Category: Intelligence Agencies

  • MIL-OSI Security: Northfield Man Sentenced to 72 Months in Federal Prison for Attempting to Receive Two Pounds of Methamphetamine Through the United States Postal Service

    Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (b)

    CONCORD – A Northfield man was sentenced today in federal court for his attempt to receive two packages of methamphetamine in New Hampshire through the United States Postal Service (USPS), Acting U.S. Attorney Jay McCormack announces.

    Joseph Crawford, of Northfield, age 33, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Landya McCafferty to 72 months in federal prison and 3 years of supervised release.  On October 30, 2024, Crawford pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

    “Joseph Crawford used the United States Postal Service in an attempt to smuggle dangerous drugs across state lines into the Granite State,” said Acting United States Attorney Jay McCormack. “Individuals using the mail as an avenue to traffic illegal narcotics to New Hampshire will be prosecuted and significantly punished.”

    “Joseph Crawford has repeatedly demonstrated a blatant disregard for the law and yesterday’s sentence puts him out of business and behind bars for receiving significant quantities of meth through the mail while on parole for two prior state drug convictions,” said Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division.  “The FBI will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to prevent illegal drugs from hitting the streets in order to make our cities safer.”

    “As methamphetamine seizures are on the rise, DEA stands committed to keeping this highly addictive drug out of New Hampshire,” said Acting DEA Special Agent in Charge Stephen Belleau, New England Field Division.  “Today’s sentence not only holds Mr. Crawford accountable for his crimes but serves as a warning to those who attempt to bring this poison to the Granite State.”

    “The U.S. Postal Inspection Service and our law enforcement partners will continue to dedicate the resources necessary to keep methamphetamine producers and traffickers out of our communities,” said Inspector in Charge Ketty Larco-Ward, U.S. Postal Inspection Service. “Today’s sentencing is a result of a coordinated effort of our local and state law enforcement partners to keep methamphetamine and other drugs out of our communities.”

    On July 5 and July 19, 2023, the United States Postal Inspection Service (“USPIS”) flagged suspicious packages addressed to Joseph Crawford at an address in Northfield, New Hampshire, sent from California. USPIS obtained search warrants for both packages, which contained over two pounds of methamphetamine in total. 

    The United States Postal Inspection Service Boston Division, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Drug Enforcement Administration led the investigation. The New Hampshire State Police, Claremont Police Department, and the Lebanon Police Department provided valuable assistance. Assistant United States Attorney Heather A. Cherniske prosecuted the case.

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

    ###

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI: Birchcliff Energy Ltd. Announces Unaudited 2024 Full-Year and Fourth Quarter Results and 2024 Reserves Highlights

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CALGARY, Alberta, Feb. 12, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Birchcliff Energy Ltd. (“Birchcliff” or the “Corporation”) (TSX: BIR) is pleased to announce its unaudited 2024 full-year and fourth quarter financial and operational results and highlights from its independent reserves evaluation effective December 31, 2024.

    “Due to the success of our 2024 capital program and driven by our improved capital efficiencies, we delivered annual average production of 76,695 boe/d and adjusted funds flow(1) of $236.8 million and returned $107.8 million to shareholders through common share dividends in 2024,” commented Chris Carlsen, President and Chief Executive Officer of Birchcliff. “The 27 wells we brought on production as part of the 2024 capital program delivered strong PDP reserves additions of 34.1 MMboe, which highlights the quality of our assets. We believe that there is significant intrinsic shareholder value embedded in Birchcliff’s asset base that is not reflected in our current share price, as demonstrated by our PDP reserves net asset value per common share(2) of $6.35 and $13.79 and $18.09 for our proved and proved plus probable reserves, respectively.(3) In addition, our Elmworth asset, which is largely unbooked from a reserves basis, provides us with significant inventory and a large potential future development area consisting of approximately 145 net sections of Montney lands.”

    “Our strategy for 2025 builds off of the operational momentum from 2024, maintaining our focus on capital efficiency improvements and further driving down costs. Our 2025 capital program has been designed to ensure that our capital is strategically deployed throughout the year, providing us with the flexibility to adjust our capital spending if necessary in response to the commodity price volatility we expect during 2025, including as a result of the potential for U.S. and Canadian tariffs and the start-up of LNG Canada.”

    2024 Financial and Operational Highlights

    • Delivered annual average production of 76,695 boe/d (82% natural gas and 18% liquids) in 2024 and quarterly average production of 77,623 boe/d (82% natural gas and 18% liquids) in Q4 2024.
    • Generated annual adjusted funds flow of $236.8 million in 2024 and quarterly adjusted funds flow of $71.8 million in Q4 2024. Cash flow from operating activities was $203.7 million in 2024 and $45.6 million in Q4 2024.
    • Reported annual net income to common shareholders of $56.1 million in 2024 and quarterly net income to common shareholders of $35.2 million in Q4 2024.
    • F&D capital expenditures were $273.1 million in 2024 and $58.3 million in Q4 2024. Birchcliff drilled 29 (29.0 net) wells and brought 27 (27.0 net) wells on production in 2024.
    • Returned $107.8 million to shareholders in 2024 through common share dividends.

    2024 Reserves Highlights(4)

    • Birchcliff brought 27 new wells on production as part of its 2024 F&D capital program with strong PDP reserves additions of 34.1 MMboe (1.26 MMboe per well) and delivered PDP F&D costs(5) of $8.01/boe, resulting in a PDP F&D operating netback recycle ratio(2) of 1.4x in 2024 on such additions.
    • Birchcliff added an aggregate of 23.7 MMboe of PDP reserves on an F&D basis in 2024, after adding back 2024 actual production of 28.1 MMboe(6) and including all other applicable PDP reserves adjustments in 2024. Birchcliff’s PDP reserves totalled 217.1 MMboe at December 31, 2024.
    • Birchcliff delivered PDP F&D costs of $11.52/boe and a PDP F&D operating netback recycle ratio of 1.0x on its aggregate 23.7 MMboe of PDP reserves additions, notwithstanding $18.8 million in F&D capital expenditures spent on strategic priorities in Elmworth for which there was no production or reserves assigned at year-end 2024.
    • At December 31, 2024, the net present value of future net revenue (before income taxes, discounted at 10%) was $2.3 billion for Birchcliff’s PDP reserves, $4.4 billion for its proved reserves and $5.6 billion for its proved plus probable reserves.
    • The net asset value per common share of Birchcliff’s PDP, proved and proved plus probable reserves at December 31, 2024 was $6.35, $13.79 and $18.09, respectively, which is 9%, 136% and 210% higher than the closing price of its common shares on the TSX on February 10, 2025 of $5.84.
    • Reserves life index(5) at December 31, 2024 of 7.7 years on a PDP basis, 23.6 years on a proved basis and 34.3 years on a proved plus probable basis.

    Birchcliff anticipates filing its annual information form and audited financial statements and related management’s discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2024 on March 12, 2025.

    This press release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. For further information regarding the forward-looking statements and forward-looking information contained herein, see “Advisories – Forward-Looking Statements”. With respect to the disclosure of Birchcliff’s reserves and related reserves metrics contained in this press release, see “2024 Year-End Reserves”, “Presentation of Oil and Gas Reserves” and “Advisories – Oil and Gas Metrics”. With respect to the disclosure of Birchcliff’s production contained in this press release, unless otherwise stated herein, production volumes have been disclosed on a “gross” basis as such term is defined in National Instrument 51-101– Standards of Disclosure for Oil and Gas Activities (“NI 51-101”). For further information regarding the disclosure of Birchcliff’s production contained herein, see “Advisories – Production”. In addition, this press release uses various “non-GAAP financial measures”, “non-GAAP ratios” and “capital management measures” as such terms are defined in National Instrument 52-112 – Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures Disclosure (“NI 52-112”). Non-GAAP financial measures and non-GAAP ratios are not standardized financial measures under GAAP and might not be comparable to similar financial measures disclosed by other issuers. For further information regarding the non-GAAP and other financial measures used in this press release, see “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures”.

    ______________________________

    (1)  Non-GAAP financial measure. See “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures”.

    (2)  Non-GAAP ratio. See “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures”.

    (3)  Net asset value per common share is at December 31, 2024 and before income taxes (discounted at 10%). See “2024 Year-End Reserves – Net Asset Value”.

    (4)  Deloitte LLP (“Deloitte”) prepared an independent evaluation of the Corporation’s reserves effective December 31, 2024 as contained in their report dated February 12, 2025 (the “Deloitte Report”). The forecast commodity prices, inflation and exchange rates utilized in the Deloitte Report were computed using the average of forecasts from Deloitte, McDaniel & Associates Consultants Ltd. (“McDaniel”), GLJ Ltd. (“GLJ”) and Sproule Associates Limited (“Sproule”) effective January 1, 2025 (the “2024 Price Forecast”). See “2024 Year-End Reserves” and “Presentation of Oil and Gas Reserves”.

    (5)  See “Advisories – Oil and Gas Metrics”.

    (6)  Consists of 738.2 Mbbls of light oil, 1,619.6 Mbbls of condensate, 2,591.3 Mbbls of NGLs and 138,728.6 MMcf of natural gas.

    2024 UNAUDITED FINANCIAL AND OPERATIONAL SUMMARY

      Three months ended
    December 31,
      Twelve months ended
    December 31,
     
      2024   2023   2024   2023  
    OPERATING        
    Average production        
    Light oil (bbls/d) 1,993   1,649   2,017   1,849  
    Condensate (bbls/d) 4,310   5,145   4,425   5,202  
    NGLs (bbls/d) 7,748   7,653   7,080   6,306  
    Natural gas (Mcf/d) 381,433   372,594   379,040   374,052  
    Total (boe/d) 77,623   76,546   76,695   75,699  
    Average realized sales prices (CDN$)(1)        
    Light oil (per bbl) 95.18   100.07   98.90   99.07  
    Condensate (per bbl) 95.79   103.80   99.66   103.76  
    NGLs (per bbl) 26.20   26.95   26.37   26.92  
    Natural gas (per Mcf) 2.27   2.92   2.05   3.03  
    Total (per boe) 21.53   26.02   20.90   26.79  
             
    NETBACK AND COST ($/boe)        
    Petroleum and natural gas revenue(1) 21.53   26.03   20.91   26.80  
    Royalty expense (1.26 ) (2.75 ) (1.41 ) (2.54 )
    Operating expense (2.91 ) (3.81 ) (3.24 ) (3.83 )
    Transportation and other expense(2) (5.26 ) (5.53 ) (5.24 ) (5.69 )
    Operating netback(2) 12.10   13.94   11.02   14.74  
    G&A expense, net (2.00 ) (1.80 ) (1.45 ) (1.52 )
    Interest expense (1.40 ) (0.95 ) (1.31 ) (0.74 )
    Lease interest expense (0.33 )   (0.16 )  
    Realized gain (loss) on financial instruments 1.68   (0.38 ) 0.33   (1.35 )
    Other cash income (expense) 0.01   0.01   0.01   (0.03 )
    Adjusted funds flow(2) 10.06   10.82   8.44   11.10  
    Depletion and depreciation expense (8.96 ) (8.44 ) (8.79 ) (8.20 )
    Unrealized gain (loss) on financial instruments 5.95   (1.58 ) 3.51   (1.38 )
    Other expenses(3) (0.75 ) (1.88 ) (0.52 ) (0.95 )
    Deferred income tax (expense) recovery (1.37 ) 0.29   (0.64 ) (0.22 )
    Net income (loss) to common shareholders 4.93   (0.79 ) 2.00   0.35  
             
    FINANCIAL        
    Petroleum and natural gas revenue ($000s)(1) 153,741   183,295   586,856   740,359  
    Cash flow from operating activities ($000s) 45,641   79,006   203,710   320,529  
    Adjusted funds flow ($000s)(4) 71,838   76,215   236,794   306,827  
    Per basic common share ($)(2) 0.27   0.29   0.88   1.15  
    Free funds flow ($000s)(4) 13,528   18,049   (36,290 ) 2,190  
    Per basic common share ($)(2) 0.05   0.07   (0.13 ) 0.01  
    Net income (loss) to common shareholders ($000s) 35,216   (5,533 ) 56,100   9,780  
    Per basic common share ($) 0.13   (0.02 ) 0.21   0.04  
    End of period basic common shares (000s) 271,304   267,156   271,304   267,156  
    Weighted average basic common shares (000s) 270,185   266,667   269,081   266,465  
    Dividends on common shares ($000s) 27,126   53,390   107,833   213,344  
    F&D capital expenditures ($000s)(5) 58,310   58,166   273,084   304,637  
    Total capital expenditures ($000s)(4) 66,673   59,541   282,745   307,916  
    Revolving term credit facilities ($000s) 566,857   372,097   566,857   372,097  
    Total debt ($000s)(6) 535,557   382,306   535,557   382,306  

    (1)  Excludes the effects of financial instruments but includes the effects of any physical delivery contracts.

    (2)  Non-GAAP ratio. See “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures”.

    (3)  Includes non-cash items such as compensation, accretion, amortization of deferred financing fees and other gains and losses.

    (4)  Non-GAAP financial measure. See “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures”.

    (5)  See “Advisories – F&D Capital Expenditures”.

    (6)  Capital management measure. See “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures”.

    FULL-YEAR AND Q4 2024 UNAUDITED FINANCIAL AND OPERATIONAL RESULTS

    Production

    • Birchcliff’s production averaged 76,695 boe/d in 2024, a 1% increase from 2023. Production averaged 77,623 boe/d in Q4 2024, a 1% increase from Q4 2023. Birchcliff’s annual average production for 2024 was at the high-end of its guidance range of 75,000 to 77,000 boe/d.
    • The increases were primarily due to the strong performance of the Corporation’s capital program and the successful drilling of new Montney/Doig wells brought on production, partially offset by natural production declines. Full-year production in 2023 was negatively impacted by an unplanned system outage on Pembina’s Northern Pipeline system, which reduced the Corporation’s NGLs sales volumes in 2023.
    • Liquids accounted for 18% of Birchcliff’s total production in both 2024 and 2023, which was in line with Birchcliff’s guidance of 19%. Liquids accounted for 18% of Birchcliff’s total production in Q4 2024 as compared to 19% in Q4 2023.

    Adjusted Funds Flow and Cash Flow From Operating Activities

    • Birchcliff generated adjusted funds flow of $236.8 million in 2024, or $0.88 per basic common share, both of which decreased by 23% from 2023. Adjusted funds flow was $71.8 million in Q4 2024, or $0.27 per basic common share, a 6% and 7% decrease from Q4 2023, respectively. Birchcliff’s full-year adjusted funds flow in 2024 was higher than its guidance of $230 million primarily due to lower than expected royalty and G&A expenses.
    • Birchcliff’s cash flow from operating activities was $203.7 million in 2024, a 36% decrease from 2023. Cash flow from operating activities was $45.6 million in Q4 2024, a 42% decrease from Q4 2023.
    • The decreases in adjusted funds flow and cash flow from operating activities were primarily due to lower natural gas revenue, which was largely the result of a 32% and 22% decrease in the average realized sales price Birchcliff received for its natural gas production in the full-year and Q4 2024, respectively, as compared to 2023, and higher interest expenses. Birchcliff’s adjusted funds flow and cash flow from operating activities were positively impacted by lower royalty expenses and realized gains on financial instruments of $9.3 million and $12.0 million in the full-year and Q4 2024, respectively, as compared to realized losses on financial instruments of $37.3 million and $2.6 million in 2023.

    Net Income (Loss) to Common Shareholders

    • Birchcliff earned net income to common shareholders of $56.1 million in 2024, or $0.21 per basic common share, as compared to $9.8 million and $0.04 per basic common share in 2023. The increases were primarily due to an unrealized mark-to-market gain on financial instruments of $98.6 million in 2024 as compared to an unrealized mark-to-market loss on financial instruments of $38.2 million in 2023, partially offset by lower adjusted funds flow in 2024.
    • Birchcliff earned net income to common shareholders of $35.2 million in Q4 2024, or $0.13 per basic common share, as compared to a net loss to common shareholders of $5.5 million and $0.02 per basic common share in Q4 2023. The change to a net income position was primarily due to an unrealized mark-to-market gain on financial instruments of $42.5 million in Q4 2024 as compared to an unrealized mark-to-market loss on financial instruments of $11.1 million in Q4 2023.

    Debt and Credit Facilities

    • Total debt at December 31, 2024 was $535.6 million, a 40% increase from December 31, 2023. Birchcliff’s 2024 year-end total debt was at the high-end of its guidance range of $515 million to $535 million.
    • At December 31, 2024, Birchcliff had a balance outstanding under its extendible revolving credit facilities (the “Credit Facilities”) of $570.9 million (December 31, 2023: $374.1 million) from available Credit Facilities of $850.0 million (December 31, 2023: $850.0 million), leaving the Corporation with $279.1 million (33%) of unutilized credit capacity after adjusting for outstanding letters of credit and unamortized deferred financing fees. This unutilized credit capacity provides Birchcliff with significant financial flexibility and available capital resources. The Credit Facilities have a maturity date of May 11, 2027 and do not contain any financial maintenance covenants.

    Marketing and Natural Gas Market Diversification

    • Birchcliff’s physical natural gas sales exposure primarily consists of the AECO, Dawn and Alliance markets. In addition, the Corporation has various financial instruments outstanding that provide it with exposure to NYMEX HH pricing.

    The following table sets forth Birchcliff’s effective sales, production and average realized sales price for natural gas and liquids for Q4 2024, after taking into account the Corporation’s financial instruments:

    Three months ended December 31, 2024
      Effective
    sales
    (CDN$000s)
    Percentage of total sales
    (%)
    Effective
    production
    (per day)
    Percentage of
    total natural gas production
    (%)
    Percentage of
    total corporate production
    (%)
    Effective average realized
    sales price
    (CDN$)
    Market            
    AECO(1)(2) 11,831 6 82,345 Mcf 21 18 1.56/Mcf
    Dawn(3) 48,281 26 162,555 Mcf 43 35 3.23/Mcf
    NYMEX HH(1)(4) 53,015 28 136,533 Mcf 36 29 4.22/Mcf
    Total natural gas(1) 113,127 60 381,433 Mcf 100 82 3.22/Mcf
    Light oil 17,450 10 1,993 bbls   3 95.18/bbl
    Condensate 37,985 20 4,310 bbls   5 95.79/bbl
    NGLs 18,679 10 7,748 bbls   10 26.20/bbl
    Total liquids 74,114 40 14,051 bbls   18 57.33/bbl
    Total corporate(1) 187,241 100 77,623 boe   100 26.22/boe

    (1)  Effective sales and effective average realized sales price on a total natural gas and total corporate basis and for the AECO and NYMEX HH markets are non-GAAP financial measures and non-GAAP ratios, respectively. See “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures”.

    (2)  Birchcliff has short-term physical sales agreements with third-party marketers to sell and deliver into the Alliance pipeline system. All of Birchcliff’s short-term physical Alliance sales and production during Q4 2024 received AECO premium pricing and have therefore been included as effective sales and production in the AECO market.

    (3)  Birchcliff has agreements for the firm service transportation of an aggregate of 175,000 GJ/d of natural gas on TransCanada PipeLines’ Canadian Mainline, whereby natural gas is transported to the Dawn trading hub in Southern Ontario.

    (4)  NYMEX HH effective sales and production include financial NYMEX HH/AECO 7A basis swap contracts for an aggregate of 147,500 MMBtu/d at an average contract price of NYMEX HH less US$1.12/MMBtu during Q4 2024.
    Birchcliff’s effective average realized sales price for NYMEX HH of CDN$4.22/Mcf (US$2.76/MMBtu) was determined on a gross basis before giving effect to the average NYMEX HH/AECO 7A fixed contract basis differential price of CDN$1.71/Mcf (US$1.12/MMBtu) and includes any realized gains and losses on financial NYMEX HH/AECO 7A basis swap contracts during Q4 2024.
    After giving effect to the NYMEX HH/AECO 7A fixed contract basis differential price and including any realized gains and losses on financial NYMEX HH/AECO 7A basis swap contracts during Q4 2024, Birchcliff’s effective average realized net sales price for NYMEX HH was CDN$2.51/Mcf (US$1.64/MMBtu) in Q4 2024.

    The following table sets forth Birchcliff’s physical sales, production, average realized sales price, transportation costs and natural gas sales netback by natural gas market for the periods indicated, before taking into account the Corporation’s financial instruments:

    Three months ended December 31, 2024
    Natural
    gas
    market
    Natural gas
    sales(1)
    (CDN$000s)
    Percentage of
    natural gas
    sales
    (%)
    Natural gas
    production

    (Mcf/d)
    Percentage of
    natural gas
    production

    (%)
    Average realized
    natural gas sales
    price(1)
    (CDN$/Mcf)
    Natural gas
    transportation
    costs
    (2)
    (CDN$/Mcf)
    Natural gas
    sales
    netback
    (3)
    (CDN$/Mcf)
    AECO 31,027 39 216,321 57 1.57 0.38 1.19
    Dawn 48,281 60 162,555 42 3.23 1.43 1.80
    Alliance(4) 307 1 2,557 1 1.30 1.30
    Total 79,615 100 381,433 100 2.27 0.83 1.44
    Three months ended December 31, 2023
    Natural
    gas
    market
    Natural gas
    sales(1)
    (CDN$000s)
    Percentage of
    natural gas
    sales
    (%)
    Natural gas
    production

    (Mcf/d)
    Percentage of
    natural gas
    production

    (%)
    Average realized
    natural gas sales
    price(1)
    (CDN$/Mcf)
    Natural gas
    transportation
    costs
    (2)
    (CDN$/Mcf)
    Natural gas
    sales
    netback
    (3)
    (CDN$/Mcf)
    AECO 50,508 51 203,024 55 2.72 0.38 2.33
    Dawn 47,433 47 161,119 43 3.20 1.42 1.78
    Alliance(4) 2,016 2 8,451 2 2.59 2.59
    Total 99,957 100 372,594 100 2.92 0.83 2.09

    (1)  Excludes the effects of financial instruments but includes the effects of any physical delivery contracts.

    (2)  Reflects costs to transport natural gas from the field receipt point to the delivery sales trading hub.

    (3)  Natural gas sales netback denotes the average realized natural gas sales price less natural gas transportation costs.

    (4)  Birchcliff has short-term physical sales agreements with third-party marketers to sell and deliver into the Alliance pipeline system. Alliance sales are recorded net of transportation tolls.

    Capital Activities and Investment

    • F&D capital expenditures were $273.1 million in 2024, as compared to Birchcliff’s guidance of $250 million to $270 million.
    • In 2024, the Corporation achieved a significant year-over-year improvement in capital efficiency(7) for its wells of approximately 24% compared to 2023. The following table sets forth the wells that were drilled and brought on production in 2024:
      Number of wells
    drilled in 2024(1)
    Number of wells brought
    on production in 2024
    Pouce Coupe    
         
      04-30 (5-well pad) Montney D1 0(2) 5
             
      16-17 (5-well pad) BD/UM 1 1
        Montney D1 3 3
        Montney D4 1 1
             
      16-15 (6-well pad) Montney D1 6 6
             
      10-22 (5-well pad) Montney D1 5 5
             
      04-05 (5-well pad) Montney D1 5 0(3)
             
    Gordondale    
         
      02-27 (2-well pad) Montney D1 1 1
        Montney D2 1 1
             
      01-10 (4-well pad) Montney D1 4 4
             
    Elmworth    
             
      13-09 vertical Montney 1 0
             
      01-28 horizontal Montney 1 0
           
    TOTAL 29 27

    (1)  All wells are natural gas wells, except for the 4-well 01-10 pad, which are light oil wells.

    (2)  The five wells drilled on the 04-30 pad were drilled in December 2023.

    (3)  The five wells drilled on the 04-05 pad are scheduled to come on production later in February 2025.

    ______________________________

    (7)  See “Advisories – Oil and Gas Metrics”.

