Source: United States Coast Guard
| News Release |
U.S. Coast Guard 13th District PA Detachment Astoria |
05/14/2025 05:45 PM EDT
SEATTLE — A Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew from Air Station Astoria rescued four men who fell approximately 60 feet from the roof of a large, empty water tower in Taholah, Washington, on Tuesday.
Source: United States Coast Guard
| News Release |
U.S. Coast Guard 13th District PA Detachment Astoria |
05/14/2025 05:45 PM EDT
SEATTLE — A Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew from Air Station Astoria rescued four men who fell approximately 60 feet from the roof of a large, empty water tower in Taholah, Washington, on Tuesday.
Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Richard MacInnis, 44, of Nova Scotia, who was wanted on a Canada-wide arrest warrant was located and safely arrested.
This morning, Lunenburg County District RCMP received information from the public regarding the whereabouts of Richard MacInnis.
Investigators searched the area and located him attempting to flee in a wooded area near Northfield Rd. in Lower Northfield. Lunenburg County District RCMP contained the area with the assistance of the Bridgewater Police Service, the RCMP Emergency Response Team, RCMP Air Services, an RCMP remotely piloted aircraft, RCMP Police Dog Services and the Department of Natural Resources Air Services.
At approximately 12:51 p.m., investigators believed MacInnis could be armed and issued an emergency alert to Lunenburg County residents. Officers at the scene had located and seized a machete believe to have been in his possession.
Shortly before 2:15 p.m., officers located MacInnis in a shed and safely arrested him.
Over the past week, Lunenburg District RCMP and RCMP Halifax Regional Detachment have received multiple reports of break and enters that coincided with MacInnis’ whereabouts.
As officers gather evidence, investigators would like to hear from you if you have any information, including video surveillance footage or if you’ve been the victim of a break-in that hasn’t been reported.
The investigations are ongoing, and charges are anticipated.
If you have information, please contact police at 902-490-5020 in HRM or at 902-527-5555 in Lunenburg County. To remain anonymous, contact Nova Scotia Crime Stoppers, toll-free, at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), submit a secure web tip at www.crimestoppers.ns.ca, or use the P3 Tips app.
Source: United States Department of Justice
A Florida financial advisor was sentenced today to eight years in prison for orchestrating a nearly decade-long scheme to promote an illegal tax shelter and to steal client funds.
The following is according to court documents and statements made in court: Stephen T. Mellinger III, of Delray Beach, was a financial advisor, insurance salesman, and securities broker operating in Florida, Michigan, Mississippi, and elsewhere. Beginning in late 2013, Mellinger conspired with others to promote an illegal tax shelter whereby clients would claim false tax deductions for so-called “royalty payments” to fraudulently reduce their taxes. In reality, the “royalty payments” were merely a circular flow of money designed to give the appearance of genuine business expenses. Typically, a client would send money to bank accounts controlled by Mellinger and his co-conspirators, who then sent the money, minus a fee, to a different bank account that the client controlled. Tax shelter participants retained control of the money they transferred, while falsely deducting the transfers as business expenses on their tax returns.
In total, Mellinger and his co-conspirators helped clients prepare tax returns that claimed over $106 million in false tax deductions, which caused a tax loss to the IRS of approximately $37 million. Mellinger and a co-conspirator, who was a relative, collectively earned approximately $3 million in fees from the scheme.
In January 2016, Mellinger learned that several of his clients were under investigation and that the United States had started seizing their funds. Mellinger and the relative subsequently stole more than $2.1 million from some of the clients, a portion of which Mellinger used to buy a home in Delray Beach.
In addition to the prison sentence, U.S. District Judge Keith Starrett for the Southern District of Mississippi ordered Mellinger to serve three years of supervised release and to pay approximately $37 million in restitution to the United States.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Karen E. Kelly of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Patrick Lemon for the Southern District of Mississippi, Special Agent in Charge Demetrius Hardeman of IRS Criminal Investigation’s Atlanta Field Office, and Deputy Inspector General for Investigations and Director of DCIS Kelly P. Mayo made the announcement.
