title: Federal Court Permanently Stops City of Springfield, Illinois, from Enforcing Discriminatory Ordinance and Awards Civil Penalties

component: Civil Rights Division

body_text: SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – This week, a federal court in Illinois entered a permanent injunction against the City of Springfield, Illinois, prohibiting it from enforcing a local spacing ordinance that bans people with disabilities from living in homes within 600 feet of one another if the home has five or fewer residents. The court’s order follows a July 2022 trial at which a jury awarded $293,000 in damages to the home’s residents, their families, and Individual Advocacy Group (IAG), the state-licensed agency that provides services to the home’s residents. “Discriminatory zoning laws that ban people with disabilities from living in the community violate the Fair Housing Act,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Restrictive zoning laws and policies that prevent people with disabilities from integrating into society at large have no place in our marketplace today. The Court’s decision makes clear that there are real consequences to cities and other municipalities when they unlawfully and immorally exclude people with disabilities from residential neighborhoods.” “I commend the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and my office for obtaining this groundbreaking civil rights decision,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Harris for the Central District of Illinois. “This case illustrates what can happen when government action erodes a basic civil right: a group of individuals almost lost their home,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua I. Grant for the Central District of Illinois. “As many Springfield residents have expressed to our office, our community should be open to everyone, including individuals with disabilities. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to work with the Department of Justice to ensure that the Fair Housing Act’s guarantee of equal housing and access to justice is available to all citizens in the Central District of Illinois. In 2014, three residents with intellectual and physical disabilities moved into a single-family home in Springfield where they received community residential services from IAG. Such arrangements, known as Community Integrated Living Arrangements (CILAs), permit residents with disabilities to live in an integrated community setting rather than an institution. Even though the home was operating in compliance with state requirements, the city attempted to shut it down in 2016 by relying on a local spacing ordinance that prohibited two homes for individuals with disabilities from operating within 600 feet of one another. The Justice Department filed suit against the City of Springfield in 2017. In 2020, the court ruled that the city had violated the FHA by enforcing the spacing ordinance against the home. In July 2022, a jury determined that the city should pay a total of $293,000: $162,000 in compensatory damages to the residents of the home and their guardians and $131,000 in compensatory damages to IAG. The court also awarded the United States $61,982.50 in civil penalties against the city for violating the Fair Housing Act. In awarding civil penalties against the city, the court recognized that the city’s attempts to close the home and its restrictive zoning ordinance impeded the integration of people with disabilities from institutions into the community, a right guaranteed by the Supreme Court’s 1999 decision in Olmstead v. L.C. As the court explained, the civil penalty award against the City of Springfield will “make clear to municipalities that these facially discriminatory spacing rules may not be used to hinder the trend of shifting persons with disabilities from institutions to community-based residences.” The court further permanently enjoined the city from taking any action against the owners or residents of the home, ordered the city to undergo fair housing training and awarded $53,654,50 in prejudgment interest on the jury’s damages award to IAG. This is one of the largest civil penalties the Department of Justice has obtained against a municipality in Illinois for violations of the FHA. The FHA prohibits discrimination in housing because of disability, race, color, religion, national origin, sex and familial status. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.justice.gov/crt . Individuals who believe they have been victims of housing discrimination may submit a report online at www.civilrights.justice.gov


title: Federal Court Permanently Stops City of Springfield, Illinois from Enforcing Discriminatory Ordinance and Awards Civil Penalties

body_text: This week, a federal court in Illinois entered a permanent injunction against the City of Springfield, Illinois, prohibiting it from enforcing a local spacing ordinance that bans people with disabilities from living in homes within 600 feet of one another if the home has five or fewer residents. The court’s order follows a July 2022 trial at which a jury awarded $293,000 in damages to the home’s residents, their families and Individual Advocacy Group (IAG), the state-licensed agency that provides services to the home’s residents. “Discriminatory zoning laws that ban people with disabilities from living in the community violate the Fair Housing Act,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Restrictive zoning laws and policies that prevent people with disabilities from integrating into society at large have no place in our marketplace today. The court’s decision makes clear that there are real consequences to cities and other municipalities when they unlawfully and immorally exclude people with disabilities from residential neighborhoods.” “I commend the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and my office for obtaining this groundbreaking civil rights decision,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Harris for the Central District of Illinois. “We will continue to ensure that the Fair Housing Act’s guarantee of equal housing and access to justice is available to all people in my district.” In 2014, three residents with intellectual and physical disabilities moved into a single-family home in Springfield where they received community residential services from IAG. Such arrangements, known as Community Integrated Living Arrangements (CILAs), permit residents with disabilities to live in an integrated community setting rather than an institution. Even though the home was operating in compliance with state requirements, the city attempted to shut it down in 2016 by relying on a local spacing ordinance that prohibited two homes for individuals with disabilities from operating within 600 feet of one another. The Justice Department filed suit against the City of Springfield in 2017. In 2020, the court ruled that the city had violated the FHA by enforcing the spacing ordinance against the home. In July 2022, a jury determined that the city should pay a total of $293,000: $162,000 in compensatory damages to the residents of the home and their guardians and $131,000 in compensatory damages to IAG. The court also awarded the United States $61,982.50 in civil penalties against the city for violating the Fair Housing Act. In awarding civil penalties against the city, the court recognized that the city’s attempts to close the home and its restrictive zoning ordinance impeded the integration of people with disabilities from institutions into the community, a right guaranteed by the Supreme Court’s 1999 decision in Olmstead v. L.C. As the court explained, the civil penalty award against the City of Springfield will “make clear to municipalities that these facially discriminatory spacing rules may not be used to hinder the trend of shifting persons with disabilities from institutions to community-based residences.” The court further permanently enjoined the city from taking any action against the owners or residents of the home, ordered the city to undergo fair housing training and awarded $53,654,50 in prejudgment interest on the jury’s damages award to IAG. The FHA prohibits discrimination in housing because of disability, race, color, religion, national origin, sex and familial status. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.justice.gov/crt . Individuals who believe they have been victims of housing discrimination may submit a report online at www.civilrights.justice.gov .


title: Construction Company President Sentenced To 10 Years In Prison For 25-Year Fraud On The U.S. Government