    UPDATE ON 2025 CAPITAL PROGRAM

    • As disclosed in Birchcliff’s press release dated January 22, 2025, the Corporation’s board of directors (the “Board”) approved a disciplined F&D capital budget of $260 million to $300 million for 2025. Benefitting from the learnings gained from the Corporation’s 2024 capital program, the wells in Birchcliff’s 2025 capital program are expected to yield strong production, using the Corporation’s latest field development practices and wellbore design, which incorporates longer lateral lengths, reduced cluster spacing and increased proppant loading where appropriate.
    • The Corporation successfully completed drilling its 5-well 04-05 pad in Pouce Coupe in December 2024. Completions operations are currently underway on the pad, with the wells scheduled to come on production later in February 2025. The pad was drilled in the Lower Montney targeting high-rate natural gas wells.
    • The Corporation is currently drilling its 3-well 07-10 pad in Pouce Coupe. The pad is targeting condensate-rich natural gas wells in the Lower Montney. The wells are anticipated to be brought on production at the end of Q1 2025.
    • The Corporation successfully completed drilling its 4-well 02-27 pad in Gordondale in February 2025, with completions operations scheduled to begin in March 2025. The pad is targeting condensate-rich natural gas wells in the Lower Montney. The wells are anticipated to be brought on production in early Q2 2025.
    • In Elmworth, the Corporation completed a horizontal land retention well and has commenced a short clean-up test. As disclosed in the Corporation’s press release on January 22, 2025, this well is not currently planned to be tied in.

    U.S. AND CANADIAN TARIFFS

    • While Birchcliff hopes that there will not be a trade dispute between the United States and Canada, the Corporation believes that Canada’s over-reliance on exporting its energy into the U.S. must be addressed through the reduction of red tape and government interference in the construction of critical infrastructure such as oil and gas pipelines to the east and west coasts of Canada, LNG terminals on each coast and an increase in refining capacity within Canada, in order to diversify Canada’s energy export market. The Corporation continues to actively monitor this situation.
    • Birchcliff believes that its ongoing strategy of maintaining significant natural gas market diversification for 2025 will continue to protect the Corporation from volatility in the North American natural gas pricing environment, including as it relates to potential tariffs. Approximately 41% of Birchcliff’s natural gas production is physically delivered to the Dawn trading hub in Ontario, which is priced in U.S. dollars, and the Corporation also has U.S. denominated financial contracts that expose approximately 35% of its natural gas production to NYMEX HH pricing on a financial basis, without physical delivery into the United States.

    2024 YEAR-END RESERVES

    The reserves data set forth below at December 31, 2024 is based upon the Deloitte Report, which has been prepared in accordance with the standards contained in the Canadian Oil and Gas Evaluation Handbook (the “COGE Handbook”) and NI 51-101.

    The reserves data provided in this press release presents only a portion of the disclosure required under NI 51-101. The disclosure required under NI 51-101 will be contained in Birchcliff’s annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2024, which is expected to be filed on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca) on March 12, 2025.

    In some of the tables below, numbers may not add due to rounding. The estimates of future net revenue contained herein do not represent fair market value. For additional information regarding the presentation of Birchcliff’s reserves disclosure contained herein, see “Presentation of Oil and Gas Reserves” and “Advisories” in this press release.

    Reserves Summary

    The following table summarizes the estimates of Birchcliff’s gross reserves at December 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, estimated using the forecast price and cost assumptions in effect as at the effective date of the applicable reserves evaluation:

    Reserves Category December 31, 2024
    (Mboe)
      December 31, 2023(1)
    (Mboe)
      % Change  
    Proved Developed Producing 217,076   220,536   (2)  
    Total Proved 667,390   691,886   (4)  
    Total Proved Plus Probable 969,636   993,897   (2)  

    (1)  Deloitte prepared an independent evaluation of the Corporation’s reserves effective December 31, 2023 as contained in their report dated February 14, 2024 (the “2023 Deloitte Report”). The forecast commodity prices, inflation and exchange rates utilized in the 2023 Deloitte Report were computed using the average of forecasts from Deloitte, McDaniel, GLJ and Sproule effective January 1, 2024 (the “2023 Price Forecast”).

    The following table sets forth Birchcliff’s light crude oil and medium crude oil, conventional natural gas, shale gas and NGLs reserves at December 31, 2024, estimated using the 2024 Price Forecast:

    Reserves Category Light Crude Oil and
    Medium Crude Oil
    Conventional
    Natural Gas
    Shale Gas NGLs(1) Total Oil Equivalent
    Gross
    (Mbbls)
    Net
    (Mbbls)
    Gross
    (MMcf)
    Net
    (MMcf)
    Gross
    (MMcf)
    Net
    (MMcf)
    Gross
    (Mbbls)
    Net
    (Mbbls)
    Gross
    (Mboe)
    Net
    (Mboe)
    Proved                  
      Developed Producing 4,889 3,946 6,051 5,707 1,053,238 971,102 35,639 29,058 217,076 195,805
      Developed Non-Producing 9 9 0 0 4,840 4,537 239 203 1,054 968
      Undeveloped 7,089 5,747 2,858 2,625 2,320,235 2,094,569 54,988 42,966 449,259 398,246
    Total Proved 11,987 9,701 8,909 8,332 3,378,312 3,070,208 90,866 72,227 667,390 595,019
    Total Probable 9,083 6,933 5,270 4,911 1,442,846 1,272,820 51,811 39,640 302,246 259,529
    Total Proved Plus Probable 21,070 16,635 14,179 13,243 4,821,158 4,343,028 142,676 111,868 969,636 854,547

    (1)  NGLs includes condensate.

    Net Present Values of Future Net Revenue

    The following table sets forth the net present values of future net revenue attributable to Birchcliff’s reserves at December 31, 2024, estimated using the 2024 Price Forecast, before deducting future income tax expenses and calculated at various discount rates:

    Reserves Category Before Income Taxes Discounted At (%/year)   Unit Value
    Discounted
    at 10%/year

    ($/boe)(1)
    0
    ($000s)
    5
    ($000s)
    10
    ($000s)
    15
    ($000s)
    20
    ($000s)
     
    Proved              
    Developed Producing 3,670,971 2,851,081 2,277,750 1,892,104 1,621,811   11.63
    Developed Non-Producing 13,717 9,900 7,499 5,888 4,750   7.75
    Undeveloped 7,083,864 3,707,943 2,073,919 1,199,557 694,944   5.21
    Total Proved 10,768,552 6,568,924 4,359,168 3,097,549 2,321,504   7.33
    Total Probable 6,210,051 2,553,082 1,204,663 632,630 361,133   4.64
    Total Proved Plus Probable 16,978,602 9,122,005 5,563,831 3,730,179 2,682,638   6.51

    (1)   Unit values are based on net reserves volumes.

    Net Asset Value

    Net asset value reflects the estimated long-term fair value of Birchcliff’s underlying reserves assets after settling its outstanding financial obligations at a point in time. The net present value of the Corporation’s reserves can vary significantly depending on the oil and natural gas price assumptions used by Deloitte and assumes only the reserves identified in the applicable reserves report, with no further acquisitions or incremental development.

    The following table sets forth Birchcliff’s net asset value for its PDP, total proved and total proved plus probable reserves for the periods indicated:

    ($000s, except per share amounts) Proved Developed Producing Total Proved Total Proved Plus Probable
    As at December 31,   2024     2023     2024     2023     2024     2023  
    Reserves, NPV10%(1)   2,277,750     2,620,064     4,359,168     5,405,617     5,563,831     6,835,417  
    Total debt(2)   (535,557 )   (382,306 )   (535,557 )   (382,306 )   (535,557 )   (382,306 )
    Unexercised securities(3)   34,961     16,717     34,961     16,717     34,961     16,717  
    Net asset value(4)(5)   1,777,154     2,254,475     3,858,572     5,040,028     5,063,235     6,469,828  
    Net asset value (per common share)(4)(5)(6) $6.35   $8.22   $13.79   $18.38   $18.09   $23.60  

    (1)  Represents the net present value of the future net revenue (before income taxes, discounted at 10%) of Birchcliff’s PDP, total proved and total proved plus probable reserves, as applicable, as estimated by Deloitte effective December 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, using forecast prices and costs.

    (2)  Capital management measure. See “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures”.

    (3)  Represents the value of unexercised in-the-money stock options and performance warrants outstanding at the end of the year. The closing trading price on the TSX of Birchcliff’s common shares on December 31, 2024 and December 29, 2023 was $5.42 and $5.78, respectively.

    (4)  Excludes any value from undeveloped land and seismic.

    (5)  Net asset value is a non-GAAP financial measure and net asset value per common share is a non-GAAP ratio. See “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures”.

    (6) For 2024, based on 279.9 million common shares, which includes 271.3 million basic common shares outstanding at December 31, 2024 and 8.6 million dilutive common shares from unexercised in-the-money stock options and performance warrants outstanding at December 31, 2024. For 2023, based on 274.2 million common shares, which includes 267.2 million basic common shares outstanding at December 31, 2023 and 7.0 million dilutive common shares from unexercised in-the-money stock options and performance warrants outstanding at December 31, 2023.

    Net asset value decreased in all categories of reserves in 2024 as compared to 2023 primarily due to lower forecast prices in the 2024 Price Forecast compared to the 2023 Price Forecast, including an AECO price decrease of approximately 20% for 2025 through 2027 and approximately 11% thereafter.

    Pricing Assumptions

    The following table sets forth the 2024 Price Forecast used in the Deloitte Report:

    Year Crude Oil
      Natural Gas(1)
      NGLs
    Currency Exchange Rate (US$/CDN$) Price and Cost Inflation Rates
    (%)
                                       
    WTI at Cushing Oklahoma (US$/bbl) Edmonton City Gate (CDN$/bbl) Alberta AECO
    Average Price
    (CDN$/Mcf)
    Ontario Dawn
    Reference Point
    (CDN$/Mcf)
    NYMEX Henry Hub
    (US$/Mcf)
    Edmonton Ethane
    (CDN$/bbl)
    Edmonton Propane (CDN$/bbl) Edmonton Butane (CDN$/bbl) Edmonton Pentanes + Condensate (CDN$/bbl)
    2025 71.19   94.00   2.35   4.28   3.30   7.27   32.05   48.68   98.02   0.714 0.0
    2026 73.20   94.84   3.32   4.83   3.76   10.40   31.19   47.43   97.60   0.731 2.0
    2027 74.54   95.28   3.52   4.94   3.93   11.04   31.28   47.63   97.43   0.736 2.0
    2028 76.28   96.40   3.69   5.05   4.01   11.61   31.70   48.26   98.60   0.758 2.0
    2029 77.81   98.33   3.77   5.14   4.10   11.85   32.33   49.22   100.58   0.758 2.0
    2030 79.37   100.30   3.84   5.25   4.17   12.08   32.98   50.20   102.57   0.758 2.0
    2031 80.96   102.31   3.92   5.34   4.25   12.34   33.64   51.21   104.63   0.758 2.0
    2032 82.57   104.36   3.99   5.46   4.34   12.58   34.31   52.24   106.73   0.758 2.0
    2033 84.22   106.44   4.08   5.58   4.43   12.85   35.00   53.27   108.86   0.758 2.0
    2034 85.91   108.57   4.16   5.68   4.52   13.10   35.69   54.35   111.04   0.758 2.0
    2035 87.63   110.74   4.24   5.80   4.61   13.37   36.41   55.43   113.27   0.758 2.0
    2036 89.38   112.95   4.33   5.93   4.69   13.64   37.14   56.54   115.52   0.758 2.0
    2037 91.17   115.21   4.42   6.03   4.79   13.91   37.88   57.67   117.84   0.758 2.0
    2038 92.99   117.51   4.51   6.14   4.88   14.19   38.63   58.83   120.20   0.758 2.0
    2039 94.85   119.86   4.59   6.28   4.99   14.47   39.41   60.00   122.60   0.758 2.0
    2040 96.75   122.26   4.68   6.41   5.09   14.76   40.20   61.20   125.05   0.758 2.0
    2041 98.69   124.71   4.78   6.54   5.19   15.05   41.00   62.43   127.56   0.758 2.0
    2042 100.66   127.20   4.87   6.67   5.29   15.35   41.82   63.68   130.10   0.758 2.0
    2043 102.67   129.75   4.97   6.81   5.39   15.66   42.66   64.94   132.71   0.758 2.0
    2044 104.72   132.34   5.07   6.93   5.51   15.98   43.51   66.24   135.36   0.758 2.0
    2044+ 2.0%   2.0%   2.0%   2.0%   2.0%   2.0%   2.0%   2.0%   2.0%   0.758 2.0

    (1)  1 Mcf = 1 MMBtu.

    Reconciliation of Changes in Reserves

    The following table sets forth the reconciliation of Birchcliff’s gross reserves at December 31, 2024 as set forth in the Deloitte Report, estimated using the 2024 Price Forecast, to Birchcliff’s gross reserves at December 31, 2023:

    Factors Light Crude Oil
    and

    Medium Crude
    Oil

    (Mbbls)
    Conventional
    Natural Gas

    (MMcf)
    Shale Gas
    (MMcf)
    NGLs(8)
    (Mbbls)
    Oil Equivalent
    (Mboe)
    GROSS TOTAL PROVED          
    Opening balance December 31, 2023 14,460   10,251   3,493,022   93,547   691,886  
    Extensions and Improved Recovery(1) 0   0   58,875   2,287   12,099  
    Technical Revisions(2) (1,724 ) 2,244   (37,966 ) (2,022 ) (9,699 )
    Discoveries(3) 0   0   0   0   0  
    Acquisitions(4) 0   0   18,193   1,633   4,665  
    Dispositions(5) 0   0   0   0   0  
    Economic Factors(6) (12 ) (2,746 ) (15,923 ) (367 ) (3,491 )
    Production(7) (738 ) (840 ) (137,889 ) (4,211 ) (28,070 )
    Closing balance December 31, 2024 11,987   8,909   3,378,312   90,866   667,390  
    GROSS TOTAL PROBABLE
    Opening balance December 31, 2023 10,088   5,666   1,438,587   51,213   302,011  
    Extensions and Improved Recovery(1) 0   0   9,320   1,602   3,155  
    Technical Revisions(2) (1,003 ) (2,604 ) (33,104 ) (3,347 ) (10,301 )
    Discoveries(3) 0   0   0   0   0  
    Acquisitions(4) 0   0   24,508   2,296   6,381  
    Dispositions(5) 0   0   0   0   0  
    Economic Factors(6) (2 ) 2,208   3,535   45   1,000  
    Production(7) 0   0   0   0   0  
    Closing balance December 31, 2024 9,083   5,270   1,442,846   51,811   302,246  
    GROSS TOTAL PROVED PLUS PROBABLE
    Opening balance December 31, 2023 24,549   15,917   4,931,609   144,760   993,897  
    Extensions and Improved Recovery(1) 0   0   68,195   3,888   15,254  
    Technical Revisions(2) (2,727 ) (361 ) (71,069 ) (5,369 ) (20,000 )
    Discoveries(3) 0   0   0   0   0  
    Acquisitions(4) 0   0   42,701   3,929   11,046  
    Dispositions(5) 0   0   0   0   0  
    Economic Factors(6) (14 ) (538 ) (12,389 ) (322 ) (2,490 )
    Production(7) (738 ) (840 ) (137,889 ) (4,211 ) (28,070 )
    Closing balance December 31, 2024 21,070   14,179   4,821,158   142,676   969,636  

    (1)  Additions to volumes resulting from capital expenditures for: (i) step-out drilling in previously discovered reservoirs; (ii) infill drilling in previously discovered reservoirs that were not drilled as part of an enhanced recovery scheme; and (iii) the installation of improved recovery schemes.

    (2)  Positive or negative volume revisions to an estimate resulting from new technical data or revised interpretations on previously assigned volumes, performance and operating costs. This category also includes revisions resulting from well locations combined or removed as part of an updated development plan.

    (3)  Additions to volumes in reservoirs where no reserves were previously booked.

    (4)  Positive additions to volume estimates because of purchasing interests in oil and gas properties.

    (5)  Reductions in volume estimates because of selling all or a portion of an interest in oil and gas properties.

    (6)  Changes to volumes resulting from different price forecasts, inflation rates and regulatory changes.

    (7)  Reductions in the volume estimates due to actual production.

    (8)  NGLs includes condensate.

    Key highlights include the following:

    • Extensions and Improved Recovery
      • Reserves were added from 27 wells brought on production pursuant to the Corporation’s successful 2024 capital program. The 2024 program was focused in Birchcliff’s core areas in Pouce Coupe and Gordondale, converting proved and probable undeveloped reserves into PDP reserves.
    • Technical Revisions
      • The technical revisions in all reserves categories for light crude oil and medium crude oil were primarily the result of: (i) higher gas-to-oil ratios for existing producing oil wells in the southeast area in Gordondale; and (ii) potential future drilling location adjustments based on offsetting well performance.
      • The technical revisions in all reserves categories for conventional natural gas were primarily the result of existing well performance.
      • The technical revisions in all reserves categories for shale gas were primarily the result of:

    (i) an updated reserves forecast for existing wells based on historical performance, which included a reduction in the reserves attributable to 56 existing high-density producing wells that were drilled from 2019 to 2023. The Corporation does not expect that the technical revisions relating to these wells will negatively impact future reserves booked for other existing or future wells;

    (ii) an updated full-field development plan, which included the combining or removal of multiple proved and probable potential future drilling locations, resulting in the removal of 10 proved undeveloped locations and 3 probable locations; and

    (iii) an updated reserves forecast for various potential future drilling locations in the Lower Montney in Gordondale as a result of an increase in the reserves attributable to such future locations due to the continued outperformance of existing wells in the area.

    • The technical revisions in all reserves categories for NGLs were primarily the result of: (i) a reduction in shale gas volumes; and (ii) reduced NGLs recoveries at the Corporation’s owned and/or operated natural gas processing plants in Pouce Coupe and Gordondale. The reduced NGLs recoveries were partially offset by reduced natural gas shrinkage.
    • Acquisitions
      • Changes were the result of various accretive acquisitions completed by Birchcliff in the Pouce Coupe and Gordondale areas in 2024.
    • Economic Factors
      • The forecast prices for each product type were generally lower in the 2024 Price Forecast than the 2023 Price Forecast, which resulted in the economic limit at the end of a well’s life being achieved earlier and therefore a reduction of the reserves volumes in the total proved and total proved plus probable categories.

    Future Development Costs

    Future development costs (“FDC”) reflect Deloitte’s best estimate of what it will cost to bring the proved and proved plus probable reserves on production. Changes in forecast FDC occur annually as a result of development activities, acquisition and disposition activities and capital cost estimates. The following table sets forth development costs deducted in the estimation of Birchcliff’s future net revenue attributable to the reserves categories noted below, estimated using the 2024 Price Forecast:

    Year Proved
    ($000s)
    Proved Plus Probable
    ($000s)
    2025 198,395 215,960
    2026 355,662 374,083
    2027 424,921 455,059
    2028 895,366 895,366
    2029 644,546 645,166
    Thereafter 849,599 2,299,368
    Total undiscounted 3,368,489 4,885,002

    FDC for proved reserves on an FD&A basis decreased to $3.37 billion at December 31, 2024 from $3.46 billion at December 31, 2023. FDC for proved plus probable reserves on an FD&A basis decreased to $4.89 billion at December 31, 2024 from $4.97 billion at December 31, 2023. The FDC to drill, case, complete, equip and tie-in for future locations in Birchcliff’s Pouce Coupe and Gordondale areas ($5.9 million per well) did not change from December 31, 2023 to December 31, 2024.

    The FDC for both proved and proved plus probable reserves are primarily the capital costs required to drill, case, complete, equip and tie-in the net undeveloped locations. The estimates of FDC on a proved and proved plus probable basis also include approximately $320 million (unescalated) for the continued expansion of the Pouce Coupe Gas Plant from the existing 340 MMcf/d to 660 MMcf/d of total throughput. The FDC for the expansion of the Pouce Coupe Gas Plant also include the costs of the related gathering pipelines and maintenance capital.

    F&D and FD&A Costs

    The following table sets forth Birchcliff’s F&D and FD&A costs for its PDP, total proved and total proved plus probable reserves for the three previous financial years, including FDC:

      2024(2) 2023 2022 3-Year Average
    F&D costs ($/boe)(1)        
    Proved Developed Producing 11.52(3) 13.16 10.24 11.43
    Total Proved n/a(4) 16.02 82.02 29.43
    Total Proved Plus Probable n/a(4) 24.90 n/a(5) 110.72
    FD&A costs ($/boe)(1)        
    Proved Developed Producing 11.42(6) 13.06 10.25 11.38
    Total Proved 53.86(7) 13.79 78.96 23.24
    Total Proved Plus Probable 50.39(8) 20.97 n/a(5) 49.27

    (1)  See “Advisories – Oil and Gas Metrics” for a description of the methodology used to calculate F&D and FD&A costs.

    (2)  Birchcliff’s F&D and FD&A capital expenditures were $273.1 million and $281.0 million, respectively, in 2024. Birchcliff’s F&D and FD&A capital expenditures included $18.8 million spent on strategics priorities in the Corporation’s Elmworth area for which there was no production or reserves assigned at year-end 2024.

    (3)  Birchcliff added 23.7 MMboe of PDP reserves in 2024, after adding back 2024 actual production of 28.1 MMboe and including all other PDP reserves adjustments in 2024, excluding acquisitions and dispositions.

    (4)  Birchcliff’s proved and proved plus probable reserves decreased in 2024, after adding back 2024 actual production of 28.1 MMboe. As a result of the year-over-year decrease in proved and proved plus probable reserves, the calculation for F&D costs for these reserves categories was not applicable in 2024.

    (5)  Birchcliff’s proved plus probable reserves decreased in 2022, after adding back 2022 actual production of 28.1 MMboe. As a result of the year-over-year decrease in proved plus probable reserves, the calculations for F&D and FD&A costs for this reserves category were not applicable in 2022.

    (6)  Birchcliff added 24.6 MMboe of PDP reserves in 2024, after adding back 2024 actual production of 28.1 MMboe and including all other PDP reserves adjustments in 2024.

    (7)  Includes the 2024 decrease in FDC from 2023 of $88.5 million on a proved basis. Birchcliff added 3.6 MMboe of proved reserves in 2024, after adding back 2024 actual production of 28.1 MMboe and including all other proved reserves adjustments in 2024.

    (8)  Includes the 2024 decrease in FDC from 2023 of $89.0 million on a proved plus probable basis. Birchcliff added 3.8 MMboe of proved plus probable reserves in 2024, after adding back 2024 actual production of 28.1 MMboe and including all other proved plus probable reserves adjustments in 2024.

    Recycle Ratios

    The following table sets forth Birchcliff’s F&D and FD&A operating netback recycle ratios for its PDP, total proved and total proved plus probable reserves for the three previous financial years, including FDC:

      2024 2023 2022 3-Year Average
    F&D operating netback recycle ratio(1)(2)        
    Proved Developed Producing 1.0x 1.1x 3.2x 1.7x
    Total Proved n/a(3) 0.9x 0.4x 0.7x
    Total Proved Plus Probable n/a(3) 0.6x n/a(4) 0.2x
    FD&A operating netback recycle ratio(1)(2)        
    Proved Developed Producing 1.0x 1.1x 3.2x 1.7x
    Total Proved 0.2x 1.1x 0.4x 0.8x
    Total Proved Plus Probable 0.2x 0.7x n/a(4) 0.4x

    (1)  Non-GAAP ratio. See “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures”.

    (2)  Birchcliff’s operating netback was $11.02/boe in 2024 as compared to $14.74/boe in 2023 and $32.85/boe in 2022. Operating netback is a non-GAAP ratio. See “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures”.

    (3)  As a result of the year-over-year decrease in proved and proved plus probable reserves, the calculation for F&D operating netback recycle ratio for these reserves categories was not applicable in 2024.

