NewzIntel.com

Category: Federal Bureau of Investigation

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cornyn Questions FBI Director Nominee Kash Patel on Restoring Trust in FBI & DOJ

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Texas John Cornyn

    WASHINGTON – Today during the Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearing on the nomination of Kash Patel to be Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) under the Trump administration, U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) discussed with him the need to restore trust in the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) after the Biden administration’s politicization of these agencies. Excerpts are below, and video can be found here.

    On Restoring the Rule of Law in America:

    CORNYN: “Do you believe America is an exceptional nation?”

    PATEL: “It’s the greatest nation.”

    CORNYN: “Do you believe a large part of what makes America an exceptional nation is the rule of law?”

    PATEL: “It is one of the fundamental precepts that determines that.”

    CORNYN: “Why is that?”

    PATEL: “Because without a singular application of a rule of law, we go back to the Uganda that my father fled.”

    CORNYN: “I think your biggest task is going to be, along with Pam Bondi at the Office of the Attorney General, is to restore the rule of law to the Department of Justice and the FBI. Are you willing to do that?”

    PATEL: “Absolutely, Senator.”

    CORNYN: “Without regard to partisan affiliation or politics?”

    PATEL: “Absolutely.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Three Defendants Convicted of Killing a Security Guard and Wounding Three Others During the Armed Robbery of a Gambling Location in Brooklyn

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Earlier today, a federal jury in Brooklyn convicted Charles Powell, Brian Castro and Musah Coward on four counts of a superseding indictment charging them with the firearm-related murder of Rodney Maxwell, discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy and Hobbs Act robbery. Powell was also convicted of being a felon in possession of ammunition.  The charges stem from an armed robbery carried out by the defendants inside an illegal gambling spot located at 181 Hegeman Avenue in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn.  The verdict followed a three-week trial before U.S. District Judge Eric R. Komitee. When sentenced, the defendants each face a sentence of up to life in prison, with a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison.

    John J. Durham, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, James E. Dennehy, Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI) and Jessica S. Tisch, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the verdicts.

    “Today’s verdict delivers justice for the victims of this vicious and senseless crime that was driven by greed and carried out with a complete disregard for human life,” stated United States Attorney Durham. “The defendants are responsible for murdering Rodney Maxwell, who was gunned down in cold blood, and the carnage could have been even worse with the wanton shooting of terrified bystanders. I commend the prosecutors in my Office, our law enforcement partners and the jury for holding the defendants accountable for this violent robbery.”

    The evidence at trial proved that the defendants planned and carried out an armed robbery of an illegal gambling spot in Brownsville on October 7, 2020.  The defendants were driven to the Brooklyn location from New Jersey by Coward.  Powell and Castro entered the location while Coward waited outside in the car.  During the robbery, Powell and Castro each shot Maxwell, who had been providing security for location.  Castro shot Maxwell once in the back with a 9-millimeter pistol; and Powell shot him once in the chest with a .380 caliber pistol.  Maxwell later died from his gunshot wounds.  In addition, Powell indiscriminately fired into a crowd of individuals as they desperately attempted to escape the violence, hitting three men, all of whom ultimately survived their wounds. Castro later confessed to the robbery and murder to a friend who, unbeknownst to Castro, was a confidential source for the FBI and recorded the conversation.  In the recording, Castro described how the defendants made off with thousands of dollars and mocked the sound that Maxwell made when he was fatally shot.

    Powell, who has a prior conviction in New Jersey for felony possession of a weapon, was found guilty by the jury of possessing three .380 caliber cartridges on October 7, 2020 corresponding to the shots he fired at the gambling spot.

    The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Organized Crime and Gangs Section.  Assistant United States Attorneys Andy Palacio, Raffaela Belizaire and Megan Larkin are in charge of the prosecution, with the assistance of Paralegal Specialist Theodore Rader.

    The Defendants:

    CHARLES POWELL (also known as “Payback”)
    Age:  26
    Newark, New Jersey

    BRIAN CASTRO (also known as “Morenaje”)
    Age:  24
    Paterson, New Jersey

    MUSAH COWARD (also known as “General Mecka” and “Red” and “General Red”)
    Age:  33 
    Paterson, New Jersey

    E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 21-CR-572 (EK)

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Havre meth, fentanyl trafficker sentenced to 10 years in prison

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    MISSOULA — A Havre man who admitted to conspiring to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl in Montana was sentenced today to 10 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.

    The defendant, Lance Jon Stimson, 33, pleaded guilty in October 2024 to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances.

    U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen presided.

    The government alleged in court documents that the FBI’s Montana Regional Violent Crime Task Force was investigating an individual for distributing fentanyl in Missoula. The investigation showed that the individual supplied Stimson with meth and fentanyl to distribute. In April 2024, officers arrested Stimson for absconding from supervision and located 310 fentanyl pills and 28 grams of heroin in his vehicle. Stimson admitted to working with the individual to distribute more than 7,000 fentanyl pills and 17 ounces of meth between October 2023 and April 2024.

    The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case. The FBI’s Montana Regional Violent Crime Task Force.

    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 Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.

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    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Durbin Questions FBI Director Nominee, Kash Patel, About Trump Pardoning The Dangerous January 6 Rioters, Connections To Radical Extremist

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Illinois Dick Durbin

    January 30, 2025

    In his remarks, Patel could not remember who Stew Peters, a far-right internet personality, is despite going on his podcast eight times; breaks with President Trump on pardoning those who harm law enforcement

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today questioned Kash Patel, President Trump’s nominee to lead the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), during his nomination hearing. Durbin first asked Mr. Patel about President Trump’s decision to pardon the violent January 6 insurrections—several of whom have already been rearrested or are wanted for vile crimes committed prior to January 6, 2021, including soliciting a sexual relationship with a minor.

    “[Matthew Huddle] is a man found guilty of numerous crimes… he beat his three-year-old child to a point where the poor kid could not sit down for a week. Mr. Huddle was one of the demonstrators who came to the Capitol on January 6. He was incarcerated and charged and pled guilty to crimes that he had committed—violence against police officers. After he was released by President Trump, he returned to Indiana. A few days later, he was stopped on the road, pulled a gun on a policeman, and the policeman and the sheriff’s deputy shot and killed him. This is not the only instance of a person who received President Trump’s clemency committing another crime. Peter Schwartz was mentioned this morning on the radio—38 criminal convictions. He had been sentenced to 14 years in prison. He was released because of the President’s unconditional clemency as well. My question is this: was President Donald Trump wrong to [grant] blanket clemency for January 6 defendants?” Durbin asked.

    In his response, Mr. Patel broke with President Trump and stated, “I do not agree with the commutation of any sentence of any individual who committed violence against law enforcement.”

    “Do you think that America is safer because these [1,500] people have come out of serving their sentences and live in our communities again?” Durbin asked.

    Mr. Patel responded that he has “always advocated for imprisoning those who cause harm to our law enforcement and civilian communities,” again, breaking away from President Trump’s views.

    Durbin continued, “You will not answer the question. I do not think we are safer that Matthew Huddle was sent back to Indiana. I do not think we are safer with Peter Schwartz, and I can go through a long list of individuals.”

    Durbin then asked Mr. Patel about his involvement with the “J6 prison choir.” He co-produced, promoted, and sold a record recorded by the so-called “J6 prison choir”—a group of January 6 insurrectionists who were incarcerated in the D.C. jail in February 2023. Mr. Patel has described the choir’s members as “political prisoners.” Notably, he has declined to identify the members of the choir.

    Durbin said, “My understanding is that the performers of this ‘J6 choir’ were the rioters who were imprisoned.”

    Mr. Patel responded that “he had nothing to do with the recording.”

    Durbin followed up, “You are not aware of who made the recording?”

    To which Mr. Patel responded “no.”

    Durbin then asked about Mr. Patel’s affiliations with problematic individuals. He has frequently associated with—and sometimes praised—extremist figures with well-documented histories of racist, antisemitic, conspiratorial, or violent statements or beliefs.

    “In September of 2023 you appeared with Laura Loomer [at] an event promoting your book, [Government Gangsters]. You shared a photo of yourself where you held her book and she held hers. Just a few months before this event, Ms. Loomer posted on ‘X’ that the September 11 terrorists attacks were ‘an inside job’ and accused Florida’s First Lady, Casey DeSantis, of exaggerating her cancer diagnosis to gain voter sympathy. A number of my Republican colleagues have criticized Ms. Loomer’s extremism. One of my colleagues described her as ‘a crazy conspiracy theorist who regularly utters disgusting garbage.’ Given all of this, why did you associate with Ms. Loomer?” Durbin asked.

    Mr. Patel dismissed the question.

    Durbin then asked about his relationship with Stew Peters—an alt-right internet personality. Between October 2021 and June 2022, Mr. Patel made eight separate appearances on a podcast hosted by Stew Peters. Before and during that stint, Mr. Peters promoted outrageous conspiracy theories and worked with a prominent neo-Nazi. In mid-2021, Mr. Peters promoted a baseless assertion that Chief Justice John Roberts and former Vice President Mike Pence were pedophiles.

    “Are you familiar with Mr. Stew Peters? Does that ring a bell?” Durbin asked.

    “I’m sorry, what?” Patel said. 

