NewzIntel.com

Category: Gun Control

  • MIL-OSI Security: Three-Time Felon Charged with Possession of a Firearm in Austin

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

    AUSTIN, Texas – An Austin felon made his initial appearance in federal court today after he was arrested on criminal charges related to his alleged possession of a firearm.

    According to court documents, Frank Horton Lee Jr., 38, was allegedly found to possess a.45 ACP caliber semiautomatic pistol following a traffic stop by officers of the Austin Police Department on May 24.

    According to the complaint filed in federal court, Lee is a convicted felon and is charged with one count of possession of a firearm by a felon. If convicted, he faces up to 15 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

    U.S. Attorney Justin Simmons for the Western District of Texas made the announcement.

    The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Austin Police Department are investigating the case.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Buie is prosecuting the case.

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

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    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Previously Convicted Felon from Donora Pleads Guilty to Drug Trafficking and Firearm Charges

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

    PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A resident of Donora, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court on July 9, 2025, to fentanyl and cocaine trafficking and the unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.

    Tre Robert Goins, 31, pleaded guilty before Senior United States District Judge Joy Flowers Conti to possession with the intent to distribute quantities of fentanyl and cocaine and possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon. Goins will proceed to trial in August 2025 on an additional federal charge of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

    In connection with the guilty plea, the Court was advised that, on May 24, 2024, Goins fled from a traffic stop initiated by the City of Duquesne Police Department. Goins led law enforcement on a high-speed chase and crashed his vehicle, at which time, police recovered fentanyl, cocaine, and a loaded firearm, which had been reported stolen, from Goins’ car. Goins has multiple prior felony convictions for firearms. Federal law prohibits possession of a firearm or ammunition by a convicted felon.

    Judge Conti scheduled sentencing for October 22, 2025. The law provides for a maximum total sentence of up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $1 million, or both. Under the federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history of the defendant.

    Assistant United States Attorneys Kelly M. Locher and Katherine C. Jordan are prosecuting this case on behalf of the United States.
    Pending sentencing, Goins will remain in the custody of the United States Marshals Service.

    The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, City of Clairton and Duquesne police departments, and Elizabeth Township Police Department conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Goins.

    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: Anarchists and Rioters in Portland Illegally Dox ICE Officers and Federal Law Enforcement

    Source: US Department of Homeland Security

    ICE officers are facing a 700 percent increase in assaults as family members are doxed and targeted

    PORTLAND – Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem today released the following statement addressing criminals and Antifa-affiliated groups continued efforts to dox the personal information of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in Oregon.

    ICE law enforcement is facing a nearly 700 percent increase in assaults against them. These doxxing websites that attempt to reveal ICE officers’ identity, and even their families and children, put our law enforcement grave danger as highly sophisticated gangs like Tren de Aragua and MS-13, criminal rings, murderers, and rapists can use this information to carry out attacks on federal law enforcement and their families.

    “We will prosecute those who dox ICE agents to the fullest extent of the law. These criminals are taking the side of vicious cartels and human traffickers,” said Secretary Noem.“We won’t allow it in America.”

    Across the country, federal law enforcement has come under attack. Gunmen opened fire on Border Patrol and ICE officers in Texas over the Fourth of July weekend on two separate occasions, seriously wounding two.

    Multiple organizations appear to be responsible for doxing these federal officers, including an anarchist and Antifa-affiliated group based in Portland called “Rose City Counter-Info” and another called “The Crustian Daily.” Both of these groups have published the names, pictures, and personal address of ICE officers on their websites.

    Criminals have posted fliers in officers’ neighborhoods, that includes their name, address, pictures of them and their families. These fliers threaten officers with text that says, “NO PEACE FOR ICE” and “CHINGA LA MIGRA” (translation: F**K immigration services).

    At the same time, an ICE facility in Portland has been under siege. Rioters have attacked law enforcement officials, destroyed federal property, and have posted death threats at the facility. Outside of the facility, graffiti on the sidewalk reads “Kill Your Masters.”

    Others have trespassed on an official’s personal property, dumping trash on their front lawn and directly threatening this officer by name.

    Prominent politicians are actively encouraging these attacks by demonizing federal law enforcement, refusing to cooperate with lawful immigration enforcement, and even assaulting law enforcement themselves.

    In addition, sanctuary cities like Portland prevent local city and state police from working with federal law enforcement. Not only does this leave their own communities vulnerable to crime and violence, but it creates an unsafe environment on the ground as federal and local law enforcement are unable to coordinate their activities.

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    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Anarchists and Rioters in Portland Illegally Dox ICE Officers and Federal Law Enforcement

    Source: US Department of Homeland Security

    ICE officers are facing a 700 percent increase in assaults as family members are doxed and targeted

    PORTLAND – Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem today released the following statement addressing criminals and Antifa-affiliated groups continued efforts to dox the personal information of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in Oregon.

    ICE law enforcement is facing a nearly 700 percent increase in assaults against them. These doxxing websites that attempt to reveal ICE officers’ identity, and even their families and children, put our law enforcement grave danger as highly sophisticated gangs like Tren de Aragua and MS-13, criminal rings, murderers, and rapists can use this information to carry out attacks on federal law enforcement and their families.

    “We will prosecute those who dox ICE agents to the fullest extent of the law. These criminals are taking the side of vicious cartels and human traffickers,” said Secretary Noem.“We won’t allow it in America.”

    Across the country, federal law enforcement has come under attack. Gunmen opened fire on Border Patrol and ICE officers in Texas over the Fourth of July weekend on two separate occasions, seriously wounding two.

    Multiple organizations appear to be responsible for doxing these federal officers, including an anarchist and Antifa-affiliated group based in Portland called “Rose City Counter-Info” and another called “The Crustian Daily.” Both of these groups have published the names, pictures, and personal address of ICE officers on their websites.

    Criminals have posted fliers in officers’ neighborhoods, that includes their name, address, pictures of them and their families. These fliers threaten officers with text that says, “NO PEACE FOR ICE” and “CHINGA LA MIGRA” (translation: F**K immigration services).

    At the same time, an ICE facility in Portland has been under siege. Rioters have attacked law enforcement officials, destroyed federal property, and have posted death threats at the facility. Outside of the facility, graffiti on the sidewalk reads “Kill Your Masters.”

    Others have trespassed on an official’s personal property, dumping trash on their front lawn and directly threatening this officer by name.

    Prominent politicians are actively encouraging these attacks by demonizing federal law enforcement, refusing to cooperate with lawful immigration enforcement, and even assaulting law enforcement themselves.

    In addition, sanctuary cities like Portland prevent local city and state police from working with federal law enforcement. Not only does this leave their own communities vulnerable to crime and violence, but it creates an unsafe environment on the ground as federal and local law enforcement are unable to coordinate their activities.

    ###

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: AG Brown blocks returns and sales of machine-gun conversion devices in Washington

    Source: Washington State News

    SEATTLE — The Trump administration has committed in court filings to carving out Washington and other states from its illegal plans to distribute thousands of machine-gun conversion devices nationwide following a lawsuit from Attorney General Nick Brown and 15 other states’ attorneys general.
     
