      

NSF Inspector General Allison Lerner stated: “Each year the National Science Foundation awards millions of dollars in grants to promote promising scientific research. However, the Foundation expects grant recipients to follow federal cost principles. Expenses charged to grants must be allowable, allocable, and reasonable. I commend the U.S. Attorney's Office and our investigative partners for their work on upholding federal grant rules in this case.”

“This investigation is a prodigious example of how we partner with other law enforcement agencies that are committed to protecting federal grants and ensuring that funds are appropriately spent,” said Bob Steinau, Assistant Inspector General for Investigations, NASA Office of Inspector General (OIG). “I want to applaud the exemplary efforts from Commerce OIG, NSF OIG, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.  The NASA OIG along with its law enforcement partners, will continue to aggressively investigate those individuals and entities that take advantage of the trust of the American taxpayers.”

“We are committed to ensuring grant funds NOAA awards for important research are handled appropriately and used for their intended purpose,” said Scott Kieffer, Assistant Inspector General for Investigations for the U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Inspector General (OIG).  “Our office appreciates the investigative partnership with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, NASA OIG and NSF OIG that led to this result, and we will continue to focus our resources on investigations that serve to protect taxpayer money.”   

This case was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrea Wang.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – William Edward Byers II, 44, of Charleston, was sentenced today to 36 months in prison for prohibited possession of firearms by a felon.  Byers was one of  15 individuals charged federally as a result of a long-term investigation, dubbed the “Woo Boyz.”

According to court documents, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant on February 10, 2021, at Byers’ Charleston residence and located five firearms. Byers is prohibited from possessing firearms due to a 2016 felony conviction in Kanawha County Circuit Court for conspiracy to manufacture, deliver, or possess with intent to manufacture or deliver methamphetamine.

United States Attorney William S. Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Charleston Police Department, and the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT). The U.S. Marshals Service and the West Virginia State Police provided assistance during the investigation. 

Senior United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. imposed the sentence.  Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman prosecuted the case.

The investigation was part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). OCDETF was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and is the keystone of the Department of Justice’s drug reduction strategy. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking organizations, transnational criminal organizations, and money laundering organizations that present a significant threat to the public safety, economic, or national security of the United States.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:21-cr-00047.

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BOSTON – The former Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the Boston Grand Prix pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston in connection with multiple schemes to defraud equipment and small business financing companies as well as the Small Business Administration (SBA) and the Internal Revenue Service.

John F. Casey, 57, formerly of Ipswich, pleaded guilty to 23 counts of wire fraud, three counts of aggravated identity theft, four counts of money laundering and three counts of filing false tax returns. U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs scheduled sentencing for Feb. 15, 2022. Casey was indicted in September 2020.

Casey became the CFO of the Boston Grand Prix in January 2015. The Boston Grand Prix organization made payments to or on behalf of Casey totaling approximately $308,292 in 2015 and $601,073 in 2016 which Casey failed to include in the gross income he claimed on his personal tax returns for those years.

Casey owned an ice rink in Peabody from October 2013 until he sold it in June 2016. Between October 2014 and October 2016, Casey obtained over $743,000 in funds from equipment financing companies, purportedly for the purchase of equipment for the ice rink, when in fact he no longer owned the rink for four months during this period. In addition, in August 2016, more than two months after he sold the Peabody rink, Casey obtained over $145,000 in small business loans for the rink business. In order to secure the financing, Casey submitted false documents and information including fake invoices for the equipment, bank records purporting to show deposits into Casey’s accounts related to the Peabody rink, inflated personal and corporate tax returns and personal financial statements falsely claiming ownership and value of various assets. Casey also submitted a fake Deed of Sale containing a forged signature in support of one of his loan applications. Relying on Casey’s false statements, the financing companies provided funding to Casey in amounts and on terms they otherwise would not have made. Most of the funds provided by the victim companies were never repaid.

In addition, between March 2020 and at least May 2021, Casey orchestrated a scheme to fraudulently obtain Economic Injury Disaster Loans and Paycheck Protection Program loans from the SBA and a Massachusetts Sector-Specific Relief Grant – available under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act – by submitting false applications for companies he created and controlled and improperly using the fraudulently obtained loan and grant funds for personal expenses. Specifically, Casey submitted at least 14 loan applications to the SBA and intermediary lenders which contained false information concerning, among other things, the gross revenues of the companies during the year prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the average monthly payroll of the companies and the existence of some of the companies.