component: USAO - New York, Southern

body_text: Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that SINA MOAYEDI, the owner of a construction company, Montage, Inc., was sentenced today to 10 years in prison, stemming from his 25-year fraud on the United States Government. MOAYEDI pled guilty in April 2023 to conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud, conspiracy to commit bribery of a public official, and aggravated identity theft. MOAYEDI’s sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff, who also presided over his guilty plea. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “From 1995 until 2021, Sina Moayedi defrauded the U.S. Government and various of its agencies through a sprawling, sophisticated scheme. Moayedi lied repeatedly about his company’s ownership and qualifications, including by claiming that it was woman-owned and Hispanic-owned; he lied to obtain a Top-Secret national security clearance; and he repeatedly paid bribes to a State Department employee to illegally obtain inside information. In total, Moayedi’s company fraudulently obtained more than 25 government contracts worth more than $125 million. Even after he was arrested in this case, Moayedi continued to commit crime, destroying electronic evidence of his frauds. For his brazen fraud on the federal government, Moayedi has now been sentenced to prison.” According to court filings and statements made in Manhattan federal court: In 1986, MOAYEDI founded Montage, Inc., a U.S.-based business that is primarily involved in Government construction projects, including embassies, consulates, military posts, and marine barracks around the world. From 1995 to 2021, MOAYEDI defrauded the U.S. Government — including the State Department, Treasury Department, Department of Defense, and General Services Administration — by lying in various respects. In bids for contracting work, MOAYEDI mispresented his company’s ownership, his employees’ qualifications, his company’s construction experience, and his company’s financial condition, among other things. As to ownership, MOAYEDI falsely represented, repeatedly, that Montage was a female-owned business (or a female- and minority-owned business) in order to secure unmerited advantages in the bidding process. In fact, MOAYEDI founded, owned, ran, and controlled Montage, and he made all material decisions on Montage’s behalf. As MOAYEDI revealed to a bank that inquired about Montage’s ownership status in 2016, “I am the sole owner and president of Montage and have always been.” As to his employees’ qualifications, MOAYEDI significantly overstated the qualifications of various Montage employees in order to, among other things, meet State Department and contractual requirements for minimum experience in certain key positions. For instance, MOAYEDI claimed, falsely, that certain Montage employees possessed engineering degrees. He also claimed, falsely, that certain individuals worked for Montage when, in fact, they did not. As to Montage’s construction experience, MOAYEDI submitted bids to the Government in which he repeatedly falsified Montage’s purported construction experience in order to burnish the company’s alleged credentials. To ensure that the U.S. Government did not uncover these lies, MOAYEDI “backstopped” this fabricated experience by creating fraudulent email accounts and personas, so that someone else appeared to be “vouching” that Montage had performed this prior work. This required creating online web domains (the “Fabricated Domains”), so that Montage’s purported references appeared legitimate. These Fabricated Domains were extremely similar to, but one character or word different from, the legitimate web domains associated with actual entities. As to financial condition, MOAYEDI paid a Certified Public Accountant to prepare at least four different sets of books and records, each of which was provided to a different recipient ( e.g. , one fraudulent set for the U.S. Government, another fraudulent set for the bank, another fraudulent set for a company that sold construction bonds, etc.). And to ensure Montage’s eligibility for sensitive U.S. Government contracts, MOAYEDI lied to obtain and maintain his Top-Secret national security clearance, including by concealing his ties to Iran, such as his dual citizenship with Iran, his Iranian passport, and his travel to Iran. Further, between 2014 and 2020, MOAYEDI repeatedly paid cash bribes and kickbacks to an engineer in the State Department’s Overseas Building Operations division, May Salehi, in exchange for confidential inside information relating to several State Department construction projects, including projects in Ecuador, Spain, and Bermuda. For instance, in late 2016 and early 2017, MOAYEDI paid $60,000 in cash to Salehi after Salehi provided confidential inside bidding information to MOAYEDI about the relationship between Montage’s original bid and his competitors’ bids — information that allowed Montage to raise its bid by nearly $1 million yet remain the lowest bidder on a construction project that was ultimately awarded to Montage. In addition to fraudulently obtaining government contracts, MOAYEDI’s company also committed fraud in the execution of government contracts, including by using substandard materials, using unqualified personnel, and falsifying an architect’s signature and stamp on architectural plans that had not been reviewed by the architect, including plans that related to safety and structural issues, such as fire protection, roof design, and structural steel drawings. MOAYEDI also defrauded his primary bank (“Bank-1”) through various misrepresentations. Montage had a multimillion-dollar line of credit at Bank-1, which MOAYEDI maintained through misrepresentations about Montage’s ownership and the value, progress, status, and existence of construction projects that Montage was performing for the U.S. Government. For instance, in or about both 2014 and 2019, MOAYEDI made material misrepresentations to Bank-1 in support of an annual extension of Montage’s line of credit, including misrepresentations about purportedly lucrative “classified” government construction projects with distinctive names like “Area 6,” which, in fact, did not exist. MOAYEDI also obstructed justice in multiple respects: (i) in September 2021, shortly after his release on bail in this case, MOAYEDI destroyed electronic evidence of his fraud on the U.S. Government by deleting six Fabricated Domains, which (as noted) he had used to help inflate Montage’s purported construction experience in bids for U.S. Government construction projects; (ii) shortly after the execution of search warrants at Montage’s offices in September 2020, MOAYEDI witness tampered by pressuring a co-conspirator to lie to investigators; and (iii) during a civil lawsuit between the State Department and Montage, MOAYEDI lied during a sworn deposition in 2019 by falsely claiming that a Hispanic woman had been the President of Montage “ever since” 2002 and that he was merely the Vice President of Montage. Finally, in October 2023, the Court held a multiday Fatico hearing regarding the quality of construction that MOAYEDI and Montage provided the State Department. The Court determined that MOAYEDI “provided grossly inadequate construction for several of the contracts of which he was in charge” and “that these numerous defects were intentional.” In particular, the Court found that, “[r]epeatedly, Moayedi falsely inflated the credentials of key personnel -- and in some cases, submitted names of people who never even worked for Montage -- that he touted to the State Department to win bids, only to send in their stead people that he knew were patently unqualified for their roles once he secured the contract in question.” * * * In addition to his prison sentence, MOAYEDI, 68, of Chevy Chase, Maryland, was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $6,588,679.63 and forfeit $17,795,098.50. May Salehi was previously sentenced to one year in prison, three years of supervised release, a fine of $500,000, and forfeiture of $60,000. Mr. Williams praised the exceptional investigative work of the State Department, Office of Inspector General; Special Agents from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York; and the Internal Revenue Service. The Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit is handling this criminal case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael D. Neff is in charge of the prosecution.


title: Round Rock Fraudster Sentenced for Stealing More Than $600,000 in Cryptocurrency Through SIM Swapping Scheme

component: USAO - Texas, Western

body_text: AUSTIN, Texas – A Round Rock man was sentenced in a federal court in Austin to 24 months in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud. According to court documents, from August 2019 to February 2021, Daniel Akira Mills, 22, participated in a criminal wire fraud conspiracy that employed SIM swaps to defraud victims of hundreds of thousands of dollars in property. Participants in the scheme gained unauthorized access to online accounts of victims through a cyber intrusion technique referred to as “SIM swapping.” During a SIM swap attack, cyber threat actors gain control of a victim’s mobile phone number by linking that number to a subscriber identity module (SIM) card controlled by the threat actors, resulting in the victim’s calls and messages being routed to a device controlled by the threat actors. The threat actors then use control of the victim’s mobile phone number to obtain unauthorized access to accounts held by the victim that are registered to the mobile phone number. Among other things, scheme participants posted unauthorized messages on their victims’ social media accounts and posted private photographs stolen from the accounts of celebrities. They also stole more than $600,000 in cryptocurrency from dozens of victims nationwide. In addition to imposing a prison sentence, the court ordered Mills to pay more than $530,000 in restitution to the victims. “We now run much of our lives through smartphones. From social media to managing our finances, they have become essential tools. This can be very helpful, but also comes with many risks,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas. “By ‘SIM swapping,’ or stealing the phone numbers of victims to assume their identities, Mills and his cohorts defrauded innocent members of society and caused great harm. My office will not hesitate to hold fraudsters like Mills accountable for their irresponsible destructive actions.” The U.S. Secret Service and the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office’s REACT Task Force investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney G. Karthik Srinivasan prosecuted the case. ###


title: Man Indicted for Trafficking Methamphetamine, Fentanyl

component: USAO - Washington, Eastern

body_text: Spokane, Washington - Today, Vanessa R. Waldref, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that a federal grand jury has indicted Charles Lee Dickerson on one count of Possession with Intent to Distribute 50 Grams of Actual Methamphetamine and one count of Possession with Intent to Distribute 40 Grams of Fentanyl. According to court documents, On November 20, 2023, Kalispel Tribal Police (KTP) Officers received a call from the Tribal Gaming Authority team monitoring surveillance cameras at Northern Quest Resort and Casino. The Tribal Gaming Authority team reported security camera video showing an alleged drug transaction between two people in two vehicles in the Casino Parking lot. KTP Officers reviewed the video and observed a man, later identified as Charles Lee Dickerson, smoking off a foil while seated in the driver seat of a red Jeep Trackhawk. Officers also saw what appeared to be a hand-to-hand exchange between Dickerson and another man in the parking lot. KTP Officers detained and read Dickerson his Miranda warnings which Dickerson confirmed he understood. Officers then asked for consent to search him for an ID and search a satchel he was wearing at the time of the stop. Officers found approximately 12 grams of cocaine. Dickerson also had 136 “skittles” (multi-colored pills suspected to contain fentanyl) in his pants pocket. Officers also found $18,000 in U.S. Currency in the satchel. During questioning at the Spokane DEA District Office, Dickerson stated a man had given him a quantity of meth and 10,000 pills from Mexico and that it would be found in the Jeep Trackhawk. Agents searched the vehicle and found one pound of meth, thousands of multi-color pills believed to contain fentanyl, and a quantity of cocaine. “Illegal drugs and fentanyl have become a scourge across the United States and especially in Native Communities. My office is committed to aggressively stopping, and bringing to justice, those who peddle this deadly poison in Indian country”, stated U.S. Attorney Waldref. “I am grateful for our Tribal and law enforcement partners who work together to protect our communities and make them safer and stronger.” This case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration. An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.


title: U.S. Postal Inspector Charged with Mail Theft, Obstruction of Justice, and Money Laundering

component: Criminal Division

body_text: A federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Louisiana returned an indictment yesterday charging a U.S. Postal Inspector with mail theft, obstruction of justice, and money laundering. According to the indictment, Michael Morse, 52, of Madisonville, Louisiana, served as a Postal Inspector in the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. In this role, Morse was responsible for investigating and preventing crime that involved the mail, including mail and package theft. Despite this duty, on Nov. 12, 2020, Morse allegedly stole a Priority Mail Express package from a U.S. Postal Service processing and distribution center and removed from the package cash and a global positioning system (GPS) tracking device. Further, Morse allegedly obstructed justice when he knowingly attempted to mislead other law enforcement officers about the package and the GPS device. Morse also allegedly engaged in money laundering when he deposited cash and pre-paid cards constituting proceeds of the mail theft in various cryptocurrency and precious metal accounts. Morse is charged with one count of mail theft, one count of obstruction of justice, and nine counts of money laundering. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the mail theft count and 20 years in prison on the obstruction of justice and each of the money laundering counts. Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Acting Executive Special Agent in Charge Dimitriana Nikolov of the USPS Office of Inspector General’s (USPS-OIG) Special Inquiries Division made the announcement. The USPS-OIG is investigating the case. Trial Attorneys Trevor Wilmot and Jacob Steiner of the Criminal Divion’s Public Integrity Section (PIN) are prosecuting the case, with valuable assistance from former PIN Trial Attorney Jolee Porter. An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.


