title: Arizona Man Indicted for Offenses Involving Sexual Exploitation of a Minor

body_text: FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment Thursday, charging Anthony Dalton Wolff, 42, of Surprise, Arizona, with distribution of a visual depiction of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct and attempted coercion and enticement, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. According to court documents, between March 16, 2023, and July 30, 2024, Wolff met and then communicated with an undercover federal agent on a forum on the dark web dedicated to discussion of child sexual abuse. The undercover agent had established a profile for a mother with a seven-year-old daughter. Wolff contacted the agent and immediately stated that he had a long-standing sexual interest in girls, and he hoped to have a sexual relationship with the agent and her purported daughter. Wolff moved the communications to Telegram, a fully encrypted application that does not cooperate with law enforcement, and frequently sent videos of himself while viewing and commenting on some of his favorite child exploitation videos. He planned to meet the agent and her daughter in California and described in graphic detail how he wanted to sexually abuse the girl and to have another child with the mother so he could sexually abuse that child. On Aug. 28, 2024, federal agents served a search warrant at Wolff’s residence and seized the devices that had been used to commit the charged offenses. A federal magistrate judge in Phoenix, Arizona, ordered Wolff detained as a danger to the community, and he will appear before a magistrate judge in Fresno as soon as he arrives in the Eastern District of California. Law enforcement believes there may be additional victims in this case and urges anyone with information to come forward by calling the HSI Tip Line at 877-4-HSI-TIP or through the CyberTipline on the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children's (NCMEC) website. This case is the product of an investigation by the Central California Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, principally Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney David L. Gappa is prosecuting the case. If convicted of the distribution count, Wolff faces a mandatory minimum of five years in prison and a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. If convicted of the attempted coercion count, he faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years to a maximum of life in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about internet-safety education.


title: Film Producer Indicted for Multi-Decade Tax Conspiracy

component: Tax Division

body_text: A film producer and an Australian accountant were indicted by a federal grand jury yesterday for crimes related to their roles in a multi-decade conspiracy to defraud the United States by concealing the movie producer’s income and assets offshore. According to the indictment, Nigel Sinclair is a film producer who founded several successful movie production companies and Anthony Stewart is an accountant in Australia. In 2000, Sinclair allegedly co-owned Intermedia, a film production company he co-founded. He allegedly held half of his Intermedia shares in the name of a Maltese nominee entity that he controlled. When the company was listed on a foreign stock exchange, Sinclair allegedly caused his shares held by the Maltese company to be sold for approximately $25 million. He and Stewart then conspired with others to conceal these proceeds by depositing them into nominee bank accounts in Switzerland. Over the years, Sinclair allegedly used these proceeds to fly on private jets, purchase an $800,000 guitar owned by a famous rock musician, fund his next production company and build himself an 8,000 square foot vacation home in the Jackson Hole area of Wyoming. Stewart and others, among other things, allegedly used corporate entities and created fake documents to disguise the true ownership and source of the funds Sinclair used to do so. In 2004, one of Sinclair’s co-conspirators was allegedly arrested in Australia and his laptop seized. The laptop allegedly contained files related to Sinclair and other individuals’ offshore financial dealings. According to the indictment, the seizure of the laptop was the impetus for a significant tax evasion investigation in Australia, code-named Project Wickenby. As the investigation progressed, and concerned about a possible IRS inquiry as well, Sinclair, Stewart and their co-conspirators allegedly took steps to avoid detection by authorities, including by moving Sinclair’s assets into the name of new nominees, destroying potentially incriminating documents by flushing them down the toilet, talking in code and communicating on burner phones. In 2015, Sinclair allegedly tried to use the IRS’ Streamlined Domestic Offshore Procedures. Under those procedures, the IRS allegedly offered taxpayers with undisclosed foreign assets the opportunity to make timely, accurate and complete disclosures to resolve their non-compliance and limit their criminal exposure. Allegedly, a taxpayer who certified under penalties of perjury that their failure to comply was non-willful — usually defined as the result of negligence or mistake — could pay significantly reduced penalties. In his disclosure Sinclair allegedly made several false statements about his foreign assets and underreported their value. In addition, despite admitting in his 2015 voluntary disclosure that he had a foreign bank account, Sinclair allegedly did not report that bank account on Reports of Foreign Bank Account and Financial Accounts (FBARs) that he filed with the U.S. Treasury Department for 2016 or 2017. Lastly, in 2020, Sinclair allegedly encouraged one of his co-conspirators to tell a false narrative to U.S. authorities as part of a grand jury investigation. Sinclair allegedly caused a tax loss to the IRS of more than $5 million. Sinclair and Stewart were charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States. Sinclair was also charged with filing false tax returns, filing false FBARs and obstruction of justice. If convicted, Sinclair and Stewart face a maximum penalty of five years in prison for conspiracy. Sinclair also faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison for each filing a false tax return charge, a maximum penalty of five years in prison for each false FBAR charge and a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for the obstruction charge. Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement. IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case. Assistance was provided by the Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement (J5), which brings together the taxing authorities of Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, United Kingdom and United States. Trial Attorneys Peter J. Anthony and Erika V. Suhr and Assistant Chief Matthew Kluge of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case. Former Trial Attorney Christopher M. Magnani assisted 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. Sinclair Indictment.pdf


title: Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada Garcia, Co-Founder of the Sinaloa Cartel, Arraigned in Brooklyn on International Drug Trafficking Charges

