A University Heights man was sentenced to 30 days of incarceration for theft of government money.

Al Plummer, 51, was also ordered to pay $45,121 in restitution. His incarceration is to be followed by six months of home confinement.

Plummer is the co-owner of Gimme Java Coffee in Shaker Heights. Plummer began stealing his grandmother’s Social Security Retirement benefits after she had passed away in July 2013. Plummer did not report his grandmother’s death and continued to withdraw the monthly benefit until he was caught in October 2016, according to court documents

The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Payum Doroodian following an investigation by Kelly Clark from the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General.

A Willoughby Hills man was indicted for failing to register as a sex offender.

Patrick Denning, 57, failed to register, or update a registration, as a sex offender as required under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, after having traveled in interstate commerce, according to the indictment.

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violations.  In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and, in most cases, it will be less than the maximum.

The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the United States Marshals Service.  The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle K. Angeli.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Gulfport, Miss. – Oscar Alfredo Burgon-Urrea, 39, a citizen of Honduras, pled guilty yesterday before U.S. District Judge Louis Guirola, Jr., to unlawful re-entry by a removed alien previously convicted of a felony, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst and David Rivera, Field Office Director for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) in New Orleans.

Burgon-Urrea is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Guirola on June 5, 2018. He faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

On December 4, 2017, during Department of Homeland Security criminal alien program duties at the Jackson County Adult Detention Center, an ICE Deportation Officer arrested Burgon-Urrea, who was being held by local officials for public drunkenness after Moss Point police officers found him by the side of Interstate 10 in an intoxicated condition.

Further investigation revealed that Burgon-Urrea had been lawfully removed from the United States in 2005, and had illegally re-entered the United States on six subsequent occasions. In 2011, he was convicted in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas of re-entry by a deported alien, a felony. He had been known by multiple variations of his name including Oscar Alfredo Burgos-Urrea, Oscar Alredo Burgos Ureea, Oscar Alfredo Burgos, Oscar Burgos and Oscar Alfredo.

"ERO is committed to pursuing and apprehending those who choose to violate our immigration laws," said ICE ERO Field Office Director David Rivera, "ERO will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to ensure criminal aliens are arrested and removed."

The case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Moss Point Police Department, and the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stan Harris.

An Akron man was indicted on charges of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, heroin and methamphetamine, said U.S. Attorney Justin E. Herdman.

Dontez Yeager, 33, possessed more than 50 grams of methamphetamine as well as a mixture of heroin and fentanyl on Jan. 15, according to the indictment.

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violations.  In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and, in most cases, it will be less than the maximum.

The investigation preceding the information was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Agency.  The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason M. Katz.

An information is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA –Tyler Hall, of Ranson, West Virginia has admitted to a firearm charge, United States Attorney Bill Powell announced.

Hall, age 26, pled guilty to one count of “Drug User in Possession of a Firearm – Aiding and Abetting.” Hall admits to illegally possessing a Taurus 38 Special handgun. The crime occurred in September 2015 in Jefferson County.

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

Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul T. Camilletti is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. 
 
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.

MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA –Jordan Foster, of Piedmont, West Virginia, and Brandon Suter, of Keyser, West Virginia, have admitted to a drug distribution charges, United States Attorney Bill Powell announced.

Foster, age 22, pled guilty to one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine Hydrochloride.” Foster admitted to distributing cocaine hydrochloride in August 2017 in Mineral County.

Suter, age 26, pled guilty to one count of “Aiding and Abetting Possession with Intent to Distribute Hydrochloride.” Suter admitted to assisting Foster in possessing with the intent to distribute cocaine hydrochloride in August 2017 in Mineral County.

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

Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Omps-Botteicher is prosecuting the cases on behalf of the government. The Potomac Highlands Drug and Violent Crimes Task Force, the Mineral County Sheriff's Office, and the Keyser City Police Department investigated. 
 
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                           ContactELIZABETH MORSE

www.justice.gov/usao/md                                                    at (410) 209-4885      

Baltimore, Maryland – United States District Judge Catherine C. Blake sentenced Marco DeCamillo, age 41, of Reading, Pennsylvania today to 12 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for mail fraud stemming from the sales of misbranded body armor. Judge Blake also ordered DeCamillo to pay $124,000 in restitution.