    “Are you familiar with Mr. Stew Peters?” Durbin asked.

    “Not off of the top of my head,” said Patel.

    “You made eight separate appearances on his podcast, and he promoted outrageous conspiracy theories and worked with a prominent neo-Nazi. The list goes on. I am just asking when it comes to your association with individuals, why are so many of them in this category?” Durbin asked.

    Mr. Patel responded that he went on these seriously problematic podcasts “to take on” people who are putting out conspiracy theories and “de-vow them of their false impressions and to talk to them about the truth.”

    Video of Durbin’s first round of questions in Committee is available here.

    Audio of Durbin’s first round of questions in Committee is available here.

    Footage of Durbin’s first round of questions in Committee is available here for TV Stations.

    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Chaska Man Pleads Guilty for His Role in $250 Million Feeding Our Future Fraud Scheme

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    MINNEAPOLIS – A Chaska man pleaded guilty for his role in the $250 million fraud scheme that exploited a federally-funded child nutrition program during the COVID-19 pandemic, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick.

    According to court documents, from approximately November 2020 through January 2022, Mohamed Muse Noor a.k.a. “Deeq Darajo,”40, knowingly participated in a scheme to defraud a federal child nutrition program designed to provide free meals to children in need. Rather than feed children, Noor and his co-defendants took advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic—and the resulting program changes—to enrich themselves by fraudulently misappropriating millions of dollars in federal child nutrition program funds.

    According to court documents, Noor was specifically recruited to the Feeding Our Future scheme even though he had no background or experience in buying or providing food. In December 2020, Noor submitted his application to be enrolled in the Federal Child Nutrition Program through Feeding Our Future employee, Abdikerm Eidleh, to Aimee Bock, former Executive Director of the Feeding Our Future non-profit organization. Under Eidleh’s direction, Noor signed forms with fake meal counts and fabricated invoices falsely claiming to be feeding supper and snack to 1,500 children every day within a few weeks of being sponsored by Feeding Our Future. However, Noor did not personally serve any meals to children and never visited the sites registered in his name by Feeding Our Future.

    According to the plea agreement entered today, Noor paid kickbacks to Eidleh in exchange for Feeding Our Future’s sponsorship in the Federal Child Nutrition Program. Food distribution sites associated with Noor fraudulently obtained up to $1.3 million in federal child nutrition program funds by falsely claiming to have served meals to thousands of children per day. Almost all almost of the $1.3 million was either transferred to Eidleh or was intercepted by Eidleh without Noor’s knowledge. As part of their arrangement, Noor retained approximately $52,388 in fraudulent proceeds for himself.

    Noor pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court before Judge Joan N. Ericksen to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. His sentencing hearing will be scheduled at a later date.

    The case is the result of an investigation by the FBI, IRS – Criminal Investigations, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.

    Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph H. Thompson, Matthew S. Ebert, and Harry M. Jacobs are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig Baune is handling the seizure and forfeiture of assets.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Stevensville timber frame home builder convicted of defrauding customers sentenced to more than five years in prison, ordered to pay $1.8 million restitution

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    MISSOULA — A Stevensville timber frame home builder who was convicted at trial of defrauding customers by using their payments for his own personal expenses instead of building them homes was sentenced today to five years and three months in prison and ordered to pay $1,855,025.25 restitution, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.

    A federal jury in September 2024 convicted the defendant, Brett Mauri, 61, of four counts of wire fraud and two counts of money laundering.

    U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen presided. The court also ordered the prison term to be followed by three years of supervised release. The court remanded Mauri to the custody of U.S. Marshals Service.

    In court documents and at trial, the government alleged that Mauri owned and operated Bitterroot Timber Frames (BTF) and Three Mile Creek Post & Beam, LLC. According to Mauri and the company’s website, BTF built custom timber frame homes across the United States. The government alleged that between 2018 and 2022, Mauri defrauded nine individuals who hired him to build their timber frame homes. Mauri obtained payments from these customers and lied to them about his operations and what he was doing with their money. Mauri ultimately provided little to nothing in return. Mauri’s actions affected nine families and hourly employees he failed to pay.

    The scheme involved Mauri inducing customers to send him funds, which were ultimately deposited into his or his wife’s bank accounts. Mauri and his wife primarily used the money for personal expenses, shopping sprees and travel instead of building the homes as he promised. What work Mauri did perform on victims’ projects gave his operation the hallmarks of a Ponzi scheme. He frequently solicited new money from a victim and used the funds, in part, to cover past expenses that were often incurred on earlier projects. In exchange, Mauri provided very little materials or services, and some victims received nothing at all. Those who received some construction work were forced to incur significant expenses to correct Mauri’s substandard product and finish their builds or to sell their land when they realized Mauri’s promises would never come to fruition. Victims had hired Mauri to build homes in the Montana communities of Whitehall, Victor, Corvallis and Missoula, and in New York, Utah, and Louisiana.

    The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case. The FBI conducted the investigation.

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    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Phoenix Woman Sentenced to 87 Months in Prison for Possession of a Machinegun and Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering

    Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)

    PHOENIX, Ariz. – Cynthia Solano, 40, of Phoenix, was sentenced this week by United States District Judge G. Murray Snow to 87 months in prison, followed by 36 months of supervised release, for her involvement in a transnational firearm smuggling organization. On August 14, 2024, Solano pleaded guilty to Possession of a Machinegun and Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering.

    Between February 2022 and January 2023, Solano conspired with others to conduct financial transactions which were designed to conceal proceeds generated from the sale of firearms trafficked from the United States into Canada. After the proceeds were received, Solano used the proceeds to purchase additional firearms.

    Beginning in late December 2022, Solano gathered 87 firearms in Phoenix which she intended to deliver to other members of the organization in Michigan.  

    On January 3, 2023, Solano was driving near Springfield, Illinois when she was contacted by the Illinois State Police. The Illinois State Police troopers searched her vehicle and found 87 firearms, individually wrapped in Christmas wrapping paper. One of the firearms was equipped with a machinegun conversion device (also known as a “Switch”) attached. A machinegun conversion device converts a semi-automatic firearm into a fully automatic firearm.

    After Solano was arraigned in Arizona, she was placed on pretrial release. She later removed her electronic monitoring device and fled to Mexico. Through the efforts of the United States Marshals’ Office, she was captured by law enforcement in Mexico and removed to the United States to face prosecution.

    This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations to disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations.

    The OCDETF Arizona Strike Force is comprised of agents and officers from Customs and Border Protection, the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, the United States Marshals Service, the United States Postal Service, United States Postal Inspection Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Arizona Army National Guard, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, Pima County Sheriff’s Office, and the Scottsdale Police Department. The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Phoenix, handled the prosecution.
     

    CASE NUMBER:           CR-23-00408-PHX-GMS
    RELEASE NUMBER:    2025-012_Solano

    # # #

    For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
    Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on X @USAO_AZ for the latest news.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Former Deputy Sentenced For Falsifying Records To Obstruct A Federal Investigation

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Wesley Wayne Hunter Jr., age 29, of Yukon, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 70 months in prison for one count of Destruction, Alteration, or Falsification of Records to Obstruct a Federal Investigation.

    The charge arose from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.

    On June 5, 2024, Hunter pleaded guilty to the charge.  According to investigators, on July 20, 2023, in his official capacity as a Canadian County Deputy, Hunter purposefully deactivated the mobile tracking system on his work phone while transporting a pretrial detainee from Bryan County to Canadian County before pulling his patrol car off the transport route.  Hunter admitted during the June plea hearing he did this to conceal and impede any future investigation into his subsequent criminal misconduct.

    “The FBI will not stand by when a law enforcement official abuses the authority entrusted to them,” said FBI Oklahoma City Acting Special Agent in Charge Sonia Garcia.  “We will continue to hold accountable any public servant who fails the community they were sworn to protect.”

    “Wesley Wayne Hunter Jr. betrayed his employer, his community, and his oath by engaging in misconduct against a detainee and attempting to conceal his acts,” said United States Attorney Christopher J. Wilson.  “Today, thanks to the diligent work of the FBI, the OSBI, the DOJ Civil Rights Division, and Eastern District prosecutors, Hunter is being held accountable for his crime.”

    The Honorable John D. Russell, U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma, sitting by assignment, presided over the hearing in Muskogee.  Hunter will remain in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending transportation to a designated United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve a non-paroleable sentence of incarceration.

    Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicole Paladino and Richard Lorenz, in consultation with Trial Attorney Laura Gilson of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, represented the United States.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: PDS Gang Member Pleads Guilty to Discharging Firearm During and in Relation to Drug Trafficking

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Defendant Admitted to Participating in “Rolling Shootout” Targeting Rival Gang

                WASHINGTON – Isjalon Jermiah Armstead, 22, of Washington D.C., pleaded guilty today in connection with an indictment charging numerous members of the Push Dat Shit (PDS) street gang with distributing large quantities of marijuana in the District of Columbia as well as using, carrying, and possessing firearms, including fully automatic machineguns, in furtherance of their drug dealing business.

                The plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin, Jr., FBI Special Agent Sean T. Ryan of the Washington Field Office’s Criminal and Cyber Division, Special Agent in Charge Anthony Spotswood of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Washington Field Division, and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

                Armstead, aka “Smaut,” pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson to discharging a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking offense. Armstead faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison. Judge Berman Jackson scheduled a sentencing hearing for May 7, 2025.

