Category: Gun Control

  • MIL-OSI Security: PENSACOLA MAN SENTENCED IN DRUG AND FIREARM CASE

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Dillon Devontrez Royster, 31, of Pensacola, Florida was sentenced to 10 years in prison after previously pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

    U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “I applaud the substantial efforts of our state and federal law enforcement partners to investigate, arrest, and help bring this drug trafficker to justice. This is yet another important case by my office fulfilling the promise of President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi to Take Back America by aggressively pursuing criminal offenders who victimize our communities.  We will not stop until we have rid our streets of these criminals who peddle in violence and addiction.”

    “This is a huge win for public safety in Northwest Florida,” said ATF Tampa Field Division’s Assistant Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Harrell. “Armed drug trafficking is a serious crime – this investigation demonstrates what can be accomplished when law enforcement agencies work together to remove an armed drug trafficker from our communities.”

    On April 17, 2024, members of the Escambia County Sherriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives executed a search warrant at Dillion Royster’s residence. During the search, law enforcement found approximately 1,851 grams of methamphetamine, 10 grams of fentanyl, and numerous firearms.

    This sentence was the result of a joint investigation by Escambia County Sherriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey M. Tharp prosecuted 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 United Kingdom: Lochaber to come alive for Royal National Mòd as 2025 fringe programme launched

    Source: Scotland – Highland Council

    Lochaber will come alive with the sights and sounds of Gaelic song, cèilidh music, bagpipes and processions as the Royal National Mòd rolls into the Highlands from 10 – 18 October 2025.

    Attendees of the world’s largest celebration of Gaelic language and culture are in for a bustling nine days, as events showcasing everything from music, poetry and dances, to exhibitions, book launches, and the region’s best food and drink, are unveiled.

    With the Scottish Languages Bill, which gives Gaelic official status as a language, passing unanimously in the Scottish Parliament this month, the prosperity of the indigenous tongue continues to grow.

    Organised by An Comunn Gàidhealach and hosted in a different Scottish town each year, the Royal National Mòd provides an essential platform for using, improving and showcasing Gaelic for thousands of speakers, learners and supporters.

    Fort William and the surrounding areas will welcome the 133-year-old event for the ninth time in 2025, with thousands expected to descend on the town – called An Gearasdan, meaning The Garrison, in Gaelic.

    The Mòd is expected to generate a significant economic boost for the region in the process.

    Lochaber Mòd 2025 will open with a torchlight parade through the streets of Fort William, before the event’s flagship venue for the week, the Nevis Centre, hosts the event’s Opening Concert.

    Lochaber talent in the form of Dàimh (meaning connection, pronounced ‘dive’) will provide a fitting start to the week, wowing audiences with their electrifying musical interplay. Support will come from young Skye-based collective Ceilear, who formed as part of Dàimh piper Angus MacKenzie’s Culture Collective project, Eilean a’ Cheòl.

    The breadth and depth of local talent will also be on display for Ar Cànan ’s Ar Ceòl on Saturday 11 October as local pipe bands, Ardnamurchan High School trad group, Jane Douglas School of Dance, Lochaber Gaelic Choir, local youth choirs and many others, come together to celebrate the music and language of the region.

    The event’s Marquee Stage will host daily entertainment including a cèilidh singing challenge which will see members of the public get up to perform a rendition of their favourite song.

    A secret judging panel, featuring well-known singers, will be hidden among the crowd for the fun, informal event called Gabh Òran, meaning ‘sing us a song’.

    Street cèilidhs at Cameron Square will fill the town centre with dancing throughout the week, while Fort William pubs will be buzzing with a schedule of pop-up late night music sessions.

    Some of the region’s finest solo pipers including Angus Nicolson, Moira Robertson and Laura Robertson will showcase Scotland’s national instrument at its best at a Piping Recital on Monday 13 October, while celebrated Scottish musicians Màiri Morrison and Alasdair Roberts will perform their latest album, Remembered in Exile: Songs and Ballads from Nova Scotia on Tuesday 14 October.

    Sruth – an event established to provide an informal space for young Gaelic speakers and learners to interact with prominent figures in the Gaelic community – takes on a new life at this year’s event as An Comunn Gàidhealach partner with BBC Alba and The L.A.B Scotland outreach project.

    Youngsters will have the opportunity to learn what goes on behind the scenes in TV, trying their hand at presenting and camera operating, while using their Gaelic.

    Shinty, football and other sports will also feature on the programme, alongside a wealth of come-and-try activities for youngsters, family cèilidhs and more.

    The local region’s reputation for outstanding food and drink will also come to the fore with a Taste of Lochaber exhibition and a special Whisky Tasting Night.

    The week will wrap up in style with a Closing Dance on Friday 17 October, hosted by all-star cèilidh band, followed by the spectacular traditional Massed Choirs event on Saturday 18 October, which sees hundreds of choir members from across Scotland take part in a parade and giant group performance on the streets of Fort William.

    The event’s famous competitions, which span from solo singing, clàrsach and art to choral singing, accordion and Battle of the Bands, will form the backbone of the event.

    With around 200 competition categories and more than 270 medals and trophies up for grabs across the week, individuals and groups of all ages and from all corners of Scotland and beyond, will travel to the prestigious event for the chance to compete for glory.

    James Graham, Chief Executive Officer of An Comunn Gàidhealach, said: “With growing numbers of young speakers and learners and this latest show of parliamentary support for the language, we firmly believe that Gaelic is on an upward trajectory.

    “The Royal National Mòd plays an essential role in representing and championing all facets of Gaelic culture and demonstrates the beauty, power and connection to be found in the language. It is a joy to return to the Highlands this year and bring the camaraderie and celebration of the Mòd to Lochaber, a region rich in Gaelic history and with a deep appreciation for the language.”

    Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes said: “The growing success of the Royal National Mòd demonstrates how promoting Gaelic enriches communities and goes hand-in-hand with economic prosperity. 

    “Last year’s National Mòd generated an estimated £3.6 million for the economy, which was the highest figure in five years. 

    “To support Gaelic’s growth, our Scottish Languages Bill will strengthen the rights of parents to ask for a Gaelic school to be established in their area and introduce targets on the number of people speaking Gaelic. 

    “We are also working to drive growth in Gaelic communities so that more people who speak the language continue to live in those areas.”

    Highland Council Leader Raymond Bremner said: “Gaelic has a huge role to play in the social, cultural and economic health of the Highlands – that’s a message that will shine through when the Royal National Mòd returns to Lochaber in October.

    “Organisers have put together a terrific programme of events – there will be something for everyone and I have no doubt that this year’s National Mòd will deliver many memorable moments. It will also create lasting friendships and help to bring significant economic benefits for the region.

    “I know myself how important the National Mòd is for using and improving our Gaelic and what the events mean to the host area.

    “Highland Council sees Gaelic language and culture as one of our most prized economic assets. This is demonstrated by our commitment to the language in schools – as this year we mark 40 years of Gaelic medium education in the region – and in our communities.

    “We’re delighted the National Mòd is returning to the Highlands for what promises to be a superb celebration in Lochaber.”

    Ealasaid MacDonald, Ceannard (CEO), Bòrd na Gàidhlig, said: “Once again, the Royal National Mòd is showcasing our language and culture through competition, events and gatherings, with a wonderful programme providing lots of opportunities to use and enjoy Gaelic.

    “It is well known that Lochaber is a great host for the Mòd and we are all looking forward to visiting in October.”

    This year’s Royal National Mòd in Lochaber is supported by EventScotland, Bòrd na Gàidhlig, Highland Council, EventScotland, The Scottish Government, Caledonian MacBrayne, BBC ALBA, Creative Scotland and SQA.

    The Royal National Mòd returns to Lochaber in 2025, from 10 – 18 October. Tickets for flagship events are on sale now, visit https://buytickets.at/ancomunn.

    Ends

    News release issued by An Comunn Gàidhealach

    Bidh tachartasan am pailteas ann an Loch Abar aig Mòd Nàiseanta Rìoghail 2025 is prògram an iomaill air bhog

    Cluinnear ceòl Gàidhlig, seinn na pìoba, is bidh cèilidhean is caismeachd ann an Loch Abar nuair a thilleas Am Mòd Nàiseanta Rìoghail dhan Ghàidhealtachd 10 – 18 Dàmhair 2025.

    Tha naoi làithean trang air toiseach air na fheadhainn a bhios aig an fhèis ceòl is cultar na Gàidhlig as motha air an t-saoghail. Bidh tachartasan ann le ceòl, bàrdachd, dannsaichean, taisbeanaidhean, leabhraichean ùra agus am biadh agus deoch as fheàrr sa sgìre.

    Chaidh Bile nan Cànanan Albannaich aontachadh gu h-aona guthach ann am Pàrlamaid na h-Alba o chionn ghoirid, is mar sin tha ìomhaigh na cànain a’ fàs fhathast.

    Tha Am Mòd Nàiseanta Rìoghail air eagrachadh leis A’ Chomunn Ghàidhealach is bidh e ann am baile Albannaich eadar-dhealaichte gach bliadhna. Tha e na sàr chruinneachadh do luchd-labhairt, luchd-ionnsachaidh is luchd-taic na Gàidhlig.

    Ann an 2025 cuiridh An Gearasdan agus an sgìre mun cuairt air fàilte an tachartas a tha 133 bliadhna a dh’aois airson an naoidheamh uair. Tha dùil gun cruthaich Am Mòd buannachd mòr eaconamach don sgìre aig a’ cheart àm.

    Fosglaidh Mòd Loch Abar 2025 le caismeachd lòchrain tro shràidean A’ Ghearasdain, mus bi Cuirm Fhosglaidh aig Ionad Nibheis, a bhios na phrìomh ionad Mòid air feadh na seachdain. Bidh tàlant Loch Abar air an deagh riochdachadh le Dàimh, a chuireas an t-seachdain air a casan, agus an fhacal dàimh fhèin na shamhla air an ceangal eadar buill a’ chòmhlan agus an luchd-èisteachd. Còmhla riutha air àrd-ùrlar bidh còmhlan Ceilear. Nochd iad an toiseach mar phàirt den phròiseact Culture Collective aig Aonghas MacCoinnich: Eilean a’ Cheòl.

    Bidh farsaingeachd tàlant na sgìre ri fhaicinn cuideachd aig Ar Cànan ’s Ar Ceòl Disathairne 11 Dàmhair. ’S e cuirm-chiùil air leth a bhios ann, le ceòl bho chòmhlain-phìoba, còmhlan traidiseanta Àrd-sgoil Àird nam Murchan, Jane Douglas School of Dance, còisirean òigridh na sgìre agus tòrr a bharrachd.

    Aig Àrd-ùrlar an Teanta cluinnear ceòl gach latha, agus Dùbhlain Seinn Cèilidh , Gabh Òran, far am faighear cothrom òran a ghabhail. Bidh pannal breitheamhan dìomhair falaichte anns an luchd-èisteachd.

    Aig Ceàrnag Camshroin gach latha bidh Cèilidh Shràid ann air feadh na seachdain, is bidh taighean-seinnse A’ Ghearasdain trang le clàr-ama seiseanan ciùil air an oidhche.

    Bidh cuid de na pìobairean as fheàrr sa sgìre, Aonghas MacNeacail is Moira Robasdan nam measg, a taisbeanadh ionnsramaid nàiseanta na h-Alba aig Ceadal Pìobaireachd Diluain 13 Dàmhair. Cuideachd Dimàirt 14 Dàmhair bidh cuirm-chiùil le Màiri Nic’IlleMhoire & Alasdair Roberts: Remembered in Exile, Òrain Alba Nuaidh.

    Chaidh Sruth a chur air bhonn gus àite a thoirt do luchd-labhairt òga is luchd-ionnsachaidh na Gàidhlig coinneachadh ri Gàidheil ainmeil. Thèid ath-bheothachadh am bliadhna mar phàirt pròiseact L.A.B. aig BBC ALBA. Gheibh òigridh cothrom sgilean camara ionnsachadh is eòlas a chur air na bhios a’ dol aig cùl ghnòthaichean ann an telebhisean, is an sgilean Gàidhlig a chleachdadh aig a’ cheart àm.

    Chìthear spòrs cuideachd anns a’ phrògram, iomain, ball-coise agus cur-seachadan sam faod òigridh a dhol an sàs, cèilidhean teaghlaich is eile.

    Ionnsachaidh daoine mu dheidhinn deagh bhiadh agus dheoch na sgìre aig taisbeanadh Taste of Lochabar agus tachartas sònraichte Blasad Uisge-beatha.

    Thèid an t-seachdain a thoirt gu ceann le Cuirm-dhùnaidh Dihaoine 17 Dàmhair aig am bi còmhlan làn rionnagan, air thoiseach air na Co-chòisirean Disathairne 18 Dàmhair, aig am bi na ceudan buill còisire o air feadh na h-Alba a’ caismeachd is a’ seinn air sràidean A’ Ghearasdain.

    Bidh farpaisean ainmeil A’ Mhòid – leithid seinn aon-neach, clàrsach, còisirean, bogsa-ciùil is Cogadh nan Còmhlan – aig teas-meadhan an tachartais. Le barrachd na 200 farpais agus 270 bonn is cuas rim buannachadh air feadh na seachdain, bidh feadhainn o gach ceàrnaidh de dh’Alba agus an t-saoghail a’ dèanamh air a’ Mhòd gus am bi cothrom aca buannachadh.

