NewzIntel.com

Category: Federal Bureau of Investigation

  • MIL-OSI Security: FBI Announces Eight FBI Subjects from Mexico in U.S. Custody

    Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News (b)

    he FBI is announcing eight men, including two former FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives, who were transferred into U.S. custody from Mexico this week. All are key subjects of FBI investigations spanning several states.

    Rafael Caro Quintero is a former FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitive wanted for his alleged involvement in the kidnapping and murder of Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent Enrique Camarena Salazar in 1985. Caro‐Quintero is widely regarded as one of the Mexican godfathers of drug trafficking and helped to form the Guadalajara Cartel in the late 1970s. Allegedly, he became one of the primary suppliers of heroin, cocaine, and marijuana to the U.S., and oversaw the cartel in Costa Rica and the U.S. and Mexico border. Quintero will face charges in the Eastern District of New York. This case was investigated by the FBI San Antonio Field Office.

    Alder Marin Sotelo faces homicide charges related to the killing of law enforcement officer. On August 23, 2022, Marin-Sotelo was indicted on a charge of first-degree murder following the August 11, 2022, death of Deputy Ned Byrd of the Wake County, North Carolina, Sheriff’s Office. Sotelo will face federal weapons charges in the Middle District of North Carolina and state murder charges in the North Carolina State Court. This case was investigated by the FBI Charlotte Field Office.

    Jose Rodolfo Villareal-Hernández, also known as “El Gato,” is a former FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitive allegedly responsible for stalking and orchestrating the murder-for-hire of a 43-year-old male victim on May 22, 2013, in Southlake, Texas. Villarreal-Hernandez previously held a high-level position in the Beltran-Leyva Organization (BLO) Drug Cartel. He is believed to have overseen the importation of large quantities of cocaine into the United States as well as committing violent acts within the Republic of Mexico and the United States to maintain his organization’s power and status. He was arrested on January 7, 2023, in Atizapán de Zaragoza, Mexico and will face charges in the Northern District of Texas for interstate stalking and conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire. This case was investigated by the FBI Dallas Field Office.

    Jose Angel Canobbio-Inzunza, also known as “Guerito,” was a key leader and the finance manager of the Sinaloa Cartel’s Los Chapitos faction. He allegedly trafficked narcotics, controlled an armed enforcement group, and managed corrupt relationships on the cartel’s behalf. He will face narcotrafficking charges out of the Northern District of Illinois. The subject was arrested last week in Sinaloa by the Mexican Army. This case was investigated by the FBI Washington and San Diego Field Offices.

    Rodolfo Lopez Ibarra is facing drug-trafficking charges with up to life imprisonment out of the District of Columbia. This case was investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office.

    Andrew Clark, a Canadian citizen residing in Mexico, allegedly ran and participated in a transnational drug trafficking operation that routinely shipped hundreds of kilograms of cocaine from Colombia—through Mexico and Southern California—to Canada and other locations in the United States. Clark is being prosecuted for four murders and one attempted murder, and will face charges in the Central District of California. This case was investigated by the FBI Los Angeles Field Office.

    Luis Geraldo Méndez Estevane is facing several federal charges, including murder, racketeering, and drug conspiracy in the Western District of Texas. Mendez was a high-ranking Barrio Azteca lieutenant and responsible for the March 13, 2010, murder of two U.S. consulate employees in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, and an El Paso County Sheriff’s Office Detention Officer. Mendez was indicted in the Western District of Texas. This case was investigated by the FBI El Paso Field Office.

    Vicente Carrillo Fuentes, the former leader of the Juarez Cartel, faces narcotrafficking charges in the Eastern District of New York. Fuentes is responsible for the trafficking of narcotics into the United States. He also assisted in perpetrating significant violence throughout Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, and El Paso, Texas, area. The case was investigated by the FBI El Paso Field Office.

    “The FBI and our partners will scour the ends of the earth to bring terrorists and cartel members to justice,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “The era of harming Americans and walking free is over.”

    Significant and vital assistance was provided by the FBI’s valued international, federal, state, and local law enforcement partners across the country.

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  • MIL-OSI Security: San Diego Man Who Ran $35 Million Securities Fraud and COVID-Relief Fraud Scheme Sentenced to Almost 20 Years

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    SAN DIEGO – Denny Thakorbhai Bhakta, who was convicted by a federal jury in October 2024 of securities fraud, bank fraud and money laundering in connection with a $35 million swindle that left his own elderly uncle bankrupt, was sentenced in federal court today to 235 months in custody. Bhakta was convicted of all 25 charges after a two-week trial.

    The evidence at trial showed Bhakta solicited investors in his companies Fusion Hotel Management LLC and Fusion Hospitality Corporation (collectively “Fusion”). Between at least 2016 and up to 2021, Bhakta falsely told investors that Fusion routinely acquired discounted blocks of hotel rooms from Hilton, which Fusion then sold to United Airlines at a higher price for a significant profit.

    To support these lies, Bhakta provided fabricated bank statements, fake contracts, and profit and loss statements purporting to show millions in revenue and profit. Instead of buying blocks of hotel rooms with investors’ funds, however, Bhakta used the money he obtained from investors for gambling, to make Ponzi-style payments to other investors, and to pay for Bhakta’s personal expenses, including luxury vehicles.

    According to court documents, Bhakta targeted friends, family members and close acquittances during the multi-year fraud scheme. Among the victims was Bhakta’s uncle, who was swindled out of $4.5 million, and who testified during the trial that he came to the U.S. as an immigrant with a suitcase and $8 in his pocket, and because of the defendant, he “lost everything he had worked for in 57 years in America. Everything.”

    Bhakta’s other victims included a childhood friend who lost hundreds of thousands of dollars; his former boss and his wife; a friend of his family who lost $1.6 million; a high school classmate and her father who together lost more than $800,000; and an 88-year-old investor who lost $50,000.

    During the trial, prosecutors introduced evidence that Bhakta was flown to Las Vegas on the Wynn Las Vegas private jet. And in just one 7.5-hour gambling binge in 2018, Bhakta lost $1 million at the casino. Through a trove of casino records, prosecutors demonstrated how Bhakta repeatedly took investors’ money straight to casinos and gambled (and lost) millions of investor money.

    “I haven’t seen a case quite like this,” said U.S. District Judge Janis L. Sammartino, who found Bhakta’s conduct “could not have been more deliberate [and] could not have been more calculated.”  In pronouncing the 235-month prison sentence, Judge Sammartino noted Bhakta’s only apparent motive was “greed and gambling,” his victims included his own friends and relatives, and he showed “nothing resembling remorse” for his criminal conduct that spanned years.

    “This defendant didn’t just betray investors—he callously swindled his own family and closest friends, leaving his elderly uncle bankrupt,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Andrew Haden. “Instead of safeguarding their hard-earned money, he funneled millions straight to casinos, gambling away their futures along with his own. His lies, deceit, and reckless greed have finally caught up to him. Today’s sentence makes clear that those who gamble with other people’s trust and livelihoods will face the consequences.”

    “Denny Bhakta orchestrated an elaborate investment fraud scheme that caused extensive financial harm to unsuspecting victims, including close family and friends, all for his own personal gain,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Stacey Moy.  “Today’s sentence holds him accountable for his greed and deceitful conduct, bringing justice to the victims he exploited.”

    According to the government’s sentencing materials, in 2020, Bhakta doubled down on the fraud. Through the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”), Bhakta applied for 18 separate PPP loans totaling $4.4 million. To fraudulently obtain the PPP loans, Bhakta created fake W-2 and other IRS documents and used the names and personally identifying information of his victim-investors to claim them as employees of Fusion and other entities under Bhakta’s control.  Bhakta used the more than $4.4 million he received in PPP loans to keep the Ponzi scheme going and to continue gambling and losing money at casinos.

    This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kevin Mokhtari and Eric Olah.

    DEFENDANTS                                             Case Number 21cr3352-JLS                            

    Denny Thakorbhai Bhakta                             Age: 42                                   San Diego, CA

    SUMMARY OF CHARGES

    Securities Fraud—Title 15, U.S.C. §§ 78j(b), 78ff; Title 17, C.F.R. § 240.10b-5

    Maximum penalty:  Twenty years in prison and $5,000,000 fine

    Bank Fraud—Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1344(2)

    Maximum penalty:  Thirty years in prison and $1 million fine

    Money Laundering– Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1957

    Maximum penalty: Ten years in prison and fine twice the amount of the criminally derived property involved in the transaction

    INVESTIGATING AGENCY

    Federal Bureau of Investigation

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  • MIL-OSI Security: Former Stoneham Police Officer Sentenced to More Than Two Years in Prison for Bribery Charges

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Defendant defrauded a company to obtain tens of millions of dollars of Mass Save funds through paying bribes and kickbacks to company employees

    BOSTON – A former Stoneham Police Officer has been sentenced in federal court in Boston for a bribery and kickback scheme that netted millions of dollars in Mass Save contracts.  