component: USAO - New York, Eastern

body_text: Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia, a citizen of Mexico, was arraigned this morning in federal court in Brooklyn on a fifth superseding indictment charging him with conspiring to manufacture and distribute fentanyl. The superseding indictment relates to Zambada Garcia’s decades-long leadership of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the most violent and powerful drug trafficking organizations in the world. Zambada Garcia was previously charged with running a continuing criminal enterprise, as well as murder conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and fentanyl manufacture and distribution conspiracy, as well as other drug-related crimes. Today’s proceeding was held before United States Magistrate Judge James R. Cho. Zambada Garcia was ordered detained pending trial. If convicted of the continuing criminal enterprise count, Zambada Garcia faces a mandatory life sentence. Zambada Garcia was transferred yesterday to the Eastern District of New York from the Western District of Texas, following his arrest in New Mexico on July 25, 2024. Merrick B. Garland, United States Attorney General; Lisa O. Monaco, United States Deputy Attorney General; Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Markenzy Lapointe, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; Nicole M. Argentieri, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General and head of the Criminal Division; David Sundberg, Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Washington Field Office (FBI); Anne Milgram, Administrator, Drug Enforcement Administration; Katrina W. Berger, Executive Associate Director, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); and Steven G. James, Superintendent, New York State Police (NYSP), announced the arraignment. “El Mayo, the co-founder and leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, has been charged with overseeing a multi-billion-dollar conspiracy to flood American communities with narcotics, including deadly fentanyl,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “We allege that El Mayo built, and for decades led, the Sinaloa Cartel’s network of manufacturers, assassins, traffickers, and money launderers responsible for kidnapping and murdering people in both the United States and Mexico, and importing lethal quantities of fentanyl, heroin, meth, and cocaine into the United States. Now, El Mayo joins the many other Sinaloa Cartel leaders who have faced charges in an American courtroom for the immeasurable harm they have inflicted on families and communities across our country.” “For decades, the Sinaloa Cartel has profited from poisoning and killing Americans, and fueling violence on both sides of our southern border,” stated Deputy Attorney General Monaco. “Today’s arraignment of Zambada Garcia is the latest step in a whole-of-government effort to strike back against one of the world’s most dangerous criminal organizations and protect our communities from the fentanyl epidemic.” “Zambada Garcia’s day of reckoning in a U.S. courtroom has arrived and justice will follow,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “If convicted, never again will he deliver fentanyl, cocaine, and other deadly drugs and associated violence into our country or make millions as hundreds of thousands of innocent lives are lost. It is my hope that the countless family members and friends of victims who succumbed to his cartel’s poisons, and the countless members of law enforcement who fearlessly risked their lives fighting this scourge, should take comfort in knowing that Zambada Garcia will be held accountable for his multitude of crimes.” Mr. Peace also expressed his thanks to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas, and the United States Marshals Service for their assistance on the case. “Zambada Garcia can no longer hide from the American justice system,” stated United States Attorney Lapointe. “His arrest means that he will now have to face charges for leading the Sinaloa Cartel’s multi-billion dollar criminal enterprise that funneled drugs onto our streets and violence and despair into our communities. But our work is not done. We will continue to go after the leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel and the drug trafficking organizations around the world.” “Defeating the Sinaloa cartel is DEA’s top operational priority and today, with the capture and additional charges filed against Ismael Zambada Garcia we are that much closer. Better known as ‘El Mayo,’ Zambada Garcia is the co-founder and leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the most ruthless and dangerous cartels in Mexico and responsible for the unprecedented drug crisis facing the United States,” stated DEA Administrator Milgram. “With Zambada Garcia no longer in power we have struck at the heart of the Sinaloa cartels’ operations. He may have eluded capture for three decades, but today he is seeing what it means to face justice in America. Let this be a reminder to his associates and others, American lives depend on DEA remaining laser focused on destroying the cartel, their networks, and their global supply chain and that is what we will continue to do.” “Today’s arraignment sends a clear message to drug traffickers around the world — you will be brought to justice,” said Homeland Security Investigations Executive Associate Director Katrina W. Berger. “The men and women of HSI are active partners in investigating, intercepting and halting the flow of illegal drugs into the United States and keeping them off our streets.” “The arraignment of this individual is a result of the relentless work of law enforcement partners at all levels to stem the tide of illegal drugs and drug related violence in our country,” stated NYSP Superintendent James. “Strong partnerships are key, and as a result, a dangerous international drug trafficking operation, and the organized crime perpetuated by it, has been shut down. The State Police will continue to tenaciously work in conjunction with our partners to seek out those who deliberately put others in danger.” Zambada Garcia was first indicted in the Eastern District of New York in 2009 and most recently in the fifth superseding indictment in February 2024. As alleged, Zambada Garcia was a co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel together with his co-defendant Joaquin Guzman Loera (El Chapo), and the two of them ran the Sinaloa Cartel together from Mexico until El Chapo’s arrest in 2016. Following a trial, El Chapo was convicted in the Eastern District of New York in 2019 and sentenced to life imprisonment plus 30 years. Zambada Garcia, however, continued his brutal reign until his arrest just weeks ago. According to the superseding indictment, from 1989 to 2024, Zambada Garcia led a continuing criminal enterprise responsible for the importation and distribution of massive quantities of narcotics and which generated billions of dollars in profits. To ensure the success of the Sinaloa Cartel, Zambada Garcia employed thousands of people in South and Central America, throughout Mexico and in the United States. Through a complex, layered structure, Zambada Garcia was able to assure transportation routes for the narcotics he sold from source of supply to distribution on the streets of the United States; this included securing corrupt officers, transportation routes, and storage facilities to ensure that narcotics safely transited through various countries for ultimate distribution in the United States. Zambada Garcia also employed groups of “sicarios” or hit men, who at his orders carried out kidnappings and murders in Mexico and elsewhere—including murders in the United States—to eliminate anyone who threatened this valuable narcotics pipeline and to retaliate against rivals and those suspected of cooperating with the United States government. The billions of dollars generated from the drug sales were then transported and laundered back to Mexico. As set forth in the superseding indictment and other court filings, the Sinaloa Cartel under Zambada Garcia’s leadership expanded its drug business into fentanyl manufacturing and distribution no later than 2012 and is responsible for the distribution of many thousands of kilograms of fentanyl into the United States. Zambada Garcia also expanded the power and influence of the Sinaloa Cartel by making millions of dollars each year in corruption payments and conducting regular campaigns of brutal violence, including retaliatory murders that were allegedly committed on his orders as recently as just weeks prior to his arrest. The charges in the superseding indictment are allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. This superseding indictment is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks. The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s International Narcotics and Money Laundering Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Francisco J. Navarro, Robert M. Pollack, Adam Amir, and Lauren A. Bowman are leading the prosecution for the Eastern District of New York with the assistance of Paralegal Specialist Melissa Bennett. Assistant United States Attorney Andrea Goldbarg of the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorneys Melanie Alsworth and Kirk Handrich of the U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section are leading the prosecution for their respective offices. The case was investigated by the FBI, HSI and DEA. Substantial assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Northern District of Illinois, Central District of California, Southern District of California, and Western District of Texas. The Defendant : Ismael Zambada Garcia (also known as “El Mayo”) Age: 76 Mexico E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 9-CR-466 (BMC) (S-5)


title: Special education teacher posing as teen heads to prison for exploiting minor he met online

component: USAO - Texas, Southern

body_text: McALLEN, Texas – A 43-year-old Mission resident has been sentenced for coercion and enticement of a minor, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani. Juan Carlos Munoz pleaded guilty March 29. Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane has now sentenced Munoz to serve 168 months in prison immediately followed by five years of supervised release. During that time, he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the internet. He will also be ordered to register as a sex offender. At the hearing, the court heard how Munoz would not only solicit photos and videos from minor children but would share and exchange those sexually explicit photos with another adult male child predator. In handing down the prison term, the court noted its concern for the safety of our school children. “Munoz is a predator who hid within the walls of a local school and behind fake personas,” said Hamdani. “This sentence should show this family and all families that justice will bring child predators out of the shadows and placed behind bars where they belong.” “Mr. Munoz abused his position of public trust as a special education teacher to prey on those he was entrusted to protect,” said Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). “The sexual exploitation of children is among the most egregious crimes HSI investigates, and today’s sentencing serves as a reminder that our agency will work tirelessly to protect children from coercion and enticement of minors.” In November 2022, law enforcement in South Carolina met with a family who discovered their 14-year-old girl was communicating with an individual who was soliciting nude photos and videos. The girl met the individual who claimed to be a 19-year-old teenage boy on a social media/video chat site. Law enforcement uncovered numerous conversations and successfully traced the perpetrator’s phone number to the Rio Grande Valley. They determined his true identity was 41-year-old Munoz, a high school special education teacher. In December 2022, Texas authorities located Munoz at the school where he was employed. He admitted to communicating with approximately 50 minor children and requesting sexually explicit photos and videos. Munoz will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future. HSI-Rio Grande Valley Child Exploitation Task Force conducted the investigation with the assistance of York County Sheriff’s Office in South Carolina. Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Garcia prosecuted the case, which was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative the Department of Justice (DOJ) launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section leads PSC, which marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and identifies and rescues victims. For more information about PSC, please visit DOJ’s PSC page . For more information about internet safety education, please visit the resources tab on that page .


title: Standing Rock Man Accepts Responsibility for Deadly Shooting on Navajo Nation

component: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

body_text: ALBUQUERQUE – A Standing Rock man charged by federal prosecutors for the fatal shooting of a woman during a confrontation at his home pleaded guilty today to involuntary manslaughter and assault with a dangerous weapon. According to court documents, on December 30, 2023, Sonny Hannah , 75, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, was confronted by Jane Doe 1 outside Hannah ’s residence on the Navajo Nation because her car had been broken into while it was parked behind his residence. Hannah became defensive and threatened Jane Doe 1. Jane Doe 1 walked away and returned to her car. A short time later, Hannah exited his house with a rifle and threatened to shoot Jane Doe 1 if she did not leave. When she did not leave, Hannah fired his gun twice in Jane Doe’s direction from 20 to 35 feet away. Hannah said he intended to shoot above Jane Doe 1’s head to scare her, but at least one gunshot struck and killed her. In his plea agreement, Hannah acknowledged it was unreasonable to shoot in Jane Doe 1’s direction and that he did so without due caution and circumspection, causing her death. Additionally, Hannah admitted that immediately after shooting Jane Doe 1, while still holding the gun, he physically motioned towards her children to leave. This action gave Jane Doe 2 reasonable fear that Hannah intended to do bodily harm to her with the rifle. Hannah will remain in a halfway house pending sentencing, which has not yet been scheduled. At sentencing, Hannah faces up to 10 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Hannah must also forfeit the rifle used in the crimes. U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today. The Gallup Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with the assistance of the Navajo Police Department and Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary C. Jones is prosecuting the case. View the Plea Agreement # # #


title: Strategic Technology Institute, Inc. To Pay $750,000 To Settle False Claims Act Allegations

component: USAO - Louisiana, Eastern

body_text: NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that Strategic Technology Institute, Inc. (“STI”) will pay $750,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act. STI is a defense military contractor headquartered in Rockville, Maryland. The settlement resolves allegations that STI submitted false claims in conjunction with obtaining payments from the United States under its subcontract agreement to provide onsite support services at the Marine Forces Reserve (“MARFORRES”) facility in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Government contends that STI submitted false and fraudulent invoices and supporting documents for work it allegedly performed at MARFORRES. U.S. Attorney Evans credited special agents of the U.S. Department of Defense Criminal Investigative Service and U.S. Naval Criminal Investigative Service with the investigation leading to the settlement. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Loan “Mimi” Nguyen.