    Thuirt Seumas Greumach, Àrd-oifigear a’ Chomuinn Ghàidhealaich: “Le fàs àireamhan luchd-labhairt òga agus taic às ùr sa phàrlamaid dhan chànan, tha dùil againn gu bheil a’ Ghàidhlig air deagh shlighe. Tha àite riatanach aig A’ Mhòd Nàiseanta Rìoghail ann a bhith riochdachadh agus brosnachadh cultar na Gàidhlig agus e a’ samhlachadh am bòidheachd is na ceangalan anns a’ chànan. ’S e tlachd a th’ ann tilleadh dhan Ghàidhealtachd am bliadhna agus Loch Abar cho cudromach ann an eachdraidh na Gàidhlig le coimhearsnachd a tha bàidheil dhan chànan.”

    Thuirt an Leas-Phrìomh Mhinistear Ceit Fhoirbeis: “Leis a’ Mhòd Nàiseanta Rìoghail a’ sìor-fhàs nas soirbheachaile, tha dearbhadh ann gun tèid coimhearsnachdan a bheartachadh tro bhrosnachadh na Gàidhlig, ’s e ceangailte gu dlùth ri soirbheachadh eaconamach.
    “Thathar a’ tomhas gun tug am Mòd Nàiseanta an-uiridh £3.6 millean a-steach dhan eaconamaidh. B’ e sin am figear as àirde ann an còig bliadhna.
    “Gus taic a chumail ri fàs na Gàidhlig, bidh Bile nan Cànan Albannach againn a’ neartachadh còraichean nam pàrantan a bhith ag iarraidh gun tèid sgoil Ghàidhlig a stèidheachadh anns na sgìrean aca, agus bheir e a-steach targaidean a thaobh àireamh nan daoine a tha a’ bruidhinn na Gàidhlig.
    “Tha sinn cuideachd ag obair gus leasachaidhean a bhrosnachadh ann an coimhearsnachdan Gàidhlig, airson ’s gum bi barrachd dhaoine aig a bheil an cànan fhathast a’ fuireach anns na sgìrean sin.”

    Thuirt Ceannard Chomhairle na Gàidhealtachd, an Comhairliche Raymond Bremner: “Tha a’ Ghàidhlig air leth cudromach dhan slàinte sòisealta, cultarail agus eaconamach ann an sgìre na Gàidhealtachd. Bidh sin gu math follaiseach nuair a thilleas Am Mòd Nàiseanta Rìoghail a Loch Abar san Dàmhair.

    “Chaidh deagh phrògram ullachadh leis an luchd-eagrachaidh – bidh rudan ann a fhreagras air a h-uile duine is tha mi cinnteach gun tachair tòrr rudan air an cuimhnich daoine aig Mòd Nàiseanta na bliadhna. Cruthaichidh e cuideachd càirdeasan ùra agus buannachdan eaconamach mòra don sgìre.

    “Tha fhios agam fhìn cho cudromach ’s a tha Mòd Nàiseanta do chleachdadh na Gàidhlig agus cho math sa bhios na tachartasan don sgìre.

    “Aithnichidh Comhairle na Gàidhealtachd cho cudromach ’s a tha cànan is cultar na Gàidhlig do ar eaconamaidh. Chithear dearbhadh air a’ sin nar sgoiltean Gàidhlig – tha sinn am bliadhna a’ comharrachadh 40 bliadhna foghlam tro mheadhan na Gàidhlig sa sgìre – agus nar coimhearsnachdan.

    “Tha sinn air ar dòigh gu bheil A’ Mhòd Nàiseanta a tilleadh dhan Ghàidhealtachd a bhios na fhìor dheagh fhèis ann an Loch Abar.”

    Thuirt Ealasaid Dhòmhnallach, Ceannard Bhòrd na Gàidhlig: “Bidh am Mòd Nàiseanta Rìoghail a’ taisbeanadh ar cànan is ar cultar tro cho-fharpaisean, tachartasan agus cruinneachaidhean a-rithist am-bliadhna, le prògram mìorbhaileach a bheir seachad tòrr chothroman airson a’ Ghàidhlig a chleachdadh agus a chomharrachadh. Gun teagamh, ’s e àite math a th’ ann an Loch Abar airson am Mòd a chumail agus tha sinn uile a’ coimhead air adhart ri bhith a’ tadhal ann san Dàmhair.”

    Tha Mòd Nàiseanta Rìoghail am-bliadhna ann an Loch Abar a’ faighinn taic bho EventScotland, Bòrd na Gàidhlig, Comhairle na Gàidhealtachd, Riaghaltas na h-Alba, Caledonian Mac a’ Bhriuthainn, BBC ALBA, Alba Chruthachail agus SQA.

    Tillidh Am Mòd Nàiseanta Rìoghail a Loch Abar 10 – 18 Dàmhair 2025. Tha tiogaidean prìomh thachartasan rim faighinn aig: https://buytickets.at/ancomunn.

     

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI Security: New Orleans Man Sentenced for Federal Gun Crimes

    Source: US FBI

    NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced that CARDELL GLOVER, (“GLOVER”), age 24, was sentenced on Tuesday, June 17, 2025, by United States District Judge Darrel J. Papillion, after previously pleading guilty to a three-count indictment.  Count One charged GLOVER with being a felon in possession a firearm, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(8).  Count Two charged GLOVER with possession of a stolen firearm, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(j) and (a)(2).  Count Three charged GLOVER with possession of a machine gun, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(o) and 924(a)(2).

    GLOVER was sentenced to 96 months imprisonment as to each of the three counts of the indictment, to be served concurrently.  Judge Papillion also ordered that GLOVER be placed on supervised release for three years as to each of the three counts, to be served concurrently, and pay a $300 mandatory special assessment fee.

    According to court documents, on July 9, 2024, a rideshare driver reported to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office (JPSO) that her weapon had been stolen.  She also works as a security guard and had placed her work firearm, a Glock Model 19 Gen 5, nine-millimeter pistol, in her trunk earlier that afternoon prior to starting her rideshare work.  She reported to law enforcement that she had picked up a fare, a male and a female passenger, at the Dollar General and allowed them to place their groceries in the trunk of her car.  When they arrived at the passengers’ destination, an apartment complex in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, the passengers retrieved the groceries from the trunk and went to an unknown second floor apartment.  The rideshare driver then looked in the trunk of her vehicle to discover her firearm missing.  She had said that the first name of the passenger who ordered the ride was “Dell.”

    GLOVER pled guilty to the entire indictment and admitted that he stole the Glock pistol.  GLOVER also admitted that, at the time of its recovery, the Glock pistol, was equipped with machinegun conversion device, making it a machinegun as defined by the National Firearms Act (26 U.S.C. § 5845(b)).

    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.

    Acting U.S. Attorney Simpson praised the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sarah Dawkins of the Violent Crime Unit.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI USA: Hickenlooper Votes Against Republicans’ Budget Bill That Strips Health Care from Americans, Closes Rural Hospitals, Explodes National Deficit

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator John Hickenlooper – Colorado
    Republicans’ legislation will increase prices for Coloradans, strip health care from 17 million Americans, increase the deficit, and give tax cuts to the ultra-wealthy
    Republicans blocked Hickenlooper-backed amendments to protect funding for Medicaid and clean energy
    WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper released the following statement after he voted against Republicans’ Senate budget bill:
    “This is pure lunacy, and downright cruel.
    “Republicans have voted to kick 17 million Americans off their health care, push hundreds of rural hospitals toward closure, wipe out millions of American clean energy careers, and add trillions to our national debt. And for what? For lavish tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans.”
    Hickenlooper voted NO on the budget resolution after Republicans voted down critical Democratic-led amendments to prevent cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, and Inflation Reduction Act clean energy funding. While Hickenlooper was successful in working with his colleagues to eliminate devastating public lands provisions and alter a few of the worst clean energy proposals, he joined a bipartisan group of senators in opposition to the final bill. The reconciliation bill now heads to the House for final passage. Hickenlooper will continue fighting against it and urge every member of the House to stop it from becoming law.
    HICKENLOOPER AMENDMENT:
    Hickenlooper spoke on the Senate floor in support of his amendment to protect the Inflation Reduction Act’s residential clean energy credit – which covers 30% of the cost of purchasing and installing residential solar, battery backup, or geothermal heat pumps. Hickenlooper’s amendment would protect the program from Republican cuts for one year, giving clean energy small businesses in Colorado and across the nation a runway (at bare minimum) to weather the storm the Republicans are causing and prepare for the loss of federal funding, in addition to  preserving more than 85,000 American jobs. Watch his full remarks about his amendment HERE.
    “They’re also taxing clean energy and cutting larger energy credits, which will create more expensive energy and more blackouts,” Hickenlooper said. “We should create jobs, cut costs, and boost energy production, not sacrifice working families so that the richest Americans pay less taxes.”
    Click to download full video
    WHAT’S IN THE BILL:
    The Republican-led Senate reconciliation bill includes a $3 trillion tax cut for the wealthiest Americans. It pays for those tax cuts by:
    Taking Health Care Away from 17 Million Americans
    The Republican budget proposal calls for extreme Medicaid cuts of more than $900 billion, which would take away people’s health benefits; make it harder for them to see their health care providers; and prevent seniors from getting nursing home care.
    The budget also fails to extend the Affordable Care Act expanded premium tax credits, which expire at the end of 2025.
    The latest CBO estimates that the combined cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act would result in 17 million Americans losing health insurance by 2034, and increase our national debt by $3.3 trillion.   
    The cuts would hit rural hospitals the hardest:
    According to initial estimates, more than 338 rural hospitals across the country are at an acute risk of closure as a result of these Medicaid cuts. Including 6 hospitals in Colorado:
    Delta County Memorial Hospital – Delta (CO-03)
    Conejos County Hospital – La Jara (CO-03)
    Grand River Hospital District – Rifle (CO-03)
    Prowers Medical Center – Lamar (CO-04)
    Southwest Memorial Hospital – Cortez (CO-03)
    Arkansas Valley Regional Medical Center – La Junta (CO-03)

    Slashing Investments in Clean Energy and Driving up Energy Bills
    The Republican budget bill guts hundreds of billions in Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) clean energy investments, including tax credits for wind and solar. The results: over a million jobs lost, hundreds of billions in lost GDP and lost wages, electricity price inflation, and killing new renewable energy needed to prevent blackouts.
    Increasing Our National Debt by Trillions
    Even after gutting over $1 trillion from Medicaid and other services, the Senate reconciliation bill will still increase our national debt by more than $3.3 TRILLION.
    The Senate version of the bill adds $900 billion moreto the national debt than the previous House version of the bill.
    Hickenlooper recently took to the Senate floor to slam the bill as “fiscal madness.”
    ADDITIONAL AMENDMENTS:
    In total, Hickenlooper introduced and joined 16+ amendments to the 2025 Senate reconciliation bill to oppose Republican provisions that would harm Coloradans. Specifically, he introduced and joined amendments to:
    Prevent Americans from Losing Health Care
    Protect Nursing Homes and Medicaid Patients: Hickenlooper-led amendment to strike any provision that cuts funding for Medicaid, which covers care for 60% of all nursing home residents.
    Safeguard Small Businesses and Medicaid: Hickenlooper-led amendment to strike any provision that cuts funding for Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which protects access for the 7,000,000 small businesses workers who depend on Medicaid coverage; and protects access for the 4,000,000 small businesses who depend on the ACA exchanges.
    Protect Medicaid: Led by Senator Wyden, Hickenlooper joined this amendment to strike any provision that cuts funding for Medicaid; and would ensure big corporations and the ultra-wealthy pay a fair share in taxes.
    Extend ACA Enhanced Premium Tax Credits: Led by Senator Jon Ossoff, Hickenlooper joined this amendment to permanently extend the Affordable Care Act enhanced Premium Tax Credits.
    Protect Safety Net Programs
    Safeguard SNAP-Education: Led by Senator Angela Alsobrooks, Hickenlooper joined this amendment to strike the section that eliminates the SNAP Education Program, which provides free nutrition education to SNAP recipients.
    Expand Pell Grant Eligibility: Led by Senator Tim Kaine, Hickenlooper joined this amendment to strike the workforce Pell section in the budget bill and replace it with the bipartisan JOBS Act to expand Pell Grant eligibility to include short-term workforce training programs.
    Protect Public Lands
    Block Sale of Public Lands: Hickenlooper-led amendment to block the sale of our public lands. The amendment ensures that public lands cannot be sold if they hold any of the multiple values our public lands offer, including benefits for watershed health, hunting, fishing, recreation, and critical wildlife habitat. It also excludes sale of lands with cultural or historic significance, areas sensitive for national security, areas within an Indian reservation, or lands to which Tribes hold reserved rights.
    Non-Competitive Leasing: Hickenlooper-led amendment to strike provision that would reauthorize non-competitive leasing on federal public lands.
    Maintaining National Park Service Staffing: Led by Senator Angus King, Hickenlooper joined this amendment to strike the repeal of ~$267M in Inflation Reduction Act funding for the National Park Service staffing.
    Address our Climate Crisis + Invest in Renewable Energy
    Protect the solar industry:Hickenlooper-led amendment to change the termination date of the 25D Residential Clean Energy Credit from December 31, 2025 to December 31, 2026 to save jobs and small businesses and help American households power their homes and reduce energy costs with solar, battery storage, and geothermal heat pumps. It is paid for by increasing the top tax bracket to 39.6%.
    RECA Expansion: Hickenlooper-led amendment that adds Colorado to the list of states that benefit from an expanded downwinder provision under the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act.
    Advanced Manufacturing Tax Credit: Led by Senator Michael Bennet, Hickenlooper joined this amendment to strike all changes to the 45X Advanced Manufacturing Tax Credit, but retain foreign entities of concern rules, and strike changes to 48C advanced energy tax credit.
    Maintaining Parity for Wind and Solar Facilities: Led by Senator Jacky Rosen, Hickenlooper joined this amendment to restore parity for solar and wind with other technologies under the Production Tax Credit (45Y) and Investment Tax Credit (48E), paid for with an increase to the top rate at $1 million for individual filers and $1.3M for married filing jointly.
    Eliminating the tax on wind and solar: Led by Senator Adam Schiff, Hickenlooper joined this amendment to strike the new excise tax on wind and solar, paid for with an increase to 39.6 percent for individuals making $10 million.
    Repeal of Termination of Certain Clean Energy Credits: Led by Senators Jean Shaheen and Peter Welch, Hickenlooper joined this amendment to strike provisions that would terminate the Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit (25C), the Residential Clean Energy Credit (25D), the New Energy Efficient Home Tax Credit (45L), and the Energy Efficient Commercial Building Deduction (179D).
    Maintaining Modernized Royalty Rates: Led by Senator Jacky Rosen, Hickenlooper joined this amendment to strike the repeal of the Inflation Reduction Act royalty rate modernization for oil and gas.
    Budget resolutions guide federal spending and revenue policies for the year. This is the third budget resolution the Senate has voted on during the reconciliation process. Hickenlooper voted against the first package in February, and the second package in April. The Senate and the House must pass identical versions of the budget for the reconciliation bill to become law.