The sentence was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Stephen M. Schenning, Special Agent in Charge Marlon V. Miller of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Philadelphia and Special Agent in Charge Gordon B. Johnson of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office.

According to his plea agreement, De Camillo was a former police officer in West Reading, PA. During his tenure as a police officer, DeCamillo also owned and operated a business called Mad Dragon Tactical (MDT).  MDT sold law enforcement tactical gear, including body armor rifle plates, primarily on auction and shopping websites.  DeCamillo, through MDT, sold approximately $169,000 worth of body armor that was falsely classified as certified by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ). The NIJ conducts ballistic testing on body armor.  

DeCamillo falsely claimed that certain MDT body armor shields would protect against armor piercing rounds, and that certain products were made with the more robust HY80 and A4600 Steel. DeCamillo used his status as a police officer to sell the misbranded body armor rifle plates, understanding that several of his buyers were in law enforcement and/or military or defense and were relying on DeCamillo’s representations regarding the quality and safety of his products.

According to the plea agreement, on December 17, 2015, a defense contractor and NIJ accredited laboratory (“victim lab”) contacted the FBI with a complaint regarding the misuse of one of their ballistic data test sheets by MDT.  The FBI verified that DeCamillo, through MDT, had advertised online a set of body armor plates with an altered ballistic test sheet from the victim lab that had been completed in 2013.  The original 2013 test sheet provided the results of ballistic testing on a ballistic test shield, not steel body armor plates as advertised by MDT.  FBI agents viewed several MDT listings online and observed photographs of altered ballistic test sheets uploaded to each listing. 

In January and February 2016, the FBI in Maryland set up controlled purchases of the body armor online from MDT through an undercover identity.  All three shipments purchased listed DeCamillo’s home address in West Reading, PA as the return address and were delivered from Pennsylvania to Maryland via US Mail.  Inside each package was a hard copy of the altered ballistic test sheet (originating from the victim lab).  The HY80 altered ballistic test sheet included an additional hand-written note in the bottom margin stating, “Note-During testing Armor plate stopped (2) .308 Armor piercing Black Tip AP and (3) 7.62x39 Chinese Steel Core Armor Piercing AP rounds.” 

Numerous ballistics sheets that had been fraudulently altered with “white out” or other redactions were recovered from DeCamillo’s residence during the execution of a search warrant by HSI.

DeCamillo was interviewed by HSI and the FBI and admitted that he knew that his MDT body armor was not NIJ certified. 

Acting United States Attorney Stephen M. Schenning commended HSI and the FBI for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Schenning thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Rachel M. Yasser who is prosecuting the case.

Two people were indicted for illegally reentering the United States.

Bonifacio Lopez-Herrera, 29, of Guatemala, was in the U.S. on Feb. 7, 2018. after having been previously deported twice, according to the indictment.

Jonathan Milla, 41, of Honduras, was found in Fairview Park after having been previously deported from the U.S. three times, according to the indictment.

The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn G. Andrachik (Milla) and Gene Crawford (Lopez-Herrera) following investigations by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security.

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after reviewing factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation.  In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

BOSTON – Danvers-based Abiomed, Inc. has agreed to pay $3.1 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by purchasing lavish meals for physicians in order to induce them to use Abiomed’s Impella line of heart pumps.  

The United States contends that Abiomed sought to induce physicians to use its pumps, which cost more than $20,000 each, by buying meals for them at some of the country’s most expensive restaurants, including Menton in Boston, Nobu in Los Angeles, Spago in Beverly Hills, and Eleven Madison Park in New York City.  The government further contends that Abiomed (1) paid for physicians’ meals in instances where attendees ordered alcohol in an amount inconsistent with legitimate scientific discussion; (2) paid for meals at expensive restaurants where employees invited spouses of physicians to attend (and those spouses did attend) even though the spouses had no legitimate business purpose for attending the meal; (3) paid for numerous meals for physicians in which the cost per-attendee well exceeded Abiomed’s own $150 per person guideline (in one instance exceeding $450 per-attendee); and (4) paid for meals for physicians in which their employees misrepresented the number of attendees, listed attendees with generic names (e.g., Mike Anesthesia), or listed fictitious names of individuals who did not attend the meal, which had the effect of making the true per-attendee cost appear lower. Abiomed managers approved the expenses for all of these meals.