title: Federal inmate convicted in death of inmate

component: USAO - West Virginia, Northern

body_text: CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Stephen C. Crawford, age 44, a federal inmate formerly housed at United States Penitentiary Hazleton, was found guilty of the death of a fellow inmate. After a five-day trial, a jury found Crawford guilty of voluntary manslaughter, assault with a dangerous weapon, and assault resulting in serious bodily harm. According to court documents and statements made in court, Crawford used a prison-made weapon to stab another inmate multiple times. The inmate later died of his injuries. Crawford faces up to 15 more years in federal prison for the manslaughter charge and faces up to 10 years for each of the assault charges. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brandon Flower and Andrew Cogar prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided.


title: Two Former Nurses Indicted in Connection to the Diversion of Dangerous Narcotics by Medical Professionals

component: USAO - New Hampshire

body_text: CONCORD – A Newbury woman and Northfield woman, two former nurses, were indicted in connection to the diversion of dangerous narcotics by medical professionals, U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young announces. Robin Nichols, 63, of Newbury, was indicted on one count of Tampering with Consumer Products and one count of Obtaining a Controlled Drug by Misrepresentation, Fraud, Deception, or Subterfuge. Nichols will appear in federal court in Concord on December 8, 2023. Lisa Richardson, 47, of Northfield, was indicted on one count of Tampering with Consumer Products and one count of Obtaining a Controlled Drug by Misrepresentation, Fraud, Deception, or Subterfuge. Richardson will appear in federal court in Concord on December 8, 2023. According to the charging documents related to Robin Nichols, on April 15, 2023, while working as a nurse at Catholic Medical Center, Nichols removed a quantity of fentanyl, a narcotic painkiller drug in liquid form, from a syringe intended for an operating room patient and which she knew was intended for that patient and replaced the fentanyl with a quantity of saline. According to the charging documents related to Lisa Richardson, on December 30, 2022, while working as a nurse at Concord Hospital, Richardson entered the room of a patient in the Intensive Care Unit (“ICU”) and removed a quantity of fentanyl, a narcotic painkiller drug in liquid form, from an intravenous line bag attached to the patient and which she knew was being dispensed to that patient, and replaced the fentanyl with a quantity of saline. Nichols and Richardson’s charges of tampering with a consumer product provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of obtaining a controlled drug by misrepresentation, fraud, deception, or subterfuge provides for a sentence of up to 4 years in prison, up to one year 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. The Food & Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigations and the Drug Enforcement Administration jointly led these investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Ward is prosecuting the cases. The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. Law enforcement in the District of New Hampshire has utilized resources to enforce federal laws in connection to the diversion of dangerous narcotics by medical professionals. In June 2023, the U.S. Attorney’s Office settled a $2 million civil action with Cheshire Medical Center for their failure to fulfill obligations under the Controlled Substances Act, which enabled a nurse to steal twenty-three intravenous bags of fentanyl solution from an automatic medication dispensing machine. Also in June 2023, the U.S. Attorney’s Office settled a $300,000 civil action with PillPack by Amazon, a pharmacy, to resolve allegations that they violated the Controlled Substances Act, which risked the division of drugs that are often abused in our communities. ###


title: Dana Point Man Sentenced to 18 Months in Federal Prison for Conspiring to Export High-End Computer Servers to Iran

component: USAO - California, Central

body_text: LOS ANGELES – An Orange County man was sentenced today to 18 months in federal prison for conspiring to procure and illegally ship high-end computer servers from the United States to Iran, in violation of the International Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA) and U.S. sanctions against Iran. Johnny Paul Tourino, 69, of Dana Point, was sentenced by United States District Judge Josephine L. Staton, who also fined him $20,000. Tourino has agreed to forfeit approximately $2 million in seized funds. On March 3, Tourino pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate IEEPA, which controls and restricts the export of certain goods from the United States to foreign nations, as well as U.S. sanctions against Iran. According to court records, Tourino owned and operated Spectra Equipment Inc., a Laguna Niguel-based computer support and services company. Between September 2015 and March 2017, Tourino negotiated the sale of five business-class computer servers valued at $2.1 million and attempted to have them sent to Iran for use by two Iranian financial institutions, Bank Mellat and Bank Keshavarzi. In February 2017, when the manufacturer of the servers asked Tourino to identify the end-user, he falsely stated that the servers were being sold to a bank in Africa and “NOT going to Iran.” Later that month, Tourino, through his lawyer, falsely represented to the manufacturer that the servers were going to Slovenia. Roughly one week later, Tourino sent three checks to the manufacturer as partial payment for the servers. After learning that the Department of Treasury had blocked funds from Iran that were to be used to pay for the servers, Tourino deleted his emails and contacted the Department of Treasury and again falsely stated that the servers were not going to Iran and were destined for Slovenia. According to court documents, in August 2015, Tourino previously brokered the sale of four business-class computer servers that were ultimately sent to Bank Mellat in Iran. Regarding these servers, Judge Staton noted “the government cannot get back the 2015 servers.” These servers offered high-level encryption allowing the users to shield information from law enforcement detection. “Mr. Tourino knowingly violated U.S. law and sanctions by attempting to sell millions of dollars’ worth of computer equipment to Iran and doing business with sanctioned Iranian banks that have been the lifeblood of Iran’s international acts of terror and nuclear weapons program,” said United States Attorney Martin Estrada. “Today’s sentence exemplifies the unshakeable will of this Office to vigorously investigate and bring to justice persons who would undermine our national security by giving aid and comfort to hostile foreign state actors.” “Defendant Tourino conspired to illegally export restricted equipment to a foreign adversary and took steps to conceal his activities to avoid law enforcement scrutiny,” said Donald Alway, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “Tourino’s activity violated U.S. economic and trade sanctions and, in the process, potentially aided an oppressive terrorist regime and put America’s long-term security interests at risk.” “We will fully and aggressively enforce restrictions on U.S. exports to parties in Iran,” said Los Angeles Field Office Special Agent in Charge Gregory Dunlap of the U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Export Enforcement (OEE). “OEE will continue to leverage its unique authorities to pursue violators wherever they are, and will collaborate with our law enforcement partners to achieve this goal.” “Tourino attempted to profit from a far-reaching, extensive scheme to evade U.S. sanctions on Iran. Tourino repeatedly lied to illegally obtain and supply dual-use items to a foreign nation,” said Special Agent in Charge Tyler Hatcher of the Los Angeles Field Office of IRS Criminal Investigation. “This sentence is the result of a successful joint investigative effort with our law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. IRS Criminal Investigation is fully committed to protecting national security by disrupting efforts by our adversaries to violate U.S. export controls.” The FBI, the Commerce Department’s Office of Export Enforcement, and IRS Criminal Investigation investigated this matter. Assistant United States Attorneys Mark Takla of the Terrorism and Export Crimes Section and Bradley Marrett of the Santa Ana Branch Office prosecuted this case. The Counterintelligence and Export Control Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division provided substantial assistance.


title: Clothing Wholesaler Ordered to Pay Nearly $10.4 Million for  Violating U.S. Drug Trafficking Sanctions and for Customs Fraud