In January 2021, while awaiting trial for the financing fraud scheme, Casey submitted an application for a $70,000 pandemic-related relief grant to the Massachusetts Growth Capital Corporation containing false information about the operating expenses of a company that was not in business in 2019 or 2020. Between April 2020 and April 2021, approximately $676,552 in COVID-19 relief funds was deposited into bank accounts controlled by Casey, and he used the vast majority of the funds for personal expenses, including a three-carat diamond ring, a six-month membership to Match.com, private school tuition, residential rent payments, living expenses, payments on personal credit card accounts, restaurant meals, car payments and luxury hotel stays.  

Casey also pleaded guilty to laundering the proceeds of his fraud schemes and to failing to include the income from the Peabody rink fraud scheme on his 2014, 2015 and 2016 personal federal tax returns. 

The charge of wire fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. The charge of aggravated identity theft provides for a consecutive sentence of two years in prison, one year supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. The charge of unlawful monetary transactions provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the value of the criminally derived property, whichever is greater. The charge of filing false tax returns provides for a sentence of up to three years in prison, one year of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Joleen D. Simpson, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristina E. Barclay of Mendell’s Public Corruption & Special Prosecutions Unit is prosecuting the case.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

DEL RIO – An Eagle Pass man was sentenced to 360 months in prison today for transporting undocumented noncitizens that resulted in five deaths. 

According to court documents, Jorge Luis Monsivais Jr., 23, was the driver of a Suburban  traveling on FM 2644, carrying 13 undocumented noncitizens when Border Patrol attempted to stop the vehicle.  Monsivais tried to evade law enforcement and eventually crashed the vehicle on Highway 85 outside of Big Wells, ejecting some of the occupants from the vehicle.  Four people died at the scene and another person passed away en route to the hospital.  Other occupants sustained broken necks, hips, and severe head trauma. 

“The deadly outcome in this case is heartbreaking,” said U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff.  “Three hundred and sixty months in prison sends a clear message that those who make their living by unlawfully transporting undocumented noncitizens in the U.S. will be held accountable. Smuggling people is exceedingly dangerous for all involved and for our communities in which these operations are taking place. Our office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to identify and aggressively prosecute human smugglers.”

“The tragic loss of life in this case is an example of the very real risks people face when they put their lives in the hands of smugglers,” said Special Agent in Charge Shane Folden, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), San Antonio. “Those responsible for illegally moving people through our country place personal profit ahead of public safety.  Driven by greed, these criminals have little regard for the health and well-being of their human cargo, which can be a deadly combination.”

On May 11, 2021, Monsivais pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to transport illegal aliens resulting in death; one count of conspiracy to transport illegal aliens resulting in serious bodily injury; one count of conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens; one count of illegal alien transportation resulting in death; and one count of illegal alien transportation resulting in serious bodily injury.

HSI investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Hail prosecuted the case.

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ST. PAUL, Minn. – A St. Paul man was sentenced today to 110 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for possessing firearms as a felon and for possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine.

According to court documents, on March 22, 2021, officers with the Eagan Police Department attempted to conduct a traffic stop and arrest Joshua Cameron Hanes, 32, on an outstanding felony warrant. Hanes, driving a rented Jeep Compass, tried to flee from officers and smashed into one of the squad cars. After several minutes of disregarding officers’ verbal commands, Hanes eventually exited his vehicle and was taken into custody.  

According to court documents, officers searched the Jeep Compass and recovered two bags of methamphetamine weighing a total of 198 grams, and a loaded Springfield Armory, 9mm semiautomatic handgun that had been reported stolen in Hudson, Wisconsin. As part of his plea, Hanes also admitted to possessing a 9mm semiautomatic pistol with a high-capacity magazine. On September 14, 2021, Hanes pleaded guilty to one count of possessing a firearm as a felon and one count of possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine.

Because he has prior felony convictions, Hanes is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition at any time.

Acting U.S. Attorney W. Anders Folk for the District of Minnesota made the announcement after Senior U.S. District Judge Donovan W. Frank sentenced the defendant.

This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Eagan Police Department, and the St. Paul Police Department.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David P. Steinkamp.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 29-year-old local resident has entered a guilty plea to possession with intent to distribute 6.4 grams of meth after being found with several drugs, money and a stolen firearm, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery.

On May 8, law enforcement pulled Jacob Garcia over for a traffic violation. They soon observed him and believed he was intoxicated. The car also smelled of marijuana. They inquired as to whether he had been drinking or smoking marijuana, at which time he responded yes and that his wife had smoked marijuana in the vehicle. Authorities asked him to step out of the vehicle and conducted a thorough search.

They ultimately uncovered several bags of narcotics - 37 grams of cocaine, 6.4 grams of meth, 119 grams of marijuana and three THC pens. Authorities also discovered a stolen firearm and $1,260.

