title: Exagen Inc. Agrees to Pay $653,143 to Resolve Allegations of Kickback Violations

component: USAO - Massachusetts

body_text: BOSTON – A California-based life sciences company that makes diagnostic tests for the treatment of autoimmune conditions, Exagen Inc., has agreed to pay $653,143 to resolve allegations that it paid specimen processing fees to referring physicians to induce those physicians’ use of Exagen’s laboratory tests. According to the settlement agreement, Exagen agreed to factual admissions that it paid certain referring physicians to complete blood draws for patients pursuant to specimen processing agreements that Exagen entered into with those physicians. Exagen billed federal health care programs, including Medicare and other programs, for tests that it performed after receiving orders from the referring physicians to whom it paid the specimen processing fees. Exagen did so after becoming aware of a June 25, 2014 Special Fraud Alert from the Department of Health & Human Services’ Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) that warned laboratories that the practice of paying referring physicians specimen processing fees could present a substantial risk of fraud and abuse. The settlement stems from allegations originally brought in a lawsuit filed by a whistleblower under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act, which allows private parties, known as relators, to bring suit on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery. In connection with today’s announced settlement, the relator will receive 16 percent of the recovery. Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; HHS-OIG Special Agent in Charge Roberto Coviello; and Christopher F. Algieri, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of the Inspector General, Northeast Field Office made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Abraham R. George, Chief of the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit, and Alexandra Brazier, also of the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit, handled the matter.


title: St. Louis County Man Sentenced to 13 ½ Years in Prison for Providing Deadly Fentanyl

component: Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)

body_text: ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Ronnie L. White on Tuesday sentenced a man who provided the fentanyl that killed a Florissant, Missouri woman in 2020 to 13 ½ years in prison. Jerome Middleton, 46, of Calverton Park, pleaded guilty in June to a felony charge of knowingly distributing fentanyl, resulting in death. He admitted supplying the fentanyl that killed the Florissant woman on Nov. 27, 2020. Middleton, a “runner,” would collect money from people, buy drugs and keep some of the drugs for himself for making the trip. Middleton bought six capsules containing fentanyl in St. Louis and kept three for himself, his plea says. Middleton also admitted going to the victim’s home on the four days preceding her death to provide her with narcotics. Florissant police found the victim dead after family friends became concerned about her. She left behind a 4-year-old daughter and a 20-month-old son. “No child should have to face the death of their mother at such a young age,” the victim’s mother said in court Tuesday. “DEA takes deaths by illegal drugs very seriously," said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Colin Dickey, lead of Drug Enforcement Administration investigations in Eastern Missouri. "We can't say it often enough: if you are a drug dealer and your poison kills someone, we will do everything to make sure you spend time in jail. This sentence is proof of that objective." This case was investigated by the Florissant Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration.


title: Troy Resident Charged with Communicating Threats

component: USAO - North Carolina, Middle

body_text: GREENSBORO – Sandra J. Hairston, United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina, announced today that JEFFREY SCOTT HOBGOOD, of Troy, was arrested yesterday and charged with communicating threats. According to publicly filed court documents, on or about October 11, 2023, HOBGOOD sent an email to an address associated with a Jewish organization stating, in part, “I am going to take out every one of you.” On October 13, 2023, after being contacted by law enforcement, HOBGOOD sent a second email to the same address saying, in part, “Guess what happens to traitors? . . . Public execution. . . . We are at war . . . . If you think you semite pieces of s[***] are going to win, then you are delusional.” Court documents further allege that in June 2022, HOBGOOD sent multiple threatening emails to a family member. HOBGOOD is charged with a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 875(c), transmitting in interstate commerce a communication containing a threat to injure the person of another. If convicted, HOBGOOD faces a maximum term of 5 years of imprisonment, a fine not to exceed $250,000, or both. “No one in America should be threatened based on their race, nationality, religion, gender, or other protected characteristics,” said United States Attorney Sandra J. Hairston. “Individuals who target other community members will be held accountable for their actions.” “No one should be threatened with violence or acts of hate because of who they are or how they worship. The FBI partners with communities of faith across North Carolina. Crimes driven by hate have no place in our state,” said Robert M. DeWitt, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in North Carolina. A criminal complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys JoAnna McFadden and Ashley Waid. ###


title: Former Police Sergeant Indicted for Sexually Abusing Women

component: Criminal - Public Integrity Section

body_text: An indictment was unsealed today in the District of Idaho charging a former Caldwell Police Department sergeant with civil rights violations involving the sexual abuse of women and exchanging favorable police treatment for sexual acts. According to court documents, Ryan A. Bendawald, 41, of Franklin, Tennessee, allegedly abused his position as a law enforcement officer by sexually victimizing women in Idaho. From at least 2017 until 2021, Bendawald allegedly engaged in unlawful sexual conduct with at least seven women he encountered in the course of his law enforcement duties. Bendawald is also alleged to have exchanged and offered to exchange favorable police treatment for sex and sexual favors. Bendawald is charged with two felony counts of deprivation of rights under color of law, five felony counts of federal program bribery, and one misdemeanor count of deprivation of rights under color of law. If convicted on all counts, Bendawald faces a maximum penalty of life in prison. Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Joshua D. Hurwit for the District of Idaho, Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, and Special Agent in Charge Shohini S. Sinha of the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office made the announcement. The FBI Salt Lake City Field Office, Boise Resident Agency is investigating the case. Trial Attorneys Jordan Dickson and Kathryn E. Fifield of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Executive Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine L. Horwitz for the District of Idaho are prosecuting the case. Individuals may report any relevant information to the FBI Boise Field Office at (208) 344-4875. An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.


title: Norwich Man Sentenced to Prison for Fraud and Tax Offenses Stemming from Scheme that Victimized Women Through Social Media Accounts

component: USAO - Connecticut

body_text: Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that DEXTER ENWEREM, 36, of Norwich, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in New Haven to 30 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for fraud and tax offenses stemming from a scheme that defrauded women approached through their social media accounts. According to court documents and statements made in court, between approximately September 2019 and March 2021, Enwerem participated in a scheme to defraud individuals, primarily women, who were contacted through their Facebook and Instagram accounts. As part of the scheme, a co-conspirator of Enwerem used a false identity and made false representations to approach and befriend victims through the social media platforms. As the relationship progressed, the co-conspirator sometimes moved the communication to Google Hangouts, an online platform that allows users to communicate by video call or direct chat message. Eventually, the co-conspirator requested money from victims based on various false representations of need. The victims then sent money by wire transfers, checks, money orders, and cash. Some of the money was wired into bank accounts that Enwerem controlled, and some was sent in packages to an address where Enwerem could receive them. Through this scheme, Enwerem and his co-conspirators defrauded victims of approximately $450,000. Enwerem wired approximately $220,000 of these funds to bank accounts in Nigeria. In response to bank officials who questioned the nature of these wire transfers, Enwerem falsely stated that the recipients were family members and that the funds were intended to take care of his grandmother, and for household expenses. Enwerem also failed to pay taxes on the income he fraudulently obtained. Judge Bolden ordered Enwerem to pay restitution of $449,189 to his victims, and $127,299 in back taxes for the 2019 and 2020 tax years. Enwerem was arrested on related state charges on March 24, 2021. On May 23, 2023, He pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, and one count of tax evasion. This investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Connecticut Cyber Task Force (CCTF), the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, and the Norwich Police Department, with the assistance of the Hartford Police Department. The FBI’s CCTF is staffed with detectives from the Connecticut State Police’s Cyber Crimes Investigation Unit and the Bristol, Hartford, Stamford, and UConn Police Departments, as well as an agent from the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division. To contact the CCTF or report a cyber incident, please call the FBI’s New Haven Field Office at 203-777-6311 or file a complaint with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at https://www.ic3.gov. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. McGarry.