    Joseph Ponzo, 51, of Stoneham, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton to 27 months in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. Joseph Ponzo was also ordered to pay $115,528 in restitution and a $100,000 fine. In November 2024, Joseph Ponzo pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud; 24 counts of honest services wire fraud; one count of making false statements to government officials; and four counts of causing false tax returns to be filed with the Internal Revenue Service from 2016 to 2019. Joseph Ponzo was indicted by a federal grand jury in January 2023 along with his brother Christopher Ponzo.

    “Joseph Ponzo was a sworn officer, who pledged an oath to uphold the law, not violate it. However, he chose greed over integrity,” said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. “Joseph Ponzo’s greed came at the cost of consumers who were left paying the bill. A prison sentence is the price he will now pay for taking bribes and kickbacks.”

    “When an officer shrugs off his sworn oath and breaks the law to pad his paycheck like Joseph Ponzo did, he betrays the people of his community – and all of us who wear a badge,” said Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Boston Division. “Every year, Massachusetts homeowners spend millions of dollars to fund energy conservation projects for consumers. Joseph Ponzo and his brother cheated them by shelling out hundreds of thousands of dollars in a steady stream of bribes and kickbacks to an insider who steered contracts their way, ignoring all ethical boundaries. Know that the FBI will continue to tenaciously investigate such corruption, and bring those involved to justice.”

    “Today’s sentencing of Joseph Ponzo demonstrates IRS-CI’s commitment to routing out corruption from all levels of the government.” said Thomas Demeo, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office. “Ponzo orchestrated an elaborate kickback scheme to improperly obtain contracts from a government backed program designed to aid the citizens of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Programs like Mass Save are designed to help all citizens of Massachusetts, especially the less fortunate, who otherwise would not be able to afford these upgrades to their homes.”

    Joseph Ponzo, along with his brother and co-conspirator Christopher Ponzo, conspired to pay, and did pay, tens of thousands of dollars in cash bribes, kickbacks, and other in-kind benefits, including a John Deere tractor, a computer, home bathroom fixtures and free electrical work, among other things, to Company A employees (Associates 1 and 2) in exchange for the Associates’ assistance in getting the defendants millions of dollars in Mass Save contracts.

    Massachusetts law requires utility companies to collect an energy efficiency surcharge on all Massachusetts energy consumers. These funds, which amount to hundreds of millions of dollars each year, are to be disbursed by the utility companies to fund energy efficiency programs and initiatives in Massachusetts. Under the Mass Save program, the utility companies select lead vendors, like Company A, to approve and select contractors to perform energy improvement work for residential customers. This contracting work – performed by contractors at no-cost or reduced cost to the customer – is then paid for by Company A with Mass Save funds.

    On a weekly basis, from 2013 to 2017, Christopher Ponzo paid Associate 1 $1,000 in cash. At times, Christopher Ponzo paid Associate 1 $5,000 to $10,000 in cash, telling Associate 1 that the extra money was from Joseph Ponzo for his part in the bribery scheme. In return for these payments, Associate 1, among other things, helped Joseph Ponzo set up a shell company, Air Tight, to do insulation work and get approved as a Company A contractor under the Mass Save program. Joseph Ponzo put his spouse’s name on Air Tight incorporation documents and contracting licenses in order to conceal his involvement in his corrupt side business. Despite having no professional experience in residential insulation work, Joseph Ponzo collected over $7 million under the Mass Save program.    

    After Associate 1 left Company A in 2017, Christopher Ponzo and Joseph Ponzo recruited Associate 2 to the bribery-kickback scheme from approximately 2018 to 2022, paying Associate 2 thousands of dollars in cash and hiring a relative of Associate 2 as part of the ongoing scheme.

    During the course of the bribery-kickback scheme, Joseph Ponzo aided in the filing of false tax returns from 2016 to 2019 by claiming hundreds of thousands of dollars in false business deductions. To disguise personal expenses as business deductions, Joseph Ponzo used his company credit card to make hundreds of thousands of dollars in purchases at The Home Depot, Lowes and Staples, claiming to his tax preparers that charges at those establishments were business-related. In reality, Joseph Ponzo used the company credit card at those stores to purchase gift cards that he and his spouse then used to make thousands of dollars in personal expenditures.  

    In April 2022, both Joseph Ponzo and Christopher Ponzo falsely denied making bribe payments to any Company A employees when interviewed by federal agents.

    In February 2025, Christopher Ponzo was sentenced to 27 months in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. Christopher Ponzo was also ordered to pay a $300,000 fine.

    U.S. Attorney Foley; FBI SAC Cohen; and IRS Acting SAC Demeo made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lauren Maynard and Dustin Chao of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case.

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  • MIL-OSI Security: Las Vegas Man Pleads Guilty To Extortion, Stalking, Threatening Text Messages And Money Laundering

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    LAS VEGAS – A Las Vegas resident pleaded guilty on Feb. 21. to extortion, money laundering, stalking, and sending threatening text messages to injure and kill two people and their families in California.

    Idriss Qibaa, 28, was charged by a superseding criminal information. He pleaded guilty to one count of extortion, two counts of money laundering, one count of stalking, and two counts of interstate communications containing a threat to injure. United States District Judge Richard F. Boulware II scheduled sentencing for May 22, 2025.

    According to court documents and admissions Qibaa made in court, On April 29, 2024, he threatened force and extorted $200,000 from a victim. In part of the extortion, on March 7 and 8, 2024, Qibaa obtained $63,500 worth of cryptocurrency. In June and July 2024, Qibaa engaged in online direct messages, texts, and postings, to cause substantial emotion distress to his victims. On July 19, 2024, Qibaa sent text messages containing threats to injure and kill a victim and members of the victim’s family. Later, on July 24, Qibaa sent text messages containing threats to injure and kill another victim.

    At sentencing, Qibaa faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment for the extortion charge; 10 years’ imprisonment for each of the money laundering charges; five years’ imprisonment for the stalking charge; and five years’ imprisonment for each of the interstate communications containing a threat to injure charges. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

    Acting United States Attorney Sue Fahami for the District of Nevada and Special Agent in Charge Spencer L. Evans for the FBI Las Vegas Division made the announcement.

    The FBI and the Beverly Hills Police Department investigated the case.

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  • MIL-OSI Security: Acting United States Attorney Fondren Announces Federal Indictment Against Gynecologist for Sexually Abusing Patients, Adulterating Medical Devices for Reuse on Patients, and Healthcare Fraud

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Memphis, TN – Reagan Fondren, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced today that Sanjeev Kumar, 44, was arrested this morning and charged with enticing and inducing four victims to travel interstate to engage in illegal sexual activity, adulteration of medical devices, misbranding of medical devices, and healthcare fraud.

    The indictment unsealed today alleges that from at least in or about September 2019 and up to and including at least in or about June 2024, Kumar enticed and induced four victims to travel interstate to his medical offices in Memphis, Tennessee, at least in part for the purpose of subjecting them to a sexual activity for which he could be charged with a criminal offense in violation of Tennessee Code Annotated Section 39-13-503.

    According to the Indictment, between 2019 and 2024, Kumar sexually abused women by conducting medically unnecessary gynecologic procedures with medical devices that he held under insanitary conditions and reused on patients when they were required to be disposed of or properly reprocessed. Kumar did not inform patients that he was reusing “single use” or improperly reprocessed devices before he inserted the devices into their vaginas. He also billed Medicare and Medicaid as if the procedures were medically necessary and as if he had used a new or properly reprocessed device for each procedure.

    Acting U.S. Attorney Fondren said: “Kumar was consistently the top-paid provider in Tennessee for Medicare and Medicaid for hysteroscopy biopsy services, and he profited substantially from these criminal acts. The allegations indicate that Kumar acted as a predator in a white coat and used the cover of conducting medical examinations to put his patients at risk and enrich himself.”   

    “This doctor put profit ahead of patients,” said Special Agent in Charge Joseph E. Carrico of the FBI Nashville Field Office. “The abusive behavior alleged here took place over five years, which means there could be many victims out there we have not heard from. We want you to know FBI victim specialists, special agents, and analysts investigating this case are here for each and every one of you, and we are your advocates. It is important to remember nothing Dr. Kumar has done was, or ever will be, your fault. We see time and time again that voices matter, and those who have stepped forward have empowered others to do the same. If you have any information concerning this case, or if you believe you are a victim or may have been affected by these alleged crimes, please visit www.fbi.gov/KumarVictims and complete the questionnaire so that we can contact you.  Your responses are voluntary but would be useful in the federal investigation and would enable us to serve you as a victim.”

    “Physicians have a sworn duty to prioritize the health and safety of their patients,” said Kelly Blackmon, Special Agent in Charge at the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG).  “HHS-OIG is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to hold accountable those who exploit their patients and federal health care programs for personal gain.”