U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos accepted the plea and set sentencing for Jan. 12, 2022. At that time, Garcia faces a minimum of five and up to 40 years in federal prison as well as a possible $5 million maximum fine.

He has been and will remain in custody pending that hearing. 

The Drug Enforcement Administration; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Jim Wells County Sheriff’s Office and the Alice Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Marin is prosecuting the case.

            WASHINGTON — A Texas man was arrested yesterday for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, which disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress that was in the process of ascertaining and counting the electoral votes related to the presidential election.

            Robert Wayne Dennis, 61, of Garland, is charged with engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds, civil disorder, and assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers, among other charges. He was arrested on Oct. 20, 2021, in Garland. He is to make his initial court appearance on Oct. 22, 2021, in the Northern District of Texas.

            According to court documents, Dennis was captured on video on Jan. 6 near the stairs to the Upper West Terrace of the Capitol. Officers from the Metropolitan Police Department formed a police line to act as a barrier against the crowd. While law enforcement officers were attempting to control the crowd, numerous people began charging and striking them, including Dennis. At approximately 2:51 p.m., Dennis charged the line of officers. One officer, identified in court documents as “Officer J.S.,” attempted to use a baton to push him away. Dennis grabbed another officer’s baton and took “Officer J.S.” to the ground after a violent struggle in which he threw punches at the officer. During the struggle, the baton belonging to “Officer J.S.” was knocked out of his hands.

            This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas.

            The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Dallas Field Office, as well as the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Metropolitan Police Department. Significant assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police.

            In the nine months since Jan. 6, more than 650 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 190 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.

            Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

            The charges contained in any criminal complaint or indictment are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

BOSTON – A Nigerian national residing in Canton was indicted today by a federal grand jury for his role in a wire and bank fraud conspiracy involving romance scams targeting individuals in the United States.

Mark Arome Okuo, 41, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud. Okuo was arrested and charged by criminal complaint in March 2021 and has been detained since his arrest.

According to the charging documents, Okuo participated in a conspiracy involving romance scams designed to defraud victims into sending money to accounts he controlled.  Criminals perpetrating romance scams create fictitious profiles on online dating or social media websites, gain the trust of potential victims and then direct those victims to transfer money under false pretenses. To further the conspiracy, Okuo allegedly used fake passports in the names of aliases to open bank accounts in and around Boston to receive the proceeds of the romance scams. Okuo then allegedly executed large cash withdrawals from those accounts, generally structured in amounts less than $10,000, in an effort to evade detection.

The charge of conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud provides for a sentence of up to 30 years in prison, five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $1 million or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell and Matthew B. Millhollin, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston, made the announcement today.  Special assistance was provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ian Stearns of Mendell’s Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud 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.

FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a four-count indictment against Ricardo Ballardo Quintero, 33, and Juan Suarez Jr., 28, both of Modesto, with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and three counts of distribution of and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Quintero and Suarez were arrested after delivering 199 pounds of methamphetamine to undercover law enforcement officers. Search warrants executed at the homes of both men and vehicles seen leaving those homes shortly after their arrest yielded a total of an additional 27 pounds of methamphetamine, packaging materials, a digital scale, pay owe sheets, receipts for multi-gallon acetone purchases, and approximately $18,500 in cash.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Stanislaus Sheriff’s Office Special Investigations Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica A. Massey is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Quintero and Suarez each face a mandatory minimum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison, a $10 million fine, and a term of supervised release of at least five years. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

AUSTIN – Today a federal jury convicted a Cedar Park man after he tried to make a Molotov cocktail during an evening protest in Austin on May 30, 2020.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Cyril Lartigue, 27, was caught on videotape manufacturing a destructive device while in a parking lot directly adjacent to the Austin Municipal Court entrance.  While making the device, Lartigue was interrupted by the oncoming presence of Austin Police Department (APD) officers heading in his direction.  Lartigue fled the area, leaving the device behind, but returned within minutes to retrieve it.  APD officers then arrested him inside a nearby portable toilet where he had changed clothes.  Inside his backpack, officers recovered materials used to manufacture an explosive device including beer bottles, a bottle containing lighter fluid, cloth rags, a butane lighter and the clothes he was previously wearing.

Lartigue is scheduled to be sentenced on February 4, 2022.  He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.  A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff of the Western District of Texas and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Special Agent in Charge Fred J. Milanowski, Houston Division, made the announcement.

The ATF, Austin Police Department, Austin Fire Department, and the Texas Department of Public Safety investigated this matter.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Keith Henneke and Gabe Cohen are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

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