title: Federal Jury Convicts St. Croix Man Of Theft Of Social Security Benefits

component: USAO - Florida, Middle

body_text: Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that a federal jury has found David Leopold Huber (35, St. Croix) guilty of theft of government property. Huber faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for December 11, 2024. According to evidence presented at trial, Huber’s mother was receiving benefits from the Social Security Administration (SSA). Huber’s mother died on August 9, 2016. The SSA did not receive notice that she had died and continued to pay out benefits on her behalf until July 2020. Huber was a joint account holder on the account into which his mother’s SSA benefits were deposited. Huber transferred the SSA benefits deposited after his mother’s death into his own personal account and used the funds for various personal expenses. In total, Huber stole approximately $47,952 in SSA benefits. This case was investigated by the Social Security Administration - Office of the Inspector General. It is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Suzanne Huyler.


title: U.S. Attorney’s Office Charges Dulce Man with Domestic Violence

component: USAO - New Mexico

body_text: ALBUQUERQUE – A Dulce man is charged by federal prosecutors with kidnapping, strangulation, and assault against his intimate partner. The indictment alleges that on April 7 and April 8, 2024, Kayiliab Haines , 33, an enrolled member of the Jicarilla Apache Indian Tribe, unlawfully kidnapped and held Jane Doe, his intimate partner, and strangled and suffocated her. The indictment also alleges that on March 23, 2012, Haines assaulted Jane Doe and the assault caused serious bodily injury. Haines will remain in custody pending trial, which has not yet been scheduled. If convicted, Haines faces up to 10 years in prison for the assaults and any term of years up to life in prison for the kidnapping. U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez made the announcement today. The Jicarilla Apache Police Department investigated this case. Assistant United States Attorney Meg Tomlinson is prosecuting the case. View the Indictment An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. # # #


title: Juneau man charged with sexually exploiting a child

component: USAO - Alaska

body_text: JUNEAU, Alaska – A Juneau man made his initial appearance yesterday on a criminal charge related to his alleged production of child pornography. According to court documents, William Steadman, 34, was arrested on Sept. 6 after he allegedly produced child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) depicting a minor known to him. Additionally, court documents indicate that he allegedly spent time with other children in his community. Steadman is charged with sexual exploitation of a child, also known as production of child pornography. The defendant made his initial court appearance on Sept. 12 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Matthew M. Scoble of the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker of the District of Alaska made the announcement. The U.S. Secret Service is investigating the case. If anyone has information concerning Steadman’s alleged actions or may have encountered someone in person or online using the name William Steadman, please contact mostwanted@usss.dhs.gov . Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mac Caille Petursson, Jack Schmidt, William Reed and Trial Attorney McKenzie Hightower of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) are prosecuting the case. An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc . ###


title: U.S. Attorney and FBI Charge Albuquerque Man with Sexual Abuse of a Minor

body_text: ALBUQUERQUE – An Albuquerque man was charged by federal prosecutors with sexual abuse of a minor. The indictment alleges that between January 2022 and May 2023, Joseph Arquero , 50, an enrolled member of Isleta Pueblo, engaged in or attempted to engage in a sexual act with a child that had not yet attained the age of 12 years. Arquero will remain on conditions of release in the third-party custody of La Pasada Halfway House pending trial, which has not yet been scheduled. If convicted, Arquero faces 30 years to life in prison. U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today. The FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Isleta Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Meg Tomlinson is prosecuting the case. View the Indictment An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.


title: Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia, Co-Founder of the Sinaloa Cartel, Arraigned in Brooklyn on International Drug Charges

component: Office of the Attorney General

body_text: Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia, 76, a citizen of Mexico, was arraigned this morning in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, on 17 counts related to drug trafficking, firearms offenses, and money laundering. This fifth superseding indictment relates to El Mayo’s decades-long leadership of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the most violent and powerful drug trafficking organizations in the world and conspiracy to manufacture and distribute fentanyl. El Mayo was previously charged with running a continuing criminal enterprise, as well as murder conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and marijuana manufacture and distribution conspiracy, as well as other drug-related crimes. El Mayo was ordered detained pending trial and was transferred yesterday to the Eastern District of New York from the Western District of Texas, following his arrest in New Mexico on July 25. “El Mayo, the co-founder and leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, has been charged with overseeing a multi-billion-dollar conspiracy to flood American communities with narcotics, including deadly fentanyl,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “We allege that El Mayo built, and for decades led, the Sinaloa Cartel’s network of manufacturers, assassins, traffickers, and money launderers responsible for kidnapping and murdering people in both the United States and Mexico, and importing lethal quantities of fentanyl, heroin, meth, and cocaine into the United States. Now, El Mayo joins the many other Sinaloa Cartel leaders who have faced charges in an American courtroom for the immeasurable harm they have inflicted on families and communities across our country.” “For years, Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada Garcia and the Sinaloa Cartel he led manufactured illicit fentanyl and peddled it across our country, profiting off of the pain of countless American communities,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas. “Thanks to the dedicated work of brave Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Agents and their federal partners, the United States is disrupting and dismantling drug trafficking operations across the world, ensuring Cartel kingpins like Mr. Zambada Garcia are brought to justice, and keeping Americans safe from the scourge of fentanyl.” “For decades, the Sinaloa Cartel has profited from poisoning and killing Americans, and fueling violence on both sides of our southern border,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. “Today’s arraignment of Zambada Garcia is the latest step in a whole-of-government effort to strike back against one of the world’s most dangerous criminal organizations and protect our communities from the fentanyl epidemic.” “Today’s arraignment is another forceful reminder of the FBI’s commitment to pursuing justice for the American lives lost to the violence and trafficking of deadly drugs, like fentanyl, associated with Zambada Garcia and those he directed as a leader of the Sinaloa Cartel,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “The FBI will not stop in our pursuit of those who engage and facilitate the cartel’s sophisticated operations that cause immense harm to Americans and poison communities across our country.” “Defeating the Sinaloa Cartel is DEA’s top operational priority and today, with the capture and additional charges filed against Ismael Zambada Garcia we are that much closer,” said Administrator Anne Milgram of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). “Better known as ‘El Mayo’, Zambada Garcia is the co-founder and leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the most ruthless and dangerous cartels in Mexico and responsible for the unprecedented drug crisis facing the United States. With Zambada Garcia no longer in power we have struck at the heart of the Sinaloa Cartel’s operations. He may have eluded capture for three decades, but today he is seeing what it means to face justice in America. Let this be a reminder to his associates and others, American lives depend on DEA remaining laser focused on destroying the cartels, their networks, and their global supply chain and that is what we will continue to do.” “Zambada Garcia’s day of reckoning in a U.S. courtroom has arrived and justice will follow,” said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York. “If convicted, never again will he deliver fentanyl, cocaine, and other deadly drugs and associated violence into our country or make millions as hundreds of thousands of innocent lives are lost. It is my hope that the countless family members and friends of victims who succumbed to his cartel’s poisons, and the countless members of law enforcement who fearlessly risked their lives fighting this scourge, should take comfort in knowing that Zambada Garcia will be held accountable for his multitude of crimes.” “Zambada Garcia will now face the American justice system,” said U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida. “His arrest means that he will now have to face charges for leading the Sinaloa Cartel’s multi-billion-dollar criminal enterprise that funneled drugs onto our streets and violence and despair into our communities. But our work is not done. We will go after the leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel and the drug trafficking organizations around the world.” “Today’s arraignment sends a clear message to drug traffickers around the world — we will find you and bring you to justice,” said HSI Executive Associate Director Katrina W. Berger. “The men and women of HSI are working diligently with our partners around the globe to investigate, intercept and halt the flow of illegal drugs into the United States and keep illegal drugs off our streets.” “The arraignment of this individual is a result of the relentless work of law enforcement partners at all levels to stem the tide of illegal drugs and drug related violence in our country,” said Superintendent Steven G. James of the New York State Police (NYSP). “Strong partnerships are key, and as a result, a dangerous international drug trafficking operation, and the organized crime perpetuated by it, has been shut down. The State Police will continue to tenaciously work in conjunction with our partners to seek out those who deliberately put others in danger.” El Mayo was first indicted in the Eastern District of New York in 2009 and most recently in a fifth superseding indictment in February. As alleged, El Mayo was a co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel together with his co-defendant Joaquin Guzman Loera, also known as El Chapo, and together they ran the Sinaloa Cartel together from Mexico until El Chapo’s arrest in 2016. Following a trial, El Chapo was convicted in the Eastern District of New York in 2019 and sentenced to life plus 30 years in prison. According to allegations in the superseding indictment, from 1989 to 2024, El Mayo led a continuing criminal enterprise responsible for the importation and distribution of massive quantities of narcotics and which generated billions of dollars in profits. To ensure the success of the Sinaloa Cartel, El Mayo employed thousands of people in South and Central America, throughout Mexico and in the United States. Through a complex, layered structure, El Mayo was able to assure transportation routes for the narcotics he sold from source of supply to distribution on the streets of the United States. El Mayo also employed groups of “sicarios” or hit-men, who at his orders carried out kidnappings and murders in Mexico and elsewhere — including murders in the United States — to eliminate anyone who threatened this valuable narcotics pipeline and to retaliate against rivals and those suspected of cooperating with the U.S. government. The billions of dollars generated from the drug sales were then transported and laundered back to Mexico. As set forth in the superseding indictment and other court filings, the Sinaloa Cartel, under El Mayo’s leadership, expanded its drug business into fentanyl manufacturing and distribution no later than 2012 and is responsible for the distribution of many thousands of kilograms of fentanyl into the United States. El Mayo also allegedly expanded the power and influence of the Sinaloa Cartel by making millions of dollars each year in corruption payments and conducting regular campaigns of brutal violence, including retaliatory murders that were allegedly committed on his orders as recently as just weeks prior to his arrest. If convicted, El Mayo faces a mandatory minimum penalty of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. FBI, DEA, and HSI investigated the case. Trial Attorneys Melanie Alsworth and Kirk Handrich of the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section; Assistant U.S. Attorneys Francisco J. Navarro, Robert M. Pollack, Adam Amir, and Lauren A. Bowman for the Eastern District of New York; and Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrea Goldbarg for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case. The U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Northern District of Illinois, Central District of California, Southern District of California, and Western District of Texas provided substantial assistance. This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. 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. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger Announces Creation of Whistleblower Non-Prosecution Pilot Program

