WASHINGTON – James Kyle Bell, 44, of Las Vegas, Nevada, was sentenced today to 46 months in prison for carrying out separate wide-ranging fraud schemes last year: one involving fundraising for fake political action committees (PACs) that he created, and the other involving COVID-19 relief funds he sought and received through fraudulent applications. He also must forfeit or pay back nearly $1.4 million in cash and assets.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office Criminal Division, and Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of the Inspector General, Eastern Region.

            Bell registered two sham PACs with the Federal Election Commission. One, the “Keep America Great Committee,” purportedly supported Donald Trump. The other, the “Best Days Lie Ahead Committee,” purportedly supported Joseph Biden, Jr. He sought donations nationwide for both PACs using online platforms and e-mail solicitations, generating at least $346,000.

            Additionally, Bell created multiple shell companies that he used to defraud the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), which was created by Congress to provide financial assistance to Americans who suffered economic losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He applied for and won approval for more than $1.1 million in four separate loans. He also applied for a fifth loan for $521,625 but withdrew the application.

            “This prosecution is the first in the District of Columbia involving the creation of scam political action committees,” said U.S. Attorney Graves. “It also is another in a series of prosecutions targeting frauds committed against the COVID relief efforts. The message is clear: along with our law enforcement partners, we will protect the public against fraudsters who seek to line their pockets by exploiting the political process and government programs.”

            “Today’s sentencing should serve as yet another reminder to those who deceive and steal from hardworking Americans—you will ultimately be held to account for your actions,” said Special Agent in Charge Jacobs of the FBI Washington Field Office Criminal Division. “The FBI and its partners will continue to aggressively investigate those who perpetrate fraud schemes at the expense of the American people. Bell defrauded over 2,000 victims, who were all deceived into thinking they were making a donation to the presidential candidate of their choice, but in reality, that money was going to Bell’s personal accounts. Bell also defrauded the government through the Paycheck Protection Program, pocketing money meant for Americans in need.”

            “Lying to gain access to SBA’s pandemic response programs is not without consequence,” said Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite of the SBA’s Office of Inspector General, Eastern Region. “SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program is intended to provide assistance to the nation’s small businesses struggling with the pandemic challenges.  I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for its leadership and dedication to pursuing justice.”

            Bell pleaded guilty in May 2021 to one count of wire fraud in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable John D. Bates. Following completion of his prison term, he will be placed on two years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, between January 2020 and October 2020, Bell’s PACs sent solicitations nationwide to more than 40,000 recipients.  The solicitations promised that individual donations would be “5x matched” by Bell’s PACs.  The solicitations also replicated the look and feel of marketing materials used by the presidential campaigns, including official logos and slogans.  Bell also set up websites to solicit donations with names like “keepamericagreatcommittee.com,” “trump2020maga.com,” and “bestdayslieaheadcommittee.com.”  The sham PACs received more than $346,000 in contributions from individuals and other groups during the months before the 2020 election.  However, none of the individual donations were ever “5X matched” by Bell or anyone else.  Additionally, Bell made a series of false filings with the FEC in which Bell claimed that his PACs had made expenditures in support of both presidential campaigns.

            During the same period, Bell applied for more than $1.6 million in PPP loans. For example, one of Bell’s companies, named “Echo Three LLC,” a company registered in Nevada with no employees and no payroll, received a PPP loan of $485,000 based on Bell’s false statements to the government that the company had 83 employees working at Bell’s private residence.  In another instance, Bell obtained a PPP loan in the amount of $492,000 for a company he owned and controlled named “Myson Rules LLC” which had no employees, no payroll, no business operations, and no active business license in the State of Nevada.  Bell submitted fabricated tax documents and other company records in support of all five PPP loan applications. He withdrew one application, for $521,625, before the loan could be funded.

            Bell diverted almost all of the funds from PAC donors and the taxpayer-supported PPP loans to bank accounts where they could be used for Bell’s personal benefit, commingling the proceeds of the fraud and further violating federal campaign finance laws which require exacting record keeping for PACs.  According to court papers, the government has located and seized $519,000 of Bell’s criminal proceeds.  Bell’s plea agreement requires that Bell make full restitution to his victims and agree to the entry of a money judgement of $862,000 against him.

            This matter was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of the Inspector General.  Assistant United States Attorneys John W. Borchert and Elizabeth Aloi prosecuted this case.

**

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

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

 

            WASHINGTON - Anthony Williams, 23, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a six-year prison term after earlier pleading guilty to robbing a man at gunpoint in Northeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced.

 

            Williams pled guilty in July 2017, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to a charge of armed robbery. He was sentenced by the Honorable Danya A. Dayson. Upon completion of his prison term, he will be placed on five years of supervised release.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, in the early evening of Jan. 4, 2017, Williams and an accomplice approached the victim, who was walking in the 2300 block of Lincoln Road NE. Williams pointed a firearm at the victim’s head and said, “If you want your life, don’t move.”  The victim raised his hands above his head, but Williams nonetheless struck him on the right side of his face with either the handgun or a fist.  At the direction of Williams, the accomplice removed items from the victim’s pockets, including his cellphone and wallet, containing cash and credit cards. Williams and his accomplice then fled the area. 

 

            Subsequent investigation determined that Williams had been at the location of the armed robbery.  In addition, the victim later reported that one of his stolen credit cards had been used fraudulently at fast-food restaurants and 7-Eleven stores, and the 7-Eleven video surveillance footage depicted an individual matching Williams’s description.

 

            On Jan. 9, 2017, two witnesses identified Williams as the person recorded in the 7-Eleven video surveillance footage.  In addition, one of the witnesses stated that Williams had a dark-colored firearm.  That same day, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) responded to a residence in the 1300 block of W Street SE in an attempt to locate Williams. Police found him in one of the bedrooms, underneath a bed.  In the same room, police also located a green jacket with fur around the collar that appeared to be the same jacket worn by the person in the 7-Eleven video.  In the pocket of the green jacket, law enforcement located a fully loaded Glock .45-caliber magazine that Williams acknowledged belonged to him. Williams was arrested and has been in custody ever since.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. She also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by former Assistant U.S. Attorney Vanessa Goodwin. Finally, she commended the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Vivien Cockburn, who prosecuted the case.

            WASHINGTON – Dominique Williams, 24, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 24 years in prison for killing a man in a drive-by shooting in September 2015 in Southeast Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Williams was found guilty by a jury in March 2018 of second-degree murder while armed, assault with a dangerous weapon, and related firearms offenses. The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Judith Bartnoff.. Following his prison term, he will be placed on five years of supervised release.

            A co-defendant, Maricco Knight, 25, also of Washington, D.C., was found guilty by the same jury of acting as an accessory after the fact and obstruction of justice for his role in assisting Williams while Williams was evading law enforcement prior to his arrest. Knight is to be sentenced on May 15, 2018.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Sept. 19, 2015, shortly after 1 a.m., Williams, Knight and another man pulled over a Honda Accord in the 3200 block of 28th Street SE. Williams was in the rear passenger seat, Knight was in the front passenger seat, and the third man was driving. A short distance away from the Accord, gathered in an alley, were three men and an 11-year-old boy.  Williams had earlier disputes with persons who resided or sometimes gathered in the block, but none of those persons was among the group in the alley.

            After the Accord pulled over, Williams leaned out of the car and fired eight shots from a 9-millimeter handgun at the group.  One person was hit – Marcellus Green, 39. He was shot once and was declared dead about an hour later. The three people in the Accord drove off.

            MPD officers were on the scene within a few minutes.  Witnesses gave the police a description of the Accord and its license plate number.  At about 1:40 a.m., an officer in a marked MPD cruiser spotted the Accord, still occupied by the three men, in a different neighborhood.  Before the officer could even activate his emergency equipment, the Accord began to drive off at a high rate of speed.  After a 20-minute chase, during which the 9-millimeter handgun was tossed out, the Accord crashed and all three occupants fled on foot. Within two minutes, the driver and Knight were stopped.

            Williams, however, got away. An arrest warrant was issued for him three months later and he was ultimately apprehended on July 20, 2016, at the residence of Knight’s girlfriend.  During the search for Williams, according to the government’s evidence, Knight assisted in helping Williams hide out despite the fact that he was told repeatedly by law enforcement that Williams was wanted for the murder.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Michael Ambrosino, Special Counsel for DNA and Forensic Evidence Litigation; Forensic Operation/Program Specialist Benjamin Kagan-Guthrie; Litigation Technology Specialist Leif Hickling; Paralegal Specialist Alesha Matthews; Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin; former Supervisory Victim/Witness Services Coordinator David Foster; Victim/Witness Security Specialist Lesley Slade; Victim/Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker, and Interns Korey Johnson and Shani Brown.

            Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Liebman who investigated and prosecuted the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ahmed Baset, who prosecuted the case.

            WASHINGTON – Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, the former national chairman of the Proud Boys, was arrested today following his indictment on conspiracy and other charges related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, which disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress that was in the process of ascertaining and counting the electoral votes related to the presidential election.

            Tarrio, 38, of Miami, Florida, was arrested in Miami and is to make his initial appearance today in the Southern District of Florida. He was named in a superseding indictment returned Monday in the District of Columbia that also includes five previously charged defendants.

            Others named in the superseding indictment include Ethan Nordean, 31, of Auburn, Washington; Joseph Biggs, 38, of Ormond Beach, Florida; Zachary Rehl, 36, of Philadelphia; Charles Donohoe, 34, of Kernersville, North Carolina; and Dominic Pezzola, 44, of Rochester, New York. All previously were detained. They earlier pleaded not guilty to charges.

            According to court documents, the Proud Boys describes itself as a “pro-Western fraternal organization for men who refuse to apologize for creating the modern world, aka Western Chauvinists.” Through at least Jan. 6, 2021, Tarrio was the national chairman of the organization. In mid-December, Tarrio created a special chapter of the Proud Boys known as the “Ministry of Self Defense.”

            As alleged in the indictment, from in or around December 2020, Tarrio and his co-defendants, all of whom were leaders or members of the Ministry of Self Defense, conspired to corruptly obstruct, influence, and impede an official proceeding, the certification of the Electoral College vote.  On Jan. 6, the defendants directed, mobilized, and led members of the crowd onto the Capitol grounds and into the Capitol, leading to dismantling of metal barricades, destruction of property, and assaults on law enforcement.

            Although Tarrio is not accused of physically taking part in the breach of the Capitol, the indictment alleges that he led the advance planning and remained in contact with other members of the Proud Boys during their breach of the Capitol. Tarrio was arrested on Jan. 4, 2021, on a warrant charging him in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia with destruction of property in the Dec. 12, 2020, burning of a Black Lives Matter banner. He was released at approximately 5 p.m. on Jan. 5, 2021. As a condition of his release, he was ordered by the Court to stay out of Washington.

            The indictment alleges that Tarrio nonetheless continued to direct and encourage the Proud Boys prior to and during the events of Jan. 6, 2021, and that he claimed credit for what had happened on social media and in an encrypted chat room during and after the attack.

            Tarrio was indicted on one count of each conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding and obstruction of an official proceeding, as well as two counts each of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers and destruction of government property.

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

            The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington and Miami Field Offices. The charges in the investigation are the result of significant cooperation between agents and staff across numerous FBI Field Offices, and law enforcement agencies.

            In the 14 months since Jan. 6, more than 775 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 245 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.

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

            An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

 

            WASHINGTON – KaShaun Perkins, 43, of Upper Marlboro, Md., pled guilty today to the federal charge of wire fraud for embezzling from his employer, causing a loss in excess of $275,000, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips.

 

            Perkins, who pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, is to be sentenced on April 21, 2017 by the Honorable Christopher R. Cooper. Under the advisory federal sentencing guidelines, he faces a possible prison sentence of 21 to 27 months. Perkins also agreed to pay $249,096 in restitution, and a forfeiture money judgment in the same amount.