    (4)  As a result of the year-over-year decrease in proved plus probable reserves, the calculations for F&D and FD&A operating netback recycle ratio for this reserves category were not applicable in 2022.

    Reserves Replacement

    The following table sets forth Birchcliff’s 2024 reserves replacement on an F&D and FD&A basis for its PDP, total proved and total proved plus probable reserves:

    Reserves Category 2024 F&D Reserves Replacement(1)  2024 FD&A Reserves Replacement(1) 
    Proved Developed Producing 84 % 88 %
    Total Proved n/a(2) 13 %
    Total Proved Plus Probable n/a(2) 14 %

    (1)  See “Advisories – Oil and Gas Metrics” for a description of the methodology used to calculate reserves replacement.

    (2)  As a result of the 1.1 MMboe and 7.2 MMboe decrease in Birchcliff’s proved and proved plus probable reserves, respectively, in 2024, after adding back 2024 actual production of 28.1 MMboe, the calculation for F&D reserves replacement for theses reserves categories was not applicable in 2024.

    Reserves Life Index

    The following table sets forth Birchcliff’s reserves life index for its PDP, total proved and total proved plus probable reserves at December 31, 2024:

    Reserves Category Reserves Life Index(1)  
    Proved Developed Producing 7.7 years  
    Total Proved 23.6 years  
    Total Proved Plus Probable 34.3 years  

    (1)  See “Advisories – Oil and Gas Metrics” for a description of the methodology used to calculate reserves life index.

    ABBREVIATIONS

    AECO benchmark price for natural gas determined at the AECO ‘C’ hub in southeast Alberta
    bbl barrel
    bbls barrels
    bbls/d barrels per day
    BD/UM Basal Doig/Upper Montney
    boe barrel of oil equivalent
    boe/d barrel of oil equivalent per day
    condensate pentanes plus (C5+)
    F&D finding and development
    FD&A finding, development and acquisition
    G&A general and administrative
    GAAP generally accepted accounting principles for Canadian public companies, which are currently International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board
    GJ/d gigajoules per day
    HH Henry Hub
    IP initial production
    LNG liquefied natural gas
    Mbbls thousand barrels
    Mboe thousand barrels of oil equivalent
    Mcf thousand cubic feet
    Mcf/d thousand cubic feet per day
    MMboe million barrels of oil equivalent
    MMBtu million British thermal units
    MMBtu/d million British thermal units per day
    MMcf million cubic feet
    MMcf/d million cubic feet per day
    NGLs natural gas liquids consisting of ethane (C2), propane (C3) and butane (C4) and, except where otherwise noted, excludes condensate
    NPV net present value
    NYMEX New York Mercantile Exchange
    OPEC Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries
    PDP proved developed producing
    Q quarter
    TSX Toronto Stock Exchange
    WTI West Texas Intermediate, the reference price paid in U.S. dollars at Cushing, Oklahoma, for crude oil of standard grade
    000s thousands
    $000s thousands of dollars
       

    NON-GAAP AND OTHER FINANCIAL MEASURES

    This press release uses various “non-GAAP financial measures”, “non-GAAP ratios” and “capital management measures” (as such terms are defined in NI 52-112), which are described in further detail below.

    Non-GAAP Financial Measures

    NI 52-112 defines a non-GAAP financial measure as a financial measure that: (i) depicts the historical or expected future financial performance, financial position or cash flow of an entity; (ii) with respect to its composition, excludes an amount that is included in, or includes an amount that is excluded from, the composition of the most directly comparable financial measure disclosed in the primary financial statements of the entity; (iii) is not disclosed in the financial statements of the entity; and (iv) is not a ratio, fraction, percentage or similar representation. The non-GAAP financial measures used in this press release are not standardized financial measures under GAAP and might not be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Investors are cautioned that non-GAAP financial measures should not be construed as alternatives to or more meaningful than the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures as indicators of Birchcliff’s performance. Set forth below is a description of the non-GAAP financial measures used in this press release.

    Adjusted Funds Flow and Free Funds Flow

    Birchcliff defines “adjusted funds flow” as cash flow from operating activities before the effects of decommissioning expenditures, retirement benefit payments and changes in non-cash operating working capital. Birchcliff eliminates settlements of decommissioning expenditures from cash flow from operating activities as the amounts can be discretionary and may vary from period to period depending on its capital programs and the maturity of its operating areas. The settlement of decommissioning expenditures is managed with Birchcliff’s capital budgeting process which considers available adjusted funds flow. Birchcliff eliminates retirement benefit payments from cash flow from operating activities as such payments reflect costs for past service and contributions made by eligible executives under the Corporation’s post-employment benefit plan, which are not indicative of the current period. Changes in non-cash operating working capital are eliminated in the determination of adjusted funds flow as the timing of collection and payment are variable and by excluding them from the calculation, the Corporation believes that it is able to provide a more meaningful measure of its operations and ability to generate cash on a continuing basis. Management believes that adjusted funds flow assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s financial performance after deducting all operating and corporate cash costs, as well as its ability to generate the cash necessary to fund sustaining and/or growth capital expenditures, repay debt, settle decommissioning obligations, buy back common shares and pay dividends.

    Birchcliff defines “free funds flow” as adjusted funds flow less F&D capital expenditures. Management believes that free funds flow assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s ability to generate shareholder value and returns through a number of initiatives, including but not limited to, debt repayment, common share buybacks, the payment of common share dividends, acquisitions and other opportunities that would complement or otherwise improve the Corporation’s business and enhance long-term shareholder value.

    The most directly comparable GAAP financial measure to adjusted funds flow and free funds flow is cash flow from operating activities. The following table provides a reconciliation of cash flow from operating activities to adjusted funds flow and free funds flow for the periods indicated:

      Three months ended
    December 31,
       Twelve months ended
    December 31,
     
    ($000s) 2024   2023   2024   2023  
    Cash flow from operating activities 45,641   79,006   203,710   320,529  
    Change in non-cash operating working capital 25,278   (6,248 ) 17,269   (19,477 )
    Decommissioning expenditures 919   1,457   1,964   3,775  
    Retirement benefit payments   2,000   13,851   2,000  
    Adjusted funds flow 71,838   76,215   236,794   306,827  
    F&D capital expenditures (58,310 ) (58,166 ) (273,084 ) (304,637 )
    Free funds flow 13,528   18,049   (36,290 ) 2,190  

    Transportation and Other Expense

    Birchcliff defines “transportation and other expense” as transportation expense plus marketing purchases less marketing revenue. Birchcliff may enter into certain marketing purchase and sales arrangements with the objective of reducing any unused transportation or fractionation fees associated with its take-or-pay commitments and/or increasing the value of its production through value-added downstream initiatives. Management believes that transportation and other expense assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s total cost structure related to transportation and marketing activities.

    The most directly comparable GAAP financial measure to transportation and other expense is transportation expense. The following table provides a reconciliation of transportation expense to transportation and other expense for the periods indicated:

      Three months ended
    December 31,

      Twelve months ended
    December 31,

     
    ($000s) 2024   2023   2024   2023  
    Transportation expense 36,722   38,509   149,534   152,828  
    Marketing purchases 14,905   8,928   51,496   34,772  
    Marketing revenue (14,083 ) (8,532 ) (54,069 ) (30,521 )
    Transportation and other expense 37,544   38,905   146,961   157,079  

    Operating Netback

    Birchcliff defines “operating netback” as petroleum and natural gas revenue less royalty expense, operating expense and transportation and other expense. Management believes that operating netback assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s operating profits after deducting the cash costs that are directly associated with the sale of its production, which can then be used to pay other corporate cash costs or satisfy other obligations.

    The following table provides a breakdown of Birchcliff’s operating netback for the periods indicated:

      Three months ended
      Twelve months ended
     
      December 31,
      December 31,
     
    ($000s) 2024   2023   2024   2023   2022  
    Petroleum and natural gas revenue 153,741   183,295   586,856   740,359   1,340,180  
    Royalty expense (9,033 ) (19,400 ) (39,608 ) (70,257 ) (161,226 )
    Operating expense (20,758 ) (26,808 ) (90,890 ) (105,809 ) (101,581 )
    Transportation and other expense (37,544 ) (38,905 ) (146,961 ) (157,079 ) (154,924 )
    Operating netback 86,406   98,182   309,397   407,214   922,449  

    FD&A and Total Capital Expenditures

    Birchcliff defines “FD&A capital expenditures” as exploration and development expenditures, less dispositions, plus acquisitions (if any). Birchcliff defines “total capital expenditures” as FD&A capital expenditures plus administrative assets. Management believes that FD&A capital expenditures and total capital expenditures assist management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s overall capital cost structure associated with its petroleum and natural gas activities.

    The most directly comparable GAAP financial measure to FD&A capital expenditures and total capital expenditures is exploration and development expenditures. The following table provides a reconciliation of exploration and development expenditures to FD&A capital expenditures and total capital expenditures for the periods indicated:

      Three months ended
      Twelve months ended
     
      December 31,
      December 31,
     
    ($000s) 2024   2023   2024   2023  
    Exploration and development expenditures(1) 58,310   58,166   273,084   304,637  
    Acquisitions 8,076   2   8,169   190  
    Dispositions (100 ) (10 ) (258 ) (87 )
    FD&A capital expenditures 66,286   58,158   280,995   304,740  
    Administrative assets 387   1,383   1,750   3,176  
    Total capital expenditures 66,673   59,541   282,745   307,916  

    (1)  Disclosed as F&D capital expenditures elsewhere in this press release. See “Advisories – F&D Capital Expenditures”.

    Net Asset Value

    Birchcliff defines “net asset value” as property, plant and equipment, plus reserves premium adjustment (less reserves discount adjustment) for its PDP, total proved and total proved plus probable reserves (as the case may be), less total debt and plus the value of unexercised in-the-money stock options and performance warrants outstanding at the end of the period. Management believes that net asset value assists management and investors in assessing the long-term fair value of Birchcliff’s underlying reserves assets after settling its outstanding financial obligations.

    The most directly comparable GAAP financial measure to net asset value is property, plant and equipment. The following table provides a reconciliation of property, plant and equipment to net asset value for the periods indicated:

      Proved Developed Producing Total Proved Total Proved Plus Probable
    As at December 31, ($000s) 2024   2023   2024   2023   2024   2023  
    Property, plant and equipment 3,218,506   3,055,958   3,218,506   3,055,958   3,218,506   3,055,958  
    Reserves premium (discount) adjustment(1) (940,756 ) (435,894 ) 1,140,662   2,349,659   2,345,325   3,779,459  
    Total debt (535,557 ) (382,306 ) (535,557 ) (382,306 ) (535,557 ) (382,306 )
    Unexercised securities 34,961   16,717   34,961   16,717   34,961   16,717  
    Net asset value 1,777,154   2,254,475   3,858,572   5,040,028   5,063,235   6,469,828  

    (1)  Represents the premium or discount, as the case may be, between the net present value of future net revenue (before income taxes, discounted at 10%) of Birchcliff’s PDP, total proved and total proved plus probable reserves, as the case may be, and the property, plant and equipment disclosed on the financial statements.

    Effective Sales – Total Corporate, Total Natural Gas, AECO Market and NYMEX HH Market

    Birchcliff defines “effective sales” in the AECO market and NYMEX HH market as the sales amount received from the production of natural gas that is effectively attributed to the AECO and NYMEX HH market pricing, respectively, and does not consider the physical sales delivery point in each case. Effective sales in the NYMEX HH market includes realized gains and losses on financial instruments and excludes the notional fixed basis costs associated with the underlying financial contract in the period. Birchcliff defines “effective total natural gas sales” as the aggregate of the effective sales amount received in each natural gas market. Birchcliff defines “effective total corporate sales” as the aggregate of the effective total natural gas sales and the sales amount received from the production of light oil, condensate and NGLs. Management believes that disclosing the effective sales for each natural gas market assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s natural gas diversification and commodity price exposure to each market.

    The most directly comparable GAAP financial measure to effective total natural gas sales and effective total corporate sales is natural gas sales. The following table provides a reconciliation of natural gas sales to effective total natural gas sales and effective total corporate sales for the periods indicated:

      Three months ended
     
      December 31,
     
    ($000s) 2024 2023  
    Natural gas sales 79,615 99,957  
    Realized gain (loss) on financial instruments 12,022 (2,583 )
    Notional fixed basis costs(1) 21,490 20,802  
    Effective total natural gas sales 113,127 118,176  
    Light oil sales 17,450 15,180  
    Condensate sales 37,985 49,135  
    NGLs sales 18,679 18,977  
    Effective total corporate sales 187,241 201,468  

    (1)  Reflects the aggregate notional fixed basis cost associated with Birchcliff’s financial and physical NYMEX HH/AECO 7A basis swap contracts in the period.

    Non-GAAP Ratios

    NI 52-112 defines a non-GAAP ratio as a financial measure that: (i) is in the form of a ratio, fraction, percentage or similar representation; (ii) has a non-GAAP financial measure as one or more of its components; and (iii) is not disclosed in the financial statements of the entity. The non-GAAP ratios used in this press release are not standardized financial measures under GAAP and might not be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Set forth below is a description of the non-GAAP ratios used in this press release.

    Adjusted Funds Flow Per Boe and Adjusted Funds Flow Per Basic Common Share

    Birchcliff calculates “adjusted funds flow per boe” as aggregate adjusted funds flow in the period divided by the production (boe) in the period. Management believes that adjusted funds flow per boe assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s financial profitability and sustainability on a cash basis by isolating the impact of production volumes to better analyze its performance against prior periods on a comparable basis.

    Birchcliff calculates “adjusted funds flow per basic common share” as aggregate adjusted funds flow in the period divided by the weighted average basic common shares outstanding at the end of the period. Management believes that adjusted funds flow per basic common share assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s financial strength on a per common share basis.

    Free Funds Flow Per Basic Common Share

    Birchcliff calculates “free funds flow per basic common share” as aggregate free funds flow in the period divided by the weighted average basic common shares outstanding at the end of the period. Management believes that free funds flow per basic common share assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s financial strength and its ability to deliver shareholder returns on a per common share basis.

    Transportation and Other Expense Per Boe

    Birchcliff calculates “transportation and other expense per boe” as aggregate transportation and other expense in the period divided by the production (boe) in the period. Management believes that transportation and other expense per boe assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s cost structure as it relates to its transportation and marketing activities by isolating the impact of production volumes to better analyze its performance against prior periods on a comparable basis.

    Operating Netback Per Boe

    Birchcliff calculates “operating netback per boe” as aggregate operating netback in the period divided by the production (boe) in the period. Operating netback per boe is a key industry performance indicator and one that provides investors with information that is commonly presented by other oil and natural gas producers. Management believes that operating netback per boe assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s operating profitability and sustainability by isolating the impact of production volumes to better analyze its performance against prior periods on a comparable basis.

    Operating Netback Recycle Ratio

    Birchcliff calculates “operating netback recycle ratio” as operating netback per boe in the period divided by F&D or FD&A costs, as the case may be, for its PDP, proved and proved plus probable reserves, as the case may be, in the period. Management believes that operating netback recycle ratio assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s ability to profitably find and develop its PDP, proved and proved plus probable reserves.

    Net Asset Value Per Common Share

    Birchcliff calculates “net asset value per common share” as the net asset value in each category of reserves divided by the aggregate of the basic common shares outstanding and in-the-money dilutive common shares attributable to stock options and performance warrants outstanding at the end of the period. Management believes that net asset value per common share assists management and investors in comparing Birchcliff’s common share trading price to the underlying fair market value of its net assets on a per common share basis.

    Effective Average Realized Sales Price – Total Corporate, Total Natural Gas, AECO Market and NYMEX HH Market

    Birchcliff calculates “effective average realized sales price” as effective sales, in each of total corporate, total natural gas, AECO market and NYMEX HH market, as the case may be, divided by the effective production in each of the markets during the period. Management believes that disclosing the effective average realized sales price for each natural gas market assists management and investors in comparing Birchcliff’s commodity price realizations in each natural gas market on a per unit basis.

    Capital Management Measures

    NI 52-112 defines a capital management measure as a financial measure that: (i) is intended to enable an individual to evaluate an entity’s objectives, policies and processes for managing the entity’s capital; (ii) is not a component of a line item disclosed in the primary financial statements of the entity; (iii) is disclosed in the notes to the financial statements of the entity; and (iv) is not disclosed in the primary financial statements of the entity. Set forth below is a description of the capital management measure used in this press release.

    Total Debt

    Birchcliff calculates “total debt” at the end of the period as the amount outstanding under the Corporation’s Credit Facilities plus working capital deficit (less working capital surplus) plus the fair value of the current asset portion of financial instruments less the fair value of the current liability portion of financial instruments and less the current portion of other liabilities discounted to the end of the period. The current portion of other liabilities has been excluded from total debt as these amounts have not been incurred and reflect future commitments in the normal course of operations. Management believes that total debt assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s overall liquidity and financial position at the end of the period. The following table provides a reconciliation of the amount outstanding under the Credit Facilities, as determined in accordance with GAAP, to total debt for the periods indicated:

    As at December 31, ($000s) 2024   2023  
    Revolving term credit facilities 566,857   372,097  
    Working capital deficit (surplus)(1) (88,953 ) 10,522  
    Fair value of financial instruments – asset(2) 71,038   3,588  
    Fair value of financial instruments – liability(2)   (1,394 )
    Other liabilities(2) (13,385 ) (2,507 )
    Total debt 535,557   382,306  

    (1)  Current liabilities less current assets.

    (2)  Reflects the current portion only.

    PRESENTATION OF OIL AND GAS RESERVES

    Deloitte prepared the Deloitte Report and the 2023 Deloitte Report. In addition, Deloitte prepared a reserves evaluation in respect of Birchcliff’s oil and natural gas properties effective December 31, 2022. Such evaluations were prepared in accordance with the standards contained in NI 51-101 and the COGE Handbook that were in effect at the relevant time. Reserves estimates stated herein are extracted from the relevant evaluation.

    There are numerous uncertainties inherent in estimating quantities of oil, natural gas and NGLs (including condensate) reserves and the future net revenue attributed to such reserves. The reserves and associated future net revenue information set forth in this press release are estimates only. In general, estimates of economically recoverable oil, natural gas and NGLs reserves and the future net revenue therefrom are based upon a number of variable factors and assumptions, such as historical production from the properties, production rates, ultimate reserves recovery, the timing and amount of capital expenditures, marketability of oil, natural gas and NGLs, royalty rates, the assumed effects of regulation by governmental agencies and future operating costs, all of which may vary materially from actual results. For these reasons, estimates of the economically recoverable oil, natural gas and NGLs reserves attributable to any particular group of properties, the classification of such reserves based on risk of recovery and estimates of future net revenue associated with reserves prepared by different engineers, or by the same engineer at different times, may vary. Birchcliff’s actual production, revenue, taxes and development and operating expenditures with respect to its reserves will vary from estimates thereof and such variations could be material.

    It should not be assumed that the undiscounted or discounted net present value of future net revenue attributable to the Corporation’s reserves estimated by the Corporation’s independent qualified reserves evaluator represent the fair market value of those reserves. There is no assurance that the forecast prices and costs assumptions will be attained and variances could be material. Actual oil, natural gas and NGLs reserves may be greater than or less than the estimates provided herein and variances could be material.

    In this press release, unless otherwise stated all references to “reserves” are to Birchcliff’s gross company reserves, meaning Birchcliff’s working interest (operating or non-operating) share before the deduction of royalties and without including any royalty interests of Birchcliff.

    The information set forth in this press release relating to the reserves, future net revenue and future development costs of Birchcliff constitutes forward-looking statements and is subject to certain risks and uncertainties. See “Advisories – Forward-Looking Statements”.

    Certain terms used herein but not defined are defined in NI 51-101, CSA Staff Notice 51-324 – Revised Glossary to NI 51-101 Standards of Disclosure for Oil and Gas Activities (“CSA Staff Notice 51-324”) and/or the COGE Handbook and, unless the context otherwise requires, shall have the same meanings herein as in NI 51-101, CSA Staff Notice 51-324 and the COGE Handbook, as the case may be.

    ADVISORIES

    Unaudited Information

    All financial information contained in this press release for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2024 is based on unaudited estimated financial information which has been disclosed in accordance with GAAP. These estimated results have not been reviewed by the Corporation’s auditor and are subject to change upon completion of the audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2024, and changes could be material. Birchcliff anticipates filing its audited financial statements and related management’s discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2024 on SEDAR+ on March 12, 2025.

    Currency

    Unless otherwise indicated, all dollar amounts are expressed in Canadian dollars, all references to “$” and “CDN$” are to Canadian dollars and all references to “US$” are to United States dollars.

    Boe Conversions

    Boe amounts have been calculated by using the conversion ratio of 6 Mcf of natural gas to 1 bbl of oil. Boe amounts may be misleading, particularly if used in isolation. A boe conversion ratio of 6 Mcf: 1 bbl is based on an energy equivalency conversion method primarily applicable at the burner tip and does not represent a value equivalency at the wellhead. Given that the value ratio based on the current price of crude oil as compared to natural gas is significantly different from the energy equivalency of 6:1, utilizing a conversion on a 6:1 basis may be misleading as an indication of value.

    MMBtu Pricing Conversions

    $1.00 per MMBtu equals $1.00 per Mcf based on a standard heat value Mcf.

    Oil and Gas Metrics

    This press release contains metrics commonly used in the oil and natural gas industry, including F&D costs, FD&A costs, reserves replacement, reserves life index, capital efficiency, operating netback, operating netback recycle ratio, net asset value and net asset value per common share, which have been determined by Birchcliff as set out below. These oil and gas metrics do not have any standardized meanings or standard methods of calculation and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. As such, they should not be used to make comparisons. Management uses these oil and gas metrics for its own performance measurements and to provide investors with measures to compare Birchcliff’s performance over time; however, such measures are not reliable indicators of Birchcliff’s future performance, which may not compare to Birchcliff’s performance in previous periods, and therefore should not be unduly relied upon.

    • With respect to F&D and FD&A costs:
      • F&D costs for PDP, proved or proved plus probable reserves, as the case may be, are calculated by taking the sum of: (i) exploration and development expenditures (F&D capital expenditures) incurred in the period; and (ii) where appropriate, the change during the period in FDC for the reserves category; divided by the applicable additions to the reserves category after adding back production in the period. F&D costs exclude the effects of acquisitions and dispositions.
      • FD&A costs for PDP, proved or proved plus probable reserves, as the case may be, are calculated by taking the sum of: (i) FD&A capital expenditures incurred in the period; and (ii) where appropriate, the change during the period in FDC for the reserves category; divided by the applicable additions to the reserves category after adding back production in the period.
      • In determining the F&D and FD&A costs for PDP, proved or proved plus probable reserves, as the case may be, the estimated reserves additions during the period and the change during the period in estimated FDC are based upon the evaluations of Birchcliff’s reserves prepared by its independent qualified reserves evaluator effective December 31 of such year.
      • The aggregate of the F&D and FD&A capital expenditures incurred in the most recent financial year and the change during that year in estimated FDC generally will not reflect total F&D and FD&A costs related to reserves additions for that year.
      • F&D and FD&A costs may be used as a measure of the Corporation’s efficiency with respect to finding and developing its reserves.
    • Reserves replacement on an F&D basis is calculated by dividing PDP, proved or proved plus probable reserves additions, as the case may be, before production by the total annual production in the applicable period. Reserves replacement on an FD&A basis is calculated in the same manner as F&D reserves replacement, but include the effects of acquisitions and dispositions. Reserves replacement may be used as a measure of the Corporation’s sustainability and its ability to replace its PDP, proved or proved plus probable reserves, as the case may be.
    • Reserves life index is calculated by dividing PDP, proved or proved plus probable reserves, as the case may be, estimated by Deloitte at December 31, 2024, by 77,500 boe/d (which represents the mid-point of Birchcliff’s annual average production guidance range for 2025) determined on an annualized basis. Reserves life index may be used as a measure of the Corporation’s sustainability.
    • Capital efficiency is calculated on an average well basis as drill, case, complete and equip capital expenditures divided by the IP365 boe/d for the applicable well(s). Birchcliff defines “IP365 boe/d” as the estimated average daily field production in the first 365 days a well is on-stream. Where field production data is not available for a well, Birchcliff uses the forecasted production data for that well. Capital efficiency is determined at the individual well level and then aggregated and averaged for the year. Management believes that capital efficiency assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s asset performance, execution and ability to generate shareholder value.
    • For information regarding operating netback, operating netback recycle ratio, net asset value and net asset value per common share and how such metrics are calculated, see “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures”.