                As part of his plea, Armstead admitted to participating in a “rolling shootout” in the Washington Highlands neighborhood of Southeast Washington, D.C. on June 5, 2023.  According to court documents, Armstead and a fellow PDS gang member were driving a gray Nissan Altima in the area with marijuana that they intended to distribute when they observed a rival gang member.  The two men then chased the rival through a residential neighborhood while shooting from their vehicle as the rival returned fire. The gray Nissan Altima was disabled as a result of the shootout, and Armstead and his fellow PDS member fled on foot – discarding bags of marijuana and their firearms as they ran – before being apprehended by MPD officers a few blocks away.   

                Additional MPD officers responded to the scene and retraced the flight path, at which time they discovered two firearms discarded in a trash can alongside a residence. The firearms were identified as a Glock Model 26, 9mm semi-automatic handgun and an American Tactical Omni Hybrid semi-automatic AR-Pistol chambered in .300 caliber. These firearms matched shell casings recovered from the scene of the rolling shootout.  As part of his plea agreement, Armstead admitted to discharging the AR-Pistol during the rolling shootout.

                This plea is part of an ongoing joint investigation which has now resulted in 24 convictions and the seizure of two vehicles, 35 firearms, four machine guns, more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition, approximately 60 pounds of marijuana, 41 grams of cocaine base, dozens of oxycodone pills, and approximately $500,000 in cash.

                The case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, the ATF’s Washington Field Division, and the Metropolitan Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys James B. Nelson and Justin F. Song and Paralegal Specialist Melissa Macechko.

    Surveillance Footage Showing the Grey Nissan Altima (circled in red) and the Vehicle it was Pursuing During the Shootout on June 5, 2023.

     

    Surveillance Footage Showing Armstead Fleeing From the Scene

     

    Firearms Recovered from Armstead’s Flight Path

    23cr379

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  • MIL-OSI Security: New Orleans Man Sentenced For Maintaining Drug Involved Premises

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JENNIE L. JAMES (“JAMES”), age 67, a resident of Warren, Arkansas, was sentenced on January 28, 2025, after previously pleading guilty to maintaining a drug-involved premises, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 856(a)(1).  JAMES was sentenced to twelve months and one day imprisonment, three years of supervised release, and a $100 mandatory special assessment fee.

    According to court documents, JAMES maintained her residence, and assisted her son and co-defendant, Jerad M. Barrett, in using the residence to cultivate and distribute kilogram quantities of marijuana.  Agents also located communications between JAMES and Barrett related to the distribution, packaging, and relocation of narcotics within the Eastern District of Louisiana.  During the investigation, agents recovered approximately 940 kilograms of marijuana, stored in plastic bins and barrels, both from within the residence and other storage units.

    This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Louisiana State Police, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office.  The prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Lynn E. Schiffman of the Narcotics Unit.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Hudson County Man Charged With Online Enticement Of A Minor

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    NEWARK, N.J. – A Hudson County man has been charged with enticing a minor to engage in criminal sexual conduct, Acting U.S. Attorney Vikas Khanna announced.

    Ryan Niksa, 34, of Jersey City, New Jersey, was charged in a one-count complaint with enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity.  He had an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Leda Dunn Wettre in Newark federal court on January 29, 2025, and was ordered detained.

    According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

    Since in or around August 2024, Niksa communicated with a minor victim located in another state through social media applications and text messages. Niksa and the minor victim exchanged sexually explicit photos and videos.  Niksa expressed his desire to live with the minor victim, discussed traveling to the minor victim’s home state to be with her, and discussed running away with the minor victim to another country where they could evade law enforcement.   

    Enticement of a minor carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum potential penalty of life in prison, as well as a $250,000 fine.

    Acting U.S. Attorney Khanna credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Terence G. Reilly in Newark, the Jersey City Police Department, under the direction of Director James Shea, and the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Esther Suarez, with the investigation leading to the charges.

    The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alison Thompson of the Organized Crime and Gangs Unit in Newark.

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

    25-027                                                             ###

    Defense counsel: Shaiba Rather, Assistant Federal Public Defender

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: St. Louis County Felon Admits Gun Charge

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ST. LOUIS – A convicted felon caught video calling a jail inmate while displaying firearms pleaded guilty to a gun charge Thursday.

    In June of 2024, Bruce Donta Robinson, 28, contacted an inmate at a detention facility in Pulaski County, Illinois via video call. During the call, Robinson can be seen with what appeared to be two semi-automatic weapons. Robinson is a convicted felon and is thus barred from possessing firearms. He was also on supervised release from a prior gun crime at the time.

    After reviewing the video call, the FBI obtained a court-approved search warrant for Robinson’s St. Louis County residence. Agents found a loaded Polymer 80 semi-automatic pistol with no serial number and a large capacity magazine, a loaded Glock .45-caliber semi-automatic pistol with a laser attachment and a stolen Rock River Arms AR-15 pistol with a large capacity magazine.
        
    Robinson pleaded guilty to one felony count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
    The charge carries a potential penalty of up to 15 years in prison.

    The FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Christian Goeke is prosecuting the case.

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

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Lawton Couple Charged with Child Sex Trafficking

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    OKLAHOMA CITY – A federal Grand Jury has charged JACKIE ANTONIO DUNCAN, 35, and NIA HALL, 30, both of Lawton, with sex trafficking of children, sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion, and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, announced U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester. 

    According to public record, in May 2024, two juveniles ran away from a juvenile group home in Lawton, Oklahoma, and were entered into law enforcement databases as missing juveniles. One of the juveniles was located by officers with the Plano Police Department on July 16, 2024, at a motel in Collin County, Texas, where she disclosed she and the other missing juvenile had been sex-trafficked.  The juvenile told officers that after she and the other juvenile had fled the group home, they were approached by two people, later identified as Hall and Duncan, at a gas station. The juveniles began living with Hall and Duncan, who soon after transported the juveniles to various cities in Texas, where they performed sex acts for money, which Hall and Duncan kept. In return, the juveniles were provided food and shelter. The juvenile told authorities she had recently escaped Hall and Duncan’s car in the Dallas area. On September 30, 2024, the second juvenile was found and recovered in San Antonio, Texas.  She recounted a similar story of being sex-trafficked by Hall and Duncan in exchange for food and shelter. During the investigation, local and federal law enforcement reviewed sex advertisements associated with Hall. These advertisements contained photos of the juveniles.

    Public record further reflects that Hall and Duncan were arrested on December 16, 2024. On January 21, 2025, a federal Grand Jury returned a three-count Indictment against Duncan and Hall, charging them with sex trafficking of children; sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion; and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking. If found guilty, Hall and Duncan face up to life in federal prison and fines of up to $250,000 on each count.

    The public is reminded these charges are merely allegations, and that the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. 

    This case is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, FBI Oklahoma City Field Office, Lawton Police Department, Choctaw Nation Lighthorse Police Department, Oklahoma Highway Patrol, Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics & Dangerous Drugs Control, Fort Smith Police Department, Arkansas State Police, San Antonio Police Department, Plano Police Department, and Fort Worth Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jordan Ganz and Brandon Hale are prosecuting the case.

    Reference is made to public filings for additional information.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Owner of Retirement Services Company Sentenced to Federal Prison for Stealing Money from Clients Through Wire Fraud Scheme

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting United States Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that Jerry O. Pearson, 62, of Alexandria, Louisiana, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Dee D. Drell for committing wire fraud. Pearson was sentenced to 63 months in prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution to his victims in the amount of $3,431,152.21.  

    According to information presented in court, Pearson was the owner/operator of Mid South Retirement Services, LLC (“Mid South”) located in Boyce, Louisiana, from 2012 to 2021. Pearson managed Self-Directed Individual Retirement Accounts (SDIRA). An SDIRA is an IRA held by a custodian that allows investment in a wider range of assets than most conventional IRA custodians permit. Mid South served as the custodian of SDIRAs and managed approximately $40 million in assets. Pearson was also the registered agent and manager/member of an unrelated company, Gray-Walk Farms, LLC, which was registered in the State of Louisiana and located in Alexandria. Gray-Walk Farms is unrelated to Mid South and did not provide SDIRAs. 

    Pearson created a scheme to defraud clients where he would take funds that Mid South was holding as the custodian, and transfer them to other accounts he controlled, without the client’s permission. Pearson used intermediary accounts at financial institutions in the Western District of Louisiana and elsewhere in the name of Mid South and others to move the money out of the Mid South Funding account where client funds were held. The funds would then be moved to Gray-Walk Farm’s accounts, Pearson’s personal bank accounts, or investment accounts in his name. In total, during the scheme, Pearson transferred $3,431,152.21 in client funds from the Mid South client funding bank account to other accounts he controlled. Pearson then used the funds for himself, as well as the benefit of his family and other companies that he controlled. In order to keep the scheme from being detected, Pearson would misrepresent to clients that he was investing the funds as they had directed, when, in fact, he was taking the money.  Pearson pleaded guilty on August 16, 2024, to the Bill of Information charging him with one count of wire fraud.