component: USAO - New Jersey

body_text: Whistleblower Program NEWARK, N.J. – U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced today a new Whistleblower Non-Prosecution Pilot Program designed to proactively root out bribery, fraud, healthcare offenses, civil rights violations, corporate misconduct, and matters affecting the integrity of financial markets. The program encourages individual participants in certain non-violent offenses to disclose their criminal conduct and provide cooperation against others who were involved. In exchange, the U.S. Attorney’s Office will enter into a non-prosecution agreement where certain specified conditions are met, including the condition that the government was not previously aware of the criminal conduct that is the subject of the disclosure. By providing clarity on the requirements and the benefits of such self-disclosure, the office seeks to incentivize individuals and their counsel to provide actionable and timely information. That will, in turn, help bring more misconduct to light and better protect the citizens of New Jersey. “We are always looking for new and effective ways to identify and aggressively pursue crime,” U.S. Attorney Sellinger said. “This program sends a clear message that if you’ve helped commit a crime, you should come forward early and fully. If you don’t, someone else will. To get on the right side of the law and take advantage of this program, email us using the instructions on our website.” DNJ’s Whistleblower Non-Prosecution Pilot Program is for individuals who participated in criminal activity and face criminal liability; it is different from the Department of Justice’s Corporate Whistleblower Awards Pilot Program, which is for individuals who did not meaningfully participate in criminal activity that falls within four subject areas, as further detailed at www.justice.gov/CorporateWhistleblower . As with all internal policies of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, this new program provides guidance to prosecutors. Nothing in these policies creates any substantive or procedural rights, privileges, or benefits enforceable in any administrative, civil, or criminal matter by prospective or actual witnesses or parties. It remains at all times the sole discretion of the U.S. Attorney’s Office to determine whether an individual has satisfied each of the conditions necessary for the office to enter into a non-prosecution agreement in exchange for the individual’s cooperation, and, where the office has determined that any of those conditions are not met, it remains at all times in the sole discretion of the office to determine whether to extend a non-prosecution agreement in exchange for the individual’s cooperation. dnj.whistleblowerpolicy.pdf dnj.whistleblowerintakeform.pdf


title: Former Orange County Resident Linked to White Supremacist Group Pleads Guilty to Plotting and Engaging in Violence at Political Rallies

component: USAO - California, Central

body_text: LOS ANGELES – A former resident of Huntington Beach who has been linked to a white supremacy extremist group pleaded guilty today to planning and engaging in riots at political rallies across California. Robert Paul Rundo, 34, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the federal Anti-Riot Act. “This defendant sought to incite riots to promote a white-supremacist agenda and impede the constitutional rights of others,” said United States Attorney Martin Estrada. “Safeguarding civil rights goes to the core of my office’s mission and we will continue to unite with our community against those who promote hate and divisiveness.” “Mr. Rundo’s cowardly and unprovoked acts of violence were unjustly carried out upon his victims, leaving those who were victimized, their families, and our community torn by hate,” said Akil Davis, Assistant Director in Charge of the Los Angeles Field Office. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners will continue to ensure that if a crime is motivated by bias, it will be investigated, and the perpetrators held responsible for their actions. We encourage everyone to report such crimes to the FBI.” According to his plea agreement, between March 2017 and May 2018, Rundo and others participated in an organization that ultimately was rebranded as the “Rise Above Movement” (RAM). RAM representing itself as a fighting group of a new nationalist and white supremacy identity movement. As part of their membership in RAM, Rundo and others attended rallies with the intent to provoke and engage in violence. To prepare for violent physical conflicts, Rundo and others held hand-to-hand and other fighting training sessions, which they organized through telephone calls, social media, and text messages. Rundo organized and attended several such training sessions in 2017. On various social media platforms, Rundo and others posted messages and photographs of themselves preparing for or engaging in violence, accompanied by statements such as “#rightwingdeathsquad.” In March 2017, Rundo and other RAM members held a training in San Clemente to prepare to engage in violence at political events, including a rally on March 25, 2017, in Huntington Beach. At the Huntington Beach rally, Rundo and other RAM members pursued and assaulted other persons, including one protestor whom Rundo tackled and punched multiple times. Following the event, Rundo and his co-conspirators posted online photographs and videos celebrating the assaults they had committed. Rundo also helped organize training for RAM members in anticipation of a rally scheduled to occur on April 15, 2017, in Berkeley. At the Berkeley rally, there were several violent clashes throughout the day. In one such instance, Rundo and several of his co-conspirators crossed a police barrier erected to separate opposing groups. They then punched and kicked several people. Following the event, Rundo and his co-conspirators again posted online photographs and videos celebrating the assaults they had committed. On June 10, 2017, Rundo and others attended a rally in San Bernardino, at which they confronted and pursued protesters. In the months following these events, Rundo and his accomplices continued to publicly celebrate their assaults, including through online posts with photos and videos of RAM members assaulting people. United States District Judge Josephine L. Staton scheduled a December 13 sentencing hearing, at which time Rundo will face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in federal prison. Two other defendants have been charged in this case: Robert Boman, 31, of Torrance, who is charged with one count of conspiracy to violate the Anti-Riot Act and one count of rioting; and Tyler Laube, 28, of Redondo Beach, who pleaded guilty in October 2023 to one count of interfering with a federally protected right and later was fined $2,000 and sentenced to time already served in custody. The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force investigated this case. Assistant United States Attorneys Kathrynne N. Seiden and Anna P. Boylan of the Terrorism and Export Crimes Section are prosecuting this case.