    Production

    With respect to the disclosure of Birchcliff’s production contained in this press release: (i) references to “light oil” mean “light crude oil and medium crude oil” as such term is defined in NI 51-101; (ii) references to “liquids” mean “light crude oil and medium crude oil” and “natural gas liquids” (including condensate) as such terms are defined in NI 51-101; and (iii) references to “natural gas” mean “shale gas”, which also includes an immaterial amount of “conventional natural gas”, as such terms are defined in NI 51-101. In addition, NI 51-101 includes condensate within the product type of natural gas liquids. In certain cases, Birchcliff has disclosed condensate separately from other natural gas liquids as the price of condensate as compared to other natural gas liquids is currently significantly higher and Birchcliff believes presenting the two commodities separately provides a more accurate description of its operations and results therefrom.

    With respect to the disclosure of Birchcliff’s production contained in this press release, all production volumes have been disclosed on a “gross” basis as such term is defined in NI 51-101, meaning Birchcliff’s working interest (operating or non-operating) share before the deduction of royalties and without including any royalty interests of Birchcliff.

    F&D Capital Expenditures

    Unless otherwise stated, references in this press release to “F&D capital expenditures” denotes exploration and development expenditures as disclosed in the Corporation’s financial statements in accordance with GAAP, and is primarily comprised of capital for land, seismic, workovers, drilling and completions, well equipment and facilities and capitalized G&A costs and excludes any acquisitions, dispositions, administrative assets and the capitalized portion of cash incentive payments that have not been approved by the Board. Management believes that F&D capital expenditures assists management and investors in assessing Birchcliff’s capital cost outlay associated with its exploration and development activities for the purposes of finding and developing its reserves.

    Forward-Looking Statements

    Certain statements contained in this press release constitute forward‐looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively referred to as “forward‐looking statements”) within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release relate to future events or Birchcliff’s future plans, strategy, operations, performance or financial position and are based on Birchcliff’s current expectations, estimates, projections, beliefs and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements have been made by Birchcliff in light of the information available to it at the time the statements were made and reflect its experience and perception of historical trends. All statements and information other than historical fact may be forward‐looking statements. Such forward‐looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as “seek”, “plan”, “focus”, “future”, “outlook”, “position”, “expect”, “project”, “intend”, “believe”, “anticipate”, “estimate”, “forecast”, “guidance”, “potential”, “proposed”, “predict”, “budget”, “continue”, “targeting”, “may”, “will”, “could”, “might”, “should”, “would”, “on track”, “maintain”, “deliver” and other similar words and expressions.

    By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward‐looking statements. Accordingly, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. Although Birchcliff believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct and Birchcliff makes no representation that actual results achieved will be the same in whole or in part as those set out in the forward-looking statements.

    In particular, this press release contains forward‐looking statements relating to:

    • Birchcliff’s plans and other aspects of its anticipated future financial performance, results, operations, focus, objectives, strategies, opportunities, priorities and goals, including: Birchcliff’s belief that there is significant intrinsic shareholder value embedded in Birchcliff’s asset base that is not reflected in its current share price, as demonstrated by its PDP reserves net asset value per common share of $6.35 and $13.79 and $18.09 per share for its proved and proved plus probable reserves, respectively; that Birchcliff’s Elmworth asset provides Birchcliff with significant inventory and a large potential future development area; that Birchcliff’s strategy for 2025 builds off of the operational momentum from 2024, maintaining the Corporation’s focus on capital efficiency improvements and further driving down costs; that the Corporation’s 2025 capital program has been designed to ensure that its capital is strategically deployed throughout the year, providing it with the flexibility to adjust its capital spending if necessary in response to the commodity price volatility expected during 2025, including as a result of the potential for U.S. and Canadian tariffs and the start-up of LNG Canada; that the unutilized credit capacity under its Credit Facilities provides Birchcliff with significant financial flexibility and available capital resources; that Birchcliff believes its ongoing strategy of maintaining significant natural gas market diversification for 2025 will continue to protect the Corporation from volatility in the North American natural gas pricing environment, including as it relates to potential tariffs; and estimates of Birchcliff’s 2025 market diversification (including that approximately 41% of Birchcliff’s natural gas production is physically delivered to the Dawn trading hub in Ontario and that Birchcliff has U.S. denominated financial contracts that expose approximately 35% of its natural gas production to NYMEX HH pricing on a financial basis);
    • the information set forth under the heading “Update on 2025 Capital Program” and elsewhere in this press release regarding Birchcliff’s 2025 capital program and its exploration, production and development activities and the timing thereof, including: estimates of the Corporation’s 2025 F&D capital expenditures; that the wells in Birchcliff’s 2025 capital program are expected to yield strong production, using the Corporation’s latest field development practices and wellbore design, which incorporates longer lateral lengths, reduced stage spacing and increased proppant loading where appropriate; that the land retention well drilled and completed by the Corporation in Elmworth is not currently planned to be tied in; the targeted product types; and the expected timing for wells to be drilled, completed and brought on production;
    • statements regarding U.S. and Canadian tariffs, including that the Corporation believes that Canada’s over-reliance on exporting its energy into the U.S. must be addressed through the reduction of red tape and government interference in the construction of critical infrastructure such as oil and gas pipelines to the east and west coasts of Canada, LNG terminals on each coast and an increase in refining capacity within Canada, in order to diversify Canada’s energy export market; and that the Corporation continues to actively monitor this situation;
    • the information set forth under the heading “2024 Year-End Reserves” and elsewhere in this press release regarding the Corporation’s reserves, including: estimates of reserves; estimates of the net present values of future net revenue associated with Birchcliff’s reserves; forecasts of prices, inflation and exchange rates; FDC; reserves life index; and that the Corporation does not expect that the technical revisions relating to the 56 high-density wells drilled from 2019 to 2023 will negatively impact future reserves booked for other existing or future wells;
    • the performance and other characteristics of Birchcliff’s oil and natural gas properties and expected results from its assets, including statements regarding the potential or prospectivity of Birchcliff’s properties; and
    • that Birchcliff anticipates filing its annual information form and audited financial statements and related management’s discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2024 on March 12, 2025.

    Information relating to reserves is forward-looking as it involves the implied assessment, based on certain estimates and assumptions, that the reserves exist in the quantities predicted or estimated and that the reserves can profitably be produced in the future. See “Presentation of Oil and Gas Reserves”.

    With respect to the forward-looking statements contained in this press release, assumptions have been made regarding, among other things: prevailing and future commodity prices and differentials, exchange rates, interest rates, inflation rates, royalty rates and tax rates; the state of the economy, financial markets and the exploration, development and production business; the political environment in which Birchcliff operates; the regulatory framework regarding royalties, taxes, environmental, climate change and other laws; the Corporation’s ability to comply with existing and future laws; future cash flow, debt and dividend levels; future operating, transportation, G&A and other expenses; Birchcliff’s ability to access capital and obtain financing on acceptable terms; the timing and amount of capital expenditures and the sources of funding for capital expenditures and other activities; the sufficiency of budgeted capital expenditures to carry out planned operations; the successful and timely implementation of capital projects and the timing, location and extent of future drilling and other operations; results of operations; Birchcliff’s ability to continue to develop its assets and obtain the anticipated benefits therefrom; the performance of existing and future wells; reserves volumes and Birchcliff’s ability to replace and expand reserves through acquisition, development or exploration; the impact of competition on Birchcliff; the availability of, demand for and cost of labour, services and materials; the approval of the Board of future dividends; the ability to obtain any necessary regulatory or other approvals in a timely manner; the satisfaction by third parties of their obligations to Birchcliff; the ability of Birchcliff to secure adequate processing and transportation for its products; Birchcliff’s ability to successfully market natural gas and liquids; the results of the Corporation’s risk management and market diversification activities; and Birchcliff’s natural gas market exposure. In addition to the foregoing assumptions, Birchcliff has made the following assumptions with respect to certain forward-looking statements contained in this press release:

    • Birchcliff’s forecast of F&D capital expenditures assumes that the Corporation’s 2025 capital program will be carried out as currently contemplated and excludes any potential acquisitions, dispositions and the capitalized portion of cash incentive payments that have not been approved by the Board. The amount and allocation of capital expenditures for exploration and development activities by area and the number and types of wells to be drilled and brought on production is dependent upon results achieved and is subject to review and modification by management on an ongoing basis throughout the year. Actual spending may vary due to a variety of factors, including commodity prices, economic conditions, results of operations and costs of labour, services and materials.
    • With respect to estimates of reserves volumes and the net present values of future net revenue associated with Birchcliff’s reserves, the key assumption is the validity of the data used by Deloitte in the Deloitte Report.
    • With respect to statements regarding future wells to be drilled or brought on production, such statements assume: the continuing validity of the geological and other technical interpretations performed by Birchcliff’s technical staff, which indicate that commercially economic volumes can be recovered from Birchcliff’s lands as a result of drilling future wells; and that commodity prices and general economic conditions will warrant proceeding with the drilling of such wells.

    Birchcliff’s actual results, performance or achievements could differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements as a result of both known and unknown risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to: general economic, market and business conditions which will, among other things, impact the demand for and market prices of Birchcliff’s products and Birchcliff’s access to capital; volatility of crude oil and natural gas prices; risks associated with increasing costs, whether due to high inflation rates, supply chain disruptions or other factors; fluctuations in exchange and interest rates; an inability of Birchcliff to generate sufficient cash flow from operations to meet its current and future obligations; an inability to access sufficient capital from internal and external sources on terms acceptable to the Corporation; risks associated with Birchcliff’s Credit Facilities, including a failure to comply with covenants under the agreement governing the Credit Facilities and the risk that the borrowing base limit may be redetermined; fluctuations in the costs of borrowing; operational risks and liabilities inherent in oil and natural gas operations; the risk that weather events such as wildfires, flooding, droughts or extreme hot or cold temperatures forces the Corporation to shut-in production or otherwise adversely affects the Corporation’s operations; the occurrence of unexpected events such as fires, explosions, blow-outs, equipment failures, transportation incidents and other similar events; an inability to access sufficient water or other fluids needed for operations; the risks associated with supply chain disruptions; uncertainty that development activities in connection with Birchcliff’s assets will be economic; an inability to access or implement some or all of the technology necessary to operate its assets and achieve expected future results; geological, technical, drilling, construction and processing problems; uncertainty of geological and technical data; horizontal drilling and completions techniques and the failure of drilling results to meet expectations for reserves or production; uncertainties related to Birchcliff’s future potential drilling locations; delays or changes in plans with respect to exploration or development projects or capital expenditures; the uncertainty of estimates and projections relating to production, revenue, costs and reserves; the accuracy of cost estimates and variances in Birchcliff’s actual costs and economic returns from those anticipated; incorrect assessments of the value of acquisitions and exploration and development programs; the risks posed by pandemics, epidemics and global conflict and their impacts on supply and demand and commodity prices; actions taken by OPEC and other major producers of crude oil and the impact such actions may have on supply and demand and commodity prices; stock market volatility; loss of market demand; changes to the regulatory framework in the locations where the Corporation operates, including changes to tax laws, Crown royalty rates, environmental laws, climate change laws, carbon tax regimes, incentive programs and other regulations that affect the oil and natural gas industry (including uncertainty with respect to the interpretation of Bill C-59 and the related amendments to the Competition Act (Canada)); political uncertainty and uncertainty associated with government policy changes, including the risk of U.S. tariffs on goods exported from Canada and any retaliatory tariffs implemented; actions by government authorities; an inability of the Corporation to comply with existing and future laws and the cost of compliance with such laws; dependence on facilities, gathering lines and pipelines; uncertainties and risks associated with pipeline restrictions and outages to third-party infrastructure that could cause disruptions to production; the lack of available pipeline capacity and an inability to secure adequate and cost-effective processing and transportation for Birchcliff’s products; an inability to satisfy obligations under Birchcliff’s firm marketing and transportation arrangements; shortages in equipment and skilled personnel; the absence or loss of key employees; competition for, among other things, capital, acquisitions of reserves, undeveloped lands, equipment and skilled personnel; management of Birchcliff’s growth; environmental and climate change risks, claims and liabilities; potential litigation; default under or breach of agreements by counterparties and potential enforceability issues in contracts; claims by Indigenous peoples; the reassessment by taxing or regulatory authorities of the Corporation’s prior transactions and filings; unforeseen title defects; third-party claims regarding the Corporation’s right to use technology and equipment; uncertainties associated with the outcome of litigation or other proceedings involving Birchcliff; uncertainties associated with counterparty credit risk; risks associated with Birchcliff’s risk management and market diversification activities; risks associated with the declaration and payment of future dividends, including the discretion of the Board to declare dividends and change the Corporation’s dividend policy and the risk that the amount of dividends may be less than currently forecast; the failure to obtain any required approvals in a timely manner or at all; the failure to complete or realize the anticipated benefits of acquisitions and dispositions and the risk of unforeseen difficulties in integrating acquired assets into Birchcliff’s operations; negative public perception of the oil and natural gas industry and fossil fuels; the Corporation’s reliance on hydraulic fracturing; market competition, including from alternative energy sources; changing demand for petroleum products; the availability of insurance and the risk that certain losses may not be insured; breaches or failure of information systems and security (including risks associated with cyber-attacks); risks associated with the ownership of the Corporation’s securities; the accuracy of the Corporation’s accounting estimates and judgments; and the risk that any of the Corporation’s material assumptions prove to be materially inaccurate.

    Readers are cautioned that the foregoing lists of factors are not exhaustive. Additional information on these and other risk factors that could affect Birchcliff’s results of operations, financial performance or financial results are included in Birchcliff’s annual information form and annual management’s discussion and analysis for the financial year ended December 31, 2023 under the heading “Risk Factors” and in other reports filed with Canadian securities regulatory authorities.

    This press release contains information that may constitute future-oriented financial information or financial outlook information (collectively, “FOFI”) about Birchcliff’s prospective financial performance, financial position or cash flows, all of which is subject to the same assumptions, risk factors, limitations and qualifications as set forth above. Readers are cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise or inaccurate and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on FOFI. Birchcliff’s actual results, performance and achievements could differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, FOFI. Birchcliff has included FOFI in order to provide readers with a more complete perspective on Birchcliff’s future operations and management’s current expectations relating to Birchcliff’s future performance. Readers are cautioned that such information may not be appropriate for other purposes.

    Management has included the above summary of assumptions and risks related to forward-looking statements provided in this press release in order to provide readers with a more complete perspective on Birchcliff’s future operations and management’s current expectations relating to Birchcliff’s future performance. Readers are cautioned that this information may not be appropriate for other purposes.

    The forward-looking statements and FOFI contained in this press release are expressly qualified by the foregoing cautionary statements. The forward-looking statements and FOFI contained herein are made as of the date of this press release. Unless required by applicable laws, Birchcliff does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements or FOFI, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

    ABOUT BIRCHCLIFF:

    Birchcliff is an intermediate oil and natural gas company based in Calgary, Alberta with operations focused on the Montney/Doig Resource Play in Alberta. Birchcliff’s common shares are listed for trading on the TSX under the symbol “BIR”.

    For further information, please contact:
    Birchcliff Energy Ltd.
    Suite 1000, 600 – 3rd Avenue S.W.
    Calgary, Alberta T2P 0G5
    Telephone: (403) 261-6401
    Email: birinfo@birchcliffenergy.com
    www.birchcliffenergy.com
      Chris Carlsen – President and Chief Executive Officer

    Bruno Geremia – Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: ConnectM Raises Q4 ‘24 Revenue Guidance to $9M, Up 102% Year-over-Year, Surpassing Prior Estimates by $2M

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    ~Revised FY2024 revenue guidance is $26.3M instead of previous guidance of $24M

    ~Company expects to provide Q1 ‘25 guidance in the next two weeks~

    MARLBOROUGH, Mass., Feb. 12, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — ConnectM Technology Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: CNTM) (“ConnectM” or the “Company”), a technology company focused on the electrification economy, today announced a significant upward revision to its previously announced Q4 2024 preliminary revenue guidance of $7 million. The Company now anticipates Q4 2024 revenue of approximately $9 million, a 102% increase compared to $4.5 million revenue in Q4 2023.

    The revised Q4 ’24 guidance elevates ConnectM’s full-year 2024 revenue projection to $26.3 million, reflecting 33% year-over-year growth compared to full-year 2023. This performance underscores the Company’s accelerating momentum in delivering innovative technology solutions and capturing market share across its core verticals.

    Strategic Drivers of Growth
    ConnectM attributes this exceptional growth to increased demand for its proprietary technology platforms, expanded customer acquisitions, and operational efficiencies. The Company’s ability to exceed previous forecasts highlights the success of its strategic focus on customer-centric solutions.

    Bhaskar Panigrahi, Chairman and CEO of ConnectM, stated: “Today’s upward revision is a testament to the relentless execution of our team and the scalability of our solutions in a dynamic market environment. Achieving 102% year-over-year growth in Q4—surpassing our initial expectations—demonstrates the power of our innovation and the trust our customers place in ConnectM. As we close out 2024, we are not only celebrating a record year but also laying the groundwork for sustained growth and value creation for our stockholders in 2025 and beyond.”

    About ConnectM Technology Solutions, Inc.
    ConnectM is a pioneer in the electrification economy, integrating energy assets with its AI-driven technology platform. Focused on delivering solutions that drive efficiency, affordability, and sustainability, ConnectM serves home, facility, and fleet across three major segments: Building Electrification, Distributed Energy, and Transportation and Logistics. The company’s vertically integrated approach combines technology, service/distribution networks, and strategic partnerships to accelerate the transition to an all-electric energy economy.

    For more information, please visit: www.connectm.com. Stockholders looking to receive Company updates directly to their inbox should sign up here.  

    Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
    This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). We have based these forward-looking statements on our current expectations and projections about future events. All statements, other than statements of present or historical fact included in this press release, regarding our future financial performance and our strategy, expansion plans, future operations, future operating results, estimated revenues, losses, projected costs, prospects, plans and objectives of management are forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “should,” “could,” “would,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “believe,” “estimate,” “continue,” “project” or the negative of such terms or other similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions about us that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Except as otherwise required by applicable law, we disclaim any duty to update any forward-looking statements, all of which are expressly qualified by the statements in this section, to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release. We caution you that the forward-looking statements contained herein are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond our control. In addition, we caution you that the forward-looking statements regarding the Company contained in this press release are subject to the risks and uncertainties described in the “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” section of the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 18, 2024. Such filing identifies and addresses other important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events and results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and ConnectM is under no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

    Contact:
    Investor Relations
    Dave Gentry, CEO
    RedChip Companies, Inc.
    1-407-644-4256
    CNTM@redchip.com

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI Security: Head of Commercial Real Estate Investment Firm Pleads Guilty in $62.8M Fraud Scheme Targeting Atlanta Financial Center Investors

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ATLANTA – Elchonon “Elie” Schwartz pleaded guilty today to wire fraud for executing a massive investment fraud scheme that caused more than 800 investors to send approximately $62.8 million to Schwartz, which he then diverted for his own use. Approximately $54 million dollars in investments were intended for the Atlanta Financial Center, a planned commercial real estate complex on Peachtree Road. 

    “Seeking to do nothing more than pad his own bank accounts and buy expensive luxury items, Elie Schwartz betrayed hundreds of investors who sought the opportunity to invest in these commercial real estate projects,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Richard S. Moultrie, Jr. “This office is committed to protecting investors from individuals, like Schwartz, who defraud donors out of their hard-earned money and seek to prioritize their own greed at the expense of legitimate investors.”

    “Although investment fraud schemes are not violent crimes, they are just as destructive as they can destroy the livelihoods of entire families. Schwartz admitted to this complex scheme out of pure greed and will now face the steep consequences,” said Sean Burke, Acting Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. 

    According to Acting U.S. Attorney Moultrie, the charges, and other information presented in court: Elie Schwartz ran a successful commercial real estate investment firm. Beginning in May 2022, he solicited investments through CrowdStreet Marketplace in connection with a large commercial real estate complex in Atlanta, Georgia (“Atlanta Financial Center”), and ultimately raised approximately $54 million from approximately 654 investors for this venture. Later, beginning in November 2022, Schwartz again solicited investments through CrowdStreet concerning a mixed-use building in Miami Beach, Florida (“Lincoln Place”), and ultimately raised approximately $8.8 million from approximately 167 investors for this development. In total, Schwartz raised approximately $62.8 million from investors through CrowdStreet for the investments in the Atlanta Financial Center and Lincoln Place. The CrowdStreet investor funds were deposited into a segregated bank account for each investment.

    As part of the investment solicitation process, Schwartz executed agreements with CrowdStreet that stated, among other terms, that the funds raised from CrowdStreet investors would be held in segregated bank accounts controlled by Schwartz. In the documentation that was provided to CrowdStreet investors, Schwartz represented that he would only “use any proceeds from this Offering, net of any organizational and offering expenses, to fund” the investment in each property and that Schwartz had a fiduciary duty to safeguard the funds and prohibit commingling or use of the money that did not benefit each investment.

    But contrary to the representations he made to CrowdStreet investors, and before either the Atlanta Financial Center or Lincoln Place transaction closed, Schwartz misappropriated and converted CrowdStreet investor funds for his own use. Beginning in June 2022, and continuing through June 2023, Schwartz transferred nearly all of the $62.8 million raised through CrowdStreet for the Atlanta Financial Center and Lincoln Place investments out of the segregated bank accounts. He then diverted these funds to his personal bank account, personal brokerage account, and accounts for other unrelated commercial real estate investments affiliated with, and controlled by, him.

    Schwartz used the funds raised from the CrowdStreet investors to, among other things, pay for payroll expenses for his commercial real estate businesses, purchase luxury watches, and invest in stocks and options in his brokerage account. Ultimately, in mid-July 2023, the corporate entities that Schwartz formed to receive funds from CrowdStreet investors for their investments in the Atlanta Financial Center and Lincoln Place both filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

    Schwartz, 46, of New York, New York, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. In determining the actual sentence, the Court will consider the United States Sentencing Guidelines, which are not binding but provide appropriate sentencing ranges for most offenders.

    Sentencing is scheduled for May 19, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. before U.S. District Judge Steven D. Grimberg.       

    This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Enforcement provided valuable assistance in the investigation.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly K. Connors and Trial Attorney Matthew F. Sullivan of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case. Former Assistant U.S. Attorneys David O’Neal and Christopher Huber provided substantial assistance in the investigation and prosecution.

    For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6280.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI USA: CISA and FBI Warn of Malicious Cyber Actors Using Buffer Overflow Vulnerabilities to Compromise Software

    News In Brief – Source: US Computer Emergency Readiness Team

    CISA and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have released a Secure by Design Alert, Eliminating Buffer Overflow Vulnerabilities, as part of their cooperative Secure by Design Alert series—an ongoing series aimed at advancing industry-wide best practices to eliminate entire classes of vulnerabilities during the design and development phases of the product lifecycle. “Eliminating Buffer Overflow Vulnerabilities” describes proven techniques to prevent or mitigate buffer overflow vulnerabilities through secure by design principles and best practices.

    Buffer overflow vulnerabilities are a prevalent type of defect in memory-safe software design that can lead to system compromise. These vulnerabilities can lead to data corruption, sensitive data exposure, program crashes, and unauthorized code execution. Threat actors frequently exploit these vulnerabilities to gain initial access to an organization’s network and then move laterally to the wider network.