body_text: LOS ANGELES – A Paramount-based clothing wholesale company was fined $4 million, ordered to pay $6,390,781 in restitution, and placed on probation for five years for undervaluing imported garments in a scheme to avoid paying millions of dollars in customs duties and for doing business with a woman linked to Mexico’s Sinaloa drug cartel. Ghacham Inc., which does business under the “Platini” brand name, was sentenced by United States District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong. In addition to imposing financial penalties, Judge Frimpong required Ghacham Inc. to create and maintain an anti-money laundering compliance and ethics program and submit to review by a third-party monitor review, who will report to the court on an annual basis. The company pleaded guilty in December 2022 to one count of conspiracy to pass false and fraudulent papers through a customhouse and one count of conspiracy to engage in any transaction or dealing in properties of a specially designated narcotics trafficker under a statute known as the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act. This is the first criminal conviction in this district under the Kingpin Act. Mohamed Daoud Ghacham, 39, of Bell, a Ghacham Inc. executive, pleaded guilty in December 2022 to one count of conspiracy to pass false and fraudulent papers through a customhouse. He is expected to be sentenced in the coming months. According to court documents, Ghacham Inc. imported clothing from China and submitted fraudulent invoices to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that undervalued the shipments, allowing the company to avoid paying the full amounts of tariffs owed on the imports. At Mohamed Ghacham’s direction, Chinese suppliers would prepare two invoices for the clothing ordered by Ghacham Inc. – a true invoice, which reflected the actual price paid for the goods, and a fraudulent “customs invoice,” which reflected an understated price. Ghacham Inc. submitted the customs invoices to CBP and customs brokers to fraudulently reduce the tariffs owed on the imports, while it maintained the true invoices in its accounting records. From July 2011 and February 2021, Ghacham Inc. and Mohamed Ghacham undervalued imported garments by more than $32 million and failed to pay approximately $6,390,792 in customs duties. Ghacham Inc. also illegally conducted business with María Tiburcia Cazarez Pérez in violation of the Kingpin Act, which prohibits people and businesses in the United States from doing business with “Specially Designated Narcotics Traffickers.” Cazarez Pérez was previously listed as a Specially Designated Narcotics Trafficker under the Kingpin Act for her involvement in the financial network of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada García and Victor Emilio Cazares Salazar, two leaders of the Mexico-based Sinaloa Cartel. Cazares Salazar was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for drug trafficking activities in federal cases out of San Diego and New York City. “The company flouted the Kingpin Act, doing business with member of a money laundering network used by… two of the world’s most notorious drug traffickers,” prosecutors argued in a sentencing memorandum. “It cheated taxpayers out of millions, both to save itself money and to secure an unfair edge against its competition in the Southern California garment market. And it did so through a sustained, extensive effort over the course of more than a decade.” Homeland Security Investigations and CBP investigated this matter. The U.S. Department of Commerce Office of Export Enforcement, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, and IRS Criminal Investigation provided significant assistance. Assistant United States Attorney Alexander B. Schwab of the Corporate and Securities Fraud Strike Force prosecuted this case. This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF .


title: Former San Francisco Department Of Building Inspection Engineer Pleads Guilty To Honest Services Fraud Conspiracy

component: USAO - California, Northern

body_text: SAN FRANCISCO - Rodolfo “Rudy” Pada pleaded guilty in federal court in San Francisco today to participating in an honest services fraud conspiracy, announced Criminal Division Deputy Chief Matthew Yelovich and FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert K. Tripp. The plea was accepted by the Hon. Susan Illston, U.S. District Judge. In pleading guilty, Pada, 68 of Millbrae, CA, admitted that he accepted bribes from individuals seeking building and construction permits from the San Francisco Department of Building Inspection. Pada worked as a plan checker at DBI from 1984 to September 2017, reviewing and approving construction plans and providing builders with the permits necessary for residential and commercial construction projects in San Francisco. According to the plea agreement, the bribes to Pada, which began in 2003 and continued until September 2017, consisted of cash, free meals, drinks, and other benefits, paid by executives at a construction planning and design firm. Pada accepted the bribes in return for expediting and approving permits for their building and construction plans. In addition, Pada solicited and accepted an interest-free $85,000 loan facilitated by one of the executives. DBI is a regulatory city agency in San Francisco responsible for overseeing enforcement of building, electrical, plumbing, and housing codes for the City of San Francisco’s more than 200,000 commercial and residential buildings. Contractors and builders submit construction plans to DBI for approval and permitting; the plans are required to be reviewed and approved by DBI to insure that the proposed construction and building meets city codes and regulations. Pada, was initially charged by a criminal complaint in May 2022. On Nov. 3, 2023, Pada was charged by Information with one count of conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1349. Under the plea agreement, Pada pleaded guilty to the single count in the Information. Judge Illston scheduled Pada’s sentencing hearing for March 29, 2024. The maximum statutory penalty is 20 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine. However, any sentence will be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Ward is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Aarian Beiti. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.


title: Duvall, Washington, man sentenced to ten years in prison for trying to sexually exploit 11-year-old child

component: USAO - Washington, Western

body_text: Seattle – A Duvall, Washington, man was sentenced today to ten years in prison for attempted enticement of a minor, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Steven Michael Burke, 37, was awaiting sentencing for possession and distribution of images of child sexual abuse, when he used an internet chat site to try to obtain sexually explicit images of an 11-year-old child. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez imposed twenty years of supervised release to follow prison, saying, “one of [a judge’s] primary concerns is community protection… the protection of children I hold at the highest level of all.” Burke pleaded guilty in September 2023, admitting that, while he was awaiting sentencing for possessing images of child sexual abuse, he reached out to the 11-year-old child seeking sexually explicit images. Burke also sent the child such images. The crime was discovered after Burke was sentenced to probation for the earlier criminal conduct. In asking for the ten-year sentence, Assistant United States Attorney Cecelia Gregson wrote to the court, “His actions are unconscionable. Not only because of the harm he has undeniably caused this child victim as detailed in her statement and not only because the defendant himself is a father of four, but because the defendant was facing the full force of federal prosecution and was still unable to curb his appetite for child exploitation material.” Burke has been in custody since his arrest on May 4, 2023. The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security Investigations The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Cecelia Gregson and Special Assistant United States Attorney Laura Harmon.


title: Ohio Woman Pleads Guilty to Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act Violation for Damaging Pregnancy Center

body_text: An Ohio woman pleaded guilty today to a misdemeanor charge under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, which prohibits a person from intentionally damaging or destroying the property of a facility because that facility provides reproductive health services. According to court documents and statements made in court, on April 15, Whitney M. Durant, aka Soren Monroe, 20, of Worthington, intentionally damaged the property of HerChoice, a pregnancy center located in Bowling Green, Ohio, by defacing the clinic’s building, spray painting the words, “LIARS,” “Fund Abortion,” “Abort God,” and “Jane’s Revenge.” Durant was a Bowling Green State University student at the time of the incident. “Defacing facilities that provide reproductive health services will not be tolerated in our society,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department is committed to enforcing the FACE Act to protect all patients who seek reproductive health services and all persons and facilities that provide such services.” “As reflected by today’s guilty plea, the United States will enforce federal laws that protect uninterrupted access to all clinics providing reproductive health services, whether they provide women with options that include abortion care or whether they solely encourage women to consider non-abortion alternatives,” said U.S. Attorney Rebecca Lutzko for the Northern District of Ohio. “Here, the vandalized clinic did not provide abortion care, but that did not give the defendant license to deface the clinic’s property in protest, violating federal law in the process.” “The First Amendment provides a constitutional right to peacefully protest, but Ms. Durant’s actions of defacing a reproductive health care center crossed a line,” said Special Agent in Charge Greg Nelsen of the FBI Cleveland Field Office. “The FBI and our partners will continue to aggressively investigate FACE Act violations and protect every American’s access to reproductive health care services.” A sentencing hearing will be scheduled for April 9, 2024. Durant faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison for the misdemeanor charge. A federal Magistrate Judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. The FBI Cleveland Field Office, Toledo Resident Agency and Bowling Green Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Angelita Cruz Bridges and Wood County Prosecutor and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Dobson for the Northern District of Ohio are prosecuting the case. Anyone who has information about incidents of violence, threats and obstruction that target a patient or provider of reproductive health services or damage and destruction of reproductive health care facilities, should report that information to the FBI at https://tips.fbi.gov/ .


title: Rienzi Man Sentenced in Drug Trafficking Case

component: Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)

body_text: Oxford, MS – A Rienzi man was sentenced today to twelve and a half years in prison for distribution of methamphetamine. According to court documents, William Leonard, 40, of Rienzi, Mississippi, pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Leonard was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Glen Davidson to 151 months for the conspiracy as a career offender. He was further sentenced to 3 years of supervised release following his release from prison. Leonard was involved in a drug trafficking organization responsible for transporting large quantities of methamphetamine from Texas and distributing it throughout the Northern District of Mississippi. Leonard participated in the conspiracy by making multiple purchases of methamphetamine from the head of the drug trafficking organization for distribution throughout North Mississippi. The investigation of this drug trafficking organization and its participants spanned more than one year. Leonard was indicted along with sixteen (16) other individuals. This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF. The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics investigated the case as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program in partnership with state and local law enforcement. Agencies assisting with the investigation included the United States Marshal’s Service, the United States Postal Inspector’s Service, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kimberly M. Hampton and Feleica L. Wilson prosecuted the case.