component: Civil Rights - Criminal Section

body_text: BOISE – An indictment was unsealed today in the District of Idaho charging a former Caldwell Police Department sergeant with civil rights violations involving the sexual abuse of women and exchanging favorable police treatment for sexual acts. According to court documents, Ryan A. Bendawald, 41, of Franklin, Tennessee, allegedly abused his position as a law enforcement officer by sexually victimizing women in Caldwell. From at least 2017 until 2021, Bendawald allegedly engaged in unlawful sexual conduct with at least seven women he encountered in the course of his law enforcement duties. Bendawald is also alleged to have exchanged and offered to exchange favorable police treatment for sex and sexual favors. Bendawald is charged with two felony counts of deprivation of rights under color of law, five felony counts of federal program bribery, and one misdemeanor count of deprivation of rights under color of law. If convicted on all counts, Bendawald faces a maximum penalty of life in prison. Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Joshua D. Hurwit for the District of Idaho, Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, and Special Agent in Charge Shohini S. Sinha of the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office made the announcement. The FBI Salt Lake City Field Office, Boise Resident Agency is investigating the case. Trial Attorneys Jordan Dickson and Kathryn E. Fifield of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Executive Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine L. Horwitz for the District of Idaho are prosecuting the case. Individuals may report any relevant information to the FBI Boise Field Office at (208) 344-4875. An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. ###


title: Justice Department Releases Report on Recommendations for Law Enforcement Agencies Facing Recruitment and Retention Challenges

component: Office of the Attorney General

body_text: The Justice Department today announced the release of a new publication, Recruitment and Retention for the Modern Law Enforcement Agency . The publication is the result of a convening of law enforcement and community leaders across the country, facilitated by the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) and the Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), at the request of Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. The report presents recommendations to address the challenges in recruitment and retention law enforcement agencies are facing nationwide. “Law enforcement officers across the country are facing unprecedented challenges at a time when they are already being stretched thin,” said Attorney General Garland. “The Justice Department has produced this report because we recognize the urgency and significance of the recruitment and retention crisis that agencies are encountering. Policing is a noble profession, and we are committed to doing everything we can to support local police departments as they work to serve their communities, build public trust, and keep people safe.” “Our law enforcement officers are the nation’s most valuable assets for preserving public safety in our communities,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “The Justice Department is committed to helping state and local law enforcement retain their critically important workforce – while recruiting the next generation of brave public servants. The more than 50 recommendations in this report will help police departments across the country to meaningfully enhance their recruitment and retention.” “The recruitment and retention crisis is the number one issue I hear about from our state, Tribal, and local law enforcement partners across the country,” said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. “The Justice Department knows that hiring and holding onto a highly qualified, committed, and diverse cadre of policing professionals is critical to public safety and police-community trust, and we are committed to working with our partners to address this crisis.” The report offers a number of recommendations to help meet the current recruitment and retention crisis, including reconsidering officer eligibility requirements to better reflect modern police work; modernizing and accelerating the hiring process; investing in officer health, safety, and wellbeing; and working with community leaders to target recruitment efforts toward diverse candidates and potential recruits who might otherwise not consider law enforcement as a career. “The challenge of hiring the right officers and keeping them on the force is one of the most difficult issues facing law enforcement agencies across the country,” said Director Hugh T. Clements of the COPS Office. “I know this publication is a resource that law enforcement executives have expressed a need for, and I believe this publication is an important step in meeting the recruitment and retention challenge.” “As we come up with new and effective strategies to advance community policing and reduce crime, we must address this recruitment and retention crisis with the same vigor and energy,” said Director Karhlton Moore of BJA. “We are dedicated to supporting the infrastructure to hire and retain high quality recruits and officers to keep our communities safe, and this publication will be pivotal in helping us achieve that goal.” The COPS Office is the federal component of the Justice Department responsible for advancing community policing nationwide. The only Justice Department agency with policing in its name, the COPS Office was established in 1994 and has been the cornerstone of the nation’s crime fighting strategy with grants, a variety of knowledge resource products, and training and technical assistance. Through the years, the COPS Office has become the go-to organization for law enforcement agencies across the country and continues to listen to the field and provide the resources that are needed to reduce crime and build trust between law enforcement and the communities served. Since 1994, the COPS Office has been appropriated more than $20 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to over 13,000 state, local, territorial, and Tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of more than 136,000 officers. The Office of Justice Programs (OJP) provides federal leadership, grants, training, technical assistance, and other resources to improve the nation’s capacity to prevent and reduce crime, advance equity and fairness in the administration of justice, assist victims, and uphold the rule of law. More information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov .


title: Two Sentenced for Federal Methamphetamine Distribution Conspiracy

component: USAO - Kentucky, Western

body_text: Paducah, KY – Two members of a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy were sentenced yesterday for their roles in the conspiracy. Both were also convicted of possessing with the intent to distribute methamphetamine on two occasions. U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky, Special Agent in Charge J. Todd Scott of the DEA Louisville Field Division, Sheriff Matt Hillbrecht of the Marshall County Sheriff’s Office, and Commissioner Phillip Burnett, Jr. of the Kentucky State Police made the announcement. According to court documents, Angela Dawn Moore , 43, of Marshall County, Kentucky, and Kevin Bellamy , 44, of Paducah, Kentucky, were sentenced for conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute and to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine in the Western District of Kentucky. Both defendants were also sentenced for possession with the intent to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine based upon seizures made by the Marshall County Sheriff’s Office in January of 2021 and the Kentucky State Police in March of 2021. Moore was sentenced to 12 years and 6 months in prison followed by 5 years of supervised release. Bellamy was sentenced to 4 years in prison followed by 3 years of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system. This case was investigated by the DEA Paducah post of duty, the Marshall County Sheriff’s Office, and the Kentucky State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth Hancock, Chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Paducah Branch Office, prosecuted the case. ###


title: New Britain Man Sentenced to 6 Years in Federal Prison for Fentanyl Trafficking and Gun Possession Offenses

body_text: Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that THOMAS RIVERA, 30, of New Britain, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to 72 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for fentanyl distribution and firearm possession offenses. According to court documents and statements made in court, on June 3, 2022, Hartford Police stopped a vehicle Rivera was operating and found him in possession of a bag containing approximately 140 grams of fentanyl, approximately 370 sleeves of fentanyl, a 9mm semiautomatic pistol with a loaded 15-round magazine, and $1,323 in cash. Rivera was arrested on state charges at that time. Rivera’s criminal history includes state felony convictions for firearm possession and drug distribution offenses. It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce. Rivera has been detained since his federal arrest on August 2, 2022. On January 9, 2023, he pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl, and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. This investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Hartford Task Force and the Hartford Police Department’s Vice, Intelligence and Narcotics Division. The DEA Task Force includes personnel from the DEA Hartford Resident Office and the Bristol, Hartford, East Hartford, Enfield, Manchester, New Britain, Rocky Hill, Wethersfield, and Windsor Locks Police Departments. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Ruff. This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), 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.


title: Missoula felon admits illegal possession of firearms

component: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

body_text: MISSOULA — A Missoula man with prior federal felony convictions for gun-related crimes today admitted to illegally possessing multiple firearms, which had no serial numbers, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said. Luke Aldon Hayes, 42, pleaded guilty to an information charging him with felon in possession of a firearm. Hayes faces a maximum of 15 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy presided and set sentencing for Feb. 14, 2024. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Hayes was detained pending further proceedings. In court documents, the government alleged that Hayes had two prior federal felony convictions for firearms-related offenses when, on Aug. 9, while at work in Bonner, he accidentally shot himself in the foot. Hayes left work immediately and drove to his residence in East Missoula. Law enforcement responded to Hayes’ residence and eventually searched his mother’s car because she was seen moving a black, plastic case from the house to the vehicle. Officers seized the black case, which contained seven handguns. None of the guns had serial numbers, and one of them, a .40-caliber pistol, was accompanied by a high-capacity magazine capable of holding 22 rounds of ammunition. In addition, Hayes agreed to the forfeiture of firearms recovered on Aug. 9 along with other guns, ammunition and accessories recovered later by law enforcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy J. Racicot is prosecuting the case. The FBI’s Montana Regional Violent Crime Task Force conducted the investigation. This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. XXX