    “Unfortunately, there were over 70 victims who fell prey to Pearson’s schemes and lies in connection with this case and many are left without their life savings and retirement as a result of his selfish actions,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook. “This defendant conned many people for years, but his actions have finally caught up with him. This sentence should send a message that if you commit this type of fraud, you will go to prison.”

    “Mr. Pearson abused the trust of his clients for the benefit of himself and his family,” said Special Agent in Charge Lyonel Myrthil of FBI New Orleans. “The FBI will continue to work with partners like the Louisiana Office of Financial Institutions to bring justice to people who are victimized in cases like this.”

    The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Seth D. Reeg. The Louisiana Office of Financial Institutions was also involved in the investigation.

    # # #

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Welch Grills Nominee for FBI Director Kash Patel on Election Denialism: “What’s so hard about just saying that Biden won the 2020 election?”

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont)
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today grilled Kash Patel, President Trump’s nominee to be the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), about his refusal to acknowledge that President Biden won the 2020 Presidential Election. Senator Welch highlighted that Trump’s ‘Big Lie’ that President Biden did not win the election led to the January 6th insurrection on the U.S. Capitol. Senator Welch also stressed the importance of combatting any attempt to weaponize the Justice Department and the FBI under the Trump Administration. 
    Sen. Welch: “What’s so hard about just saying that Biden won the 2020 election? What’s hard about that?” 
    Mr. Patel: “Senator, as I’ve said before, that President Biden was certified and sworn in, and he was the president. I don’t know how else to say it.”  Sen. Welch:“Well, the other way to say it is he won.” 
    Watch the exchange between Senator Welch and Kash Patel during Mr. Patel’s confirmation hearing on his nomination to be the next Director of the FBI: 
    Read key excerpts of the exchange: 
    Senator Peter Welch: Let me tell you the source of my ongoing concern, which I regret it sometimes does not seem to be a common concern. We had a catastrophe for our democracy on January 6th…It troubles me that so many people have difficulty saying that Biden won the election…What’s so hard about just saying that Biden won the 2020 election? What’s hard about that? 
    Kash Patel, Nominee for FBI Director: Senator, as I’ve said before, that President Biden was certified and sworn in, and he was the president. I don’t know how else to say it.  Welch:Well, the other way to say it is he won. 
    Patel:He was the president. 
    Welch: The other way to say it is he won. I can say Trump won. I didn’t vote for him—but he won. Al Gore said Bush won when they were having that recount in Florida. And we have had a peaceful transfer of power here in very contested elections. I’ll just be very direct with you about why I think this is of consequence. Donald Trump has never acknowledged that he lost in 2020, and he invited people to come to the Capitol on January 6th to ‘stop the steal’. After that happened, police officers died. People were injured. It created enormous, ongoing bitterness within the country. That’s your boss. Do you believe that the 2020 election was stolen as President Trump says it is? 
    Patel: My opinions on the 2020 election have been expressed in this hearing and he’s entitled to whatever opinions he wants. 
    Welch: Do you agree with him that the election was stolen in 2020? 
    Patel: Millions of Americans have expressed concern going back to multiple elections over election integrity. 
    Welch: You know, you’re so skillful. You understand what I’m asking you. Can you say the words: Joe Biden won the 2020 election? 
    Patel: Joe Biden was the president of the United States. 
    Welch: I’m just saying this: there’s a difference. I can say the words ‘Donald Trump won.’ I don’t like to say it, but I must say it. And you cannot say that Joe Biden won the election. 
    Patel: What I can say is the same for both of them, Senator. Both of their elections were certified, and one was, and one now is president. 
    •••
     Welch: Bottom line here: you’re going to have tough job. And you’re going to have a tough boss, because he gets it in his mind he wants to do something, nothing gets in the way. And there’s going to come a time when an FBI Director, or an Attorney General, has to make a decision about the Constitution and what is being requested, and can that person at that time—when the important values of the Constitution are at stake—say no to a person who is insisting you take an action? 
    Patel: Senator, that’s why I think it’s time, for the first time in this country’s history, that a public defender be the next Director of the FBI because no one knows more about the Constitution and due process than PD’s. 
    Welch: Well, you know you’re appealing to mutual pride here, with a public defender. But you know what? I still understand you didn’t answer the question. That’s the public defender in me, ok?  
    And I say this to my colleagues: We cannot have a weaponized Justice Department or FBI. What’s weaponized is in the eye of the beholder, like the prosecutions of President Trump, and I get that. We cannot, cannot have it. But what I think we all have to acknowledge, when we’ve got a president who’s basically saying a political enemy—whether it’s [Kamala] Harris, whether it’s Liz Cheney, whether it’s Adam Schiff—should be prosecuted, that’s doing damage to the mutual goal we have of not weaponizing a department. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Tillis Introduces Kash Patel at Nomination Hearing to be Director of the FBI

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for North Carolina Thom Tillis

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Thom Tillis, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, introduced Kash Patel at his nomination hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee to be the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

    Watch the introduction here.

    Read Senator Tillis’ statement below:

    Chairman Grassley, Ranking Member Durbin and my colleagues on the Senate Judiciary Committee, it’s my honor to introduce Kash Patel, President Trump’s nominee to be FBI Director. I’ve completed due diligence on his life and career, and I’m convinced Kash possesses significant expertise and an ironclad commitment to justice. I have concluded he’s an outstanding choice to lead the FBI. 

    Kash’s parents are Indian immigrants of Gujarati ancestry. The Gujarat state is a melting pot of religions, including Hinduism, Islam, and Jainism, with temples, mosques, and other religious sites scattered across the state.  His father was raised in Uganda, but his family fled the country to escape repression under Idi Amin. His mother was born and raised in Tanzania. They met and married in India and ultimately made their way to New York City by way of Canada, where his parents along with 7 brothers and sisters, their spouses, and at least a half dozen kids lived under the same roof. His parents raised Kash in the Hindu faith, and they instilled in him the values of hard work and education.  Kash is a devout Hindu, and consistent with his faith, he has shown respect to people of all faiths.

    Kash attended the University of Richmond, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and history. He went to Pace University School of Law, where he earned his JD and an International Law Certificate from the University College of London, Faculty of Laws.

    Kash began his career as a public defender in Florida where he led or co-led more than 60 jury trials to verdict in state and federal courts. Kash has clearly demonstrated devotion to upholding the rule of law and defending the rights of individuals.

    Kash led the defense of Jose Buitrago in United States v. Buitrago, a high-profile drug case in Florida in 2015.  Buitrago was one of the Colombian nationals arrested in a major drug bust involving Operation BACRIM. Kash and his co-counsel successfully argued that key evidence was withheld by the prosecution, leading to Buitrago’s release. I suspect some of Kash’s disdain for prosecutorial misconduct stems from this firsthand experience. 

    Kash was hired as senior counsel on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence in 2017. He told me he distinctly remembers my friend Trey Gowdy’s comment shortly after they were introduced. He said, “Kash, Congress is where righteous investigations go to die, I hope you’re ready.” Kash wasready and he went on to establish a solid reputation for pursuing the facts. From there, he held senior posts at the NSC, DoD, and DNI.

    Since leaving the administration after 2020, Kash has written articles and books on national security, law, and governance. Through his work as an author, Kash continues to advocate for justice and transparency and to be ever vigilant in defending our great democracy and the rule of law.

    Colleagues, I’ve created a Kash BINGO that is available to any of my colleagues who would like on the other side of the aisle. Some may view this as an unserious caricature and not appropriate for this committee, but sadly I consider it a serious caricature of what I expect to be witnessed today. I think we will have words like “enemies list” and “deep state”, but the fact of the matter is some people will be here to substantiate a false narrative. At worst, they may just be going through an unfounded litany of quote and half quote and half-truths, some that have already been dispelled in the Chairman’s opening statement. 

    In my 10 years in the Senate, I hope I have established a reputation for being fair, doing my homework, and taking tough positions that have been met with harsh criticism. Heck, I’ve been censured by my party for taking tough positions, and I stand by those positions today and my position to support Kash Patel. 

    When President Trump announced his intent to nominate Kash, I contacted Trey Gowdy and others who’ve worked with Kash, and they gave glowing recommendations. So, I called Kash on December 2nd and offered to help with his nomination. Since then, we’ve spent hours together in person and on the phone.

    I’ve asked him difficult questions and I’ve urged him to reach out to members across the aisle. He’s met with 60 members of the U.S. Senate, including several members of this committee.

    Chair Grassley, Ranking Member Durbin, friends, and colleagues on the committee. I’ve completed my due diligence on Kash Patel, and I am honored to provide my strongest recommendation for his confirmation.  

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Under questioning from Senator Coons, FBI Director nominee Patel refuses to assert FBI’s independence or demonstrate willingness to resign over illegal directives

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Delaware Christopher Coons

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) questioned President Donald Trump’s nominee for FBI Director, Kash Patel, at his Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing today, where he pressed him on whether his allegiance to President Trump would mean the end of the Bureau’s independence and whether he’d resign if asked by the White House to do something illegal.

    Senator Coons pressed Patel on several issues at the hearing today. Under questioning, Patel stated that, as FBI Director, he would answer to the President. In contrast, Attorney General nominee Pam Bondi said that, if confirmed, she would answer directly to the Constitution and the American people.