    In submissions made in the multistate litigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has expressly confirmed to a judge that it will not return forced reset triggers in the plaintiff states. In addition, Rare Breed Triggers, the country’s largest purveyor of forced reset triggers, has confirmed in its court filings that it will not sell any of these devices in the plaintiff states. As a result, the coalition is withdrawing its motion for a preliminary injunction.
     
    “It is unfortunate that litigation was necessary when the federal government could have made these commitments much earlier,” Brown said. “But I will do everything possible to keep Washingtonians safe from dangerous machine-gun conversion devices.”
     
    In recent years, machine-gun conversion devices like forced reset triggers, which dramatically increase a firearm’s rate of fire, have been frequently used in violent crimes and mass shootings, worsening the gun violence epidemic in the United States. Firearms equipped with these devices are able to exceed the rate of fire of many military machine guns, firing up to 20 bullets in one second. ATF has noted a significant rise in the use of these devices, leading to increasing incidents of machine-gun fire — up 1,400% from 2019 through 2021.
     
    In addition to Washington, the other plaintiffs are Delaware, Maryland, Colorado, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and the District of Columbia.
     
    The case, which remains active, was filed June 9. Read more about the lawsuit here.

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    Washington’s Attorney General serves the people and the state of Washington. As the state’s largest law firm, the Attorney General’s Office provides legal representation to every state agency, board, and commission in Washington. Additionally, the Office serves the people directly by enforcing consumer protection, civil rights, and environmental protection laws. The Office also prosecutes elder abuse, Medicaid fraud, and handles sexually violent predator cases in 38 of Washington’s 39 counties. Visit www.atg.wa.gov to learn more.

    Media Contact:

    Email: press@atg.wa.gov

    Phone: (360) 753-2727

    General contacts: Click here

    Media Resource Guide & Attorney General’s Office FAQ

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Western District of Texas U.S. Attorney’s Office Adds 222 Immigration Cases

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

    SAN ANTONIO – United States Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas announced today, that federal prosecutors in the district filed 222 new immigration and immigration-related criminal cases from July 3 through July 10.

    Among the new cases, Karen Y. Ordonez-Granados and Ledy Veronica Ordonez-Granados aka Veronica Granados were both charged with one count of fraud or misuse of an immigration document. The two defendants were arrested as Homeland Security Investigations and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement Removal Operations (ERO) conducted a court-authorized search warrant at Groomer’s Seafood of San Antonio on July 2. The search warrant had been authorized after HSI auditors discovered, through an investigation of Forms I-9, that 29 employees hired between 2016 and 2025 had presented fraudulent legal permanent resident (LPR) cards and fraudulent social security numbers at their time of hiring or rehiring. A criminal complaint affidavit alleges that two of those employees were Karen Y. Ordonez-Granados and Ledy Veronica Ordonez-Granados. Both defendants allegedly stated they $150 for the fraudulent LPR cards and presented them when they applied for employment. If convicted they each face up to 10 years in federal prison and/or up to a $250,000 fine.

    In Austin, Honduran national Jose David Sifuentes was encountered by ICE at the Caldwell County Jail where he was serving a five-year sentence for sexual assaulting a child. Sifuentes was arrested for the charge July 14, 2020, at which time ICE lodged a detainer. He was federally charged with illegal re-entry on July 7, 2025, having been previously removed from the U.S. to Honduras in 2019. Sifuentes was subsequently indicted by a federal grand jury on July 9.

    Two Guatemalan nationals were arrested in El Paso and charged with illegal re-entry after they had just been removed from the U.S. in May. Diego Garcia-Godinez was allegedly located just over three miles east of the Bridge of the Americas Port of Entry and has been deported three times, most recently to Guatemala on May 20, 2025. Jose Luis Cabrera-Lopez was allegedly found approximately .01 miles east of the Bridge of the Americas and has also been removed three times, the last being to Guatemala on May 14.

    Samuel Meza-Escobedo, a Mexican national with nine prior removals, was also arrested in El Paso and charged with illegal re-entry. Meza-Escobedo was allegedly found just less than a mile west of the Paso Del Norte Port of Entry and has three prior illegal re-entry convictions. He was last removed from the U.S. to Mexico on Aug. 13, 2024.

    Mexican national Daniel Sauceda-Borrego was arrested by Customs and Border Protection in El Paso after he allegedly presented identification documents under an assumed or fictitious name. A criminal complaint alleges that Sauceda-Borrego presented a Washington ID card bearing his photograph, name, and date of birth, along with a Social Security Card of another individual with the initials J.F.R. He was referred to Passport Control Secondary (PCS), where his fingerprints were scanned and revealed that he had been previously removed from the U.S. to Mexico in 2011. The criminal complaint alleges that Sauceda-Borrego admitted that he was given a Texas Birth Certificate from an individual in Seattle, Washington, and had been using a different identity for approximately five or six years.

    Tomas Velazquez-Jijon, a Mexican national, was arrested on July 7, after U.S. Border Patrol agents located him during a Greyhound bus inspection at the Sierra Blanca Border Patrol Checkpoint and allegedly discovered he was in possession of a fraudulent LPR card with his demographics printed on the card. A record check for the LPR card number resulted in a different name, date of birth, and citizenship. Agents also allegedly found that Velazquez-Jijon possessed a fraudulent Social Security Card. He was recently removed from the U.S. to Mexico for the first time on May 22, and is charged with one count of fraud and misuse of visas, permits and related documents, and false personation.

    These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE ERO), U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with additional assistance from state and local law enforcement partners.

    The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas comprises 68 counties located in the central and western areas of Texas, encompasses nearly 93,000 square miles and an estimated population of 7.6 million people. The district includes three of the five largest cities in Texas—San Antonio, Austin and El Paso—and shares 660 miles of common border with the Republic of Mexico.

    These cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

    Indictments and criminal complaints are merely allegations and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

    ###

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Western District of Texas U.S. Attorney’s Office Adds 222 Immigration Cases

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

    SAN ANTONIO – United States Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas announced today, that federal prosecutors in the district filed 222 new immigration and immigration-related criminal cases from July 3 through July 10.

    Among the new cases, Karen Y. Ordonez-Granados and Ledy Veronica Ordonez-Granados aka Veronica Granados were both charged with one count of fraud or misuse of an immigration document. The two defendants were arrested as Homeland Security Investigations and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement Removal Operations (ERO) conducted a court-authorized search warrant at Groomer’s Seafood of San Antonio on July 2. The search warrant had been authorized after HSI auditors discovered, through an investigation of Forms I-9, that 29 employees hired between 2016 and 2025 had presented fraudulent legal permanent resident (LPR) cards and fraudulent social security numbers at their time of hiring or rehiring. A criminal complaint affidavit alleges that two of those employees were Karen Y. Ordonez-Granados and Ledy Veronica Ordonez-Granados. Both defendants allegedly stated they $150 for the fraudulent LPR cards and presented them when they applied for employment. If convicted they each face up to 10 years in federal prison and/or up to a $250,000 fine.