    This case is being investigated by the United States HHS-OIG, the United States Food and Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigations (FDA-OCI), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI).

    The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations of criminal conduct, not evidence.  The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and convicted through due process of law.  If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of the factors unique to the case, including the defendant’s prior criminal records (if any), the defendant’s role in the offense, and the characteristics of the violation.

    Acting U.S. Attorney Fondren thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Lynn Crum, Scott Smith, and Sarah Pazar Williams for prosecuting this case, as well as the law enforcement partners who investigated the case. 

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    For more information, please contact the Media Relations Team at USATNW.Media@usdoj.gov. Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office on Facebook or on X at @WDTNNews for office news and updates.

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  • MIL-OSI Security: D.C. Man Convicted of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm, Conspiracy to Commit Bank Fraud, and Drug Distribution

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

                WASHINGTON – Deangelo Lorenzo Lewis, 28, of Washington D.C., was found guilty today of unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and possession with intent to distribute marijuana. U.S. District Judge Loren L. AliKhan scheduled a sentencing hearing for May 30, 2025.

                The conviction was announced by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin, Jr., and United States Marshal Robert A. Dixon, and FBI Special Agent in Charge Sean T. Ryan of the FBI Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division,

                According to court documents, Deputy U.S. Marshals arrested Lewis on October 3, 2023, in an apartment that he had rented using a stolen identity.  After securing Lewis and the apartment, Deputy U.S. Marshals applied for, received, and executed a search warrant on the apartment where they discovered more than $150,000 worth of checks that appeared to have been stolen from the U.S. mail, a check printer, and blank check stock, as well as driver’s licenses and social security cards issued to persons other than Lewis. Deputy U.S. Marshals also discovered a Century Arms, Micro Draco 7.62 x 39mm semi-automatic assault pistol, two 9mm handgun magazines, and approximately 1 ½ pounds of marijuana packaged for distribution.  The Micro Draco was loaded with 26 rounds in the magazine and one round in the chamber.

                The case was investigated by the United States Marshals Service with assistance from the FBI’s Washington Field Office. It is prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys James B. Nelson, Justin F. Song, Jacqueline O. Yarbro and Paralegal Specialist Jenna Lee.

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  • MIL-OSI Security: Upstate CEO Sentenced to Federal Prison After Defrauding Company to Build a $2.5M Beach House

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    CHARLESTON, S.C. — Joseph Edward Gallagher, 67, of Greenville was sentenced to more than three years in federal for committing wire fraud after defrauding his company to build a beach house. 

    Evidence presented at the sentencing hearing established that Gallagher served as the president and CEO of AFL Telecommunications, which is owned by Fujikura, Inc. Despite receiving yearly compensation in excess of $2 million, Gallagher devised a scheme to have AFL pay for the construction of a personal beach house. Gallagher created a false business documents indicating EPIC Development Group, LLC, was serving as a consultant for AFL Telecommunications in the field of government contracts and optical infrastructure. In truth, EPIC was a builder and was constructing Gallagher’s beach house on Kiawah Island. 

    When EPIC submitted invoices for construction costs, Gallagher would alter them to indicate that the recipient of the services was AFL and that the services involved consulting rather than construction. Gallagher would further submit the altered invoices to AFL for payment. Gallagher succeeded, through fraud and deceit, in obtaining approximately $2.5 million from AFL for the construction of the beach house. EPIC had no knowledge that Gallagher was defrauding his employer.  

    “Gallagher’s actions represent a serious breach of trust. He abused his position of authority diverting millions from his company to fund a personal luxury,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Brook B. Andrews for the District of South Carolina. “This sentence underscores that such brazen acts of fraud, regardless of an individual’s status, will be met with serious consequences.”

    U.S. District Judge Jacquelyn D. Austin sentenced Gallagher to 41 months imprisonment. She also ordered Gallagher to pay a $34,000 fine. She will decide the issue of restitution at a later hearing.  

    This case was investigated by the FBI Columbia Field Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Watkins prosecuted the case. 

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  • MIL-OSI Security: Cartel Boss Tied to Southlake Murder-for-Hire Among Defendants Extradited From Mexico

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Among the 29 cartel bosses extradited from Mexico to the United States on Thursday was Northern District of Texas defendant Jose Rodolfo Villarreal Hernandez, aka “El Gato,” announced Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Chad Meacham. 

    Mr. Villarreal Hernandez, a Mexican national who held a high-level position in the Beltran-Leyva Organization (BLO) Drug Cartel, was charged in June 2018 with interstate stalking and conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire in the brutal slaying of a 43-year-old Southlake, Texas lawyer in 2013. 

    He was added to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List in October 2020 and arrested by Mexican law enforcement agents in Atizapán de Zaragoza, Mexico in January 2023.

    Attorney General Pam Bondi announced his successful extradition yesterday, pledging to prosecute all extradited cartel bosses “to the fullest extent of the law in honor of the brave law enforcement agents who have dedicated their careers — and in some cases, given their lives — to protect innocent people from the scourge of violent cartels.” 

    Mr. Villarreal Hernandez will make his initial appearance in federal court next week.

    According to evidence presented at the trial of his coconspirators, Mr. Villarreal Hernandez allegedly directed and financed a multi-year effort to locate and assassinate his victim, an attorney with ties to a rival cartel. Testimony revealed that Mr. Villarreal Hernandez allegedly believed the attorney was involved with the death of Mr. Villarreal Hernandez’s father and wanted revenge. 

    The victim was shot while sitting in the passenger seat of his vehicle outside an upscale shopping center in  Southlake on May 22, 2013. His wife was standing near the driver’s side door when her husband was killed. 

    Three men who, acting on orders from Mr. Villarreal Hernandez, tracked the victim prior to his death were convicted and sentenced in 2016: Jose Luis Cepeda-Cortes and Jesus Gerardo Ledezma-Cepeda were convicted at trial of interstate stalking and conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire; Mr. Cepeda-Cortez was also convicted of tampering with documents or proceedings. Both men received life sentences. Jesus Gerardo Ledezma-Campano, son of Mr. Ledezma-Cepeda, pleaded guilty prior to trial to one count of interstate stalking and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

    A fourth defendant, Ramon Villarreal-Hernandez, the brother of Jose Rodolfo, was arrested in Mexico and extradited to the United States in 2020. He pleaded guilty to interstate stalking in June 2022 and was sentenced to ten years in prison.

    According to the U.S. State Department, in addition to allegedly ordering the Southlake murder, Mr. Villarreal Hernandez is believed to have overseen the importation of large quantities of cocaine into the United States as well as committing violent acts within the Republic of Mexico and the United States to maintain his organization’s power and status.

    “After more than a decade, Mr. Villarreal Hernandez will have to answer for his alleged crimes in an American courtroom,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Chad Meacham. “Since the victim was gunned down in a public parking lot in 2013, law enforcement’s commitment to this case has never wavered. I extend my sincere thanks to the federal, state, local, and international partners who have pulled together to ensure this defendant will be brought to justice.”

    An indictment is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. Mr. Villarreal Hernandez is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

    The statutory maximum penalty for interstate stalking is life in prison; the statutory maximum for the murder-for-hire charge is life in prison or death.

    The investigation was led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office and the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Dallas Field Division, with assistance from the Southlake Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, US. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office, the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office, the Fort Worth Police Department, and the Grapevine Police Department. The  Mexican Secretariat of the Navy, Fiscalía Generalde la República (FGR), Coordinación Nacional Antisecuestro (CONASE) coordinated in the arrest of Mr. Villarreal-Hernandez.  The U.S. Marshal Service for the Northern District of Texas assisted in securing the defendant upon his arrival in Texas. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the FBI’s Legal Attaché Office in Mexico City, and the U.S. Marshals Mexico City Foreign Field Office provided valuable assistance.

    Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua Burgess (fmr) and Aisha Saleem prosecuted the case against Mr. Luis Cepeda-Cortes, Mr. Ledezma-Cepeda, and Mr. Ledezma-Campano. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shawn Smith and Laura Montes are prosecuting the case against Mr. Villarreal Hernandez.

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  • MIL-OSI Security: St. Louis County Felon Who Shot at Police Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig on Friday sentenced a convicted felon who shot at St. Louis County Police Department officers in 2020 to 25 years in prison.

    On Sept. 1, 2020, Dexter McKinnies shot at police, including officers who were members of the FBI Violent Crime Safe Streets Task Force, as they were trying to arrest him. Police had been trying to locate Dexter McKinnies during an investigation of multiple violent crimes and learned that his brother, Lawton McKinnies, had an active felony arrest warrant for three counts of first-degree assault and three counts of armed criminal action.

    Officers arranged a meeting as a ruse. The McKinnies went to the meeting believing that they would be performing maintenance work on a property. When Lawton McKinnies arrived, officers arrested him and discovered that he was armed with a 9mm pistol. Dexter McKinnies was across the street and fired multiple shots at officers with a 9mm pistol, striking an FBI truck. Officers returned fire and struck McKinnies.