    Senator Coons also asked Patel, as he asked FBI Directors Chris Wray and James Comey during their own confirmations, about whether Patel would resign rather than carry out an illegal order from Trump, as Wray and Comey committed to doing. Patel repeatedly refused to make the same commitment.

    A video and full transcript of Senator Coons’ comments are available below.

    WATCH HERE.

    Sen. Coons: We had a constructive conversation last week, I appreciate your taking the time. In particular, a conversation about the prosecution of the World Cup bombing in Uganda that took the life of a Delawarean whose family I knew, I found moving. But the role you have been nominated for is central – central to our security as a nation, central to the protection of our constitutional rights, and I voted to confirm Trump’s previous FBI director, Chris Wray. I believe he’s lived up to the bureau’s motto of serving with fidelity, bravery and integrity, and I also think my vote for him and for many of Trump’s cabinet in the first term shows I take my constitutional advice and consent rule seriously and do not reflexively vote against his nominees.

    I look at three factors when I assess a nominee. Qualifications and experience; policy views and whether they are in the best interest of the American people; and character and capacity to do the job independently where called for. My colleagues have referenced quotes from Attorney General Barr, National Security Advisor Bolton.

    The FBI is enormous: 38,000 agents, $9 billion budget. I am troubled by your lack of senior law enforcement leadership. We disagree on some important policy views. But the thing that bothers me the most is a whole series of statements you have made in a variety of settings that suggest you would struggle to be independent from White House direction or control, as has long been the modern history of the FBI.

    Who does the director of the FBI work for, Mr. Patel?

    Mr. Patel: Senator, thank you for that question. The immediate report for the Director of the FBI is into the Office of the Deputy Attorney General. Then, that report is taken into the Office of the Attorney General and ultimately the White House in the chain of command there.

    Sen. Coons: So the FBI works for the White House?

    Mr. Patel: No, the FBI is a member of the Department of Justice, and has been the long-standing application—

    Sen Coons: And who does the Department of Justice work for?

    Mr. Patel: They are in the executive branch, as all members do at the White House.

    Sen. Coons: Attorney General Bondi gave a different answer when I asked her the same question— that they work for the Constitution and the American people. President Trump has made clear in public statements he wants to use the FBI to persecute political adversaries. He has publicly said that folks ranging from Liz Cheney, to Adam Kinzinger, to former Vice President Harris should be investigated and criminally prosecuted. If President Trump were to order you to open an investigation into any of these individuals, let’s say, Vice President Harris, would you?

    Mr. Patel: Senator, this question speaks directly to my ability to leave political bias and allow independent behavior to be the only guiding light. As a public defender, I learned that in the harshest of arenas. And any law enforcement investigation, if I’m confirmed at the FBI, will only be launched on the following qualification: a factual, articulatable, legal basis to do so. The president has said publicly that he will allow the FBI to remain independent, and I have said as much as well.

    Sen. Coons: So, if FBI agents brought to you a factual legal basis, a predication, and you are about to refer it to a prosecutor, and you get a call from the White House saying, “don’t proceed, this is a major donor, this is someone close to the president, this is inappropriate.” What would you do?

    Mr. Patel: Simple. You – I think you answered it partially in your, in your question. The line agents, the brick agents who are trained to bring investigations on behalf of the FBI will make that decision-making process, and they will only have my full support so long as it upholds absolutely every value of the Constitution, and that’s it.

    Sen. Coons: So your predecessor – I went back and looked, and I asked the same questions of Director Comey and Director Wray. Director Wray, quoting former Attorney General Bell, said you should be willing to resign if necessary over conduct if you are pressed to engage in it that’s unethical, illegal or unconstitutional. If pressed by the president, would you resign?

    Mr. Patel: Senator, my answer simply is I would never do anything unconstitutional or unlawful, and I never have in my 16 years of government service.

    Sen. Coons: Would you be willing to resign the post of FBI Director if pressed and given no choice but to obey the order or resign?

    Mr. Patel: Senator, I will always obey the law.

    Sen. Coons: Does obeying the law require you to – as Attorney General Bell said, as FBI Director Wray said – refuse the order or resign?

    Mr. Patel: I don’t – I’m not familiar with the extent of the law you are referring to, but my answer is simple in my 16 years of government service. We will simply follow the law, and I have done that in Obama Justice Department [sic], Republican Justice Departments, in the Obama military, in Republican civilian capacity. I have never once wavered from my constitutional oath of office.

    Sen. Coons: Mr. Patel, your predecessors in this role have been clear that they would be willing to resign if forced or directed to do something unethical or illegal. I’ll proceed.

    One of your past statements that is concerning me – it’s both a post on Truth Social and something you said in a podcast, The Sean Morgan Report: that your predecessor, Chris Wray, has broken the law. We need to prosecute him. The FBI should go after people like him. And the month before this, in July 2023, you said there should be a criminal referral for FBI Director Wray. If confirmed, are you going to follow through on these previous statements that Director Wray needs to be prosecuted?

    Mr. Patel: Senator, this reminds me of the conversation you and I had, which I greatly appreciated. There is enough violent crime in this country, and enough national security threats to this country, that the FBI is going to be busy going forward preventing 100,000 overdoses, 100,000 rapes, and 17,000 homicides.

    Sen. Coons: We agree that prosecuting violent crimes should be the principal focus of the FBI. What I’m trying to get to, Mr. Patel, is a whole series of very troubling – to me and many others – statements you’ve made about instead using it to pursue those who might be viewed as political opponents.

    Mr. Patel: And as I told you in your office, I have no interest, no desire, and will not if confirmed, go backwards. There will be no politicization at the FBI, there will be no retributive actions taken by any FBI, should I be confirmed as the FBI director. I told you that in your office, and I will tell you that again today.

    Sen. Coons: Thank you for that statement. As the Co-chair of the Law Enforcement Caucus with Senator Cornyn, one of the things I’ve worked hard on and I hope to continue to being able to work hard on with this administration is partnership between federal, state, and local law enforcement to pursue violent crime. You did say, as my colleague asked, and I’d look for a longer answer, that you want to close the FBI’s bureau headquarters on day one.

    How would shutting down the FBI headquarters impact its ability to prosecute violent crime and drug traffickers? How is that possibly a serious proposal, Mr. Patel?

    Mr. Patel: Thank you for bringing that up and allowing me to answer. It was to highlight the significantly greater point that I was actually making in that interview, which is well documented over and over again. 38,000 FBI employees – 7,500 FBI employees work in the Washington field office and Hoover Building alone. If you increase the aperture just slightly to encompass the National Capital Region, that is 11,000 FBI employees working in the National Capital Region. A third of the workforce for the FBI works in Washington, D.C. I am fully committed to having that workforce go out into the interior of the country where I live, west of the Mississippi, and work with sheriff’s departments and local officers and having one agent prevent one homicide and having one agent in Washington prevent one rape, and I will do that over and over and over again, because the American people deserve the resources not in Washington D.C., but in the rest of the country.

    Sen. Coons: And Mr. Patel, frankly, if that had been your statement, that would be something that would be defensible. It’s the rest of it, saying you’re going to turn it into a Museum of the Deep State, that causes repeated questions and concerns from people like myself. Thank you, Mr. Patel.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: FBI Washington Field Office Update on Aviation Incident at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport

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

    The FBI Washington Field Office continues to support our partners in the aftermath of yesterday’s aviation incident at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Members of our National Capital Response Squad—including our Evidence Response Team, Rapid Deployment Team, and Underwater Search and Evidence Response Team—have deployed to support recovery efforts. The FBI will continue to assist the National Transportation Safety Board with recovery operations and the investigation into the cause of this tragic incident.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Leader of Brockton-Area Drug Trafficking Organization Pleads Guilty to Fentanyl Conspiracy

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    BOSTON – A Braintree man pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston to fentanyl conspiracy charge.

    Jonathan Melendez Decatro, a/k/a “Jacha,” 32, of Braintree, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl. U.S. District Court Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV scheduled sentencing for May 12, 2025. Pursuant to a plea agreement filed in court, Melendez Decatro will face a sentence of 10 years in prison and five years of supervised release. Melendez Decatro was indicted in June 2023.  

    During an investigation that began in 2019, Melendez Decatro was identified as the leader of a large-scale fentanyl and cocaine trafficking organization (DTO) operating in the Brockton area, who sourced drugs directly from Colombia, Mexico and the Dominican Republic. On two dates in 2021, packages intended for Melendez Decatro were intercepted by law enforcement and each found to contain a kilogram of cocaine. Additionally, on several dates in the spring of 2023, Melendez Decatro conspired with an individual who resided in the Dominican Republic to distribute in total 1.5 kilograms of fentanyl to another individual in Braintree. It was later determined that the purity of the fentanyl exceeded 50% and also contained xylazine. During of search of Melendez Decatro’s residence, over $10,000 in drug proceeds and clothing worn during the fentanyl transactions were recovered.

    The charge of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances provides for a sentence of at least 10 years and up to life years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $10 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

    United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Drug Enforcement Administration in Bogota; United States Postal Inspection Service; Massachusetts State Police; and the Brockton Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey E. Weinstein of the Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.