“We expect today’s settlement with Abiomed to serve as a warning to medical device manufacturers who try to improperly influence the treatment decisions of physicians,” said United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling.  “Providing doctors with lavish meals, or meals that focus on entertainment rather than education or science, can impair a physician’s independent medical judgment – something each and every patient is entitled to.  My office will continue to investigate sales practices that interfere with that independent medical judgment and that heighten the risk of improper use of limited federal healthcare dollars.” 

“The FBI will continue to target medical device manufacturers or pharmaceutical companies who attempt to influence the medical decisions of health care providers whether through expensive meals or other improper arrangements,” said Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Boston Division. “This settlement reaffirms the efforts of the FBI and its partners, who remain committed to rooting out companies whose sales practices can interfere with the medical judgment of physicians.” 

“Health care companies seeking to boost profits by wining and dining physicians must be held accountable,” said Special Agent in Charge Phillip Coyne with the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  “Lavish dinners can undermine impartial medical decision-making of physicians, drive up health care costs, and reduce the public’s trust in federal government health plans.”

The settlement announced today stems from a complaint filed by a former Abiomed employee under the whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, which authorizes private parties to sue on behalf of the United States and to receive a portion of any recovery. See United States ex rel. Bennett v. Abiomed, Inc., No. 13cv12277-IT. The whistleblower will receive $542,500 of the settlement.

The investigation was handled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General.  The matter was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patrick M. Callahan of Lelling’s Healthcare Fraud Unit and Abraham R. George of Lelling’s Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit.

BOSTON - A Ghanaian national was arrested yesterday and charged in federal court in Worcester with illegal possession of identification documents and aggravated identity theft.

Yaw Okyere, 33, a citizen of Ghana residing in Worcester, was charged by criminal complaint with being illegally in possession of five or more identification documents and aggravated identity theft. Okyere appeared before Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge David H. Hennessy, who ordered Okyere detained pending a probable cause and detention hearing scheduled for March 13, 2018.

According to court documents, on March 7, 2018, federal agents executed a search warrant at Okyere’s apartment in Worcester, where they seized computers and a printer. An initial forensic review of one of the computers revealed files containing more than 190 Massachusetts driver’s licenses with various names and photographs.

During the execution of the search warrant, agents interviewed Okyere, who stated that he was a citizen of Ghana, had arrived in the United States a few years earlier on a visa, that he had overstayed his visa, and was unsure of his immigration status.

The charge of illegally possessing five or more identification documents provides for a sentence of no greater than 15 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of aggravated identity theft carries a mandatory sentence of two years in prison, which must be served consecutive to any other sentence imposed by the sentencing court. 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; Raymond Moss, Acting Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and Worcester Police Chief Steven M. Sargent made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth G. Shine of Lelling’s Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.

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

A four-count indictment was unsealed earlier today in federal court in Brooklyn, charging Ppassim Elder, Dwayne Ling and Frederick McCoy with the October 23, 2017 murder of a Queens business owner in front of his son, as well as the extortion of that father and son.  A fourth defendant, Mahdi Abdel-Rahim, was also indicted for his role in the extortion.  He was arrested on March 1, 2018 and released on a secured bond.  Ling was arrested on March 1, 2018, and ordered detained.  Elder was arrested in Cleveland, Ohio on March 2, 2018, was presented in that district on March 5, 2018, and is being transferred in custody to the Eastern District of New York.  McCoy was arrested yesterday and will be arraigned this afternoon in federal court in Brooklyn before United States Magistrate Judge Robert M. Levy.

Richard P. Donoghue, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and James P. O’Neill, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the charges. 

“As alleged in the court filings, defendant Ppassim Elder exploited a business owner’s need for a loan and sent his enforcers to try to collect it, ultimately leading to a senseless and tragic murder,” stated United States Attorney Donoghue.  “No son should ever watch his father be killed.  This Office and our law enforcement partners are committed to protecting businesses in our community from violent criminals.”  Mr. Donoghue also expressed his appreciation to the Queens County District Attorney’s Office for their assistance during the investigation.

“When criminals loan money to business owners, they know they’re never going to get repaid, it’s why they loan out the money.  Once they have the victim on the hook, they use threats, intimidation and violence to harass their victims.  In this case, the victim died allegedly at the hands of his debtors,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney.  “No one should have to pay criminals with their life, and the FBI New York Joint Organized Crime Task Force won’t let these violent offenders get away with it.”