title: Former and Present Owners of Standish Surveying Company  Charged in Scheme to Defraud

component: USAO - Michigan, Eastern

body_text: BAY CITY – A federal grand jury indicted Andrew Semenchuk and Adam Ball, former owners and executives of Surveying Solutions, Inc. and Jeffrey Bartlett, a current owner and executive of Surveying Solutions, Inc., on charges of wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and conspiracy to defraud the United States, announced United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison. The indictment arises out of false statements made to the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) and the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) in the process of applying for and receiving highway construction and surveying contracts. Ison was joined in the announcement by Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the Detroit Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Andrea M. Kropf, Special Agent-in-Charge, Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, Midwestern Region. Indicted were Andrew Semenchuk, age 51, of Rives Junction, Michigan, Adam Ball, age 46, of Saginaw, Michigan, and Jeffrey Bartlett, age 51, of Standish, Michigan. All were charged in the indictment as co-conspirators in one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, and 13 counts of wire fraud. According to the indictment, Andrew Semenchuk, Adam Ball, and Jeffrey Bartlett were owners and employees of Survey Solutions, Inc., a company that was awarded millions of dollars in construction and surveying contracts by MDOT. Those contracts were funded almost entirely by federal funds through USDOT. The indictment alleges that statements made by Semenchuk, Ball, and Bartlett to MDOT and USDOT included false claims that SSI qualified as a disadvantaged business which tricked MDOT into granting SSI contract preferences. The indictment further alleges that Semenchuk, Ball, and Bartlett also reported false and fraudulent employee costs, and false and fraudulent equipment, real estate, and IT expenses which artificially inflated payments MDOT made to SSI. “Every year USDOT entrusts millions of taxpayer dollars into programs intended to support and improve our community’s infrastructure, including the maintenance of our highways system. When the integrity of USDOT’s contracting system is damaged by individuals who cheat to obtain contracts and fraudulently inflate the expenses and costs they claim for reimbursement, the public trust is broken, and taxpayer funds are squandered. The charges in this indictment serve as a promise to the taxpaying public that such violations of the public trust will not be tolerated,” said United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison. "The defendants' alleged actions to personally profit through their fraud scheme, which created an unfair competitive market for other businesses to earn contracts, is particularly disturbing," said Special Agent in Charge Cheyvoryea Gibson of the FBI in Michigan. "The FBI is uniquely poised to investigate fraud cases with financial intricacies like those documented in this case. We commend our partner law enforcement agencies for their assistance in taking strong action against those who seek to corrupt the integrity and fair administration of government programs." “The indictment announced today demonstrates our commitment to working with our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners to identify and put an end to this extensive fraud scheme,” stated Andrea M. Kropf, Special Agent-in-Charge, Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, Midwestern Region. “We will continue to hold accountable those who knowingly defraud the Federal government and put taxpayer dollars at risk.” An indictment is merely an accusation and is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. If convicted, Bartlett, Semenchuk, and Ball face up to 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, 5 years in prison for conspiracy to defraud the United States, and 20 years in prison for each of the 13 counts of wire fraud. If convicted, a federal district court judge would determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. This investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General.


title: Ten indicted on federal charges in Augusta-area meth-trafficking operation

component: Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)

body_text: AUGUSTA, GA: Ten defendants in the Augusta area have been indicted on federal charges for participating in a major methamphetamine trafficking operation. The defendants in USA v. Walters et al. all are charged with Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute Methamphetamine, along with multiple individual charges related to meth possession and distribution and illegal gun possession, said Jill E. Steinberg, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. Conviction on the conspiracy charge carries a statutory penalty of up to 20 years in prison, along with substantial fines and a period of supervised release upon completion of any prison term. There is no parole in the federal system. “The charges in this indictment succinctly spell out the danger that trafficking in illegal drugs presents to the safety of our communities – particularly when those engaged in drug trafficking also illegally possess weapons,” said U.S. Attorney Steinberg. “We commend the challenging work of our law enforcement partners in identifying and disrupting these operations.” The recently unsealed indictment charges: Edward Jake Walters , a/k/a “State Farm,” a/k/a “Jake from State Farm,” 29, of Grovetown, Ga.; Phillip Smith , 49, of Augusta; Dustin Bayles , 35, of Thomson, Ga.; Glen Taylor , 42, of Beech Island, S.C.; Linda Campbell , 52, of Augusta; Joshua Wasden , 35, of Thomson, Ga.; Brian Hilliard , 40, of Augusta; Gary Holcomb , 59, of Martinez, Ga.; Donnie Skillman, 46, of Augusta; and, Destiny Poole, 23, of Grovetown, Ga. Each defendant has appeared in U.S. Magistrate Court for initial hearings and await further proceedings. Indictments contain only charges; defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty. The case was investigated under the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF). OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the Georgia Bureau of Investigation; the Aiken County Sheriff’s Office; the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office; the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office; and the McDuffie County Sheriff’s Office; and prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bradley R. Thompson.


title: Two Russian Nationals Working with Russia’s Federal Security Service Charged with Global Computer Intrusion Campaign

component: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

body_text: A federal grand jury in San Francisco returned an indictment on Tuesday charging two individuals with a campaign to hack into computer networks in the United States, the United Kingdom, other North Atlantic Treaty Organization member countries and Ukraine, all on behalf of the Russian government. According to court documents, Ruslan Aleksandrovich Peretyatko (Перетятько Руслан Александрович), an officer in Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) Center 18, Andrey Stanislavovich Korinets (Коринец Андрей Станиславович) and other unindicted conspirators employed a sophisticated spear phishing campaign to gain unauthorized, persistent access ( i.e. , “hack”) into victims’ computers and email accounts. “The Russian government continues to target the critical networks of the United States and our partners, as highlighted by the indictment unsealed today,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “Through this malign influence activity directed at the democratic processes of the United Kingdom, Russia again demonstrates its commitment to using weaponized campaigns of cyber espionage against such networks in unacceptable ways. The Department of Justice will respond to such behavior with an even more determined commitment to disrupt those activities and to hold accountable the individuals responsible.” “Today’s indictment is part of a coordinated international response to send a message to the conspirators that the whole of the United States government stands together and with our partners internationally to identify and disrupt cyber espionage actors, particularly those seeking to obtain government information and attempting to create chaos in democratic processes,” said U.S. Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey for the Northern District of California. “We are grateful to all of our partners for their assistance in addressing these threats posed by the FSB’s action in the Northern District of California, across the United States and around the world.” “The FBI will not stand idly by as Russia continues to perpetuate this type of targeted malicious activity,” said Assistant Director Bryan Vorndran of the FBI’s Cyber Division. “Russian interference through malign foreign influence campaigns is deplorable, and we will not tolerate it in the United States or directed against our foreign partners. The FBI is dedicated to combating this pervasive threat and will tirelessly seek to prevent and disrupt these criminal acts carried out by Russia.” The indictment, which was unsealed today, alleges the conspiracy targeted current and former employees of the U.S. Intelligence Community, Department of Defense, Department of State, defense contractors, and Department of Energy facilities between at least October 2016 and October 2022. In addition, the indictment alleges the conspirators – known publicly by the name “Callisto Group” – targeted military and government officials, think tank researchers and staff, and journalists in the United Kingdom and elsewhere, and that information from certain of these targeted accounts was leaked to the press in Russia and the United Kingdom in advance of U.K. elections in 2019. As a common example, the conspirators used “spoofed” email accounts designed to look like personal and work-related email accounts of the group’s targets. The conspirators allegedly also sent sophisticated looking emails that appeared to be from email providers suggesting users had violated terms of service. These messages were designed to trick victims into providing their email account credentials to false login prompts. Once the conspirators fraudulently obtained the victim’s credentials, they were able to use those credentials to access the victims’ email accounts at will. In addition to the indictment, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced that it has sanctioned both Peretyatko and Korinets for their roles in malicious cyber-enabled activity. Moreover, the United Kingdom has issued sanctions of its own, and the U.S. Department of State announced rewards of up to $10 million for information leading to the identification or location of Peretyatko and Korinets , as well as their conspirators. In addition to the name “Callisto Group,” FSB Center 18 is known by cybersecurity investigators as “Dancing Salome” by Kaspersky Labs, “STAR BLIZZARD” by Microsoft Threat Intelligence Center and “COLDRIVER” by Google’s Threat Analysis Group. The defendants are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, namely, computer fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison for PERETYATKO, and up to 10 years for KORINETS. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencings of the defendants will be determined by the assigned judge. The investigation was conducted jointly by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California, the National Security Cyber Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division and the FBI San Francisco Field Office. The FBI’s Cyber Division, Cyber Assistant Legal Attachés, and Legal Attachés in countries around the world provided essential support. Numerous victims cooperated and provided valuable assistance in the investigation. An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. Note: This release has been updated to reflect the correct criminal offense and statutory penalties. Peretyatko Korinets indictment


title: Wheeling man sentenced for federal fentanyl charge

body_text: WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA –Rashun Rafael Suncar, also known as “Blackie,” age 37, of Wheeling, West Virginia, was sentenced to 92 months for distribution of fentanyl. According to court documents and statements made in court, Suncar sold pills counterfeit pills containing fentanyl near the Elks Playground in East Wheeling. Investigators searched Suncar’s residence and found additional drugs along with a 9mm Taurus pistol. The Ohio Valley Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carly Nogay prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey presided.