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI USA: Attorney General Bonta Releases California Criminal Justice Statistical Reports for 2024

    Source: US State of California

    OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today announced the release of the annual Homicide in California, Crime in California, Use of Force Incident Reporting, Juvenile Justice in California, and Crime Guns, Inspections, and Handguns in California statistical reports. The information contained in the reports reflects statistics for 2024 as submitted by California law enforcement agencies and other criminal justice entities. The reports provide policymakers, researchers, law enforcement, and members of the public with vital statewide information on criminal justice statistics in California to support informed policy choices based on data and analysis and help protect the safety and well-being of all Californians. In accordance with Senate Bill 965 (D-Min), the 2024 Crime Guns, Inspections, and Handguns in California Report marks the first year specified information about the California Department of Justice’s (DOJ) work to inspect firearm dealers and ammunition vendors in California. This information provides a more detailed picture of crime gun recoveries, dealer practices, and examines the link between firearm dealers and inspection trends as it relates to crime guns which are recovered by law enforcement.

    “Transparency is key for understanding, preventing, and combating crime in our communities. While crime rates have declined over the past year, public safety in our communities remains priorities one, two, and three. I encourage local partners and law enforcement to review this data and recommit to taking action,” said Attorney General Bonta. “The statistics reported today in the California Department of Justice’s annual crime reports are a critical part of understanding where we are, regulating our response, and ensuring policymakers and law enforcement have the tools they need to make informed decisions that keep millions of Californians safe.”

    Each year, DOJ publishes annual reports on various criminal justice statistics in California. While law enforcement agencies across the state are in the process of transitioning to the new data collection system known as the California Incident-Based Reporting System (CIBRS), the format of the information made available in this year’s reports remains consistent with previous years. The ongoing transition to incident-based reporting will ultimately enable law enforcement agencies to collect more in-depth information about specific incidents than previously available in the legacy system that had been in use for decades. 

    Through CIBRS, policymakers, law enforcement, and members of the public will eventually have more detailed information, context, and specificity about crime in the state. Law enforcement agencies across California are currently in the process of transitioning to CIBRS. To date, more than 600 reporting agencies have completed the transition and are in the process of becoming certified by DOJ. DOJ continues to work with agencies across the state during this ongoing transition. 

    In the interim, in order to help ensure the annual criminal justice reports remain complete and accurate to the fullest extent possible, DOJ continues to accept data in both the legacy and CIBRS formats. The information made available in this year’s reports is a combination of data collected under both reporting methods. The Attorney General encourages researchers, academics, and all members of the public to analyze the data and use it to help inform public discourse on the state’s criminal justice system. It is important to note that not all agencies were able to submit a full year of data for 2024. Please reference the “Understanding the Data, Characteristics and Known Limitations” section in the Crime in California and Homicide in California 2024 reports for more information.

    Key findings from each of the four reports released today and a brief description of their contents are available below:

    Homicide in California 2024 provides information about the crime of homicide, including demographic data of victims, persons arrested for homicide, persons sentenced to death, peace officers feloniously killed in the line of duty, and justifiable homicides. Some key findings include: 

    • The homicide rate, defined as the number of homicides per 100,000 people in the state, decreased 10.4% in 2024 (from 4.8 per 100,000 in 2023 to 4.3 per 100,000 in 2024).
    • Firearms continue to be the most common weapon used in homicides. In 2024, 69.9% of homicides, where the weapon was identified, involved a firearm.
    • For homicides where the victim-offender relationship was known and reported to DOJ, 50.5% of victims were killed by a friend or acquaintance (including unmarried intimate partners, gang members, neighbors, etc.), 26.6% were killed by a stranger, and 17.6% were killed by their spouse, parent, or child.
    • There were 1,305 arrests for homicide in 2024, a 5% decrease from the 1,374 arrests reported in 2023.

    Crime in California 2024 presents statewide statistics for reported crimes, arrests, dispositions of adult felony arrests, adult probation, criminal justice personnel, civilians’ complaints against peace officers, domestic violence-related calls for assistance, anti-reproductive rights crimes, and law enforcement officers killed or assaulted. Some key findings include:

    • The violent crime rate — i.e., the number of violent crimes per 100,000 people — decreased 6% from 511 in 2023 to 480.3 in 2024, remaining significantly below California’s historical high of 1,103.9 in 1992.
    • The property crime rate decreased 8.4% from 2,272.7 in 2023 to 2,082.7 in 2024.
    • The total arrest rate increased 2.4% from 2,611.2 in 2023 to 2,673.8 in 2024.
    •  The total number of full-time criminal justice personnel — including law enforcement, prosecutors, investigators, public defenders, and probation officers — increased 1.9% from 2023 to 2024. 

    Use of Force Incident Reporting 2024 presents a summary overview of use of force resulting in serious bodily injury or death, or the discharge of a firearm by a civilian, a peace officer, or both, as defined in California Government Code section 12525.2. Some key findings include:

    • In 2024, there were 581 incidents that involved the use of force resulting in serious bodily injury or death of a civilian or officer, or the discharge of a firearm.
    • In 2024, 592 civilians were involved in incidents that involved the discharge of a firearm or use of force resulting in serious bodily injury or death. Of those civilians:

                  o   50.2% were Hispanic.

                  o   25.8% were white.

                  o   19.4% were Black.

    • In 2024, 1,215 officers were involved in incidents that involved the discharge of a firearm or use of force resulting in serious bodily injury or death. Of those officers:

                  o   80% were not injured.

                  o   20% were injured.

                  o   None died.

    Juvenile Justice in California 2024 provides insight into the juvenile justice process by reporting the number of arrests, referrals to probation departments, petitions filed, and dispositions for juveniles tried in juvenile and adult courts. Some of the key findings include:

    • Of the 44,532 referrals of juveniles to probation, 92.6% were referred by law enforcement.
    • The number of juvenile arrests increased by 2.6% from 2023 to 2024.
    • Of the 32,874 juvenile arrests:

                 o   46.5% were for a felony offense.

                 o   51.8% were for a misdemeanor offense.

                 o   1.7% were for a status offense, defined as acts that would not be classified as crimes if committed by adults such as curfew violations, truancy, running away, and incorrigibility.

    • Of the 23,206 juvenile cases that were formally handled by a juvenile court, 50.8% resulted in juveniles being made wards of the court.
    • Of the 89 juvenile cases tried in adult court, 55.1% resulted in a conviction.  

    Crime Guns, Inspections, and Handguns in California 2024 provides insight into patterns and trends relating to recovered firearms that have been illegally possessed, used in a crime, or suspected to have been used in a crime — also known as “crime guns”— including the leading sources and origins of those firearms. The report also sheds light on firearm dealer and ammunition vendor inspection data and trends, including the rate at which the Bureau of Firearms obtains corrections and the link between firearm dealers providing corrections and complying with state laws and regulations. The 2024 report also includes detailed information on the Roster of Certified Handguns (Handgun Roster) that is maintained by DOJ and lists handguns that are approved for retail sale in the state of California because they meet specified testing and safety requirements. Some key findings include: 

    • 139,017 unique crime guns with identifiable serial numbers were recovered by law enforcement agencies in California and entered in the Automated Firearm System (AFS) between 2022 and 2024. This included 46,996 crime guns recovered in 2024.  
    • 32,063 crime guns were entered in AFS without any recorded serial number between 2022 and 2024. This included 9,249 unserialized crime guns recovered in 2024.
    • In 2024, there was a 11.9% drop in the number of crime guns without serial numbers reported statewide compared to 2023, indicating a 29.5% decline from the 2021 peak of 13,108.
    • 376 identified dealers were associated with only one crime gun recovered in 2024 and 81 dealers were associated with roughly half of all crime guns recovered in 2024 that could be traced to a source.
    • On average, licensed dealers sold or transferred 22.3 firearms that were later identified as a crime gun between 2022 and 2024.
    • The manufacturers associated with the most crime gun records included: Glock; Smith & Wesson; Sturm, Ruger, & Co.; Taurus Forjas; and Springfield.
    • Roughly 65% of crime guns recovered in California between 2022 and 2024 had no prior sale recorded in AFS, which may indicate that the guns were purchased illegally or imported into California from another state with fewer gun safety regulations and safeguards.
    • From 2020 through 2024, DOJ inspected 736 firearms dealers and recorded 41,602 violations. 85% of those violations have been resolved. 
    • The average number of violations per firearm dealer was 51.87 and the median number was 18. 
    • In the year prior to the firearm dealer inspections, 612 crime guns were sold by and later traced back to inspected dealers. 
    • From 2020 through 2024, DOJ inspected 68 ammunition vendors and recorded a total of 975 violations. 99% of those violations have been resolved.
    • Between 2020 and 2024, 215 handguns were added to the Handgun Roster while 87 handguns were removed from it. During the same period, 60 handguns were denied for listing on the Handgun Roster. As of December 31, 2024, there were 930 handguns on the Handgun Roster. 

    The Homicide in California report is available here. The Crime in California report is available here. The Use of Force Incident Reporting report is available here. The Juvenile Justice in California report is available here. The Crime Guns, Inspections, and Handguns in California Report is available here. The underlying data associated with the annual reports is available on OpenJustice here.

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI Security: Fourth of Five Sentencings in Burglary of Dozens of Firearms from a Maryland Pawn Shop

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

                WASHINGTON – Tyjuan McNeal, 28, of the District of Columbia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 84 months in federal prison for participating in the December 2023 burglary of 34 firearms from a Maryland pawn shop. The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

                McNeal pleaded guilty on March 12, 2025, to one count of conspiracy to commit firearms trafficking. In addition to the 84-month prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson ordered McNeal to serve three years of supervised release.

                According to the court documents, on December 13, 2023, McNeal and at least four co-conspirators drove from Washington, D.C. to the A&D Pawn Shop, a Federal Firearms Licensee in Glen Burnie, Maryland. McNeal was wearing an ankle monitor that he had wrapped in aluminum foil.

                At the pawn shop, one of the co-conspirators used a portable saw to cut the locks on a pull-down security gate. Another co-conspirator then used a crowbar-type tool to pry open the main door. Once inside, the quintet grabbed an array of rifles, shotguns, and pistols from the shelves and display racks and fled with at least 34 of the firearms. They later used social media to advertise the sale of the stolen guns.

                McNeal was arrested on March 22, 2024, with a Glock 29 pistol and has been detained since.

                Co-defendant Juwon Markel Anderson, 22, was sentenced to 84 months in prison. Vincent Lee Alston, aka “Vedo,” 23, was sentenced to 84 months. Niquan “Stickz” Odum, 23, was sentenced to 48 months. Sentencing is pending for Cy’juan Hemsley, 20, who pleaded to conspiracy to commit theft from a firearms licensee and to possession of stolen firearms.           

                This case was investigated by the ATF Washington Division and the Metropolitan Police Department, with assistance from the ATF Baltimore Field Division. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shehzad Akhtar with valuable assistance from former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Lipes.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Federal Grand Jury in Louisville Returns 4 Indictments Charging 22 Defendants with Drug Trafficking, Firearms, and Money Laundering Offenses

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

    Louisville, KY – On May 6, 2025, a federal grand jury in Louisville charged a total of 20 defendants from across Kentucky and California in 3 separate indictments involving methamphetamine and fentanyl trafficking offenses and firearms offenses. On May 21, 2025, a federal grand jury charged 4 defendants, 2 of whom were previously charged, in an indictment involving methamphetamine and fentanyl trafficking and money laundering offenses. The indictments charging all 22 defendants were the result of a lengthy investigation conducted by multiple law enforcement agencies.