    In Austin, Honduran national Jose David Sifuentes was encountered by ICE at the Caldwell County Jail where he was serving a five-year sentence for sexual assaulting a child. Sifuentes was arrested for the charge July 14, 2020, at which time ICE lodged a detainer. He was federally charged with illegal re-entry on July 7, 2025, having been previously removed from the U.S. to Honduras in 2019. Sifuentes was subsequently indicted by a federal grand jury on July 9.

    Two Guatemalan nationals were arrested in El Paso and charged with illegal re-entry after they had just been removed from the U.S. in May. Diego Garcia-Godinez was allegedly located just over three miles east of the Bridge of the Americas Port of Entry and has been deported three times, most recently to Guatemala on May 20, 2025. Jose Luis Cabrera-Lopez was allegedly found approximately .01 miles east of the Bridge of the Americas and has also been removed three times, the last being to Guatemala on May 14.

    Samuel Meza-Escobedo, a Mexican national with nine prior removals, was also arrested in El Paso and charged with illegal re-entry. Meza-Escobedo was allegedly found just less than a mile west of the Paso Del Norte Port of Entry and has three prior illegal re-entry convictions. He was last removed from the U.S. to Mexico on Aug. 13, 2024.

    Mexican national Daniel Sauceda-Borrego was arrested by Customs and Border Protection in El Paso after he allegedly presented identification documents under an assumed or fictitious name. A criminal complaint alleges that Sauceda-Borrego presented a Washington ID card bearing his photograph, name, and date of birth, along with a Social Security Card of another individual with the initials J.F.R. He was referred to Passport Control Secondary (PCS), where his fingerprints were scanned and revealed that he had been previously removed from the U.S. to Mexico in 2011. The criminal complaint alleges that Sauceda-Borrego admitted that he was given a Texas Birth Certificate from an individual in Seattle, Washington, and had been using a different identity for approximately five or six years.

    Tomas Velazquez-Jijon, a Mexican national, was arrested on July 7, after U.S. Border Patrol agents located him during a Greyhound bus inspection at the Sierra Blanca Border Patrol Checkpoint and allegedly discovered he was in possession of a fraudulent LPR card with his demographics printed on the card. A record check for the LPR card number resulted in a different name, date of birth, and citizenship. Agents also allegedly found that Velazquez-Jijon possessed a fraudulent Social Security Card. He was recently removed from the U.S. to Mexico for the first time on May 22, and is charged with one count of fraud and misuse of visas, permits and related documents, and false personation.

    These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE ERO), U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with additional assistance from state and local law enforcement partners.

    The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas comprises 68 counties located in the central and western areas of Texas, encompasses nearly 93,000 square miles and an estimated population of 7.6 million people. The district includes three of the five largest cities in Texas—San Antonio, Austin and El Paso—and shares 660 miles of common border with the Republic of Mexico.

    These cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

    Indictments and criminal complaints are merely allegations and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

    ###

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: AG Brown blocks returns and sales of machine-gun conversion devices in

    Source: Washington State News

    SEATTLE — The Trump administration has committed in court filings to carving out Washington and other states from its illegal plans to distribute thousands of machine-gun conversion devices nationwide following a lawsuit from Attorney General Nick Brown and 15 other states’ attorneys general.
     
    In submissions made in the multistate litigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has expressly confirmed to a judge that it will not return forced reset triggers in the plaintiff states. In addition, Rare Breed Triggers, the country’s largest purveyor of forced reset triggers, has confirmed in its court filings that it will not sell any of these devices in the plaintiff states. As a result, the coalition is withdrawing its motion for a preliminary injunction.
     
    “It is unfortunate that litigation was necessary when the federal government could have made these commitments much earlier,” Brown said. “But I will do everything possible to keep Washingtonians safe from dangerous machine-gun conversion devices.”
     
    In recent years, machine-gun conversion devices like forced reset triggers, which dramatically increase a firearm’s rate of fire, have been frequently used in violent crimes and mass shootings, worsening the gun violence epidemic in the United States. Firearms equipped with these devices are able to exceed the rate of fire of many military machine guns, firing up to 20 bullets in one second. ATF has noted a significant rise in the use of these devices, leading to increasing incidents of machine-gun fire — up 1,400% from 2019 through 2021.
     
    In addition to Washington, the other plaintiffs are Delaware, Maryland, Colorado, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and the District of Columbia.
     
    The case, which remains active, was filed June 9. Read more about the lawsuit here.

    -30-

    Washington’s Attorney General serves the people and the state of Washington. As the state’s largest law firm, the Attorney General’s Office provides legal representation to every state agency, board, and commission in Washington. Additionally, the Office serves the people directly by enforcing consumer protection, civil rights, and environmental protection laws. The Office also prosecutes elder abuse, Medicaid fraud, and handles sexually violent predator cases in 38 of Washington’s 39 counties. Visit www.atg.wa.gov to learn more.

    Media Contact:

    Email: press@atg.wa.gov

    Phone: (360) 753-2727

    General contacts: Click here

    Media Resource Guide & Attorney General’s Office FAQ

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Pair Sentenced for Two St. Louis Carjackings

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

    ST. LOUIS – A man and a woman who committed two armed carjackings in St. Louis, Missouri in 2022 have been sentenced to more than 11 years in prison.

    U.S. District Judge John A. Ross on Thursday sentenced Jermanine Smith, 51, of St. Louis, to 141 months in prison. Judge Ross sentenced Bianka North, 29, of Illinois, to 154 months in prison on June 20.

    Smith pleaded guilty on March 20, 2025, to one count of carjacking and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. North pleaded guilty 10 days earlier to two counts of carjacking and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. Both admitted stealing a 2006 Pontiac G6 on May 14, 2022, and a 2009 Toyota Scion the next day.

    The first victim was sitting in her G6 in North Riverfront Park in St. Louis when Smith and North pulled up in a Dodge Charger. A short time later, Smith approached the victims and asked for their help jump-starting the Charger. When the G6 driver and her friend got out of their car, North pointed a silver handgun at them and ordered them to move away. North then stole that car and drove away, followed by Smith in the Charger.

    On May 15, 2022, North was driving the carjacked G6 and parked near a Scion XD in the 1600 block of South 9th Street in St. Louis just after midnight. North opened the door of the Scion and ordered the driver out at gunpoint before driving away. North also ordered the victim to leave her mobile phone in the car. After the carjacking, someone tried to use Cash App on the victim’s phone to transfer $300 to Smith.

    The case was investigated by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Szczucinski prosecuted the case. 

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: TALLAHASSEE MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO DRUG TRAFFICKING AND ILLEGAL FIREARMS POSSESSION

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

    TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – Jason Rigdon, 44, of Crawfordville, Florida, pleaded guilty July 9, 2025, to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, and possession of multiple firearms by a convicted felon. The plea was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida. 

    U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “I applaud the excellent work of our federal, state, and local partners to make our community safer by getting this dangerous individual off the streets.  My office remains fully committed to fulfilling the promise made by President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi to Take Back America by targeting violent criminals with the full force of the law.”