 

            According to a statement of the offense, signed by the defendant as well as the government, Perkins worked as a payroll specialist from December 2014 to July 2015 at a global consulting firm. As a payroll specialist, he managed external payroll provider services in order to ensure salaries were accurately and timely processed for payments. Perkins also updated the payroll and human resources information systems with bank account numbers, Social Security numbers, addresses, and names of employees and maintained these employee records.

 

            From January to July 2015, according to the statement of offense, Perkins caused his employer to pay out approximately $275,000 in bogus salary and tax withholding payments for “ghost” employees. Perkins altered a terminated employee’s payroll profile, repeatedly changing entries such as name, Social Security number, bank account number, address, and salary payments. In fact, none of the altered data corresponded to an actual employee. Through these changes to the payroll system, Perkins caused the unauthorized salary payments to be directly deposited into accounts in his name, accounts with his joint ownership, and accounts under his control. By directing the payroll provider service to make these payments, Perkins obtained “salary” payments of “ghost” employees totaling $249,096. The employer paid an additional $26,092 in tax withholdings, for a total loss of $275,188.

 

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips expressed appreciation for the work performed by Forensic Accountant Jean Luc Guerrier of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, as well as Paralegal Specialist Christopher Toms, Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Lucas, who assisted with forfeiture issues, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Virginia Cheatham, who is prosecuting the case.

            WASHINGTON – Leon A. Miller, 33, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a nine-year prison term for armed robbery and a firearms offense stemming from a hold-up last fall at a liquor store in Northwest Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Robert J. Contee III, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Miller pleaded guilty in February 2022, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The plea agreement, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for Miller to be sentenced to a term of imprisonment between seven and nine years. The Honorable J. Michael Ryan accepted the plea and sentenced Miller accordingly. Following his prison term, Miller will be placed on five years of supervised release.

            In court documents, Miller also admitted to committing two other robberies of liquor stores, also in Northwest Washington, and of two store customers. The five robberies took place on three successive evenings.

            Miller pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the Oct. 14, 2021, robbery of Paul’s Wine and Spirits, in the 5200 block of Wisconsin Avenue NW. According to a factual proffer, Miller entered the store at approximately 6 p.m., brandished what appeared to be a black handgun, and demanded that a store employee open the cash registers. He stole about $200 in cash. He also demanded three specific kinds of champagne, none of which the store carries.

            Miller also admitted robbing The Wine Specialist, in the 1100 block of 20th Street NW, on the evening of Oct. 12, 2021. There, he also brandished what appeared to be a black handgun and demanded that an employee open the cash registers. He took approximately $2,000 in cash as well as two bottles of champagne, valued at roughly $950.

            The next evening, Oct. 13, 2021, Miller entered Press Liquors, in the 500 block of 14th Street, brandished what appeared to be a black handgun, and demanded an employee open the registers. He stole approximately $900 in cash. In addition, he brandished the gun at two customers and took their wallets and phones.

            Miller was arrested about an hour after the robbery of Paul’s, near the Dupont Circle Metro station. He has been in custody ever since.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Contee commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Metro Transit Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Crystal Waddy, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul V. Courtney, who investigated and prosecuted the matter.

            WASHINGTON – Eugene Sickle, the former deputy executive director of a South African research institute, pled guilty today to a scheme in which he stole more than $200,000 in grant funds originating with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

 

            The guilty plea was announced by Channing D. Phillips, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and Jonathan Schofield, Special Agent in Charge for the USAID Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations.

 

            Sickle, 47, a chemist and a citizen of South Africa, pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to a charge of theft concerning programs receiving federal funds. The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for an agreed-upon sentence of six months to 12 months and a day of incarceration. The plea agreement requires Sickle to pay $206,250 in restitution. He is to be deported upon completion of his sentence. The Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson scheduled a sentencing hearing for August 1, 2017.

 

            “Eugene Sickle abused his position to steal more than $200,000 meant to promote safer childbirth practices in South Africa,” said U.S. Attorney Phillips. “His actions undercut efforts by the U.S. Agency for International Development to help those in need. His arrest and prosecution demonstrate our commitment to ensuring U.S. dollars are spent properly.”

 

            “When individuals are entrusted by the United States to help implement its overseas development programs, nothing but the highest ethical and legal standards are demanded,” said Special Agent in Charge Schofield. “Theft from those who have nothing - from a program dedicated to safer childbirth no less - not only violates the law but is an affront to the very dignity of America's ideals and largess. Whether such egregious behavior transpires domestically or overseas, the OIG stands ready to ensure perpetrators are held to account.”

 

            Based in Washington, D.C., USAID is the lead U.S. government agency that works to end extreme global poverty and enable resilient, democratic societies. It has regional offices in foreign countries to implement and administer USAID programs and funds. USAID South Africa is one such regional office that works with local organizations in that country.

 

            According to a statement of offense, signed by the defendant as well as the government, Sickle was deputy executive director of the Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute, a South African research institute focusing on sexual and reproductive health as well as vaccine-preventable diseases. Its primary source of funding is USAID, and Sickle administered grant funds for projects. One such project involved a mobile electronic device software application, in connection with the South African National Department of Health, which would help facilitate safer childbirth deliveries in South Africa.

 

            On October 2, 2015, according to the statement of offense, Sickle and the institute’s chief executive officer signed a contract with a company called Alzar Consulting Services Ltd. to develop the childbirth app. Likewise, an individual named “Dr. Carla Das Neves” Alzar’s purported director, signed the contract. Pursuant to this contract, the institute made two payments to Alzar totaling $206,250. However, the childbirth app has never been developed.

 

            Subsequent investigation revealed that Sickle created Alzar in the British Virgin Islands. Unbeknownst to anyone at the research institute, he was the sole owner of the company. Sickle also created e-mail accounts for Alzar and fake Alzar employees, including “Carla Das Neves.” He created a fake LinkedIn page for “Carla Das Neves,” which had a beach scene for a picture, and falsely claimed that “Carla Das Neves” was a trained expert in aid/relief work.

 

            Sickle shepherded the research institute’s contract with Alzar through the approval and compliance process. He signed the contract both as himself and also as “Carla Das Neves.”

 

            According to the statement of offense, Sickle did not perform any of the work required under the contract, nor did anyone else. None of the USAID money was used for its intended purpose to facilitate safer childbirth in South Africa. Instead, Sickle diverted the money to himself personally, and an associate.

 

            Sickle resigned from his position last year. Agents with the USAID Inspector General’s Office arrested him in Washington, D.C., in February 2017. He has been in custody ever since.

 

            This case is being investigated by the U.S. Agency for International Development Office of Inspector General. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John P. Marston and Denise Simmonds and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Vesna Harasic-Yaksic of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

            WASHINGTON – Eugene Sickle, the former deputy executive director of a South African research institute, was sentenced today to seven months of incarceration and ordered to pay $206,250 in restitution for a scheme in which he stole grant funds originating with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

 

            The sentencing, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, was announced by Channing D. Phillips, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and Jonathan Schofield, Special Agent in Charge for the USAID Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations.

 

            Sickle, 47, a chemist and a citizen of South Africa, pled guilty in May 2017 to a charge of theft concerning programs receiving federal funds. The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon sentence of six months to 12 months and a day of incarceration. The Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson accepted the plea today and sentenced Sickle accordingly. In addition to the restitution order, the judge issued a forfeiture money judgment of $206,250. Following his release, Sickle will be subject to deportation proceedings.

 

            Based in Washington, D.C., USAID is a U.S. government agency that provides international development assistance and humanitarian aid worldwide. It implements and administers foreign assistance programs and funds, including those supporting global health, from dedicated offices (“missions”) around the world. USAID’s South Africa mission is one such office that works with local organizations in that country. USAID’s Office of Inspector General bases investigators in 11 countries outside the United States, including South Africa, and provides oversight of USAID programs and operations around the world.

 

            According to a statement of offense, signed by the defendant as well as the government, Sickle was deputy executive director of the Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute, a South African research institute focusing on sexual and reproductive health as well as vaccine-preventable diseases. Its primary source of funding is USAID, and Sickle administered grant funds for projects. One such project involved a mobile electronic device software application, in connection with the South African National Department of Health, which would help facilitate safer childbirth deliveries in South Africa.

 

            On Oct. 2, 2015, according to the statement of offense, Sickle and the institute’s chief executive officer signed a contract with a company called Alzar Consulting Services Ltd. to develop the childbirth app. Likewise, an individual named “Dr. Carla Das Neves” Alzar’s purported director, signed the contract. Pursuant to this contract, the institute made two payments to Alzar totaling $206,250. However, the childbirth app has never been developed.

 

            Subsequent investigation revealed that Sickle created Alzar in the British Virgin Islands. Unbeknownst to anyone at the research institute, he was the sole owner of the company. Sickle also created e-mail accounts for Alzar and fake Alzar employees, including “Carla Das Neves.” He created a fake LinkedIn page for “Carla Das Neves,” which had a beach scene for a picture, and falsely claimed that “Carla Das Neves” was a trained expert in aid/relief work.

 

            Sickle shepherded the research institute’s contract with Alzar through the approval and compliance process. He signed the contract both as himself and also as “Carla Das Neves.”

 

            According to the statement of offense, Sickle did not perform any of the work required under the contract, nor did anyone else. None of the USAID money was used for its intended purpose to facilitate safer childbirth in South Africa. Instead, Sickle diverted the money to himself personally, and an associate.

 

            Sickle resigned from his position last year. Agents with the USAID Inspector General’s Office arrested him in Washington, D.C., in February 2017. He has been in custody ever since.

 

            This case was investigated by the U.S. Agency for International Development Office of Inspector General. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John P. Marston and Denise Simmonds and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Vesna Harasic-Yaksic of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

 

 

            WASHINGTON – James Kyle Bell, 44, of Las Vegas, Nevada, entered a guilty plea today to one count of wire fraud in federal court in the District of Columbia.

            As he admitted in entering his guilty plea, Bell created two political action committees (PACs) which operated during the 2020 election cycle: the Keep America Great Committee (“KAGC”) , which purportedly supported the re-election of Donald Trump, and the Best Days Lie Ahead Committee (“BDLAC”), which purportedly supported the candidacy of Joe Biden.  Both PACs registered with the Federal Election Commission (“FEC”) as Section 527 independent expenditure-only committees.  Such committees are often referred to as “527 Groups” or “Super PACs.” 

            Between January 2020 and October 2020, Bell’s PACs sent solicitations nationwide to more than 40,000 recipients.  The solicitations promised that individual donations would be “5x matched” by Bell’s PACs.  The solicitations also replicated the look and feel of marketing materials used by the presidential campaigns including official logos and slogans.  Bell also set up websites to solicit donations with names like “keepamericagreatcommittee.com,” “trump2020maga.com,” and “bestdayslieaheadcommittee.com.”   KAGC and BDLAC received no less than $346,000 in contributions from individuals and other groups during the months before the 2020 election.  However, none of the individual donations was ever “5x matched” by Bell or anyone else.  And Bell made a series of false filings with the FEC in which Bell claimed that his PACs had made expenditures in support of both presidential campaigns.

            Court documents also reflect that during the same time period, Bell applied for more than $1.6 million in loans from the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) on behalf of five shell companies that Bell owned and controlled.  For example, one of Bell’s companies named “Echo Three LLC,” a company registered in Nevada with no employees and no payroll, received a PPP loan of $485,000 based on Bell’s false statements to the government that the company had 83 employees working at Bell’s private residence.  In another instance, Bell obtained a PPP loan in the amount of $492,000 for a company he owned and controlled named “Myson Rules LLC” which had no employees, no payroll, no business operations, and no active business license in the State of Nevada.  Bell submitted fabricated tax documents and other company records in support of all five PPP loan applications.

            Bell diverted almost all of the funds from PAC donors and the taxpayer-supported PPP loans to bank accounts where they could be used for Bell’s personal benefit, commingling the proceeds of the fraud and further violating federal campaign finance laws with exacting record keeping for PACs.  According to court papers, the government has located and seized $519,000 of Bell’s criminal proceeds.  Bell’s plea agreement requires that Bell make full restitution to his victims and agree to the entry of a money judgement of $862,000 against him.