    CISA and FBI urge manufacturers review the Alert and, where feasible, eliminate this class of defect by developing new software using memory-safe languages, using secure by design methods, and implementing the best practices supplied in this Alert. CISA and FBI also urge software customers demand secure products from manufacturers that include these preventions. Visit CISA’s Secure by Design Pledge page to learn about our voluntary pledge, which focuses on enterprise software products and services—including on-premises software, cloud services, and software as a service (SaaS).

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI Security: Former Riverside School Counselor Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Child Sexual Exploitation Crimes, Including Hiding Cameras in Bathrooms

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    LOS ANGELES – A former counselor at a private school in Riverside County was sentenced today to 360 months in federal prison for possessing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and placing a hidden camera inside bathrooms to film boys using the toilet and showers.

    Matthew Daniel Johnson, 34, of Bryan, Texas, was sentenced by United States District Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett, who scheduled a restitution hearing for May 28. Upon his eventual release from prison, Johnson will be placed on lifetime supervised release. Johnson has been in federal custody since October 2024.

    Law enforcement searched Johnson’s home in March 2020 and seized several videos featuring minor boys engaged in sexual activity. The videos depicted victims under the age of 12 and some as young as 3 to 5 years old.

    During the search of his residence, Johnson admitted to law enforcement that he had hidden a pen-shaped recording device in a toilet paper holder inside of a school bathroom, across the hall from his office as a school counselor at La Sierra Academy in Riverside.

    Another video file depicted Johnson adjusting a recording device inside a different bathroom at a Junior High School Bible Camp where he was working as a chaperone of children attending the camp. The video file subsequently captured minor boys using the toilet and the shower.

    Johnson further admitted to using and employing a minor victim in January 2020 for the purpose of creating a visual depiction of the victim engaging in sexual conduct.

    The Fontana Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, Riverside Police Department, and the FBI investigated this matter.

    Assistant United States Attorney Sonah Lee of the Riverside Branch Office prosecuted this case.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Trafficking drugs for Mexican Cartel lands Laredo man in prison for more than 16 years

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    LAREDO, Texas – A 37-year-old man has been sentenced for conspiring to distribute a large quantity of marijuana, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.

    Gavino Cadena pleaded guilty Nov. 10, 2022.

    U.S. District Judge Diana Saldana has now ordered Cadena to serve a total of 194 months in federal prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. In handing down the sentence, the court considered Cadena’s extensive criminal record, including his involvement with Cartel del Noreste (CDN) and the Tango Blast gang. Records also showed that while in custody awaiting sentencing in this case, Cadena was involved in numerous altercations with rival gang members such as Hermano Pistoleros Latinos, including incidents involving weapons.

    The court found Cadena to be a leader/organizer within the drug trafficking organization. He coordinated the drug loads, paid co-conspirators for their involvement and reported directly to cartel leaders in Mexico. Cadena was held responsible for organizing the offloading and transport of more than 8,000 pounds of marijuana from multiple tractor trailers in Laredo that had been imported from Mexico.

    “The Department of Justice is going to use all available avenues to crack down on cartel activity operating inside our country,” said Ganjei. “The drug trade inevitably leads to violence, and so every drug dealer or cartel member taken off the street makes our communities a little bit safer.”

    Throughout the course of this multi-year investigation, which includes two related indictments, authorities seized more than 17 tons of marijuana valued at approximately $16.4 million.

    To date, a total of 22 people, including several Mexican nationals, have been convicted for their roles in the conspiracy to transport narcotics for CDN. Their sentences have ranged from 18 months to 168 months in prison.

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

    The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Laredo Police Department conducted the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation with the assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Marshals Service; Border Patrol; Customs and Border Protection; FBI; Homeland Security Investigations; U.S. National Guard; Webb County District Attorney’s Office, Sheriff’s Office and Constable’s Office Precincts 1 and 4; Texas Department of Public Safety; and the Blue Indigo Task Force. OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found on the Department of Justice’s OCDETF webpage.

    Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer Day and Anthony Evans prosecuted this case.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Career Offender Sentenced to 22 Years in Prison for Armed Drug Trafficking

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Defendant has Seven Prior Felonies in Athens-Clarke, Gwinnett, Middle District of Georgia

    ATHENS, Ga. – A Northeast Georgia resident with a lengthy criminal history who was serving federal supervised release when officers found him illegally possessing a firearm and trafficking cocaine was sentenced to serve 22 years in prison today.

    Mandrell Antwoin Hull, 44, of Winterville, Georgia, was sentenced to serve 264 months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release by U.S. District Judge Tilman E. “Tripp” Self, III on Feb. 12. Hull previously pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon on July 22, 2024. There is no parole in the federal system.

    “We must hold repeat offenders accountable when they illegally arm themselves and violate the laws put in place to maintain order and safety for everyone,” said Acting U.S. Attorney C. Shanelle Booker. “Our dedicated federal prosecutorial team continues to work alongside our local, state and federal law enforcement partners to help ensure their efforts result in justice.”

    “Criminals like Hull continue to plague our communities with blatant disregard for the safety of others and reckless indifference to the law. It is only through our local and federal partnerships that we are able to put a stop to these violent repeat offenders,” said Robert Gibbs, Senior Supervisory Special Agent of FBI Atlanta’s Athens office. “This case is another example of how the FBI and our law enforcement partners are dedicated to keeping the streets of Georgia safe for everyone in our community.”

    According to court documents and statements referenced in court, Hull was serving supervised release for a 2018 federal conviction for marijuana distribution in Case No. 3:17-CR-24-CAR. On April 11, 2023, officers with the United States Probation Office (USPO) reached out to the FBI in Athens to request their assistance in conducting a search of Hull’s residence in Oglethorpe County, Georgia, because USPO believed that Hull was storing illegal drugs inside his residence. That same day, agents and officers searched his Winterville property and located cocaine, $32,826 in drug proceeds and a loaded 9mm pistol. Records show that Hull has five prior felony convictions in the Superior Court of Athens-Clarke County and one prior felony conviction in the Superior Court of Gwinnett County, in addition to his prior federal felony conviction for which he was serving supervised release at the time of this crime. It is illegal for a convicted felon to possess a firearm.

    This case is a 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 of Justice 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.

    The case was investigated by the FBI Athens Resident Agency Middle Georgia Safe Streets Gang Task Force and the Oglethorpe County Sheriff’s Office.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Morrison prosecuted the case for the Government.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI USA: ICE Washington, D.C. and FBI Washington, D.C. arrest 7 illegal aliens in Northern Virginia operation

    Source: US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

    February 12, 2025Annadale, VA, United StatesEnforcement and Removal

    ANNANDALE, Va. — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, assisted by the FBI, apprehended seven illegally present aliens during a routine enforcement operation in Annandale, Feb. 5.

    “These seven individuals were in the Northern Virginia area in violation of U.S. immigration laws,” said ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Washington, D.C. acting Field Office Director Patrick Divver. “ICE Washington, D.C.’s mission is to ensure the safety and security of our District of Columbia and Virginia communities through the arrest and removal of those individuals who undermine the safety of our communities and the integrity of our immigration laws. We take this mission extremely seriously, and we will continue to arrest and remove alien offenders.”

    During the targeted operation, ICE officers and FBI special agents arrested:

    • A 51-year-old, previously deported Mexican national convicted of DWI in Prince William County, Virginia, in April 2024.
    • A 36-year-old Nicaraguan national who refused to depart the United States to Nicaragua after being ordered to do so on Jan. 24 by a Department of Justice immigration judge.
    • A 24-year-old Honduran national, with no previous encounters with ICE, who illegally entered the U.S. without inspection, admission, or parole by a designated immigration official.
    • A 22-year-old Salvadoran national previously apprehended after illegally entering the U.S. in June 2019.
    • A 32-year-old Guatemalan national who entered the U.S. lawfully and violated the terms of his lawful admission.
    • A 24-year-old Guatemalan national, with no previous encounters with ICE, who illegally entered the U.S. without inspection, admission, or parole by a designated immigration official.
    • A 30-year-old Guatemalan national, with no previous encounters with ICE, who illegally entered the U.S. without inspection, admission, or parole by a designated immigration official.

    Members of the public can report crimes and suspicious activity by dialing 866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423) or completing the online tip form.

    Learn more about ICE’s mission to increase public safety in our communities on X: @EROWashington.

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI USA: Durbin Condemns Tulsi Gabbard’s Nomination To Serve As Director Of National Intelligence

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Illinois Dick Durbin
    February 12, 2025
    WASHINGTON – In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) outlined his serious concerns with Tulsi Gabbard, President Trump’s nominee to be the Director of National Intelligence ahead of her confirmation vote. Durbin began his remarks by highlighting the history of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which was established after the September 11th terrorist attacks.
    “[September 11 led to the creation] of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which oversees the 18 intelligence agencies that span the CIA, Defense Department, State Department, Energy Department, and others. It is now essential to modern safety in America. But yet, the President—Donald Trump—has selected a person who has little or no experience to lead this critical part of America’s security apparatus: her name is Tulsi Gabbard,” Durbin said.
    “During President Trump’s first term, he made clear his fondness for certain leaders of the world that are controversial such as Viktor Orban of Hungary, Vladimir Putin of Russia, and Kim Jong Un of North Korea. So, he ends up picking a person to run America’s intelligence network who shares similarly terrible judgment on critical security matters. Tulsi Gabbard is infamous fordefending despots and other autocratic leaders in the world—including Vladimir Putin and Bashar al-Assad—and traitors to the United States such as Edward Snowden. And her fondness for these oppressive, anti-democratic regimes does not go unreciprocated—they know her [and] they like her,” Durbin continued.  
    Durbin then highlighted examples on the floor of the anti-democratic regimes who are cheering for Ms. Gabbard’s confirmation—including hosts of Russian media who believe her nomination will “dismantle America,” and some on Russian state channels have even referred to her as their “girlfriend.” Russian state TV also called her a Russian “comrade” in President Trump’s emerging cabinet. A pro-Putin propagandist Vladimir Soloviev once called Gabbard “our friend.”  Later, when asked if she was “some sort of Russian agent?” Soloviev replied: “yes.” In a profile in a Russian state newspaper, it said of Gabbard’s nomination: “The C.I.A. and the F.B.I. are trembling,” noting that Ukrainians consider her “an agent of the Russian state.”
    “Imagine that. The person tapped to head America’s intelligence community—being called a puppet of an adversary’s country by that very same country. It seems too ridiculous to be true. But I’m sorry to say it is. To merely join America’s intelligence community—never mind lead it—candidates must go through vigorous background checks and earn security clearances… If Tulsi Gabbard was applying for an entry-level position, her relationship with Russia would disqualify her for the job. Why, then, would we trust her to [head the entire intelligence network] given the examples that abound of Tulsi Gabbard proving publicly, shamelessly, and carelessly her sympathies for nations that undermine U.S. interests and security. That is unexplainable and irresponsible,” Durbin continued.
    “Our allies depend on us as much as we depend on their security and to share critical intelligence. Now, they are looking at us in disbelief that we would let someone like Tusli Gabbard with such an appalling record anywhere near the leadership of the intelligence community. Intelligence professionals from Canada and the United Kingdom—which are members of the critical Five Eyes intelligence alliance along with the U.S., Australia, and New Zealand—have expressed concern about even working with her if she is in charge. In order to keep Americans safe throughout the world, we need to have the trust of our allies,” Durbin said.
    Durbin then spoke about the impacts Ms. Gabbard’s confirmation would have on supporting our Ukrainian ally and their defense against Russia. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion, Gabbard has taken Russia’s side—claiming ‘Russia had legitimate security concerns,’ and blaming NATO, one of our most significant security alliances.
    “Let me be clear: Supporting democracies has not historically been a partisan matter,” Durbin continued. “For example, contrast Tulsi Gabbard’s nonsense with former President Ronald Reagan’s clear-eyed understanding of the danger of the communist Russian empire. Nearly 40 years ago, he stood at the Brandenburg Gate in West Berlin and famously challenged the Soviet Union to ‘tear down this wall.’ Reagan understood the true nature and threat of the Russians. And we have all seen the horrific costs of Russia’s war in Ukraine and increasing attacks against NATO allies.” 
    “Is there a deal to be made to end this war? Perhaps. But doing so must be with the best intelligence available—a clear eye about who we are negotiating with and long-term guarantees of the security of Ukraine, of Europe, and the transatlantic alliance. One would think that any American president navigating such difficult waters would want a top official to serve as the head of National Intelligence. Tulsi Gabbard fails that test,” Durbin said.
    Durbin concluded, “Tulsi Gabbard would not be qualified for an entry-level position within our intelligence community. And she is not qualified to lead it. Period. Some of the President’s cabinet nominees are hard to imagine because they are so unqualified. But for the position of DNI—putting someone unqualified in charge is not funny at all. It is life or death dangerous.”
    Video of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.
    Audio of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.
    Footage of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here for TV Stations.
    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI Security: St. Michael Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Child Abuse

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Fargo – United States Attorney Mac Schneider announced that Collin Ray Delorme, also known as Collin Ray Delorme Sr., age 30, from St. Michael, North Dakota, appeared in United States District Court for the District of North Dakota in Fargo today and was sentenced by Chief Judge Peter Welte to serve 40 years in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release during which time he will be required to follow a number of conditions. Delorme was also ordered to pay restitution, joint and severally with his codefendant, for medical and funeral expenses.

    On February 18, 2023, Baker called 911 from a home in St. Michael, North Dakota within the boundaries of the Spirit Lake Reservation. Delorme’s co-Defendant, Kenzie Rose Baker, reported her one-year-old child was not breathing. The child was transported to CHI St. Alexius in Devils Lake, North Dakota and was pronounced dead. An autopsy concluded the cause of death was “battered child” due to multiple, repeated injuries of various ages, evident upon external and internal examination. The child’s internal injuries were untreated which created infection and sepsis.

    Two of the charges to which Delorme pled are related to his abuse of the deceased one-year-old child.  The third charge is the result of his abuse of a three-year-old child that included hitting the child on the arms and throwing him on a bed.

    On August 16, 2024, Baker pleaded guilty to charges of Accessory after the Fact; Child Abuse in Indian country; Child Neglect in Indian country. Baker is scheduled to be sentenced on February 24, 2025.

    “This sentence provides a measure of accountability for the horrendous abuse and tragic death of a toddler,” Schneider said. “Through their work on multi-disciplinary teams on each reservation with tribal social services, law enforcement, tribal court prosecutors, and behavioral health partners, our Indian country prosecutors are committed to preventing child abuse. They also will not hesitate to bring forceful prosecutions against child abusers in federal court. Our hope is that today’s sentence serves as a deterrence in our efforts to keep children safe.”

    “The abuse and neglect that these children experienced is truly horrific. No child should ever endure such suffering,” said Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston Sr. of FBI Minneapolis. “Today’s sentencing demonstrates the FBI and our partners’ commitment to protecting the most vulnerable in our communities and ensuring that those who harm children are brought to justice.”

    This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Lori H. Conroy and SheraLynn Ternes.

    # # #

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Video: Ahead of the Threat Podcast: Episode Seven – Paul Proctor

    Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) (video statements)

    Paul Proctor, a Gartner analyst for 20 years, joins the show to discuss practical approaches businesses can apply to make cybersecurity more effective. Through thousands of hours of outreach, Proctor sees a broken system that can improve with better communication and partnership between executives and chief information security officers to create strategies based on ‘outcome-driven metrics.’ One example is identifying the cost to return systems online in a specific time frame following a breach, while understanding that cutting funds to that effort jeopardizes the timeline. Hosts Bryan Vorndran, assistant director of the FBI’s Cyber Division, and Jamil Farshchi, FBI strategic engagement advisor, discuss the importance of cybersecurity ‘fundamentals’ and how measured approaches can lead to more success in a field more complicated than many think. Commenting on current events in the ‘Top Three’ segment, Vorndran and Farshchi highlight DeepSeek AI, the new updates to United HealthGroup’s breach, and new reporting requirements for critical infrastructure cyber incidents (Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act, or CIRCIA). Listen to Ahead of the Threat episodes, read the transcripts, and find related material at fbi.gov/aheadofthethreat.
    —————————————————
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    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LeqMuWC_SW0

    MIL OSI Video

  • MIL-OSI Security: Thirty-Eight Defendants Sentenced in Massive Prison-Based Drug Trafficking Ring

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

    ATLANTA, Ga. – Thirty-eight members of a drug trafficking organization, including several State of Georgia prison inmates, have been sentenced for their roles in coordinating and distributing deadly heroin, methamphetamine, and fentanyl throughout the metro-Atlanta area, as well as laundering drug proceeds to Mexico.

    “The successful dismantling of this large organization is a result of a tenacious multi-year effort from federal, state, and local authorities to root out narcotics trafficking originating from state prisons,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Richard S. Moultrie, Jr.  “Our office will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to leverage all resources to identify, apprehend, and prosecute entire networks of offenders responsible for distributing deadly drugs into our communities.” 

    “These sentences mirror the destructive impact on the community caused by this violent drug trafficking organization,” said Jae W. Chung, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Division. “Wherever you operate, if you distribute dangerous drugs, DEA will find you and hold you accountable.”

    “Thanks to the hard work and collaboration of our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners, thirty-eight members of this extensive drug distribution network will spend significant time behind bars where they will no longer be able to plague our community with poison,” said Sean Burke, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. 

    According to Acting U.S. Attorney Moultrie, the charges and other information presented in court: During the investigation, federal special agents learned that a network of prison inmates was using contraband cell phones to broker drug transactions throughout the metro-Atlanta area, including importing drug shipments from Mexico and other states. These prison brokers relied on conspirators on the outside to store, package and distribute multiple types of illegal drugs. Other members of the organization were responsible for laundering the proceeds from the drug sales to Mexico using local money remitters.  The organization also repeatedly threatened violence to uncooperative members.  In one case, agents learned of a plot to abduct and murder a narcotics dealer.  In response, law enforcement quickly mobilized to disrupt the plan.

    After the first phase of the investigation concluded, a Grand Jury sitting in the Northern District of Georgia returned an indictment against 19 of the conspirators for drug trafficking and money laundering offenses.  During the second phase of the investigation, agents identified additional conspirators including two of the high-level prison brokers, Jesus Sanchez-Morales and Juan Ramirez, who were later indicted by the Grand Jury for drug trafficking offenses.  After Ramirez was brought into federal custody, he used another contraband cell phone to broker drug deals, including the attempted distribution of fentanyl.  The Grand Jury later charged him with this new conduct.  

    Through this multi-year investigation, agents seized over 250 kilograms of methamphetamine, 25 gallons of liquid methamphetamine, more than 12,000 fentanyl pills, kilogram-quantities of fentanyl powder, heroin, and marijuana, and over $450,000 in drug proceeds. 

    The defendants were convicted and sentenced by U.S. District Judge Leigh Martin May:

    • Juan Ramirez was sentenced earlier today to 27 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release .  Ramirez was convicted of ten drug trafficking counts including Conspiracy and Possession with the Intent to Distribute  Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl, after a jury found him guilty of these charges on July 25, 2024.
    • Jesus Sanchez-Morales was sentenced to 27 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Sanchez-Morales was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on June 22, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Martin Maldonado was sentenced to 19 years, seven months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Maldonado was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on April 26, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Benjamin Villareal Perez was sentenced to 19 years, seven months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Perez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on September 17, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Jaime Chavez was sentenced to 17 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Chavez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime on April 30, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Aszavious Anderson was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Anderson was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime on May 28, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Kristofer Ty Armistead was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Armistead was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on June 7, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Mario Castillo was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Castillo was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime on September 25, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Aricus Cantrell Holloway was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Holloway was convicted of Conspiracy and Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on April 24, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Cristian Hernandez-Lovo was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Hernandez-Lovo was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime on September 24, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Jesus Antonio Molina-Ortiz was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Molina-Ortiz was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime on August 10, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Jamar Tyrone Zanders was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Zanders was convicted of Conspiracy and Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on September 24, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Brandon Richard Duncan was sentenced to 14 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Duncan was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on July 9, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Joseph Dominic Edwards was sentenced to 14 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Edwards was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on August 4, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Rafael Alvarez was sentenced to 13 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Alvarez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on August 13, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Jason Garcia-Lara was sentenced to 13 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Garcia-Lara was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on June 23, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Jordan Duane Bowers was sentenced to 12 years, six months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Bowers was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Fentanyl, and Heroin on May 10, 2022, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Emmanuel De Santos Nieto was sentenced to 12 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. De Santos Nieto was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on September 9, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Salvador Valencia-Zavala was sentenced to 11 years, three months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Valencia-Zavala was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on January 27, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Marvin Gaye Banks was sentenced to 11 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Banks was convicted of Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on July 15, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Samantha Fagundes was sentenced to 11 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Fagundes was convicted of Conspiracy and Possession with the Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl, on January 15, 2020, after she pleaded guilty.
    • Alejandro Vasquez-Lopez was sentenced to 10 years, nine months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Vasquez-Lopez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on May 24, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Shelly Denise Class was sentenced to 10 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Class was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on October 10, 2019, after she pleaded guilty.
    • Edgar Ochoa Martinez was sentenced to 10 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Martinez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on July 22, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Allison Nichole Daniel was sentenced to 10 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Daniel was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on May 27, 2020, after she pleaded guilty.
    • Enrique Rodriguez-Govea was sentenced to 10 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Rodriguez-Govea was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on May 30, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Taurus Basil Stephens was sentenced to 10 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Stephens was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on December 16, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Raheem Jamal Morris was sentenced to nine years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Morris was convicted of Conspiracy and Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on June 26, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Lilia Martinez Rodriguez was sentenced to eight years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Martinez Rodriguez was convicted of Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering on September 21, 2020, after she pleaded guilty.
    • Roberto Rojas was sentenced to eight years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Rojas was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on January 13, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Nicholas Charles Johnson was sentenced to seven years, eight months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Johnson was convicted of Conspiracy and Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on July 10, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Leonardo Rosas was sentenced to six years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Rosas was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on October 3, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Daniel Gonzalez was sentenced to five years, four months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Gonzalez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on July 11, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Juan Torres Chavez was sentenced to a time-served sentence of approximately four years, nine months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Chavez was convicted of Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on December 14, 2023, after he pleaded guilty.
    • David Chavez-Ortiz was sentenced to four years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Chavez-Ortiz was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Heroin, and Fentanyl on October 21, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
    • Antwonette Jarnez Thomas was sentenced to four years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Thomas was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on January 7, 2021, after she pleaded guilty.
    • Erin Cortez was sentenced to three years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Cortez was convicted of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on January 22, 2020, after she pleaded guilty.
    • Joaquin Flores, Jr. was sentenced to three years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Flores was convicted of Conspiracy and Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine on January 19, 2024, after he pleaded guilty. 

    Eusebio Paniagua-Paz remains a fugitive.  If you have any information about his whereabouts, please contact your local law enforcement agency. 

    This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with valuable assistance provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Marshals Service, Atlanta Police Department, Cobb County Sheriff’s Office, Coweta County Sheriff’s Office, DeKalb County Police Department, Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, Georgia Department of Corrections, Georgia State Patrol, and the South Fulton Police Department.

    Assistant United States Attorneys Alison B. Prout, Amy M. Palumbo, Elizabeth M. Hathaway, Sarah Klapman, and Nicholas Evert, together with former Assistant United States Attorneys Tyler Mann, Scott McAfee, and Erin H. Harris, prosecuted the case.

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

    For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6280.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI USA: Eight Venezuelan Nationals Charged with Offenses Related to their Roles in a Transnational Commercial Sex Enterprise

    Source: US State of Vermont

    A four-count indictment was unsealed yesterday in the Middle District of Tennessee charging eight defendants with various offenses arising from their respective roles in a transnational commercial sex enterprise.