    Court documents reflect that pursuant to a federal search warrant of Rigdon’s Crawfordville residence, methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia, and thirteen firearms were seized.  Rigdon was previously convicted of multiple State of Florida felony charges including drug trafficking, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, fleeing and eluding law enforcement, and illegal possession of firearms. At the time of arrest, a privately made firearm, commonly known as a “ghost gun,” was also seized.

    Rigdon is scheduled for sentencing before United States District Judge Robert L. Hinkle on September 25, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. in Tallahassee, Florida.  Rigdon faces up to thirty years’ imprisonment on the drug charge, and up to fifteen years’ imprisonment on the firearms charge.

    The Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Leon County Sheriff’s Office, Wakulla County Sheriff’s Office, and the Tallahassee Police Department investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Eric K. Mountin is prosecuting the case.

    This case is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline ) a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

    The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access available public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: ATO holds more GST fraudsters to account

    Source: New places to play in Gungahlin

    The Australian Taxation Office’s (ATO) hunt for GST fraudsters continues as four more individuals are sentenced following action of Operation Protego.

    These recent sentencings reinforce the ATO’s unwavering commitment in investigating and holding all offenders to account.

    ATO Deputy Commissioner and Serious Financial Crime Taskforce (SFCT) Chief John Ford said the ATO’s ability to detect and halt GST fraud is unwavering.

    ‘Our fraud detection and prevention capabilities are advanced thanks to partnerships, technologies, and risk models all working together to stay ahead of fraudsters and criminals,’ Mr Ford said.

    Included in these sentencings are individuals who, at the time of offending, were current employees and contractors at the ATO. Once their involvement was identified, their employment ceased.

    ‘We expect all staff to act with the highest levels of integrity and these individuals violated the trust placed in them by the community.’

    ‘The community rightly expects all ATO staff to act with the highest levels of integrity. Those who do not meet our values have no place at the ATO,’ Mr Ford said.

    Latest sentencing outcomes

    • Kim Orense was sentenced in Penrith District Court to 18 months’ imprisonment, to be released on recognizance after serving 10 months subject to conditions to be of good behaviour for 2 years and to accept the supervision and guidance of Community Corrections, for dealing in money or property that was and which Mr Orense believe to be the proceeds of indictable crime, contrary to subsection 400.4(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth). Between October 2021 and April 2022, 14 false business activity statements (BAS) were lodged in Mr Orense’s name, which resulted in him receiving $214,011 in fraudulent GST refunds. He transferred these funds to other bank accounts or associates, including Abigail Ussher, his former partner, who has also been sentenced. A search warrant conducted in June 2022 at Mr Orense’s residence found no business records, invoices, tools or equipment, that would suggest he was carrying out a house repair business that he claimed.
    • Abigail Ussher was sentenced in the Penrith District Court to 12 months’ imprisonment, to be released on recognisance after serving 5 months subject to conditions to be of good behaviour for 2 years and to accept the supervision and guidance of Community Corrections, for dealing in money or property that was and which Ms Ussher believed to be the proceeds of indictable crime, contrary to subsection 400.4(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth). In 2022, Ms Ussher lodged 3 original and 4 revised BAS and received $117,297 in refunds through an ABN she claimed was for a business that provided crime scene cleaning services. Upon receiving the funds, Ms Ussher transferred them to personal accounts, or other third parties. She transferred funds to Kim Orense, her former partner, who has also been sentenced. An investigation into Ms Ussher’s bank activity and a search warrant on her home concluded that she was not carrying out a business and therefore not entitled to the refunds she had claimed.
    • Former ATO employee Menuwarage Ranasinghe was sentenced at Adelaide Magistrates Court to 4 months’ imprisonment with an order that she be released immediately upon giving security by recognizance of $500 to comply with a condition that she must be of good behaviour for 18 months for three counts of the offence of obtaining a financial advantage by deception. Ms Ranasinghe lodged three BAS which misrepresented the creditable expenses incurred by her business and, as a result, obtained $16,056.00 in GST refunds.
    • Former ATO contractor Baby Dee Zearwie was sentenced at Melbourne County Court to 8 months’ imprisonment, and immediately released on a two-year recognizance release order for 1 count of obtaining a financial advantage by deception by joint commission and 1 count of obtaining financial advantage by deception. Ms Zearwie obtained $87,649.60 in fraudulent GST refunds. She was also ordered to make reparations of $23,709.43.

    These matters were prosecuted by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Cth)(CDPP) following a referral from the ATO.

    You can confidentially report suspected tax crime or fraud to us by making a tip-off online or calling 1800 060 062.

    For more information about Operation Protego including recent sentencings, visit ato.gov.au/protego.

    Notes to journalists

    • As part of Operation Protego, the ATO has applied treatment against more than 57,000 alleged offenders. Those involved in this fraud have already been handed in the order of $300 million in penalties and interest.
    • As at 30 June 2025, 122 people have been convicted with a range of sentencing outcomes, including jail terms of up to 7 years and 6 months and with orders made to restrain real property.
    • The ATO has finalised 64 investigations and referred 54 briefs of evidence to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions. The figures do not include investigations into former ATO staff.
    • A high-resolution headshot of Deputy Commissioner and Serious Financial Crime Taskforce Chief John Ford is available from the ATO media centre
    • ATO stock footage and images is available for download and use in news bulletins from the ATO media centre.

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: VIOLENT FELON SENTENCED FOR POSSESSING A FIREARM

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

    PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Tariq Dazour Walker, 27, of Pensacola, Florida was sentenced to 120 months in prison after previously pleading guilty to possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

    According to court records, on December 4, 2024, Pensacola Police Department responded to reports of shots fired at the Pensacola Village apartment complex. Multiple witnesses identified Walker as the shooter. Walker was a convicted felon at the time, with multiple prior felony convictions for robbery, grand theft auto, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

    U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “Removing violent offenders from our communities remains a top priority of my office, and we will continue to aggressively prosecute those who terrorize our streets.  I deeply appreciate the combined efforts of our state and federal law enforcement partners to keep our neighborhoods safe, and my prosecutors will stand shoulder to shoulder with them in the fight to protect our communities from violent criminals.”

    Chief Eric Randall of the Pensacola Police Department said: “We remain steadfast in our commitment to ensure the safety of Pensacola. Our collaboration with our local, state and federal partners is unwavering in the pursuit to keep our neighborhoods safe from armed felons.”

    The conviction and sentence were the result of a joint investigation by the Escambia County Sherriff’s Office, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the Pensacola Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey M. Tharp.

    This case is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline ) a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

    The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Gaza: ‘Unacceptable’ choice between getting shot or getting fed

    Source: United Nations 4

    UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva on Friday that “we’ve raised concerns about atrocity crimes having been committed and the risk of further atrocity crimes, where people are lining up for essential supplies such as food and medicine and where they are being attacked, where again… they have a choice between being shot or being fed”.

    Deadly lottery

    “This is unacceptable and it’s continuing,” she deplored.

    Ms. Shamdasani said that her office is still looking into the incident in which at least 15 Palestinians including women and children were reportedly killed by a strike in front of a clinic in Deir al-Balah run by US-based aid group Project Hope, a partner organization of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).  