     “The First Amendment protects everyone’s right to express and promote their viewpoints by giving to political committees,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips.  “My Office and the Justice Department are committed to protecting this important right—citizens are entitled to have confidence that their political contributions will be spent to support the candidates and causes for which they are intended.”  Phillips continued, “We are equally committed to protecting from fraud the Paycheck Protection Program and other government programs aimed at easing the crippling economic effects of the pandemic.  Today’s guilty plea sends a clear message that my Office and the Justice Department will not tolerate fraudsters who line their pockets by exploiting the political goodwill of our citizens or the benefits afforded under government programs.”

            "Bell admitted to creating two political action committees that purported to support two different candidates, but instead he used the donations he received for his own personal use,” said James A. Dawson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, Criminal Division. “Not only did Bell defraud donors, but he also defrauded the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program, designed to help Americans during the pandemic, and used those funds to line his own pockets and private political accounts. The FBI is committed to investigating those who attempt to defraud the American public and government programs.”

            Bell pleaded guilty before United States District Judge John D. Bates to one count of wire fraud.  The maximum sentence for that offense is twenty years of incarceration and a fine of not more than $250,000 or twice the pecuniary gain or loss from the offense.  Sentencing in the case is scheduled for October 8.

            This matter is being investigated by the Washington Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of the Inspector General.  Assistant United States Attorneys John W. Borchert of the Fraud Section and Elizabeth Aloi of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section are prosecuting the case.

            WASHINGTON – Three area men have been found guilty by a jury of federal offenses stemming from a string of 10 armed robberies of gas stations, liquor stores, convenience stores, and restaurants in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, all within a four-week period in 2018.

            The verdict, returned yesterday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office Criminal Division, Marcus G. Jones, Chief of the Montgomery County, Maryland, Police Department, and Antonio DeVaul, Chief of the Takoma Park, Maryland Police Department.

            Those convicted of federal conspiracy, robbery, and weapons charges include: Quaysa Flumo, 34, of Washington, D.C., Enyianna Onyewu, 29, of Silver Spring, Maryland, and Emmanuel Sumo, 27, of Takoma Park, Maryland. All remain held pending sentencing by the Honorable Amit P. Mehta.  Onyewu is to be sentenced on July 22, 2022, Flumo on Aug. 12, 2022, and Sumo on Aug. 26, 2022. 

            According to the government’s evidence, throughout January 2018, the defendants, working together, robbed a series of gas stations, liquor stores, convenience stores, and restaurants in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.  In each of the robberies, the defendants were armed with a .45 caliber handgun.  They wore masks and gloves to avoid being identified.  In several robberies, they physically assaulted store employees and put the gun directly to the heads of their victims.  The robberies took place at various hours, including some in broad daylight. The victims remain shaken and shocked by the incidents.  Fortunately, none of them sustained serious physical injuries.

            During the trial, the government presented testimony from nearly 30 witnesses. The first robbery took place on Jan. 2, 2018, at a gas station in Silver Spring. Other targets were in Takoma Park, Maryland, Silver Spring, Maryland, Northwest Washington, and Arlington, Virginia. On Jan. 10, 2018, two robberies took place within a 45-minute period. The final robbery in the series took place on Jan. 29, 2018, at another gas station in Silver Spring.

            Onyewu was arrested on Oct. 22, 2020. Sumo was arrested on Nov. 23, 2020, and Flumo was arrested on April 27, 2021.

            In announcing the verdicts, U.S. Attorney Graves, Special Agent in Charge Jacobs, Chief Jones, and Chief DeVaul commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office’s Violent Crime Task Force, the Montgomery County, Maryland Police Department, the Takoma Park, Maryland Police Department, the Metropolitan Police Department, the Prince George’s County, Maryland Police Department, and the Arlington County, Virginia Police Department. 

            They also expressed appreciation for the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Lenerz, Paralegal Specialists Candace Battle, Mary Downing, and Kim Hall, Legal Assistant Latoya Wade, Supervisory Litigation Technology Specialist Leif Hickling, and Litigation Technology Specialist William Henderson.

            Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nihar Mohanty and Candice Wong, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

 

            WASHINGTON – Maricco Knight, 25, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to seven years in prison for acting as an accessory after the fact and obstructing justice for his role in assisting a man who was wanted for murder, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced.

            Knight was found guilty by a jury of the charges in March 2018, following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Judith Bartnoff. Following his prison term, he will be placed on five years of supervised release.

            A co-defendant in the trial, Dominique Williams, 24, also of Washington, D.C., was found guilty of second-degree murder while armed, assault with a dangerous weapon, and related firearms offenses. He was sentenced on May 11, 2018, to 24 years in prison.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Sept. 19, 2015, shortly after 1 a.m., Williams, Knight and another man pulled over a Honda Accord in the 3200 block of 28th Street SE. Williams was in the rear passenger seat, Knight was in the front passenger seat, and the third man was driving. A short distance away from the Accord, gathered in an alley, were three men and an 11-year-old boy.  Williams had earlier disputes with persons who resided or sometimes gathered in the block, but none of those persons was among the group in the alley.

            After the Accord pulled over, Williams leaned out of the car and fired eight shots from a 9-millimeter handgun at the group.  One person was hit – Marcellus Green, 39. He was shot once and was declared dead about an hour later. The three people in the Accord drove off.

            Officers with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) were on the scene within a few minutes.  Witnesses gave the police a description of the Accord and its license plate number.  At about 1:40 a.m., an officer in a marked MPD cruiser spotted the Accord, still occupied by the three men, in a different neighborhood.  Before the officer could even activate his emergency equipment, the Accord began to drive off at a high rate of speed.  After a 20-minute chase, during which the 9-millimeter handgun was tossed out, the Accord crashed and all three occupants fled on foot. Within two minutes, the driver and Knight were stopped.

            Williams, however, got away. An arrest warrant was issued for him three months later and he was ultimately apprehended on July 20, 2016, at the residence of Knight’s girlfriend.  During the search for Williams, according to the government’s evidence, Knight assisted in helping Williams hide out despite the fact that he was told repeatedly by law enforcement that Williams was wanted for the murder.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Michael Ambrosino, Special Counsel for DNA and Forensic Evidence Litigation; Forensic Operation/Program Specialist Benjamin Kagan-Guthrie; Litigation Technology Specialist Leif Hickling; Paralegal Specialist Alesha Matthews; Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin; former Supervisory Victim/Witness Services Coordinator David Foster; Victim/Witness Security Specialist Lesley Slade; Victim/Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker, and Interns Korey Johnson and Shani Brown.

            Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Liebman, who investigated and prosecuted the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ahmed Baset, who prosecuted the case.

 

            WASHINGTON – A former employee of the District of Columbia Department of Human Resources pled guilty today to a federal bribery charge for accepting more than $140,000 in bribes from a consultant and independent contractor who did business with the government.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and District of Columbia Inspector General Daniel W. Lucas.

            Latasha Moore, 38, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty before the Honorable Dabney L. Friedrich in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The charge of bribery carries a statutory maximum of 15 years in prison and potential financial penalties. Under federal sentencing guidelines, Moore faces a possible range of 70 to 87 months in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

            According to a statement of offense submitted at the plea hearing, Moore started work in 2002 for the D.C. Department of Human Resources; in 2012, she was promoted to the position of resource allocation analyst. In that role, among other duties, she was the main point of contact for a government contractor that had agreements with the District of Columbia Department of Human Resources to provide organizational skills training courses and human resources consulting to various D.C. government agencies.

            As noted in the statement of offense, Moore and a consultant employed by the company engaged in a scheme in which Moore agreed to protect the government contracts held by the company and ensure that no complaints about its performance reached others in the District of Columbia government. The scheme began in approximately July 2014 and ran through August 2017. In return for her actions, according to the statement of offense, Moore accepted more than $140,000 from the consultant in checks and a PayPal money transfer.

            According to the statement of offense, Moore had suspicions about more than $1 million in invoices that the consultant submitted from March 2015 through June 2017.  Nonetheless, in return for the money the consultant paid her, Moore advised other D.C. government officials to approve the invoices for payment. As the scheme continued, according to the statement of offense, the company discovered that the consultant was acting on his own and retaining the profits for himself.  Although Moore knew of the company’s concerns, she did not relay them to her supervisors and continued to advise other government officials to approve the consultant’s invoices.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu, Assistant Director in Charge McNamara, and Inspector General Lucas commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office and Office of the Inspector General of the District of Columbia. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Marando, who is prosecuting the matter.

            WASHINGTON – KaShaun Perkins, 43, of Upper Marlboro, Md., was sentenced today to 21 months in prison on a federal charge of wire fraud for embezzling from his employer, causing a loss in excess of $275,000, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips.

 

            Perkins pled guilty to the charge in February 2017 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Christopher R. Cooper. Following his prison term, Perkins will be placed on three years of supervised release. He also is required to pay $249,096 in restitution, and a forfeiture money judgment in the same amount.

 

            According to a statement of the offense, signed by the defendant as well as the government, Perkins worked as a payroll specialist from December 2014 to July 2015 at a global consulting firm. As a payroll specialist, he managed external payroll provider services in order to ensure salaries were accurately and timely processed for payments. Perkins also updated the payroll and human resources information systems with bank account numbers, Social Security numbers, addresses, and names of employees and maintained these employee records.

 

            From January to July 2015, according to the statement of offense, Perkins caused his employer to pay out approximately $275,000 in bogus salary and tax withholding payments for “ghost” employees. Perkins altered a terminated employee’s payroll profile, repeatedly changing entries such as name, Social Security number, bank account number, address, and salary payments. In fact, none of the altered data corresponded to an actual employee. Through these changes to the payroll system, Perkins caused the unauthorized salary payments to be directly deposited into accounts in his name, accounts with his joint ownership, and accounts under his control. By directing the payroll provider service to make these payments, Perkins obtained “salary” payments of “ghost” employees totaling $249,096. The employer paid an additional $26,092 in tax withholdings, for a total loss of $275,188.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips expressed appreciation for the work performed by Forensic Accountant Jean Luc Guerrier of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, as well as Paralegal Specialist Christopher Toms, Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Lucas, who assisted with forfeiture issues, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Virginia Cheatham, who prosecuted the case.

            WASHINGTON – Dominique Williams, 24, of Washington, D.C., has been found guilty by a jury of murder and other charges in the 2015 drive-by killing of a man in Southeast Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Williams was found guilty on March 12, 2018, of second-degree murder while armed, assault with a dangerous weapon, and related firearms offenses. A co-defendant, Maricco Knight, 25, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty by the jury of acting as an accessory after the fact and obstruction of justice for his role in assisting Williams while Williams was evading law enforcement prior to his arrest. The verdicts followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Judith Bartnoff scheduled sentencing for both defendants to take place on May 11, 2018.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Sept. 19, 2015, shortly after 1 a.m., Williams, Knight and another man pulled over a Honda Accord in the 3200 block of 28th Street SE. Williams was in the rear passenger seat, Knight was in the front passenger seat, and the third man was driving. A short distance away from the Accord, gathered in an alley, were three men and an 11-year-old boy.  Williams had earlier disputes with persons who resided or sometimes gathered in the block, but none of those persons was among the group in the alley.

            After the Accord pulled over, Williams leaned out of the car and fired eight shots from a 9-millimeter handgun at the group.  One person was hit – Marcellus Green, 39. He was shot once and was declared dead about an hour later. The three people in the Accord drove off.

            MPD officers were on the scene within a few minutes.  Witnesses gave the police a description of the Accord and its license plate number.  At about 1:40 a.m., an officer in a marked MPD cruiser spotted the Accord, still occupied by the three men, in a different neighborhood.  Before the officer could even activate his emergency equipment, the Accord began to drive off at a high rate of speed.  After a 20-minute chase, during which the 9-millimeter handgun was tossed out, the Accord crashed and all three occupants fled on foot. Within two minutes, the driver and Knight were stopped.