IRS Criminal Investigation and the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) are investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Richard J. Hagerman, William Montague and Matthew Hicks of the Tax Division, Trial Attorneys Emily Cohen and Jasmin Salehi Fashami of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section (MLARS), and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles W. Kirkham for the Southern District of Mississippi are prosecuting the case.
Source: United States Attorneys General
A Florida man was sentenced today to 24 months in prison for evading nearly $2.4 million in taxes on income he earned from his business.
The following is according to court documents and statements made in court: Roger Whitman manufactured and sold Rife machines, devices that use energy waves to purportedly treat a wide range of medical conditions. Between 2002 and 2018, Whitman generated millions of dollars in gross receipts from the sale of such equipment. Whitman also has a long history of non-compliance with his tax obligations, having not filed an individual income tax return since 1997 and not made any tax payments since 2000.
In 2012, the IRS assessed nearly $800,0000 in taxes against Whitman for 2002 through 2009 and then began trying to collect these taxes from him. To thwart the IRS’s collection efforts, Whitman formed a trust with his girlfriend serving as the trustee. Whitman then directed his income from the business into the trust’s bank accounts and used the funds from these accounts to pay personal expenses. In approximately July 2019, to further thwart IRS efforts, Whitman formed a new entity to operate his business.
Through his actions, Whitman caused a tax loss to the IRS of more than $2.4 million.
In addition to his prison sentence, U.S. District Judge John Antoon II for the Middle District of Florida ordered Whitman to serve one year of supervised release and pay $2,314,220.15 in restitution to the IRS.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Karen E. Kelly of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Melissa Siskind of the Tax Division prosecuted the case, with assistance and support from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.
Source: US Marshals Service
Newport News, VA – The U.S. Marshals Service Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force (CARFTF) April 30 arrested in Newport News a fugitive wanted on sexual assault charges.
Mateo Juan Nicolas, 24, is alleged to have used force in the rape a minor in a vehicle April 25 in Greene County.
Greene County Sheriff’s Office requested assistance from CARFTF April 28 in locating and arresting Nicolas, who is originally from Guatemala.
CARFTF arrested Nicolas without incident at the intersection of 36th Street and Jefferson Avenue.
He was transported to the city jail in Newport News and booked on the active warrants.
Since 2004, the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force has focused resources and efforts on the enhancement of public safety and the reduction of violence within the National Capital Region, through the identification, investigation, and apprehension of fugitives wanted for egregious crimes against the community, while ensuring the equal application of Justice, Integrity, and Service for all.
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ANTHONY PENA, also known as “Tony,” 24, of Miami Gardens, Florida, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford to 132 months of imprisonment, followed by two years of supervised release, for participating in a violent kidnapping in Danbury last summer.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in the late afternoon of August 25, 2024, Danbury Police received multiple 911 calls from witnesses who observed several males assaulting another male and forcing him into a white work van. Responding officers encountered the van on Clapboard Ridge Road, near the intersection of East Gate Road, and attempted to stop it. The van accelerated at a high-rate of speed and crashed approximately one mile away on Cowperthwaite Street. Pena, Angel Borrero, and two associates, all dressed in black, exited the van and fled on foot. Officers arrived at the location of the disabled van and located a male and female victim, both bound with duct tape, in the back of the van. The male victim had significant injuries to his face and arm. Both victims were transported to the hospital for further evaluation. The victims reported that the Lamborghini Urus they were operating was rear-ended by a Honda Civic on Damia Drive in Danbury, and a white work van cut in front of their vehicle. The victims were then forcibly removed from their vehicle, dragged into the van, and bound with duct tape. When the male victim resisted, he was punched in the face and hit repeatedly with a baseball bat, both outside and inside the van, by Pena and others. The victims were told several times that they would be killed.
Pena, Borrero, and the two associates were apprehended in various locations within a quarter-mile radius from where the van crashed. Two other associates, and the Honda Civic, were located at a short-term rental home in Roxbury. A baseball bat was found inside the car. The victims’ Lamborghini, with a blood-stained baseball bat inside the car, was found abandoned in the woods off the roadway on East King Street.