    In a statement on Thursday UNICEF chief Catherine Russell said that the killing of families trying to access life-saving aid is “unconscionable”.

    The Israeli military reportedly said that it was targeting a Hamas member involved in the terror attacks in Israel on 7 October 2023.

    Asked about the rationale of putting civilians, including children, in mortal danger when targeting one specific person, Ms. Shamdasani said that over the course of the conflict in Gaza OHCHR has had serious concerns about respect for essential international humanitarian law principles, including that of distinction and proportionality.

    “We have seen that of the overall death toll in Gaza; a large proportion are women and children. And again, that raises serious questions about whether these principles are being respected,” she said.

    © UNICEF/Eyad El Baba

    Hungry people in Gaza run the risk being shot when picking up food aid.

    Hundreds killed queuing for food

    Killings of Gazans at or around aid distribution sites and near humanitarian convoys have become a regular occurrence in a context of restrictions on the entry of food, fuel and relief items into the Strip and particularly since the establishment of food distribution sites bypassing the UN operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).

    Since late May, this militarised aid distribution model, backed by Israel and the United States, has sought to sideline the UN and its experienced humanitarian partners.  

    OHCHR’s Ms. Shamdasani said that from 27 May, when the GHF started operations in Gaza, until 7 July, OHCHR recorded 798 killings “including 615 in the vicinity of the GHF sites and 183 presumably on the routes of aid convoys”.  

    Gunshot injuries

    The deaths of almost 800 people trying to access aid were “mostly due to… gunshot injuries”, Ms. Shamdasani said.

    Joining her in condemning the killings, World Health Organization (WHO) spokesperson Christian Lindmeier said that he is “slowly lacking words to describe the scenario”.

    “People being shot at distribution sites… scores of women and children and men and boys and girls being killed while either getting food or in what’s supposedly safe shelters or on the road to health clinics or inside health clinics – this is far beyond unacceptable.”

    Fuel crisis

    Asked to comment on a 75,000-litre fuel delivery into Gaza on Wednesday, the first such provision in over 130 days, Mr. Lindmeier said that “as good as it is that these this amount of fuel came finally in… we should not be relying on special news of special deliveries,” be it on fuel, food or other relief items.

    “There should be a reoccurring delivery into Gaza to keep the lifelines open, to supply the ambulances, the hospitals, the water desalination plants, the bakeries… whatever is necessary to keep a little bit of lifeline open there, to run the incubators,” he said.  

    The WHO spokesperson pointed out that 94 per cent of the hospitals in Gaza are now damaged or destroyed, while displacement continues and civilians are being pushed into ever smaller spaces.

    Mr. Lindmeier also expressed his hope for a positive outcome of the ongoing ceasefire talks.

    “Peace is the best medicine and opening the doors remains the only viable option,” he concluded.

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Minister visits USS Newport News in Grundartangi Harbour

    Source: Government of Iceland

    Iceland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Ms. Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir visited the US submarine USS Newport News in Grundartangi harbour yesterday. The submarine is in Iceland for a regular service visit. This is the not the first time a nuclear-powered US submarine enters Icelandic territorial waters; however, this is the first service visit of such a vessel to an Icelandic port. The USS Newport is a Los Angeles-class vessel with a crew of around 140 personnel and does not carry nuclear weapons.

    “This is an important milestone in a long and successful defence partnership with the United States, which has been strengthened significantly in recent years. We have been systematically deepening the partnership based on the Bilateral Defence Agreement from 1951 and common interests in the North Atlantic and the Arctic. We place great emphasis on security and defence and want to ensure our own security and the security of our allies, and we do this, inter alia, by supporting their operations in the region,” says Þorgerður Katrín.

    Admiral Stuart B. Munsch, Commander of the U.S. European and African Fleet, and Erin Sawyer, Acting U.S. Ambassador to Iceland, welcomed the Minister for Foreign Affairs upon her arrival at Grundartangi. There, the Minister was given a tour of the submarine, briefed on the crew’s assignments, and met with Admiral Munsch on security developments in the North Atlantic and Arctic. Admiral Munsch also met with the Director General for Defence, Mr. Jónas G. Allansson, visited the Keflavík Air Base, and met with the U.S. forces carrying out Anti-Submarine Warfare missions.

    This is the eighth time that a U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarine makes a service visit in Icelandic territorial waters, since the former Minister for Foreign Affairs announced on April 18, 2023, that such submarines would be permitted to make brief service stops in Iceland.

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for the visit, but the Icelandic Coast Guard is leading its implementation in close collaboration with the National Commissioner of Police, the Icelandic Radiation Safety Agency and the Directorate of Health in accordance with established procedures. The visits have all been successful due to close cooperation and consultation between the relevant domestic institutions and good cooperation with the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Embassy in Iceland.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Minister visits USS Newport News in Grundartangi Harbour

    Source: Government of Iceland

    Iceland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Ms. Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir visited the US submarine USS Newport News in Grundartangi harbour yesterday. The submarine is in Iceland for a regular service visit. This is the not the first time a nuclear-powered US submarine enters Icelandic territorial waters; however, this is the first service visit of such a vessel to an Icelandic port. The USS Newport is a Los Angeles-class vessel with a crew of around 140 personnel and does not carry nuclear weapons.

    “This is an important milestone in a long and successful defence partnership with the United States, which has been strengthened significantly in recent years. We have been systematically deepening the partnership based on the Bilateral Defence Agreement from 1951 and common interests in the North Atlantic and the Arctic. We place great emphasis on security and defence and want to ensure our own security and the security of our allies, and we do this, inter alia, by supporting their operations in the region,” says Þorgerður Katrín.

    Admiral Stuart B. Munsch, Commander of the U.S. European and African Fleet, and Erin Sawyer, Acting U.S. Ambassador to Iceland, welcomed the Minister for Foreign Affairs upon her arrival at Grundartangi. There, the Minister was given a tour of the submarine, briefed on the crew’s assignments, and met with Admiral Munsch on security developments in the North Atlantic and Arctic. Admiral Munsch also met with the Director General for Defence, Mr. Jónas G. Allansson, visited the Keflavík Air Base, and met with the U.S. forces carrying out Anti-Submarine Warfare missions.

    This is the eighth time that a U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarine makes a service visit in Icelandic territorial waters, since the former Minister for Foreign Affairs announced on April 18, 2023, that such submarines would be permitted to make brief service stops in Iceland.

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for the visit, but the Icelandic Coast Guard is leading its implementation in close collaboration with the National Commissioner of Police, the Icelandic Radiation Safety Agency and the Directorate of Health in accordance with established procedures. The visits have all been successful due to close cooperation and consultation between the relevant domestic institutions and good cooperation with the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Embassy in Iceland.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Minister visits USS Newport News in Grundartangi Harbour

    Source: Government of Iceland

    Iceland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Ms. Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir visited the US submarine USS Newport News in Grundartangi harbour yesterday. The submarine is in Iceland for a regular service visit. This is the not the first time a nuclear-powered US submarine enters Icelandic territorial waters; however, this is the first service visit of such a vessel to an Icelandic port. The USS Newport is a Los Angeles-class vessel with a crew of around 140 personnel and does not carry nuclear weapons.