    Both McKinnies are convicted felons and are thus barred from possessing a firearm.

    Dexter McKinnies, now 34, pleaded guilty in November to five felonies: one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and two counts each of assault on a federal officer and discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.

    Lawton McKinnies, now 36, pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced to three years in prison. In March, he was sentenced to another year for violating his supervised release.

    The St. Louis County Police Department and the FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Donald Boyce and Nichole Frankenberg prosecuted the case.

    This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

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  • MIL-OSI Security: Co-Leader of Transnational Drug Trafficking Organization Arrives in the U.S. to Face Federal Narcotics and Murder Charges

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    LOS ANGELES – An alleged leader of a transnational drug trafficking enterprise co-helmed by former Canadian Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding has been sent to the United States from Mexico to face federal charges alleging that he ran a continuing criminal enterprise, committed murder and attempted murder, and conspired to possess, distribute, and export cocaine, the Justice Department announced today. 

    Andrew Clark, 34, a Canadian citizen who was residing in Mexico, was arrested by Mexican authorities in October 2024 and is scheduled to be arraigned on Monday in United States District Court in Phoenix on charges contained in a 16-count superseding indictment out of the Central District of California. Alongside Wedding, Clark allegedly controlled a billion-dollar drug enterprise with supply routes that transported ton-quantities of cocaine from Colombia to Canada by way of Mexico and Southern California.

    From March to August 2024, Wedding and Clark allegedly conspired with others to export, possess, and distribute more than 1,800 kilograms of cocaine. In addition, using a network of virtual currency wallets, Wedding, Clark, and their co-conspirators transferred approximately a quarter of a billion dollars from April to September 2024. In one day, investigators seized more than $3 million dollars from one cryptocurrency wallet. 

    “The defendant, as described in the superseding indictment, played a key role in running a violent, international drug trafficking organization that was responsible for multiple murders,” said Acting United States Attorney Joseph T. McNally. “We are grateful to have him in the United States where he will face justice. When law enforcement officials around the globe work together, there is nowhere criminals can hide.”

    The superseding indictment alleges that Wedding and Clark, whose aliases include “The Dictator,” directed the November 20, 2023, murders of two individuals and the attempted murder of a third victim in Ontario, Canada. Wedding and Clark also allegedly ordered the murder of a fourth individual on May 18, 2024. Clark and another co-defendant are also charged with the April 1, 2024, murder of a fifth individual in Ontario, Canada.

    Clark is the second-named defendant in the superseding indictment that charges a total of 16 defendants. With Clark’s expected court appearance, a total of eight defendants will have been arraigned in this case. Clark’s co-conspirators are scheduled to begin trial on May 6.

    An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.

    If convicted, Clark would face a mandatory minimum penalty of life in federal prison on the continuing criminal enterprise charge. The murder and attempted murder charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. The drug trafficking charges carry mandatory minimum penalties of 10 years in prison.

    The FBI investigated this matter with the Los Angeles Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Los Angeles Field Division, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police – Federal Policing. In addition, significant assistance was provided by U.S. law enforcement partners, including Homeland Security Investigations – Detroit and United States Customs and Border Protection – Buffalo; Canadian law enforcement partners, including Niagara Regional Police Service, Ontario Provincial Police, Toronto Police Service, and Peel Regional Police; Mexican law enforcement partners, including the Attorney General’s Office (Fiscalía General de la República) and the Criminal Investigation Agency (Agencia de Investigación Criminal); and Colombian law enforcement partners, including Colombian National Police – Directorate of Criminal Investigation and Interpol, Special Interagency Investigation Group (Policía Nacional de Colombia – Dirección de Investigación Criminal e Interpol, Grupo Especial de Investigación Interagenciales). This investigation was conducted with the support of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF).

    Assistant United States Attorneys Lyndsi Allsop and Maria Jhai of the Violent and Organized Crime Section and Ryan Waters of the Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section are prosecuting this case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided substantial assistance.

    This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF. 

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Former State Official and State Representative Charged with Offenses Related to Cancelled State Audit of Medicaid Provider

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Marc H. Silverman, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Anish Shukla, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the FBI, and Harry T. Chavis, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in New England, today announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven has returned an 18-count indictment charging KONSTANTINOS “KOSTA” DIAMANTIS, 68, of Farmington, and CHRISTOPHER ZIOGAS, 73, of Bristol, with various offenses related to the cancelling of a state audit of a Medicaid provider who engaged in health care fraud.

    The indictment was returned on February 25, 2025.  Diamantis and Ziogas each appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge S. Dave Vatti in Bridgeport, entered pleas of not guilty to the charges in the indictment, and were released on $500,000 bonds.

    As alleged in the indictment, between January and June 2020, Diamantis, while serving at Deputy Secretary of the State of Connecticut’s Office of Policy and Management (OPM), and Ziogas, who served as a State Representative for Connecticut’s 79th Assembly District, engaged in a scheme in which Diamantis solicited and received corrupt payments and benefits from Helen Zervas, an optometrist and owner of Family Eye Care in Bristol, in exchange for official acts concerning a State of Connecticut audit of Zervas’s and Family Eye Care’s Medicaid overbilling.  Diamantis and Ziogas then took steps to conceal their conduct.

    As part of the alleged scheme, in January 2020, an official with Connecticut’s Department of Social Services (DSS) provided notice that it would perform an audit of Zervas’s and Family Eye Care’s Medicaid billing.  Zervas, who has been charged separately, knew that she had fraudulently overbilled Medicaid for medical services that she had not provided, or that were not medically necessary.  Zervas sought assistance from Ziogas, who was her fiancée, to prevent the DSS audit from proceeding.  Ziogas, in turn, sought help from Diamantis.  In exchange for payments from Ziogas and Zervas, Diamantis undertook official acts, and pressured other state officials to undertake official acts, aimed at favorably resolving the DSS audit.

    As alleged in the indictment, on March 4, 2020, Ziogas made a bribe payment to Diamantis in the amount of $20,000.  On that date, Zervas’s attorney emailed a DSS official with a settlement offer to resolve DSS’s audit.  The next day, Zervas reimbursed Ziogas with a $25,000 check from Family Eye Care.  On March 12, 2020, Ziogas made a $10,000 bribe payment to Diamantis, and was subsequently reimbursed by Zervas.  After having been advised and pressured indirectly by Diamantis through officials at OPM and DSS, the DSS official cancelled the DSS audit and, on May 1, 2020, accepted Zervas’s settlement proposal.

    The indictment further alleges that, on May 12, 2020, Diamantis and Ziogas delivered a check from Family Eye Care in the amount of $599,810 to DSS.  On May 15, 2020, Ziogas, through Zervas, made a final bribe payment of $65,000 to Diamantis.

    The indictment also alleges that Diamantis and Ziogas made multiple false statements when interviewed by the FBI during the investigation of this matter, and that Diamantis failed to include the $95,000 in corrupt payments on his 2020 federal tax return.

    Finally, the indictment alleges that Ziogas, an attorney, separately committed bank fraud.  Ziogas was the trustee of a client trust, identified in the indictment as “Trust-1.”  In November 2019, Ziogas prepared and caused to be negotiated a check from Trust-1 in the amount of $5,500 made out to “Kosta Diamantis.”

    The indictment charges Diamantis and Ziogas with extortion under color of official right, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years; bribery, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years; conspiracy to commit extortion under color of official right, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years; and conspiracy to commit bribery, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years.

    The indictment also charges Diamantis with seven counts, and Ziogas with two counts, of making false statements, which carries maximum term of imprisonment of five years on each count; Diamantis with one count of filing a false tax return, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of three years; Ziogas with three counts of making illegal monetary transactions, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years on each count; and Ziogas with one count of bank fraud, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years.

    Acting U.S. Attorney Silverman stressed that an indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

    This investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan N. Francis and David E. Novick.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Previously convicted felon sentenced to 30 years in prison for possessing a machinegun while trafficking methamphetamine

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    NORFOLK, Va. – A member of the Bloods criminal street gang was sentenced today to 30 years in prison for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a machinegun during a drug-trafficking crime.

    According to court documents, on Aug. 28, 2021, in Norfolk, Christopher Scarbor, aka Hellboy, 32, was in a BMW that fled from a marked police unit at a high rate of speed and ignored stop signs. The car entered a cemetery and crashed through and over gravestones before it spun out and stopped.

    After the car came to rest in the cemetery, Scarbor was arrested after he attempted to flee on foot. Scarbor possessed a waist pack that contained 87 pills and a machinegun conversion device (MCD), used to convert a semi-automatic firearm into a fully automatic machinegun. Police also recovered two semi-automatic firearms inside the car.