    This operation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations to disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations. 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: Cybercrime websites selling hacking tools to transnational organized crime groups seized

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    HOUSTON – A total of 39 domains and their associated servers have been seized in a coordinated effort involving an international disruption of a Pakistan-based network of online marketplaces selling hacking and fraud-enabling tools a group known as Saim Raza (aka HeartSender) operated, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei along with Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge Douglas Williams of the FBI.

    The seizures occurred Jan. 29 and were conducted in coordination with the Dutch National Police.

    According to the affidavit filed in support of these seizures, Saim Raza has used these cybercrime websites since at least 2020 to sell phishing toolkits and other fraud-enabling tools to transnational organized crime groups who used them to target numerous victims in the United States, resulting in over $3 million in victim losses. 

    “Almost everyone has a friend or loved one that has been affected by these types of computer hacks,” said Ganjei. “These scams not only target businesses but individuals as well and cause significant hardship to the victims. Even though these people reside abroad, the use of these websites made it easy for them to spread their malicious hacking tools for a fee. However, today we have significantly disrupted their ability to harm others.”

    The Saim Raza-run websites operated as marketplaces that advertised and facilitated the sale of tools such as phishing kits, scam pages and email extractors often used to build and maintain fraud operations. Not only did Saim Raza make these tools widely available on the open internet, it also trained end users on how to use the tools against victims by linking to instructional YouTube videos on how to execute schemes using these malicious programs, making them accessible to criminal actors that lacked this technical criminal expertise. The group also advertised its tools as “fully undetectable” by antispam software.

    The transnational organized crime groups and other cybercrime actors who purchased these tools primarily used them to facilitate business email compromise schemes wherein the cybercrime actors tricked victim companies into making payments to a third party. Those payments would instead be redirected to a financial account the perpetrators controlled, resulting in significant losses to victims. These tools were also used to acquire victim user credentials and utilize those credentials to further these fraudulent schemes. The seizure of these domains is intended to disrupt the ongoing activity of these groups and stop the proliferation of these tools within the cybercriminal community.

    The FBI Houston Field Office is conducting the investigation. The Justice Department appreciates the cooperation and significant assistance law enforcement partners in the Netherlands have provided.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Rodolfo Ramirez and Trial Attorney Gaelin Bernstein of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section are prosecuting the case.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Lexington Attorney Indicted for Embezzling at Least $2.5 Million

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    BOSTON – An attorney working as a bookkeeper for three Massachusetts companies has been indicted by a federal grand jury for embezzling at least $2.5 million from the companies.    

    David Smerling, 74, of Lexington, was indicted on three counts of wire fraud and two counts of money laundering. He was previously charged by criminal complaint on Jan. 13, 2025.  

    According to the indictment, between January 2016 and May 2020, Smerling embezzled more than $2.5 million from the companies by transferring funds first to a bank account owned by one of the victims that Smerling controlled before moving the money to bank accounts in his own name, or directly from the companies’ accounts to bank accounts in his own name. The indictment also alleges that Smerling concealed his scheme by changing the mailing address on the victims’ bank statements to his home address and refusing to share the online banking password for the victims’ accounts.  

    The charge of wire fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. The charge of money laundering provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $500,000 or twice the value of the property involved in the transaction, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

    United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristen A. Kearney of the Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit is prosecuting the case.

    The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Justice Department Announces Seizure of Cybercrime Websites Selling Hacking Tools to Transnational Organized Crime Groups

    Source: US State of North Dakota

    The Justice Department today announced the coordinated seizure of 39 domains and their associated servers in an international disruption of a Pakistan-based network of online marketplaces selling hacking and fraud-enabling tools operated by a group known as Saim Raza (also known as HeartSender). The seizures were conducted in coordination with the Dutch National Police.

    According to the affidavit filed in support of these seizures, Saim Raza has used these cybercrime websites since at least 2020 to sell phishing toolkits and other fraud-enabling tools to transnational organized crime groups, who used them to target numerous victims in the United States, resulting in over $3 million in victim losses.

    The Saim Raza-run websites operated as marketplaces that advertised and facilitated the sale of tools such as phishing kits, scam pages, and email extractors, often used to build and maintain fraud operations. Not only did Saim Raza make these tools widely available on the open internet, it also trained end users on how to use the tools against victims by linking to instructional YouTube videos on how to execute schemes using these malicious programs, making them accessible to criminal actors that lacked this technical criminal expertise. The group also advertised its tools as “fully undetectable” by antispam software.

    The transnational organized crime groups and other cybercrime actors who purchased these tools primarily used them to facilitate business email compromise schemes wherein the cybercrime actors tricked victim companies into making payments to a third party. Those payments would instead be redirected to a financial account the perpetrators controlled, resulting in significant losses to victims. These tools were also used to acquire victim user credentials and utilize those credentials to further these fraudulent schemes. The seizure of these domains is intended to disrupt the ongoing activity of these groups and stop the proliferation of these tools within the cybercriminal community.

    Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei for the Southern District of Texas, and Special Agent in Charge Douglas Williams of the FBI Houston Field Office made the announcement.

    The FBI Houston Field Office is investigating the case. The Justice Department appreciates the cooperation and significant assistance law enforcement partners in the Netherlands have provided.

    Trial Attorney Gaelin Bernstein of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Rodolfo Ramirez for the Southern District of Texas are prosecuting the case.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Justice Department Announces Seizure of Cybercrime Websites Selling Hacking Tools to Transnational Organized Crime Groups

    Source: United States Attorneys General 1

    The Justice Department today announced the coordinated seizure of 39 domains and their associated servers in an international disruption of a Pakistan-based network of online marketplaces selling hacking and fraud-enabling tools operated by a group known as Saim Raza (also known as HeartSender). The seizures were conducted in coordination with the Dutch National Police.

    According to the affidavit filed in support of these seizures, Saim Raza has used these cybercrime websites since at least 2020 to sell phishing toolkits and other fraud-enabling tools to transnational organized crime groups, who used them to target numerous victims in the United States, resulting in over $3 million in victim losses.

    The Saim Raza-run websites operated as marketplaces that advertised and facilitated the sale of tools such as phishing kits, scam pages, and email extractors, often used to build and maintain fraud operations. Not only did Saim Raza make these tools widely available on the open internet, it also trained end users on how to use the tools against victims by linking to instructional YouTube videos on how to execute schemes using these malicious programs, making them accessible to criminal actors that lacked this technical criminal expertise. The group also advertised its tools as “fully undetectable” by antispam software.

    The transnational organized crime groups and other cybercrime actors who purchased these tools primarily used them to facilitate business email compromise schemes wherein the cybercrime actors tricked victim companies into making payments to a third party. Those payments would instead be redirected to a financial account the perpetrators controlled, resulting in significant losses to victims. These tools were also used to acquire victim user credentials and utilize those credentials to further these fraudulent schemes. The seizure of these domains is intended to disrupt the ongoing activity of these groups and stop the proliferation of these tools within the cybercriminal community.

    Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei for the Southern District of Texas, and Special Agent in Charge Douglas Williams of the FBI Houston Field Office made the announcement.

    The FBI Houston Field Office is investigating the case. The Justice Department appreciates the cooperation and significant assistance law enforcement partners in the Netherlands have provided.

    Trial Attorney Gaelin Bernstein of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Rodolfo Ramirez for the Southern District of Texas are prosecuting the case.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Durbin Delivers Opening Statement In Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing For President Trump’s Pick To Be FBI Director, Kash Patel

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Illinois Dick Durbin
    January 30, 2025
    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered an opening statement during the Senate Judiciary Committee nomination hearing for Kash Patel, President Trump’s nominee to lead the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
    Key Quotes:
    “Mr. Patel has neither the experience, the temperament, nor the judgment to lead an agency of 38,000 [people] and 400 field offices around the globe. During the time I’ve served on this Committee, I’ve had the opportunity to consider four prior FBI Director nominations. Each one was a Republican, and I voted for all of them. So, my concerns about the Director of the FBI are not partisan.”
    “As much as Republicans claim that President Biden and former Attorney General Garland weaponized the FBI, let’s look at the record: President Biden kept the FBI Director, a lifelong Republican who had been appointed by President Trump. Contrast that with President Trump, who fired his first FBI Director, James Comey, and forced out his second FBI Director, Chris Wray, for being insufficiently loyal. With Mr. Patel, obviously the President has found a loyalist.”
    “Mr. Patel’s loyalty includes touting conspiracy theories and threaten[ing to go after President Trump’s enemies.] How do we know Mr. Patel’s theories? His beliefs, what motivates him, and what he really believes? He wrote it in a book. The book [is titled] Government Gangsters, and I urge all of you to read [it] before you cast a vote for [him]. In it, Mr. Patel has published an enemies list of 60 people who he calls, ‘members of the deep state.’ This list includes many distinguished public servants who have dedicated their lives to our nation.” 
    “Then there is Mr. Patel’s plan to ‘shut down the F.B.I. Hoover Building on Day 1 and reopen it the next day as a museum of the ‘deep state.’’ And he has said, ‘We’re going to come after the people in the media, we’re going to come after you, whether it’s criminally or civilly, [and] we’re putting you all on notice.’”
    “Does this sound like the kind of nonpartisan, law enforcement professional who should lead the FBI? Not to me. This is someone who has left behind a trail of grievances throughout his life, lashing out at anyone who disrespects him or doesn’t agree with him.”
    “Mr. Patel’s record is clear: he traffics in debunked conspiracy theories that serve or benefit his political beliefs. Let’s start with January 6… I will always be grateful to the U.S. Capitol police officers who risked their lives defending me, members of Congress, and visitors of the United States Capitol on that day. Mr. Patel posted on social media, ‘Jan. 6 never an insurrection: cowards in uniform exposed.’ Let me repeat that. ‘Cowards in uniform.’ Who was in the Capitol building on January 6 in uniform—the Capitol Police were. Do you think they were cowards?… And Mr. Patel claims that the FBI, the agency he aspires to lead, ‘was planning January 6 for a year.’ Mr. Patel has gone so far as to co-produce and sell musical recordings of a song performed by January 6 rioters who violently assaulted police officers.”
    “The FBI plays a critical role in keeping Americans safe from terrorism, violent crime, and other threats. Our nation needs an FBI Director who understands the gravity of this mission and is ready on day one, not someone who is consumed by his own personal political grievances. The American people deserve an FBI Director who is focused on keeping the public safe from terrorism, drug trafficking, and violent crime, not the checklist of personal grievances we find in this book. Mr. Patel, your record makes clear that you are not that person.”
      