    “This is an important milestone in a long and successful defence partnership with the United States, which has been strengthened significantly in recent years. We have been systematically deepening the partnership based on the Bilateral Defence Agreement from 1951 and common interests in the North Atlantic and the Arctic. We place great emphasis on security and defence and want to ensure our own security and the security of our allies, and we do this, inter alia, by supporting their operations in the region,” says Þorgerður Katrín.

    Admiral Stuart B. Munsch, Commander of the U.S. European and African Fleet, and Erin Sawyer, Acting U.S. Ambassador to Iceland, welcomed the Minister for Foreign Affairs upon her arrival at Grundartangi. There, the Minister was given a tour of the submarine, briefed on the crew’s assignments, and met with Admiral Munsch on security developments in the North Atlantic and Arctic. Admiral Munsch also met with the Director General for Defence, Mr. Jónas G. Allansson, visited the Keflavík Air Base, and met with the U.S. forces carrying out Anti-Submarine Warfare missions.

    This is the eighth time that a U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarine makes a service visit in Icelandic territorial waters, since the former Minister for Foreign Affairs announced on April 18, 2023, that such submarines would be permitted to make brief service stops in Iceland.

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for the visit, but the Icelandic Coast Guard is leading its implementation in close collaboration with the National Commissioner of Police, the Icelandic Radiation Safety Agency and the Directorate of Health in accordance with established procedures. The visits have all been successful due to close cooperation and consultation between the relevant domestic institutions and good cooperation with the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Embassy in Iceland.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Minister visits USS Newport News in Grundartangi Harbour

    Source: Government of Iceland

    Iceland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Ms. Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir visited the US submarine USS Newport News in Grundartangi harbour yesterday. The submarine is in Iceland for a regular service visit. This is the not the first time a nuclear-powered US submarine enters Icelandic territorial waters; however, this is the first service visit of such a vessel to an Icelandic port. The USS Newport is a Los Angeles-class vessel with a crew of around 140 personnel and does not carry nuclear weapons.

    “This is an important milestone in a long and successful defence partnership with the United States, which has been strengthened significantly in recent years. We have been systematically deepening the partnership based on the Bilateral Defence Agreement from 1951 and common interests in the North Atlantic and the Arctic. We place great emphasis on security and defence and want to ensure our own security and the security of our allies, and we do this, inter alia, by supporting their operations in the region,” says Þorgerður Katrín.

    Admiral Stuart B. Munsch, Commander of the U.S. European and African Fleet, and Erin Sawyer, Acting U.S. Ambassador to Iceland, welcomed the Minister for Foreign Affairs upon her arrival at Grundartangi. There, the Minister was given a tour of the submarine, briefed on the crew’s assignments, and met with Admiral Munsch on security developments in the North Atlantic and Arctic. Admiral Munsch also met with the Director General for Defence, Mr. Jónas G. Allansson, visited the Keflavík Air Base, and met with the U.S. forces carrying out Anti-Submarine Warfare missions.

    This is the eighth time that a U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarine makes a service visit in Icelandic territorial waters, since the former Minister for Foreign Affairs announced on April 18, 2023, that such submarines would be permitted to make brief service stops in Iceland.

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for the visit, but the Icelandic Coast Guard is leading its implementation in close collaboration with the National Commissioner of Police, the Icelandic Radiation Safety Agency and the Directorate of Health in accordance with established procedures. The visits have all been successful due to close cooperation and consultation between the relevant domestic institutions and good cooperation with the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Embassy in Iceland.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Minister visits USS Newport News in Grundartangi Harbour

    Source: Government of Iceland

    Iceland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Ms. Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir visited the US submarine USS Newport News in Grundartangi harbour yesterday. The submarine is in Iceland for a regular service visit. This is the not the first time a nuclear-powered US submarine enters Icelandic territorial waters; however, this is the first service visit of such a vessel to an Icelandic port. The USS Newport is a Los Angeles-class vessel with a crew of around 140 personnel and does not carry nuclear weapons.

    “This is an important milestone in a long and successful defence partnership with the United States, which has been strengthened significantly in recent years. We have been systematically deepening the partnership based on the Bilateral Defence Agreement from 1951 and common interests in the North Atlantic and the Arctic. We place great emphasis on security and defence and want to ensure our own security and the security of our allies, and we do this, inter alia, by supporting their operations in the region,” says Þorgerður Katrín.

    Admiral Stuart B. Munsch, Commander of the U.S. European and African Fleet, and Erin Sawyer, Acting U.S. Ambassador to Iceland, welcomed the Minister for Foreign Affairs upon her arrival at Grundartangi. There, the Minister was given a tour of the submarine, briefed on the crew’s assignments, and met with Admiral Munsch on security developments in the North Atlantic and Arctic. Admiral Munsch also met with the Director General for Defence, Mr. Jónas G. Allansson, visited the Keflavík Air Base, and met with the U.S. forces carrying out Anti-Submarine Warfare missions.

    This is the eighth time that a U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarine makes a service visit in Icelandic territorial waters, since the former Minister for Foreign Affairs announced on April 18, 2023, that such submarines would be permitted to make brief service stops in Iceland.

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for the visit, but the Icelandic Coast Guard is leading its implementation in close collaboration with the National Commissioner of Police, the Icelandic Radiation Safety Agency and the Directorate of Health in accordance with established procedures. The visits have all been successful due to close cooperation and consultation between the relevant domestic institutions and good cooperation with the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Embassy in Iceland.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Minister visits USS Newport News in Grundartangi Harbour

    Source: Government of Iceland

    Iceland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Ms. Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir visited the US submarine USS Newport News in Grundartangi harbour yesterday. The submarine is in Iceland for a regular service visit. This is the not the first time a nuclear-powered US submarine enters Icelandic territorial waters; however, this is the first service visit of such a vessel to an Icelandic port. The USS Newport is a Los Angeles-class vessel with a crew of around 140 personnel and does not carry nuclear weapons.

    “This is an important milestone in a long and successful defence partnership with the United States, which has been strengthened significantly in recent years. We have been systematically deepening the partnership based on the Bilateral Defence Agreement from 1951 and common interests in the North Atlantic and the Arctic. We place great emphasis on security and defence and want to ensure our own security and the security of our allies, and we do this, inter alia, by supporting their operations in the region,” says Þorgerður Katrín.

    Admiral Stuart B. Munsch, Commander of the U.S. European and African Fleet, and Erin Sawyer, Acting U.S. Ambassador to Iceland, welcomed the Minister for Foreign Affairs upon her arrival at Grundartangi. There, the Minister was given a tour of the submarine, briefed on the crew’s assignments, and met with Admiral Munsch on security developments in the North Atlantic and Arctic. Admiral Munsch also met with the Director General for Defence, Mr. Jónas G. Allansson, visited the Keflavík Air Base, and met with the U.S. forces carrying out Anti-Submarine Warfare missions.

    This is the eighth time that a U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarine makes a service visit in Icelandic territorial waters, since the former Minister for Foreign Affairs announced on April 18, 2023, that such submarines would be permitted to make brief service stops in Iceland.