title: Detroit Man Sentenced for Dealing Drugs While on Supervised Release for Dealing Drugs

body_text: DETROIT – A Detroit man was sentenced yesterday to 10 years in prison for dealing dangerous drugs while on pretrial release for another drug and firearm offense pending in state court, United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison announced today. Ison was joined in the announcement by Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Rickey Butler, age 40, of Detroit, Michigan, was sentenced by United States District Judge Denise Page Hood. According to court documents and statements made in court, on March 4, 2022, Butler—who was then on a GPS tether for controlled substance and weapons offenses—possessed with the intent to distribute fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine. Butler also possessed a Glock firearm, which he used to protect the narcotics. Butler admitted to police that he had been selling drugs for approximately eight years before he was apprehended in this case. “All too often, guns and drugs go hand in hand—and both are causing far too many deaths in our community,” said U.S. Attorney Ison. “We are committed to working with our law enforcement partners to remove illegals guns, drug dealers, and other drivers of violent crime out of our neighborhoods.” “This sentencing shows the unwavering commitment by the FBI and our law enforcement partners to remove traffickers who conspire to distribute harmful drugs in our communities,” said Special Agent in Charge Cheyvoryea Gibson of the FBI in Michigan. “We will continue to relentlessly pursue those involved in narcotics trafficking to safeguard Michigan’s streets and communities.” This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in conjunction with the Livonia Police Department and Detroit Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Barbara Lanning. 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: Española Man Pleads Guilty and is Sentenced for Abandoning Child and Assaulting Girlfriend

component: USAO - New Mexico

body_text: ALBUQUERQUE – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, announced that Larry G. Valdez, Jr. pled guilty to the crimes of child abandonment and assault by striking, beating, or wounding and was sentenced to one year of probation. In March 2022, Valdez, Jr. struck John Doe’s mother with a closed fist at a roadside location within the exterior boundaries of the Pueblo of Ohkay Owingeh. When six-year-old John Doe (Valdez, Jr.’s son) attempted to intervene on his mother’s behalf, Valdez, Jr. punched John Doe in the face with a closed fist, which caused Doe to sustain a bloodied and swollen upper lip. Valdez, Jr. then left John Doe and Doe’s mother by the dark roadside without calling for medical attention. The Bureau of Indian Affairs investigated this case with assistance from the Ohkay Owingeh Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Zachary Jones is prosecuting the case. View the Plea Agreement View the Indictment # # # 23-279


title: Heritage-Crystal Clean LLC to Pay More Than $1.1 Million in Penalties and Implement Compliance Measures for Violations of Hazardous Waste Regulations

component: Energy and Natural Resources Division

body_text: Today, the Justice Department and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a settlement with Heritage-Crystal Clean LLC (HCC) to resolve pending claims of the United States on behalf of the EPA, the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) and the State of Indiana for violations of requirements governing management of hazardous waste, as well as a violation of used oil management requirements, at current or former HCC facilities located in Indianapolis; Shreveport, Louisiana; Atlanta; Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania and Denver. Under the settlement, HCC commits to pay civil penalties totaling $1,162,500 and to implement various measures to ensure that HCC facilities will not treat, store or dispose of parts-washing solvents that qualify as hazardous waste unless and until HCC receives a hazardous waste permit authorizing it to manage hazardous waste. Plaintiffs estimate that the compliance measures required under the settlement will cost at least $1,628,502. “While federal law encourages responsible recycling of hazardous waste, recyclers must still comply with legal requirements designed to ensure the health and safety of our communities,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). “This settlement reflects our commitment to ensuring that hazardous waste recycling operations are conducted in accordance with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and its regulations.” “Companies that manage hazardous wastes for other companies are required to ensure that those wastes are handled properly, which Heritage Crystal Clean repeatedly failed to do,” said Assistant Administrator David M. Uhlmann of the EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “EPA is committed to fair and robust enforcement of our hazardous waste laws to ensure that our communities and the environment are protected from mismanaged hazardous wastes.” In January 2022, a 21-count complaint was filed against HCC in federal district court in the Northern District of Illinois under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and applicable state law. The complaint states that in the course of providing parts-washing services to customers throughout the United States, HCC accepted some used solvent that qualified as hazardous waste, but HCC did not transport and manage those solvents in accordance with applicable hazardous waste management requirements. In particular, the complaint states that HCC (1) transported hazardous waste without required hazardous waste manifests, (2) stored hazardous waste at various HCC facilities without required permits, (3) failed to make required hazardous waste determinations after mixing used solvents from different parts-washing customers, (4) failed to comply with certain requirements for reducing air emissions from certain hazardous waste tanks and equipment, and (5) failed to maintain adequate secondary containment for certain hazardous waste tanks. The complaint alleges that some used solvents managed by HCC were hazardous waste because HCC needed to subject the material to systematic gravity separation to make the used material suitable for resale. Plaintiffs contend HCC evaded hazardous waste requirements by improperly claiming that the unusable solvents were products instead of wastes. As part of the settlement, HCC must perform compliance measures at multiple HCC facilities to achieve and maintain compliance with RCRA. As one element of the compliance program, the proposed settlement requires HCC to implement measures to ensure one type of used solvent referred to by HCC as “106 solvent” is acceptable for re-use without prior reclamation and that it is legitimately reused. The settlement will also prohibit gravity separation (removing water and solids while recovering the valuable solvent component) of used 106 solvent in order to meet re-use solvent customer product specifications or to otherwise render the material suitable for reuse. Used solvents that are legitimately reused for their solvent properties without prior reclamation are not subject to regulation as hazardous waste. Another central element of the proposed settlement is a sampling program to determine whether another type of parts-washing solvent – referred to by HCC as “142 solvent” – exhibits hazardous waste characteristics. HCC must promptly remove from its facilities any 142 solvent drums and consolidation containers that exhibit hazardous waste characteristics, and HCC must thereafter manage such characteristic wastes in accordance with applicable hazardous waste management requirements. The proposed settlement also requires HCC to apply for a RCRA permit at its Indianapolis facility. Pending issuance of the permit and construction of certain hazardous waste management units, the settlement requires HCC to implement specified interim measures at the Indianapolis facility, including frequent inspections of tanks and containers, as well as elimination of open venting of tanks containing used 142 solvent. Finally, the proposed settlement includes numerous other provisions, including provisions that require HCC to distribute educational materials to parts-washing customers in specified circumstances, and provisions for HCC to retain a third party to conduct audits at designated HCC facilities to ensure future compliance. The five HCC facilities included in this settlement are recognized by EPA to be located within communities with potential environmental justice concerns. Nearby communities will benefit from the improved controls and new work practices that will be implemented at HCC facilities as required by the consent decree. These new controls and practices will reduce emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and reduce risk of exposure to hazardous wastes managed at these facilities. The proposed consent decree, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, is subject to a 30-day federal public comment period and approval by the federal court. The consent decree can be viewed on the Justice Department's website at www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees . For more information about this settlement, please visit Heritage-Crystal Clean LLC Settlement Information Sheet on EPA’s web page . EPA is investigating the case. Attorneys from ENRD’s Environmental Enforcement Section are prosecuting the case.


title: Kenton County Man Sentenced to 78 Months for Marijuana Trafficking

component: USAO - Kentucky, Eastern

body_text: COVINGTON, Ky. – A Florence, Ky., man, Ryan Stivers, 30, was sentenced on Tuesday, to 78 months in prison, by Chief U.S. District Judge Danny Reeves, following his conviction for conspiracy to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana. According to his plea agreement, beginning in 2017, law enforcement began investigating suspicious packages being mailed from California to multiple addresses in Northern Kentucky, which were associated with Stivers. During the investigation, law enforcement seized significant amounts of marijuana and cash proceeds of drug trafficking. Stivers admitted to his participation in the marijuana distribution conspiracy and that he was responsible for distributing at least 100 kilograms of marijuana. Under federal law, Stivers must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence. Upon his release from prison, he will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for four years. Carlton S. Shier, IV, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; and Lesley Allison, Special Agent in Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service, Pittsburgh Field Division; and Orville O. Greene, Special Agent in Charge, DEA, Detroit Field Division, jointly announced the sentence. The investigation was conducted by USPIS and DEA. — END —


title: Grand jury indicts Butler County man for romance-fraud conspiracy involving more than $1 million in proceeds, separate COVID-relief fraud