    Video of Durbin’s opening statement is available here.
    Audio of Durbin’s opening statement is available here.
    Footage of Durbin’s opening statement is available here for TV Stations.
    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cracked and Nulled Marketplaces Disrupted in International Cyber Operation

    Source: US State of California

    At Least 17M U.S. Victims Affected

    The Justice Department today announced its participation in a multinational operation involving actions in the United States, Romania, Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and Greece to disrupt and take down the infrastructure of the online cybercrime marketplaces known as Cracked and Nulled. The operation was announced in conjunction with Operation Talent, a multinational law enforcement operation supported by Europol to investigate Cracked and Nulled.

    Operation Talent Seizure Banner

    Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross for the Western District of New York, U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas, Assistant Director Brian A. Vorndran of the FBI’s Cyber Division, Special Agent in Charge Matthew Miraglia of the FBI Buffalo Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Aaron Tapp for the FBI San Antonio Field Office made the announcement.

    Cracked

    According to seizure warrants unsealed today, the Cracked marketplace has been selling stolen login credentials, hacking tools, and servers for hosting malware and stolen data — as well as other tools for carrying out cybercrime and fraud — since March 2018. Cracked had over four million users, listed over 28 million posts advertising cybercrime tools and stolen information, generated approximately $4 million in revenue, and impacted at least 17 million victims from the United States. One product advertised on Cracked offered access to “billions of leaked websites” allowing users to search for stolen login credentials. This product was recently allegedly used to sextort and harass a woman in the Western District of New York. Specifically, a cybercriminal entered the victim’s username into the tool and obtained the victim’s credentials for an online account. Using the victim’s credentials, the subject then cyberstalked the victim and sent sexually demeaning and threatening messages to the victim. The seizure of these marketplaces is intended to disrupt this type of cybercrime and the proliferation of these tools in the cybercrime community.

    The FBI, working in coordination with foreign law enforcement partners, identified a series of servers that hosted the Cracked marketplace infrastructure and eight domain names used to operate Cracked. They also identified servers and domain names for Cracked’s payment processor, Sellix, and the server and domain name for a related bulletproof hosting service. All of these servers and domain names have been seized pursuant to domestic and international legal process. Anyone visiting any of these seized domains will now see a seizure banner that notifies them that the domain has been seized by law enforcement authorities.

    The FBI Buffalo Field Office is investigating the case.

    Senior Counsel Thomas Dougherty of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Kruly for the Western District of New York are prosecuting the case.

    Nulled

    The Justice Department announced the seizure of the Nulled website domain and unsealed charges against one of Nulled’s administrators, Lucas Sohn, 29, an Argentinian national residing in Spain. According to the unsealed complaint affidavit, the Nulled marketplace has been selling stolen login credentials, stolen identification documents, hacking tools, as well as other tools for carrying out cybercrime and fraud, since 2016. Nulled had over five million users, listed over 43 million posts advertising cybercrime tools and stolen information, and generated approximately $1 million in yearly revenue. One product advertised on Nulled purported to contain the names and social security numbers of 500,000 American citizens.

    The FBI, working in coordination with foreign law enforcement partners, identified the servers that hosted the Nulled marketplace infrastructure, and the domain used to operate Nulled. The servers and domain have been seized pursuant to domestic and international legal process. Anyone visiting the Nulled domain will now see a seizure banner that notifies them that the domain has been seized by law enforcement authorities.

    According to the complaint, Sohn was an active administrator of Nulled and performed escrow functions on the website. Nulled’s customers would use Sohn’s services to complete transactions involving stolen credentials and other information. For his actions, Sohn has been charged with conspiracy to traffic in passwords and similar information through which computers may be accessed without authorization; conspiracy to solicit another person for the purpose of offering an access device or selling information regarding an access device; and conspiracy to possess, transfer, or use a means of identification of another person with the intent to commit or to aid and abet or in connection with any unlawful activity that is a violation of federal law.

    If convicted, Sohn faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison for conspiracy to traffic in passwords, 10 years in prison for access device fraud, and 15 years in prison for identity fraud.

    The FBI Austin Cyber Task Force is investigating the case. The Task Force participants include the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, IRS Criminal Investigation, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division, among other agencies.

    Assistant U.S. Attorneys G. Karthik Srinivasan and Christopher Mangels for the Western District of Texas are prosecuting the case, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Tindall for the Western District of Texas handling the forfeiture component.

    The Justice Department worked in close cooperation with investigators and prosecutors from several jurisdictions on the takedown of both the Cracked and Nulled marketplaces, including the Australian Federal Police, Europol, France’s Anti-Cybercrime Office (Office Anti-cybercriminalité) and Cyber Division of the Paris Prosecution Office, Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office (Bundeskriminalamt) and Prosecutor General’s Office Frankfurt am Main – Cyber Crime Center (Generalstaatsanwaltschaft Frankfurt am Main – ZIT), the Spanish National Police (Policía Nacional) and Guardia Civil, the Hellenic Police (Ελληνική Αστυνομία), Italy’s Polizia di Stato and the General Inspectorate of Romanian Police (Inspectoratul General al Poliției Romane). The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance.

    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: Former Sanger Police Officer Convicted on Eight Counts of Sexually Assaulting Women While on Duty

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    FRESNO, Calif — On Wednesday, a federal jury in Fresno convicted former Sanger Police Department Officer J. DeShawn Torrence, 42, of eight counts of deprivation of constitutional rights under color of law for sexually assaulting four women whom he encountered during the course of his official duties. The jury found that the offenses included kidnapping, aggravated sexual abuse, and attempted aggravated sexual abuse, and also caused bodily injury.

    Deputy Assistant Attorney General Kathleen Wolfe of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith for the Eastern District of California, and Special Agent in Charge Siddartha Patel of the FBI Sacramento Field Office made the announcement.

    The evidence at trial proved that Torrence sexually assaulted four women. He kidnapped a 21‑year-old woman who was walking to a store to buy groceries for her young children, drove her outside of town in his police car, and sexually assaulted her at an isolated dead end. Torrence forcibly raped a second victim, a 67-year-old woman, after following her into her home during a DUI investigation. With a third victim, Torrence showed up at her door in his police uniform after midnight, entered her apartment, pinned her against the kitchen counter, and sexually assaulted her. Torrence showed up multiple times at the home of a fourth victim, a domestic violence victim, supposedly to investigate a prior domestic violence incident. During those follow up visits, Torrence forced the victim to expose sensitive parts of her body for no legitimate reason, and he sexually assaulted her.

    “Law enforcement officers are entrusted with great power to protect the public and keep them safe from harm. This officer’s crimes were an egregious breach of that trust and an appalling abuse of power, as he repeatedly preyed on the women in his community and violated their civil rights,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Beckwith. “We stand ready to investigate and prosecute such crimes with all the tools we have available.”

    “The FBI Sacramento Field Office is grateful to the brave victims who came forward and trusted us to investigate the allegations of sexual abuse at the hands of a police officer,” said Special Agent in Charge Sid Patel. “The FBI is deeply committed to working with our partners to thoroughly investigate such cases to protect the American people and preserve public trust in law enforcement.”

    The FBI Sacramento Field Office investigated the case, with assistance from the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office. Special Litigation Counsel Michael J. Songer of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Escobar for the Eastern District of California are prosecuting the case.

    Torrence is scheduled to be sentenced on May 7, 2025. Torrence faces a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine for five of the counts. The remaining counts each carry a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: MEXICAN NATIONAL RESIDING IN GEORGIA CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTED PRODUCTION OF CHILD PORNOGRAPHY AND ATTEMPTED TRANSFER OF OBSCENE MATERIAL TO A MINOR

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    United States Attorney Ronald C. Gathe, Jr. announced that a federal grand jury recently returned a two-count indictment charging Victorino De La Cruz, age 42, of Mableton, Georgia, with attempted production of child pornography and attempted transfer of obscene material to a minor. De La Cruz appeared for his arraignment and pled not guilty to the pending charges.