The kidnapping was intended to facilitate the extortion of the victims’ son, who is suspected of participating in the theft of hundreds of millions of dollars in cryptocurrency.
Pena has been detained since his arrest. On January 10, 2025, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy and kidnapping.
Borrero and three others involved in the offense also pleaded guilty and await sentencing.
This matter is being investigated by the FBI New Haven Violent Crimes Task Force and the Danbury Police Department. The Task Force includes members from the Connecticut State Police and several local police departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen L. Peck and John T. Pierpont, Jr.
U.S. Attorney Sullivan thanked the State’s Attorney’s Office for the Judicial District of Danbury for its close cooperation in investigating and prosecuting this matter.
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
NEWARK, N.J. – The former chief executive officer of a publicly traded healthcare services company admitted his role in a conspiracy to defraud investors in connection with the purchase or sale of the company’s securities, U.S. Attorney Alina Habba announced.
Parmjit Parmar, a/k/a “Paul Parmar,” 55, of Colts Neck, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Madeline Cox Arleo in Newark federal court to conspiracy to commit securities fraud.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From May 2015 through September 2017, Parmar and his conspirators, including Sotirios Zaharis, a/k/a “Sam Zaharis,” and Ravi Chivukula orchestrated an elaborate scheme to defraud a private investment firm and others out of hundreds of millions of dollars in connection with the funding of a transaction to take private a healthcare services company (Company A) traded publicly on the London Stock Exchange’s Alternative Investment Market. To fund the transaction, the private investment firm put up approximately $82.5 million and a consortium of financial institutions put up another $130 million, for a total of approximately $212.5 million. The scheme utilized fraudulent methods to grossly inflate the value of Company A and trick others into believing that Company A was worth substantially more than its actual value.
Parmar and the conspirators sought to raise tens of millions of dollars in the public markets, purportedly to fund Company A’s acquisitions of various operating subsidiaries. In actuality, a number of those entities either did not exist or had only a fraction of the operating income attributed to them. The conspirators funneled the proceeds of these secondary offerings through bank accounts they controlled and used the money for a variety of purposes that had nothing to do with acquiring the purported targets. The conspirators went to great lengths to make it appear that these funds were revenue, concocting phony customers and altering bank statements to make it appear as if the funds were coming from customers.
To perpetuate the scheme, Parmar and his conspirators also falsified and fabricated bank records of subsidiary entities in order to generate a phony picture of Company A’s revenue streams and made material misrepresentations and omissions to the private investment firm and others.
Parmar and his conspirators’ actions caused victims to value Company A at more than $300 million for purposes of financing the transaction to take Company A private. The scheme was uncovered in September 2017, when Parmar and his conspirators resigned from their positions with Company A or were terminated. On March 16, 2018, Company A and numerous of its affiliated entities filed for bankruptcy, attributing the company’s financial demise, in large part, to the fraud scheme.
The conspiracy to commit securities fraud charge to which Parmar has plead guilty, carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Pursuant to the terms of his plea agreement, Parmar has also agreed to forfeiture of certain properties and the contents of several bank accounts, and the Court must order that Parmar pays restitution to any victims of his offense.
U.S. Attorney Habba credited special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Brian Driscoll, with assistance from FBI Headquarters Forensic Accountant Support Team.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Vinay S. Limbachia, George M. Barchini, and Kelly M. Lyons of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
The charges and allegations contained in the Indictment with respect to Parmar’s co-defendants, Zaharis and Chivukula, are merely accusations, and Zaharis and Chivukula are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
###
Defense counsel for Parmar: John H. Hemann, Esq., San Francisco, CA; Andrew D. Goldstein, Victoria R. Pasculli, Alessandra V. Rafalson, Esqs., New York, NY; Anuva V. Ganapathi, Esq., Palo Alto, CA
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
ROCKFORD — An inmate at Thomson Penitentiary in Thomson, Ill., has been convicted of murder and hate crime in the death of a fellow inmate.