title: U.S. Attorney Secures 11 Year Prison Sentence for Assault of Incapacitated Minor Victim

body_text: ALBUQUERQUE – A Dulce man was sentenced to 11 years in federal prison for sexually assaulting an unconscious 16-year-old girl and photographing the abuse. According to court documents, on May 26, 2022, Willard Dedios , 60, an enrolled member of the Jicarilla Apache Tribe, sexually assaulted the minor victim, who was intoxicated, at his home in Dulce, New Mexico. After the victim lost consciousness, Dedios sexually assaulted her and took explicit photographs of the abuse. The victim briefly regained consciousness during the assault but was unable to stop it before passing out again. Upon his release from prison, Dedios will be subject to 10 years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender. U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today. The Farmington Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with the assistance of the Jicarilla Apache Police Department. Assistant United States Attorneys Alexander F. Flores and Zachary Jones are prosecuting the case. This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit Justice.gov/PSC. # # #


title: Haines City Drug Trafficker Sentenced To More Than 12 Years

body_text: Tampa, FL – Senior U.S. District Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell has sentenced Robert Lubin (36, Haines City) to 12 years and 6 months in federal prison for attempted possession with the intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl and possession with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine. Lubin entered a guilty plea on June 18, 2024. According to court documents, in July 2023, Lubin sold fentanyl to an individual. That same month, Lubin arranged for a parcel of narcotics to be shipped to himself. The parcel was intercepted and contained 991.8 grams of fentanyl. In September 2023, Lubin was arrested with more than 3 kilograms of cocaine in his vehicle. Lubin had acquired the narcotics in Georgia and was transporting them back to the Middle District of Florida. This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Lakeland Police Department, and the Florida Highway Patrol. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Samantha E. Beckman. This case was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. 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 www.justice.gov/OCDETF.


title: South Florida Attorney Who Embezzled Client Funds Charged with Wire Fraud and Money Laundering

component: USAO - Florida, Southern

body_text: MIAMI - A South Florida attorney, who was recently disbarred, has been charged with wire fraud and money laundering in U.S. District Court for embezzling approximately $650,000 of client funds. U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of FBI, Miami Field Office announced the unsealing of an indictment charging John Spencer Jenkins, 54, formerly of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. As alleged in the indictment, Jenkins, while working as a lawyer, was entrusted with $643,399.35 in proceeds from a client’s estate that were supposed to be distributed to the client’s heirs. Instead of disbursing the funds to the decedent’s heirs, the indictment alleges Jenkins had the funds deposited into his firm’s Interest on Trust Account only to then take the funds for his own personal gain, laundering the funds through another account in the process. Jenkins was arrested yesterday in Philadelphia, Pa., on the Southern District of Florida indictment. Jenkins is scheduled to have his initial hearing at 1:30 p.m., today, before a U.S. Magistrate Judge in Philadelphia. Jenkins is charged with three counts of wire fraud, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and three counts of money laundering, each of which carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. If Jenkins is convicted, a federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. FBI investigated this matter. Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Keller is prosecuting the case. An indictment contains mere allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law . You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl . Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov , under case number 24-cr-60172. ###


title: Armed Fentanyl Trafficker Sentenced To More Than 20 Years In Federal Prison

body_text: Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Barber has sentenced Mitchell Wilson (35, Tampa) to 20 years and 8 months in federal prison for possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl, possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, and possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. The court also ordered Wilson to forfeit a Smith & Wesson Model M&P Shield 9mm pistol and assorted ammunition, which were instrumentalities of the offense. Wilson entered a guilty plea on November 22, 2023. According to court documents, Wilson was a major narcotics distributor in the Middle District of Florida. On September 13, 2022, Wilson sold fentanyl to a confidential source. Three days later, agents seized 97 grams of pure methamphetamine, 36 grams of a mixture containing fentanyl, cocaine, and a scale from a backpack that also contained a loaded firearm, as Wilson carried it from his hotel room to his car. Loaded firearm seized from Wilson on September 13, 2022. Narcotics seized from Wilson. Wilson acknowledged he had sourced more than 2 kilograms of fentanyl and cocaine from a drug trafficking organization in Palmetto Beach over the previous 10 months, after being released from prison in August 2021. Wilson was in possession of a drug ledger and hundreds of dollars in cash during his arrest. Wilson had maintained a premises in the form of a hotel room, which he used to prepare narcotics for distribution and to distribute to customers. At the time of his arrest, Wilson had multiple prior felony convictions, including four prior drug trafficking offenses and a fleeing to elude conviction. This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Tampa Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Samantha E. Beckman. This case was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. 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 www.justice.gov/OCDETF.


title: Connecticut Man Pleads Guilty to Armed Bank Robbery

component: USAO - Massachusetts

body_text: BOSTON – A Connecticut man pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston to his role in a Martha’s Vineyard bank robbery. Romane Andre Clayton, 22, of New Haven, Conn, pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting bank robbery. U.S. District Court Judge William G. Young scheduled sentencing for Dec. 18, 2024. In March 2023, Clayton was indicted by a federal grand jury. Clayton was charged in a superseding indictment in April 2023. Clayton met Omar Johnson, Tevin Porter and Miquel Jones in Martha’s Vineyard on Nov. 16, 2022 to plan a bank robbery. Jones identified the bank they would be robbing and provided the others with dark-colored clothing and plastic masks that resembled an elderly man with exaggerated facial features. On the morning of Nov. 17, 2022, the group drove to the area of the Rockland Trust Bank in Tisbury. Porter, Jones and Johnson hid in bushes near the rear of the bank, and Clayton drove their car to the Manuel Correllus State Forest. Clayton then rode a bicycle back to the bank, where he stood outside to serve as a lookout during the robbery. Clayton had a walkie talkie to communicate with the others inside the bank. As bank employees arrived to open the bank for the day, Porter, Jones and Johnson forced their way through the rear door of the Rockland Trust Bank in Tisbury. The men were armed with two semi-automatic handguns and wearing the clothes and masks that Jones had provided. Once inside the bank, one of the individuals held a gun to the head of one of the bank employees, forced the employee to open the bank’s vault, and took approximately $39,100. The bank employees were bound with duct tape and plastic zip ties while their belongings were searched and the robbers demanded access to one of their vehicles. Jones, Porter and Johnson then left the bank in an employee’s car, picked up Clayton outside the bank, and drove to the Manuel Correllus State Forest, where they abandoned the employee’s car in a parking lot. They then fled in the vehicle that Clayton had left there for purposes of their escape. Porter and Clayton left Martha’s Vineyard together on a ferry later that morning. Meanwhile, Johnson and Jones drove to a local farm associated with Jones’s landscaping job to dispose of the equipment that had been used during the bank robbery. At the farm, they buried the two firearms used in the robbery in a hole in the ground and burned the remainder of the robbery equipment, including the plastic masks. After the evidence was disposed of, Jones returned home to his residence where he hid the approximately $39,100 that had been stolen from the bank, in his bedroom under a bureau. Johnson left Martha’s Vineyard, reconvened with Porter and Clayton in Woods Hole and then drove them to the area of Johnson’s home in New Hampshire. Jones, Johnson and Porter have all pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. The charge of bank robbery aiding and abetting provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case. Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy and Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by Cape & Islands District Attorney’s Office; the Massachusetts State Police; the Tisbury, West Tisbury, Edgartown, Chilmark, Oak Bluffs, Aquinnah, Canterbury (N.H.) and New Haven (Conn.) Police Departments; the United States Postal Inspection Service; the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; and United States Customs and Border Protection. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan C. Cleary of the Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.