    According to the indictment, between August 8, 2024 and November 22, 2024, De La Cruz knowingly attempted to employ, use, persuade, entice, and coerce an individual he believed was a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing child pornography. Additionally, according to the indictment, on August 11, 2024, De La Cruz, using a means of interstate commerce, knowingly attempted to transfer obscene material to an individual he believed had not attained the age of 16 years old.

    Attempted production of child pornography is punishable by a maximum penalty of 15 – 30 years in prison, depending on sentencing enhancements. Attempted transfer of obscene material to a minor is punishable by a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. De La Cruz also faces potential sex offender registration, supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.

    This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Benjamin Anderson.

    NOTE: An indictment is an accusation by a grand jury. The defendant is presumed innocent until and unless adjudicated guilty at trial or through a guilty plea.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Former California Police Officer Convicted on Eight Counts of Sexually Assaulting Women While on Duty

    Source: US State of Vermont

    A federal jury in Fresno, California, convicted yesterday former Sanger, California, Police Department officer J. DeShawn Torrence, 42, of eight counts of deprivation of constitutional rights under color of law for sexually assaulting four women whom he encountered during the course of his official duties. The jury found that the offenses included kidnapping, aggravated sexual abuse, and attempted aggravated sexual abuse, and caused bodily injury.

    “Law enforcement officers are entrusted with great power to protect the public and keep them safe from harm. This officer’s crimes were an egregious breach of that trust and an appalling abuse of power, as he repeatedly preyed on the women in his community and violated their civil rights,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith for the Eastern District of California. “We stand ready to investigate and prosecute such crimes with all the tools we have available.”

    “The FBI Sacramento Field Office is grateful to the brave victims who came forward and trusted us to investigate the allegations of sexual abuse at the hands of a police officer,” said Special Agent in Charge Sid Patel of the FBI Sacramento Field Office. “The FBI is deeply committed to working with our partners to thoroughly investigate such cases to protect the American people and preserve public trust in law enforcement.”

    The evidence at trial proved that Torrence sexually assaulted four women. He kidnapped a 21-year-old woman who was walking to a store to buy groceries for her young children, drove her outside of town in his police car, and sexually assaulted her at an isolated dead end. Torrence forcibly raped a second victim, a 67-year-old woman, after following her into her home during a DUI investigation. With a third victim, Torrence showed up at her door in his police uniform after midnight, entered her apartment, pinned her against the kitchen counter, and sexually assaulted her. Torrence showed up multiple times at the home of a fourth victim, a domestic violence victim, supposedly to investigate a prior domestic violence incident. During those follow up visits, Torrence forced the victim to expose sensitive parts of her body for no legitimate reason, and he sexually assaulted her. The jury also heard testimony that Torrence sexually assaulted a fifth woman while acting in his capacity as a police officer.

    Five of the counts each carry a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine. The three remaining counts each carry a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. Torrence is scheduled to be sentenced on May 7.

    Deputy Assistant Attorney General Kathleen Wolfe of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division made the announcement.

    The FBI Sacramento Field Office investigated the case, with assistance from the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.

    Special Litigation Counsel Michael J. Songer of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Escobar for the Eastern District of California are prosecuting the case.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Cracked and Nulled Marketplaces Disrupted in International Cyber Operation

    Source: United States Attorneys General 2

    At Least 17M U.S. Victims Affected

    The Justice Department today announced its participation in a multinational operation involving actions in the United States, Romania, Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and Greece to disrupt and take down the infrastructure of the online cybercrime marketplaces known as Cracked and Nulled. The operation was announced in conjunction with Operation Talent, a multinational law enforcement operation supported by Europol to investigate Cracked and Nulled.

    Operation Talent Seizure Banner

    Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross for the Western District of New York, U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas, Assistant Director Brian A. Vorndran of the FBI’s Cyber Division, Special Agent in Charge Matthew Miraglia of the FBI Buffalo Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Aaron Tapp for the FBI San Antonio Field Office made the announcement.

    Cracked

    According to seizure warrants unsealed today, the Cracked marketplace has been selling stolen login credentials, hacking tools, and servers for hosting malware and stolen data — as well as other tools for carrying out cybercrime and fraud — since March 2018. Cracked had over four million users, listed over 28 million posts advertising cybercrime tools and stolen information, generated approximately $4 million in revenue, and impacted at least 17 million victims from the United States. One product advertised on Cracked offered access to “billions of leaked websites” allowing users to search for stolen login credentials. This product was recently allegedly used to sextort and harass a woman in the Western District of New York. Specifically, a cybercriminal entered the victim’s username into the tool and obtained the victim’s credentials for an online account. Using the victim’s credentials, the subject then cyberstalked the victim and sent sexually demeaning and threatening messages to the victim. The seizure of these marketplaces is intended to disrupt this type of cybercrime and the proliferation of these tools in the cybercrime community.

    The FBI, working in coordination with foreign law enforcement partners, identified a series of servers that hosted the Cracked marketplace infrastructure and eight domain names used to operate Cracked. They also identified servers and domain names for Cracked’s payment processor, Sellix, and the server and domain name for a related bulletproof hosting service. All of these servers and domain names have been seized pursuant to domestic and international legal process. Anyone visiting any of these seized domains will now see a seizure banner that notifies them that the domain has been seized by law enforcement authorities.

    The FBI Buffalo Field Office is investigating the case.

    Senior Counsel Thomas Dougherty of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Kruly for the Western District of New York are prosecuting the case.

    Nulled

    The Justice Department announced the seizure of the Nulled website domain and unsealed charges against one of Nulled’s administrators, Lucas Sohn, 29, an Argentinian national residing in Spain. According to the unsealed complaint affidavit, the Nulled marketplace has been selling stolen login credentials, stolen identification documents, hacking tools, as well as other tools for carrying out cybercrime and fraud, since 2016. Nulled had over five million users, listed over 43 million posts advertising cybercrime tools and stolen information, and generated approximately $1 million in yearly revenue. One product advertised on Nulled purported to contain the names and social security numbers of 500,000 American citizens.

    The FBI, working in coordination with foreign law enforcement partners, identified the servers that hosted the Nulled marketplace infrastructure, and the domain used to operate Nulled. The servers and domain have been seized pursuant to domestic and international legal process. Anyone visiting the Nulled domain will now see a seizure banner that notifies them that the domain has been seized by law enforcement authorities.

    According to the complaint, Sohn was an active administrator of Nulled and performed escrow functions on the website. Nulled’s customers would use Sohn’s services to complete transactions involving stolen credentials and other information. For his actions, Sohn has been charged with conspiracy to traffic in passwords and similar information through which computers may be accessed without authorization; conspiracy to solicit another person for the purpose of offering an access device or selling information regarding an access device; and conspiracy to possess, transfer, or use a means of identification of another person with the intent to commit or to aid and abet or in connection with any unlawful activity that is a violation of federal law.

    If convicted, Sohn faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison for conspiracy to traffic in passwords, 10 years in prison for access device fraud, and 15 years in prison for identity fraud.

    The FBI Austin Cyber Task Force is investigating the case. The Task Force participants include the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, IRS Criminal Investigation, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division, among other agencies.

    Assistant U.S. Attorneys G. Karthik Srinivasan and Christopher Mangels for the Western District of Texas are prosecuting the case, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Tindall for the Western District of Texas handling the forfeiture component.

    The Justice Department worked in close cooperation with investigators and prosecutors from several jurisdictions on the takedown of both the Cracked and Nulled marketplaces, including the Australian Federal Police, Europol, France’s Anti-Cybercrime Office (Office Anti-cybercriminalité) and Cyber Division of the Paris Prosecution Office, Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office (Bundeskriminalamt) and Prosecutor General’s Office Frankfurt am Main – Cyber Crime Center (Generalstaatsanwaltschaft Frankfurt am Main – ZIT), the Spanish National Police (Policía Nacional) and Guardia Civil, the Hellenic Police (Ελληνική Αστυνομία), Italy’s Polizia di Stato and the General Inspectorate of Romanian Police (Inspectoratul General al Poliției Romane). The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance.

    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: U.S. Attorney’s Office Announces Sentencing in Shiprock Fatal Stabbing

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ALBUQUERQUE – A Shiprock man was sentenced to 23 years in federal prison today for the fatal stabbing of John Doe at a gas station in Shiprock, New Mexico in 2021.

    There is no parole in the federal system.

    According to court documents, on October 24, 2021, following a night of drinking and socializing with friends, Marc Gene Clark, 47, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, confronted John Doe in the parking lot of a gas station. During the confrontation and without provocation, Clark stabbed Doe with a knife, resulting in significant blood loss and ultimately leading to Doe’s death later that day.

    Surveillance video footage captured the stabbing. Clark was subsequently arrested at a nearby laundromat by officers from the Navajo Nation Police Department, and the knife used in the stabbing was found in his possession.

    Upon his release from prison, Clark will be subject to five years of supervised release.

    U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, made the announcement today.

    The Farmington Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Police Department and Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant United States Attorneys Matthew J. McGinley and Paul J. Mysliwiec prosecuted the case.

    # # #

    MIL Security OSI –