title: Nevada CPA Pleads Guilty To Filing False Tax Returns

component: USAO - Nevada

body_text: A Nevada man pleaded guilty to aiding and assisting the filing of false tax returns for his role in a purported investment scheme to sell false tax deductions. According to court documents and statements made in court, Lance K. Bradford of Henderson, was a certified public accountant (CPA) and founder and manager of an accounting firm, LL Bradford & Company (LLB). LLB provided accounting services including tax preparation, audit and consulting services. Bradford also operated a real estate business that developed office buildings and other real property. In connection with Bradford’s real estate development activities, he operated and controlled a real estate investment partnership entity. In 2011, Bradford began offering LLB’s high-net-worth clients an “investment opportunity” through which the clients would make a payment to his partnership entity and, in exchange, receive a large tax deduction of approximately five to seven times the amount of money the client “invested.” Bradford advised that the clients’ payments would entitle them to claim the large tax deduction based on losses derived from the partnership entity even though the tax laws did not permit the sale of such deductions in exchange for an investment or money and the partnership did not incur the losses or depreciation in the amounts Bradford was selling. Bradford also did not report the purported investments as losses on the clients’ tax returns as promised. Instead, he caused the clients’ returns to report large false deductions for cost of goods sold, professional and consulting fees or nonpassive losses. In total, Bradford’s scheme caused a tax loss to the IRS of at least $8 million. As part of the investment scheme, in 2014, Bradford asked a client to make a $417,780 “investment” to his partnership entity in exchange for purported depreciation-based losses to be placed on his client’s 2013 corporate tax return (Form 1120S). But instead of reporting depreciation related to the investment, Bradford caused LLB to prepare and file a Form 1120S that falsely inflated the company’s cost of goods sold by $2,110,000, causing a tax loss to the IRS of approximately $860,627. Bradford is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 16, 2024, and faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison. He also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Jason M. Frierson for the District of Nevada made the announcement. IRS-Criminal Investigation are investigating the case with the assistance of the FBI. Trial Attorney Patrick Burns of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven W. Myhre for the District of Nevada are prosecuting the case. ###


title: Long Beach Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Smuggle Drugs into  Prisons in Multiple States

body_text: Gulfport, Miss. – A Long Beach, Mississippi man pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute FUB-AMB and 5F-MDMB-PICA, both of which are synthetic cannabinoids, into prisons in multiple states. Johnson Tran, 46, pleaded guilty on October 16, 2023, in U.S. District Court. According to court documents and information presented to the Court, in 2018, agents with the DEA received information from the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) that drug laced letters and greeting cards were being sent to inmates in the Bureau of Prisons from the Southern District of Mississippi. The drug laced letters and cards were intercepted at prisons in Illinois, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. DEA and BOP officials were able to determine that inmates were ordering the drug laced letters and cards from Johnson Tran via prison email accounts and jail calls. The inmates would typically order the drugs using coded language. The letters or greeting cards were laced with the synthetic cannabinoids, and many of them were sent from Gulfport, Mississippi. Agents were also able to determine through the review of financial records that Tran would ultimately receive payment for the drugs that he sent into prison via U.S. Department of Treasury checks drawn from the inmate’s prison accounts and/or peer-to-peer money transfers from associates or family members of the inmates. When Tran’s associates would receive funds on Tran’s behalf, Tran would give them a portion of the funds they received as payment for their services. Tran was indicted by a federal grand jury on April 18, 2023, along with 19 co-defendants who are currently scheduled for trial in December of 2023. Tran pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance. He is scheduled to be sentenced on February 8, 2024. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. U.S. Attorney Todd W. Gee and Special Agent in Charge Brad Byerley of the Drug Enforcement Administration made the announcement. The Drug Enforcement Administration is investigating the case with assistance from the FBI and the Bureau of Prisons. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Buckner.


title: Over 29,000 South Carolina Students to Participate in State’s 22nd Annual National Day of Concern & Student Pledge Against Gun Violence

component: USAO - South Carolina

body_text: COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA ---- United States Attorney, Adair F. Boroughs, stated that tomorrow, Wednesday, October 18, 2023, the United States Attorney’s Office (USAO), along with their local, state, and federal law enforcement partners, will support schools across the state as they participate in South Carolina’s 22 nd Annual Student Pledge Against Gun Violence. With a focus on keeping our schools and communities safe, students in middle school and high school are signing a voluntary pledge promising that they will never take a gun to school, will never resolve a dispute with a gun, and will use their influence to prevent friends from using guns to resolve disputes. Elementary school children are making a similar commitment—pledging that if they see a gun, they will not touch it, they will tell a teacher or a trusted adult, and they will assume that any gun they see might be loaded. The Student Pledge Against Gun Violence is a national program that recognizes the role young people, through their own decisions, can play in reducing gun violence. The program provides a means for beginning the conversation with young people about gun violence and encourages important conversations about gun safety and respectful ways to resolve disputes. Students from around the country will join together in pledging to do their part. For additional information concerning the pledge, visit the national Student Pledge website at www.pledge.org . As it has done since 2002, the USAO reached out to all South Carolina law enforcement agencies and schools to make the pledges available to interested schools. The pledge effort is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a national program that has been historically successful in bringing together law enforcement agencies and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The following South Carolina schools and law enforcement agencies are participating in this year’s pledge. For information on events scheduled for a particular school, please contact the respective school or local law enforcement agency. Participating Law Enforcement Agencies Allendale Sheriff’s Department Beaufort County Sheriff’s Department Cayce Police Department Central Police Department Charleston County Sheriff’s Office Chester County Sheriff’s Office Chesterfield County Sheriff’s Office City of York Police Department Columbia Police Department Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office Easley Police Department Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office First Circuit Solicitor’s Office Georgetown Police Department Greenville Police Department Greenwood County Sheriff’s Office Hampton County Sheriff’s Department Landrum Police Department Lexington County Sheriff’s Department Marion County Sheriff’s Office Myrtle Beach Police Department North Myrtle Beach Police Department Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Department Richland County Sheriff’s Department St. George Police Department Sumter County Sheriff’s Office Town of Lexington Police Department West Columbia Police Department Participating Schools Alcorn Middle School Allendale-Fairfax High School American Leadership Academy Barnwell High School Battery Creek High School Beech Hill Elementary School Bonds MSAP Brookdale Elementary School Brookland Cayce High School C. A. Johnson High School Cayce Elementary School Central Academy of the Arts Cheraw Intermediate School Chester Senior High School Chester Middle School Chester Park Elementary Inquiry Chester Park Elementary Colt Chester Park Elementary Arts Chester County Career Center Chicora Elementary School Creek Bridge Stem Academy Denmark-Olar Elementary School Donaldson MSAP Eau Claire High School Ebenezer Middle School Edwards Elementary School Fairfield Magnet School for Math and Science Fairfield Middle School Forest Heights Elementary School Forest Lake Elementary NASA Explorer School Georgetown Middle School Greg Mathis Charter High School Great Falls High School Great Falls Elementary School H. B. Rhame Elementary School Hammond Hill Elementary School Hampton County High School Hand Middle School Heyward Gibbes Middle School High Hills Elementary School Jefferson Elementary School Lewisville High School Lewisville Middle School Lewisville Elementary School Lexington Elementary School Lexington High School Logan Elementary School McBee Elementary School McBee High School McCrorey-Liston School of Technology McKissick Academy of Science and Technology Marion High School Memminger Elementary School Midlands Technical College Myrtle Beach Middle School New Prospect Elementary School Ocean Drive Elementary School Pageland Elementary School Pendergrass Fairwold High School Plainview Elementary School Ridge View High School Ruby Elementary School Sandlapper Elementary School Septima P. Clarke Academy St. George Middle School St. John's High School Sterling Academy Swansea Freshman Academy The Learning Center Elementary School The Learning Center Middle School Turning Point Academy W. A. Perry Middle School W. G. Sanders Middle School Ware Shoals Middle School Whittaker Elementary School ###


title: Defendant Charged with Operating Sex-Trafficking Ring on Pennsylvania Avenue in Brooklyn Known As The "Penn Track"