As alleged in the indictment and detailed in court filings, on the morning of October 23, 2017, three perpetrators wearing blazers—Ling, McCoy and another coconspirator—walked into Garden Valley Distributors, a family-owned grocery distribution center located in Ozone Park.  The perpetrators said that “Sam” or “Big Sam” had sent them to collect his money.  Elder, who was known as “Sam” and “Big Sam,” had given the murder victim’s son a loan, which the son used to support the business.  By March 2017, Elder demanded full repayment of the loan, but the son could not afford to repay it because much of the money had been used to purchase merchandise for Garden Valley.

In response, Elder began a campaign of intimidation against the son and his family.  Among other things, Elder paid the defendant Mahdi Abdel-Rahim to throw a rock through a window of the home of the son and his father.  When the rock did not lead to repayment of the loan, Elder sent Ling, McCoy and a third coconspirator into Garden Valley, where the perpetrators brandished a firearm, pistol-whipped the son across his head, and fatally shot the father in the face. 

All four defendants are charged with extortionate collection of credit conspiracy and extortionate collection of credit.   Elder, Ling and McCoy are also charged with brandishing a firearm in furtherance of those crimes of violence and causing the death of another through use of a firearm.  The charges in the indictment are merely allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.  If convicted of the murder charge or firearm charge, Elder, McCoy and Ling face a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.  If convicted of the extortion charge, Abdel-Rahim faces a maximum of 20 years’ imprisonment.

The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Organized Crime and Gangs Section.  Assistant United States Attorneys Andrey Spektor and Keith D. Edelman are in charge of the prosecution.

The Defendants:

PPASSIM ELDER (also known as “Sam” and “Big Sam”)
Age: 38 
Staten Island, New York

MAHDI ABDEL-RAHIM
Age: 24
Brooklyn, New York

DWAYNE LING
Age: 55
Brooklyn, New York

FREDERICK MCCOY
Age: 52
Brooklyn, New York

E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 18-CR-92 (WFK)

BOSTON – A Florida man was indicted yesterday in federal court in Boston in connection with a scam in which he and co-conspirators defrauded victims by pretending to be employees of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Frank Gregory Cedeno, 27, of Ocoee, Fla., was indicted for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. In January 2018, Cedeno was charged by criminal complaint and arrested.

The indictment alleges that, from at least April 2016 through November 2017, Cedeno conspired with others to defraud victims by pretending to be employees of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Under that guise, members of the conspiracy allegedly demanded money from victims, directing them to send it to members of the conspiracy, including Cedeno. The conspirators who received the money generally withdrew it from bank accounts quickly, then forwarded much of it to individuals in the Dominican Republic. In one common version of the scam, victims received e-mails that used official-seeming documentation and the SEC seal to induce the victim to pay a fee in order to receive a portion of a legal settlement. In another version, victims received e-mails and official-seeming documents labeling the victim a defendant in a civil lawsuit, in which the victim owed tens of thousands of dollars in supposed disgorgement, penalties, and fees. The documents gave the victim a choice of either appearing in court to contest the lawsuit or paying a smaller fee.

Co-conspirator Leonel Alexis Valerio Santana, 28, of Boston, was previous charged by criminal complaint in connection with the scheme and remains detained pending trial. That complaint alleged that, between June 2015 and June 2017, there were at least 95 victims targeted by the scam, with fraudulent solicitations exceeding $1.3 million and actual losses of more than $235,000.

The charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud provides for a sentence no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss in the offense, and restitution. The charge of money laundering conspiracy provides for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $500,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. 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; Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Carl. W. Hoecker, Inspector General of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Inspector General; and Joel P. Garland, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian A. Pérez-Daple of Lelling’s Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.

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

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Timothy A. Garrison, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Colorado man was sentenced in federal court today for the sexual exploitation of a 13-year-old Springfield, Mo., victim. 

Dominic Keith Pearson, 26, of Silverthorne, Colo., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to 45 years in federal prison without parole.

On Oct. 11, 2017, Pearson pleaded guilty to coercion and enticement of a minor, sexual exploitation of a minor, transportation of a minor with intent to engage in illicit sexual activity, and travel with the intent to engage in illicit sexual activity. 

According to court documents, the 13-year-old child victim – identified in court documents as “Jane Doe” – was reported missing from her home in Springfield on Jan. 8, 2017. Investigators found a series of messages between Pearson and Jane Doe on a cell phone, indicating that Pearson was traveling to meet Jane Doe.