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for the visit, but the Icelandic Coast Guard is leading its implementation in close collaboration with the National Commissioner of Police, the Icelandic Radiation Safety Agency and the Directorate of Health in accordance with established procedures. The visits have all been successful due to close cooperation and consultation between the relevant domestic institutions and good cooperation with the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Embassy in Iceland.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Minister visits USS Newport News in Grundartangi Harbour

    Source: Government of Iceland

    Iceland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Ms. Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir visited the US submarine USS Newport News in Grundartangi harbour yesterday. The submarine is in Iceland for a regular service visit. This is the not the first time a nuclear-powered US submarine enters Icelandic territorial waters; however, this is the first service visit of such a vessel to an Icelandic port. The USS Newport is a Los Angeles-class vessel with a crew of around 140 personnel and does not carry nuclear weapons.

    “This is an important milestone in a long and successful defence partnership with the United States, which has been strengthened significantly in recent years. We have been systematically deepening the partnership based on the Bilateral Defence Agreement from 1951 and common interests in the North Atlantic and the Arctic. We place great emphasis on security and defence and want to ensure our own security and the security of our allies, and we do this, inter alia, by supporting their operations in the region,” says Þorgerður Katrín.

    Admiral Stuart B. Munsch, Commander of the U.S. European and African Fleet, and Erin Sawyer, Acting U.S. Ambassador to Iceland, welcomed the Minister for Foreign Affairs upon her arrival at Grundartangi. There, the Minister was given a tour of the submarine, briefed on the crew’s assignments, and met with Admiral Munsch on security developments in the North Atlantic and Arctic. Admiral Munsch also met with the Director General for Defence, Mr. Jónas G. Allansson, visited the Keflavík Air Base, and met with the U.S. forces carrying out Anti-Submarine Warfare missions.

    This is the eighth time that a U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarine makes a service visit in Icelandic territorial waters, since the former Minister for Foreign Affairs announced on April 18, 2023, that such submarines would be permitted to make brief service stops in Iceland.

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for the visit, but the Icelandic Coast Guard is leading its implementation in close collaboration with the National Commissioner of Police, the Icelandic Radiation Safety Agency and the Directorate of Health in accordance with established procedures. The visits have all been successful due to close cooperation and consultation between the relevant domestic institutions and good cooperation with the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Embassy in Iceland.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Minister visits USS Newport News in Grundartangi Harbour

    Source: Government of Iceland

    Iceland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Ms. Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir visited the US submarine USS Newport News in Grundartangi harbour yesterday. The submarine is in Iceland for a regular service visit. This is the not the first time a nuclear-powered US submarine enters Icelandic territorial waters; however, this is the first service visit of such a vessel to an Icelandic port. The USS Newport is a Los Angeles-class vessel with a crew of around 140 personnel and does not carry nuclear weapons.

    “This is an important milestone in a long and successful defence partnership with the United States, which has been strengthened significantly in recent years. We have been systematically deepening the partnership based on the Bilateral Defence Agreement from 1951 and common interests in the North Atlantic and the Arctic. We place great emphasis on security and defence and want to ensure our own security and the security of our allies, and we do this, inter alia, by supporting their operations in the region,” says Þorgerður Katrín.

    Admiral Stuart B. Munsch, Commander of the U.S. European and African Fleet, and Erin Sawyer, Acting U.S. Ambassador to Iceland, welcomed the Minister for Foreign Affairs upon her arrival at Grundartangi. There, the Minister was given a tour of the submarine, briefed on the crew’s assignments, and met with Admiral Munsch on security developments in the North Atlantic and Arctic. Admiral Munsch also met with the Director General for Defence, Mr. Jónas G. Allansson, visited the Keflavík Air Base, and met with the U.S. forces carrying out Anti-Submarine Warfare missions.

    This is the eighth time that a U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarine makes a service visit in Icelandic territorial waters, since the former Minister for Foreign Affairs announced on April 18, 2023, that such submarines would be permitted to make brief service stops in Iceland.

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for the visit, but the Icelandic Coast Guard is leading its implementation in close collaboration with the National Commissioner of Police, the Icelandic Radiation Safety Agency and the Directorate of Health in accordance with established procedures. The visits have all been successful due to close cooperation and consultation between the relevant domestic institutions and good cooperation with the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Embassy in Iceland.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Minister visits USS Newport News in Grundartangi Harbour

    Source: Government of Iceland

    Iceland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Ms. Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir visited the US submarine USS Newport News in Grundartangi harbour yesterday. The submarine is in Iceland for a regular service visit. This is the not the first time a nuclear-powered US submarine enters Icelandic territorial waters; however, this is the first service visit of such a vessel to an Icelandic port. The USS Newport is a Los Angeles-class vessel with a crew of around 140 personnel and does not carry nuclear weapons.

    “This is an important milestone in a long and successful defence partnership with the United States, which has been strengthened significantly in recent years. We have been systematically deepening the partnership based on the Bilateral Defence Agreement from 1951 and common interests in the North Atlantic and the Arctic. We place great emphasis on security and defence and want to ensure our own security and the security of our allies, and we do this, inter alia, by supporting their operations in the region,” says Þorgerður Katrín.

    Admiral Stuart B. Munsch, Commander of the U.S. European and African Fleet, and Erin Sawyer, Acting U.S. Ambassador to Iceland, welcomed the Minister for Foreign Affairs upon her arrival at Grundartangi. There, the Minister was given a tour of the submarine, briefed on the crew’s assignments, and met with Admiral Munsch on security developments in the North Atlantic and Arctic. Admiral Munsch also met with the Director General for Defence, Mr. Jónas G. Allansson, visited the Keflavík Air Base, and met with the U.S. forces carrying out Anti-Submarine Warfare missions.

    This is the eighth time that a U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarine makes a service visit in Icelandic territorial waters, since the former Minister for Foreign Affairs announced on April 18, 2023, that such submarines would be permitted to make brief service stops in Iceland.

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for the visit, but the Icelandic Coast Guard is leading its implementation in close collaboration with the National Commissioner of Police, the Icelandic Radiation Safety Agency and the Directorate of Health in accordance with established procedures. The visits have all been successful due to close cooperation and consultation between the relevant domestic institutions and good cooperation with the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Embassy in Iceland.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: KC Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Fentanyl Trafficking, Illegal Firearm

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

    KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo. man was sentenced in federal court today for fentanyl trafficking and illegally possessing a firearm.

    Lawrence A. Andrews, 51, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to 10 years in federal prison without parole.

    On March 4, 2025, Andrews pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  Andrews admitted he possessed fentanyl pills weighing a total of approximately 19 grams with the intent to distribute and a SCCY, Model CPX-2, 9mm pistol on Aug. 8, 2023.

    On Aug. 8, 2023, officers with the Kansas City, Mo. Police Department stopped a vehicle driven by Andrews.  Andrews was arrested on a failure to appear warrant.  Officers searched Andrews’ vehicle and located the firearm and fentanyl, along with approximately 10 grams of PCP, 22 grams of cocaine in the base form, 3 grams of cocaine in the salt form, and 3 grams of methamphetamine.