component: USAO - New York, Eastern

body_text: Earlier today, an indictment was unsealed in federal court in Brooklyn federal court charging Douglas Welch, also known as “Paradise,” with sex trafficking by force, sex trafficking conspiracy, interstate prostitution and promotion of prostitution. The charges in the indictment relate to Welch allegedly forcing victims to engage in prostitution, in among other places, a stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue in Brooklyn known as the “Penn Track.” Welch was arrested today and is scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge James R. Cho. Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York and James Smith, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and Edward A. Caban, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the arrest and charges. “As alleged, Welch has trafficked multiple women for his own financial benefit while boasting about the cruel and brutal violence he has inflicted on the vulnerable victims,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “Running a brazen, open-air commercial sex market in East New York or anywhere else in our district is unacceptable, dangerous to our communities, and especially harmful to women caught in this terrible cycle of abuse. Today’s indictment will hold the defendant accountable in a federal courtroom for his exploitative crimes.” Mr. Peace also thanked the New York City Department of Corrections, the New York City Human Resources Administration, and the Kings County District Attorney’s Office for their valuable assistance with the case. “Today’s charges further affirm our unwavering commitment to protecting the survivors of sex trafficking,” stated NYPD Commissioner Caban. “Together with our law enforcement partners, the NYPD will continue to ensure that anyone seeking to profit through the abuse and exploitation of another human being is identified, investigated, and indicted. I commend everyone involved at the FBI and the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York for their work on this important case.” The Penn Track has for years operated as an open-air market where Welch and others have forced trafficking victims to earn money for them by engaging in commercial sex acts with customers in cars or nearby hotels. As alleged in court documents, Welch recruited women to work on his behalf along the Penn Track and used threats and violence to force those victims to engage in commercial sex with customers, and provide him with the profits. Welch routinely threatened his victims with physical violence if they disobeyed his orders, telling one victim, “if you f*** with the pimping, I’m gonna crack your head” and threatening to “slap the s***” out of another victim for not listening to him. He also bragged about knocking unconscious trafficking victims who disrespected him or other traffickers, including describing one instance in which he grabbed a woman by the throat, knocked her onto the sidewalk and then body slammed her for disrespecting another pimp along the Penn Track. Welch struck a victim with a baseball bat for refusing to engage in prostitution after he directed her to do so, telling another sex trafficker that he wanted to leave a “stain on her brain.” The charges in the indictment are allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted of the charges, Welch faces a minimum term of 15 years in prison, and up to life imprisonment. If you are a victim of trafficking—whether by Welch or someone else—and have information to provide, please contact the FBI, which is prepared to help you regardless of your immigration status, at tips.fbi.gov or call 1-800-CALL-FBI. The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Civil Rights Section. Assistant United States Attorney Erin Reid, Kayla Bensing and Joshua Dugan are in charge of the prosecution. The Defendant : Douglas Welch (also known as “Paradise”) Age: 40 Queens, New York E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 23-CR-411 (OEM)


title: Kanawha County Woman Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud Conspiracy

component: USAO - West Virginia, Southern

body_text: CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Amy Deavers, 50, of Glasgow, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Deavers admitted that she helped access and attempt to transfer a veteran’s stolen disability benefits as part of an identity theft scheme. According to court documents and statements made in court, from approximately December 2020 through at least December 1, 2022, Brittany King and a co-defendant unlawfully obtained the personal identification information of multiple individuals through King’s employment with a business that cleaned local office spaces. King and the co-defendant used that personal information to reroute the mail of their victims to King’s address in Charleston. With the rerouted mail, King and the co-defendant opened lines of credit and bank accounts and obtained loans and credit cards. Deavers admitted that she became involved in the wire fraud scheme after King and the co-defendant were arrested and federally charged for their actions on December 5, 2022. Deavers and the co-defendant attempted to transfer $1,000 from one of the scheme’s fraudulent bank accounts to Deavers on December 30, 2022. This account was opened to reroute the Department of Veterans Affairs disability benefits of one of the identity theft victims. On January 30, 2023, the co-defendant was incarcerated at the South Central Regional Jail when she spoke to Deavers during a recorded jail phone call. Deavers admitted that the co-defendant provided her with information during the call to access and transfer funds from the veteran victim’s fraudulent account. Deavers is scheduled to be sentenced on February 6, 2024, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. Deavers also owes up to $12,086.90 in restitution. King, 34, of East Bank, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft on October 3, 2023, and awaits sentencing. King also owes $176,118.73 in restitution. United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the United States Postal Inspection Service, the United States Secret Service, the United States Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, and the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office. Senior United States District Judge David A. Faber presided over today’s hearing. Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew D. Isabell and Jonathan T. Storage are prosecuting the case, and Assistant United States Attorney Kathleen Robeson provided substantial assistance. 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. 2:23-cr-14. ###


title: Hopkinsville Man Sentenced to Over 10 Years in Federal Prison for Illegally Possessing Handguns

body_text: Bowling Green, KY – A Hopkinsville, Kentucky man was sentenced today to 10 years and 1 month in prison for illegally possessing a handgun on two separate occasions. U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky, Special Agent in Charge R. Shawn Morrow of the ATF Louisville Field Division, Commissioner Phillip Burnett, Jr. of the Kentucky State Police, and Sheriff Tracy White of the Todd County Sheriff’s Office made the announcement. According to court documents, Marquez Penman, 30, was sentenced to 10 years and 1 month in prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. On May 17, 2022, in Logan County, Kentucky, Penman possessed a Taurus handgun. Nine days later, on May 26, 2022, in Todd County, Kentucky, Penman possessed a Ruger handgun. Penman was prohibited from possessing a firearm because he had previously been convicted of the following felony offenses. On October 7, 2015, in Christian Circuit Court, Penman was convicted of two counts of first-degree robbery. On August 1, 2012, in Christian Circuit Court, Penman was convicted of second-degree robbery. There is no parole in the federal system. This case was investigated by the ATF Bowling Green Field Office, the Kentucky State Police, and the Todd County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark J. Yurchisin II, of the U.S. Attorney’s Bowling Green Branch Office, prosecuted this case. This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. ###


title: Wisconsin Jury Convicts Corn Milling Company Officials for Workplace Safety Violations Following Deadly Mill Explosion

component: Energy and Natural Resources Division

body_text: On Friday, Oct. 13, a federal jury in Madison, Wisconsin, convicted current and former Didion Milling Inc. officials of workplace safety, environmental, fraud and obstruction of justice charges following a deadly explosion in 2017 at a corn mill that Didion Milling operated in Cambria, Wisconsin. The explosion killed five workers and seriously injured others. Didion Milling Vice President of Operations, Derrick Clark, was convicted of conspiring to falsify documents, making false Clean Air Act compliance certifications as Didion’s “responsible official” and obstructing the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) investigation of the explosion at the corn mill by making false and misleading statements during a deposition. Former Didion Milling Food Safety Superintendent, Shawn Mesner, was convicted of participating in a fraud conspiracy against Didion Milling’s customers and conspiring to obstruct and mislead OSHA for his role in falsifying sanitation records used at Didion to track the completion of cleanings designed to remove accumulations of corn dust at the mill. “The trial and convictions in this case show that compliance matters, and attempting to hide non-compliance, is not just a ‘technical’ violation,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). “Managers and officers who enable corporate cultures that tolerate, encourage or cover up violations, and who participate in falsifying documents and obstructing agency investigations, will and must be held accountable in addition to the corporations.” “The tragic loss of life in this case shows the terrible consequences that can result when companies fail to implement required health, safety and environmental measures,” said Assistant Administrator David M. Uhlmann of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “The convictions of Didion Milling senior managers sends a clear message that EPA and our law enforcement partners will investigate and prosecute companies that put profits above the health and safety of their workers.” “Derrick Clark and Shawn Messner chose to intentionally mislead OSHA investigators and made false statements about their knowledge of working conditions at the plant to protect themselves and cover their mistakes,” said OSHA Regional Administrator Bill Donovan in Chicago. “Their blatant actions demonstrated a callous disregard for the loss of life, injuries and property damage that occurred under their leadership at the Didion Mill. Both Clark and Messner ignored their legal and moral obligation to protect workers before and after the explosion. OSHA is committed to taking all necessary action to hold employers responsible for protecting workers on the job.” Grain dust can be explosive, and OSHA safety standards require grain milling facilities like the Didion Milling corn mill to develop and implement housekeeping programs, including regular cleanings, to reduce grain dust accumulation. Didion Milling maintained its master sanitation schedule to record the performance of required cleanings. Clark and Mesner were convicted of participating in a conspiracy to falsify that cleaning log, including directing others to backfill entries for uncompleted cleanings. Federal law gives OSHA six months to gather facts and issue appropriate citations after a safety violation occurrence. In matters involving worker deaths, evidence that corporate managers knew about violations can result in issuance of a “willful” citation and a criminal referral. OSHA subpoenaed Clark’s testimony in September 2017, during the corn mill explosion fatality investigation. Clark gave false and misleading testimony about his knowledge of problems with the dust collection system at Didion’s corn mill, his knowledge of explosion hazards and his knowledge of prior fires at the facility. Additionally, a permit issued under the Clean Air Act required compliance by Didion Milling at its corn mill including the operation of baghouses equipment, which are designed to limit the release of particulate matter like corn dust into the environment. The permit also required a “responsible official,” a senior manager with authority, to periodically certify the mill’s compliance with air pollution control permit conditions and disclose known permit violations. Clark falsely certified Didion’s compliance without disclosing that baghouse logs – documentation on maintenance of baghouse equipment – had been systematically falsified to conceal permit violations. Didion Milling sold its milled corn products to food and beverage manufacturers. Sanitation at food manufacturing facilities is necessary for food safety, and excessive accumulations of grain dust can cause food safety problems. Through deceptive means, including repeatedly presenting a falsified cleaning log to food safety auditors, Mesner conspired to deceive Didion’s customers about its sanitation practices. As food safety superintendent, Mesner directed operations personnel to falsify the log to make it appear as if the cleaning schedule was being followed. The jury on Friday also acquitted former Didion Milling environmental manager James Lenz of charges relating to falsifying environmental records and conspiring to make false statements and obstruct agency proceedings. Didion Milling previously pleaded guilty to falsifying the cleaning logs and baghouse logs at the mill and agreed to pay a criminal fine of $1 million and restitution of $10.25 million to the victims of the 2017 explosion. Didion Milling shift superintendents Nicholas Booker, Michael Bright and Joel Niemeyer previously pleaded guilty to false statement charges for participating in the falsification of the cleaning logs and baghouse logs. Didion Milling shift superintendent Anthony Hess pleaded guilty to obstructing OSHA by making false and misleading statements about the accuracy of the cleaning log during a sworn statement taken as part of OSHA’s investigation into the mill explosion. Former Didion Milling environmental manager Joseph Winch previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to conceal environmental violations from regulators by falsifying compliance certifications and providing falsified logs to regulators. Sentencing hearings for each of the defendants before U.S. District Court Judge James D. Peterson for the Western District of Wisconsin will be scheduled at a later date. The EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division investigated the case. Trial Attorneys Samuel Charles Lord and Joel LaBissonniere and Senior Trial Attorney Richard J. Powers of ENRD’s Environmental Crimes Section are prosecuting the case, with logistical and victim services support from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Wisconsin.