    According to court documents, the defendants, all of Venezuela, Yilibeth del Carmen Rivero-De Caldera, 51; Kleiver Daniel Mota-Rivero, 35; Yuribetzi Del Valle Gomez Machuca, 39; Wilmarys Del Valle Manzano Solorzano, 22; Frankyanna Del Valle Romero-Rivero, 30; Endrik Alexander Morales-Rivero, 25; Jesus Enrique Castillo Rodriguez, 24; and Ariannys Beatriz Gutierrez-Carrillo, 24, operated an illegal commercial sex and sex trafficking enterprise out of Nashville motels from July 2022 through March 2024.

    According to the indictment, once the defendants facilitated the victims’ arrival in the United States, the defendants utilized online commercial sex websites to post advertisements for the victims and then used the internet and their cellular phones to direct commercial sex buyers to engage in commercial sex with the victims at the motels before collecting the proceeds from that commercial sex for the defendants’ benefit.

    “This indictment demonstrates our commitment to stop human trafficking whenever and wherever we find it, and to hold those involved accountable” said Acting U.S. Attorney Robert E. McGuire for the Middle District of Tennessee. “We are coming after transnational criminal organizations like TdA, but this case shows that we will also do whatever it takes to stop those who would traffick women and girls no matter who is behind their suffering.”

    “The success of this operation to stop Tren da Aragua operating in our communities is a significant step forward in our ongoing battle against human trafficking and transnational organized crime,” said Special Agent in Charge Rana Saoud of the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Nashville. “This investigation exemplifies the importance of collaboration among local, state, and federal agencies in ending these crimes in our communities while leaving a trail of suffering in their wake.”

    “We will not allow TdA – or any criminal organization – to get a stronghold in Tennessee,” said Director David Rausch of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. “We are thankful for our local, state, and federal partners who joined us in investigating this case, and we stand prepared to continue aggressively investigating human trafficking in our state, holding traffickers and buyers accountable and helping victims take their first steps toward becoming survivors.”

    “Human trafficking is among the most heinous crimes the FBI encounters,” said Special Agent in Charge Joseph E. Carrico of the FBI Nashville Field Office. “This devastating crime exploits vulnerable members of communities nationwide, including those in Tennessee. The FBI and our partners are committed to rescuing victims, investigating and prosecuting traffickers, and supporting survivors.”

    “While the focus of this investigation centers around human trafficking, Tren de Aragua is involved in all manner of criminal activity, to include the sale of narcotics and dangerous drugs,” said Special Agent in Charge Jim Scott of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA)’s Louisville Division. “The dedicated men and women of DEA will continue to work side by side with our federal, state and local partners to rid our communities of the transnational criminal gangs, like TdA.”

    “The trafficking of human beings is abhorrent to all of us, it’s a modern-day form of slavery,” said Chief John Drake of the Metro Nashville Police. “I want to be very clear, our police department will always make human trafficking an investigative priority regardless of where the suspects are from and will work with our partners for an intentional and coordinated law enforcement response.”

    A grand jury in the Middle District of Tennessee previously returned the four-count indictment charging all eight defendants for their respective roles in facilitating the recruiting of young women from impoverished parts of Venezuela and other South and Central American countries, then facilitating their transportation across the U.S. southern border and across state lines to engage in commercial sex in the Nashville area.

    Three of the defendants — Yilibeth del Carmen Rivero-De Caldera, Kleiver Daniel Mota-Rivero, and Yuribetzi Del Valle Gomez Machuca — are additionally charged with a sex trafficking conspiracy for conspiring to use force, fraud, and coercion to compel the women into engaging in commercial sex acts for the defendants’ profit that include invoking alleged ties to the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua (TdA) and its reputation for violence.

    The indictment further charges defendant Kleiver Daniel Mota-Rivero with one count of possession of a firearm by an illegal alien.

    Mother and son defendants Rivero-De Caldera and Mota-Rivero are charged with conspiring to impose a coercive debt scheme upon the victims to compel them to continue engaging in commercial sex acts until the defendants deemed their debts repaid. Defendants Rivero-De Caldera and Mota-Rivero previously were arrested and detained on state charges relating to their conduct.

    If convicted of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, the defendants face a maximum penalty of life in prison. A conspiracy to commit interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, and a conspiracy to commit interstate and foreign travel or transportation in aid of racketeering enterprises carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

    If convicted of possession of a firearm by an illegal alien, Mota-Rivero also faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.

    The case was investigated by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the FBI, and additional federal, state, and local Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) partners who coordinated related law enforcement operations across multiple jurisdictions. OCDEFT identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Brooke K. Schiferle for the Middle District of Tennessee and Trial Attorneys Lindsey Roberson and Jessica Arco of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit are prosecuting the case.

    If you or someone you know is a victim of human trafficking, please call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1 (888) 373-7888 which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information about human trafficking, please visit www.humantraffickinghotline.org. Information on the Justice Department’s efforts to combat human trafficking can be found at www.justice.gov/humantrafficking.

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

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI Security: Eight Venezuelan Nationals Charged with Offenses Related to their Roles in a Transnational Commercial Sex Enterprise

    Source: United States Attorneys General

    A four-count indictment was unsealed yesterday in the Middle District of Tennessee charging eight defendants with various offenses arising from their respective roles in a transnational commercial sex enterprise.

    According to court documents, the defendants, all of Venezuela, Yilibeth del Carmen Rivero-De Caldera, 51; Kleiver Daniel Mota-Rivero, 35; Yuribetzi Del Valle Gomez Machuca, 39; Wilmarys Del Valle Manzano Solorzano, 22; Frankyanna Del Valle Romero-Rivero, 30; Endrik Alexander Morales-Rivero, 25; Jesus Enrique Castillo Rodriguez, 24; and Ariannys Beatriz Gutierrez-Carrillo, 24, operated an illegal commercial sex and sex trafficking enterprise out of Nashville motels from July 2022 through March 2024.

    According to the indictment, once the defendants facilitated the victims’ arrival in the United States, the defendants utilized online commercial sex websites to post advertisements for the victims and then used the internet and their cellular phones to direct commercial sex buyers to engage in commercial sex with the victims at the motels before collecting the proceeds from that commercial sex for the defendants’ benefit.

    “This indictment demonstrates our commitment to stop human trafficking whenever and wherever we find it, and to hold those involved accountable” said Acting U.S. Attorney Robert E. McGuire for the Middle District of Tennessee. “We are coming after transnational criminal organizations like TdA, but this case shows that we will also do whatever it takes to stop those who would traffick women and girls no matter who is behind their suffering.”

    “The success of this operation to stop Tren da Aragua operating in our communities is a significant step forward in our ongoing battle against human trafficking and transnational organized crime,” said Special Agent in Charge Rana Saoud of the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Nashville. “This investigation exemplifies the importance of collaboration among local, state, and federal agencies in ending these crimes in our communities while leaving a trail of suffering in their wake.”

    “We will not allow TdA – or any criminal organization – to get a stronghold in Tennessee,” said Director David Rausch of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. “We are thankful for our local, state, and federal partners who joined us in investigating this case, and we stand prepared to continue aggressively investigating human trafficking in our state, holding traffickers and buyers accountable and helping victims take their first steps toward becoming survivors.”

    “Human trafficking is among the most heinous crimes the FBI encounters,” said Special Agent in Charge Joseph E. Carrico of the FBI Nashville Field Office. “This devastating crime exploits vulnerable members of communities nationwide, including those in Tennessee. The FBI and our partners are committed to rescuing victims, investigating and prosecuting traffickers, and supporting survivors.”

    “While the focus of this investigation centers around human trafficking, Tren de Aragua is involved in all manner of criminal activity, to include the sale of narcotics and dangerous drugs,” said Special Agent in Charge Jim Scott of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA)’s Louisville Division. “The dedicated men and women of DEA will continue to work side by side with our federal, state and local partners to rid our communities of the transnational criminal gangs, like TdA.”

    “The trafficking of human beings is abhorrent to all of us, it’s a modern-day form of slavery,” said Chief John Drake of the Metro Nashville Police. “I want to be very clear, our police department will always make human trafficking an investigative priority regardless of where the suspects are from and will work with our partners for an intentional and coordinated law enforcement response.”

    A grand jury in the Middle District of Tennessee previously returned the four-count indictment charging all eight defendants for their respective roles in facilitating the recruiting of young women from impoverished parts of Venezuela and other South and Central American countries, then facilitating their transportation across the U.S. southern border and across state lines to engage in commercial sex in the Nashville area.

    Three of the defendants — Yilibeth del Carmen Rivero-De Caldera, Kleiver Daniel Mota-Rivero, and Yuribetzi Del Valle Gomez Machuca — are additionally charged with a sex trafficking conspiracy for conspiring to use force, fraud, and coercion to compel the women into engaging in commercial sex acts for the defendants’ profit that include invoking alleged ties to the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua (TdA) and its reputation for violence.

    The indictment further charges defendant Kleiver Daniel Mota-Rivero with one count of possession of a firearm by an illegal alien.

    Mother and son defendants Rivero-De Caldera and Mota-Rivero are charged with conspiring to impose a coercive debt scheme upon the victims to compel them to continue engaging in commercial sex acts until the defendants deemed their debts repaid. Defendants Rivero-De Caldera and Mota-Rivero previously were arrested and detained on state charges relating to their conduct.

    If convicted of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, the defendants face a maximum penalty of life in prison. A conspiracy to commit interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, and a conspiracy to commit interstate and foreign travel or transportation in aid of racketeering enterprises carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

    If convicted of possession of a firearm by an illegal alien, Mota-Rivero also faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.

    The case was investigated by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the FBI, and additional federal, state, and local Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) partners who coordinated related law enforcement operations across multiple jurisdictions. OCDEFT identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Brooke K. Schiferle for the Middle District of Tennessee and Trial Attorneys Lindsey Roberson and Jessica Arco of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit are prosecuting the case.

    If you or someone you know is a victim of human trafficking, please call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1 (888) 373-7888 which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information about human trafficking, please visit www.humantraffickinghotline.org. Information on the Justice Department’s efforts to combat human trafficking can be found at www.justice.gov/humantrafficking.

    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 USA: Member of the 764 Criminal Enterprise Pleads Guilty to Racketeering Conspiracy and Other Charges

    Source: US State of California

    Jairo Jaime Tinajero, 25, pleaded guilty yesterday in the Western District of Kentucky to the following charges contained in the superseding information: racketeering conspiracy, online enticement, three counts of production of child sexual abuse material, three counts of distribution of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), five counts of interstate communications of threats, cyberstalking, and conspiracy to murder Jane Doe 1 in aid of racketeering. The terms of the plea agreement specify that both parties agree to the applicability of the terrorism sentencing enhancement (U.S.S.G. § 3A1.4 n. 4).

    On Oct. 11, 2023, a grand jury in the Western District of Kentucky returned an indictment charging Tinajero with online enticement and production of child sexual abuse material. On Oct. 4, 2023, in the Eastern District of Arkansas, Tinajero was arrested on a criminal complaint that was filed in the Western District of Kentucky.

    According to the court documents, Tinajero is a self-identified member of the 764 network. The 764 network’s accelerationist goals include social unrest and the downfall of the current world order, including the U.S. Government. Beginning in 2020, Tinajero started communicating with, and grooming, several minor victims to obtain sexually explicit content from them, including Jane Doe 1. In 2023, Tinajero began to threaten the safety of Jane Doe 1 and her family. Tinajero posted online in encrypted platforms associated with 764 and related groups a “Lorebook” – commonly used in 764 blackmail schemes — containing Jane Doe 1’s identifying information along with nude pictures of the minor.

    Between July 2023 and September 2023, during multiple discussions over social media, Tinajero and a co-conspirator agreed that Tinajero should kill Jane Doe 1. Tinajero and the co-conspirator specifically discussed that Tinajero should murder Jane Doe 1 and dispose of Jane Doe 1’s body in a barrel of acid after the murder. Tinajero posted multiple messages on various social media websites stating that he planned to kill Jane Doe 1 with a firearm because Jane Doe 1 refused to provide additional child sexual abuse material.

    On Aug. 26, 2023, Tinajero posted on Telegram, “Im determined to die” and “If I gotta kill her I can’t let her live and f**k with dudes and girls while I’m sick and miserable” and “Im gonna live stream it.” Tinajero also posted a picture of Jane Doe 1. On Sept. 2, 2023, Tinajero posted on Telegram, “I wanna kill them so bad just show up at their cribs and shoot 100 rounds in 5 seconds” and, on Sept. 3, 2023, posted “I didn’t wanna do anything bc I was scared of dying or prison but now I’m determined to die if I have to after getting rid of [Jane Doe 1] . . . .” Tinajero also began soliciting others to assist with attempting to kill Jane Doe 1.

    The FBI is investigating the case.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Erwin Roberts for the Western District of Kentucky and Trial Attorneys Justin Sher and James Donnelly of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting the case. The Violent Crime and Racketeering Section for the Criminal Division and the Eastern District of Arkansas provided assistance.

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI Security: Member Of The 764 Criminal Enterprise Pleads Guilty to Racketeering Conspiracy and Other Charges

    Source: United States Attorneys General 10

    Jairo Jaime Tinajero, 25, pleaded guilty yesterday in the Western District of Kentucky to the following charges contained in the superseding information: racketeering conspiracy, online enticement, three counts of production of child sexual abuse material, three counts of distribution of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), five counts of interstate communications of threats, cyberstalking, and conspiracy to murder Jane Doe 1 in aid of racketeering. The terms of the plea agreement specify that both parties agree to the applicability of the terrorism sentencing enhancement (U.S.S.G. § 3A1.4 n. 4).

    On Oct. 11, 2023, a grand jury in the Western District of Kentucky returned an indictment charging Tinajero with online enticement and production of child sexual abuse material. On Oct. 4, 2023, in the Eastern District of Arkansas, Tinajero was arrested on a criminal complaint that was filed in the Western District of Kentucky.

    According to the court documents, Tinajero is a self-identified member of the 764 network. The 764 network’s accelerationist goals include social unrest and the downfall of the current world order, including the U.S. Government. Beginning in 2020, Tinajero started communicating with, and grooming, several minor victims to obtain sexually explicit content from them, including Jane Doe 1. In 2023, Tinajero began to threaten the safety of Jane Doe 1 and her family. Tinajero posted online in encrypted platforms associated with 764 and related groups a “Lorebook” – commonly used in 764 blackmail schemes — containing Jane Doe 1’s identifying information along with nude pictures of the minor.

    Between July 2023 and September 2023, during multiple discussions over social media, Tinajero and a co-conspirator agreed that Tinajero should kill Jane Doe 1. Tinajero and the co-conspirator specifically discussed that Tinajero should murder Jane Doe 1 and dispose of Jane Doe 1’s body in a barrel of acid after the murder. Tinajero posted multiple messages on various social media websites stating that he planned to kill Jane Doe 1 with a firearm because Jane Doe 1 refused to provide additional child sexual abuse material.

    On Aug. 26, 2023, Tinajero posted on Telegram, “Im determined to die” and “If I gotta kill her I can’t let her live and f**k with dudes and girls while I’m sick and miserable” and “Im gonna live stream it.” Tinajero also posted a picture of Jane Doe 1. On Sept. 2, 2023, Tinajero posted on Telegram, “I wanna kill them so bad just show up at their cribs and shoot 100 rounds in 5 seconds” and, on Sept. 3, 2023, posted “I didn’t wanna do anything bc I was scared of dying or prison but now I’m determined to die if I have to after getting rid of [Jane Doe 1] . . . .” Tinajero also began soliciting others to assist with attempting to kill Jane Doe 1.

    The FBI is investigating the case.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Erwin Roberts for the Western District of Kentucky and Trial Attorneys Justin Sher and James Donnelly of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting the case. The Violent Crime and Racketeering Section for the Criminal Division and the Eastern District of Arkansas provided assistance.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: U.S. Attorney’s Office Secures Guilty Plea from Shiprock Woman in Straw Purchase Case

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ALBUQUERQUE – A Shiprock woman pleaded guilty to federal charges related to the straw purchase of a firearm that was later used in a violent crime spree and murder.

    According to court documents, on April 24, 2024, Brittania Navaho, 29, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, purchased a revolver and ammunition from a pawn shop in Gallup, New Mexico, on behalf of Rydell Happy, a convicted felon prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition.

    At sentencing, Navaho faces up to 15 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release.

    U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.

    The Farmington Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from Navajo Nation Police Department, the Navajo Nation Department of Criminal Investigations and the McKinley County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney R. Eliot Neal is prosecuting the case.

    This case is being prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) Regional Outreach Program, which aims to aid in the prevention and response to missing or murdered Indigenous people through the resolution of MMIP cases and communication, coordination, and collaboration with federal, Tribal, state, and local partners.

    This case is being prosecuted under the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. The Act is a federal statute specifically designed to target the unlawful trafficking and straw-purchasing of firearms.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: U.S. Attorney’s Office Announces Sentencing of Albuquerque Man for Violent Carjacking and Robbery Spree

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ALBUQUERQUE – An Albuquerque man has been sentenced to 120 months in prison for a series of violent crimes committed in 2021.

    There is no parole in the federal system.

    According to court documents, Dairon Romero, 28, engaged in a crime spree that included carjacking and multiple robberies. Specifically:

    • On July 17, 2021, Romero carjacked a vehicle at gunpoint from a pregnant woman exiting a Walmart with her three young children.
    • On October 10, 2021, Romero entered a 7-Eleven convenience store, pointed a firearm at an employee, and stole approximately $200 in cash and several cartons of cigarettes.
    • On October 13, 2021, Romero robbed a Circle K, using mace on an employee and taking about $60 from the cash register.

    On April 18, 2024, Romero pleaded guilty to one count of carjacking and two counts of interference with commerce by robbery.

    At sentencing, the federal judge considered, among other things, Romero‘s violent criminal background as well as numerous other robberies Romero was alleged to have committed. This finding resulted in a sentence greater than the sentencing guideline range.

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

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

    The FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Albuquerque Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Natasha Moghadam is prosecuting the case.

    # # #

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Aiken Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Bank Fraud

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    COLUMBIA, S.C. —Cody Lee Anderson, 37, of Aiken, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud in connection with the signing of a will of an 88-year-old woman who passed away in 2022.

    Evidence presented in court showed that sometime during the pandemic, a will was executed by a woman in Aiken that purported to leave the entirety of her estate, which was worth approximately $20 million to co-conspirator Thomas Allen Bateman, Jr. Anderson was designated as the personal representative and stood to be paid a fee of 5%. Evidence developed during the investigation indicated the 88-year-old woman did not have the mental capacity to make an informed decision regarding the disposition of her assets.

    Anderson faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison. He also faces a fine of up to $1,000,000, and a total of five years of supervision to follow the term of imprisonment.  Senior United States District Judge Joseph F. Anderson, Jr. accepted the guilty plea and will sentence Anderson at a future date after receiving and reviewing a sentencing report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.  Anderson’s co-conspirator, Bateman, previously plead guilty on Aug. 13, 2024, and is scheduled to be sentenced on March 3.

    This case was investigated by the FBI Columbia Field Office and the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office Vulnerable Adults and Medicaid Provider Fraud unit (VAMPF). Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott Matthews and Winston Holliday are prosecuting the case.

    ###

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Defense News: U.S. Navy EOD and divers conduct arctic warfare training exercise SNOWCRABEX 2025

    Source: United States Navy

    SNOWCRABEX, controlled this year by Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit 2, is a two-week exercise designed to test and evaluate Naval Expeditionary Combat Forces (NECF) capabilities in a simulated arctic environment and, ultimately, improve Navy EOD’s combat effectiveness in mountain and arctic, winter warfare. During the exercise, U.S. Navy EOD technicians from EOD Mobile Units (EODMU) 12 and 2 and Navy divers from Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit (MDSU) 2 tested, evaluated, and refined tactics, equipment and operations in an austere and demanding environment with unpredictable weather conditions and temperatures dropping below zero.

    “Snow Crab Exercise is about training Arctic capable forces individually and collectively in cold weather operational skills like ice diving, skiing, shooting, unit movement, medical care, equipment sustainment, and survival—skills required for successful joint and combined operations in an arctic environment, so our units can successfully complete their mission when and where they’re called to,” said Lt. Samuel Baker, MDS Co. 2-1 company commander, MDSU 2. “This exercise provides a perfect training environment for our forces to build readiness for operations at high latitudes.”

    As stated in the Department of Defense’s Arctic Strategy 2024, “The United States is an Arctic nation, and the region is critical to the defense of our homeland, the protection of U.S. national sovereignty, and our defense treaty commitments.”

    Minnesota provides an ideal setting for Navy EOD and salvage divers to learn what it takes to not only survive in sub-zero temperatures and operate in heavy snow, but also how to succeed and thrive to become experts in an Arctic environment.

    SNOWCRABEX 2025 also allowed units to test equipment and refine load out standards to improve their ability to operate in harsh regions. Navy EOD and Navy divers utilize highly specialized equipment to conduct their missions, and this exercise provides a valuable opportunity to test sensitive gear in an austere environment that it wasn’t necessarily designed for, allowing for refinement of methods or the development of alternative solutions. The key lessons learned from the exercise will inform capability requirements and strategic planning for future arctic operations.

    “The training at SNOWCRABEX this year was priceless. It takes experience training in extreme cold weather so Sailors know how to operate, and prevent their hands and equipment from freezing,” said Cmdr. Garrett Pankow, commander, Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit 2. “When you’re diving under ice or mitigating explosive threats, the extreme conditions in mountain and arctic environments aren’t forgiving; the training experience gained at Snow Crab allows us to reduce risk already inherent in Navy EOD and salvage operations. We’ll continue to improve U.S. Navy EOD and mobile diving and salvage teams’ readiness to support Fleet operations anywhere, anytime.”

    U.S. Navy EOD cleared simulated unexploded ordnance, secured critical infrastructure, and integrated with local U.S. Air Force EOD; exercising communication between distributed operating units. Prior to arriving at Camp Ripley, they learned avalanche safety, mountain survivability, and winter mobility skills at training courses in Utah and Wyoming.

    Navy divers successfully completed ice dive training, arctic survivability, and mobility training, scenario based response drills, and diving casualty medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) training. The unique training environment at Camp Ripley allowed Navy divers to expand their capabilities for diving and salvage operations in an Arctic environment.

    In preparation for SNOWCRABEX 2025, components of EODGRU 2’s medical unit attended a week-long arctic mountain medicine course in Anchorage, Alaska, Jan. 6-13, 2025, where they learned extraction techniques and cold weather injury treatment that will enhance medical care capabilities within the Naval Expeditionary Force (NECF). Treating a casualty in an austere environment with difficult terrain, such as crevasse, cliff sides, and mountains requires special extraction techniques.

    The medical team exercised these techniques at SNOWCRABEX and trained EOD and ND units on advanced cold weather care, including rewarming techniques, hypothermia and frostbite treatment, and prolonged casualty care. Their training culminated with integrated support to MDSU 2 executing a complex MEDEVAC scenario simulating an ice diving casualty, extracting the diver from the water, coordinating helicopter landing at a local landing zone, and transporting the victim by medical support helicopter to a medical facility.

    “In an austere environment, where we have difficulty moving them out of location to a medical facility, we need a way to get someone the care they need within or as close to the ‘golden hour’ – the window of time that is most critical for a life-threatening injury. At SNOWCRABEX 2025, we are honing our medical skills and developing techniques which will enhance our medical care capabilities in these far out, hard to reach environments to support prolonged casualty care,” said Cmdr. Nikunj Bhatt, the Undersea Medical Officer (UMO) and Senior Medical Officer for EOD Group 2.

    “We have an incredible team developing techniques to deliver medical supplies, including blood, using unmanned air systems. Snow Crab is a unique environment to exercise these techniques; we are looking at temperature integrity, drone handling, drone payload capacity, its range of travel, and other variables. Having tools like this will be powerful for enhancing care capabilities for an expeditionary unit; to increase odds of survivability in the event of a cold weather medical casualty,” continued Bhatt.