    U.S. Attorney Kyle G. Bumgarner of the Western District of Kentucky, Acting Special Agent in Charge Olivia Olson of the FBI Louisville Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Rana Saoud of the Homeland Security Investigations Nashville, Special Agent in Charge John Nokes of the ATF Louisville Field Division, Special Agent in Charge Jim Scott of the DEA Louisville Field Division, Special Agent in Charge Karen Wingerd of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations, Cincinnati Field Office, U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Lesley Allison of the Pittsburgh Division, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Chicago Director of Field Operations Lafonda Sutton-Burke, Commissioner Phillip Burnett, Jr. of the Kentucky State Police, and Chief Paul Humphrey of the Louisville Metro Police Department made the announcement.  

    The following 9 defendants were charged in the first indictment on May 6, 2025:

    • James Havlicheck, 34, of California
    • Rodney Hollie, 38, of California
    • Joseph Nguyen, 38, of California
    • Minh Ngo, 40, of California
    • Kevin Nguyen, 30, of California
    • Johnathan Nguyen, 35, of California
    • Ordell Smith, Jr., 38, of Louisville
    • Vanray O’Neal, 38, of Louisville
    • Darren Render, 33, of Louisville 

    According to the first indictment, Havlicheck, Hollie, Joseph Nguyen, Ngo, Kevin Nguyen, and Johnathan Nguyen were charged with conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute 50 grams or more of a methamphetamine for a conspiracy beginning as early as April 2024 and continuing through July 19, 2024. Havlicheck and Ngo were also charged with one count of distribution of methamphetamine 50 grams or more.

    Smith, Jr. was charged with four counts of distribution of methamphetamine 50 grams or more. 

    O’Neal was charged with three counts of distribution of methamphetamine 50 grams or more and two counts of firearms trafficking.

    Render was charged with four counts of firearms trafficking, four counts of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, three counts of distribution of fentanyl, one count of distribution of heroin, and two counts of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Render was prohibited from possessing a firearm because he had previously been convicted of the following felony offense.

    On April 2, 2020, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky, Render was convicted of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.

    If convicted, Havlicheck, Hollie, Joseph Nguyen, Ngo, Kevin Nguyen, Johnathan Nguyen, Smith, Jr., and O’Neal face a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison. Render faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years in prison. All the defendants face a maximum sentence of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. 

    The following 9 defendants were charged in the second indictment on May 6, 2025:

    • Antonio Taylor, 39, of Louisville
    • Terry Matthews, 44, of Louisville
    • Dylan Bradley, 21, of Louisville
    • Demetrius Brown, 42, of Louisville
    • Dominic McCray, 30, of Louisville
    • Joshua James, 42, of Louisville
    • Gregory Jackson, 34, of Louisville
    • Thai Quoc Tran, 24, of Louisville
    • Devon Wilson, 43, of Louisville 

    According to the second indictment, Taylor, Matthews, Bradley, Brown, McCray, James, and Jackson were charged with one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl for a conspiracy beginning as early as August 21, 2024, and continuing through October 23, 2024.

    Taylor was also charged with one count of distribution of 400 grams or more of a fentanyl mixture, eight counts of distribution of 40 grams or more of a fentanyl mixture, one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and one count of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. Taylor was prohibited from possessing a firearm because he had previously been convicted of the following felony offenses.

    On or about May 21, 2018, in Jefferson Circuit Court, Taylor was convicted of possession of a handgun by a convicted felon and trafficking in a controlled substance first degree unspecified less than ten dosage units (two counts).

    Matthews was also charged with one count of distribution of 400 grams or more of a fentanyl mixture, three counts of distribution of 40 grams or more of a fentanyl mixture, two counts of distribution of fentanyl, one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, one count firearms trafficking, one count of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, and one count of distribution of a controlled substance. Matthews was prohibited from possessing a firearm because he had previously been convicted of the following felony offense.

    On March 9, 2018, in Jefferson Circuit Court, Matthews was convicted of flagrant non-support.

    Bradley was also charged with three counts of distribution of 40 grams or more of a fentanyl mixture, one count of distribution of 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

    Brown was also charged with one count of distribution of 40 grams or more of a fentanyl mixture, one count of distribution of a fentanyl mixture, and one count of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. Brown was prohibited from possessing a firearm because he had previously been convicted of the following felony offenses.

    On or about July 17, 2017, in Jefferson Circuit Court, Brown was convicted of assault in the second degree, criminal mischief in the first degree, receiving stolen firearm, and wanton endangerment in the first degree.

    McCray was also charged with one count of possession of an unregistered firearm.

    James was also charged with one count of distribution of 40 grams or more of a fentanyl mixture.

    Jackson was also charged with one count of distribution of 40 grams or more of a fentanyl mixture.

    Tran was also charged with one count of distribution of 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.

    Wilson was also charged with one count of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. Wilson was prohibited from possessing a firearm because he had previously been convicted of the following felony offenses.

    On July 16, 2024, in Jefferson Circuit Court, Wilson was convicted of flagrant non-support.

    On January 9, 2017, in Jefferson Circuit Court, Wilson was convicted of trafficking in a controlled substance in the first degree, schedule I heroin less than two grams.

    If convicted, Taylor, Matthews, Bradley, Brown, James, Jackson, and Tran face a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison. McCray faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. Wilson faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.

    Matthews and McCray have not been federally arrested and are not yet before the Court.

    The following 2 defendants were charged in the third indictment on May 6, 2025:

    • Mark Foster, Jr., 33, of Louisville
    • Devante Rice, 30, of Louisville

    Foster was charged with two counts of distribution of controlled substances, nine counts of distribution of fentanyl, ten counts of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, seven counts of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, one count of illegal possession of a machine gun, and one count of firearms trafficking. Foster was prohibited from possessing a firearm because he had previously been convicted of the following felony offenses.

    On or about March 30, 2018, in Jefferson Circuit Court, Foster was convicted of receiving stolen property (firearm) and illegal possession of a controlled substance in the first degree, heroin.   

    On or about June 15, 2021, in Jefferson Circuit Court, Foster was convicted of complicity to trafficking in a controlled substance in the first degree, opioids, complicity to trafficking in a controlled substance in the first degree, methamphetamine, possession of a handgun by a convicted felon, and tampering with physical evidence.

    Rice was charged with eleven counts of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, one count of firearms trafficking, and two counts of possession of an unregistered firearm. Rice was prohibited from possessing a firearm because he had previously been convicted of the following felony offenses.

    On January 10, 2014, in Jefferson Circuit Court, Rice was convicted of burglary in the second degree and receiving stolen property over $500.

    On April 30, 2019, in Jefferson Circuit Court, Rice was convicted of possession of a handgun by a convicted felon.

    On August 8, 2023, in Jefferson Circuit Court, Rice was convicted of complicity to possession of a handgun by a convicted felon, theft by unlawful taking – firearm (two counts), and theft by unlawful taking over $500 but under $10,000.

    If convicted, Foster faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 70 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison. Rice faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison on each count of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and the single count of firearms trafficking and a 10-year maximum sentence for the two counts of possession of an unregistered firearm. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. 

    The following 4 defendants were charged in the fourth indictment on May 21, 2025:

    • Antonio Taylor
    • Joshua James
    • Celotia Evans, 39, of Louisville
    • Jaremei Hinkle, 24, of Louisville

    According to the fourth indictment, Taylor, James, Evans, and Hinkle were charged with one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl for a conspiracy beginning as early as June 2024 and continuing through July 11, 2024. 

    Hinkle was also charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute of 400 grams or more of a fentanyl mixture.

    James was also charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of a methamphetamine mixture.

    Taylor is also charged with engaging in monetary transactions derived from specific unlawful activities and laundering of a money instrument during his purchase of a vehicle.

    If convicted, Taylor, James, Evans, and Hinkle face a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison. All the defendants face a maximum sentence of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.

    There is no parole in the federal system.

    Evans and Hinkle have not been federally arrested and are not yet before the Court.

    The cases are being investigated by the FBI, HSI, ATF, DEA, IRS-CI, CBP, USPIS, KSP, and LMPD. 

    These cases were investigated and prosecuted by the Kentucky Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) as part of Operation Take Back America. HSTFs, which were established by President Trump in Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion, are joint operations led by the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security. Operation Take Back America is a nationwide federal 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).

    An indictment 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: PENSACOLA MAN SENTENCED FOR POSSESSION OF LOADED FIREARM AS A CONVICTED FELON

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

    PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Christ’Avian X’Zayvia Rayshon Sheard, 19, of Pensacola, Florida, was sentenced to 30 months in federal 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 April 2, 2024, Sheard was located in a vehicle parked at Sanders Beach. Sheard was in possession of marijuana as well as a loaded Taurus 9 millimeter pistol. Sheard was a convicted felon at the time, with a prior felony conviction for aggravated assault by threat with a firearm and carrying a concealed firearm.

    U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “Operation Take Back America is a promise by President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi that we will do everything in our power to stop those who are victimizing our communities, and keeping a violent felon like this one off the streets is exactly what they meant.  I am proud of the work of our brave state and federal law enforcement partners who investigated this case, and my office will continue to aggressively prosecute these offenders to keep our communities safe.”

    “Pensacola Police is committed to reducing guns crimes and will continue to work with our federal law enforcement partners to hold everyone accountable that chooses to illegally possess a firearm in our city,” said Chief Randall of the Pensacola Police Department.

    The case involved a joint investigation by the Pensacola Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jessica S. Etherton.

    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, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Maryland Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Possessing With Intent to Distribute Fentanyl and Cocaine

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

    The defendant, a felon, also possessed a firearm in connection with the drug offense.

    Baltimore, Maryland – Today, Judge Matthew J. Maddox sentenced Freddie Anthony Curry, 54, of Baltimore, Maryland, to 10 years in federal prison for possession with the intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl and 500 grams or more of cocaine. 

    Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the sentence with Acting Special Agent in Charge Amanda M. Koldjeski, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – Baltimore Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Ibrar A. Mian, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) – Washington Division.

    In May 2024, the FBI and DEA began investigating Curry in connection with suspected fentanyl and cocaine trafficking in the Baltimore area.  During their investigation, they verified Curry’s vehicle and residence. Authorities then executed federal search warrants on Curry’s residence and vehicle. During the search, investigators recovered approximately 980 grams of fentanyl, 1,040 grams of cocaine, digital scales, drug-packaging materials, and a Glock 19 9-millimeter handgun. Curry is prohibited from possessing a firearm due to prior felony convictions.

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

    This case is part of a 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 specific mission of the Baltimore Strike Force is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle violent drug trafficking, money laundering, and transnational criminal organizations to reduce drug-related and/or gang violence in the Baltimore metropolitan and surrounding areas.  The Baltimore Strike Force is comprised of agents and officers from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security, the United States Marshals Service, the United States Secret Service, United States Postal Inspection Service, the Maryland State Police, the Baltimore Police Department, the Baltimore Sheriff’s Office, the Baltimore County Police Department, the Maryland Transportation Authority, and the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services. The prosecution is being led by the Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Maryland.

    U.S. Attorney Hayes commended the FBI and DEA, for their work in the investigation. Ms. Hayes also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Simpkins who is prosecuting the case.

    For more information about the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to report fraud, visit justice.gov/usao-md  and justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Wayne County Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Gun Crime

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

    CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Randy Price, 52, of Wayne, pleaded guilty today to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

    According to court documents and statements made in court, on July 16, 2019, a law enforcement officer conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle driven by Price in Charleston. Price attempted to flee on foot but was captured. Law enforcement seized a Raven Arms MP-25 .25-caliber pistol from the vehicle.

    Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Price knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of his prior felony convictions for involuntary manslaughter and aggravated robbery in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Court of Common Pleas on June 28, 2002.

    Price is scheduled to be sentenced on October 2, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.

    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 the Charleston Police Department.

    United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorneys JC MacCallum and Negar M. Kordestani have 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. 2:22-cr-97.

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    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Wayne County Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Gun Crime

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

    CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Randy Price, 52, of Wayne, pleaded guilty today to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

    According to court documents and statements made in court, on July 16, 2019, a law enforcement officer conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle driven by Price in Charleston. Price attempted to flee on foot but was captured. Law enforcement seized a Raven Arms MP-25 .25-caliber pistol from the vehicle.

    Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Price knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of his prior felony convictions for involuntary manslaughter and aggravated robbery in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Court of Common Pleas on June 28, 2002.

    Price is scheduled to be sentenced on October 2, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.

    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 the Charleston Police Department.

    United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorneys JC MacCallum and Negar M. Kordestani have 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. 2:22-cr-97.

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    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Pair Admit Attempted Armed Kidnapping and Robbery of Apartment Property Manager

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

    ST. LOUIS – Two people have admitted to attempting to kidnap and rob a St. Louis apartment property manager at gunpoint in 2024, as well as other gun crimes.

    Emma M. Cunningham, 32, pleaded guilty Monday in U.S. District Court to attempted kidnapping, transfer of a firearm to a convicted felon and making a false statement in connection with the purchase of a firearm.

    Jervonz L. Williams, 49, pleaded guilty on June 23 to attempted kidnapping, robbery and possession of a firearm by a felon.