title: Fredericktown Man Sentenced to Serve 87 Months in Federal Prison for Possessing Child Pornography

component: USAO - Missouri, Eastern

body_text: CAPE GIRARDEAU – The United States Attorney's Office announced that Joseph A. Morgan, 48, of Fredericktown, Missouri, has been sentenced to serve 87 months in federal prison for the offense of Possession of Child Pornography. Morgan appeared for his sentencing hearing Tuesday before U.S. District Judge Sarah A. Pitlyk at the federal courthouse in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. According to court documents, law enforcement officials executed a search warrant at a residence in Madison County in March 2021 after developing probable cause that an individual was obtaining videos containing child pornography over the internet. Morgan was found on the property, and investigators seized his tablet and a thumb drive. Over 60 child pornography videos were discovered on the devices. At his guilty plea hearing earlier this year, Morgan admitted that he used the internet to acquire the material. After serving his 87-month sentence, Morgan will be placed on lifetime supervised release. He will also be required to register as a sex offender. This case was investigated by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. Assistant United States Attorney Jack Koester handled the prosecution for the Government.


title: Killeen Cocaine Dealer Sentenced to Eight Years in Federal Prison

component: USAO - Texas, Western

body_text: WACO, Texas – A Killeen man was sentenced in a federal court in Waco to 97 months in prison for possession with intent to distribute cocaine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. According to court documents, Eric Darnell Johnson, 34, sold cocaine to dozens of individuals within Killeen, including servicemembers and civilians associated with the Department of the Army. A search warrant of Johnson’s residence led to the seizure of approximately 200 grams of cocaine, methamphetamine, and synthetic narcotics. Law enforcement officials also recovered more than 20 firearms from Johnson’s residence, three of which were discovered to have been stolen. “This sentence is a victory for the safety of Fort Cavazos and the surrounding community,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas. “It’s also a warning to anyone who would consider making the same poor decision to put service members, their families, and others at risk. We and our dedicated law enforcement partners will not tolerate drug trafficking in our district.” “This conviction shows our desire to eliminate the threat of drug trafficking which endangers our communities” said Special Agent-in-Charge Maria Thomas for the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID) Central Texas Field Office. “The Central Texas Field Office will continue to partner with our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners to protect our communities and the Department of the Army from the dangers of drug trafficking.” Army CID, the Bell County Organized Crime Unit, and the Killeen Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Kucera prosecuted the case. ###


title: Springfield Man Sentenced to 15 Years for Child Pornography

component: USAO - Missouri, Western

body_text: SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Springfield, Mo., man who possessed thousands of videos and photos of child pornography was sentenced in federal court today for trading those images of child sexual abuse over the internet. Craig Allen Rhoden, 55, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to 15 years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Rhoden to pay $150,000 in restitution to 30 victims. The court also sentenced Rhoden to 15 years of supervised release following incarceration. Rhoden will be required to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison and will be subject to federal and state sex offender registration requirements, which may apply throughout his life. On April 18, 2023, Rhoden pleaded guilty to one count of receiving and distributing child pornography. Law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Rhoden’s residence on Jan. 5, 2023, after receiving CyberTip reports from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that Rhoden had uploaded hundreds of images of child pornography. Rhoden admitted that he participated in the exchange of child pornography, including trading images and videos of infant victims, and that he uploaded images of child pornography to a website. Rhoden also admitted that he took “upskirt” photos of children at the Walmart where he was employed and uploaded those photos to a website he operated. A forensic analysis of Rhoden’s electronic devices found more than 16,000 videos and photos of child pornography. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie L. Wan. It was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force, and the Springfield, 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."


title: Monroe Auto Brokerage Owner Sentenced to Federal Prison for Wire Fraud and Bankruptcy Fraud

body_text: MONROE, La. – Avery Antron Goins , 44, of Monroe, has been sentenced for wire fraud and bankruptcy fraud, announced United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown. Goins was sentenced by United States District Judge Terry A. Doughty to 60 months in prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for these offenses. Goins was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $90,000. Goins worked in Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, in the auto brokerage and sales industry. According to information introduced in court, Goins registered two companies with the Louisiana Secretary of State, Avery’s Auto Brokerage in 2006 and 2nd Chance Auto LLC in 2017. Since approximately the fall of 2013, Goins and his company were placed on a listing of restricted car dealers due in part because of the frequency in which he issued insufficient checks for vehicle sales transactions. Goins had deposit accounts at various financial institutions. In January 2019, Goins established accounts with JPMorgan Chase Bank and Regions Bank in the name of 2nd Chance Auto LLC (“2nd Chance”) and made an initial cash deposit of $100 into the Regions Bank account. Goins also applied for an account in the name of 2nd Chance with Elavon, Inc. (“Elavon”), a credit card processor who processed its merchant customers’ credit card transactions, and this account was tied to his Regions Bank account for deposits, credit card chargebacks, and otherwise. Between January 23, 2019, and February 28, 2019, the Elavon account had 33 suspicious credit card transactions on 32 individual credit card numbers all containing the same first eight digits. During this period, Goins attempted to credit a total of $138,800.00 in fraudulent credit card transactions at 2nd Chance’s Regions Bank account using his Elavon merchant terminal. One such transaction occurred on February 5, 2019, when Goins, as the sole employee of his car sales business, conducted a credit card transaction of $4,200. This credit card transaction was conducted by keying in the credit card number belonging to M.K.G., a Tampa, Florida resident. Goins did not have the authorization of M.K.G. when he charged $4,200 to M.K.G.’s account, nor did he sell M.K.G. a vehicle in exchange for this financial transaction. For each of the fraudulent 33 credit card transactions, thousands of dollars were credited to 2nd Chance’s Regions Bank account despite Goins not having the credit card, nor having the owner’s authorization, nor did he sell any vehicles in exchange. Elavon suffered a loss of approximately $40,700 and Goins’ merchant account was eventually closed. Goins filed for bankruptcy protection on or about June 6, 2019, seeking Chapter 7 relief, and thus he had a duty to disclose all assets and debts. A couple of months before his bankruptcy filing, Goins deposited two checks totaling $160,000 into the Regions Bank account for 2nd Chance. These checks purportedly represented the proceeds from the sale of 10-14 vehicles to a Canadian purchaser. After depositing the checks, Goins began withdrawing thousands of dollars from the account. However, Regions Bank eventually determined Goins had deposited two counterfeit checks. As a result, Regions Bank suffered a loss of approximately $50,000 when the account became overdrawn. When asked in his Bankruptcy Schedule E/F to disclose his creditors having unsecured claims, Goins omitted the debt owed to Regions Bank and Elavon which he had incurred between January 2019 and March 2019. His intentional omission of debt fraudulently incurred violated federal criminal and bankruptcy law. He pleaded guilty to the charges on May 31, 2023. The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the United States Trustee’s Office, Region 5, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Cytheria D. Jernigan. # # #