On Jan. 10, 2017, Pearson and Jane Doe were located in a truckers lounge at Petro Truck Stop off Interstate 70 near Oak Grove, Mo. Both Pearson and Jane Doe had luggage with them in the lounge. Pearson told investigators that he was taking Jane Doe to Denver, Colo.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Harshad Miller. It was investigated by the Springfield, Mo., Police Department, the FBI, the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force and the Oak Grove, Mo., Police Department.

Project Safe Childhood
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
 

Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder announced that an Anchorage man, who is currently a fugitive, was sentenced yesterday in federal court for possessing images of child pornography. 

Joshua Michael Evans, 45, of Eagle River, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sharon L. Gleason, to serve 14 years in prison, followed by a lifetime term of supervised release.  Evans previously pleaded guilty on Nov. 2, 2016, to possession of child pornography and was placed on pretrial release pending sentencing.  In October 2017, shortly before he was scheduled to be sentenced, Evans disappeared, prompting a manhunt by U.S. Probation, the FBI, and Alaska State Troopers.  Evans remains at large.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office advises that anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Joshua Evans are encouraged to call FBI Anchorage Field Office at 907-276-4441.

According to court documents, in May 2016, Evans became the subject of a federal investigation after law enforcement officials discovered Evans was using the internet to download videos and images of child sexual exploitation.  Evans has a previous conviction from 2001 by the State of Alaska for sexual abuse of a minor.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) and the Anchorage Police Department (“APD”) conducted the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of this case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Alexander prosecuted the case.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office commends the efforts of U.S. Probation, FBI, and the Alaska State Troopers in responding to Evans’ disappearance. 

This prosecution is part of the Department of Justice ongoing Project Safe Child (PSC) initiative. In May 2006, DOJ launched Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood combines federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, identify and rescue victims and to educate the public about safe Internet use, thereby reducing the risk that children might fall prey to online sexual predators.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov or call the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Alaska.

            WASHINGTON –A former staff employee of a member of the U.S. House of Representatives was sentenced today to serve a year and a day in prison for the circulation of private, nude images and videos of the member and the member’s spouse, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu  and Matthew R. Verderosa, Chief of the United States Capitol Police.

            Juan R. McCullum, 36, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty in January 2018 to two federal cyber-related charges and two District of Columbia offenses, including conspiracy to disclose sexual images and attempted first-degree unlawful publication of a sexual image. He was sentenced by the Honorable John D. Bates in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

            McCullum’s plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon sentence of one year and 361 days of incarceration, with all but one year and a day suspended on the condition that he successfully completes two years of supervised probation. During his probation, McCullum will be required to perform 100 hours of community service. Judge Bates accepted the plea and sentenced McCullum accordingly.

            A co-defendant, Dorene Browne-Louis, 45, of Upper Marlboro, Md., pled guilty in January 2018 to one federal cyber charge and the District of Columbia offense of conspiracy to disclose sexual images. She is to be sentenced on April 23, 2018.

            According to statements of offense filed as part of the defendants’ guilty pleas, McCullum worked from April 2015 until June 2016 in the House member’s legislative office in Washington, D.C. Browne-Louis worked in the same office from January 2015 until April 2016.

            According to the documents, during the course of his employment, McCullum offered in March 2016 to assist the House member in repairing the member’s malfunctioning, password-protected iPhone by taking the device to a local Apple store. The House member provided McCullum with the device solely to have it repaired. The House member later provided the password so that the device could be unlocked by the Apple store solely for the purpose of having the iPhone repaired. McCullum was not given permission to take, copy, or distribute any of the contents of the iPhone. The iPhone contained the private, nude images and videos.

            In July 2016, the documents state, after McCullum left the House member’s staff, he engaged in a course of conduct that included creating a Hotmail account and a Facebook social media account, using a fictitious name, to distribute and post the private, nude images and videos. In addition, he made Browne-Louis aware that he was in possession of the images from the iPhone. Further, McCullum encouraged others on social media to redistribute the private, nude images and videos in the member’s congressional district. Browne-Louis assisted by providing McCullum with e-mail addresses and other contact information to distribute the images. Browne-Louis also distributed one of the private, nude images to a person who was working on the campaign of a challenger to the member’s primary election.  McCullum and Browne-Louis understood their actions did cause, and were likely to cause, emotional harm to the House member and spouse, as well as negative impact on the member’s re-election, the plea documents state.