    Andrews has prior felony convictions, including two convictions for stealing, eight convictions for possession of a controlled substance, trafficking in drugs in the second degree, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

    This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica L. Jennings.  It was investigated by the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

    Project Safe Neighborhoods

    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: KC Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Fentanyl Trafficking, Illegal Firearm

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

    KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo. man was sentenced in federal court today for fentanyl trafficking and illegally possessing a firearm.

    Lawrence A. Andrews, 51, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to 10 years in federal prison without parole.

    On March 4, 2025, Andrews pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  Andrews admitted he possessed fentanyl pills weighing a total of approximately 19 grams with the intent to distribute and a SCCY, Model CPX-2, 9mm pistol on Aug. 8, 2023.

    On Aug. 8, 2023, officers with the Kansas City, Mo. Police Department stopped a vehicle driven by Andrews.  Andrews was arrested on a failure to appear warrant.  Officers searched Andrews’ vehicle and located the firearm and fentanyl, along with approximately 10 grams of PCP, 22 grams of cocaine in the base form, 3 grams of cocaine in the salt form, and 3 grams of methamphetamine.

    Andrews has prior felony convictions, including two convictions for stealing, eight convictions for possession of a controlled substance, trafficking in drugs in the second degree, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

    This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica L. Jennings.  It was investigated by the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

    Project Safe Neighborhoods

    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: KC Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Fentanyl Trafficking, Illegal Firearm

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

    KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo. man was sentenced in federal court today for fentanyl trafficking and illegally possessing a firearm.

    Lawrence A. Andrews, 51, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to 10 years in federal prison without parole.

    On March 4, 2025, Andrews pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  Andrews admitted he possessed fentanyl pills weighing a total of approximately 19 grams with the intent to distribute and a SCCY, Model CPX-2, 9mm pistol on Aug. 8, 2023.

    On Aug. 8, 2023, officers with the Kansas City, Mo. Police Department stopped a vehicle driven by Andrews.  Andrews was arrested on a failure to appear warrant.  Officers searched Andrews’ vehicle and located the firearm and fentanyl, along with approximately 10 grams of PCP, 22 grams of cocaine in the base form, 3 grams of cocaine in the salt form, and 3 grams of methamphetamine.

    Andrews has prior felony convictions, including two convictions for stealing, eight convictions for possession of a controlled substance, trafficking in drugs in the second degree, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

    This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica L. Jennings.  It was investigated by the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

    Project Safe Neighborhoods

    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: Charleston Man Sentenced to Prison for Federal Gun Crime

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

    CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Jason Allen Rhule, 45, of Charleston, was sentenced today to six years and five months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

    According to court documents and statements made in court, on July 24, 2024, Rhule was on parole for prior felony convictions when parole officers conducted a search of his residence as a condition of his supervision. Officers found a Taurus model PT-140 Millenium G2 .40-caliber pistol and a Palmetto State Armory model PA-15 multi-caliber rifle in Rhule’s bedroom. Officers also found loaded ammunition magazines, including high-capacity magazines for the multi-caliber rifle.

    Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Rhule knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm as a result of his prior felony convictions for attempted manufacture of a controlled substance in Putnam County Circuit Court on October 3, 2022, and attempted grand larceny in Kanawha County Circuit Court on July 31, 2023.

    Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and West Virginia Parole Services.

    United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Lesley C. Shamblin prosecuted the case.

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

    A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-157.

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    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Charleston Man Sentenced to Prison for Federal Gun Crime

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

    CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Jason Allen Rhule, 45, of Charleston, was sentenced today to six years and five months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

    According to court documents and statements made in court, on July 24, 2024, Rhule was on parole for prior felony convictions when parole officers conducted a search of his residence as a condition of his supervision. Officers found a Taurus model PT-140 Millenium G2 .40-caliber pistol and a Palmetto State Armory model PA-15 multi-caliber rifle in Rhule’s bedroom. Officers also found loaded ammunition magazines, including high-capacity magazines for the multi-caliber rifle.

    Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Rhule knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm as a result of his prior felony convictions for attempted manufacture of a controlled substance in Putnam County Circuit Court on October 3, 2022, and attempted grand larceny in Kanawha County Circuit Court on July 31, 2023.

    Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and West Virginia Parole Services.

    United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Lesley C. Shamblin prosecuted the case.

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

    A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-157.

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    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Charleston Man Sentenced to Prison for Federal Gun Crime

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

    CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Jason Allen Rhule, 45, of Charleston, was sentenced today to six years and five months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

    According to court documents and statements made in court, on July 24, 2024, Rhule was on parole for prior felony convictions when parole officers conducted a search of his residence as a condition of his supervision. Officers found a Taurus model PT-140 Millenium G2 .40-caliber pistol and a Palmetto State Armory model PA-15 multi-caliber rifle in Rhule’s bedroom. Officers also found loaded ammunition magazines, including high-capacity magazines for the multi-caliber rifle.

    Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Rhule knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm as a result of his prior felony convictions for attempted manufacture of a controlled substance in Putnam County Circuit Court on October 3, 2022, and attempted grand larceny in Kanawha County Circuit Court on July 31, 2023.

    Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and West Virginia Parole Services.

    United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Lesley C. Shamblin prosecuted the case.

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

    A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-157.

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    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Armed Mexican national sentenced for firearms violation

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

    TYLER, Texas –A Mexican national has been sentenced for being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs.

    Tomas Ocamp-Mondragon, 37, a Mexican national illegally living in Tyler, pleaded guilty to being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm and was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge J. Campbell Barker on July 10, 2025.

    According to information presented in court, on August 5, 2024, Ocampo-Mondragon was stopped for a traffic violation in Smith County. It was determined that he was intoxicated, and he was arrested.  During the arrest, a loaded firearm was discovered in his pocket.

    Further investigation revealed Ocampo-Mondragon was a citizen of Mexico and had previously been found unlawfully present in the United States on September 14, 2019, in Las Cruces, New Mexico.  He was also found to be in possession of a firearm during that encounter.  He voluntarily returned to Mexico on January 3, 2020, and did not have permission to return to the United States.

    This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

    This case was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Department of Homeland Security, the Smith County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Noble.

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    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Armed Mexican national sentenced for firearms violation

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

    TYLER, Texas –A Mexican national has been sentenced for being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs.

    Tomas Ocamp-Mondragon, 37, a Mexican national illegally living in Tyler, pleaded guilty to being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm and was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge J. Campbell Barker on July 10, 2025.

    According to information presented in court, on August 5, 2024, Ocampo-Mondragon was stopped for a traffic violation in Smith County. It was determined that he was intoxicated, and he was arrested.  During the arrest, a loaded firearm was discovered in his pocket.

    Further investigation revealed Ocampo-Mondragon was a citizen of Mexico and had previously been found unlawfully present in the United States on September 14, 2019, in Las Cruces, New Mexico.  He was also found to be in possession of a firearm during that encounter.  He voluntarily returned to Mexico on January 3, 2020, and did not have permission to return to the United States.

    This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

    This case was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Department of Homeland Security, the Smith County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Noble.

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    MIL Security OSI –