    On April 5, 2023, Scarbor was wanted for failing to appear in court while he was on pretrial release for his Aug. 28, 2021 offense. Norfolk police located Scarbor in a hotel in Norfolk. Officers observed an ammunition magazine in the bathroom and, from within the toilet tank, recovered a handgun with an affixed MCD; 8.51 grams of cocaine; 14.94 grams of fentanyl and xylazine; 17.16 grams of para-fluorofentanyl, fentanyl, and xylazine; and 37.06 grams of methamphetamine.

    In 2013, Scarbor was convicted for robbery and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.

    Erik S. Siebert, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Michael Feinberg, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office; and Ramin Fatehi, Norfolk Commonwealth’s Attorney, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. District Judge John A. Gibney Jr.

    Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Graham M. Stolle, an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney with the Norfolk Commonwealth’s Attorney Office, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph E. DePadilla prosecuted the case.

    A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:23-cr-112.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Essex County Armed Career Criminal Charged With Weapons Possession And Trafficking Fentanyl, Heroin, And Methamphetamine

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    NEWARK, N.J. – An Essex County man was charged today with (i) being a felon in possession of a firearm, (ii) possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, heroin, and methamphetamine, and (iii) possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, Acting U.S. Attorney Vikas Khanna announced.

    Michael Weaver, 38, of Irvington, New Jersey was charged today by superseding indictment with the above-referenced charges, and his arraignment will be scheduled before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi in Newark federal court.

    As a result of Weaver’s significant and violent criminal history, which includes numerous convictions in Essex County for robbery, aggravated assault, unlawful weapons possession, and drug trafficking, he was charged under the Armed Career Criminal Act.  That charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in prison.  In total, as a result of all the charges in the Superseding Indictment, Weaver faces a total mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in prison and a maximum sentence of imprisonment of life in prison.  Each offense carries a maximum fine of $250,000.  

    Acting U.S. Attorney Khanna credited special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Terence G. Reilly, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II and Chief Mitchell G. McGuire, and the Newark Police Department, under the direction of Director Emanuel Miranda, with the investigation.

    The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Stern of the Opioid Abuse Prevention and Enforcement Unit in Newark.

    The charges and allegations contained in the Superseding Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
     

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Northborough Man Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Embezzling Over $360,000 From Non-Profit

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    BOSTON – A Northborough man was sentenced today in federal court in Worcester for wire fraud and money laundering charges after embezzling approximately $366,477 from a non-profit organization in Sturbridge.

    Kyriakos Kapiris, a/k/a Rick Kapiris, 38, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman to two years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. Kapiris was also ordered to pay $371, 088.97 in restitution. In June 2022, Kapiris pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering.

    From April 2015 to May 2020, Kapiris worked as the Information Technology Manager at Venture Community Services (VCS), a non-profit organization in Sturbridge, Mass. that services developmentally disabled members of the community. As part of his responsibilities, the organization provided Kapiris access to two company credit cards to purchase equipment and services as needed. Beginning in 2016, Kapiris used the two company credit cards to purportedly purchase equipment from two vendor accounts on the web app Square and one account on Amazon. In reality, Kapiris created the three vendor accounts to embezzle the funds and fabricated sales invoices for purportedly purchased equipment to conceal the scheme. Kapiris used the names of legitimate Massachusetts companies for the two Square accounts and created the Amazon account in the name of a company that he controlled, “NetworkingPlus.”  

    Kapiris linked the three vendor accounts to several of his own personal accounts at Bank of America into which he transferred the fraudulent proceeds. Kapiris then used the stolen funds for personal expenses, including to build a house. The house was forfeited by the government and sold.  

    At sentencing, the Court noted that the defendant had been previously convicted of stealing from a prior employer and was on probation for that offense at the time of his theft from VCS.

    United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Sturbridge and Northborough Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lucy Sun and Kristen Noto of the Worcester Branch Office prosecuted the case.
     

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Elon Musk is firing thousands of workers – why this could be the biggest jobs cut in US history

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Thomas Gift, Associate Professor and Director of the Centre on US Politics, UCL

    Elon Musk is wielding a chainsaw against US government departments, potentially culling tens of thousands of jobs, as part of a huge plan to shrink the government and slash federal spending.

    This large-scale purge of public servants, coordinated through Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), may end up creating one of the biggest employment cuts in US history. Tech company IBM laid off 60,000 people in 1993, and about 25,000 workers (some outside the US) lost their jobs when Lehman Brothers bank went bust in 2008, but this swathe of job losses could outstrip them both, with numbers predicted to hit around 300,000.

    On Friday February 21, Musk sent a “productivity email” to all federal employees demanding that they summarise the work they’d done in the past week. President Donald Trump hailed Musk’s ultimatum as “ingenious” and echoed that failure to comply would mean that employees would be “semi-fired or fired”.

    By the Monday, chaos reigned in Washington. The bedlam left career civil servants unsure of how, or even whether, to reply, marking the latest flashpoint in a tumultuous last month created by Doge and aimed at trimming the federal workforce. Adding insult to injury, Musk later admitted the email was a ruse to test whether federal workers “had a pulse”. A follow-up email is rumoured to be coming this weekend.

    On X, Musk doubled down, posting an image of the cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants looking at a “Got Done Last Week” list that included: “Cried about Trump, Cried about Elon, Cried about Trump and Elon some more.” Days earlier, at the annual gathering of the US right wing, the Conservative Political Action Conference, Musk brandished a chainsaw and screamed “Chainsaw!” to show the uproarious Maga crowd how he intended to eviscerate the federal bureaucracy.

    Political payback?

    Doge’s proposed job cuts are vast and deep. So far, much of Musk’s ire has been directed at the US Agency for International Development (USAid), where 4,700 employees have already been put on leave – with 1,600 of those positions terminated.

    It’s perhaps no surprise that Doge started with this soft target. Although the US spends only about 1% of federal money on development aid, polls consistently show that Americans, especially Republicans, think Washington overspends on foreign assistance.

    The cuts also come amid rising speculation that these firings could be part of a political retaliation by the White House. Influential adviser Stephen Miller claimed, without showing evidence, that 98% of workers at USAid “either donated to Kamala Harris or another leftwing candidate”.

    The Trump administration has also forced out dozens of officials across the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency charged with investigating attempts at foreign interference in US elections.

    Yet it’s not just these institutions where federal jobs are under threat. From the Department of Education to the National Parks Service, Musk is revving up his chainsaw.

    Even the Pentagon, traditionally a “third rail” for Republican presidents when it comes to spending reductions, is feeling the squeeze. The US secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, has promised to slash military spending by 8% over the next five years from its US$850 billion (£674 billion) annual budget. While US service members in uniform are currently exempt from job losses, many expect civilian workers, especially those in their probationary period, to be shown the door soon.

    There are many thousands of federal jobs across the US.

    Washington DC, which voted for former vice-president Harris over Trump by a margin of 92.5% to 6.6%, is home to the largest number of government jobs: about 2.2 million civilians. However, federal workers are spread across the US. That includes red states where Trump won in 2024. For example, there are more than 129,000 federal jobs in Texas, more than 94,000 in Florida, and more than 79,000 in Georgia.

    For Trump, this complicates the Doge agenda to make a dent in America’s US$36 trillion (£28.6 trillion) debt through mass job terminations. While many Maga supporters cheered campaign pledges to eliminate government “waste, fraud and abuse”, many now confront the stark reality of job losses in their communities (or even their own jobs).

    Trump has promised to get spending by the national government under control, but without addressing reform of essential services – such as Medicare and social security – it’s unclear how he can achieve this goal.

    Backlash and legal battles

    Public opinion towards Musk breaks sharply along partisan lines. According to recent polling by YouGov, 42% of Americans have a positive view of Musk (52% unfavourable), including 79% of Republicans but just 10% of Democrats. The same percentage, 42%, think favourably of Doge, with similar partisan divides. But the number of Americans who rate Musk positively has been dropping in the past few weeks, although he is seen as increasingly influential.

    Contributing to negativity, Musk’s rollout of Doge to oversee cuts to the federal labour force hasn’t come without major flubs. For example, he recently fired (before un-firing) workers at the National Nuclear Security Administration, tasked with overseeing the country’s nuclear weapons stockpiles.

    Even some Trump loyalists are pushing back. After Musk’s “document work or resign” email was blasted to the FBI, newly minted director Kash Patel sent his own message telling employees not to respond, declaring: “The FBI, through the Office of the Director, is in charge of all of our review processes.”

    On X, Harvard political scientist Maya Sen called the reaction “probably a good development for the rule of law”, adding: “Musk got a head start but separate & distinct interests of new political appointees over their own workforces will clash more and more w/Musk.”

    The Trump administration now faces mounting legal challenges to Doge’s agenda. An amended lawsuit filed by a cadre of unions, including the nation’s largest federation of unions, AFL-CIO, alleged that mass firings of probationary workers is illegal, and that only federal agencies have control over human resources decisions.