title: Southeast Missouri Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for One Fatal, One Nonfatal Shooting

component: USAO - Missouri, Eastern

body_text: CAPE GIRARDEAU – U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Clark on Friday sentenced a man responsible for one fatal and one non-fatal shooting in Hayti, Missouri in 2023 to 25 years in prison. Eugene Winters, 44, of Hayti, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Cape Girardeau in November to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Winters admitted that just before 7:30 p.m. on April 19, 2023, he shot two people outside "The Store" at 301 Washington Street in Hayti. Winters told police that he argued with one man before going to his vehicle to retrieve his gun. The victim was sitting in his vehicle and Winters believed he had a gun, Winters’ plea says. Winters and the victim argued again, and Winters shot the victim from the driver’s side of the car before walking around to the passenger side of the vehicle and shooting the victim more times, his plea agreement says. The second victim came out of the store and approached Winters, who started shooting at that second victim. Winters followed that man into the store and fired two more shots while the victim was running away. Hayti police arrived, and Winters threw down his gun and laid on the ground. Both victims were taken to a local hospital, then by air ambulance to the Regional One Health Trauma Center in Memphis, Tenn. due to the seriousness of their injuries. One died. Winters was a convicted felon and thus is barred from possession of a firearm. His prior convictions include aggravated robbery and aggravated assault. Due to those crimes, Winters qualified as an “armed career criminal,” triggering a possible sentence of 15 years to life in prison. The Hayti Police Department, Pemiscot County Sheriff’s Office and the Missouri State Highway Patrol Division of Drug and Crime Control investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Hahn prosecuted the case. This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.


title: U.S. Attorney’s Office To Work With Local Partners To Reduce  Domestic Violence

component: USAO - Maryland

body_text: U.S. Justice Department Designates Baltimore City Under Section 1103 of the Violence Against Women Act, Prioritizing Firearms Prosecutions of Domestic Violence Offenders and U.S. Attorney Pledges to Use the Designation and Additional Resources To Address Intimate Partner Violence Throughout Maryland Attorney General Merrick B. Garland has approved an initial set of 78 communities across 47 states, territories, and the District of Columbia for designation under Section 1103 of the Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization Act of 2022. The Justice Department - through its United States Attorney’s offices (USAOs) and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Field Divisions - will partner with each designated jurisdiction to develop a plan to reduce intimate partner firearm violence and to prioritize prosecutions of domestic violence offenders prohibited under 18 U.S. Code Section 922(g) from owning firearms. “The prevalence of intimate partner violence should trouble us all,” said U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron, “We are more motivated than ever to address this problem and will use additional resources to protect victims, not only in Baltimore, but throughout Maryland.” “We are committed to working with our state and local partners to keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers,” said ATF Baltimore Special Agent in Charge Toni M. Crosby. The U.S. Attorney’s Office primarily addresses domestic violence as 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. The office is guided by core principles, including 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. Communities have been designated in close coordination with community stakeholders. They include rural areas, suburban areas, urban areas, and Tribal communities. The Justice Department used data to identify communities that could benefit from increased focus on intimate partner violence resources and where the local jurisdiction is committed to partnering with the Department to increase the use of federal tools to prosecute offenders under 18 U.S.C. 922(g). The designation represents the partnership and coordination between the department and the local jurisdiction to ensure federal resources are being leveraged effectively to address intimate partner firearm violence. The Justice Department anticipates additional jurisdictions to be designated as USAOs continue coordination with their local stakeholders. All USAOs, with or without specific community designations under Section 1103, will continue to combat intimate partner firearm violence and prioritize prosecutions of domestic violence offenders as part of their Project Safe Neighborhoods strategy and in support of the Department’s Comprehensive Strategy for Reducing Violent Crime. Complete List of Jurisdictions as of September 11, 2024: Montgomery County, Alabama Jefferson County, Alabama Little Rock, Arkansas Washington County, Arkansas Fresno, California San Diego, California Hartford, Connecticut Ward 7, District of Columbia Jacksonville, Florida Alachua County, Florida Metro Miami-Dade County, Florida Macon-Bibb County, Georgia DeKalb County, Georgia Augusta, Georgia City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii Ada County, Idaho Danville, Illinois Rockford, Illinois Madison County, Illinois Gary, Indiana Indianapolis, Indiana Des Moines, Iowa Linn County, Iowa Garden City, Kansas Fayette County, Kentucky Louisville, Kentucky Orleans Parish, Louisiana Rapides Parish, Louisiana Western Maine Region: Franklin, Oxford, and Androscoggin Counties, Maine Baltimore City, Maryland Boston, Massachusetts Saginaw, Michigan Lansing, Michigan Greenville, Mississippi Jackson, Mississippi Cape Girardeau County, Missouri Greene County, Missouri Gallatin County and Bozeman, Montana Northeast Omaha, Nebraska Las Vegas, Nevada Strafford County, New Hampshire Bernalillo County, New Mexico Borough of Brooklyn, New York Onondaga County, New York Borough and County of the Bronx, New York Monroe County, New York Fayetteville and Cumberland County, North Carolina Forsyth County, North Carolina Asheville (including Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians), North Carolina Grand Forks, North Dakota Toledo, Ohio Muskogee County, Oklahoma Muscogee (Creek) Nation, Oklahoma Portland, Oregon Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania Dauphin County, Pennsylvania Allegheny County, Pennsylvania San Juan, Puerto Rico Pawtucket, Rhode Island Greenville County, South Carol Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, South Dakota City of Chattanooga, Tennessee Memphis/Shelby County, Tennessee Gregg County, Texas Amarillo, Texas Houston, Texas San Antonio, Texas Salt Lake County, Utah South Hampton Roads (Chesapeake/Norfolk/Portsmouth/Virginia Beach), Virginia Oswald Harris Court Housing Community, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands Chittenden County, Vermont Spokane County, Washington King County, Washington Wheeling Area (Ohio/Brooke/Hancock Counties), West Virginia Kanawha County, West Virginia Milwaukee, Wisconsin Dane County, Wisconsin Fremont County, Wyoming # # #


title: Boston Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Role in Nationwide Drug Conspiracy

body_text: BOSTON – A Boston man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Worcester for his role in a nationwide large-scale cocaine trafficking conspiracy and for distribution of large quantities of fentanyl. Francis Jose Perez-Baez, 41, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman to 120 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. In December 2024, Perez-Baez pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, distribution and possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl and distribution and possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. Perez-Baez was charged in November 2021. Perez-Baez was a Boston-based drug distributor who distributed large quantities of cocaine and fentanyl. Perez-Baez received multiple kilograms of cocaine from a Mexico-based drug trafficking organization that utilized commercial semi-trucks to transport dozens of kilograms of cocaine throughout the United States, including to Massachusetts. Over the course of the investigation, Perez-Baez paid the drug trafficking organization nearly $280,000 in drug proceeds for multiple kilograms of cocaine that the organization had previously supplied to him on credit. Additionally, Perez-Baez sold fentanyl to a cooperating witness on multiple occasions – over 500 grams of fentanyl in August 2020 and 200 grams of fentanyl in April 2021. Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and John E. Mawn, Jr., Interim Colonel of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement today. The Drug Enforcement Administration’s Laredo and Dallas Divisions provided valuable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alathea Porter of the Criminal Division is prosecuting the 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: Man Indicted for Weapons Violation

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

body_text: NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that on August 29, 2024, CUONG QUOC TRAN (“TRAN”) , age 38, of Slidell, La, was indicted for possession of a machine gun, in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Section 922(o). If convicted, TRAN faces up to 10 years of imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000, a period of up to 3 years of supervised release, and a mandatory special assessment fee of $100.00. U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and the United States Coast Guard Investigative Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Carter K.D. Guice, Jr. of the General Crimes Unit .