    Both admitted that on Feb. 20, 2024, Cunningham bought a handgun for Williams, her boyfriend and a convicted felon who is thus barred from possessing firearms. Cunningham lied on Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Form 4473 when she claimed she was buying the gun for herself and when she denied being an unlawful user of a controlled substance.

    Williams admitted using the gun to threaten others, including one of Cunningham’s neighbors. He also admitted using it to rob a drug dealer of $17, a gun and cocaine base in late June of 2024. Williams struck the dealer on the head with the revolver multiple times during the robbery.

    Williams and Cunningham used that gun again on Aug. 5, 2024, in a failed bid to kidnap an apartment property manager in St. Louis. The property manager was meeting Cunningham, her tenant, for a final walkthrough. When the victim entered the apartment, Cunningham locked the door and Williams threatened to kill her when she tried to call 911. Williams then demanded cash and the password to her phone so that they could access her financial accounts. They secured her to a chair with duct tape, but she broke free and was able to escape, even though Cunningham and Williams ripped off her shirt and tore out clumps of her hair trying to prevent her from leaving. Two days later, police arrested the couple. Williams had the .38-caliber revolver Cunningham purchased and she had a box of ammunition.

    Williams is scheduled to be sentenced on September 24 and Cunningham on September 30. The kidnapping and robbery charges each carry a potential penalty of up to 20 years in prison. The felon in possession and transfer of a firearm charge each carry a penalty of up to 15 years. The false statement charge carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison.

    The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary Bluestone 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: Pair Admit Attempted Armed Kidnapping and Robbery of Apartment Property Manager

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

    ST. LOUIS – Two people have admitted to attempting to kidnap and rob a St. Louis apartment property manager at gunpoint in 2024, as well as other gun crimes.

    Emma M. Cunningham, 32, pleaded guilty Monday in U.S. District Court to attempted kidnapping, transfer of a firearm to a convicted felon and making a false statement in connection with the purchase of a firearm.

    Jervonz L. Williams, 49, pleaded guilty on June 23 to attempted kidnapping, robbery and possession of a firearm by a felon.

    Both admitted that on Feb. 20, 2024, Cunningham bought a handgun for Williams, her boyfriend and a convicted felon who is thus barred from possessing firearms. Cunningham lied on Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Form 4473 when she claimed she was buying the gun for herself and when she denied being an unlawful user of a controlled substance.

    Williams admitted using the gun to threaten others, including one of Cunningham’s neighbors. He also admitted using it to rob a drug dealer of $17, a gun and cocaine base in late June of 2024. Williams struck the dealer on the head with the revolver multiple times during the robbery.

    Williams and Cunningham used that gun again on Aug. 5, 2024, in a failed bid to kidnap an apartment property manager in St. Louis. The property manager was meeting Cunningham, her tenant, for a final walkthrough. When the victim entered the apartment, Cunningham locked the door and Williams threatened to kill her when she tried to call 911. Williams then demanded cash and the password to her phone so that they could access her financial accounts. They secured her to a chair with duct tape, but she broke free and was able to escape, even though Cunningham and Williams ripped off her shirt and tore out clumps of her hair trying to prevent her from leaving. Two days later, police arrested the couple. Williams had the .38-caliber revolver Cunningham purchased and she had a box of ammunition.

    Williams is scheduled to be sentenced on September 24 and Cunningham on September 30. The kidnapping and robbery charges each carry a potential penalty of up to 20 years in prison. The felon in possession and transfer of a firearm charge each carry a penalty of up to 15 years. The false statement charge carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison.

    The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary Bluestone 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 USA: Smuggling Leader and Top Coordinator Will Spend Remainder of Their Lives in Prison Following Their Sentencing on Third Anniversary of Deadly Tractor-Trailer Smuggling Conspiracy

    Source: US State of California

    Two convicted human smugglers were sentenced in a federal court in San Antonio today for their prominent roles in the 2022 mass casualty human smuggling conspiracy that resulted in the deaths of 47 adults and six children.

    U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia for the Western District of Texas sentenced Orduna-Torres to life in prison and a $250,000 fine, and Gonzales-Ortega to 83 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Both defendants were found guilty by a federal jury in March for three counts related to the transportation of aliens within the United States resulting in death, causing serious bodily injury, and placing lives in jeopardy. Following the jury’s verdict at the trial, Judge Garcia set the sentencing date, noting that it would be three years to the day from when the 53 migrants perished as a result of the defendants’ smuggling scheme.

    “These criminals will spend the rest of their lives in prison because of their cruel choice to profit off of human suffering,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “Today’s sentences are a powerful message to human smugglers everywhere: we will not rest until you are behind bars.”

    “Three years to the day after these two smugglers and their co-conspirators left dozens of men, women, and children locked in a sweltering tractor-trailer to die in the Texas summer heat, they learned that they will spend the rest of their lives locked away in a federal prison,” said U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas. “We recognize the justice handed down by Judge Garcia and thank our law enforcement partners for their great work that led to today’s outcome. At the same time, we reinforce the message that these criminal organizations will not place the lives of the desperate and vulnerable above their own financial enrichment. My office remains focused on prosecuting smugglers and their networks, and ultimately eradicating transnational criminal organizations.”

    “Today’s sentences are the result of a far-reaching investigation and a tireless commitment by HSI and our law enforcement partners to dismantle the deadliest human smuggling operation in U.S. history,” said Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) San Antonio. “This case serves as a stark reminder: human smuggling is not a service — it is a deadly criminal enterprise. HSI will pursue smugglers relentlessly, wherever they operate. No one, who participates in the smuggling of human beings, will escape the reach of justice.”

    According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Felipe Orduna-Torres, also known as Cholo, Chuequito/Chuekito, and Negro, 30, was a leader and organizer, and Armando Gonzales-Ortega, also known as El Don and Don Gon, 55, was a coordinator in the human smuggling organization (HSO) which illegally brought adults and children from Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico into the United States between December 2021 and June 2022.

    Court documents and evidence presented at the trial revealed that Orduna-Torres and Gonzales-Ortega worked in concert to transport and facilitate the transportation of the migrants, sharing routes, guides, stash houses, trucks, trailers, and transporters in order to consolidate costs, minimize risks, and maximize profit. The HSO maintained a variety of tractors and trailers for their smuggling operations, some of which were stored at a private parking lot in San Antonio.

    In the days leading up to June 27, 2022, Orduna-Torres and others exchanged the names of illegal aliens who would be smuggled in an upcoming tractor-trailer load. Gonzales-Ortega traveled to Laredo to meet the tractor-trailer, where at least 64 undocumented individuals, including eight children and one pregnant woman, were loaded for smuggling.

    Some of the defendants, including Orduna-Torres, were aware that the trailer’s reefer unit was malfunctioning and was not blowing any cool air to the migrants inside. When members of the organization met the tractor-trailer at the end of its approximately three-hour journey to San Antonio, they opened the doors to find 48 of the migrants were either already dead or had died on site, including the pregnant woman. Sixteen of the undocumented individuals were transported to hospitals — five of whom died.

    In addition to their sentences described above, the court also ordered Orduna-Torres to pay a $96,000 money judgment and ordered the forfeiture of the following assets: one 2008 Volvo semi-tractor; one 1995 Phoenix trailer; one 2015 Cadillac Escalade; one 2017 Ford F-350 Super Duty Truck; and $59,445.50.

    Five other defendants in this case have pleaded guilty for their involvement in the smuggling event. Riley Covarrubias-Ponce, also known as Rrili and Rilay, 32, is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 6; Luis Alberto Rivera-Leal, 39, is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 13; Christian Martinez, 31, is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 20; and Homero Zamorano Jr., 48, is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 4. Juan Francisco D’Luna Bilbao, 51, is indicted separately and is also scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 4.

    In a related case, Rigoberto Ramon Miranda-Orozco, 48, allegedly worked with the HSO to smuggle aliens into the United States on the same fatal journey orchestrated by Orduna-Torres and his co-conspirators. He made his initial appearance in San Antonio on March 17, seven months after he was arrested in Guatemala, and is currently scheduled for a jury trial Sept. 29.

    HSI investigated the case with the assistance of the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and has received tremendous support from Customs and Border Protection; Border Patrol; ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations; the San Antonio Police Department; the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office; the San Antonio Fire Department; the Marshall Police Department; and the Palestine Police Department.

    Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eric Fuchs, Sarah Spears and Ray Gattinella for the Western District of Texas are prosecuting the case.

    These convictions are the result of the coordinated efforts of Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA). JTFA, a partnership with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), has been elevated and expanded by the Attorney General with a mandate to target cartels and other transnational criminal organizations to eliminate human smuggling and trafficking networks operating in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, and Colombia that impact public safety and the security of our borders. JTFA currently comprises detailees from U.S. Attorneys’ Offices along the southwest border. Dedicated support is provided by numerous components of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, led by the Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and supported by the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section; Office of Enforcement Operations; and the Office of International Affairs, among others. JTFA also relies on substantial law enforcement investment from DHS, FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and other partners. To date, JTFA’s work has resulted in more than 385 domestic and international arrests of leaders, organizers, and significant facilitators of alien smuggling; more than 345 U.S. convictions; more than 300 significant jail sentences imposed; and forfeitures of substantial assets.

    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, 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 Neighborhoods (PSN).

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI Security: Pittsburgh Felon Sentenced to More Than Five Years in Prison for Possession of Firearm and Violating Conditions of Supervised Release

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

    PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 65 months of prison on his conviction of being a felon in possession of a firearm and violating the conditions of his supervised release, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.

    Senior United States District Judge David S. Cercone imposed the sentence on Raymond Young, 23, on June 27, 2025.

    According to information presented to the Court, on August 7, 2024, Glassport patrol officers stopped Young in a vehicle he was driving without a license. In preparation for towing Young’s vehicle, officers observed a firearm in the vehicle and attempted to remove Young, who then shifted the vehicle into gear and sped off, running over one officer’s feet and nearly striking another officer. Young’s vehicle came to a stop after hitting a parked vehicle. Young exited the vehicle and attempted to flee the scene on foot, but was apprehended by police.

    In the defendant’s flight path, the officers recovered a Glock pistol with an extended magazine loaded with 30 rounds of ammunition and one round in the chamber. The firearm had been reported as stolen. Young is precluded under federal law from possessing a firearm because he was previously convicted of a felony for possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. Young was still on federal supervised release for that offense when he was arrested by the Glassport Police on August 7, 2024.

    Assistant United States Attorney Brendan T. Conway prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

    Acting United States Attorney Rivetti commended the Glassport Police Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Young.

    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: PENSACOLA MAN INCARCERATED FOR NARCOTICS TRAFFICKING & FIREARM POSSESSION

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

    PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Marcus Devon Rayford, 42, of Pensacola, Florida was sentenced to 60 months in prison after previously pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute cocaine base and cocaine, and possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

    U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “I applaud the substantial efforts of our state and federal law enforcement partners to investigate, arrest, and help bring this drug trafficker to justice. These offenses are not victimless crimes; the victims are the members of our community who experience the addiction and violence that too often follows from drug traffickers flooding our streets with this poison. President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi promised to Take Back America with the aggressive pursuit of drug traffickers victimizing our communities, and that is exactly what my office will continue to do.”

    In January 2024, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives initiated a criminal investigation into an armed drug trafficking organization in Pensacola, Florida. The investigation revealed that Marcus Rayford was a key member within the organization with law enforcement observing him distributing firearms and narcotics on numerous occasions.  In December 2024, state and federal law enforcement executed a search warrant at Marcus Rayford’s residence and located five firearms, cocaine base, cocaine, fentanyl, marijuana, and heroin. 

    These sentences were the result of a joint investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Escambia County Sherriff’s Office, Pensacola Police Department, Florida Highway Patrol, Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey M. Tharp prosecuted 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 Security: Two Georgia Men Plead Guilty to Federal Drug Crimes

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

    HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Today, Reginald Bernard Daniely Jr., also known as “Yo,” 34, and Jacquis Christopher Moody, also known as “Jo,” 30, both of Macon, Georgia, each pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting the possession with intent to distribute quantities of fentanyl and cocaine base, also known as “crack.”

    According to court documents and statements made in court, on February 20, 2024, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at a Huntington apartment where Daniely and Moody had been staying. Officers seized approximately 13.814 grams of a mixture containing heroin and fentanyl, approximately 38.827 grams of crack, and two firearms during the search. As part of their guilty pleas, Daniely and Moody each admitted to possessing the seized controlled substances. Daniely and Moody each further admitted to possessing the two seized firearms.

    Daniely and Moody are scheduled to be sentenced on October 14, 2025, and each faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release, and a $1 million fine.

    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 the Huntington Police Department.

    United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers presided over the hearings. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph F. Adams is prosecuting the case.

    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. 3:25-cr-17.

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    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Colorado Man Conspiring to Distribute Meth and Fentanyl in Iowa Pleads Guilty in Federal Court

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

    A man who conspired to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl and illegally possessed a firearm pled guilty June 27, 2025, in federal court in Sioux City.

    Ryan Miller, 40, originally from Colorado, but most recently residing in Pilot Mound, Iowa, was convicted of one count of conspiring to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl and one count of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.  Miller was previously convicted of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine in 2017, this conviction prohibits him from possessing a firearm. 