title: York County Man Charged With Drug Trafficking And Firearms Offenses

component: USAO - Pennsylvania, Middle

body_text: HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Charles N. Lenhart, age 43, of York, Pennsylvania, was indicted on October 11, 2023, by a federal grand jury on drug trafficking and firearms offenses. According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, the indictment charges Lenhart with possession with intent to distribute cocaine hydrochloride and fentanyl. Lenhart is further charged with possessing an Anderson Arms .223 caliber Am15, a Stevens 12-gauge shotgun, and an ESS .38 revolver in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. The indictment also charges Lenhart with unlawful possession of firearms by a convicted felon. The offenses took place on May 31, 2023, in York County. The case was investigated by the Lower Windsor Township Police department, York County Drug Task Force, Pennsylvania State Police, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney William Behe is prosecuting the case. This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. The maximum penalty for these offenses is up to life in prison, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines. Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court. # # #


title: American Citizen Sentenced to Life Imprisonment Plus Seventy Years for Providing Material Support to ISIS that Resulted in Death

body_text: Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Ruslan Maratovich Asainov, a U.S. citizen and former resident of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, was sentenced by United States District Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis to life imprisonment plus seventy years for providing material support to ISIS, a foreign terrorist organization, that resulted in death. Asainov was also sentenced to concurrent terms of 20 years’ imprisonment on related convictions of conspiracy to provide material support to ISIS and obstruction of justice, and 10 years’ imprisonment for receipt of military-type training from ISIS. Today’s sentence was imposed by United States District Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis. Asainov was convicted by a federal jury after a three-week trial in February 2023. Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Matthew G. Olsen, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s National Security Division; James Smith, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI); Ivan J. Arvelo, Special Agent-in-Charge, Homeland Security Investigations New York (HSI), and Edward A. Caban, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the sentence. “Today’s sentence rightly holds Asainov responsible for the carnage he inflicted as a sworn member of ISIS and protects the world community from this avowed killer,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “The defendant committed his life to that terrorist organization and became a lethal sniper for ISIS in Syria, training many other ISIS members to shoot to kill as ISIS waged its brutal, barbaric campaign. To this day, the defendant maintains his unrepentant allegiance to that hateful cause. Like this defendant now knows, anyone who takes up arms in service of ISIS and causes death and destruction will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law by this Office.” “Mr. Asainov abandoned his family and country to fight for ISIS and train others to carry out its reign of terror, a cause to which he remains devoted to this day,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew G. Olsen. “Now, he is being held accountable for his crimes with a sentence of life in prison. The Department of Justice is committed to bringing to justice those who would aid such murderous terrorist organizations.” “The world is undoubtedly safer with Ruslan Maratovich Asainov behind bars," stated HSI New York Special Agent-in-Charge Arvelo. “Mr. Asainov pledged himself to ISIS, committed unconscionable acts on behalf of the terrorist group, and bragged about how he taught nearly 100 aspiring snipers how to kill. He further aligned himself to the Islamic State by covering his federal prison cell wall with an improvised ISIS flag. HSI New York is proud to stand with our partners to ensure his atrocities end here.” “Today’s sentence is a just and fair punishment for a naturalized U.S. citizen who forsook the country that took him in,” stated NYPD Commissioner Caban. “Instead of embracing all that America had to offer him and his family in New York City, he instead pledged allegiance to a foreign terrorist organization. This outcome serves as a warning to those who intend to actively promote or carry out the violent objectives of such groups: The NYPD and our law enforcement partners around the globe will never stop working to identify and bring to justice anyone who so clearly considers our nation their sworn enemy.” Between December 2013 and March 2019, Asainov provided and conspired to provide material support and resources in the form of personnel, including himself, training, and expert advice and assistance, to a foreign terrorist organization, namely ISIS, knowing that ISIS was a designated foreign terrorist organization that had engaged in terrorist activity and terrorism. Asainov also received military-type training from ISIS, in violation of federal law. On December 24, 2013, Asainov abandoned his wife and daughter in Brooklyn, and boarded a flight at JFK International Airport, bound for Istanbul, Turkey. Along with a co-conspirator, Mirsad Kandic, by early January 2014, Asainov traveled to northern Syria in the area of Aleppo, and joined ISIS as a fighter. Kandic was arrested in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, convicted of conspiracy to provide material support to ISIS resulting in death by a federal jury in Brooklyn in May 2022, and sentenced to life in prison in July 2023. Over the course of approximately five years fighting on behalf of ISIS, Asainov fought in numerous battles against ISIS enemies, including engagements at Kobani, Tabqa, Raqqa, Dayr Az Zawr, and ISIS’s last stand in Syria at Baghouz, in March 2019. Asainov received training in how to use automatic rifles, machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades. In Tabqa, in mid-2014, he volunteered to train as a sniper. Over time, Asainov became a sniper trainer or “emir” on behalf of ISIS, estimating that he taught nearly 100 students. A former U.S. Navy SEAL scout sniper testified that the defendant’s sniper training course was consistent with what the former SEAL would expect to be taught in a sniper training program. From Syria, the defendant attempted to recruit another individual to travel from the United States to Syria to fight for ISIS, and sought to obtain funds to purchase a scope for his rifle from the same person. The defendant also told his estranged wife that he was fighting on behalf of ISIS, described by him in a recorded January 2015 voicemail as “the most atrocious terrorist organization in the world that ever existed.” Asainov’s estranged wife testified that he sent her a photograph of three dead fighters, one of whom was wearing a patch reading, “Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham,” i.e., ISIS, in Arabic script. Asainov was captured in Syria after ISIS’s last stand at Baghouz, near the Syria-Iraq border. Just before his capture, Asainov discarded his rifle and destroyed his cell phone. Asainov admitted to agents from the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force that he had fought in numerous battles on behalf of ISIS as a warrior and sniper, serving in several different katibas or ISIS fighting brigades. In recorded phone calls to his mother from facilities operated by the Bureau of Prisons (“BOP”), the defendant told her that he was carrying out Allah’s orders when he waged jihad and killed for ISIS, that he intended to return to waging jihad if released, and that he would fight until he “meet[s] Allah,” i.e., until his death. In September 2020, staff at a BOP facility confiscated a makeshift ISIS flag affixed to Asainov’s cell wall. The defendant had filled in an 8.5” x 11” sheet of paper with black ink and Arabic writing in the design of the ISIS flag. During his trial, the defendant reiterated his allegiance to ISIS to court personnel, stating that ISIS would rise again. The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s National Security and Cybercrime Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Douglas M. Pravda, J. Matthew Haggans, Nicholas J. Moscow, and Nina C. Gupta are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance provided by Trial Attorney Jenny Levy of the Counterterrorism Section of the National Security Division of the Department of Justice and Paralegal Specialists Wayne Colon and Mary Clare McMahon. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the FBI’s Legal Attachés abroad, and foreign authorities in multiple countries on multiple continents provided critical assistance in this case. The Bosnian and Herzegovinian authorities and the FBI Legal Attaché Office in Sarajevo provided extraordinary assistance in the investigation and prosecution. The Ministry of Justice for the Republic of Finland, the Stuttgart Police Department and Federal Office of Justice in the Federal Republic of Germany, the Department of Justice & Constitutional Development in the Republic of South Africa, the Prosecutor General’s Office in Ukraine, and the FBI’s Legal Attaché Offices for those countries provided valuable assistance in the investigation. The Defendant : RUSLAN MARATOVICH ASAINOV (also known as “Suleiman Al-Amriki” and “Suleiman Al-Kazakhi”) Age: 46 Bay Ridge, Brooklyn E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 19-CR-402 (NGG) Related Defendants : MIRSAD KANDIC Age: 42 Brooklyn, New York; Kosovo E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 17-CR-449 (NGG)


title: Indian national arrested in Montana admits role in computer-hacking scheme that stole $150,000 from Kalispell woman