After a seven-day trial, the jury in U.S. District Court in Rockford on Tuesday found BRANDON SIMONSON, also known as “Whitey,” 41, of Moorhead, Minn., guilty of all four counts against him, including second-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, hate crime, and assault relating to the death of Matthew Phillips. U.S. District Judge Iain D. Johnston set sentencing for Aug. 22, 2025.
According to evidence presented at trial, Simonson conspired with a co-defendant, KRISTOPHER MARTIN, to beat Phillips because he was Jewish. Simonson and Martin assaulted Phillips to gain recognition and membership into a white supremacist anti-semitic prison gang called the Valhalla Bound Skinheads. Evidence showed Simonson punched and kicked Phillips in the face and head, despite Phillips being knocked unconscious and unable to defend himself. The assault on March 2, 2020, led to Phillips’ death three days later.
Martin, also known as “No Luck,” 43, of Brazil, Ind., pleaded guilty earlier this year and is awaiting sentencing.
The convictions were announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. Valuable assistance was provided by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Vincenza L. Tomlinson and Ronald DeWald.
“We are grateful to the jury for delivering justice in a very difficult case for Mr. Phillips’ family and the people of the Northern District of Illinois,” said U.S. Attorney Boutros. “The significant convictions in this case are the result of the extraordinary dedication and commitment of our prosecutors and law enforcement partners. We will not tolerate criminal acts such as these anywhere in our district, including in our prison system.”
“The FBI and our law enforcement partners hold those accountable who compromise the safety or lives of others, even those serving sentences in prison,” said FBI SAC DePodesta. “We continue to ask the public to help keep our communities safe from any acts of violence like those detailed in this case by reporting threatening or suspicious behavior immediately to local law enforcement or the FBI.”
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
MINNEAPOLIS – Sebastian Saquinga-Topanta, an Ecuadorian national, pleaded guilty to Illegal Reentry into the United States, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326, and Failure to Notify of a Change of Address, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1306(b), announced Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick.
According to court documents, Sebastian Saquinga-Topanta, 31, did not have a lawful immigration status to enter the United States. On September 1, 2022, Saquinga-Topanta was discovered by the U.S. Border Patrol and was removed from the United States as an undocumented alien. He was returned to Ecuador but, soon after, the defendant knowingly, voluntarily, and unlawfully returned to the United States in December 2022.
According to court documents, Saquinga-Topanta was previously apprehended for driving while intoxicated in June 2023. The defendant was arrested twice on warrants in December 2023 and January 2024 for the DUI case. Saquinga-Topanta was questioned about his residence following his arrest. Law enforcement went to the purported address but discovered that the defendant no longer lived there. During a period from January to May of 2024, the defendant failed to register his change of address with the Attorney General. In addition, he was not approved by the Attorney General or the Security of Homeland Security to re-apply and remain in the United States.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Melinda A. Williams prosecuted the case.
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – An Oakton doctor was sentenced today to 13 years in prison for conspiring to distribute oxycodone and amphetamines, maintaining drug premises, and false statements relating to health care matters.
According to court documents, David Allingham, 65, was the owner of and sole medically licensed practitioner at Oakton Primacy Care Center (OPCC), an urgent care center. His practice advertised on his website that Allingham specialized as an “Addiction Medicine Family Doctor” with “special training and skill in preventing, diagnosing, and treating patients with addiction.”
Between at least April 2019 and January 2024, Allingham wrote prescriptions for opioids and amphetamines for numerous patients without properly assessing the individual needs of those patients, which was outside the usual course of professional practice and regulations and without legitimate medical purpose. During that time, Virginia pharmacies filled approximately 7,330 prescriptions for oxycodone prescribed by Allingham, totaling approximately 405,164 pills.