    The exercise was a success due to the support from The Minnesota National Guard and Camp Ripley leadership and staff. MN Air National Guard provided air support for portions of the exercise. U.S. Air Force EOD Technicians from the 148th Fighter Wing Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Flight provided support to demolition training and operations.

    The U.S. Navy routinely patrols on, above, below and around Arctic waters to ensure the security of commerce and demonstrate freedom of navigation. Navy EOD and expeditionary divers constantly train to operate in all environments to execute the Nation’s tasking and enable the Fleet’s freedom of maneuver. Exercises like SNOWCRABEX 2025 allow our teams to improve Arctic literacy, training proficiency, and tactical competency to build readiness for operations in the austere and demanding Arctic environment.

    Other Navy Expeditionary Combat Command units that participated in SNOWCRABEX 2025 included: EOD Expeditionary Support Unit (EODESU) 2, Maritime Expeditionary Security Squadron (MSRON) 2, Navy Expeditionary Logistics Support Group (NAVELSG), Navy Expeditionary Intelligence Command (NEIC), and Navy Expeditionary Warfighting Development Center (NEXWDC).

    EODGRU 2 operates as part of Navy Expeditionary Combat Command and provides skilled, capable, and combat-ready deployable Navy EOD and Navy diver forces around the globe to support a range of operations.

    For additional news about U.S. Navy EOD and diving, visit https://www.dvidshub.net/unit/EODG-2.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Eastern Caribbean Currency Union: IMF Staff Concluding Statement of the 2025 Mission on Common Policies for Member Countries

    Source: IMF – News in Russian

    February 12, 2025

    A Concluding Statement describes the preliminary findings of IMF staff at the end of an official staff visit (or ‘mission’), in most cases to a member country. Missions are undertaken as part of regular (usually annual) consultations under Article IV of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, in the context of a request to use IMF resources (borrow from the IMF), as part of discussions of staff monitored programs, or as part of other staff monitoring of economic developments.

    The authorities have consented to the publication of this statement. The views expressed in this statement are those of the IMF staff and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF’s Executive Board. Based on the preliminary findings of this mission, staff will prepare a report that, subject to management approval, will be presented to the IMF Executive Board for discussion and decision.

    Washington, DC:

    The Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) has been providing a strong anchor for macroeconomic stability in a shock-prone region, demonstrated most recently by Hurricane Beryl with its devastating impact on Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The recovery from successive external shocks has been strong, driven by a rebound in tourism, with ECCU economies expected to converge to modest pre-pandemic average growth rates over the medium term. To effectively manage downside risks while supporting long-term inclusive growth and the continued robustness of the quasi-currency board, policies should aim to address supply-side bottlenecks, build resilient fiscal frameworks to support fiscal sustainability, and continue to enhance financial system resilience and intermediation. Greater leveraging of synergies in regional data collection and processing could help strengthen data provision and thereby evidence-based policymaking.

    The ECCU has achieved a strong rebound from successive adverse shocks. A strong tourism season and continued infrastructure investments supported robust growth in 2024. Inflation has moderated in tune with global trends from a post-pandemic peak of more than 9 percent to less than 2 percent. Nevertheless, public debt remains high and generally well above the regional 2035 debt ceiling of 60 percent of GDP. Meanwhile, Citizenship-by-Investment (CBI) revenues have shown signs of slowing amidst heightened international scrutiny and regulatory tightening. The financial system remains stable, partly due to a prolonged period of cautious bank lending. Despite persistently elevated current account deficits, the ECCB’s reserve position has remained stable and currency backing ratio high, supporting confidence in the currency union.

    Going forward, GDP growth is set to moderate, and risks remain mostly on the downside. As most parts of the region approach full tourism capacity, average growth in the region is expected to slow from 6½ percent in 2021-24 to around 2½ percent in the medium term amid weak productivity growth and investment, a shrinking labor force, and reduced fiscal space. Moreover, given the region’s long-standing vulnerabilities of high dependence on energy imports, exposure to natural disasters (NDs), persistently high public debt, and some economies’ heavy reliance on uncertain CBI revenues, the outlook is subject to significant downside risks.

    Addressing Supply-Side Bottlenecks to Enhance Growth

    The ECCU economies have exhibited a trend slowdown in growth due to structural factors. Supporting strong, resilient, and inclusive growth is key to reducing fiscal and external imbalances and raising living standards. An updated growth accounting analysis finds that potential growth has dropped in recent decades, reflecting declines across all components of growth, notably total factor productivity (TFP). These trends reflect a series of persistent structural impediments to economic efficiency, such as impediments to credit growth, burdensome administrative and licensing processes, and labor force skills gaps and mismatches. Recurring NDs also impair productive infrastructure and hinder human capital formation, placing additional limits on TFP growth. Against this backdrop, the regional “Big Push” effort that calls for a doubling of ECCU GDP in the coming decade is a welcome aspirational initiative, both in sensitizing the membership to key growth impediments and in helping to build a regional consensus on a roadmap for reform.

    A multipronged and coordinated set of policies that build on ongoing efforts is recommended to alleviate major structural impediments to growth. Improving labor market outcomes requires a renewed effort to attune human capital to economic needs and development priorities. This involves expanding vocational training and modernizing education systems, supplemented by policies to alleviate youth and gender employment gaps, such as active labor market policies and greater access to child and elderly care. Enhancing efficient and resilient capital investment could be supported by coordinated regional efforts to accelerate the green energy transition (GET), safeguard and optimize the CBI funding model, and strengthen disaster preparedness of the capital stock. Regional mechanisms such as the ECCB’s Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment Facility (REIIF) hold potential to scale up countries’ access to finance that can be usefully supported through regional frameworks to pool procurement and harmonize modern regulatory standards. Last year’s regional agreement to buttress the integrity of CBI regimes through enhanced regulatory, information exchange, and pricing frameworks is a welcome step to safeguard critical investment inflows. The planned regional CBI regulator provides an opportunity to address gaps in institutional reporting and strengthen accountability frameworks to ensure the productive allocation of all CBI inflows. Fallout from Hurricane Beryl highlights a potential role for common building standards across the region and the importance of prioritizing resilient infrastructure investment. Finally, policies to enhance the business environment—such as by digitalizing key services, streamlining cumbersome licensing and administrative processes, and improving financial intermediation—are essential to boost productivity and growth potential.

    Building Resilient Fiscal Frameworks to Support Fiscal Sustainability and Inclusive Growth

    The regional priority remains to rebuild fiscal buffers, reduce public debt levels consistent with the regional debt anchor, and improve fiscal resilience to shocks. Fiscal resilience is essential for macro stability and continuing to protect the quasi-currency board. The region’s high vulnerability to recurring NDs, coupled with periodic procyclical fiscal policies, are key drivers of the ECCU’s ongoing fiscal sustainability challenges. With 2035 only a decade away, sizable efforts are needed in some countries to achieve the regional debt target. Fiscal space is also needed to guard against risks and finance social spending and growth- and resilience-enhancing investment.

    This calls for a region-wide establishment of robust national fiscal resilience strategies and frameworks. Strong national medium-term fiscal frameworks (MTFFs), that incorporate well-designed country-specific fiscal rules, supported by specific fiscal measures and plans and strong fiscal institutions, will help instill prudence and create policy space. While many ECCU members have continued to upgrade their MTFFs, there is a need to enhance effective operational frameworks and underpinning fiscal policy and contingency plans that link fiscal operations with longer-term objectives. In addition, comprehensive ex-ante resilience strategies to enable resilient investment and adequate insurance against NDs would support debt sustainability and resilient growth. Integrating green budget tagging and a pipeline of projects into MTFFs will help anchor sustainable multi-year climate resilient investment plans and unlock global concessional financing. Expediting efforts to adopt a disaster risk financing strategy with self-insurance, contingent debt financing plans, and risk transfer arrangements will support liquidity for relief and reconstruction while safeguarding public finances. The relevant authorities should also consider frameworks with clear provisions for use of CBI revenue to avoid budget overreliance on these revenues given their potential volatility and to complement efforts with buffer and resilience building.

    Regional coordination and oversight of these efforts would help reinforce fiscal discipline and the credibility of the regional debt ceiling. To ensure the success of regional fiscal policy coordination, a strong governance framework to provide independent macroeconomic and budgetary projections and transparently assess fiscal plans, the implementation of fiscal rules, and fiscal sustainability would be beneficial. These efforts could be supported by national and/or regional independent fiscal oversight entities. International experience suggests that these entities have played an increasingly significant role in strengthening fiscal frameworks. A helpful first step could be to operationalize regular ECCB Monetary Council peer reviews of members’ fiscal strategies and progress toward the regional debt target.

    Safeguarding Financial Stability and Supporting Private Investment

    Banks’ legacy balance sheet weaknesses warrant continued policy focus. Close monitoring of agreed timelines and action plans for all extensions of implementing regional provisioning standards is important, and timely interventions should be made where necessary. Transitioning from reserve-based regulatory loan loss allowances to loss-bearing provisions would ensure appropriate recording and treatment of banks’ capital positions. Streamlining costly foreclosure and collateral sale processes and strengthening the capacity of the Eastern Caribbean Asset Management Company would support impaired asset disposal. Risks from rising overseas investments and some banks’ elevated local sovereign exposures warrant close monitoring.

    Stepped-up regional coordination would help mitigate non-bank financial system vulnerabilities. The continued rapid expansion of credit unions warrants strengthening provisioning standards, monitoring of forbearance measures, and enhancing supervisory capacity, including through greater sharing of best practices. The planned common minimum regulatory standards for non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) under the recently endorsed Eastern Caribbean Financial Standards Board (ECFSB) represent an important opportunity to establish a more level regulatory playing field between credit unions and banks. More centralized NBFI supervision would support more efficient and effective region-wide financial stability monitoring and is more acutely needed for consolidated oversight of pan-ECCU insurance companies. The ECCU’s high dependence on global property reinsurance makes it vulnerable to the evolving reassessment of climate liability risks. The risk of more sustained hardening of the reinsurance market could worsen existing underinsurance by driving up costs and reducing capacity. Strengthening monitoring of reinsurance coverage, including through more targeted data collection, would support policy preparedness to manage these risks and narrow protection gaps.

    A more systematic approach is needed to strengthen financial intermediation and private investment. Slow bank lending growth, particularly in business credit, has long limited growth-supporting investment. Notwithstanding some recovery in construction and real estate credit, much of the high system liquidity is invested overseas and the unmet credit demand has partly fueled growth of the more risk-tolerant credit unions. The region has taken important steps to address credit access constraints through the ongoing rollout of the Credit Bureau and more demand-tailored products under the Eastern Caribbean Partial Credit Guarantee Corporation. Closer coordination of these regional initiatives and national MSME development policies would support development of regional best practices in enhancing small businesses’ bankability. This would also allow more efficient scaling up of active outreach programs to foster business formalization. Competing lending programs under national development banks should closely consider their risk-bearing capacity. Strengthening the collateral infrastructure through modernized foreclosure and insolvency frameworks, development of market-based real estate indices, and reviewing any policy impediments to secondary property market liquidity can help derisk local lending opportunities and reduce credit costs. The potential credit pricing distortions from the minimum savings rate should be reviewed alongside the ongoing efforts to encourage regional retail investment and capital market development.

    Strengthening of AML/CFT frameworks remains crucial amidst the scrutiny of CBI programs and thin correspondent banking relationships. This includes completing the long-pending designation of the ECCB as the AML/CFT supervisor for banks and centralization of AML/CFT regulatory standards under the ECFSB.

    Strengthening data provision

    Greater leveraging of synergies in regional data collection and processing could help address persistent resource and capacity gaps. Regional data provision has some shortcomings that somewhat hamper surveillance. While continued IMF/CARTAC technical assistance has proven valuable in improving data timeliness and quality, progress is often impeded by persistent staffing shortages and high turnover. A regional framework with centralization of data compilation and analysis could limit processing overlaps, enhance cross-country comparability, and better leverage the limited staffing resources.

                                                                                                                    

    The IMF team thanks the authorities and private sector counterparts for their warm hospitality and insightful and constructive discussions.

    IMF Communications Department
    MEDIA RELATIONS

    PRESS OFFICER: Meera Louis

    Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org

    https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2025/02/12/021225-mcs-east-carib-currency-union-imf-cs-2025-mission-on-common-policies-for-member-countries

    MIL OSI

    MIL OSI Russia News

  • MIL-OSI USA: Gov. Kemp Appoints Josh Lamb to Serve as Director of GEMA/HS

    Source: US State of Georgia

    ATLANTA – Governor Brian P. Kemp today announced his appointment of Josh Lamb as director of the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMA/HS). Lamb will fill the role following the departure of previous director Chris Stallings.

    “I’m honored to welcome Lt. Col. Lamb to GEMA and thank him for stepping into this important leadership role that is critical to the safety and recovery of Georgia’s communities, especially as we continue to rebuild from Hurricane Helene and other storms,” said Governor Brian Kemp. “I know Lt. Col. Lamb is committed to that mission and will provide the leadership necessary to ensure our state is prepared to respond to disaster and proactively keep Georgians safe. Marty, the girls, and I also want to thank Mike Smith for his service during this recent transitional period and for his continued leadership as GEMA Chief of Staff.”

    Lieutenant Colonel Josh Lamb serves as the Department of Public Safety’s Assistant Commissioner, overseeing several key areas, including the Office of Professional Standards, the Human Resources Division, the Public Information Office, the Office of Public Safety Support, and Legislative Affairs. He was appointed to his role as Assistant Commissioner on October 1, 2023, having previously served as the Director of Administrative Services.

    Lt. Col. Lamb began his law enforcement career in 1996 as a special agent with the Tri-Circuit Drug Task Force after graduating from Georgia Southern University with a bachelor’s degree in justice studies. In 1998, he joined the Georgia State Patrol and graduated from the 74th Trooper School. He has held various positions throughout his career, including corporal at Post 11 Hinesville, sergeant at Post 45 Statesboro, sergeant first class at Post 45 Statesboro, Post 16 Helena, and Post 18 Reidsville. He also dedicated eight years as a State of Georgia SWAT team member. In addition, he served as a lieutenant in the Planning and Research Unit, where he developed departmental policies, organized special events such as the 2018 National College Championship Game and Super Bowl LIII, and worked on legislative matters, including the distracted driving law. His roles have included director of training, SWAT team commander, executive officer to the deputy commissioner, chief of staff, and director of administrative services.

    Lt. Col. Lamb earned a master’s degree in public administration from Columbus State University and attended the 259th Session of the FBI National Academy, where he was one of only two individuals from Georgia ever chosen to represent his session as class spokesperson. He also served as an FBI executive fellow and has taught nationally.  He graduated from the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police Chief Executive Training Course.  He recently served as the head of delegation for the 31st Georgia Law Enforcement Delegation to Israel.

    Lt. Col. Lamb and his wife, Alison, have two daughters, Kenley and Karson.

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI: Veeco Ships Nanosecond Annealing System Targeting High Volume Production of 2 Nanometer Gate-All-Around Chips

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    PLAINVIEW, N.Y., Feb. 12, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: VECO) announced today a NSA500™ Nanosecond Annealing system shipment to a leading-edge semiconductor company for high-volume production of 2-nanometer gate-all-around logic chips. The shipment occurred during the fourth quarter of 2024.

    Equally as important, the company’s NSA500™ evaluation programs at two other leading-edge customers are progressing well with multiple applications being considered. Interest from additional logic and memory customers to evaluate Veeco’s system also remains high.

    Veeco’s recently launched next-generation annealing platform expands the company’s overall opportunity in laser annealing to leading-edge applications in logic and memory. New applications include precise shallow anneals for 3D devices, low thermal budget anneals, and material modification applications. Compared to traditional annealing solutions, the NSA500 system is capable of precisely annealing relevant surface layers without damaging the underlying device due to its combination of short dwell times in the nanosecond scale and high temperatures. 

    “Shipment of this NSA500™ Nanosecond Annealing system is an important milestone given the growing need for annealing solutions with advanced capabilities for leading-edge applications,” commented Adrian Devasahayam, Ph.D., Veeco’s Senior Vice President, Product Line Management. “We look forward to supporting our customers as they accelerate production of next-generation chips for growing markets such as artificial intelligence and high-performance computing. The broad applicability of Veeco’s NSA500 system provides a significant opportunity to expand Veeco’s served available market.”

    About Veeco
    Veeco (NASDAQ: VECO) is an innovative manufacturer of semiconductor process equipment. Our laser annealing, ion beam, chemical vapor deposition (CVD), metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), single wafer etch & clean and lithography technologies play an integral role in the fabrication and packaging of advanced semiconductor devices. With equipment designed to optimize performance, yield and cost of ownership, Veeco holds leading technology positions in the markets we serve. To learn more about Veeco’s systems and service offerings, visit www.veeco.com.

    To the extent that this news release discusses expectations or otherwise makes statements about the future, such statements are forward-looking and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made. These factors include the risks discussed in the Business Description and Management’s Discussion and Analysis sections of Veeco’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and in our subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and press releases. Veeco does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances after the date of such statements.

    Veeco Contacts:                                
    Investors: Anthony Pappone | (516) 500-8798 | apappone@veeco.com
    Media: Brenden Wright | (410) 984-2610 | bwright@veeco.com

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI Security: Vicksburg Man Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Possessing a Firearm as a Convicted Felon

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

    Jackson, Miss. – A Vicksburg man was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.

    According to court documents, Marquette Cornell McCroy, 43, was found in possession of a firearm in Vicksburg following a traffic stop. McCroy, who was the driver and sole occupant of the vehicle, had previously been convicted of a felony and was therefore prohibited from possessing firearms. McCroy threw the firearm on the ground as he attempted to flee the vehicle on foot.

    McCroy was indicted by a federal grand jury and he pled guilty on October 3, 2024.

    Acting U.S. Attorney Patrick A. Lemon and Special Agent in Charge Robert Eikhoff of the Federal Bureau of Investigation made the announcement.

    The Vicksburg Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the case.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Bert Carraway 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.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI: Bitget Wallet Integrates Mantra Mainnet, Enabling Access to RWA Tokenization

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    VICTORIA, Seychelles, Feb. 12, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Bitget Wallet, a leading Web3 non-custodial wallet, has announced full support for the Mantra Mainnet, a Layer 1 blockchain focused on the tokenization of real-world assets (RWA). With this integration, Bitget Wallet users can easily access Mantra’s network to transfer and receive $OM tokens, participate in cross-chain transactions, and explore staking opportunities through Mantra’s DApp.

    The Mantra Mainnet is designed to enable the onchain representation of real-world assets, bridging the gap between traditional finance and blockchain ecosystems. Through tokenization, Mantra aims to provide a scalable and flexible foundation for integrating RWAs within decentralized finance (DeFi). By offering a compliant-ready framework, it positions itself as a key player in unlocking RWA potential.

    Bitget Wallet’s integration with Mantra highlights its commitment to expanding user access to emerging on-chain asset ecosystems. Users can interact seamlessly with Mantra’s DApp, which offers $OM token staking, cross-chain functions, and official rewards programs. This integration aligns with the growing trend of bringing real-world asset exposure to the decentralized world.

    Looking ahead, Bitget Wallet plans to deepen its collaboration with Mantra through upcoming reward programs designed to encourage user participation in the evolving RWA ecosystem. “As real-world assets move on-chain, wallets become gateways to a new era of finance,” said Alvin Kan, COO of Bitget Wallet. “Our partnership with Mantra accelerates this shift by providing users with direct access to tokenized assets, reshaping how value is stored, transferred, and grown in the digital world.”

    About Bitget Wallet
    Bitget Wallet is the home of Web3, uniting endless possibilities in one non-custodial wallet. With over 60 million users, it offers comprehensive onchain services, including asset management, instant swaps, rewards, staking, trading tools, live market data, a DApp browser, an NFT marketplace and crypto payment. Supporting over 100 blockchains, 20,000+ DApps, and 500,000+ tokens, Bitget Wallet enables seamless multi-chain trading across hundreds of DEXs and cross-chain bridges, along with a $300+ million protection fund to ensure safety of users’ assets. Experience Bitget Wallet Lite to start a Web3 journey.
    For more information, visit: XTelegramInstagramYouTubeLinkedInTikTokDiscordFacebook
    For media inquiries, please contact media.web3@bitget.com

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2b1b3321-b108-40cb-94a7-2d49171cac93

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-Evening Report: Chris Hedges: The US empire self-destructs

    Report by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific.

    The United States shares the pathologies of all dying empires with their mixture of buffoonery, rampant corruption, military fiascos, economic collapse and savage state repression.

    ANALYSIS: By Chris Hedges

    The billionaires, Christian fascists, grifters, psychopaths, imbeciles, narcissists and deviants who have seized control of Congress, the White House and the courts, are cannibalising the machinery of state. These self-inflicted wounds, characteristic of all late empires, will cripple and destroy the tentacles of power. And then, like a house of cards, the empire will collapse.

    Blinded by hubris, unable to fathom the empire’s diminishing power, the mandarins in the Trump administration have retreated into a fantasy world where hard and unpleasant facts no longer intrude. They sputter incoherent absurdities while they usurp the Constitution and replace diplomacy, multilateralism and politics with threats and loyalty oaths.

    Agencies and departments, created and funded by acts of Congress, are going up in smoke.

    The rulers of all late empires, including the Roman emperors Caligula and Nero or Charles I, the last Habsburg ruler, are as incoherent as the Mad Hatter, uttering nonsensical remarks, posing unanswerable riddles and reciting word salads of inanities. They, like Donald Trump, are a reflection of the moral, intellectual and physical rot that plague a diseased society. Cartoon: Mr Fish/The Chris Hedges Report

    They are removing government reports and data on climate change and withdrawing
    from the Paris Climate Agreement,. They are pulling out of the World Health Organisation.

    They are sanctioning officials who work at the International Criminal Court — which issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant over war crimes in Gaza.

    They suggested Canada become the 51st state. They have formed a task force to “eradicate anti-Christian bias.” They call for the annexation of Greenland and the seizure of the Panama Canal.

    They propose the construction of luxury resorts on the coast of a depopulated Gaza under US control which, if it takes place, would bring down the Arab regimes propped up by the US.

    Uttering nonsensical remarks
    The rulers of all late empires, including the Roman emperors Caligula and Nero or Charles I, the last Habsburg ruler, are as incoherent as the Mad Hatter, uttering nonsensical remarks, posing unanswerable riddles and reciting word salads of inanities. They, like Donald Trump, are a reflection of the moral, intellectual and physical rot that plague a diseased society.

    I spent two years researching and writing about the warped ideologues of those who have now seized power in my book American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America. Read it while you still can. Seriously.

    These Christian fascists, who define the core ideology of the Trump administration, are unapologetic about their hatred for pluralistic, secular democracies. They seek, as they exhaustively detail in numerous “Christian” books and documents such as the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025, to deform the judiciary and legislative branches of government, along with the media and academia, into appendages to a “Christianised” state led by a divinely anointed leader.

    They openly admire Nazi apologists such as Rousas John Rushdoony, a supporter of eugenics who argues that education and social welfare should be handed over to the churches and Biblical law must replace the secular legal code, and Nazi party theorists such as Carl Schmitt.

    They are avowed racists, misogynists and homophobes. They embrace bizarre conspiracy theories from the white replacement theory to a shadowy monster they call “the woke.” Suffice it to say, they are not grounded in a reality based universe.

    Christian fascists come out of a theocratic sect called Dominionism. This sect teaches that American Christians have been mandated to make America a Christian state and an agent of God. Political and intellectual opponents of this militant Biblicalism are condemned as agents of Satan.

    “Under Christian dominion, America will no longer be a sinful and fallen nation but one in which the 10 Commandments form the basis of our legal system, creationism and ‘Christian values’ form the basis of our educational system, and the media and the government proclaim the Good News to one and all,” I noted in my book.