    At the plea hearing, Miller admitted that from January 2024 through April 27, 2024, he and others conspired to distribute at least a half pound of methamphetamine and more than 1700 pills of fentanyl.  On April 21, 2024, Miller, along with two others were headed to Colorado to pick up more methamphetamine and to sell fentanyl pills.  They attempted to elude law enforcement in a high-speed vehicle chase during which Miller threw two pop cans containing fentanyl pills from the vehicle.  Miller’s two co-defendants made “false” 911 calls to law enforcement in an attempt to distract law enforcement and avoid capture.  Later the same date, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Miller’s residence and seized a small amount of methamphetamine, psilocybin mushrooms, marijuana, and a loaded .22 caliber Beretta handgun.

    Sentencing before United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Miller remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing.  Miller faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a $8,250,000 fine, and at least eight years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

    The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and was investigated by the Ida and Sac County Sheriff’s Offices, the Tri-State Drug Task Force based in Sioux City, Iowa, that consists of law enforcement personnel from the Drug Enforcement Administration; Sioux City, Iowa, Police Department; Homeland Security Investigations; Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office; South Sioux City, Nebraska, Police Department; Nebraska State Patrol; Iowa National Guard; Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement; United States Marshals Service; South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation; and the Woodbury County Attorney’s Office; and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; and Iowa DCI Laboratory  

    Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.

    The case file number is 24-4042.  Follow us on X @USAO_NDIA.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI USA: Rep. Dan Goldman Hosts Roundtable With Young New Yorkers Impacted by Gun Violence

    Source: US Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10)

    Firearms are Leading Cause of Death for America’s Youth 

     

    More Than 17,000 Children and Teenagers Shot Each Year, 4,000 Will Die 

     

    Pictures and Video Available Here 

    NEW YORK, N.Y. — Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) today hosted a roundtable with seven young people whose lives and communities have been impacted by gun violence and who have become passionate advocates for change. The participants shared their experiences with gun violence in New York City and discussed the policies they hope to see championed in the fight to end gun violence.  

    “The gun violence epidemic is uniquely American and entirely preventable with commonsense gun regulations and resourced community-based prevention and intervention organizations,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “The brave young people who shared their stories with me today can help us tackle the root causes of this epidemic. While Trump and the GOP continue to roll back gun safety regulations and grants, we must aggressively push to invest in the grassroots efforts already making a difference on the ground.” 

    Roundtable participants joined Congressman Goldman to discuss the toll of gun violence in New York City, sharing both their own personal experiences as well as those of their communities. The conversation also highlighted how young advocates want their elected officials to take stronger action– by investing in community resources and enacting commonsense gun safety legislation. 

    Gun violence is the leading cause of death for American youth. More than 17,000 children are shot each year, with over 4,000 young Americans dying tragic and preventable deaths.  Communities of color are particularly impacted by gun violence. Black children and teens are 20 times more likely to die in a gun-related homicide than their white peers.  

    Young people exposed to gun violence often suffer long-lasting physical, psychological, and emotional trauma. These experiences increase the risk of substance abuse, mental health disorders, and even the perpetuation of violent behavior, creating a tragic cycle of violence that affects future generations. The economic toll of these cycles is staggering, with youth violence costing an estimated $122 billion each year in medical expenses, lost employment opportunities, and diminished quality of life due to injury. 

    Evidence-based, community-driven programs have had great success in curbing violence at the local level. For example, Chicago’s Youth Violence Prevention Center reduced local homicides by 17% in one year, even as the city’s overall homicide rate increased. 

    As a member of the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, Congressman Goldman has been a leading advocate in the fight against gun violence.  

    This month, Congressman Goldman jointly introduced the ‘Firearm Destruction Licensure Act’ alongside Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA). This legislation would close a gun loophole that is allowing firearms designated for destruction to be sold back into American communities and potentially into the hands of bad actors. 

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    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI: Global Neuro-Psychiatric Disorders & Treatment Market Projected to Reach $166 Billion by 2032

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    PALM BEACH, Fla., July 01, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — FN Media Group News Commentary – Worldwide, there is a rising demand for neuropsychiatric disorder treatments which is expected to fuel the global markets for years to come. With expanding research and development efforts and a robust pipeline of novel medications, the neuropsychiatric disorders treatment landscape is evolving rapidly. Pharmaceutical companies are focusing on innovative drug therapies to meet the growing need for effective and affordable treatments. The market is primarily driven by the high incidence of mental illnesses, including depression and anxiety, and the rising awareness of these conditions. As a result, new treatment options are being developed, and drug-related activities such as clinical trials and drug approvals are intensifying. Recently an article on the 4th European Congress of Neurology and Neuropsychiatry website said that: “The global neuropsychiatric disorders and treatment market is on an upward trajectory, with a significant increase in demand for innovative solutions that cater to the growing burden of mental health conditions. In 2024, the market was valued at USD 130.5 billion, and by 2032, it is projected to reach USD 166.3 billion, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.20% from 2023 to 2032. This growth is fueled by continuous research, advancements in treatment, and heightened awareness of neuropsychiatric disorders.”   Active Companies active today in markets include: Cybin Inc. (NYSE: CYBN) (NEO: CYBN), COMPASS Pathways plc (NASDAQ: CMPS), Sage Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAGE), Mind Medicine (MindMed) Inc. (NASDAQ: MNMD) (NEO: MMED), atai Life Sciences (NASDAQ: ATAI).

    The article continued: “The growing global burden of neuropsychiatric disorders is a critical driver for the treatment market. With over 9.1 million annual deaths attributed to neurological diseases and an additional 8 million caused by neuropsychiatric conditions, this category represents a substantial public health challenge. These disorders contribute significantly to disability globally, with an estimated 461 million disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) lost each year. Moreover, rising awareness through public education, media coverage, and advocacy organizations is encouraging more individuals to seek early diagnosis and treatment, ultimately improving outcomes for patients. Social media and celebrity-led campaigns have also played a pivotal role in removing the stigma surrounding mental health, further boosting the demand for treatments. Drug treatments continue to be the fastest-growing segment in the neuropsychiatric disorders market, driven by ongoing advancements in pharmacology. New medications are being developed with fewer side effects and increased efficacy in managing conditions like depression, schizophrenia, and Alzheimer’s disease.”

    Cybin Inc. (NYSE AMERICAN: CYBN) (Cboe Canada: CYBN) Announces Financing of up to US$500 Million Aggregate Principal Amount of Convertible Debentures – Funding agreement contemplates a conversion formula with a potential 30% premium upon conversion and positions the Company for growth, and accelerated advancement of its clinical pipeline programs, CYB003 and CYB004 –   Cybin Inc. (“Cybin” or the “Company”), a clinical-stage breakthrough neuropsychiatry company committed to revolutionizing mental healthcare by developing new and innovative next-generation treatment options, is pleased to announce the Company has entered into a securities purchase agreement (the “Securities Purchase Agreement”) with High Trail Special Situations LLC (“High Trail”), pursuant to which the Company agreed to sell and issue to High Trail up to US$500,000,000 in aggregate principal amount of unsecured convertible debentures (the “Convertible Debentures”). The sale and issue of US$50,000,000 principal amount of Convertible Debentures was completed on June 30, 2025 (the “Private Placement”). The sale and issue of US$450,000,000 of the principal amount of Convertible Debentures will be determined at a future date, upon mutual agreement of the parties.

    “This financing represents a major inflection point for Cybin and supports our position as a leader within our sector,” said Doug Drysdale, Chief Executive Officer of Cybin. “High Trail Capital is an experienced investor, and its confidence and appreciation of our breakthrough clinical data and intellectual property portfolio recognize the potential of the Company. This financing comes at an opportune time for Cybin, as we advance our lead programs, CYB003 and CYB004, in Phase 3 and Phase 2, respectively. CYB003 demonstrated over 70% remission rates and continued durability over 12 months for patients with uncontrolled depression. We await the conclusion of our CYB004 Phase 2 proof-of-concept study, in patients with generalized anxiety disorder,” said Drysdale.

    Joseph Gunnar & Co., LLC acted as the sole placement agent in connection with this transaction.

    Pipeline Acceleration Drives Multiple Value Creation Catalysts

    The funding will accelerate Cybin’s clinical-stage programs across multiple high-value indications:

    CYB003 Program Achievements:

    • Breakthrough Clinical Results: Unprecedented 71% remission rate in major depressive disorder at 12 months after two 16 mg doses in Phase 2 study
    • Durability advantage: 12-month sustained efficacy demonstrating long-term therapeutic benefit
    • FDA Recognition: Breakthrough Therapy Designation received, expediting regulatory pathway
    • Multinational Phase 3 PARADIGM program underway

    CYB004 Program Momentum:

    • Dual Indication Strategy: Expanding addressable market opportunity
    • Phase 2 GAD study expected to complete around mid-year 2025 1

    Commercialization Infrastructure:

    • Manufacturing Scale-Up: Finalizing production capabilities for market launch
    • IP Portfolio Expansion: Strengthening competitive moat with more than 90 patents issued and over 230 applications pending
    • Strategic Partnerships: Developing market access and pre-commercialization alliances

    Value Catalysts Drive Sustained Momentum

    Near-Term Catalysts:

    • CYB004 Phase 2 GAD study expected to complete around mid-2025 1
    • Initiation of second CYB003 pivotal study, EMBRACE, around mid-2025 1
    • EXTEND study initiation imminent 1

    Medium-Term Catalysts (2025-2026):

    • Phase 3 top line readout for CYB003 2H 2026 1
    • Regulatory submission preparations
    • Commercial manufacturing readiness
    • International market expansion planning

    CONTINUED… Read the Transaction Terms and full Press Release for Cybin at: https://www.financialnewsmedia.com/news-cybn/      NOTES: 1.There is no assurance that timelines will be met. Anticipated timelines regarding the initiation, advancement and results of clinical trials are based on reasonable assumptions informed by current knowledge and information available to the Company. See “Cautionary Notes and Forward-Looking Statements in the Full Press Release”.

    In other active company biotech news in the markets:

    atai Life Sciences (NASDAQ: ATAI), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company on a mission to develop highly effective mental health treatments to transform patient outcomes, and Beckley Psytech Limited (“Beckley”), a private clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company pioneering the next generation of mental health treatments, recently announced a definitive agreement under which atai and Beckley plan to combine in an all-share transaction subject to pre-agreed BPL-003 (mebufotenin benzoate) Phase 2b success criteria.

    “The strategic combination marks a transformational moment, solidifying us as a leader in rapid-acting and accessible psychedelic treatments for mental health conditions with a pipeline of potential first-in-class and best-in-class assets,” stated Srinivas Rao, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of atai. “With a unified vision and a synergistic pipeline, we believe we are well-positioned to unlock the strategic value of our clinical development programs for both patients and shareholders. Together, we plan to move confidently towards our goal of bringing innovative interventional psychiatry therapies to patients in need of new treatments.”

    Mind Medicine (MindMed) Inc. (NASDAQ: MNMD), a late-stage clinical biopharmaceutical company developing novel product candidates to treat brain health disorders, recently announced the issuance of inducement grants to four newly hired non-executive employees consisting of options to purchase an aggregate of 128,750 common shares of the Company (the “Options”), with effective grant dates of June 2, 2025 and June 9, 2025, depending on the applicable employee’s respective start date. The Options have an exercise price equal to the closing price of MindMed’s common shares on the last trading day on which MindMed’s common shares traded prior to the date of the respective grant, and will vest over a four-year period with 25% vesting on the first anniversary of the date of the grant and the remaining 75% vesting in substantially equal monthly increments over the three-year period thereafter, subject to each employee’s continued employment.

    Supernus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (SUPN) and Sage Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAGE) recently announced a definitive agreement for Supernus to acquire Sage through a tender offer for $8.50 per share in cash (or an aggregate of approximately $561 million), payable at closing, plus one non-tradable contingent value right (CVR) collectively worth up to $3.50 per share in cash (or an aggregate of approximately $234 million), for total consideration of $12.00 per share in cash (or an aggregate of up to approximately $795 million). The CVR is payable upon achieving certain net sales and commercial milestones. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2025.

    The transaction will provide Supernus with an innovative marketed product: ZURZUVAE® (zuranolone) capsules CIV, the first and only U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved oral medicine indicated for the treatment of adults with postpartum depression. Through a collaboration agreement with Biogen, Inc., Supernus will report collaboration revenue that is 50% of total net revenue Biogen records for ZURZUVAE in the U.S.

    Compass Pathways plc (NASDAQ: CMPS), a biotechnology company dedicated to accelerating patient access to evidence-based innovation, recently announced the successful achievement of the primary endpoint in the ongoing Phase 3 COMP005 trial, the first of two Phase 3 trials evaluating COMP360, a synthetic, proprietary formulation of psilocybin, for treatment-resistant depression (TRD). The primary endpoint is the difference in change from baseline in the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) scores between the active treatment group and the placebo group at week 6. A single dose of COMP360 25 mg versus placebo demonstrated a highly statistically significant reduction in symptom severity with a p-value of <0.001 and a clinically meaningful difference of -3.6 in change at the primary endpoint. The Company plans to discuss these preliminary COMP005 data with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which has not yet reviewed the data.