All of Allingham’s patients were instructed to pay out of pocket for office visits at Allingham’s practice, which cost $300-$550 per patient, typically paid via cash, credit card, or Venmo. An extra $700 was required if the patient wanted a doctor’s letter. Allingham required his chronic pain patients to pay for an office visit at least every 21 days, though he allowed a significant number of these “office visits” to be conducted via a phone call to employees who were not medically trained. Allingham authorized renewals of opioid medication without physically examining patients or without medical indication other than the uncorroborated information the patients provided.
Multiple pharmacies investigated Allingham’s opioid prescribing practices and thereafter refused to fill prescriptions for controlled substances issued by Allingham. After a national pharmacy chain informed Allingham that its stores would no longer fill prescriptions written by him, Allingham instructed his employees to phase out all brand pharmacies in favor of “mom and pop” pharmacies to avoid further scrutiny of his patients and so he could continue to prescribe high-dose opioids for them.
Allingham typically required a urine drug screen (UDS) at each in office appointment but failed to act on them in a medically appropriate way. Allingham consistently excused or ignored failed UDSs, which were then withheld from patient files or falsely documented in his medical records. One patient failed 40 drug tests between 2019 and 2023. Allingham’s medical record falsely documented that the patient had tested positive for cocaine in his urine merely from handling currency contaminated with cocaine residue. Allingham nevertheless continued to prescribe oxycodone to the patient.
Allingham also prescribed amphetamines to multiple chronic pain patients to assist them in weight loss in contravention of regulations. Allingham prescribed amphetamines for weight loss purposes regardless of whether the patient was obese. During the conspiracy, Allingham distributed at least 527 prescriptions for amphetamines for this purpose, totaling over 13,500 pills.
Allingham also unlawfully used and directed his employees to use another doctor’s identity without authorization to prescribe medications for himself and his family. Allingham instructed his employees to provide the OPCC phone number for prescriptions purportedly written by that doctor and directed them how to respond if pharmacists called inquiring about the prescriptions, because at that time the doctor was not an employee of OPCC.
Multiple of Allingham’s patients died of drug overdoses within hours, days, or weeks of receiving an oxycodone prescription from Allingham.
In July 2023, law enforcement conducted a search of Allingham’s residence and medical practice. When interviewed by law enforcement, Allingham made false statements regarding his prescribing practices and directed at least one of his employees to delete records of her text message communications with him.
Erik S. Siebert, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Ibrar A. Mian, Special Agent in Charge for the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Washington Division; Maureen R. Dixon, Special Agent in Charge of the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; and Col. Matt Hanley, Superintendent of Virginia State Police, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Rossie D. Alston Jr.
The Fairfax County Police Department provided valuable assistance in the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather D. Call prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:25-cr-2.
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
HOUSTON – A 40-year-old Houston man has been sentenced for wire fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
Brett Michael Detamore pleaded guilty Aug. 23, 2024.
U.S. District Judge George C. Hanks has now ordered Detamore to serve 51 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by two years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay a total of $2.3 million in restitution to over 10 victims. At the hearing, the court heard additional testimony from several victims who described how Detamore had abused their trust and devastated them financially.
Detamore, operating as a custom home builder under Detamore Development LLC, fraudulently obtained at least $1.5 million for his personal use as a result of misusing funds intended for the construction of private residences.
Detamore submitted false and fraudulent invoices to banks holding construction loans for single-family residences he was contracted to build. The false invoices caused the banks to send funds to bank accounts Detamore controlled. He then used the funds for his personal benefit.
He was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The FBI conducted the investigation with the assistance of the West University Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen Lansden and Suzanne Elmilady prosecuted the case.
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An Overland Park, Ks., pediatric physician was sentenced in federal court today for producing child pornography and possession of child pornography.
Brian Aalbers, 51, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Brian C. Wimes to 25 years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Aalbers to serve supervised release for Life following his incarceration.
Aalbers, a pediatric neurologist at Overland Park Regional Hospital in Overland Park, Ks., had pleaded guilty to using concealed video cameras to secretly record 13 child victims for the purpose of producing child pornography over a three-year period. Aalbers also had admitted that he was in possession of child pornography.