            Williams, however, got away. An arrest warrant was issued for him three months later and he was ultimately apprehended on July 20, 2016, at the residence of Knight’s girlfriend.  During the search for Williams, according to the government’s evidence, Knight assisted in helping Williams hide out despite the fact that he was told repeatedly by law enforcement that Williams was wanted for the murder.

            In announcing the verdicts, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Michael Ambrosino, Special Counsel for DNA and Forensic Evidence Litigation; Forensic Operation/Program Specialist Benjamin Kagan-Guthrie; Litigation Technology Specialist Leif Hickling; Paralegal Specialist Alesha Matthews; Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin; former Supervisory Victim/Witness Services Coordinator David Foster; Victim/Witness Security Specialist Lesley Slade; Victim/Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker, and Interns Korey Johnson and Shani Brown.

            Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Liebman who investigated and prosecuted the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ahmed Baset, who prosecuted the case.

 

CHICAGO — A suburban Chicago chiropractor has been indicted on federal fraud charges for allegedly billing a private insurer for nonexistent services.

SEUNG HAN LIM owned and operated Movement Health and Rehab, also known as Motu Chiropractic and Motu Chiromassage, in Libertyville, Ill.  From 2016 to 2019, Lim submitted fraudulent claims to Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois for purported health care services that Lim knew were not actually provided, according to an indictment unsealed today in U.S. District Court in Chicago.  Some of the fraudulent claims were for services purportedly provided on dates when either Lim or the patient were not in Illinois, the indictment states.  Other claims submitted by Lim were for services purportedly rendered by another chiropractor to Lim and Lim’s family members, even though Lim knew that those services were not actually provided by the other chiropractor and that BCBS would have denied the claims had Lim been identified as the rendering provider because the insurer prohibited claims from providers for services rendered to the provider or their immediate family members, the indictment states.

When BCBS attempted to audit Lim’s claims, he prepared false patient medical records and other documents and submitted them to BCBS, the indictment states.

As a result of the scheme, Lim and his clinic fraudulently obtained at least $430,000 from BCBS, the indictment states.

The indictment charges Lim, 40, of Lincolnshire, Ill., with 14 counts of health care fraud.  Each count is punishable by up to ten years in federal prison.  Lim was scheduled to make an initial court appearance this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Gabriel A. Fuentes.

The indictment was announced by Morris Pasqual, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, Robert W. “Wes” Wheeler, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI, and Irene Lindow, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Great Lakes Region of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of the Inspector General.  The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paige Nutini and Jasmina Vajzovic.

The public is reminded that an indictment is not evidence of guilt.  The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.  If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.





Lim indictment

            WASHINGTON — Christopher Parris, a 39-year-old Atlanta, Georgia resident, was arrested today and charged in federal court in the District of Columbia with fraud for attempting to sell millions of nonexistent respirator masks to the Department of Veterans Affairs in exchange for large upfront payments, the Justice Department announced.

            The criminal complaint charges Parris with wire fraud.  It alleges that he made and caused to be made a series of fraudulent misrepresentations in an attempt to secure orders from the Department of Veterans Affairs for 125 million face masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE) that would have totaled over $750 million.  For example, the complaint alleges that Parris promised that he could obtain millions of genuine 3M masks from domestic factories when he knew that fulfilling the orders would not be possible.  Parris also allegedly made similar false representations to other entities in an effort to enter into other fraudulent agreements to sell PPE to state governments.

            “We will vigorously pursue fraudsters who exploit the COVID-19 pandemic to make money,” said Attorney General William Barr.  “As this case demonstrates, even beyond the typical costs associated with unlawful behavior, COVID-19 scams divert government time and resources and risk preventing front-line responders and consumers from obtaining the equipment they need to combat this pandemic.  The Department of Justice will not tolerate this conduct, especially when it involves this kind of egregious attempt to target and defraud our nation’s treasures – our veterans.”

            After arrest, Parris appeared before Chief United States Magistrate Judge Alan J. Baverman in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, where he was ordered detained.  Parris will be extradited to the District of Columbia.

            “During this time of crisis, fraud or attempted fraud impacting services for veterans, who have selflessly served this country, is unconscionable,” said U.S. Attorney Timothy J. Shea for the District of Columbia.  “My office will devote whatever resources are necessary to stop scams aimed at exploiting Americans during this unprecedented pandemic.”

            “We are committed to protecting the integrity of taxpayer funds and ensuring the delivery of medical supplies necessary to provide quality healthcare to our nation’s veterans, and any attempt to exploit the current global COVID-19 pandemic for personal gain will be dealt with swiftly,” said Inspector General Michael J. Missal for the Department of Veterans Affairs.  “Today’s charges are the direct result of the expeditious and tireless efforts of special agents of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General, working in tandem with our law enforcement partners at the Department of Justice and Homeland Security Investigations.”

            “Homeland Security Investigations special agents have sworn an oath to protect the American public, particularly during this health crisis, from opportunistic individuals who seek to deliberately harm and deceive others for their own profit," said Special Agent in Charge Jere T. Miles, Homeland Security Investigations – New Orleans.  “Today, our special agents have shown their commitment to that promise.”

            A criminal complaint is an accusation by a federal law enforcement agent, and defendants are entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty.  Upon conviction for the wire fraud charge, the maximum statutory penalty is 20 years’ imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.

            The Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of the Inspector General and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Peter Lallas and Zia Faruqui of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia are prosecuting the case.  Trial Attorney Patrick Runkle of the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alison Prout and Theodore S. Hertzberg of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia provided substantial assistance.

            Information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts may be found at http://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch.  For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, visit its website at https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc.  

            The public is urged to report suspected fraud schemes related to COVID-19 (the Coronavirus) by calling the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) hotline (1-866-720-5721) or by e-mailing the NCDF at disaster@leo.gov.

                Citizens and others who suspect fraud or other criminal wrongdoing related to the pandemic should report it to the COVID-19 Pandemic Fraud Hotline by phone at 202-252-7022 or by email at USADC.COVID19@usdoj.gov.

Saipan, MP – SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, announced that Chun Yang and Yurong Wang, citizens of the People’s Republic of China, were sentenced by the District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands for Conspiracy to Possess Over 50 grams of Methamphetamine with the Intent to Distribute, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846 and 841(a)(1).

CHUN YANG (age 46) - Sentenced to 70 months incarceration, five years of supervised release following release, 100 hours of community service in lieu of a fine, and a $100 special assessment fee.  Yang was also ordered to report to U.S. immigration officials for deportation proceedings upon release from prison.

YURONG WANG (age 50) - Sentenced to 46 months incarceration, five years of supervised release following release, 100 hours of community service in lieu of a fine, and a $100 special assessment fee.  Wang was also ordered to report to U.S. immigration officials for deportation proceedings upon release from prison.

On June 21, 2022, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Customs and Biosecurity Agents discovered 1,809.80 grams of methamphetamine inside of a mail parcel during a routine inspection at the U.S. Post Office on the island of Saipan.  The parcel was mailed from California.  Upon discovery of the methamphetamine, agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) joined the investigation.  On June 22, 2022, DEA and the CNMI Department of Public Safety (DPS) Drug Enforcement Task Force (DETF) conducted surveillance while the parcel was claimed from the post office, transported after exchanges between multiple persons and vehicles, and ultimately delivered to Wang.  After receiving the package, Wang brought it to an apartment where she met Yang and Xing Rui Gao (also a PRC citizen).  The three individuals intended to distribute the drugs on Saipan.  They were promptly arrested after opening the package.

Gao was charged separately and pled guilty on October 4, 2023.  Sentencing is scheduled for February 23, 2024.  None of the defendants had lawful immigration status at the time of the offense.

“This case demonstrates the effectiveness of partnerships among Commonwealth and federal law enforcement,” stated United States Attorney Shawn N. Anderson.  “A substantial amount of methamphetamine was kept out of our communities.  I applaud the efforts of all involved in bringing these defendants to justice.”

“Operation Cloudy Day” was 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.

This investigation was led by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration with cooperation from the CNMI Customs and Biosecurity Agency, the CNMI DETF, and prosecuted by Albert S. Flores, Jr., Assistant United States Attorney in the District of the Northern Mariana Islands.

              WASHINGTON – Antwon D. Green, 29, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 48 years in prison for killing a man in 2014 at a Southeast Washington barber shop, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Green was found guilty by a jury in December 2017, following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, of first-degree premeditated murder, attempted armed robbery, assault with a dangerous weapon, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and related charges. He was sentenced by the Honorable Judith Bartnoff. This prison term is in addition to a six-year sentence that Green must serve for an armed robbery he committed just weeks after the murder.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Friday, Oct. 10, 2014, at about 11 a.m., Green walked by the front of the Kutt n’ Up barber shop in the 1400 block of Good Hope Road SE, and pointed at Breond Keys, a customer who was getting his hair cut inside. 

            Roughly 16 minutes later, Green, now wearing different clothing including a dark-colored hooded sweatshirt and a mask, ran into the barber shop, holding a pistol in his hand.  Green immediately raised the pistol with both hands, pointed it at Mr. Keys as he sat in the barber chair getting his haircut, and opened fire, hitting Mr. Keys several times.  Other patrons and barbers scrambled to keep from being struck by Green’s bullets.  Once Mr. Keys fell to the floor, Green continued to fire at him, striking him several additional times.  As Mr. Keys lay dying on the barber shop floor, Green dug his ungloved-hand into Mr. Keys’ right, front pants pocket, stealing the contents therefrom.  Green then fled the barber shop.

            Mr. Keys, 38, was taken to a hospital, but pronounced dead a short time after the shooting.

            Several surveillance cameras mounted inside the barber shop caught the murder on video.  However, because Green successfully disguised his appearance with his hoodie and mask, none of the eyewitnesses were able to identify the gunman.  Upon examining the surveillance footage, the detectives saw that the gunman had reached into Mr. Keys’s pocket during the incident.  Accordingly, they submitted Mr. Keys’s pants for DNA examination and analysis.  DNA testing revealed that Green’s DNA (i.e., his skin cells) were found inside Mr. Keys’s right front pants pocket. 

            Following an investigation by MPD, Green was charged in the murder in July 2015. He has been in custody ever since.

            The armed robbery case stemmed from a crime carried out by Green on Oct. 28, 2014, at a liquor store about a block away from where he earlier had committed the murder. That day, at approximately 4:15 p.m., Green ran past a man with a sleeping infant strapped to his chest and robbed a store owner who was restocking an ATM machine. He fled with $12,000 in cash. Green pled guilty in 2015 to a charge of armed robbery for this offense.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department and the FBI. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the District of Columbia Office of the Medical Examiner, the Glendale Verdugo Regional Crime Laboratory, and the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences.  They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Michael Ambrosino, Special Counsel for DNA and Forensic Evidence Litigation; Forensic Operation/Program Specialist Benjamin Kagan-Guthrie; Victim/Witness Advocate James Brennan; Paralegal Specialists Kelly Blakeney and Meridith McGarrity; Criminal Investigators John Marsh, William Hamann, and Zachary McMenamin, and Litigation Technology Specialist Leif Hickling.  Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard DiZinno, Glenn Kirschner and Allessandra Stewart, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

            WASHINGTON – Amin Mahdavi, 53, an Iranian national living in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Parthia Cargo LLC, a freight forwarding company located in the UAE, were charged in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia with participating in a criminal conspiracy to violate U.S. export laws and sanctions against Iran.

            “We will not abide individuals or business organizations that seek to harm our national security by providing coveted U.S. goods to Iran, and we will pursue these wrongdoers no matter where they are located in the world,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Michael R. Sherwin.