    The ongoing Phase 3 COMP005 trial is the first study of an investigational, synthetic psilocybin, and the first classic psychedelic to report Phase 3 efficacy data. This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, which dosed 258 participants with TRD across 32 sites in the United States, aims to assess the efficacy and safety of a single dose of COMP360 25 mg versus placebo for reducing symptom severity in TRD.

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    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI Security: Kansas City Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Fentanyl Conspiracy

    Source: US FBI

    KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for his role in a conspiracy to distribute fentanyl.

    Jose Amparan, 22, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to 10 years in federal prison without parole.

    On Nov. 20, 2024, Amparan pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.

    Amparan was a source of supply of fentanyl pills for co-defendant Tiger Draggoo.  Based upon text messages from seized cell phones and Cash App records, it was determined that Tiger Draggoo purchased at least 22,364 pills from co-defendants, including Amparan.  Tiger Draggoo paid $34,363 through Cash App and an unknown amount via cash.  Of this amount, Amparan sold at least 3,000 pills to Tiger Draggoo over 15 separate transactions, between approximately Dec. 10, 2022, through approximately Jan. 14, 2023.  Amparan was paid approximately $4,835 through Cash App and an additional amount via cash for these transactions.  Amparan and Tiger Draggoo conspired to conceal and disguise the nature of the transfer of funds through Cash App by referring to the payments being for items such as “groceries,” “reimbursement,” and “car work.”

    On Jan. 10, 2023, a confidential informant purchased 500 counterfeit M30 pills containing fentanyl for $1,750 from Amparan and another.

    Amparan and his co-defendants have all pleaded guilty in this case, with only, Tiger Draggoo, left to be sentenced at a later date.

    This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brad K. Kavanaugh and Robert Smith. It was investigated by the Jackson County Drug Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Belton, Mo., Police Department, the Raymore, Mo., Police Department, the Cass County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, and the FBI.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Multi-stakeholder Round Table 3: Revitalizing International Development Cooperation

    Source: United Nations General Assembly and Security Council

    The Conference holds its third multi-stakeholder round table this afternoon on “Revitalizing international development cooperation”.

    Pedro Sánchez, President of Spain, will make opening remarks.

    Co-Chaired by KP Sharma Oli, Prime Minister of Nepal, and Ana Isabel Xavier, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Vice-Minister of State and Foreign Affairs of Portugal, it will feature a special address by Andrzej Duda, President of Poland, and a keynote address by Ho Duc Phoc, Deputy Prime Minister of Viet Nam.

    Haoliang Xu, Acting Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), will moderate the discussion.

    Panelists will include:  Jozef Síkela, Commissioner of International Partnership of the European Commission; Thorgerdur Katrin Gunnarsdottir, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland; Henry-Claude Oyima, Minister of State, Ministry of the Economy, Finance and Debt of Gabon; and Maropene Ramokgopa, Minister in the Presidency responsible for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation of South Africa. 

    Ilan Goldfajn, President of the Inter-American Development Bank, and Liqun Jin, President of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, will be the discussants.

    MIL OSI United Nations News

  • MIL-OSI: Snail Games Expands Indie Portfolio with the Launch of Robots at Midnight and Zombie Rollerz: The Last Ship

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CULVER CITY, Calif., July 01, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Snail, Inc. (Nasdaq: SNAL) (“Snail Games” or the “Company”), a leading global independent developer and publisher of interactive digital entertainment, announced the launch of two new indie titles, Robots at Midnight and Zombie Rollerz: The Last Ship, in the month of June. These releases mark a strategic expansion into distinct game and player demographics, showcasing Snail’s ongoing commitment to fostering creativity and innovation across its global portfolio.

    Robots at Midnight, developed by Toronto based studio Finish Line Games, represents Snail Games’ strategic entry into a younger segment of the gaming market. Designed as an accessible, entry-level Souls-like game, it introduces the genre’s core mechanics in a more user-friendly format, lowering the barrier to entry for wider appeal. The game specifically targets the younger Gen Z and Gen Alpha players who are just beginning to engage with more complex gameplay experiences. Backed in part by Canada Media Fund, the game is led by studio co-founder Daniel Posner, whose background in education and interactive media bridges entertainment and learning. To celebrate the launch of Robots at Midnight and the 2.1M+ viewer minutes watched on Twitch, the team is hosting a community event where players can win DIY robot kits encouraging real world creativity inspired by in-game exploration. For Snail Games, its investment in games like Robots at Midnight is a long-term strategy to captivate the next generation of gamers and creators. With Gen Alpha projected to become the most digitally fluent and commercially influential generation to date, early engagement aims to build brand loyalty and position the Company to meet the future demands of an evolving global market.

    Zombie Rollerz: The Last Ship, developed by Zing Games, comes from a seasoned studio with a track record of success; its previous titles, including the predecessor Zombie Rollerz: Pinball Heroes, have collectively surpassed 10 million downloads. The latest installment in the Zombie Rollerz franchise blends fast-paced roguelite mechanics with tower defense survival strategy to deliver a highly replayable, content-rich experience. With a positive Steam rating at launch and a distinctive visual style that appeals to casual and core gamers alike, Zombie Rollerz: The Last Ship demonstrates the strength of Zing Games’ IP and Snail’s ability to identify and scale high-performing indie titles.

    Together, Robots at Midnight and Zombie Rollerz: The Last Ship exemplifies Snail Games’ strategic focus on widening its portfolio and deepening market penetration across multiple player segments. By introducing accessible gameplay in an underserved genre to engage Gen Alpha players and scaling emerging IPs, Snail is actively expanding its presence across diverse markets. These launches reflect a deliberate approach to portfolio diversification – one that balances genre innovation, long-term revenue opportunities, and global audience growth as Snail continues to evolve and embrace the next-generation of interactive entertainment.

    For creators interested in covering Zombie Rollerz: The Last Ship or Robots at Midnight please reach out to creatordirect@noiz.gg.

    About Snail, Inc.
    Snail, Inc. (Nasdaq: SNAL) is a leading, global independent developer and publisher of interactive digital entertainment for consumers around the world, with a premier portfolio of premium games designed for use on a variety of platforms, including consoles, PCs, and mobile devices. For more information, please visit: https://snail.com/.

    Forward-Looking Statements
    This press release contains statements that constitute forward-looking statements. Many of the forward-looking statements contained in this press release can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “expect,” “should,” “plan,” “intend,” “may,” “predict,” “continue,” “estimate” and “potential,” or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. Forward-looking statements appear in a number of places in this press release and include, but are not limited to, statements regarding (i) Snail showcasing its ongoing commitment to fostering creativity and innovation across its global portfolio, (ii) Snail’s long-term investment in the next generation of gamers and creators, (iii) Gen Alpha projected to become the most digitally fluent and commercially influential generation to date and (iv) Gen Alpha projected to become the most digitally fluent and commercially influential generation to date. You should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described in the “Risk Factors” section of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024, which was filed by the Company with the SEC on March 26, 2025 and other documents filed by the Company from time to time with the SEC, including the Company’s Forms 10-Q filed with the SEC. The Company does not undertake or accept any obligation to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements to reflect any change in its expectations or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

    Investor Contact:
    John Yi and Steven Shinmachi
    Gateway Group, Inc.
    949-574-3860
    SNAL@gateway-grp.com

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: Apollo Funds Complete Acquisitions of International Game Technology’s Gaming & Digital Business and Everi; Combined Enterprise to Operate as IGT

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK and LAS VEGAS, July 01, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Apollo (NYSE: APO) today announced the completion of the previously announced acquisitions of International Game Technology PLC’s (doing business as “Brightstar Lottery”) Gaming & Digital Business and Everi Holdings Inc. (“Everi”) by a holding company owned by funds managed by Apollo affiliates (the “Apollo Funds”). The all-cash transaction, valued at approximately $6.3 billion, brings together complementary businesses to form a privately held global leader in gaming, digital and financial technology solutions.

    The two companies will be integrated into a combined enterprise in the coming months. Headquartered in Las Vegas, the combined enterprise will operate under the IGT name, while retaining the Everi brand in select markets and product lines. IGT will be organized into three business units: Gaming, Digital and FinTech, creating a customer-first enterprise supported by a people-first culture that values talent, collaboration and innovation.

    “This is a defining moment for our industry,” said Nick Khin, Interim CEO of IGT. “By uniting two leading organizations, we are building an enterprise with the scale, talent and technology to lead the future of gaming. With Apollo’s support, we are very well-positioned to deliver exceptional content across land-based and digital experiences, along with integrated financial solutions and casino management that enhance the player journey and drive value for our customers. I’m honored to be part of this exciting chapter and to help shape the future of IGT.”

    As previously announced, Hector Fernandez is expected to assume the role of CEO of IGT in the fourth quarter of 2025, following the expiration of a customary non-compete period. Until then, Mr. Khin will lead the organization and transition into the role of CEO of IGT’s Gaming business unit upon Mr. Fernandez’s arrival.

    “Bringing together highly complementary businesses creates a more competitive, agile and well-capitalized platform built for long-term growth,” said Daniel Cohen, Partner at Apollo. “We are confident that IGT is well positioned to deliver differentiated content and capabilities that better serve customers across the globe. We look forward to working closely with Hector, Nick and the rest of the talented IGT team to lead the industry forward.”

    Effective today, Everi common stock has been delisted from the New York Stock Exchange. Everi stockholders are receiving $14.25 per share in cash, and International Game Technology PLC is receiving $4.05 billion of gross cash proceeds.

    Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP is serving as legal counsel to the Apollo Funds.

    About IGT

    IGT is a leading global provider of gaming, digital and financial technology solutions, formed through the combination of International Game Technology PLC’s Gaming & Digital Business and Everi Holdings Inc. IGT’s offering spans gaming machines, game content and systems, iGaming, sports betting, cash access, loyalty and player engagement solutions, enabling it to deliver integrated, customer-centric experiences across land-based and digital environments. Organized into Gaming, Digital and FinTech business units, IGT drives innovation, efficiency and value for casino, digital and hospitality operators worldwide. The company is headquartered in Las Vegas.

    About Apollo

    Apollo is a high-growth, global alternative asset manager. In our asset management business, we seek to provide our clients excess return at every point along the risk-reward spectrum from investment grade credit to private equity. For more than three decades, our investing expertise across our fully integrated platform has served the financial return needs of our clients and provided businesses with innovative capital solutions for growth. Through Athene, our retirement services business, we specialize in helping clients achieve financial security by providing a suite of retirement savings products and acting as a solutions provider to institutions. Our patient, creative, and knowledgeable approach to investing aligns our clients, businesses we invest in, our employees, and the communities we impact, to expand opportunity and achieve positive outcomes. As of March 31, 2025, Apollo had approximately $785 billion of assets under management. To learn more, please visit www.apollo.com.

    Forward-Looking Statements

    This press release contains “forward-looking statements” as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements may be identified by terms such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “foresee,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “should,” “will,” and “would” and the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. In addition, all statements regarding IGT’s business following its acquisition by the Apollo Funds are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things, risks related to the ability to realize the anticipated benefits of the acquisitions; the ability to retain and hire key personnel; unexpected costs, charges or expenses resulting from the acquisitions; risks related to competition in the gaming and lottery industries; dependence on significant licensing arrangements, customers, or other third parties; economic changes in global markets, such as currency exchange, inflation and interest rates, and recession; government policies (including policy changes affecting the gaming industry, taxation, trade, tariffs, immigration, customs, and border actions) and other external factors that IGT cannot control; regulation and litigation matters relating to the acquisitions; unanticipated adverse effects or liabilities from business divestitures; risks related to intellectual property, privacy matters, and cyber security (including losses and other consequences from failures, breaches, attacks, or disclosures involving information technology infrastructure and data); other business effects (including the effects of industry, market, economic, political, or regulatory conditions); and other risks and uncertainties. Neither IGT nor the Apollo Funds intends to update or revise any forward-looking statements as a result of new information or future events or developments, except as required by law.

    Contacts

    For IGT
    Phil O’Shaughnessy
    VP Global Communications, Government Relations & Sustainability
    Toll free in U.S./Canada +1 (844) IGT-7452; outside U.S./Canada +1 (401) 392-7452
    Phil.oshaughnessy@igt.com

    For Apollo
    Noah Gunn
    Global Head of Investor Relations
    (212) 822-0540
    IR@apollo.com

    Joanna Rose
    Global Head of Corporate Communications
    (212) 822-0491
    Communications@apollo.com

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI Global: In LGBTQ+ storybook case, Supreme Court handed a win to parental rights, raising tough questions for educators

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Charles J. Russo, Joseph Panzer Chair in Education and Research Professor of Law, University of Dayton

    The parents who brought the case had requested that their children be excused when books with LGBTQ+ characters were used in class. SDI Productions/E+ via Getty Images

    The Supreme Court tends to save its blockbuster orders for the last day of the term – and 2025 was no exception.

    Among the important decisions handed down June 27, 2025, was Mahmoud v. Taylor – a case of particular interest to me, because I teach education law. Mahmoud, I believe, may become one of the court’s most consequential rulings on parental rights.

    An interfaith coalition of Muslim, Orthodox Christian and Catholic parents in Montgomery County, Maryland – including Tamer Mahmoud, for whom the case is named – questioned the school board’s refusal to allow them to opt their young children out of lessons using picture books with LGBTQ+ characters. Ruling in favor of the parents, the court found that the board violated their First Amendment right to the free exercise of religion by requiring their children to sit through lessons with materials inconsistent with their faiths.