component: USAO - Ohio, Southern

body_text: CINCINNATI – A dual Ghanaian and American citizen currently residing in Ohio was indicted for crimes related to a romance-fraud conspiracy and making false statements on a COVID‑relief application. Benjamin Adu Acheampong, 37, of Fairfield, Ohio, is charged in a 7-count indictment. According to the indictment, from January 2019 through July 2021, Acheampong conspired with others to create false online profiles, which the conspirators used to express romantic interest in victims. Once the victim believed he or she was in a romantic relationship with the person pictured in the online profile, the coconspirators, using false pretenses, would convince the victims to send money by mail or by wire transfer. For example, the conspirators commonly falsely represented that the person pictured in the online profile was expecting a large inheritance of gold and needed financial assistance to bring it to the United States, or that he or she needed money for a plane ticket or medical expenses. Acheampong allegedly laundered part of the $1 million in scam proceeds through multiple bank accounts, including bank accounts he opened in the name of ABA Automotive & Export LLC, an Ohio LLC he created. It is alleged the money was laundered by making wire transfers, including to accounts in Africa, and by falsely representing that the transfers were for, among other things, paying workers and family expenses. In addition, the indictment alleges that Acheampong made false statements to the Small Business Administration (SBA) in a Payment Protection Program (PPP) loan application, which resulted in the SBA awarding him more than $20,000 in COVID relief to which he was not entitled. Acheampong is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, one count of wire fraud, two counts of international money laundering, and two counts of concealment money laundering, each of which is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Acheampong is also charged with one count of making false statements to an agent of the United States, which is punishable by up to five years in prison. Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and J. William Rivers, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, announced the charges. Assistant United States Attorney Julie D. Garcia is representing the United States in this case. An indictment merely contains allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law. # # #


title: Three Men Indicted for Environmental Crimes Committed in the Jobos Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve and Las Mareas Community of Salinas, Puerto Rico

body_text: SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On December 6, 2023, a Federal Grand Jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned two separate indictments charging three individuals for violations of the Clean Water Act. The charges relate to the illegal construction and deposit of material into the wetlands and waters of the United States in the Jobos Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (the “Jobos Estuarine Reserve”). Various federal agencies are involved in this ongoing investigation into environmental crimes in the Jobos Estuarine Reserve and Las Mareas community as part of the Caribbean Environmental Crimes Task Force, including the Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division (EPA-CID), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), U.S. Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division (Army-CID), U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Inspector General (DOC-OIG), National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration Office of Law Enforcement (NOAA-OLE), and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement (FW‑OLE). According to the first indictment, from June 2018 to December 2023, Rafael Carballo-Díaz and Nathaniel Hernández-Claudio knowingly discharged fill material from excavation and earth moving equipment into the wetlands and waters of the United States in violation of the Clean Water Act. Carballo-Díaz operated a guesthouse business called El Cacique Resort on the property located at the Southwest of Camino del Indio in the Las Mareas area of Salinas, Puerto Rico. Nathaniel Hernández-Claudio acted as a host and property manager at El Cacique Resort on the Property. The second indictment charges Awildo Jiménez-Mercado with violations of the Clean Water Act and the Rivers and Harbors Act. Jiménez-Mercado knowingly discharged fill material from excavation and earth moving equipment into the wetlands and built a boat dock without authorization of the Secretary of the Army, in violation of the Rivers and Harbors Act. Awildo Jiménez-Mercado also operated a guest house business called “Hidden Paradise” on a separate property. Both El Cacique Resort and Hidden Paradise offered guests a pool, outdoor dining areas, and housing units as short-term rentals. The Clean Water Act was enacted by Congress in 1972 to protect and maintain the integrity of the waters of the United States. The Clean Water Act’s main purpose is to ensure the restoration and maintenance of the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation’s waters. It prohibits the discharge of any pollutant and fill material into waters of the United States except when a permit is obtained from the United States. The Rivers and Harbors Act was originally enacted in 1899 and is generally considered the oldest environmental law in the United States. It serves to regulate and protect the navigable waters of the United States and prohibits the un-permitted construction of structures within those waters. Both the Clean Water Act and the Rivers and Harbors Act protect the coastal waters within the Jobos Estuarine Reserve. The Jobos Estuarine Reserve was designated as a National Estuarine Research Reserve by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 1981 and is comprised of approximately 2,800 acres of coastal ecosystems in the Southern coastal plain of Puerto Rico. The Jobos Estuarine Reserve contains mangrove islands, mangrove forests, tidal wetlands, coral reefs, lagoons, salt flats, dry forest, and seagrass beds. It is also home to the endangered brown pelican, peregrine falcon, hawksbill turtle, and West Indian manatee. The Jobos Estuarine Reserve is owned and operated by the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (PR‑DNER). The three defendants were arrested and are scheduled to appear today before Magistrate Judge Marshal D. Morgan of the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico for their respective initial appearances. If convicted, the defendants are facing up to three years of imprisonment for the Clean Water Act violations, fines, and injunctive relief to remove violative structures. Jimenez-Mercado is also facing one year in prison for the River and Harbors Act violations. W. Stephen Muldrow, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico, and Todd Kim, Assistant Attorney General of the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the U.S. Department of Justice made the announcement. The case is being prosecuted by Senior Trial Attorney Patrick M. Duggan of the Environmental Crimes Section of the U.S. Department of Justice and Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth A. Erbe, Environmental Litigation Coordinator for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Puerto Rico. These indictments are part of an ongoing investigation that include two indictments returned in May 2023. See https://www.justice.gov/usao-pr/pr/two-men-indicted-environmental-crimes-committed-jobos-bay-national-estuarine-research . If you have any information related to this investigation or environmental crimes in the area, please contact enforcement officials, which may be done anonymously. The EPA can be contacted at (787) 977-5821 or at https://echo.epa.gov/denuncie-violaciones-ambientales. The FBI can be contacted at (787) 987-6500 or https://tips.fbi.gov/ . For more information on the Jobos Bay National Estuarine Reserve, please visit https://www.drna.pr.gov/jbnerr/ or https://coast.noaa.gov/nerrs/reserves/jobos-bay.html . An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. ### 23-441_gmm_indict_redacted.pdf 23-440_fab_indict_redacted.pdf


title: Bergen County Public Relations Company Settles Allegations It Received Improper Paycheck Protection Program Loan

component: USAO - New Jersey

body_text: NEWARK, N.J. – A Bergen County, New Jersey, public relations firm entered a settlement agreement with the United States resolving allegations that the company violated the False Claims Act by taking a loan from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to which the company was not entitled, Attorney for the United States Vikas Khanna announced today. Congress created the PPP in March 2020 as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to provide emergency financial support to millions of Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act authorized billions of dollars in forgivable loans to small businesses struggling to pay employees and other business expenses. According to the allegations in the complaint and the contentions of the United States in the settlement agreement: MWW Group LLC, which does business as MikeWorldWide (MWW), applied for and received a PPP loan totaling $2 million even though it was ineligible for such a loan because it was a required registrant under the Foreign Agent Registration Act. MWW thereafter sought and received forgiveness of the total amount of the loan. MWW fully cooperated in the investigation and resolution of this matter. In accordance with the terms of the settlement agreement, MWW has agreed to pay the United States $2.29 million, plus interest. The settlement resolves a lawsuit filed under the whistleblower provision of the False Claims Act, which permits private parties, called relators, to file suit on behalf of the United States for false claims and share in a portion of the government’s recovery. In this matter, the relator is receiving $229,000 as his share in the recovery. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney David V. Simunovich of the Health Care Fraud Unit in Newark. Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form . The qui tam case is captioned United States ex rel. Forsyth v. MWW Group LLC , Civil Action No. 23-299 (D.N.J.). mww.settlementpdf.pdf


title: Arkansas Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Shooting Officers in Hot Springs National Park

component: USAO - Arkansas, Western

body_text: HOT SPRINGS , AR – An Arkansas man will serve twenty years in federal prison for Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury and Assault with Intent to Do Bodily Harm, in connection with a July 28, 2019, shooting incident in Hot Springs National Park. On November 27, the Honorable Chief Judge Susan O. Hickey, sentenced Jonathan Allen Scott, age 36, of Hot Springs, to twenty years in federal prisons on both counts, and three years’ supervised probation after he pleaded guilty, on April 14, to Count Two and Count Four of a seven-count Indictment in which he was named. According to court documents, on July 28, 2019, Scott entered Hot Springs National Park, along Bath House Row, east of Central Avenue, carrying a 12-gauge shotgun. Hot Springs is a United States National Park in Garland County. After receiving 911 calls regarding Scott , he was confronted by officers of the Hot Springs Arkansas Police Department and fired a slug into the ground in the direction of one of the officers. Dozens of visitors to the park and downtown area, along the sidewalks, and nearby city and park structures, were in the immediate vicinity, as well as a usually crowded Central Avenue. Two Hot Springs Officers, along with their city canine partner, approached Scott , and ordered him to drop the shotgun near park headquarters. Scott refused the orders and turned on the officers with the shotgun, discharging the weapon, and simultaneously one of the officers discharged his service weapon at Scott striking him multiple times. The second round Scott fired, struck the sidewalk in front of the officers, and the resulting slug round fragmented, striking and wounding one officer and his canine partner. Both officers recovered from their injuries sustained by gunfire. Scott was treated and later arrested at a local hospital. A subsequent investigation by special agents of the Arkansas State Police and National Park Service-Investigative Services Branch, established the full extent of Scott ’s actions and he was taken into custody after release from the hospital. Scott was later indicted by a federal grand jury in April 2019. U.S. Attorney David Clay Fowlkes of the Western District of Arkansas made the announcement. The case was investigated by special agents of the Arkansas State Police, National Park Service - Investigative Services Branch and U.S. Park Rangers at Hot Springs National Park, with the assistance of the Garland County Arkansas Sheriff’s Office and Hot Springs Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Achorn and First Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenny Elser prosecuted the case for the United States. Related court documents may be found on the Public Access to Electronic Records website @ www.pacer.gov.