            Both defendants were indicted in July 2017 following an investigation by the United States Capitol Police.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Verderosa commended the work of those who investigated the case from the United States Capitol Police. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who assisted with the case at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including former Assistant U.S. Attorney Natalia Medina, Criminal Investigator John Marsh, Paralegal Specialists Bianca Evans, Diane Brashears, and Matthew Ruggiero, Victim/Witness Advocate Yvonne Bryant, and Litigation Technology Specialists Leif Hickling, Thomas Royal, and Paul Howell. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tejpal S. Chawla, Youli Lee, and Veronica Jennings, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder announced that Misael Oquendo Vazquez, 45, of Anchorage, was sentenced yesterday by Chief U.S. District Judge Timothy M. Burgess to serve eight years in prison, followed by a life term of supervised release, for possession of child pornography.

Vazquez used messaging applications on his phone and cloud-based storage sites to distribute and receive child pornography.  When contacted by law enforcement, he was in possession of dozens of images and videos showing the sexual exploitation of minors, including videos that showed toddler-aged children being abused.  The defendant also possessed a collection of non-pornographic images of children being spanked, some of whom had been abused to the point that their buttocks were bruised and injured.

At sentencing, Judge Burgess noted the seriousness of the crime, focusing on the victims in the child pornography images traded by Vazquez, as well as the children in the corporal punishment videos.  Vazquez’s crime was serious not only because of “what it has done to the children in the [child pornography] videos” possessed by the defendant, said Judge Burgess, but also because of the “defendant’s proclivity to images that show corporal punishment, including images that show bruising [of kids].”   Judge Burgess also was concerned about the threat posed by the defendant to the community, given the fact that he had been involved in the downloading and viewing of child pornography for more than 10 years.

Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”) conducted the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of this case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Reardon prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice.  Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices nationwide and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

RALEIGH– The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Robert J. Higdon, Jr., announced that yesterday in federal court, Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever, III sentenced MICHAEL WAYNE RADETSKI, 42, of Holly Ridge, North Carolina to 120 months of imprisonment followed by 4 years of supervised release.

RADETSKI was named in a four-count Indictment on July 19, 2017.  On December 4, 2017, RADETSKI pleaded guilty to Possession with Intent to Distribute a Quantity of Marijuana Within 1,000 Feet of a School and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime.

In April 2016, the Onslow County Sheriff’s Office received Crime Stoppers reports indicating there was drug activity at a mobile home park in Holly Ridge.  The reports stated the suspect’s name was “Mike” and that there were many vehicles going to and from his residence. Officers identified the individual as RADETSKI.

On December 21, 2016, officers searched RADETSKI’s residence and found a loaded AR-15 .223 rifle, a 60-round drum magazine, three rifle magazines, three handgun magazines, a 9mm pistol, multiple rounds of ammunition, 156.2 grams of marijuana, a marijuana smoking pipe, a water bong, digital scales, grinders, a pistol holster, and a ballistic vest.  Additionally, officers found tools and parts typically used to make and/or modify firearms.

Further investigation determined that RADETSKI purchased 20 to 30 pounds of marijuana for $3,500 per pound over the past year from his supplier.  Additionally, RADETSKI paid a 19-year-old straw purchaser to buy the AR-15 rifle for him.  In order to conceal the purchase, RADETSKI’s wife signed a notarized letter falsely claiming that the firearm was actually hers because RADETSKI was not allowed to possess a firearm as a convicted felon.

During the investigation, officers determined that Dixon High School students would purchase marijuana from RADETSKI’s residence, and either smoke it there or at school.  Additionally, RADETSKI threatened to place explosives in the vehicle of any Dixon High School student who “snitched” on RADETSKI for selling marijuana.  On at least one occasion, a Dixon High School student, who purchased marijuana from RADETSKI on a regular basis, was threatened by RADETSKI with a handgun at RADETSKI’s residence. 

In summary, RADETSKI was selling marijuana from his residence to individuals, including under age students, within 1,000 feet of the high school.  Additionally, RADETSKI, a convicted felon, was in possession of two firearms in furtherance of his drug trafficking enterprise.

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

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the Onslow County Sheriff’s Office conducted the criminal investigation of this case.  Assistant United States Attorneys James J. Kurosad handled the prosecution of this case for the government.