    Beyond legal chokepoints, Musk confronts increasing scepticism – even within Doge itself. On Tuesday February 25, 21 employees from Doge resigned, saying they would not use their professional skills to “dismantle critical public services”.

    Even among some Republican lawmakers, there’s worry about the breakneck speed of firings. Republican representative Jeff Van Drew, for example, said that “we have to be really careful that we’re cutting things that don’t hurt everyday people”. Some have criticised Musk’s flippant attitude toward longstanding public servants. Others think Musk is taking a hatchet to a problem that requires a scalpel.

    Whether a hatchet, a scalpel or a chainsaw, Musk’s slash-and-burn approach carries risks. By the 2026 midterms (when 35 of the 100 Senate seats will be up for election), the picture of Musk gleefully slicing government jobs could be less a symbol of efficiency, more a symbol of Trump-era hubris.

    Thomas Gift does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Elon Musk is firing thousands of workers – why this could be the biggest jobs cut in US history – https://theconversation.com/elon-musk-is-firing-thousands-of-workers-why-this-could-be-the-biggest-jobs-cut-in-us-history-250854

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Minneapolis Man Arrested for Attempting to Provide Material Support to ISIS

    Source: US State of North Dakota

    Abdisatar Ahmed Hassan was arrested yesterday and charged by criminal complaint with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization.

    As alleged in the criminal complaint, in December 2024, Hassan attempted to travel from Minnesota to Somalia to join ISIS on two occasions, neither of which were successful. Hassan attempted to disguise the purpose of his travel as visiting family despite having none in Somalia and was traveling with his birth certificate, naturalization certificate, and high school diploma. The FBI’s investigation established that Hassan publicly supported ISIS on social media through multiple posts and communicated with a Facebook account for the Manjaniq Media Center, which encouraged individuals to travel to join ISIS and touts itself as a media organization of the Islamic Caliphate. The investigation further revealed that Hassan praised Shamsud-Din Jabbar, the perpetrator of the ISIS-inspired terrorist attack in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Jan. 1. On Feb. 21, Hassan also posted a video of himself driving while holding a small ISIS flag inside the vehicle, as well as another video of himself driving with an open knife on his lap. On Feb. 26, FBI observed Hassan driving while again holding the ISIS flag.

    Hassan was charged with one count of attempting to provide material support and resources to a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization. He made his initial appearance in the District of Minnesota today and was ordered to remain in custody pending a formal detention hearing which will take place at a later date.

    The FBI is investigating the case with assistance from the Minneapolis Joint Terrorism Task Force.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Bejar for the District of Minnesota and Trial Attorneys Ryan White and Charles Kovats Jr. of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting the case.

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

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Alleged Member of Fraud Ring Targeting Elderly Arrested in Florida

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ST. LOUIS – A man indicted and accused of aiding a scam that cost at least four victims more than $550,000 was arrested Friday in Florida.

    Michael P. Garcia, 36, of the Miami area, was indicted on Dec. 18, 2024, in U.S. District Court in St. Louis with one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.

    The conspirators contacted victims and made various false claims to induce victims to hand over cash or valuables, the indictment says.  In one instance, the conspirators claimed to be from a victim’s financial institution and told the victim that her accounts had been compromised and were being used for illegal activity and that the victim needed to give them money to stop that illegal activity. Couriers were then sent to pick up valuables from victims of the scam.

    Garcia is accused in the indictment of recruiting and paying a courier to pick up $20,000 in cash and gold bars from two victims in Brooklyn, New York on Oct. 30, 2023. The courier picked up another $30,000 in cash two days later, the indictment says. Garcia is also accused of sending that same courier to Summerfield, North Carolina in November of 2023 to pick up gold bars from a victim there. That same month, Garcia sent the courier to pick up about $200,000 in gold bars from a 76-year-old Fenton, Missouri victim who’d already supplied the conspirators with $20,000 in cryptocurrency, the indictment says. The courier has been arrested and charged.

    Garcia will be brought to St. Louis to face charges.

    Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

    The FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Clow is prosecuting the case.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Johnson County Man Sentenced for Production of Child Pornography

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    LEXINGTON, Ky. – A Debord, Ky., man, Dustin Newsome, 35, was sentenced on Friday to 35 years in prison, by U.S. District Judge Karen Caldwell for production of child pornography. 

    According to his plea agreement, in August 2023, the parent of the minor victim called law enforcement and reported that she had located THC vape cartridges in her child’s room.  The minor victim stated that he received the cartridges and a cellphone from a mail carrier, later identified as Newsome, in exchange for nude images and sexually explicit videos.  Law enforcement discovered nine minor victims that reported having produced sexually explicit images and videos at Newsome’s request.

    A search of Newsome’s residence revealed devices that contained numerous sexually explicit images, videos, and recordings of live chats between Newsome and at least four of the minor victims. In addition to the images and videos he produced, there were several hundred images and videos of prepubescent minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct that Newsome had obtained from the internet and stored on his electronic devices.  These images and videos were obtained over many years beginning in 2013. 

    Under federal law, Newsome must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence. Upon his release from prison, he will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for 10 years. Newsome was also ordered to pay $105,000 in restitution. 

    Paul McCaffrey, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Michael Stansbury, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Louisville Field Office; and Phillip J. Burnett, Jr., Commissioner of the Kentucky State Police, jointly announced the sentence.

    The investigation was conducted by FBI and KSP.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Roth is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

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

    – END –

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Man Committing International Child Exploitation Pleads Guilty in Miami Federal Court

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    MIAMI – An Italian national living in Miami who used social media and money to entice minors, including four United Kingdom girls ages 14 to 16, to make and send him sexually explicit images of themselves has pled guilty to producing child sexual abuse material and committing international promotional money laundering in furtherance of his child exploitation crimes.

    During a court hearing in the Southern District of Florida, Marco Pagano, 41, admitted the following: From about March 2023 to April 2024, Pagano engaged in illegal online exchanges with minors, including four girls living in the United Kingdom. As to those four minors, Pagano used his online payment system accounts more than 180 times to send thousands of dollars from the United States to the girls abroad. In exchange, Pagano demanded that the four minors produce illegal pornographic photographs and videos and send those to him through a social media application. These included images of the minor girls performing sexual acts on one another.

    Sentencing is set for June 9, at 9:00 a.m., in Miami before United States District Court Judge Robert N. Scola. Pagano faces up to life in prison.

    United States Attorney Hayden P. O’Byrne for the Southern District of Florida and Acting Special Agent in Charge Brett Skiles of FBI Miami made the announcement.

    FBI Miami investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Zachary A. Keller is prosecuting it.

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

    Anyone with information relating to child sexual exploitation or abuse is encouraged to call the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI.

    Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-20360.

    ###

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Minneapolis Man Arrested for Attempting to Provide Material Support to ISIS

    Source: United States Attorneys General 2

    Abdisatar Ahmed Hassan was arrested yesterday and charged by criminal complaint with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization.

    As alleged in the criminal complaint, in December 2024, Hassan attempted to travel from Minnesota to Somalia to join ISIS on two occasions, neither of which were successful. Hassan attempted to disguise the purpose of his travel as visiting family despite having none in Somalia and was traveling with his birth certificate, naturalization certificate, and high school diploma. The FBI’s investigation established that Hassan publicly supported ISIS on social media through multiple posts and communicated with a Facebook account for the Manjaniq Media Center, which encouraged individuals to travel to join ISIS and touts itself as a media organization of the Islamic Caliphate. The investigation further revealed that Hassan praised Shamsud-Din Jabbar, the perpetrator of the ISIS-inspired terrorist attack in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Jan. 1. On Feb. 21, Hassan also posted a video of himself driving while holding a small ISIS flag inside the vehicle, as well as another video of himself driving with an open knife on his lap. On Feb. 26, FBI observed Hassan driving while again holding the ISIS flag.

    Hassan was charged with one count of attempting to provide material support and resources to a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization. He made his initial appearance in the District of Minnesota today and was ordered to remain in custody pending a formal detention hearing which will take place at a later date.

    The FBI is investigating the case with assistance from the Minneapolis Joint Terrorism Task Force.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Bejar for the District of Minnesota and Trial Attorneys Ryan White and Charles Kovats Jr. of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting the case.

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

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Transient Man Sentenced to Life Plus 10 Years After Murder Conviction

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    TULSA, Okla. – A transient man was found guilty in October 2024 of First Degree Murder in Indian Country, Assault with a Dangerous Weapon, Brandishing and Discharging a Firearm During a Crime of Violence, and Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury in Indian Country.

    Today, U.S. District Judge Gregory K. Frizzell sentenced Cameron Lynn, 34, to life imprisonment for first-degree murder, plus 120 months for discharging a weapon during a crime of violence. Lynn’s remaining counts of assault were sentenced concurrently as 120 months for each count.