title: Chief Executive Officer Admits False Statements to Conceal Foreign Origin of Forklifts Provided to U.S. Army

body_text: TRENTON, N.J. – The chief executive officer of a Passaic, New Jersey, company today admitted falsifying data plates on forklifts provided to the U.S. Army to make it appear as if the forklifts, which were purchased in China, had been manufactured in the United States, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced. James Cai, 33, of Hackensack, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert A. Kirsch in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with one count of making false statements in connection with the provision of two forklifts to a U.S. Army installation, Fort Cavazos, in Killeen, Texas. According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court: From September 2018 to January 2019, Cai, through his company, Toner Connect LLC, submitted bids on, and obtained, contracts to supply various U.S. Army installations with forklifts. The contracts required that the forklifts be compliant with the Buy American Act (BAA), that is, the forklifts had to be manufactured in the United States and at least 50 percent of the cost of the forklift components had to be of U.S. origin. One of those contracts awarded Toner Connect LLC $247,000 for the provision of two FD150 diesel forklifts to Fort Cavazos. Despite the BAA clause in that contract, and in order to reduce costs, Cai purchased the two forklifts from a company based in Shanghai, China. To conceal the origin of the forklifts and make them appear compliant with the BAA, Cai installed data plates on the forklifts that falsely stated: Final Assembly in the USA Millennial Enterprise LLC Newark, NJ 07102 North American Headquarters After the forklifts were delivered to Fort Cavazos on Aug. 26, 2019, Fort Cavazos personnel discovered that the forklifts had multiple operational problems and could not be repaired due to the concealment of their true make and model. The charge to which Cai pleaded guilty carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000. Sentencing is scheduled for April 11, 2024. U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the U.S. Army, Criminal Investigation Division, Major Procurement Fraud Field Office, under the direction of Assistant Special Agent in Charge Michael Curran; and special agents of the U.S. Department of Defense, Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Northeast Field Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Patrick J. Hegarty, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathleen P. O’Leary of the Economic Crimes Unit. cai.information.pdf


title: Rhode Island Man Charged With Making Fake Bomb Threat On Airplane

component: USAO - Florida, Middle

body_text: Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the arrest and filing of a criminal complaint charging Evan Sims (41, Rhode Island) with false information and threats regarding the possession of an explosive on an airplane. If convicted, Sims faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. According to court documents, on December 5, 2023, Sims was traveling on a flight from Orlando to Providence, Rhode Island. While seated on the airplane, prior to takeoff, Sims began arguing with his travel companion. Sims told his travel companion that he had never heard of the airline for the flight and that he hoped the airplane did not “go down.” Sims stated that they would be “gone with the wind.” During boarding and the airliner safety briefing, Sims made comments to his travel companion about needing to use the emergency doors and that the windows looked like they had not been used. Sims also told his travel companion that he hoped they did not have to use the windows. Further, Sims questioned the flight crew regarding the emergency life raft that was in the overhead storage compartment. Sims’s travel companion and the surrounding passengers were uncomfortable with Sims’s statements and Sims’s travel companion asked Sims to stop making his comments. As the flight began the initial ascent into the air, Sims partially stood up in his seat and exclaimed that he wanted to get off the plane. While the flight was airborne, Sims stated approximately two times that his travel companion had a bomb on the plane. Thereafter, due to Sims’s repeated disturbances and escalating behavior, the flight was diverted to the Jacksonville International Airport. Bomb-detection dogs searched the plane but did not locate a bomb. A complaint is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty. This case was investigated by the Transportation Security Administration, Jacksonville Aviation Authority Airport Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ashley Washington. Download Criminal Complaint


title: Machineguns, Long and Short-Barrel Rifles, Handguns, Ammunition Seized in Project Safe Neighborhoods Investigations and Arrests

body_text: PROVIDENCE – The United States Attorney’s Office has filed charging documents in federal court in three separate Project Safe Neighborhood cases, involving possession of a machine gun in furtherance of drug trafficking and illegal possession of an array of illicit firearms, including multiple machine guns, eleven silencers, three AR-15 rifles, two long-barrel and three short-barrel rifles, as well as dozens of firearm magazines and various rounds of ammunition, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha. “Every illegal firearm loose in our communities is one too many, particularly when it comes to illicit automatic weapons that can inflict carnage on our families and neighbors with a single pull of the trigger,” remarked U.S. Attorney Cunha. “Combatting the proliferation of illegal firearms and keeping guns out of the hands of felons remains a core priority of this Office. These charges represent superb work by the ATF, HSI, USPIS and our local law enforcement colleagues, and reflect our resolve to keep illegal guns off Rhode Island’s streets and out of our communities.” Brendan Farley Smithfield, RI On December 6, 2023, a federal criminal complaint was filed charging Brendan Farley, 39, of Smithfield, with possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of ammunition by a felon, and possession of unregistered firearm silencers. According to charging documents, it is alleged that on November 29, 2023, United Parcel Service notified Homeland Security Investigations of a suspicious package in the mail stream addressed to Farley. An inspection of the contents of the package allegedly revealed several firearm components used to build or repair an AK-47 rifle. A further check by United Parcel Service indicated that 45 parcels were delivered to Farley’s residence between December 2022 and November 2023, of which at least sixteen were shipped from various firearm or firearm-related part vendors. Homeland Security Investigations determined that Farley had previously been convicted on state felony firearm and narcotics charges and therefore is prohibited from receiving or possessing a firearm or ammunition. On December 6, 2023, Homeland Security Investigations executed a court-authorized search of Farley’s residence and vehicle and, from his residence, seized an AR-15 fully automatic machinegun; AR-15 style rifle, AR-15 shotgun, five handguns, and two short-barrel rifles; eleven firearm suppressors or silencers, two of which were attached to firearms; two AR-15 lower receivers and various parts for an AK-47 rifle; 32 firearm magazines; and various supplies used to construct and/or repair firearms. Most of the firearms were privately made firearms, otherwise known as “ghost guns,” that bore no serial numbers or other manufacturer markings. From Farley’s vehicle agents seized two firearm magazines, including a drum-style magazine. The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with assistance from the Warwick Police Department, Providence Police Department, Pawtucket Police Department Portsmouth Police Department and Smithfield Police Department. Jose Marrero Woonsocket, RI On December 6, 2023, a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Jose Marrero, 35, of Woonsocket, with two counts of possessing a machine gun in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, two counts of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, and one count each of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and possession with intent to distribute cocaine. According to charging documents and information presented to the court, as part of an ongoing Project Safe Neighborhoods investigation into Marrero’s alleged illegal possession of firearms, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) agents executed a court-authorized search of Marrero’s residence and located two loaded firearms and assorted ammunition. The items were allegedly located on a bookshelf in a bedroom where two young children were asleep in cribs. A semi-automatic firearm with a machinegun conversion device affixed to it, converting it into a machinegun, a semi-automatic handgun, assorted ammunition, fentanyl, and cocaine was also seized as result of this investigation. According to court documents, it is alleged that the some of the firearms seized by law enforcement are identical to some firearms allegedly displayed by Marrero on a social media account he controlled. According to court records, Marrero was convicted twice previously in Rhode Island state court on felony drug trafficking charges. This matter was investigated by ATF, members of the ATF Violent Crime Task Force with substantial assistance from the Massachusetts State Police, and the Woonsocket and central Falls Police Department. Joshua Pavao Coventry, RI On December 6, 2023, Joshua Pavao, 43, who frequently resides in Coventry, was charged by way of a criminal complaint with four counts of unlawful possession of a machinegun and four counts of possession of an unregistered firearm. It is alleged in charging documents that Coventry Police Department and East Providence Police Detectives and ATF agents discovered eight long guns, including four machine guns, inside a duffel bag belonging to Pavao that was found stored inside a garage of the Coventry residence where he frequently resided. The discovery of the firearms followed the arrest of Pavao by East Providence Police on state charges brought as the result of an investigation into a December 1, 2024 incident that included reports of shots fired; a car chase resulting in several motor vehicle crashes; as well as the discovery of three loaded firearms, 81 loaded rifle magazines, and a multitude of ammunition inside a vehicle driven by Pavao. Federal criminal complaints and indictments are merely accusations. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. Brendan Farley is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald R Gendron; Jose Marrero is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine D. Lowell; Joshua Pavao is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul F. Daly, Jr. These cases have been brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) ongoing investigations. PSN brings 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. ###