Concerns were received by both the FBI and the United States Attorney’s Office regarding the potential victimization of patients of Aalbers’s pediatric practice. During the investigation, it was determined there was no evidence to indicate any current or former patients were victimized by Aalbers. To protect and maintain the privacy of Aalbers’s victims, no additional information regarding the victims will be released.
According to the plea agreement, Kansas City, Mo., police officers investigated a report regarding concealed video cameras that had been found on Oct. 28, 2023. A witness later contacted officers to report that Aalbers was sending suicidal text messages. Lenexa, Ks., police officers located Aalbers and transported him to a local hospital to obtain voluntary mental health treatment. The hospital took possession of two laptop computers, two iPad tablets, and a cell phone that were inside a backpack Aalbers brought with him when he entered the facility.
Investigators obtained search warrants for those devices, as well as other cameras and electronic devices owned by Aalbers. Investigators found more than 50,000 video files associated with the hidden video cameras used by Aalbers, including more than 1,000 videos that contained pornographic depictions of the 13 child victims.
Investigators also obtained a search warrant for Aalbers’s iCloud account, which contained 1,000 additional images and 163 additional videos of child pornography, which included videos of the identified child victims that had been produced by Aalbers.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Maureen A. Brackett. It was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Kansas City, Missouri Police Department, and Lenexa, Kansas Police Department.
Project Safe Childhood
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
NEWARK, N.J. – A German man was extradited from Italy and arrested for orchestrating a massive mail fraud scheme targeting elderly and otherwise vulnerable victims with false and fraudulent psychic solicitations, U.S. Attorney Alina Habba announced.
Georg Ingenbleek, 58, a citizen of Germany, was indicted in 2020 and has been a fugitive. He was apprehended in Bolzano, Italy in 2024 and returned yesterday via Newark International Airport to face an indictment charging him with two counts of mail fraud. Ingenbleek made his initial appearance and arraignment on May 9, 2025, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Leda Dunn Wettre. He pleaded not guilty and was remanded without bail.
According to the Indictment and statements made in court:
From at least 2011 through 2016, Ingenbleek created numerous direct mail solicitations supposedly from world-renowned psychics, falsely and fraudulently claiming that the recipients were being contacted because they had been the subject of specific visions by the psychics, including visions that the recipients were going to receive large sums of money and good fortune. Many of the letters falsely promised that the psychic services being offered were free of charge. In fact, the letters were mass-produced using software and information provided by Ingenbleek to a direct mail marketing services company, Company-1, located in Piscataway, New Jersey, which Ingenbleek retained to print and mail the solicitations.
Ingenbleek directed a second company, Company-2, to send fraudulent billing notices to the same victims that stated that the victims owed money for psychic services, which in many cases had been offered free of charge. The fraudulent billing notices were labeled “collection notices” and “invoices,” falsely representing that the victims owed late payment fees, and falsely stating that a psychic or astrology organization would refer the victim to a “collection agency” and take legal action if the victim did not send a check, usually for $20 to $50. Through his fraudulent psychic mailing campaign, Ingenbleek obtained more than $10 million dollars from victims.
In September 2016, Ingenbleek directed representatives of Company-1 and Company-2 to destroy all materials related to his fraudulent psychic mailings in response to federal criminal investigations into his conduct and the conduct of other participants in the scheme. In one email, dated September 23, 2016, Ingenbleek told a representative of Company-2, “You cannot wait! I advise you urgently to get rid of the material! Use your own car, rent a truck, start today, work all weekend.”
The mail fraud charges each carry a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense.
U.S. Attorney Habba credited postal inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Philadelphia Division, under the direction of Inspector in Charge Christopher A. Nielsen; special agents of IRS – Criminal Investigation Newark Field Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jenifer Piovesan; and special agents of HSI New York, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael Alfonzo, with the investigation leading to the charges, and HSI Rome and the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs for providing significant assistance in securing the defendant’s extradition from Italy.
The government is represented by Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan Fayer and Olta Bejleri of the Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
The charges and allegations in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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Defense counsel: Daniel Rashbaum, Esq., Miami, Florida.