            “Iran evades the U.S. embargo resulting from their malicious activities with the collaboration of those who pose as innocent buyers, but who are ready to send the products on to their forbidden destination,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers.  “These charges against Parthia Cargo LLC and its managing director should put on notice all freight forwarders and others who facilitate illicit transshipments to Iran that their conduct will not be tolerated.”

            "Amin Mahdavi defiantly conspired and violated U.S. sanctions to benefit his company and Iran," said James A. Dawson, Acting Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office. "Today’s charges are another example of the dedicated and unrelenting efforts of the FBI and the US Attorney's Office to pursue those who violate our nation's sanctions and put our national security at risk.  The FBI is charged with protecting our nation's security and intellectual property from being used to benefit our foreign adversaries."

           “The actions today are a result of the ongoing coordination and collaborative counter-proliferation efforts by the Office of Export Enforcement and the FBI,” said P. Lee Smith, of BIS. “We will continue to vigorously pursue violators with all law enforcement partners to interdict illicit trade that threatens U.S. national security and undermines U.S. foreign policy.”

           Mahdavi and Parthia Cargo LLC were charged in a criminal complaint with conspiring to defraud the United States and to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations (ITSRs).

           The affidavit in support of the criminal complaint alleges that Mahdavi was the Managing Director of Parthia Cargo LLC, a business organization that facilitated the illegal shipment to Iran of goods manufactured in the United States.  Mahdavi acknowledged to U.S. government officials in 2017 that he understood a U.S. government license was necessary to lawfully ship U.S. commercial aircraft parts to Iran.  But Mahdavi nonetheless agreed to help ship a U.S.-origin commercial aircraft part to an Iranian air transport company, utilizing the freight forwarding services of Parthia Cargo LLC and without obtaining a license.  Mahdavi and Parthia Cargo LLC conspired with individuals and business organizations located outside the United States as part of the criminal scheme, which included falsely stating to a U.S.-based aircraft parts supplier that the goods would not be shipped to Iran unless authorized by the U.S. government.

            A concurrent action was taken by the Department of the Treasury, sanctioning Mahdavi and Parthia Cargo LLC, as well as a related UAE business organization, Delta Parts Supply FZC.

            If convicted, Mahdavi would face up to five years of imprisonment and a fine of up to $250,000, and Parthia Cargo LLC would face a fine of up to $500,000.  The criminal charge in the complaint is an allegation, and Mahdavi and Parthia Cargo LLC are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

            The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the BIS’s Boston Field Office.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Friedman and National Security Division Trial Attorney Jennifer Kennedy Gellie are representing the United States.

            WASHINGTON – Christopher A. Parris, 41, formerly of Rochester, New York, and currently of Lawrenceville, Georgia, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to commit mail fraud related to a Ponzi scheme, as well as to wire fraud involving the fraudulent sale of purported N95 masks during the pandemic.

            “The fraud schemes at issue here, including the purported sales of personal protective equipment that the defendant could not actually provide, are particularly egregious,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department of Justice is committed to prosecuting anyone who would try to profit through this kind of conduct.”

            “Preying on companies and the Department of Veterans Affairs as they sought to protect their employees and patients from this pandemic is beyond the pale,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips for the District of Columbia. “The department and our law enforcement partners will catch and stop those who take advantage of public health emergencies to perpetrate such frauds.”

            “Defendant Parris, together with his co-defendant Perry Santillo, bilked millions of dollars from unsuspecting investors in their Ponzi scheme,” said U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy Jr. for the Western District of New York. “Their web of deceit spread far and wide as they purchased established investment advisor or broker businesses from across the country in order to gain access to new victims. This office remains committed to working with all of our partners to identify and bring to justice those who seek to enrich themselves by defrauding others.”

            “Financial frauds are grounded in greed, so it's no surprise that when multiple people are behind a single scheme the greed runs deeper and the damage hits harder,” said Special Agent-in-Charge Stephen Belongia of the Buffalo Office of the FBI. “The only guarantee in a Ponzi scheme is that it will fall short, and the founders who contrived them will too.”  

            “The urgent need to protect veterans and VA health care workers during this fast-moving pandemic required the Department of Veterans Affairs to rapidly purchase personal protective equipment” said Inspector General Michael J. Missal of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). “Working with our law enforcement partners, the VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) stopped a criminal who was attempting to profit from this horrible crisis and prevented the government and taxpayers from being defrauded of hundreds of millions of dollars. The VA OIG will continue to work zealously to ensure schemes like this are uncovered, investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

            “Since the onset of the pandemic, HSI quickly adapted to investigate the increasing and evolving threat posed by COVID-19-related fraud and criminal activity,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Jack P. Staton of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), New Orleans Field Office. “This guilty plea is a testament to the commitment we have, along with our law enforcement partners, to protecting the American public in times of crisis.”

The Ponzi Scheme

            Between January 2011 and June 2018, Parris conspired with co-defendant Perry Santillo and others to obtain money through an investment fraud, commonly known as a Ponzi scheme. Specifically, in 2007, Parris and Santillo, as equal partners, formed a business known as Lucian Development in Rochester. Prior to approximately July 2007, Lucian Development raised millions of dollars from investors in Rochester, and elsewhere, by soliciting investments for City Capital Corporation, a business operated by Ephren Taylor. In July 2007, Parris and Santillo were advised by Ephren Taylor that their investors’ money had been lost. In response, in August 2007, Parris and Santillo agreed to acquire the assets and debts of City Capital Corporation. The acquisition proved financially ruinous, with the amount of the acquired debt far exceeding the value of the acquired assets. Taylor was later prosecuted and convicted of operating a Ponzi scheme.

            Subsequently, Parris and Santillo chose not to disclose the truth to investors that their money, entrusted to Lucian Development for investment in City Capital Corporation, was gone. Instead, Parris and Santillo continued to solicit ever-increasing amounts of money from new investors in an unsuccessful attempt to recoup the losses. In order to find potential investors to solicit and defraud, Parris and Santillo purchased businesses from established investment advisors or brokers who were looking to exit their businesses. Between approximately 2008 and September 2017, Parris and Santillo, using money obtained from prior investors, purchased the businesses of at least 15 investment advisors or brokers, located in Tennessee, Ohio, Minnesota, Nevada, California (five businesses), Florida, South Carolina (two businesses), Texas, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Indiana.

            The investment offerings pitched by Parris and Santillo consisted principally of unsecured promissory notes and preferred stock issued by various entities controlled by Parris and Santillo. Potential investors were offered an apparent array of investment options to create the illusion of a diversified investment portfolio. Those investment options included products issued by purported issuers such as First Nationle Solutions (FNS), Percipience Global Corporation, United RL Capital Services, Boyles America, Middlebury Development Corporation and NexMedical Solutions, among others. None of these issuers had substantial bona fide business operations or used investor money in the manner and for the purposes represented to investors. To the extent that an issuer may have had some minor legitimate business activities, it was not profitable, and insufficient revenues were generated to pay investors any returns (let alone return the principal amounts of their investments).

            Over the years, to keep the Ponzi scheme from being detected, a substantial portion of incoming new investor monies were depleted by making promised interest and other payments to earlier investors. Most of the rest of incoming investor money was used by Parris, Santillo and other co-conspirators to finance lavish lifestyles of the conspirators, their families and associates; to expand the scheme by purchasing investment advisor/brokerage businesses to obtain access to fresh investors; and to pay operating expenses – salaries for a sales force and administrative staff, office rents and related expenses, housing for employees, and interest on loans – all of which were used to keep the scheme going and maintain  façade of legitimate business operations.

            Very little investor money was deployed in productive investments, and when so deployed, the investments yielded meager income and were not profitable, or failed altogether. The Ponzi scheme was headquartered and based out of locations in Rochester, with a number of satellite offices around the country. Administrative and banking functions were largely performed out of Rochester. The conspiracy employed a variety of salespeople, including Parris and Santillo, who traveled around the country to meet with and solicit new investors.

            Between January 2012 and June 19, 2018, Parris and Santillo obtained at least $115.5 million from approximately 1,000 investors. By the time the scheme collapsed in late-2017/early 2018, Parris and Santillo, doing business through an array of corporate entities, had returned approximately $44.8 million to investors as part of their scheme, but continued to owe investors approximately $70.7 million in principal.

            Among the Rochester area victims of the Ponzi scheme were the following: a resident of Webster, New York, who held a total asset value of $94,341.89 with a fictitious company known as First Nationle Solutions (FNS), which, as of Dec. 31, 2017, was in fact worthless or close to worthless; and a  resident of Victor, New York, and his wife, who invested approximately $221,758.67 with FNS and Middlebury Development. The couple received three payments of $2,500 but lost approximately $214,258.67.

            Parris and Santillo controlled hundreds of different business bank accounts opened under numerous different business names at various financial institutions, including but not limited to Bank of America, Citizens Bank, Genesee Regional Bank and ESL Federal Credit Union. Santillo and Parris directed and authorized the transactions that occurred in the accounts, including deposits, withdrawals, check writing and funds transfers. The various bank accounts were used to transfer money from one account to another. Incoming investor money was routinely transferred through several accounts before the funds were finally spent on whatever purpose Parris and/or Santillo authorized. By moving investors’ funds through various accounts in various entity names, Parris and Santillo were able to conceal and obscure the fact that new investor money was being used to repay earlier investors, finance the operations of the Ponzi scheme, and fund their lifestyles.

            Santillo was previously convicted and is awaiting sentencing.

The COVID-19 Fraud Scheme

            Parris also pleaded guilty in a case originally charged in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to defrauding the U.S. Department of Veterans’ Affairs (VA), as well as at least eight other victim companies, in a scheme involving personal protection equipment (PPE). Between February and April 10, 2020, the defendant, as the owner and operator of Encore Health Group, a company based in Atlanta, that purported to broker medical equipment, offered to sell scarce PPE, including 3M-brand N95 respirator masks, to various medical supply companies and governmental entities. In these proposals, Parris knowingly misrepresented his access to, and ability to obtain and deliver on time, vast quantities of 3M N95 masks and other PPE. The defendant falsely represented that he was able to obtain 3M N95 masks directly from authorized sources in the United States, when in fact, he had no ready access to 3M factories or 3M N95 masks or other PPE, no proven source of supply, and no track record of procuring and delivering such items.

            For example, in March 2021, Parris offered to sell the VA 125 million 3M N95 masks at a cost of $6.45 per mask. In this process, the defendant attempted to obtain an upfront payment of $3.075 million from the VA, even though he knew at the time that he had no access to the promised masks or present ability to deliver the promised masks.

            As part of his guilty plea, Parris admitted that, in addition to attempting to defraud the VA, he actually obtained upfront payments totaling approximately $7.4 million from at least eight clients for 3M N95 masks that he knew he had no access to or present ability to obtain or deliver on time. Parris also admitted that the proceeds of the scheme totaled approximately $6,218,525. In total, Parris sought orders in excess of $65 million for the non-existent PPE equipment.

**

            Parris is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 8 before U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci Jr. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for conspiracy regarding the Ponzi scheme, 30 years in prison for wire fraud in connection to a presidentially-declared emergency, and 10 years in prison for committing the offense originally charged in the District of Columbia while on release from the Western District of New York.

            The plea is the result of an investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Acting Inspector-in-Charge Joshua W. McCallister of the Boston Division; the FBI, Buffalo Division, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Stephen Belongia, the IRS, Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Thomas Fattorusso, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge; the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations – Labor Racketeering and Fraud, under the direction of Nikitas Splagounias, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, New York Region, the New York State Department of Financial Services, under the direction of Superintendent Linda A. Lacewell; the Securities and Exchange Commission; the VA OIG, under the direction of Michael J. Missal, Inspector General, and HSI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jack P. Staton of the New Orleans Field Office.

            Assistant U.S. Attorney John J. Field is handling the prosecution in the Western District of New York, and Trial Attorney Patrick Runkle of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Lallas are handling the prosecution in the District of Columbia.