ALBUQUERQUE – Mark William Elliot, 46, of Raton, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 51 months in prison for violating the federal firearms laws by unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition.  Elliot will be on supervised release for three years after completing his prison sentence.

Elliot was arrested in July 2016, on an indictment charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition and possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute on March 25, 2016, in Bernalillo County, N.M.  According to the indictment, Elliot was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because he previously had been convicted of receiving or transferring stolen vehicles, tampering with evidence, forgery, and shooting at an occupied building.

According to court documents, on March 25, 2016, Albuquerque Police Department (APD) officers found Elliot asleep on the sidewalk next to his motorcycle, which was illegally parked in the road next to a stop sign.  After waking Elliot, the officers observed a bulge in Elliot’s right front pocket.  When the officers realized there was a firearm in Elliot’s pocket, the officers arrested Elliot as he attempted to flee.  APD officers recovered a loaded firearm and ammunition, approximately 18 grams of methamphetamine, and drug paraphernalia from Elliot’s jacket during a search incident to his arrest. 

On Sept. 28, 2017, Elliot pled guilty to Count 1 of the indictment charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.  In entering the guilty plea, Elliot admitted possessing a loaded firearm in his right front pocket during an interaction with APD officers on March 25, 2016.  Elliot acknowledged that he was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition on March 25, 2016, because of his status as a convicted felon.

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and APD and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rumaldo R. Armijo.

       Montgomery, Alabama – A Phenix City, Alabama, resident was sentenced today to 30 years in prison for his role in masterminding multiple stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) schemes, announced U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. of the Middle District of Alabama, and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.

       William Anthony Gosha III, a/k/a Boo Boo, was convicted, following a jury trial in November 2017, of one count of conspiracy, 22 counts of mail fraud, three counts of wire fraud, and 25 counts of aggravated identity theft.

       According to the evidence presented at trial and sentencing, between November 2010 and December 2013, Gosha ran a large-scale identity theft ring with his co-conspirators, Tracy Mitchell, Keshia Lanier, and Tamika Floyd, who were all previously convicted and sentenced to prison.  Together they filed over 8,800 tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that sought more than $22 million in fraudulent refunds of which the IRS paid out approximately $9 million.

       In November 2010, Gosha stole IDs of inmates from the Alabama Department of Corrections and provided the IDs to Lanier who used the information to seek fraudulent tax refunds.  Gosha and Lanier agreed to split the proceeds.  Gosha also stole employee records from a company previously located in Columbus, Georgia.  In 2012, Lanier needed an additional source of stolen IDs and approached Floyd, who worked at two Alabama state agencies in Opelika, Alabama: the Department of Public Health and the Department of Human Resources.  In both positions, Floyd had access to the personal identifying information of individuals, including teenagers.  Lanier requested that Floyd primarily provide her with identities that belonged to sixteen and seventeen year-olds.  Floyd agreed and provided thousands of names to Lanier and others at Lanier’s direction.

       After receiving the additional stolen IDs, Gosha recruited Mitchell and her family to help file the fraudulent tax returns.  Mitchell worked at a hospital located at Fort Benning, Georgia, where she had access to the personal identification information of military personnel, including soldiers who were deployed to Afghanistan.  She stole soldiers’ IDs and used their information to file fraudulent returns.

       In order to electronically file the fraudulent returns, Gosha, Lanier, and their co-conspirators applied for several Electronic Filing Identification Numbers (EFIN) with the IRS in the names of sham tax preparation businesses.  Gosha, Lanier, and their co-conspirators then used these EFINs to file the returns and obtain tax refund related bank products from various financial institutions, which provided them with blank check stock.  Gosha and his co-conspirators initially printed out the fraudulently obtained refund checks using the blank check stock.

       However, the financial institutions halted Gosha’s and his co-conspirators’ ability to print checks.  As a result, they recruited U.S. Postal employees who provided Gosha and others with addresses on their routes to which the fraudulent refund checks could be directly mailed.  In exchange for cash, these postal employees intercepted the refund checks and provided them to Gosha, Lanier, Mitchell and others.  Gosha also directed tax refunds to prepaid debit cards and had those cards sent to addresses he controlled.