    “Cameron Lynn maliciously took the life of Alcides Monroig and assaulted another,” said U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson. “This life sentence, plus an additional ten years, will ensure Lynn is no longer a danger to anyone in the Northern District. This sentence would not be possible without the hard work of the detectives, agents, and prosecutors.”

    According to evidence presented at trial, on February 24, 2024, Tulsa Police officers were dispatched around midnight to a call where someone was shot. The caller was in a heavily wooded area near railroad tracks, flagged down officers and led them to the encampment. Officers found two victims in their tents that were shot. Medical personnel arrived on the scene and rendered aid to both victims. One victim was shot in the abdomen and transported to a local hospital. The other victim, Alcides Monroig, died at the scene.

    The caller and surviving victim told officers that they were asleep when Lynn approached their encampment. They explained that Lynn started going through their belongings, stating he was trying to find his stuff. They told officers they shined a flashlight, trying to see Lynn, and asked him to leave. Lynn refused and shot several times at both tents before fleeing.

    Several witnesses testified that they saw Lynn heading towards the encampment. After they heard several shots fired, Lynn ran toward the witnesses, telling them that they needed to leave the area and that he shot in self-defense.

    Lynn is a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. He will remain in custody pending transfer to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. The Tulsa Police Department and FBI investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth Elmore and Stephen Flynn prosecuted.

    This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about PSN, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.

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  • MIL-OSI Security: Kansas resident sentenced for distributing child sexual assault material while in Laredo

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    LAREDO, Texas – A 44-year-old resident of Madison, Kansas, has been sentenced for distribution of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.

    Terry Lee Trower pleaded guilty Sept. 10, 2024.

    U.S. District Judge Diana Saldaña has now sentenced Trower to serve 146 months in federal prison. In handing down the prison terms, the court the content of what Trower shared merited a significant sentence. Trower will also serve 10 years on supervised release following completion of his prison term, during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the internet. Trower will also be ordered to register as a sex offender.

    “In order to completely eliminate this terrible industry of exploitation, authorities need to target not just the supply side of the equation, but also the demand side,” said Ganjei. “As the defendant learned, if you committed a federal offense in the Southern District, we’re going to find you, wherever you are, even if it’s out of state.”

    On Dec. 13, 2023, law enforcement had identified an online user, later identified as Trower, sharing multiple files containing child sexual assault material (CSAM) in a public Kik chat room. The videos and images depicted children under the age of 12 engaged in various sexual acts with adults and animals.

    Trower was in Laredo at the time of the distribution. He was eventually arrested at his residence in Kansas, at which time he admitted he had shared child pornography he found on Kik.

    Trower will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

    The FBI conducted the investigation.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine A. Cortez prosecuted the case, which was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative the Department of Justice (DOJ) launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section leads PSC, which marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and identifies and rescues victims. For more information about PSC, please visit DOJ’s PSC page. For more information about internet safety education, please visit the resources tab on that page. 

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  • MIL-OSI Security: Waterbury Man Admits Role in Violent Carjacking in 2023

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Marc H. Silverman, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that MICHAEL McCANN-ORTIZ, also known as “Bando,” 24, of Waterbury, pleaded guilty yesterday before U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to a carjacking offense.

    According to court documents and statements made in court, in the early morning hours of June 18, 2023, two all-terrain vehicles (“ATVs”) were stolen from a Waterbury residence.  After the theft, McCann-Ortiz and others identified an individual (“Victim 1”) who they believed was involved in the theft.  Later that night, Victim 1’s friend, (“Victim 2”), picked up Victim 1 from work and drove him home.  As they arrived at Victim 1’s residence, three vehicles followed them and surrounded the victims.  McCann-Ortiz and his associates, one of whom carried an assault-style rifle, exited the vehicles and approached the victims.  McCann-Ortiz and his associates demanded the return of the stolen ATVs, threatened both victims, and physically assaulted them.

    Specifically, McCann-Ortiz repeatedly threatened to kill the victims, and punched and kicked one victim, causing serious bodily injury.

    McCann-Ortiz and his associates then stole Victim 2’s vehicle, which was owned by Victim 2’s relative, and other items and cash belonging to the victims.

    There is no indication that Victim 1 was, in fact, involved in the theft of the ATVs.

    McCann-Ortiz pleaded guilty to carjacking resulting in serious bodily injury, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 25 years.  Judge Dooley scheduled sentencing for May 22.

    McCann-Ortiz has been detained since his arrest on unrelated state charges on July 10, 2023.

    This investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force with the assistance of the Waterbury Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nathan J. Guevremont and David T. Huang.

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  • MIL-OSI Security: U.S. Attorney’s Office Secures Guilty Plea in 2022 Murder Case

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ALBUQUERQUE – A Navajo man pleaded guilty in federal court to second degree murder and firearms charges stemming from a fatal shooting in 2022.

    According to court documents, on July 26, 2022, officers from the Navajo Nation Police Department responded to reports of a shooting near Ojo Encino. Upon arrival, officers discovered John Doe deceased at the scene with a gunshot wound to his chest and right arm. Witnesses identified Jason Lee Martinez, 51, a member of the Navajo Nation, as the shooter, who fled immediately after the incident.

    Investigators recovered seven .40 caliber bullet casings from the scene, and the autopsy confirmed fatal gunshot wounds consistent with a single bullet that traveled through John Doe’s chest, heart, lung, and liver.

    On August 26, 2022, FBI agents interviewed Martinez, who admitted to shooting John Doe.

    According to the plea agreement, Martinez faces between 17 and 28 years in prison at sentencing followed by three years of supervised release.

    Acting U.S. Attorney Holland S. Kastrin and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.

    The FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Nation Department of Investigation and Navajo Nation Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jesse Pecoraro is prosecuting the case.

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  • MIL-OSI Security: Kissimmee Woman Pleads Guilty To Receipt, Distribution, And Possession Of Child Sexual Abuse Material

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Orlando, Florida – Acting United States Attorney Sara C. Sweeney announces that Jessica Corin Mangano (34, St. Cloud) has pleaded guilty to receipt, distribution, and possession of child sexual abuse material. Mangano faces a minimum penalty of 5 years, up to 20 years, in federal prison for the distribution and receipt offenses and up to 20 years’ imprisonment for the possession offense. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

    According to the plea agreement, Mangano distributed and received multiple videos that contained child sexual abuse material. Additionally, Mangano possessed hundreds of videos of child sexual abuse material that involved young children.

    This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kaley Austin-Aronson.

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

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  • MIL-OSI Security: Fort Myers Man Pleads Guilty To Robbing Convenience Stores At Gunpoint

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Fort Myers, FL – Acting United States Attorney Sara C. Sweeney announces that Kevoun Najae Watts (22, Fort Myers) has pleaded guilty to one count of Hobbs Act robbery and one count of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. Watts faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison for the robbery offense and a minimum of 7 years, up to life, consecutive to the robbery count for the firearm offense. He has also agreed to forfeit the firearm and ammunition he used to commit the offenses. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

    According to the plea agreement, Watts admitted to robbing both two convenience stores at gunpoint in Fort Myers on July 31, 2024. 

    This case was investigated by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, the Fort Myers Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Morgan.

    This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. 

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  • MIL-OSI Security: Six Individuals Charged in Quincy-Area Drug Trafficking Conspiracy

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Six individuals were arrested this month for conspiring to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine in the Quincy, Illinois, area and illegally using a communication facility. A list of the defendants follows.

    Marcus T.  Bush, 41, of Alton, Illinois, was arrested on February 21, 2025, and had an initial appearance before United States District Judge Colleen R. Lawless that same day. At a detention hearing on February 25, 2025, the judge ordered that Bush be detained pending trial. Bush remains in the custody of the United States Marshal Service.

    If convicted of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, Bush faces statutory penalties ranging from 15 years up to a life term of imprisonment, up to a $10,000,000 fine, and at least a ten-year term of supervised release. If convicted of illegal use of communication facility, Bush faces a maximum of four years’ imprisonment, not more than a $30,000 fine, and up to a three-year term of supervised release.

    Lasha B. Lewis, 40, of St. Louis, Missouri, was arrested on February 21, 2025, and had an initial appearance before Judge Lawless that same day. At a detention hearing on February 25, 2025, the judge ordered that Lewis be released on bond.

    Aamina R. Dorsey, 36, of St. Louis, Missouri, was arrested on February 21, 2025, and had an initial appearance before Judge Lawless that same day. At a detention hearing on February 26, 2025, the judge ordered that Dorsey be released on bond.

    Nicholas A. Strieker, 27, of Quincy, Illinois, was arrested on February 21, 2025, and had an initial appearance before Judge Lawless that same day. At a detention hearing on February 26, 2025, the judge ordered that Strieker be detained pending trial. Strieker remains in the custody of the United States Marshal Service.

    Bruce L. Pinnick, 49, of Quincy, Illinois, was arrested on February 21, 2025, and had an initial appearance before Judge Lawless that same day. At a detention hearing on February 27, 2025, the judge ordered that Pinnick be detained pending trial. Pinnick remains in the custody of the United States Marshal Service.