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

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

 

            WASHINGTON – Kevin Cooke, 22, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to four years in prison for a series of incidents in which he stalked and assaulted his ex-girlfriend and set fire to her family’s residence in Southeast Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves.

            Cooke pleaded guilty in February 2022, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to charges of arson, attempted assault with a dangerous weapon, stalking, and simple assault. He was sentenced by the Honorable Lynn Leibovitz. Following completion of his prison term, Cooke is to be placed on three years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, Cooke stalked and harassed his ex-girlfriend and her family between March 2021, when the relationship ended, and October 2021, when he was arrested. He set fire to the exterior of the victims’ apartment building in the 300 block of Anacostia Road SE on multiple dates, terrorizing those in the building. Cooke was under a stay-away and no-contact order issued by the Court barring him from the victim and her family’s apartment building. Nonetheless, on Aug. 30, 2021, at approximately 2 a.m., he lit items on fire and threw them into the victims’ window. Nearly 2 ½ hours later, he also fired approximately 16 rounds at the victims’ building. No one was hurt.

            Cooke also arranged a meeting with his ex-girlfriend by hacking an Instagram account of one of her friends. He surprised his ex-girlfriend on Sept. 12, 2021, at her college residence hall, grabbed her, dragged her into a laundry room, and hit her in the face multiple times. He fled before police arrived. Finally, on Oct. 2, 2021, he was caught on surveillance video using a gas can and accelerant to once again set fire to the exterior of the family’s apartment building. He was arrested on Oct. 4, 2021.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves commended the work of those who investigated the case from the D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department’s Fire Investigation Unit and the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation for the work of those who handled the case at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Lu Lan, Paralegal Specialist Brenda Williams, and Special Agents Neil D’Cunha and Nelson Rhone of the Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Unit.

            Finally, he commended the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Zach Horton, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

            WASHINGTON – Luis Miguel Teixeira-Spencer, 31, Olatunji Dawodu, 36, both of South Florida, were arrested in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, after being indicted on Monday by a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia for illegal sales of opioids on the darknet.  The indictment charges the defendants with Conspiracy to Distribute More than 400 Grams of a Mixture and Substance Containing Fentanyl.  Additionally, Alex Ogando, 35, of Providence, Rhode Island, was also arrested February 23, 2021 and charged by complaint with Conspiracy to Distribute More than 400 Grams of a Mixture and Substance Containing Fentanyl.  All three defendants will have initial appearances before a federal magistrate judge today.

            The indictment alleges that, since early 2017, Spencer and Dawodu operated a vendor site that sold pills pressed with fentanyl on numerous darknet markets, including AlphaBay, Dream, Empire, and Wall Street, in exchange for bitcoin.  Spencer also used encrypted messaging services to communicate directly with customers and sold pills directly over messaging services.  Ogando was in communication with both Spencer and Dawodu as of the online drug trafficking conspiracy.  On several occasions, the defendants sold fentanyl pills that they shipped via the U.S. Postal Service to buyers in the District of Columbia.

             The FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service executed multiple search warrants yesterday in South Florida and Rhode Island.  At the Rhode Island location, agents recovered over $350,000 in cash, approximately 2,000 grams of pills containing fentanyl, and packaging materials.  At the South Florida locations, agents recovered more than $12,000 in cash, approximately 1,400 grams of pills containing fentanyl, packaging material, and a firearm.

            “The use of sophisticated technology and virtual currency may raise unique challenges to investigating these cases, but this investigation demonstrates that law enforcement can nonetheless root out the sale of dangerous opioids on the darknet,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Michael Sherwin.  “We will not let the use of sophisticated cyber technology impair our ability to combat the problem of opioid abuse.”

            “The three co-conspirators charged today exploited those suffering through an opioid epidemic to enrich themselves,” said James A. Dawson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office Criminal Division. “This case demonstrates the FBI’s commitment to working with our law enforcement partners around the country to show these criminals and others like them that they can no longer hide behind the dark web to operate their online, illicit marketplaces, because we will infiltrate their networks, shut them down, and bring them to justice, no matter where they are.”

            “The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is committed to shining a light on those trafficking fentanyl and other illicit drugs on the dark web”, said Inspector in Charge Peter R. Rendina, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Washington Division.  “Postal Inspectors, armed with advanced technology, digital forensics and data analytics, continue to work closely with law enforcement partners to thwart those using the U.S. Mail in furtherance of their crimes.”

            “As the opioid epidemic continues, IRS-CI will continue to lend our cyber expertise in tracing virtual currency transactions and dissolving the perceived anonymity of the dark web,” said Kelly R. Jackson, IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge.  “We look forward to continuing to work with our law enforcement partners to get these dangerous drugs and those who are trafficking them off our streets.”

            “The tragedy of the opioid crisis continues to be fueled by those who use every method available, including the Dark Web, to sell their illicit pills to those with substance abuse addictions,” said Special Agent in Charge Mark S. McCormack, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations Metro Washington Field Office. “The FDA will continue to work with its law enforcement partners to protect the public health by disrupting and dismantling counterfeit prescription drug manufacturing and distribution.”

            The charges in the indictment and complaint are merely allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.   The charges carry a mandatory 10 years up to life in federal prison.

            The FBI’s Hi-Tech Opioid Task Force, IRS-CI Cyber Crimes Unit (Washington, D.C.), and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations investigated this case. The Hi-Tech Opioid Task Force is composed of FBI agents and task force partners, including special agents and officers of the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Agency, U.S. Postal Inspection Service and detectives from local assisting police agencies. The task force is charged with identifying and investigating the most egregious Dark Web marketplaces, and the vendors operating on the marketplaces who are engaged in the illegal acquisition and distribution of controlled substances, to include fentanyl, methamphetamine, and other opioids. The case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Laura Crane and Rachel Fletcher of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, Paralegal Specialist Katie Thomas, and Legal Assistant Peter Gaboton.  Additional assistance has been provided by the United States Attorney’s Offices for the District of Rhode Island and for the Southern District of Florida (Fort Lauderdale and Miami offices) and the FBI’s Miami and Boston Field Offices.

           WASHINGTON – Michael Alan Hines, 36, of Washington, D.C., was ordered to be detained pending trial today, after the Honorable Heide Hermann found probable cause supported the carjacking and armed robbery charges, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela A. Smith.

           According to the government’s evidence at the preliminary hearing, Hines approached the first victim’s car on March 27, 2024, while she was at the pump of a gas station on Rhode Island Avenue in Northeast Washington, D.C. The defendant first tried to get into her car and, when he found the door locked, he asked the victim for money. She indicated she had none. Due to the victim’s proximity to her car, the doors unlocked automatically, and the defendant got in the driver’s seat. The victim jumped into the passenger seat and tried to stop the defendant, but he began to choke her. While choking the victim, the defendant put the car in reverse and took the victim’s phone from her hands. The victim freed herself and got out of her car. The defendant then abandoned his effort to take the car when he couldn’t drive it.

           An MPD detective responding to that complaint recognized the defendant as the suspect in an armed robbery at the same gas station several days earlier. In that case, the defendant had also walked up to a driver at a gas pump and asked for money before robbing him. The defendant grabbed that victim’s debit card from the pump and, when that victim struggled with the defendant over the card, the defendant threatened the victim with a knife.

           This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacqueline Yarbro of the Major Crimes Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

           A complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

            WASHINGTON – Malik Parker, also known as Yohan Raymoore, 21, of Temple Hills, Md., was sentenced today to five years in prison on charges stemming from a shooting that took place in September 2016 in Southeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced.

            Parker pled guilty in March 2018, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to charges of assault with a dangerous weapon and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon sentence of five years in prison. The Honorable Danya A. Dayson accepted the plea and sentenced the defendant accordingly. Following his prison term, Parker will be placed on three years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Sept. 19, 2016, at approximately 8:10 p.m., Parker and his girlfriend argued loudly in the street, in the 2900 block of P Street SE. Family members from a nearby house exited to observe the commotion. One of those family members, the victim, told Parker to take the argument somewhere else because he did not want the police to be called. Parker declined his request. Parker removed his gun, fired three shots in the air and then eight shots at the family as they fled back toward their house. Luckily, none of the shots found their targets. Parker then fled before the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) arrived.

            Parker was arrested on Sept. 28, 2016 and has been in custody ever since.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department and the United States Marshals Service. She also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists T.J. McPhail, Victim/Witness Advocate Shawn Slade, and Litigation Technology Specialist Anisha Bhatia.

            Finally, she commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessi Brooks and Louis Manzo, who together investigated, indicted and prosecuted the case.

            WASHINGTON – Quaysa Flumo, 35, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 234 months in prison and Emmanuel Sumo, 29, of Takoma Park, Md., was sentenced to 214 months for a string of armed robberies that struck a series of gas stations, liquor stores, convenience stores, and restaurants in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, all within a four-week period in 2018.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves; FBI Special Agent in Charge Wayne A. Jacobs, of the Washington Field Office’s Criminal and Cyber Division, Acting Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). Chief Marcus G. Jones, of the Montgomery County, Md., Police Department, and Chief Antonio DeVaul, of the Takoma Park, Md., Police Department.

            According to the government’s evidence, Flumo and Sumo were members of a trio - which included Enyinna “Reggie” Onyewu, 31, of Silver Spring, Md. – and were found guilty by a jury in U.S. District Court on March 28, 2022, of federal conspiracy, robbery, and (for Flumo and Sumo) related weapons charges. The government’s evidence showed that Onyewu took part in five of the robberies; Sumo in seven of the robberies; and Flumo in all 10 of the robberies.

            Throughout January 2018, the defendants, working together, robbed a series of gas stations, liquor stores, convenience stores, and restaurants in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. In each of the robberies, the defendants were armed with a .45 caliber handgun. They wore masks and gloves to avoid being identified. During several robberies, they physically assaulted store employees and put the gun directly to the heads of their victims. The robberies took place at various hours, including some in broad daylight. The victims were left shaken and shocked by the incidents. Fortunately, none of them sustained serious physical injuries.

            At trial, the government presented testimony from nearly 30 witnesses. The first robbery took place on Jan. 2, 2018, at a gas station in Silver Spring. Other targets were in Takoma Park, Md., Silver Spring, Md., Northwest Washington, and Arlington, Va. On Jan. 10, 2018, two robberies took place within a 45-minute period. The final robbery in the series took place on Jan. 29, 2018, at another gas station in Silver Spring.

            Onyewu was arrested on Oct. 22, 2020; Sumo on Nov. 23, 2020, and Flumo on Apr. 27, 2021. Onyewu was sentenced Aug. 18, 2023, to 166 months in federal prison and 36 months of supervised release by U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg.

            Flumo and Sumo were sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta who also ordered three years of supervised release for each defendant.

            In announcing the verdicts, U.S. Attorney Graves, Special Agent in Charge Jacobs, Chief Jones, and Chief DeVaul commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office’s Violent Crime Task Force, the Montgomery Co. Police Department, the Takoma Park Police Department, the Metropolitan Police Department, the Prince George’s Co. Police Department, and the Arlington County Police Department. 

            They also expressed appreciation for the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Lenerz, Paralegal Specialists Candace Battle, Mary Downing, and Kim Hall, Legal Assistant Latoya Wade, Supervisory Litigation Technology Specialist Leif Hickling, and Litigation Technology Specialist William Henderson.

            Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nihar Mohanty and Candice Wong of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses Section (VRTO), who investigated and prosecuted the case.

            WASHINGTON – Chin Hua Huang, 42, a resident of Taiwan, was charged in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia with participating in a criminal conspiracy to violate U.S. export laws and sanctions against Iran.  Also charged was Taiwan business organization DES International Co., Ltd. (DES Int’l) and Brunei business organization Soltech Industry Co., Ltd. (Soltech).

            Huang, DES Int’l, and Soltech were charged in a criminal complaint with conspiring to defraud the United States and to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations (ITSRs).