body_text: MISSOULA — An Indian national today admitted to his role in stealing $150,000 from an elderly Montana woman through a computer-hacking scheme, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said. Sukhdev Vaid, 24, of India, pleaded guilty to wire fraud. Vaid faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy presided. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing was set for Feb. 14, 2024. Vaid was detained pending further proceedings. The government alleged in court documents that a large enterprise originating from India was involved in stealing money from the elderly in the United States. In February, various fraudsters stole $150,000 from a 73-year-old woman, identified as Jane Doe, in Kalispell. The fraud occurred because of a pop-up notice that appeared on Jane Doe’s computer screen. The notice explained that Jane Doe was “hacked” and for her to call a number for customer support. Jane Doe complied, and fraudsters directed her to remove cash from her bank accounts for safe keeping at the “Fed.” Jane Doe complied and gave $150,000 in cash to the fraudsters. In March, Jane Doe told the fraudsters she still had $50,000 in cash, which was a ruse set up by the FBI. Vaid traveled to Montana, along with co-defendant Eddly Joseph, of Gainesville, Florida, to steal the money from Jane Doe. Law enforcement arrested the pair when they arrived to collect the money. The investigation determined that the fraudsters remotely accessed Jane Doe’s computer, using UltraViewer, which they installed on her computer. Joseph pleaded guilty in August to wire fraud and is pending sentencing. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan G. Weldon is prosecuting the case. The FBI and the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. XXX


title: Former Information Technology Manager Sentenced for Scheme to Steal Over $1.4 Million from Employer

component: USAO - Massachusetts

body_text: BOSTON – The former information technology manager of a Quebec City, Canada-based telecommunications company was sentenced today in connection with a fraud scheme that involved the theft of over $1.4 million in computer equipment from his employer. Tod Erickson, 60, of Londonderry, N.H., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani to one year and one day in prison. He was also ordered to pay restitution of $1,596,328 and to forfeit $1,457,429. On May 18, 2023, Erickson pleaded guilty to wire fraud and filing a false tax return. Erickson served as the information technology manager at a telecommunications company that, until February 2019, had an office located in Chelmsford, Mass. As information technology manager, Erikson was responsible for submitting requests to purchase equipment – such as computers and hard drives. From at least January 2012 through February 2019, Erickson fraudulently submitted purchase requests for computer equipment that the company did not need. Thereafter, without the knowledge or approval of his employer, Erickson sold the items to third parties. Erickson also filed income tax returns for the tax year 2016 in which he intentionally underreported his income by failing to disclose money he received from the sale of his employer’s property. Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; and Harry Chavis, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mackenzie A. Queenin of the Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit prosecuted the case.


title: Harrisburg Man Indicted For Drug Trafficking And Firearms Offenses

body_text: HARRISBURG: The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Jean Cortes Malave, age 40, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was indicted on October 11, 2023, by a federal grand jury on drug trafficking and firearms charges. According to U.S. Attorney Gerard Karam, the indictment alleges that on November 29, 2022, in York County, Pennsylvania, Cortes Malave distributed a quantity of fentanyl. The indictment further alleges that on that same day, Cortes Malave possessed an additional quantity of fentanyl with the intent to distribute the controlled substance. The indictment also alleges that Cortes Malave possessed a .380 Baretta Pico handgun and a Highpoint 40 caliber pistol in furtherance of the above-alleged drug trafficking crime. The case was investigated by the Northern York County Regional Police, along with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pennsylvania State Police. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Monroe is prosecuting the case. This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. The maximum penalty for the distribution of a controlled substance offense is a term of 20 years’ imprisonment, a term of at least three years of supervised release following imprisonment, and a $1,000,000 fine. The maximum penalty for the possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime is life imprisonment, a term of five years of supervised release following imprisonment, and a $250,000 fine. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines. Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court. # # #


title: American Citizen Sentenced to Life in Prison for Providing Material Support to ISIS That Resulted in Death

component: National Security Division (NSD)

body_text: Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, Ruslan Maratovich Asainov, 46, a U.S. citizen and former resident of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, was sentenced to life in prison for providing material support to ISIS, a designated foreign terrorist organization, that resulted in death. Asainov was also sentenced to concurrent terms of 20 years in prison on related convictions of conspiracy to provide material support to ISIS and obstruction of justice, and 10 years in prison for receipt of military-type training from ISIS. Asainov was convicted by a federal jury after a three-week trial in February. “Mr. Asainov abandoned his family and country to fight for ISIS and train others to carry out its reign of terror, a cause to which he remains devoted to this day,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department's National Security Division. “Now, he is being held accountable for his crimes with a sentence of life in prison. The Department of Justice is committed to bringing to justice those who would aid such murderous terrorist organizations.” “Today’s life sentence was rightly holds Asainov responsible for the carnage he inflicted as a sworn member of ISIS and protects the world community from this avowed killer,” said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York. “The defendant committed his life to that terrorist organization and became a lethal sniper for ISIS in Syria, training many other ISIS members to shoot to kill as ISIS waged its brutal, barbaric campaign. To this day, the defendant maintains his unrepentant allegiance to that evil cause. Like this defendant now knows, anyone who takes up arms in service of ISIS and causes death and destruction will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law by this office.” “The U.S. government worked tirelessly with our international partners to locate and return this U.S. citizen to face accountability for his crimes,” said Executive Assistant Director Larissa L. Knapp of the FBI’s National Security Branch. “He's a convicted terrorist who fought for ISIS and taught others how to kill on behalf of their violent extremist ideology. Justice was served with today's life sentence.” Between December 2013 and March 2019, Asainov provided and conspired to provide material support and resources in the form of personnel, including himself, training and expert advice and assistance, to a foreign terrorist organization, namely ISIS, knowing that ISIS was a designated foreign terrorist organization that had engaged in terrorist activity and terrorism. Asainov also received military-type training from ISIS, in violation of federal law. On Dec. 24, 2013, Asainov abandoned his wife and daughter in Brooklyn, and boarded a flight at JFK International Airport, bound for Istanbul, Turkey. Along with a co-conspirator, Mirsad Kandic, by early January 2014, Asainov traveled to northern Syria in the area of Aleppo and joined ISIS as a fighter. Kandic was arrested in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, convicted of conspiracy to provide material support to ISIS resulting in death by a federal jury in Brooklyn in May 2022, and sentenced to life in prison in July. Over the course of approximately five years fighting on behalf of ISIS, Asainov fought in numerous battles against ISIS enemies, including engagements at Kobani, Tabqa, Raqqa, Dayr Az Zawr, and ISIS’s last stand in Syria at Baghouz, in March 2019. Asainov received training in how to use automatic rifles, machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades. In Tabqa, in mid-2014, he volunteered to train as a sniper. Over time, Asainov became a sniper trainer or “emir” on behalf of ISIS, estimating that he taught nearly 100 students. A former U.S. Navy SEAL scout sniper testified at Asainov’s trial that the defendant’s sniper training course was consistent with what the former SEAL would expect to be taught in a sniper training program. From Syria, the defendant attempted to recruit another individual to travel from the United States to Syria to fight for ISIS and sought to obtain funds to purchase a scope for his rifle from the same person. The defendant also told his estranged wife that he was fighting on behalf of ISIS, described by him in a recorded January 2015 voicemail as “the most atrocious terrorist organization in the world that ever existed.” Asainov’s estranged wife testified at his trial that he sent her a photograph of three dead fighters, one of whom was wearing a patch reading, “Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham,” i.e., ISIS, in Arabic script. Asainov was captured in Syria after ISIS’s last stand at Baghouz, near the Syria-Iraq border. Just before his capture, Asainov discarded his rifle and destroyed his cell phone. Asainov admitted to agents from the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force that he had fought in numerous battles on behalf of ISIS as a warrior and sniper, serving in several different katibas or ISIS fighting brigades. In recorded phone calls to his mother from facilities operated by the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), the defendant told her that he was carrying out Allah’s orders when he waged jihad and killed for ISIS, that he intended to return to waging jihad if released, and that he would fight until he “meet[s] Allah,” i.e., until his death. In September 2020, staff at a BOP facility confiscated a makeshift ISIS flag affixed to Asainov’s cell wall. The defendant had filled in an 8.5” x 11” sheet of paper with black ink and Arabic writing in the design of the ISIS flag. During his trial, the defendant reiterated his allegiance to ISIS to court personnel, stating that ISIS would rise again. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Douglas M. Pravda, J. Matthew Haggans, Nicholas J. Moscow and Nina C. Gupta for the Eastern District of New York are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance provided by Trial Attorney Jennifer Levy of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section and Paralegal Specialists Wayne Colon and Mary Clare McMahon. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the FBI’s Legal Attachés abroad, and foreign authorities in multiple countries on multiple continents provided critical assistance in this case. The Bosnian and Herzegovinian authorities, and the FBI Legal Attaché Office in Sarajevo provided extraordinary assistance in the investigation and prosecution. The Ministry of Justice for the Republic of Finland, the Stuttgart Police Department and Federal Office of Justice in the Federal Republic of Germany, the Department of Justice & Constitutional Development in the Republic of South Africa, and the Prosecutor General’s Office in Ukraine, and the FBI’s Legal Attaché Offices in or responsible for those countries provided valuable assistance in the investigation.