    Case history

    The parents in Mahmoud challenged the use of certain storybooks that the board had approved for use in preschool and elementary school. “Pride Puppy!” for example – a book the schools later removed – portrays a family whose pet gets lost at a LGBTQ+ Pride parade, with each page devoted to a letter of the alphabet. The book’s “search and find” list of words directs readers to look for terms in the pictures, including “(drag) queen” and “king,” “leather” and “lip ring.” Other materials included stories about same-sex marriage, a transgender child, and nonbinary bathroom signs.

    Initially, school administrators agreed to allow opt-outs for students whose parents objected to the materials. A day later, however, educators changed their minds. School officials cited concerns about absenteeism, the feasibility of accommodating opt-out requests, and a desire to avoid stigmatizing LGBTQ+ students or families.

    In August 2023, a federal trial court rejected the parents’ claim that officials had violated their fundamental due process right to direct the care, custody and education of their children. The following year, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit affirmed in favor of the board, finding that officials did not violate the parents’ rights to the free exercise of their religious beliefs, as protected by the First Amendment.

    A group of parents in Montgomery County, Maryland, protest the lack of opt-outs on July 20, 2023.
    Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

    On appeal, a 6-3 Supreme Court reversed in favor of the parents. Justice Samuel Alito, who authored the court’s opinion, was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts, plus Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.

    Supreme Court

    In brief, the court held that by denying the parental requests to opt their children out of instruction inconsistent with their beliefs, school officials violated their First Amendment right to the free exercise of religion.

    Alito largely grounded the court’s rationale in a dispute from 1925, Pierce v. Society of Sisters of the Holy Name of Jesus and Mary, and even more heavily on 1972’s Wisconsin v. Yoder. Both cases recognize the primacy of parental rights to direct the education of their children. According to Pierce’s famous dictum, “the child is not the mere creature of the state; those who nurture him and direct his destiny have the right, coupled with the high duty, to recognize and prepare him for additional obligations.”

    In Yoder, Amish parents – an Anabaptist Christian community that avoids using many modern technologies – objected to sending their children to school after eighth grade because this would have violated their religious beliefs. The justices unanimously agreed with the parents that their children received all of the education they needed in their communities. The justices added that requiring the children to attend high school would have violated the parents’ rights to direct their children’s religious upbringing.

    Accordingly, the court acknowledged that the parental right “to guide the religious future and education of their children” was “established beyond debate.”

    Similarly, in Mahmoud the court declared that “the Board’s introduction of the ‘LGBTQ+-inclusive’ storybooks, along with its decision to withhold opt-outs, places an unconstitutional burden on the parents’ rights to the free exercise of their religion.”

    Thomas agreed fully with the court, yet wrote a separate concurrence, which emphasized “an important implication of this decision for schools across the country.” Citing Yoder, Thomas contended that rather than support inclusion, the board’s policy “imposes conformity with a view that undermines parents’ religious beliefs, and thus interferes with the parents’ right to ‘direct the religious upbringing of their children.’”

    Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s dissent, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, feared “the result will be chaos for this Nation’s public schools. Requiring schools to provide advance notice and the chance to opt out of every lesson plan or story time that might implicate a parent’s religious beliefs will impose impossible administrative burdens on schools.”

    Supporters of LGBTQ+ rights demonstrate outside the U.S. Supreme Court during oral arguments in Mahmoud v. Taylor on April 22, 2025.
    Oliver Contreras/AFP via Getty Images

    She maintained that “simply being exposed to beliefs contrary to your own” does not violate a person’s free exercise rights. Insulating children from different ideas, she wrote, denies them of an experience that is crucial for democracy: “practice living in our multicultural society.”

    Implications

    After the decision was handed down, Montgomery County’s Board of Education issued a statement promising to “analyze the Supreme Court decision and develop next steps in alignment with today’s decision, and as importantly, our values.”

    Mahmoud raises challenging questions about the scope or reach of how far parents can question curricular content.

    On the one hand, parents should not be able to micromanage curricular content via the “heckler’s veto,” because this can lead to larger issues. Moreover, while Mahmoud concerns religious rights, what happens if parents question teachings based on another type of sincerely held belief – discussing war if they are pacifist, for example, or capitalism if they are socialists? While Mahmoud dealt with free-exercise rights, it may open the door to other types of First Amendment challenges from parents wishing to exempt their children from lessons.

    On the other hand, Mahmoud highlights the need to take legitimate parental concerns into consideration. While educators typically control instruction, how can they be respectful of parents’ rights as primary caregivers of their children when conflicts arise?

    Mahmoud may go a long way in defining parents’ free-exercise rights in public schools. Still, such disputes are likely far from over in America’s increasingly diverse religious culture.

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

    ref. In LGBTQ+ storybook case, Supreme Court handed a win to parental rights, raising tough questions for educators – https://theconversation.com/in-lgbtq-storybook-case-supreme-court-handed-a-win-to-parental-rights-raising-tough-questions-for-educators-260064

    MIL OSI – Global Reports

  • Indo-French joint military exercise ‘Shakti 2025’ concludes in France

    Source: Government of India

    Source: Government of India (4)

    The eighth edition of the Indo-French Joint Military Exercise ‘Shakti’ concluded on Tuesday after two weeks of intensive training and cooperation between the Indian and French armed forces.

    Held from June 18 to July 1 in France, the exercise was hosted by the 13th French Foreign Legion Demi-Brigade (13 DBLE) and involved more than 500 personnel from various units of the French Army, Foreign Legion, Navy, and the French Air and Space Force.

    India was represented by a 90-member contingent, including a Battalion from the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles and troops from other arms and services. The exercise featured approximately 50 armoured and tactical vehicles, along with fighter jets from both sides.

    The exercise was conducted in two phases with the first one, held from June 18 to 21 in Aveyron’s Monclar district, focused on joint training in weapon handling, combat drills, and command coordination.

    The second phase, from June 22 to 26 in Herault, saw the deployment of the Monclar Combined Arms Tactical Group (GTIA) in an open-field semi-urban combat exercise that tested troops during both day and night operations.

    This year’s drill emphasised tactical interoperability, use of modern military technology, and refining combat strategies. French legionnaires had previously participated in Shakti 2024 in India, and both sides reaffirmed their commitment to deepen military collaboration and share best practices.

    “Exercise Shakti was a vital opportunity for Indian and French military personnel to boost joint operational preparedness for facing the toughest combat situations in a sub-conventional environment under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, with training being conducted in a realistic semi-urban terrain, while strengthening ties with a strategic partner”, said a press statement from the French Embassy in New Delhi.

    “Serving as an effective platform for exchanging best practices in tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPS), Exercise SHAKTI will pave the way for deeper cooperation and mutual respect between the French and the Indian armed forces as well as significantly reinforcing the Indo-French defence partnership”, it added.

    The Indo-French Shakti exercise serves as a key platform for enhancing tactical, technical, and procedural synergy between the two nations. Alongside other bilateral defence exercises such as Garuda (Air Forces) and Varuna (Navies), Shakti reflects the evolving and robust strategic partnership between India and France.

    These regular joint exercises are seen as a testament to the nations shared commitment to global peace, security, and stability.

    (IANS)

  • MIL-OSI China: Leonardo sinks Man City to send Al Hilal into last eight at Club World Cup

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    Starting players of Al Hilal pose for photos before the round of 16 match between Manchester City of England and Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia at the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 at the Camping World Stadium, Orlando, Florida, the United States, June 30, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]

    Marcos Leonardo struck a dramatic extra-time winner as Al Hilal reached the FIFA Club World Cup quarterfinals with a 4-3 win over Manchester City on Monday.

    City led early through Bernardo Silva before the Saudi Arabian side responded with goals from Leonardo and Malcom at Camping World Stadium.

    Erling Haaland brought City level in a frenetic second half, and the sides traded further goals in extra time through Kalidou Koulibaly and substitute Phil Foden.

    The result means Al Hilal will meet Brazil’s Fluminense at the same venue on Friday for a place in the last four, while Manchester City bows out after having progressed from the group stage with a perfect record.

    Silva put the Premier League club ahead in the ninth minute when he tapped in from close range, having pounced on a loose ball after Renan Lodi’s clearance ricocheted off Ilkay Gundogan.

    Yassine Bounou then made a series of saves to deny City a second goal.

    The Morocco international kept out dangerous attempts from Savinho and Ilkay Gundogan before blocking a powerful effort from Silva.

    The four-time Asian Champions League winners lacked fluency with the ball early, and on the rare occasion they ventured into the box, City’s defence was able to quickly defuse the danger.

    Al Hilal’s best chance of the opening half came when Brazilian forward Marcos Leonardo headed over after Mohamed Kanno’s cross from the right.

    Al Hilal emerged from the break with newfound purpose. Leonardo put his side on level terms less than two minutes after the restart when he nodded in after City failed to deal with Joao Cancelo’s cross and the ball fell kindly for the former Benfica player.

    Malcom was causing problems for Manchester City’s defense and the former Barcelona winger released Cancelo with a marauding run down the right wing – only for the ex-City full-back to blast over from a tight angle.

    Malcom then broke free following a City corner, running almost half the length of the pitch before calmly slotting a low shot into the far corner to give his side the lead.

    The hectic pace continued, with City drawing level three minutes later through Haaland. The Norway international bundled home from inside the six-yard box after Al Hilal allowed the ball to spill loose from a corner.

    Al Hilal was dealt a major blow shortly after as Malcom was forced off with an injury, robbing the team of its most effective attacking outlet on the night.

    Undaunted, the Riyadh-based club continued to push forward in search of a third goal. Kanno had the chance to restore his team’s advantage in the 79th minute but failed to make clean contact with a header with only the goalkeeper to beat.

    Haaland was denied a late winner when his goal-bound effort was cleared off the line by Ali Lajami as the game was forced into extra time.

    Al Hilal made the breakthrough soon after as Koulibaly rose highest following Ruben Neves’ corner to send a superb header past Ederson.

    City equalized again 10 minutes later as Foden, a 104th-minute substitute for Rodri, latched onto Rayan Cherki’s diagonal pass with a lunging volley at the far post.

    But Al Hilal refused to yield and Leonardo prodded home the winning goal from point-blank range after Ederson had acrobatically palmed away Sergej Milinkovic-Savic’s header. 

    MIL OSI China News

  • MIL-OSI Australia: 2025 Tax Time toolkit for small business now available

    Source: New places to play in Gungahlin

    Tax time doesn’t have to be stressful. The Tax Time toolkit for small business is designed to support you not just during tax time, but all year round.

    Inside the toolkit, you’ll find a directory of links to essential information, tools, calculators and learning resources. Whether you’re a sole trader or running a growing business, the toolkit can help you stay on top of your tax obligations and make informed decisions.

    The toolkit includes helpful information on:

    • home-based business expenses
    • motor vehicle expenses
    • travel expenses
    • digital product expenses
    • using business money and assets
    • pausing or permanently closing your business.

    With useful information and guides, this is your go-to resource for lodging with confidence this tax time.

    The toolkit is available to download and share at ato.gov.au/SBTaxTimeToolkit.

    Keep up to date

    We’ve set up tailored communication channels for small businesses. They will keep you updated on important information and changes.

    Read more articles in our Small business newsroom.

    Subscribe to our free to our monthly Small business email newsletterExternal Link

    Get email notifications about new and updated information on our website. You can choose to receive updates that matter to you. Select the ‘Business and organisations’ category. This way, your subscription will get notifications for more Small business newsroom articles like this one.

    MIL OSI News

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Registered agent lodgment program available now

    Source: New places to play in Gungahlin

    The Registered agent lodgment program 2025-26 is available on our website now.

    You’ll find due dates listed by month, tax return and obligation type and learn how overdue prior year returns, or a lodgment prosecution can affect your clients’ due dates.

    The due dates for your clients’ tax returns will be available in ATO online services by the end of July.

    Tips for managing lodgments

    We provide the lodgment program to help you manage your workload; however, good planning and lodging progressively are still essential.

    We also recommend you:

    If you or your practice are experiencing challenges beyond your control, we have a range of support options to help you get back on track.

    MIL OSI News

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Exemptions and deferrals from lodgment

    Source: New places to play in Gungahlin

    We can consider a deferral or extension of time to lodge. This has the effect of extending the due date for lodgment for the specified reporting period/s.

    Each application is considered on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the individual circumstances of the EDP.

    Some examples for granting a deferral or exemption can include where the EDP:

    • has only just become aware of their SERR reporting obligation and is unable to implement system changes in time to meet the reporting due date
    • requires additional time to prepare their report in the approved form, which is the SETP XML Schema
    • will be able to report all data values for the period but require additional time to prepare and submit the report
    • is in the process of implementing system changes but will be unable to obtain and report historic values (past data) once system changes have been implemented.

    There may also be an additional interim option available where an EDP has collected all required data except for one mandatory field which is preventing them from lodging. In this instance, we would need to liaise directly with the EDP to better understand their circumstances and provide the most appropriate support option. 

    To have an application for an exemption or deferral considered, email the deferral or exemption request to sharingeconomyreporting@ato.gov.au. Ensure you include the:

    • client name
    • ABN/ARN
    • reporting period
    • proposed lodgment date
    • reason for the deferral exemption request.

    MIL OSI News