            “Individuals or business organizations that violate U.S. laws by providing U.S. goods to Iran without a license will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Sherwin.

            “The defendants are charged with conspiring to violate American sanctions on Iran by buying goods from the United States, concealing the origin of those goods and sending them to Iran for use by the government and business,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Demers.  “Violations of the sanctions diminish their effectiveness and delay the day when Iran will cease its belligerent activity.”

            “The FBI greatly appreciates the coordinated efforts with HSI, OFAC, DCIS, BIS, DC USAO, and DOJ CES to bring formal charges against DES International, its subsidiary Soltech Industry, and Ms. Chin Hua Huang. Together, they worked to relentlessly pursue every lead to ensure these individuals would face the charges detailed in the criminal complaint for their roles in illegally supplying U.S. technology to Iran,” stated FBI San Antonio Division Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs.  “The items, which were allegedly delivered by DES International, its front companies and Ms. Huang to Iran, undermined our national security.  For me, the most impressive aspect of this investigative team’s diligent work was not only the criminal charges against these three entities, but also the addition of four individuals and more than six companies to the Department of Treasury Office of Foreign Asset Control’s Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (SDN) surrounding this proliferation network located throughout the Middle East and Asia.”

            “Today’s action is a tremendous example of Homeland Security Investigations’ (HSI) collaborative commitment to enforce the export laws of the United States.  These individuals and organizations are eroding our country’s national security and legitimate commerce by transshipping sensitive U.S. technology to Iran through various shell companies and affiliates,” said Special Agent in Charge, Shane Folden, HSI San Antonio.  “This effort demonstrates the U.S. Government’s enduring resolve to ensure significant consequences to violators.  HSI is uniquely positioned to use its wide ranging investigative authorities and global footprint to mitigate weaknesses within the U.S. trade and financial sectors by utilizing the full authorities of the U.S. Government.”

            "This investigation underscores the Defense Criminal Investigative Service's commitment to safeguarding our nation's most sensitive technologies and preventing those technologies from getting into the hands of our adversaries," said Michael Mentavlos, Special Agent in Charge of the DCIS Southwest Field Office.  "DCIS, in consort with our law enforcement partners, will continue to aggressively identify, disrupt, and bring to justice those who attempt to circumvent export control laws and threaten the integrity of U.S. military technology." 

            “Today’s action is the result of seamless coordination and collaborative counter proliferation efforts of a very dedicated multi-agency team of law enforcement professionals from the Office of Export Enforcement (OEE), Homeland Security Investigations, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the FBI and the Department of Justice.  OEE and our partners will continue to prevent the illegal export of U.S. technologies and protect American businesses by combatting transnational criminal networks and violators of our export laws.” said P. Lee Smith, Performing the Nonexclusive Functions and Duties of the Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement, Bureau of Industry and Security, US Department of Commerce.

            The affidavit in support of the criminal complaint alleges that Huang was a sales agent for DES Int’l and Soltech, both of which procured goods from the United States for the benefit of Iranian government entities and business organizations.  DES Int’l and Soltech were affiliated with one another by virtue of common directors, employees, and customers.  Huang used her position as a sales agent to help an Iranian research center obtain U.S. goods without a license from the Department of the Treasury. These goods included a power amplifier designed for use in electromechanical devices, and cybersecurity software.  Huang took steps to conceal the U.S. origin of the goods, including by removing serial number stickers with the phrase “Made in USA” from packages, and by causing the cybersecurity software to be downloaded onto a computer outside of Iran.  Huang shared developments regarding this illegal conduct with other employees and directors of DES Int’l and Soltech.

            A concurrent action was taken by the Department of the Treasury, sanctioning Huang, DES Int’l, and Soltech, and seven related individuals and entities.

            If convicted, Huang would face up to five years of imprisonment and a fine of up to $250,000, and DES Int’l and Soltech would each face a fine of up to $500,000.  The criminal charge in the complaint is an allegation, and criminal defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

            The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s San Antonio, Texas, Field Office, HSI, DCIS, and DOC.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Friedman and National Security Division Trial Attorney William Mackie are representing the United States.

            WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today filed a civil forfeiture complaint detailing two hacks of virtual currency exchanges by North Korean actors.  These actors stole millions of dollars’ worth of cryptocurrency and ultimately laundered the funds through Chinese over-the-counter (OTC) cryptocurrency traders.  The complaint follows related criminal and civil actions announced in March 2020 pertaining to the theft of $250 million in cryptocurrency through other exchange hacks by North Korean actors.

            “As part of our commitment to safeguarding national security, this office has been at the forefront of targeting North Korea’s criminal attacks on the financial system,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Michael R. Sherwin of the District of Columbia.  “This complaint reveals the incredible skill of our Cryptocurrency Strike Force in tracing and seizing virtual currency, which criminals previously thought to be impossible.”

            “Today’s action publicly exposes the ongoing connections between North Korea’s cyber-hacking program and a Chinese cryptocurrency money laundering network,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.  “This case underscores the department’s ongoing commitment to counter the threat presented by North Korean cyber hackers by exposing their criminal networks and tracing and seizing their ill-gotten gains.”

            “Today, prosecutors and investigators have once again exemplified our commitment to attribute national security cyber threats, to impose costs on these actors, and bring some measure of relief to victims of malicious cyber activities,” said Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.  “Although North Korea is unlikely to stop trying to pillage the international financial sector to fund a failed economic and political regime, actions like those today send a powerful message to the private sector and foreign governments regarding the benefits of working with us to counter this threat.”

            “Despite the highly sophisticated laundering techniques used, IRS-CI’s Cybercrimes Unit was able to successfully trace stolen funds directly back to North Korean actors,” said Don Fort, Chief of IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI). “IRS-CI will continue to collaborate with its law enforcement partners to combat foreign and domestic operations that threaten the United States financial system and national security.”

            “FBI efforts to stop the flow of threat finance around the world are central to our strategy to address transnational crime,” said Assistant Director Calvin A. Shivers of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division.  “This strategy is strengthened by the skills and expertise we continue to develop in virtual asset investigations such as this, which enable the FBI and our partners to identify and seize illicit assets.”

            “As North Korea becomes bolder and more desperate in their efforts to steal money using sophisticated money laundering techniques, HSI will continue to apply pressure by exposing their fraudulent transactions,” said Special Agent in Charge Steven Cagen of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Denver.  “We are committed to safeguarding the interest of the United States against the criminal elements in North Korea to protect the integrity of the cyber financial system.”

            “At U.S. Cyber Command, we leverage a persistent engagement approach to challenge our adversaries’ actions in cyberspace,” said Brigadier General Joe Hartman, Commander of the Cyber National Mission Force. “This includes disrupting North Korean efforts to illicitly generate revenue. Department of Defense cyber operations do not occur in isolation. Persistent engagement includes acting through cyber-enabled operations as much as it does sharing information with our interagency partners to do the same.”

            "Today’s complaint demonstrates that North Korean actors cannot hide their crimes within the anonymity of the internet. International cryptocurrency laundering schemes undermine the integrity of our financial systems at a global level, and we will use every tool in our arsenal to investigate and disrupt these crimes," said Special Agent in Charge Emmerson Buie Jr. of the FBI’s Chicago Field Office.  “The FBI will continue to impose risks and consequences on criminals who seek to undermine our national security interests.”

            The forfeiture complaint filed today details two related hacks of virtual currency exchanges.

            As alleged in the complaint, in July 2019, a virtual currency exchange was hacked by an actor tied to North Korea.  The hacker allegedly stole over $272,000 worth of alternative cryptocurrencies and tokens, including Proton Tokens, PlayGame tokens, and IHT Real Estate Protocol tokens.  Over the subsequent months, the funds were laundered through several intermediary addresses and other virtual currency exchanges.  In many instances, the actor converted the cryptocurrency into BTC, Tether, or other forms of cryptocurrency – a process known as “chain hopping” – in order to obfuscate the transaction path.  As detailed in the pleadings, law enforcement was nonetheless able to trace the funds, despite the sophisticated laundering techniques used.

            As also alleged in the pleadings, in September 2019, a U.S.-based company was hacked in a related incident.  The North Korea-associated hacker gained access to the company’s virtual currency wallets, funds held by the company on other platforms, and funds held by the company’s partners.  The hacker stole nearly $2.5 million and laundered it through over 100 accounts at another virtual currency exchange.

            The funds from both of the above hacks, as well as hacks previously detailed in a March 2020 forfeiture action (1:20-cv-00606-TJK), were all allegedly laundered by the same group of Chinese OTC actors.  The infrastructure and communication accounts used to further the intrusions and fund transfers were also tied to North Korea.

            The claims made in this complaint are only allegations and do not constitute a determination of liability.  The burden to prove forfeitability in a civil forfeiture proceeding is upon the government. 

            The investigation was conducted by IRS-CI’s Washington, D.C. Cyber Crimes Unit, the FBI’s Chicago and Atlanta Field Offices, and HSI’s Colorado Springs Office with additional support from the FBI’s San Francisco Field Office.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zia M. Faruqui, Jessi Camille Brooks, and Christopher Brown, with assistance from Supervisory Paralegal Specialist Elizabeth Swienc and Legal Assistant Jessica McCormick, Trial Attorney C. Alden Pelker of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, and Trial Attorney David Recker of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case.

            Support to this effort was provided by FBI’s San Francisco Field Office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Northern District of Georgia.

            Support to this effort was also provided by United States Cyber Command.  More information about the command’s efforts to combat North Korean and other malware activity can be found on Twitter and VirusTotal.

            WASHINGTON – Leon A. Miller, 32, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty today to armed robbery and a firearms offense stemming from a hold-up he carried out last fall at a liquor store in Northwest Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Robert J. Contee III, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Miller pleaded guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The plea agreement, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for Miller to be sentenced to a term of imprisonment between seven and nine years. The Honorable J. Michael Ryan scheduled sentencing for April 11, 2022.

            In court documents, Miller also admitted to committing two other robberies of liquor stores, also in Northwest Washington, and of two store customers. The five robberies took place on three successive evenings.

            Miller pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the Oct. 14, 2021, robbery of Paul’s Wine and Spirits, in the 5200 block of Wisconsin Avenue NW. According to a factual proffer, Miller entered the store at approximately 6 p.m., brandished what appeared to be a black handgun, and demanded that a store employee open the cash registers. He stole about $200 in cash. He also demanded three specific kinds of champagne, none of which the store carries.

            Miller also admitted robbing The Wine Specialist, in the 1100 block of 20th Street NW, on the evening of Oct. 12, 2021. There, he also brandished what appeared to be a black handgun and demanded that an employee open the cash registers. He took approximately $2,000 in cash as well as two bottles of champagne, valued at roughly $950.

            The next evening, Oct. 13, 2021, Miller entered Press Liquors, in the 500 block of 14th Street, brandished what appeared to be a black handgun, and demanded an employee open the registers. He stole approximately $900 in cash. In addition, he brandished the gun at two customers and took their wallets and phones.

            Miller was arrested about an hour after the robbery of Paul’s, near the Dupont Circle Metro station. He has been in custody ever since.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Contee commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Metro Transit Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Crystal Waddy, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul V. Courtney, who investigated and prosecuted the matter

Fraud Scheme Involved Multiple Law Firms

            WASHINGTON – An indictment was unsealed today charging four people, including two lawyers, with conspiring to defraud thousands of distressed homeowners who thought they were hiring a legal firm to help them avoid foreclosure. The defendants, some of whom were licensed to practice law in Washington, D.C., New Jersey, and Florida, allegedly reaped millions of dollars in ill-gotten gains.

            The indictment charges: David Maresca, 48, of Manassas, Virginia, Scott Marinelli, 51, of Mountainside, New Jersey, Sam Babbs, III, 41, of Orlando, Florida, and Terrylle Blackstone, 35, of Woodbridge, Virginia, with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud for charging clients on the false and fraudulent promise to help them avoid foreclosure but never providing any of those legal services. The indictment further charges Maresca, Marinelli, and Blackstone with five counts of mail fraud; Maresca, Babbs, and Blackstone with three counts of wire fraud and two counts of mail fraud; and Maresca with five counts of monetary transactions in criminally-derived property, and two counts of falsification of bankruptcy records. Maresca was arrested today and made an initial appearance in Washington, D.C.; Marinelli was arrested today and made an initial appearance in New Jersey.