       In addition, between January 2010 and December 2013, Gosha participated in a separate SIRF scheme with Pamela Smith and others, in which Gosha sold the IDs that he had stolen from the Alabama Department of Corrections to Smith and others.  Smith and others used the IDs to file returns that sought approximately $4.8 million in fraudulent refunds of which the IRS paid out approximately $1.85 million.  Smith also has been convicted and sentenced to prison for this conduct.

       At Gosha’s sentencing, the government offered victim impact statements from several individuals whose identities were stolen, and from companies and governmental agencies where the identity theft breaches occurred.  An Alabama Department of Public Health representative noted, the identity theft was not only devastating financially, but it also had a chilling effect on the department’s ability to serve the residents of the State of Alabama.  A mother of a young U.S. Army soldier who was an identity theft victim described the consequences of the fraud on her and her family, stating:

While [my son] was fighting for our country and all back home[,] I received a very disturbing phone call from [an] Agent from the IRS that my son[,] while at Ft. Benning training to defend our country[,] the land of the free[,] had his       tity stolen and fraudulent tax returns were filed with his social security number.  This news was devastating to think that my [] 19-year-old son[,] who was defending the very freedom this country stands [for] [,] was wronged by one of those people [he] was willing to die for.  My whole family could not believe what was happening.  We now had to worry about this terrible act by one of our own.  As I tried my best to keep composed and handle all of the gruesome mounds of paperwork to get this straightened out with the IRS, [my son] was then denied his tax refund [as result of this scheme].  This created a financial hardship on [him].  We were too afraid to tell [him] while he was deployed because we did not want to worry him and we wanted him to focus only on getting home alive and not have to worry about such an atrocious act by someone who did not even know [him].

       In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. Chief District Court Judge Keith Watkins ordered Gosha to serve three years of supervised release and to pay restitution in the amount of $9,052,049. 

       Prior to Gosha’s sentencing, thirty of his co-conspirators have been sentenced, including Keisha Lanier who received 15 years and Tracy Mitchell who received over 13 years.

       U.S. Attorney Franklin and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman commended special agents of Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General who investigated this case and Trial Attorneys Michael C. Boteler and Gregory P. Bailey of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Ross of the Middle District of Alabama, who prosecuted the case.

PORTLAND, Ore. – Isaac Benjamin Voss, 41, of Clark County, Washington, pleaded guilty today to one count of wire fraud for defrauding domestic and foreign investors who believed they were investing in a viable clean energy company.

"Voss robbed victims of investment dollars by preying on their hopes of becoming legal permanent residents in the U.S.," said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon. "I implore both domestic and international investors to think twice before supporting schemes that promise immigration shortcuts."

According to court documents, in 2007, Voss made a deal with a Canadian scientist and entrepreneur to raise funds to support the development of a technology that would derive electricity and petroleum-equivalent fuels from any carbon bearing material. Over a four-year period beginning in 2011, Voss used his company, XFuels, as a vehicle for soliciting investments from individuals abroad and in Oregon, California, and Washington state.

Voss defrauded investors using elaborate marketing materials, including flyers, brochures and a website, containing false information about his company, the technology and the investment opportunity. He claimed that XFuels owned a commercial refinery in Canada and that another was being constructed in Washington state. The plants were said to be using the technology to produce "clean fuel, clean chemicals, [and] clean power from garbage, biomass, and plastic."

To reduce the perceived risk of the venture, Voss told investors that more than 90 percent of the project’s funding would come from other institutional and private lenders and that he had commissioned an independent, third-party feasibility study that guaranteed the project’s commercial viability. In reality, XFuels had not constructed any facilities and the only capital raised was from other individual investors in the U.S. and abroad. Moreover, the feasibility study relied solely on information provided by Voss himself and did not employ any commercially accepted methods to validate the technology.

On numerous occasions, Voss hosted foreign investment seminars during which he told investors that supporting XFuels, with a minimum $500,000 investment, would qualify them for American Employment-Based Fifth Category "EB-5" visas. Voss also falsely claimed he would hold foreign investment funds in escrow until the U.S. government had approved investors’ visa applications. The XFuels project did not qualify for the EB-5 program and all investors’ visa applications were denied, as a result.

Voss faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. He will be sentenced on August 14, 2018 before U.S. District Court Judge Anna J. Brown.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, IRS and the Department of Homeland Security investigated this case. It is being prosecuted by Michelle H. Kerin and Gavin W. Bruce, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.