title: Paw Paw Man Charged With Two Counts Of Felon In Possession

component: USAO - Michigan, Western

body_text: GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN — U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten today announced that a grand jury returned a superseding indictment against Eric Nathan Deryke, 34, of Paw Paw, Michigan, for possessing firearms as a convicted felon. “Gun violence is an epidemic across America and here in Michigan that inflicts immense trauma on communities when guns end up in the wrong hands,” said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten . “That’s why my office is committed to getting illegal guns off of the streets and out of the hands of felons.” The original indictment charged Deryke with one count for Felon in Possession of a Firearm on April 16, 2022. The superseding indictment adds a Felon in Possession of a Firearm charge after Deryke possessed a different firearm on July 25, 2023. The maximum statutory penalty for count one is 10 years in prison and 15 years imprisonment for count two. “The FBI is committed to leveraging its assets in collaboration with our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners to keep our communities safe from gun violence,” said Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan . “We are proud to work cooperatively to stop felons from illegally possessing firearms. We also need the public’s assistance to help us in this mission. Please come forward if you believe you have any information related to violent crimes as outlined in this case by contacting 1-800-CALLFBI (1-800-225-5324) or submitting tips online to http://tips.fbi.gov .” “Unfortunately, small town America is not immune to the violence that plagues some of our big cities. That violence came to the town of Paw Paw on April 16, 2022, when a shooting took place where Deryke has been charged with Felon in Possession of a Firearm and a second individual has also been charged with their involvement,” said Paw Paw Police Department Interim Police Chief Eric Rottman . “With our strong working relationship with neighboring agencies, we will continue to combat violent crime in our area that effects the way of life of our citizens. It is our utmost goal to ensure the safety and well-being of our community." The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney LaToyia T. Carpenter and was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Michigan State Police, the Paw Paw Police Department, and the Van Buren County Sheriff's Office. A copy of the superseding indictment is attached. The charges in an indictment are merely accusations, and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in a court of law. ###


title: York County Man Sentenced To 12 Months In Prison For Identity Theft

body_text: SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Ronald Geraldo Molina, age 37, of York, Pennsylvania, was sentenced today to 12 months’ imprisonment by United States District Court Judge Christopher C. Conner for aggravated identity theft. According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, Molina sold counterfeit debit cards to an undercover Pennsylvania State Trooper holding account and pin information from various financial institutions encoded on the magnetic strips. Investigators determined that the account information was likely stolen from a single gas station in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. In all, the scheme included 82 debit cards containing stolen identification information from consumers. The case was investigated by the Homeland Security Investigation and the Pennsylvania State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd K. Hinkley prosecuted the case. # # #


title: Massachusetts Man Indicted for Knowingly Concealing the Source of Material Support or Resources to a Terrorist Organization

body_text: BOSTON – A Wakefield, Mass. man was indicted today for knowingly concealing the source of material support or resources that he intended to go to a foreign terrorist organization, namely the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS). Mateo Ventura, 18, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Boston on one count of knowingly concealing the source of material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization. Ventura will appear in federal court at a later date. Ventura was previously arrested and charged by criminal complaint in June 2023 . According to the charging documents, Ventura provided multiple gift cards to an individual he believed was an ISIS supporter, with the intention that the gift cards be sold on the dark web for a little less than face value and resulting profits be used to support ISIS. Ventura allegedly stated that he wanted the proceeds to go to ISIS “for war on kuffar,” (disbelievers). In total, it is alleged that between January and May 2023, Ventura donated $705 intended to support ISIS. The charge of knowingly concealing the source of material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to a lifetime 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 statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case. Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen for the Justice Department’s National Security Division; and Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Timothy H. Kistner and Laura J. Kaplan of the National Security Unit are prosecuting the case. Valuable assistance was provided by Trial Attorneys Charles Kovats and Andrea Broach of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. 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.


title: Hospitalist Companies Agree To Pay Nearly $4.4 Million To Settle False Claims Act Allegations

component: USAO - Michigan, Eastern

body_text: DETROIT - IPC Hospitalists of Michigan, Inc., Inpatient Consultants of Michigan, P.C., IPC Healthcare f/k/a IPC The Hospitalist Company, and Team Health Holdings, Inc. (defendants) have agreed to pay a total of $4,384,618 to the United States and the State of Michigan to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by upcoding inpatient hospital services, allowing their doctors to bill for more services than they could possibly provide in one day, and billing for services not rendered, announced United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison. The State of Michigan will receive $606,483 of the settlement amount based on its share of alleged damages to the Medicaid program. Ison was joined in the announcement by Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan and Special Agent in Charge Mario Pinto, Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). The defendants are related companies that employ and provide hospitalists to Michigan hospitals. Hospitalists are doctors whose focus is the general medical care of hospitalized patients. The settlement announced today resolves three sets of allegations. The first is that the defendants’ doctors regularly upcoded certain Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes typically used to report the most complex services relating to the evaluation and management of hospitalized patients. Upcoding is alleged fraudulent medical billing in which a claim is submitted for payment regarding a service that is more expensive than the service that was actually performed. The second set of allegations is that the defendants allowed their hospitalists to regularly bill for impossible days within the State of Michigan. An impossible day occurs when a hospitalist purports to provide such a high volume of inpatient services or procedures in one day that there is no way the hospitalist reasonably could have performed them all. The third set of allegations concern services and procedures purportedly rendered by the same provider, on the same day, and billed to the Medicare and Medicaid programs for beneficiaries located in Michigan and Indiana, which the government contends were not rendered to the Michigan-based beneficiaries. “The False Claims Act is an important tool to deter and hold accountable those who submit fraudulent medical claims to the government,” said U.S. Attorney Dawn N. Ison for the Eastern District of Michigan. “Any allegation that a provider is billing for services not actually provided will be vigorously investigated by our office.” “The submission of false claims to our Federal health care programs by individuals or institutions erodes the trust that we place in these providers and wastes valuable taxpayer dollars,” said Mario M. Pinto, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “HHS-OIG remains committed to working with our law enforcement partners to ensure that those who submit false claims are held accountable.” "We hope this settlement will bring some economic justice by requiring those responsible for this fraudulent scheme to pay for their actions," said Cheyvoryea Gibson, the Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan. "Healthcare fraud is not a victimless crime. Whenever the integrity of our healthcare programs is compromised, everyone bears the cost through potentially higher insurance premiums, out-of-pocket expenses, and even reduced or lost benefits. It would not have been possible to unravel the complexities of this scheme fueled by greed without the assistance of our partner agencies, and we would like to express our gratitude for their assistance in our quest for justice." The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under two separate qui tam or whistleblower lawsuits under the False Claims Act: United States ex rel. Saad v. IPC Hospitalists of Michigan, Inc., et al., Case No. 17-13656 (E.D. Mich.) and United States ex rels. Amine P. Amine and Redwan Asbahi v. Team Health Holdings, Inc., et al., Case No. 2:21-cv-10799 (E.D. Mich.). Under the False Claims Act, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery. Relator Chadi Saad will receive $571,900.00 as part of the settlement. Relators Redwan Asbahi and Amine Amine will receive $195,408 as part of the settlement. The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort among the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan, the Michigan Attorney General’s Health Care Fraud Division, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - Office of the Inspector General, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The matter was handled by Assistant United States Attorneys John Postulka and John Spaccarotella from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan. The investigation and resolution of this matter illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement can be reported to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services at 800-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477). The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.