            The charges were announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Special Agent in Charge Wayne A. Jacobs, of the FBI Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Kareem A. Carter of the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation (“IRS-CI”) Washington, D.C. Field Office.

            Maresca formed Synergy Law LLC (“Synergy”), in Washington DC, in 2016, and Themis Law PLLC (“Themis”) in  2019. Marinelli, who was licensed in New Jersey, owned 10 percent of Synergy; Babbs, who was licensed in Florida and D.C., owned his own firm – Babbs Law Firm P.L. (“Babbs”) - and 10 percent of Themis. Blackstone worked for all three firms.

            According to the indictment, the scheme involved marketing Synergy Law and Themis Law through telephone, television, and Internet advertising which told homeowners that attorneys could help them avoid foreclosure. The defendants, through the law firms, operated  call centers, where workers used scripts during calls with homeowners falsely promising that an attorney would review the homeowner's case file; that this attorney knew their lender's “internal guidelines,” for a “mortgage resolution”; and that an assigned “legal team” would contact the homeowner’s lender to negotiate a resolution.

            The conspirators knew these representations were false and fraudulent. Synergy Law and Themis Law never operated a “national law firm,” and never provided legal services to homeowners. Neither Synergy Law nor Themis Law had attorneys review homeowner files, and neither Synergy Law nor Themis Law had attorneys contact a client’s lender to discuss a mortgage resolution. The homeowners signed agreements in which the law firms promised to provide “legal representation,” “attorney services” and “legal services” to the homeowner-client. Synergy Law required homeowner-clients to pay an initial retainer amount (often between $995 and $1,750), followed by a monthly recurring amount (often between $595 and $1,200), for as long as Synergy Law represented the homeowner. Once victim funds were in that account, Maresca, Marinelli, and Blackstone used the funds for their personal benefit, and continued to collect monthly payments from the clients. When the clients faced imminent foreclosure, Synergy Law provided non-legal bankruptcy petition preparation services and directed clients to file pro se bankruptcy petitions to stop foreclosure. Synergy Law directed clients not to disclose that the clients had worked with Synergy Law to prepare their bankruptcy petition. Themis Law clients, who were considering filing for bankruptcy to save their homes, were referred to Babbs Law where they signed a new retainer agreement and paid additional fees.

            When bankruptcy judges, Synergy Law clients, and the U.S. Trustee's Program raised concerns about Synergy Law's practices in bankruptcy matters, Blackstone attended court hearings on behalf of Synergy Law and made false statements to the court about Synergy Law's operations. When Marinelli's law license was suspended in New Jersey in 2017, and the District of Columbia in 2018, Maresca, Marinelli, and Blackstone continued to operate Synergy Law and collect monthly payments purportedly for legal services.

            Maresca is also charged with falsely filing for bankruptcy on behalf of Synergy Law.  According to the indictment, in answering a question on the bankruptcy forms about financial affairs, which required Synergy Law LLC to list transfers of money or other property that was not in the ordinary course of business, Maresca falsely stated “None,” when he knew he had withdrawn S315,083.42 from Synergy Law accounts to purchase his personal residence.

            The indictment includes a notice of forfeiture for all illegally derived proceeds from the fraud scheme.

            The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI urge anyone who did business with these law firms, and who think they were defrauded, to visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/mortgage-fraud and/or call the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI.

            This case was investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office and the Washington, D.C. Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations.

            It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John Borchert.

            An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Defendant Accused of Assaulting Officer and Throwing Object at Police

            WASHINGTON - A Texas man has been arrested on felony charges, including assaulting a law enforcement officer, for his actions during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the presidential election.

            Jason Farris, 44, of Arlington, Texas, is charged in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia with assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers; obstructing, impeding, or interfering with officers during a civil disorder; entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds; and physical violence in a restricted building or grounds. He was arrested today in Texas. He is expected to make his initial appearance later today in the Northern District of Texas.

            According to court documents, on Jan. 6, 2021, Farris was at the front of a mob on the North side of the Lower West Plaza of the Capitol, a location that was restricted from lawful public access. Police officers at this location had set up metal bicycle racks as a barricade to prevent rioters from advancing further into the Capitol.  At approximately 2:15 p.m., Farris stated to the police officers, among other things: “I bet your family is proud of you, fucking faggot ass. You ain’t shit. Ain’t none of you shit.” As he said this, Farris hit the baton held by of one of the police officers with his hand.

            Moments later, other rioters grabbed one of the bicycle racks and attempted to pull it away from the officers.  Several officers held onto the bicycle rack.  Farris approached a U.S. Capitol Police officer who was holding onto the bicycle rack and shoved the officer in the back with two hands, knocking him to the ground. After Farris shoved the officer to the ground, other rioters pulled the bicycle rack away from the police and dragged it into the crowd.

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

            The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Dallas Field Office and the FBI’s Washington Field Office, which identified Farris as #322 on its seeking information photos. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department.

            In the 25 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 985 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including approximately 319 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing. 

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

            A complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Defendant Used Chemical Spray Against Officers

            WASHINGTON – A Florida man pleaded guilty today to assaulting law enforcement officers during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the presidential election.

            Matthew Council, 50, of Riverview, Florida, pleaded guilty in the District of Columbia to an indictment charging him with a total of six offenses. They include one felony count of assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement officers, one felony count of interfering with a law enforcement officer during a civil disorder, and four misdemeanor offenses.

            According to court documents, on Jan. 6, 2021, Council joined rioters who were illegally gathered at the west side of the Capitol Building. A police officer sprayed him with a chemical irritant, but he nonetheless continued up the stairs to the Northwest Plaza. At the time, law enforcement officers were struggling to keep the mob outside the building. At approximately 2:44 p.m., Council entered the Parliamentarian Door. He barged into a line of Capitol Police officers, trying to push them back and create an opening for others to get through. He fell to the ground.

            Council was arrested at the scene. He is to be sentenced on November 1, 2022. He faces a statutory maximum of eight years in prison for assaulting law enforcement officers and another five years for civil disorder, as well as a total of three more years for the misdemeanor offenses. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

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

            The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Tampa and Washington Field Offices. Valuable assistance was provided by the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Capitol Police.

            In the 19 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 860 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 260 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.  Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

 

            WASHINGTON – A complaint was unsealed today, charging two U.S. citizens with federal crimes related to Iran.  Muzzamil Zaidi, 35, a U.S. citizen who resides in Qom, Iran, was charged with acting in the United States as an agent of the government of Iran without first notifying the Attorney General.  Zaidi, Asim Naqvi, 35, a U.S. citizen who lives in Houston, Texas, and Ali Chawla, 36, a Pakistani national who lives in Qom, Iran, were all charged with violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.  The complaint alleges that both charges stem from the defendants’ campaign to transport U.S. currency from the United States to Iran on behalf of the Supreme Leader of Iran in 2018 and 2019.  Both Zaidi and Naqvi were arrested in Houston on August 18, 2020.

            “Disrupting Iran’s ability to raise U.S. dollars is key to combatting its ability to sponsor international terrorism and destabilize the Middle East, including through its military presence in Yemen,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers.  “Zaidi, Naqvi, and Chawla allegedly raised money in the United States on behalf of Iran’s Supreme Leader, and illegally channeled these dollars to the government of Iran.  As a result of the charges unsealed today, their unlawful scheme has been exposed and brought to an end.  The U.S. Department of Justice and its National Security Division are committed to holding accountable individuals who operate covert networks within the United States in order to provide support and funds to hostile foreign governments like Iran in violation of U.S. law.”

            “This case is significant on many levels,” said Michael R. Sherwin, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Columbia.  “To begin, as alleged in the criminal complaint, the defendants have considerable operational links to the IRGC, which has conducted multiple terrorist operations throughout the world over the past several years.  The life-blood of these terrorist operation is cash – and the defendants played a key role in facilitating that critical component.”

            “The charges unsealed today demonstrate our commitment to preventing agents of hostile foreign governments from having access and freedom to operate within the borders of the United States,” said James A. Dawson, Acting Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office. “In addition to violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act, Zaidi allegedly operated with his co-conspirators at the behest of the Iranian government—a known sponsor of terrorism—to overtly solicit U.S. money to further Iranian causes, in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). This is why IEEPA was established: to prevent hostile foreign governments from leveraging the U.S. financial system in furtherance of their global destabilizing endeavors.” 

            "The arrests in this case are the direct result of the undeterred efforts of the FBI Houston Counterterrorism investigative team," said FBI Houston Field Office Special Agent in Charge, Perrye K. Turner. "By engaging in around the clock collaboration with multiple Field Offices and Intelligence Community partners, our agents ensure that those who send money to terrorist regimes will ultimately be held accountable and lose their freedom."

            As alleged in the affidavit in support of a criminal complaint, Zaidi offered his services to the Supreme Leader of Iran in or around July 2015 and said that he could serve the “Islamic Republic in the socio-political or another field.”  The complaint alleges that Zaidi traveled to Syria in or around June 2018 and that, while there, flew to an active war zone in an armed Iranian military or intelligence aircraft.  The complaint alleges that Zaidi had access to bases under the command of the Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) while in that war zone, including a “Sepah Qods” (IRGC Qods Force) base. The IRGC was designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. on April 4, 2019. Qassem Soleimani, a major general in the IRGC, was commander of the Qods Force until he was killed in a U.S. airstrike on Jan. 3, 2020.

            According to the complaint, in December 2018, Zaidi and other members of an organization known as “Islamic Pulse,” including Chawla, received the permission of the Supreme Leader of Iran to collect khums, a religious tax, on the Supreme Leader’s behalf, and to send half of that money to Yemen.  The complaint alleges that permission was formalized on or about Feb. 28, 2019, in a letter confirming the permission of the Supreme Leader of Iran and another Ayatollah to spend khums money in Yemen.

            Based on the complaint, in or around July 2019, Islamic Pulse released a video soliciting donations for its purported Yemen campaign that showed money moving from the United States and other Western countries to Yemen through Iran.  The complaint alleges that Chawla replied to donors’ concerns about how the campaign was able to get money into Yemen by stating that the matter could not be discussed over email. The complaint further alleges that Chawla sought U.S. dollars specifically, stated that Islamic Pulse could not accept electronic transfers, and admitted that Islamic Pulse was not a registered charity. 

            The complaint alleges that after the United States placed sanctions on the Supreme Leader of Iran in June 2019, Zaidi told Naqvi that the action was a “straight hit on khums.”  The complaint alleges that in summer and fall 2019 Zaidi and Naqvi continued to collect U.S. currency in the United States and have it transported to Iran, sometimes via Iraq, structured in such a way as to avoid reporting requirements.  After a group of 25 travelers carried money destined for Iran on behalf of Zaidi and Naqvi in October 2019, Zaidi and Naqvi discussed the screening the travelers underwent at the airport and Naqvi’s hope that none of the travelers would confess to authorities upon their return.

            The complaint alleges that, during his current stay in the United States, which began in June 2020, Zaidi has exhibited behavior that is consistent with having received training from a foreign government or foreign intelligence service, such as the government of Iran or IRGC.  According to the complaint, that behavior includes a reluctance to discuss matters over the phone, or even over encrypted applications, because Zaidi claims that doing so could be dangerous.

            The charges in criminal complaints are merely allegations, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The maximum penalty for a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 951 is 10 years, and the maximum penalty for a violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act is 20 years.  The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes.

            The investigation into this matter was conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and Houston Field Office.  The case is being prosecuted by the National Security Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, along with the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section and Counterterrorism Section of the National Security Division of the Department of Justice.