title: Lancaster Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Drug and Firearm Charges

component: USAO - South Carolina

body_text: COLUMBIA, S.C. — Kevin Lamont Clinton, 50, of Lancaster, was sentenced to more than five years in federal prison after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. Evidence presented to the court showed that in 2019, the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, Department of Homeland Security, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were investigating unlawful drug activity in the Lancaster County area. In December 2019, agents served a search warrant at Clinton’s residence in Lancaster after making a controlled purchase of heroin from Clinton at the residence. Clinton was found sitting on a bed with a loaded .40 caliber pistol next to him. A further search of the bedroom uncovered plastic baggies containing over 18 grams of a drug mixture containing fentanyl. More ammunition was found scattered throughout the house. In July 2020 and August 2020, Clinton was also found with firearms and illegal drugs at different locations in Lancaster County. Clinton is prohibited from possessing firearms due to previous felony convictions. Clinton had a 1997 federal conviction for possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine. In 2006, Clinton had convictions for resisting arrest and possession of crack cocaine. United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis sentenced Clinton to 71 months in prison, to be followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system. 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. This case was investigated by the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. U.S. Attorney Christopher D. Taylor is prosecuting the case. ###


title: Appling County man sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to attempted sexual exploitation of children

component: USAO - Georgia, Southern

body_text: BRUNSWICK, GA: An Appling County man has been sentenced to more than 23 years in federal prison for attempting to coerce a minor to engage in sexual activity. Todd Eric Sisk, 50, of Baxley, Ga., was sentenced to 280 months in prison after pleading guilty to Attempted Production of Child Pornography, said Jill E. Steinberg, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. U.S. District Court Judge Lisa Godbey Wood also ordered Sisk to pay $10,600 in restitution and assessments, to register as a sex offender, and to serve 15 years of supervised release upon completion of his prison term. There is no parole in the federal system. “Predators regularly use the internet to prey on our most vulnerable citizens, and our law enforcement partners work tirelessly to identify and eliminate these threats,” said U.S. Attorney Steinberg. “We are committed to keeping our children safe from those who would exploit them.” During a November 2021 undercover online operation, investigators from the Walton County, Fla., Sheriff’s Office identified Sisk as using apps to communicate with minors. The investigators contacted Homeland Security Investigations in Savannah for assistance. As described in the plea agreement, investigators determined that Sisk paid a user on Twitter, whom he believed to be 13 years old, to produce a video of herself engaged in sexually explicit conduct. He also attempted to persuade at least four other self-identified minors to produce sexually explicit images. “The defendant’s attempts to sexually exploit minors was thankfully unsuccessful and he is being held accountable for this predatory behavior,” said Steven N. Schrank, acting special agent in charge of HSI Atlanta that covers Georgia and Alabama. “Today’s sentencing is the result of the dedicated work of HSI and its law enforcement partners who work tirelessly to protect children from exploitation.” The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Walton County, Fla., Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Baxley Police Department, and prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason W. Blanchard.


title: Rioter Federally Charged with Damaging U.S. Government Property at Union Station Following Rally

body_text: WASHINGTON – Isabella Giordano, 20, of Towson, Maryland, was arrested this morning in connection with a federal criminal complaint charging her with destruction of federal property. -This complaint alleges that Giordano spray painted several pieces of federal property at Columbus Circle in front of Union Station in Washington, D.C., on July 24, 2024. The charges were announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Jessica M. E. Taylor of the U.S. Park Police (USPP). Giordano will make her initial appearance this afternoon in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia. She is charged with willfully injuring or depredating any property of the United States. “Politically motivated violent and destructive behavior, regardless its motivation, is a crime—not protected speech,” said U.S. Attorney Graves. “Today’s federal prosecution should make clear that those who engage in politically motivated violence and destruction in the District of Columbia should expect to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. We anticipate more charges in connection with the criminal conduct that occurred on July 24, 2024. And we ask for the public’s continued assistance in identifying individuals who engaged in criminal conduct.” According to court documents, on July 24, 2024, an organization was granted a permit to demonstrate in the area of Columbus Circle, located at Massachusetts Ave. NE, and E St. NE, directly in front of Union Station. From about 3 p.m. until 5 p.m., demonstrators who had gathered in Columbus Circle pulled down flags affixed to the flagpoles; burned flags and objects; sprayed graffiti on multiple statutes and structures; and interfered with law enforcement’s ability to place individuals under arrest. Footage obtained from a review of open-source videos posted to X (formerly Twitter) showed Giordano using red spray paint to write “Gaza” on the Columbus Fountain. She also spray-painted the base of two of the flagpoles in Columbus Circle. On July 30, 2024, the U.S. Park Police posted a bulletin with multiple photos and the FBI issued a bulletin seeking information on five individuals, including Giordano, who engaged in criminal activity on July 24, 2024. On August 1, 2024, USPP received two tips identifying Giordano. The flags pulled down from the flag poles, and the statutes and structures in Columbus Circle, are all property of the federal government. The National Park Service estimated that the cost to clean and repair the site at about $11,282.23. This case is being investigated by the USPP’s Intelligence and Counterterrorism Unit with assistance from the FBI Washington Field Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Martin. A criminal indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 24mj287


title: Massachusetts Business Owner Indicted for Over $18 Million Paycheck Protection Program Fraud

body_text: BOSTON – A Carlisle man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly submitting fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan applications on behalf of multiple companies he owns and controls. Durgaprasad Rao, 65, was charged with four counts of wire fraud and three counts of money laundering. In May 2024, Rao was arrested and charge by criminal complaint. According to the charging documents, Rao is the owner and operator of Accelerated Engineering, LLC., a product engineering service provider, and Upstream Global Services, Inc., a software company that provides software consulting services and temporary staffing needs. It is alleged that, between April 2020 and May 2021, Rao submitted numerous fraudulent applications seeking over $18 million in PPP funds for various companies in multiple states including companies in Massachusetts, Wisconsin and Georgia. Nine of the fraudulent PPP loan applications Rao allegedly submitted were for companies he owned and controlled. For Rao’s Massachusetts-based companies, he received nearly $7 million in PPP loans – of which, one PPP loan of over $1.5 million was approved for forgiveness. Rao’s PPP loan applications allegedly contained false statements regarding payroll and the number of employees that worked for his companies and included fraudulent supporting documents, including false tax return documents and false payroll records. It is further alleged that Rao misused the funds he received by, among other things, transferring the funds to foreign businesses he owned and purchasing a luxury condominium in New York City. The charges of wire fraud each provide for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charges of money laundering each provide for a sentence of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the amount of the criminally derived property involved in the transaction. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case. Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Harry Chavis, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division, Boston Field Office; Ketty Larco Ward, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Boston Division; and Carlisle Police Chief Andrew Amendola made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian Sullivan and David Tobin of the Major Crimes Unit are prosecuting the case. On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus and https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus/combatingfraud . Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline via the NCDF Web Complaint Form . The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.


title: California Addiction Treatment Facility Operator Convicted of Paying Nearly $2.9M in Illegal Kickbacks

component: Criminal Division

body_text: A federal jury convicted a California man this week for paying illegal kickbacks for patient referrals to his addiction treatment facilities located in Orange County, California. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Casey Mahoney, 48, of Los Angeles, paid nearly $2.9 million in illegal kickbacks to so-called “body brokers” who referred patients to Mahoney’s addiction treatment facilities, Healing Path Detox LLC and Get Real Recovery Inc. Those body brokers in turn paid thousands of dollars in cash to patients, which some patients used to purchase drugs, in order to induce those patients to attend treatment at Mahoney’s facilities. Mahoney concealed the illegal kickbacks by entering into sham contracts with the body brokers which purportedly required fixed payments and prohibited payments based off of the volume or value of the patient referrals. In reality, Mahoney and the brokers negotiated payments based on the patients’ insurance reimbursements and the number of days Mahoney was able to bill for treatment. Mahoney also laundered the proceeds of the conspiracy through payments to the mother of one of the body brokers, which Mahoney falsely characterized as consulting fees. Mahoney was convicted of one count of conspiracy to solicit, receive, pay, or offer illegal remunerations for patient referrals, seven counts of illegal remunerations for patient referrals, and three counts of money laundering. Mahoney is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 17, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the conspiracy charge, 10 years in prison on each illegal remuneration count, and 20 years in prison on each money laundering count. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada for the Central District of California; Assistant Director in Charge Akil Davis of the FBI Los Angeles Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Tyler Hatcher of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Los Angeles Field Office made the announcement. The FBI Los Angeles Field Office and IRS-CI Los Angeles Field Office investigated the case. The California Department of Insurance provided valuable assistance. Trial Attorney Siobhan M. Namazi of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nandor F.R. Kiss for the Central District of California are prosecuting the case. Mahoney’s conviction arose out of violations of the Eliminating Kickbacks in Recovery Act (EKRA). EKRA was enacted in October 2018 as part of comprehensive legislation designed to address the opioid crisis in order to target the rise in body brokering and substance abuse facility profiteering. The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in 27 federal districts, has charged more than 5,000 defendants who collectively have billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $24.7 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit .


body_text: Defendant Allegedly Led the Sinaloa Cartel with Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman Loera for Decades and Continued for Years Since El Chapo’s Arrest MIAMI – Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia, 76, a citizen of Mexico, was arraigned this morning in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, on 17 counts related to drug trafficking, firearms offenses, and money laundering. This fifth superseding indictment relates to El Mayo’s decades-long leadership of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the most violent and powerful drug trafficking organizations in the world and conspiracy to manufacture and distribute fentanyl. El Mayo was previously charged with running a continuing criminal enterprise, as well as murder conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and marijuana manufacture and distribution conspiracy, as well as other drug-related crimes. El Mayo was ordered detained pending trial and was transferred yesterday to the Eastern District of New York from the Western District of Texas, following his arrest in New Mexico on July 25. “El Mayo, the co-founder and leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, has been charged with overseeing a multi-billion-dollar conspiracy to flood American communities with narcotics, including deadly fentanyl,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “We allege that El Mayo built, and for decades led, the Sinaloa Cartel’s network of manufacturers, assassins, traffickers, and money launderers responsible for kidnapping and murdering people in both the United States and Mexico, and importing lethal quantities of fentanyl, heroin, meth, and cocaine into the United States. Now, El Mayo joins the many other Sinaloa Cartel leaders who have faced charges in an American courtroom for the immeasurable harm they have inflicted on families and communities across our country.” “For years, Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada Garcia and the Sinaloa Cartel he led manufactured illicit fentanyl and peddled it across our country, profiting off of the pain of countless American communities,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas. “Thanks to the dedicated work of brave Homeland Security Investigations Agents and their federal partners, the United States is disrupting and dismantling drug trafficking operations across the world, ensuring Cartel kingpins like Mr. Zambada Garcia are brought to justice, and keeping Americans safe from the scourge of fentanyl.” “For decades, the Sinaloa Cartel has profited from poisoning and killing Americans, and fueling violence on both sides of our southern border,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. “Today’s arraignment of Zambada Garcia is the latest step in a whole-of-government effort to strike back against one of the world’s most dangerous criminal organizations and protect our communities from the fentanyl epidemic.” “Today’s arraignment is another forceful reminder of the FBI’s commitment to pursuing justice for the American lives lost to the violence and trafficking of deadly drugs, like fentanyl, associated with Zambada Garcia and those he directed as a leader of the Sinaloa Cartel,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “The FBI will not stop in our pursuit of those who engage and facilitate the cartel’s sophisticated operations that cause immense harm to Americans and poison communities across our country.” “Defeating the Sinaloa Cartel is DEA’s top operational priority and today, with the capture and additional charges filed against Ismael Zambada Garcia we are that much closer,” said Administrator Anne Milgram of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). “Better known as ‘El Mayo’, Zambada Garcia is the co-founder and leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the most ruthless and dangerous cartels in Mexico and responsible for the unprecedented drug crisis facing the United States. With Zambada Garcia no longer in power we have struck at the heart of the Sinaloa Cartel’s operations. He may have eluded capture for three decades, but today he is seeing what it means to face justice in America. Let this be a reminder to his associates and others, American lives depend on DEA remaining laser focused on destroying the cartels, their networks, and their global supply chain and that is what we will continue to do.” “Zambada Garcia will now face the American justice system,” said U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida. “His arrest means that he will now have to face charges for leading the Sinaloa Cartel’s multi-billion-dollar criminal enterprise that funneled drugs onto our streets and violence and despair into our communities. But our work is not done. We will go after the leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel and the drug trafficking organizations around the world.” “Zambada Garcia’s day of reckoning in a U.S. courtroom has arrived and justice will follow,” said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York. “If convicted, never again will he deliver fentanyl, cocaine, and other deadly drugs and associated violence into our country or make millions as hundreds of thousands of innocent lives are lost. It is my hope that the countless family members and friends of victims who succumbed to his cartel’s poisons, and the countless members of law enforcement who fearlessly risked their lives fighting this scourge, should take comfort in knowing that Zambada Garcia will be held accountable for his multitude of crimes.” “Today’s arraignment sends a clear message to drug traffickers around the world — we will find you and bring you to justice,” said Executive Associate Director Katrina W. Berger of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). “The men and women of HSI are working diligently with our partners around the globe to investigate, intercept and halt the flow of illegal drugs into the United States and keep illegal drugs off our streets.” “The arraignment of this individual is a result of the relentless work of law enforcement partners at all levels to stem the tide of illegal drugs and drug related violence in our country,” said Superintendent Steven G. James of the New York State Police (NYSP). “Strong partnerships are key, and as a result, a dangerous international drug trafficking operation, and the organized crime perpetuated by it, has been shut down. The State Police will continue to tenaciously work in conjunction with our partners to seek out those who deliberately put others in danger.” El Mayo was first indicted in the Eastern District of New York in 2009 and most recently in a fifth superseding indictment in February. As alleged, El Mayo was a co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel together with his co-defendant Joaquin Guzman Loera, also known as El Chapo, and together they ran the Sinaloa Cartel together from Mexico until El Chapo’s arrest in 2016. Following a trial, El Chapo was convicted in the Eastern District of New York in 2019 and sentenced to life plus 30 years in prison. According to allegations in the superseding indictment, from 1989 to 2024, El Mayo led a continuing criminal enterprise responsible for the importation and distribution of massive quantities of narcotics and which generated billions of dollars in profits. To ensure the success of the Sinaloa Cartel, El Mayo employed thousands of people in South and Central America, throughout Mexico and in the United States. Through a complex, layered structure, El Mayo was able to assure transportation routes for the narcotics he sold from source of supply to distribution on the streets of the United States. El Mayo also employed groups of “sicarios” or hit-men, who at his orders carried out kidnappings and murders in Mexico and elsewhere — including murders in the United States — to eliminate anyone who threatened this valuable narcotics pipeline and to retaliate against rivals and those suspected of cooperating with the U.S. government. The billions of dollars generated from the drug sales were then transported and laundered back to Mexico. As set forth in the superseding indictment and other court filings, the Sinaloa Cartel, under El Mayo’s leadership, expanded its drug business into fentanyl manufacturing and distribution no later than 2012 and is responsible for the distribution of many thousands of kilograms of fentanyl into the United States. El Mayo also allegedly expanded the power and influence of the Sinaloa Cartel by making millions of dollars each year in corruption payments and conducting regular campaigns of brutal violence, including retaliatory murders that were allegedly committed on his orders as recently as just weeks prior to his arrest. If convicted, El Mayo faces a mandatory minimum penalty of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. FBI, DEA, and HSI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrea Goldbarg for the Southern District of Florida; Assistant U.S. Attorneys Francisco J. Navarro, Robert M. Pollack, Adam Amir, and Lauren A. Bowman for the Eastern District of New York; and Trial Attorneys Melanie Alsworth and Kirk Handrich of the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section are prosecuting the case. The U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Northern District of Illinois, Central District of California, Southern District of California, and Western District of Texas provided substantial assistance. This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. ###