    Michael A. Bloodson, 42, of Chicago, Illinois, was arrested on February 27, 2025, and had an initial appearance before Judge Lawless on February 28, 2025. The judge ordered Bloodson temporarily detained pending a detention hearing set for March 6, 2025, at 1 p.m.

    If convicted of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, these defendants face statutory penalties ranging from 10 years up to a life term of imprisonment, up to a $10,000,000 fine, and at least a five-year term of supervised release. If convicted of illegal use of communication facility, the five face a maximum of four years’ imprisonment, not more than a $30,000 fine, and up to a three-year term of supervised release.

    A federal grand jury previously returned indictments against each of the defendants on February 4, 2025.

    The investigation was led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Springfield Field Office, and the Illinois State Police West Central Illinois Task Force, with significant assistance from the Quincy Police Department and Adams County Sheriff’s Office. Additional support was also provided by the Adams County State’s Attorney’s Office; the Drug Enforcement Administration, St. Louis Field Office and Springfield Residence Office; the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Illinois; the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri; the Alton Police Department, and the Chicago Heights Police Department.

    The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah E. Seberger.

    Members of the public are reminded that the charges in a complaint are merely accusations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

    The case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF. 

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  • MIL-OSI Security: U.S. Attorney’s Office Secures Sentencing in To’Hajiilee Manslaughter Case

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ALBUQUERQUE – A To’Hajiilee man was sentenced to 72 months in prisonfor voluntary manslaughter in connection with the death of John Doe in May 2022.

    There is no parole in the federal system.

    According to court documents, on May 27, 2022, Cole Ray Shorty, 21, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, went to John Doe’s residence bringing other people with him including a juvenile. Upon arrival, Shorty found John Doe sitting in his car outside his residence.

    Shorty approached Doe’s car and opened the back door. In response, Doe exited the vehicle with a bat and a struggle ensued. Doe was taken to the ground and was disarmed of the bat. Instead of leaving the scene, Shorty struck Doe in the head with the bat, leaving him injured and unconscious at the scene.

    John Doe died from their injuries at the University of New Mexico Hospital on May 30, 2022. The Office of the Medical Inspector confirmed that the cause of death was blunt head trauma and classified it as a homicide.

    Upon his release from prison, Shorty will be subject to three years of supervised release.

    Acting U.S. Attorney Holland S. Kastrin and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.

    The FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Police Department and Navajo Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brittany DuChaussee, Zachary Jones, Mark Probasco, and Meg Tomlinson prosecuted the case.

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  • MIL-OSI Security: U.S. Attorney’s Office Secures Conviction of Two Former Jal Police Officers for Civil Rights Violations

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ALBUQUERQUE – A federal jury has convicted two former Jal Police Department officers of violating the civil rights of an individual, identified as John Doe in the indictment, during a July 2021 incident, after which John Doe died. The verdict came after a seven-day trial and approximately 13 hours of deliberation.

    According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, on July 31, 2021, former Jal Police Officer Corey Patrick Saffell, 35, stopped John Doe for driving without headlights at the Pilot Gas Station in Jal, NM. Former Jal Police Officers Ceasar Enrique Mendoza, 28, and Robert Edward Embly, 43, arrived shortly thereafter.

    The situation quickly escalated when Saffell accused John Doe of presenting false identification. John Doe was subsequently handcuffed and forced into a small cage in Saffell’s K9 unit, where an aggressive dog was barking. When John Doe struggled to enter the small space, Mendoza deployed his taser on John Doe 13 times while Saffell yelled at him to keep tasing John Doe. The men then moved John Doe to Embly’s patrol car with a full backseat, where he was tased a 14th time.

    At no point during the incident did John Doe, who was handcuffed throughout the entire encounter, attempt to flee, make threats or aggressive statements, or act combatively to Saffell, Mendoza, or Embly.  After placing John Doe in the back of Embly’s unit, none of the officers checked on John Doe or monitored him, as they were trained to do after deploying their taser on him.

    At the jail, the men dragged John Doe’s limp, unconscious body into a cell and laid him on his stomach while still handcuffed. Despite John Doe’s deteriorating condition, including appearing unconscious and having urinated on himself, the men did not seek medical attention. The first time any of the officers requested medical attention for John Doe was only after it was determined John Doe stopped breathing and had no pulse, at which time the officers finally commenced life-saving measures. John Doe was pronounced dead at 1:15 a.m. on July 31, 2021.

    Mendoza and Embly were convicted on three counts of deprivation of rights under color of law each, specifically use of unreasonable force, failure to intervene, and deliberate indifference to John Doe’s serious medical need.

    Following the verdict, the Court ordered that Mendoza and Embly remain on conditions of release pending sentencing, which has not been scheduled. At sentencing, Mendoza and Embly each face up to 10 years in prison per count of conviction.

    On September 10, 2024, Saffell pled guilty to three counts of deprivation of rights under color of law, specifically unlawful arrest, failure to intervene, and deliberate indifference to serious medical needs. At sentencing, Saffell faces up to 10 years in prison per count of conviction. Saffell remains on conditions of release pending sentencing, which has not been set.

    Acting U.S. Attorney Holland S. Kastrin and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.

    The Las Cruces Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Hobbs Police Department, Carlsbad Police Department, Lea County Sheriff’s Office, Jal Police Department, and New Mexico State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matilda McCarthy Villalobos and Marisa A. Ong are prosecuting the case.

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  • MIL-OSI Security: Guilty Verdict in Athens-Clarke Armed Fentanyl Trafficking Trial

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ATHENS, Ga. – A Georgia man with a lengthy criminal history in the Athens-Clarke County community was found guilty this week at trial of armed fentanyl trafficking.

    Dwan Maurice Hewlett, aka “LA,” 41, of Hull, Georgia, was found guilty of all six counts charged in the indictment: one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, fentanyl and cocaine; one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine; one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl; one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine; one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime; and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Hewlett is a federal career offender and faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment and a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years in prison.

    The trial began on Feb. 24 and concluded on the evening of Feb. 26. U.S. District Judge Tilman E. “Tripp” Self III presided over the trial. A sentencing date will be determined by the Court. There is no parole in the federal system.

    “Career offenders arming themselves and pushing fentanyl into our communities will find their criminal cases in federal court,” said Acting U.S. Attorney C. Shanelle Booker. “I applaud local and federal law enforcement for their tireless efforts to track down repeat criminals and bring them to justice.”

    “Cases like these exemplify the value of partnerships between local, state and federal agencies. This armed career criminal will no longer be selling the dangerous drug fentanyl in our community,” said Athens-Clarke County Police Chief Jerry Saulters. “I am incredibly proud of the ACCPD Officers and Detectives who worked with partnering agencies on this case. We will continue to prioritize keeping violent criminals out of our community. I would like to thank our partners for their continuous efforts in keeping our community safe.”

    “The FBI works tirelessly to get dangerous criminals like Dwan Hewlett and the drugs he sold off the streets of Georgia,” said FBI Atlanta Assistant Special Agent in Charge Brian Ozden. “Hewlett will now have decades in prison to consider his past actions.”

    “Drug traffickers exploit vulnerable members of our community to generate profits,” said Jae W. Chung, the Acting Special Agent in Charge of DEA’s Atlanta Division. “The success of this investigation is proof that those destroying our communities with drugs and violence will be held accountable.”

    According to court documents and statements referenced in court, Athens-Clarke County Police Department (ACCPD) detectives had a confidential informant place a phone call to Hewlett to purchase fentanyl. Hewlett agreed to meet the informant at an Athens gas station on Danielsville Road. When Hewlett arrived at the gas station, ACCPD officers boxed his vehicle in and exited their undercover vehicles wearing “POLICE” marked body armor. Officers gave loud commands for Hewlett to get out of his car. Hewlett looked up, saw the police and immediately began making furtive movements reaching under the seat. He then exited his vehicle, ignored the verbal commands and started running toward Danielsville Road at the intersection of Freeman Drive. Hewlett was taken into custody after a brief foot pursuit.

    Officers searched his vehicle and found a .380 pistol under the driver’s seat where Hewlett was seen reaching and numerous tied corner baggies containing fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine for distribution. In all, officers found 133.51 grams of fentanyl, 58.31 grams of methamphetamine, 9.783 grams of cocaine and 16 grams of cocaine base. A search of Hewlett’s cell phones located in the car contained many drug-related messages and photos. Hewlett has a lengthy prior criminal history, which includes three prior convictions in the Clarke County Superior Court for serious drug offenses and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

    This case was investigated by the Northeast Georgia Regional Drug Task Force and the Athens-Clarke County Police Department, with assistance from the FBI Athens Middle Georgia Safe Streets Gang Task Force, DEA and ATF.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Morrison is prosecuting the case for the Government.

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