    “Labour unions, civil-rights laws and public schools will be abolished. Women will be removed from the workforce to stay at home, and all those deemed insufficiently Christian will be denied citizenship. Aside from its proselytising mandate, the federal government will be reduced to the protection of property rights and ‘homeland’ security.”


    Chris Hedges talks to Marc Lamont Hill on Up Front on why “democracy doesn’t exist in the United States” today.   Video: Al Jazeera

    Comforting to most Americans
    The Christian fascists and their billionaire funders, I noted, “speak in terms and phrases that are familiar and comforting to most Americans, but they no longer use words to mean what they meant in the past.”

    They commit logocide, killing old definitions and replacing them with new ones. Words — including truth, wisdom, death, liberty, life and love — are deconstructed and assigned diametrically opposed meanings.Life and death, for example, mean life in Christ or death to Christ, a signal of belief of unbelief. Wisdom refers to the level of commitment and obedience to the doctrine.

    Liberty is not about freedom, but the liberty that comes from following Jesus Christ and being liberated from the dictates of secularism. Love is twisted to mean an unquestioned obedience to those, such as Trump, who claim to speak and act for God.As the death spiral accelerates, phantom enemies, domestic and foreign, will be blamed for the demise, persecuted and slated for obliteration.

    Once the wreckage is complete, ensuring the immiseration of the citizenry, a breakdown in public services and engendering an inchoate rage, only the blunt instrument of state violence will remain. A lot of people will suffer, especially as the climate crisis inflicts with greater and greater intensity its lethal retribution.

    The near-collapse of our constitutional system of checks and balances took place long before the arrival of Trump. Trump’s return to power represents the death rattle of the Pax Americana. The day is not far off when, like the Roman Senate in 27 BC, Congress will take its last significant vote and surrender power to a dictator. The Democratic Party, whose strategy seems to be to do nothing and hope Trump implodes, have already acquiesced to the inevitable.

    The question is not whether we go down, but how many millions of innocents we will take with us. Given the industrial violence our empire wields, it could be a lot, especially if those in charge decide to reach for the nukes.

    The dismantling of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) — Elon Musk claims is run by “a viper’s nest of radical-left marxists who hate America” — is an example of how these arsonists are clueless about how empires function.

    Foreign aid is not benevolent. It is weaponised to maintain primacy over the United Nations and remove governments the empire deems hostile. Those nations in the UN and other multilateral organisations who vote the way the empire demands, who surrender their sovereignty to global corporations and the US military, receive assistance. Those who don’t do not.

    Building infrastructure projects
    When the US offered to build the airport in Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince, investigative journalist Matt Kennard reports, it required that Haiti oppose Cuba’s admittance into the Organisation of American States, which it did.

    Foreign aid builds infrastructure projects so corporations can operate global sweatshops and extract resources. It funds “democracy promotion” and “judicial reform” that thwart the aspirations of political leaders and governments that seek to remain independent from the grip of the empire.

    USAID, for example, paid for a “political party reform project” that was designed
    “as a counterweight” to the “radical” Movement Toward Socialism (Movimiento al Socialismo) and sought to prevent socialists like Evo Morales from being elected in Bolivia. It then funded organisations and initiatives, including training programmes so Bolivian youth could be taught the American business practices, once Morales assumed the presidency, to weaken his hold on power.

    Kennard in his book, The Racket: A Rogue Reporter vs The American Empire, documents
    how US institutions such as the National Endowment for Democracy, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the Inter-American Development Bank, USAID and the Drug Enforcement Administration, work in tandem with the Pentagon and Central Intelligence Agency to subjugate and oppress the Global South.

    Client states that receive aid must break unions, impose austerity measures, keep wages low and maintain puppet governments. The heavily funded aid programmes, designed to bring down Morales, eventually led the Bolivian president to throw USAID out of the country.

    The lie peddled to the public is that this aid benefits both the needy overseas and us at home. But the inequality these programmes facilitate abroad replicates the inequality imposed domestically. The wealth extracted from the Global South is not equitably distributed. It ends up in the hands of the billionaire class, often stashed in overseas bank accounts to avoid taxation.

    Our US tax dollars, meanwhile, disproportionately funds the military, which is the iron fist that sustains the system of exploitation. The 30 million Americans who were victims of mass layoffs and deindustrialisation lost their jobs to workers in sweatshops overseas. As Kennard notes, both home and abroad, it is a vast “transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich globally and domestically”.

    Legitimises theft at home
    “The same people that devise the myths about what we do abroad have also built up a similar ideological system that legitimises theft at home; theft from the poorest, by the richest,” he writes. “The poor and working people of Harlem have more in common with the poor and working people of Haiti than they do with their elites, but this has to be obscured for the racket to work.”

    Foreign aid maintains sweatshops or “special economic zones” in countries such as Haiti, where workers toil for pennies an hour and often in unsafe conditions for global corporations.

    “One of the facets of special economic zones, and one of the incentives for corporations in the US, is that special economic zones have even less regulations than the national state on how you can treat labour and taxes and customs,” Kennard told me in an interview.

    “You open these sweatshops in the special economic zones. You pay the workers a pittance. You get all the resources out without having to pay customs or tax. The state in Mexico or Haiti or wherever it is, where they’re offshoring this production, doesn’t benefit at all. That’s by design. The coffers of the state are always the ones that never get increased. It’s the corporations that benefit.”

    These same US institutions and mechanisms of control, Kennard writes in his book, were employed to sabotage the electoral campaign of Jeremy Corbyn, a fierce critic of the US empire, for prime minister in Britain.

    The US disbursed nearly $72 billion in foreign aid in fiscal year 2023. It funded clean water initiatives, HIV/Aids treatments, energy security and anti-corruption work. In 2024, it provided 42 percent of all humanitarian aid tracked by the United Nations.

    Humanitarian aid, often described as “soft power,” is designed to mask the theft of resources in the Global South by US corporations, the expansion of the footprint of the US military, the rigid control of foreign governments, the devastation caused by fossil fuel extraction, the systemic abuse of workers in global sweatshops and the poisoning of child labourers in places like the Congo, where they are used to mine lithium.

    The demise of American power
    I doubt Musk and his army of young minions in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) — which isn’t an official department within the federal government — have any idea about how the organisations they are destroying work, why they exist or what it will mean for the demise of American power.

    The seizure of government personnel records and classified material, the effort to terminate hundreds of millions of dollars worth of government contracts — mostly those which relate to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), the offers of buyouts to “drain the swamp” including a buyout offer to the entire workforce of the Central Intelligence Agency — now temporarily blocked by a judge — the firing of 17 or 18 inspectors generals
    and federal prosecutors, the halting of government funding and grants, sees them cannibalise the leviathan they worship.

    They plan to dismantle the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Education
    and the US Postal Service, part of the internal machinery of the empire. The more dysfunctional the state becomes, the more it creates a business opportunity for predatory corporations and private equity firms. These billionaires will make a fortune “harvesting” the remains of the empire. But they are ultimately slaying the beast that created American wealth and power.

    Once the dollar is no longer the world’s reserve currency, something the dismantling of the empire guarantees, the US will be unable to pay for its huge deficits by selling Treasury bonds. The American economy will fall into a devastating depression. This will trigger a breakdown of civil society, soaring prices, especially for imported products, stagnant wages and high unemployment rates.

    The funding of at least 750 overseas military bases and our bloated military will become impossible to sustain. The empire will instantly contract. It will become a shadow of itself. Hypernationalism, fueled by an inchoate rage and widespread despair, will morph into a hate-filled American fascism.

    Relentless hunt for plunder, profit
    “The demise of the United States as the preeminent global power could come far more quickly than anyone imagines,” the historian Alfred W. McCoy writes in his book In the Shadows of the American Century: The Rise and Decline of US Global Power:

    Despite the aura of omnipotence empires often project, most are surprisingly fragile, lacking the inherent strength of even a modest nation-state. Indeed, a glance at their history should remind us that the greatest of them are susceptible to collapse from diverse causes, with fiscal pressures usually a prime factor. For the better part of two centuries, the security and prosperity of the homeland has been the main objective for most stable states, making foreign or imperial adventures an expendable option, usually allocated no more than 5 percent of the domestic budget. Without the financing that arises almost organically inside a sovereign nation, empires are famously predatory in their relentless hunt for plunder or profit — witness the Atlantic slave trade, Belgium’s rubber lust in the Congo, British India’s opium commerce, the Third Reich’s rape of Europe, or the Soviet exploitation of Eastern Europe.

    When revenues shrink or collapse, McCoy points out, “empires become brittle.”

    “So delicate is their ecology of power that, when things start to go truly wrong, empires regularly unravel with unholy speed: just a year for Portugal, two years for the Soviet Union, eight years for France, 11 years for the Ottomans, 17 for Great Britain, and, in all likelihood, just 27 years for the United States, counting from the crucial year 2003 [when the US invaded Iraq],” he writes.

    The array of tools used for global dominance — wholesale surveillance, the evisceration of civil liberties, including due process, torture, militarised police, the massive prison system, militarised drones and satellites — will be employed against a restive and enraged population.

    The devouring of the carcass of the empire to feed the outsized greed and egos of these scavengers presages a new dark age.

    Chris Hedges is a Pulitzer Prize–winning author and journalist who was a foreign correspondent for 15 years for The New York Times. This article was first published on his Substack page. Republished from the Chris Hedges X page.

    This article was first published on Café Pacific.

    MIL OSI AnalysisEveningReport.nz

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Colombian conflict survivors turn forest heroes in search of climate change solutions

    Source: United Nations MIL OSI b

    Climate and Environment

    “What do I want the river to carry away? The deforestation,” Sandra Donado says, her voice competing with the sudden storm lashing her canoe as it floats down the Guaviare River in Colombia’s Amazon biome region.

    This waterway, a silent witness to the turmoil of the municipality of Mapiripán, has seen it all – the wildlife trafficking, the coca harvests that fuelled conflict, the human bodies left behind amid a heinous massacre and the relentless erosion of the rainforest it once nourished.

    Now, Sandra hopes it will carry away the pain of the past and usher in an era of healing for her community and for its land.

    Mapiripán has long been trapped in a cycle of conflict and environmental degradation exacerbated by climate change. Many years ago, it was known for its illegal wildlife fur trade; later, it became a coca-growing region, attracting armed groups that turned the lush rainforest into a battleground.

    Promise of prosperity

    A young Sandra, facing extreme poverty and violence, arrived in Mapiripán in the early 2000s, drawn by a promise of prosperity. “There was an economic boom,” she recalls, “but it came from illicit crops – there was no other way to live.”

    But the area’s prosperity was short-lived. Eventually, the conflict escalated, and the coca trade collapsed, leaving the community in ruins. “We lived with both prosperity and conflict,” Sandra says, her voice trembling as she recounts harrowing experiences of hiding from armed groups.

    By 2009, most of the people in the rural communities in the region were forced to leave.

    Many, including Sandra, returned after the signing of the Colombia Peace Agreement in 2016 which ended a decades-long rebel insurgency.

    But the land, scarred by conflict and unsustainable cultivation, now struggled to produce. With a lack of infrastructure and limited market access, farmers like Marco Antonio Lopez turned to cattle ranching for survival.

    Deforestation boom

    This meant clearing more forests. “We would deforest 15 or 20 hectares with our own hands for our cattle,” he admits, “not to destroy biodiversity, but to find a way to survive.”

    They also watched helplessly as newcomers took over abandoned areas and deforested even larger swaths of land. “They didn’t care about deforesting 700 to 1,000 hectares,” Sandra says with disgust. “They would just cut right through the centre of the mountain.”

    The consequences were becoming all too clear: “That’s when we started to feel the heat, to notice the change in the climate,” she adds.

    © FAO/Felipe Rodríguez

    A silvopastoral system in the Amazon integrates trees and shrubs into livestock pastures. This increases carbon storage in trees and soil, reducing greenhouse gas emissions from livestock and fertilizer and boosting resilience to climate change.

    Sandra and Marco now long for a future where they can improve their lives while protecting the forests, a desire shared across the country.

    In fact, Colombia has made significant progress in curbing deforestation. The nation demonstrated that, between 2015 and 2016, deforestation rates in its Amazon Biome dropped substantially, preventing almost seven million tons of CO2 emissions.

    This success helped the nation secure a $28.2 million Results-based Payment (RBP) from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) in 2020 to implement the Colombia REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) project, known in the country as Vision Amazonia.

    Led by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Vision Amazonia promotes conservation and sustainable land management in rapid deforestation areas like Mapiripán.

    © FAO/Felipe Rodríguez

    A silvopastoral system in the Amazon integrates trees and shrubs into livestock pastures. This increases carbon storage in trees and soil, reducing greenhouse gas emissions from livestock and fertilizer and boosting resilience to climate change.

    ‘We, the community’

    In coordination with the Colombian government and local communities, the FAO project which runs until the end of 2026, protects the Amazon biome through forest monitoring and sustainable management practices, benefitting smallholders, farmer associations and local authorities alike.

    “We, the community, are already aware of the problem caused by climate change. Now when we go out into the field to do work, the sun is so strong that we cannot resist the heat anymore. We have truly begun to develop an awareness of the need for preservation of these beautiful ecosystems that we have in the territory,” says Marco.

    “If the forest thrives and we thrive, the animals thrive,” Sandra adds.

    © FAO/Felipe Rodríguez

    Deforestation releases carbon into the atmosphere, which fuels climate change and further harms forests.

    “With this project,” explains Sandra Vanegas, FAO local markets coordinator, “we are ensuring forest conservation while families generate resources through associative projects.

    “We are promoting agroforestry gardens where they can produce for their own consumption and conserve seeds and endemic plants.”

    Indeed, Marco and Sandra’s communities have now gained a deep understanding of agroforestry, a sustainable land use practice that combines agriculture and forestry. Through educational visits, they’ve witnessed firsthand how to revitalize their soils with organic fertilizer and grow their own food.

    Marco recounts a gradual awakening regarding their livestock. “We didn’t know at the time,” he admits, “that we didn’t need a huge extension of pastures for our cows to have good nourishment.”

    The initiative, he says, opened their eyes through a series of training sessions. Now they have started to implement silvopastoral systems by planting trees on their family farms.

    “They gave us a broader perspective, helping us realize the damage and consequences of continued deforestation. That’s when we, as leaders, took a stronger stance to protect the forest.”

    This newfound awareness led them to form the AGROCIARE association to pursue sustainable projects. For instance, they have been actively working to plant and commercialize the cacay tree, a native Amazonian species known for its nutritious fruit.

    With training in legal and organizational skills, they’ve strengthened their association’s capacity to advocate for environmental protection and better livelihoods.

    “Our vision is to ensure that the treasure of our environment and rainforest is protected by those of us who live here,” Marco declares.

    By working with the rural communities, the programme is finding climate solutions that are effective, equitable and offer a different future for the Amazon.

    Agrifood systems solutions are climate, biodiversity and land solutions

    This story is part of a three-part series from FAO on climate, biodiversity and land solutions in Colombia. These stories take you from the arid landscapes of La Guajira, where the SCALA programme is supporting climate resilience and food security, to the Pacific coast, where a Global Environmental Facility-supported project is working to conserve rich biodiversity while also contributing to the pursuit of peace.

    MIL OSI United Nations News

  • MIL-OSI Security: Miske Enterprise Member Sentenced to 20 Years in Federal Prison for Racketeering Conspiracy

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    HONOLULU – Acting United States Attorney Kenneth M. Sorenson announced that John B. Stancil, 37, of Waimanalo, was sentenced today in federal court by U.S. District Judge Derrick K. Watson to 240 months of imprisonment (the statutory maximum) followed by 3 years of supervised release for racketeering conspiracy. Stancil pled guilty on January 22, 2024, in the middle of jury selection, to conspiring to conduct and  participate in the conduct of the affairs of a racketeering enterprise, the “Miske Enterprise,” through racketeering activity that included participating in the commission of murder-for-hire and acts relating to chemical weapons.

    In his plea agreement, Stancil admitted that he and other members of the Miske Enterprise participated in chemical weapon attacks on two Honolulu nightclubs in March 2017, carried out on the orders of codefendant Michael J. Miske. Stancil provided the toxic chemical used in the attacks – a substance called chloropicrin, which can cause death, temporary incapacitation, or permanent harm to humans. Stancil also admitted to joining a murder-for-hire conspiracy with Miske and other Enterprise members. Miske put a murder contract out on an individual he believed was cooperating with law enforcement. Stancil then provided details of where the victim lived to another co-conspirator who agreed to carry out the murder until Miske eventually rescinded the contract. Stancil also admitted he served as the getaway driver for multiple assaults ordered by Miske and on behalf of the Miske Enterprise. According to other information provided to the Court, Stancil also coordinated and participated in numerous robberies on behalf of the Miske Enterprise.

    Stancil was charged alongside twelve other defendants, all of whom pled guilty except for Michael J. Miske who proceeded to trial and was found guilty of racketeering conspiracy, murder, and 11 other felony charges on July 18, 2024. Seven other members and associates of the Miske Enterprise pled guilty to various offenses in related cases.

    “You cannot run from the facts,” Judge Watson advised Stancil during today’s sentencing before reciting the litany of racketeering acts for which the Court found Stancil responsible. Judge Watson found Stancil to be  “among the most culpable” of those in the Miske Enterprise, describing him as one of Michael Miske’s “key confidantes and lieutenants” and a “key player in terrorizing the citizenry of this city and county for years.” Judge Watson further noted that Stancil deserved an even higher prison sentence that the Court was not permitted to impose by statute.

    “Today’s sentence represents the culmination of years of tireless, dogged, skilled, and innovative work on the part of the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Hawaii and our outstanding law enforcement partners, the Honolulu Division of the FBI, Internal Revenue Service, and Homeland Security Investigations, among others,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Ken Sorenson. “The court was deprived of the opportunity to sentence Michael Miske due to his untimely death following his guilty verdicts at trial for racketeering and other crimes. But today’s sentence, along with the 18 convictions we have secured against Miske’s henchmen and violent thugs, demonstrates our strong commitment to investigating, prosecuting, and convicting those who violate the law and endanger the safety and welfare of Hawaii’s citizens. Let today’s sentence and the convictions in these cases serve as a stark reminder to those who operate criminal enterprises in Hawaii that we have the tools, expertise, and resolve to bring them to justice.”

    “Mr. Stancil was a key member of the Miske Enterprise, actively participating in a longstanding pattern of racketeering activity involving murder-forhire, robbery, and use of chemical weapons,” said FBI Honolulu Special Agent in Charge David Porter. “This sentencing reflects years of collaboration between FBI Honolulu and our law enforcement partners. The FBI remains steadfast in its commitment to dismantle violent criminal enterprises, hold their members accountable, and pursue justice for victims.”

    “Mr. Stancil’s racketeering charge reminds us that organized crime threatens innocent lives for money,” said Adam Jobes, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation’s Seattle Field Office. “Our agency follows the money so we can cut off organized crime at its roots.” 

    “HSI is committed to ending organized crime in Hawaii. The sentencing of Mr. Stancil underscores the importance of leveraging law enforcement partnerships to safeguard our community,” said HSI Special Agent in Charge Lucy Cabral-DeArmas. “Our dedication to this cause is unwavering, and we will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that these criminals are held accountable for their actions.”

    This prosecution was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligencedriven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

    This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the Criminal Investigation Division of the Environmental  Protection Agency, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, with assistance from the Honolulu Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Coast Guard Investigative Service, the United States Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force, the Cybercrime Lab of the Department of Justice Criminal Division Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, the Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center, the Honolulu Fire Department, the Hawaii National Guard, 93rd Civil Support Team, the Office of Investigations–Office of the Inspector General for the Social Security Administration, and the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General.

    Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark Inciong, Michael Nammar, KeAupuni Akina, and Aislinn Affinito prosecuted the case.

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI Security: Twenty Defendants Indicted in Akron Drug Trafficking and Firearms Conspiracy

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

    AKRON, Ohio – A 51-count superseding indictment was unsealed today charging 17 Ohio residents of operating a large-scale drug trafficking scheme based in Akron. The Drug Trafficking Organization (DTO) is alleged to be responsible for trafficking distribution quantities of controlled substances in the Summit County, Ohio area including methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine, as well as Alprazolam, which is more commonly known under the brand name Xanax. Three other defendants were indicted separately for their involvement in the conspiracy.

    According to court documents, the investigation that led to the indictment began in December 2023 and continued to around August 2024. The alleged leader, Joe Nathan Sanders-Taylor, 41, of Akron, was believed to be the center of the DTO that distributed illegal drugs throughout Northeast Ohio. He was regularly supplied by co-conspirators who funneled drug inventory from sources connected to the Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG or Jalisco Cartel). Sanders-Taylor developed a drug distribution process that employed a number of individuals to serve as drug dealers throughout the Northeast Ohio region.

    Court documents show that Sanders-Taylor used a network of associates to re-sell the drugs, assist with financial transactions, or act as lookouts while drug deals took place. Several co-defendants and other members of the conspiracy maintained and used residences in Summit County, Ohio, to store and distribute their drug supplies, or to manufacture controlled substances. Members of the conspiracy also possessed firearms to further their illegal business activities and protect their drug inventory.

    Sanders-Taylor was arrested on June 10, 2024, after he engaged in a pursuit by the Ohio State Highway Patrol on Interstate 77 in Summit County. As he fled from police, he threw two loaded firearms with high-capacity magazines from the vehicle. Sanders-Taylor crashed the vehicle and then fled on foot and attempted to carjack two separate vehicles with people still inside. Sanders-Taylor was later discovered to have prior federal convictions which prohibits him from possessing firearms. Further investigation of the incident determined that he also possessed distribution amounts of methamphetamine and fentanyl. The remaining defendants were apprehended in a series of coordinated arrests.

    The superseding indictment charges the following 17 defendants:

    • Joe Nathan Sanders-Taylor, aka Red, 41, Akron
    • Brooke Marie Logan, aka Bee, 29, Akron
    • Tyrell Jerome Jennings, aka 50, 35, Cleveland
    • Christopher Michael Andrews, aka Blondy, 28, Akron
    • Crystal Marie Harris, 50, Akron
    • Ronald Oscar Clark, 58, Akron
    • Chelsey Marie Connelly, 35, Akron
    • Angela Grace Wade, 47, Akron
    • Demardre Leshawn Johnson, aka Icey, 37, Akron
    • Denetris Condra May, aka D-May, aka Mayday, 38, Akron
    • John P. Burton, 41, Akron
    • Brian Keith Hinkle, aka Hizzle, 38, Akron
    • Joshua Lee Hackney, aka Country, 38, Akron
    • Matthew Dion Inman, 54, Akron
    • Thomas Franklin Casanova, 27, Akron
    • Donnie Keith Eugene Schaffer, 30, Akron
    • Julia Francesca Stavole-Habimana, 26, Richfield

    The superseding indictment alleges that the defendants did unlawfully, knowingly, and intentionally combine, conspire, confederate, and agree with each other to distribute, and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine, all Schedule II controlled substances, and Alprazolam, a Schedule IV controlled substance.

    In addition, three other defendants involved with this drug trafficking and firearms conspiracy were charged in a separate superseding indictment:

    • Robert Parham, 54, Akron
    • Laverne Fortson, 50, Akron
    • Jeffery Goldbach, 54, Ravenna

    According to court documents, in July 2024, Parham had 28 firearms, which included a machine gun, distribution amounts of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine in his possession at his apartment in Akron. Fortson and Goldbach also possessed distribution amounts of narcotics at their residences.

    An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Defendants are entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

    If convicted, each defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including each defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum, and, in most cases, it will be less than the maximum.

    The investigation preceding the superseding indictment was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the FBI Akron Field Office, with assistance from the Akron Police Department, Ohio State Highway Patrol, Portage County Sheriff’s Office, Summit County Sheriff’s Office, Girard Police Department, Barberton Police Department, Liberty Police Department, and the University of Akron Police Department.

    This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph P. Dangelo for the Northern District of Ohio.

    MIL Security OSI