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
LITTLE ROCK—Trevion Dickson, a multi-convicted felon who again illegally possessed guns and drugs, will spend the next 30 years in federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession with intent to distribute marijuana. Jonathan D. Ross, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced the 360-month total sentence, which was handed down today by United States District Judge Brian S. Miller.
A federal grand jury indicted Dickson, 43, of Pine Bluff, in an indictment on December 5, 2023. On February 6, 2025, Johnson pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession with intent to distribute marijuana. Judge Miller sentenced Dickson to 30 years on the firearm charge and five years on the drug charge, with the sentences to run concurrently.
On January 6, 2023, law enforcement officers from the White Hall Police Department were dispatched to an immobile vehicle revving its engine in the roadway. Dickson was standing next to the vehicle and upon questioning, Dickson fled from police on foot. He was later apprehended in a shed hiding behind a lawn mower and had to be physically restrained when officers attempted to take him into custody. At the time, Dickson had active felony warrants pending and was a parolee with a search waiver on file. Officers searched Dickson’s person and located methamphetamine, synthetic marijuana, marijuana, and alprazolam. During a search of Dickson’s vehicle officers located two sets of digital scales, marijuana, and a Smith & Wesson 9mm firearm.
Dickson has five previous felony cocaine convictions and two prior felony firearm convictions, as well as numerous other convictions. His criminal history classified him as an armed career criminal and enhanced his sentence.
Judge Miller also sentenced Dickson to three years’ supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was investigated by DEA with assistance from the White Hall Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stacy Williams.
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Additional information about the office of the
United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, is available online at
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Source: Office of United States Attorneys
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA –Today, Acting United States Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced the filing of a bill of information charging Plano, Texas-based MUREX MANAGEMENT, INC. (“MMI”), with aiding and abetting transactions that defrauded financial institutions, including the failed New Orleans-based First NBC Bank.
According to the bill of information, MMI was the management company of an affiliate that engaged in ethanol marketing and logistics services. Additionally, Company A was the U.S.-based subsidiary of a foreign, publicly traded, company that operated ethanol production plants.
According to the bill of information, beginning in 2013, Company A and its parent companies began to experience financial stress. In order to ameliorate cash flow issues and to manufacture additional financing for its debts, Company A initiated a strategy called “buy/sells” and targeted MMI to assist in this strategy. Company A’s plan called for both companies to create fictitious invoices purporting to be sales of ethanol between the two companies, which could then be sold as accounts receivable to unwitting buyers via a New Orleans-based online marketplace. This would provide cash flow for Company A and a profit to MMI. The unwitting buyers of these accounts receivable included financial institutions like First NBC Bank.
The bill of information alleges that, between October 28, 2013 and September 18, 2015, Company A and MMI conducted approximately $1.2 billion in fraudulent “buy/sell” transactions, with MMI making a profit of approximately $6,073,049. Company A eventually defaulted on paying financial institutions for the accounts receivable that had been posted for auction by MMI. The defaulted auctions caused a loss of approximately $73,073,683.05 to First NBC Bank, and a loss of approximately $8,330,427.02 to a North Carolina bank.
If convicted, MMI faces a maximum fine of $1,000,000.00, or twice the gross gain or twice the gross loss to any victim. It also will be required to pay restitution and a mandatory special assessment fee of $400.00.
Acting U.S. Attorney Simpson reiterated that the bill of information is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
Acting U.S. Attorney Simpson praised the work of the FDIC Office of Inspector General, Dallas Field Office, and the Environmental Protection Agency, Criminal Investigation Division, Houston Resident Office, that investigated this matter. Assistant United States Attorneys Matthew R. Payne of the Financial Crimes Unit and Nicholas D. Moses, Health Care Fraud Coordinator, handled this prosecution.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News (b)
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Steven David Seeger, 46, of Bruceton Mills, West Virginia, has admitted to the coercion and enticement of a minor for sex and production of child pornography.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Seeger was communicating with minor girls online. During those communications, he persuaded multiple victims to produce and send him sexually explicit images and videos.
Seeger faces 10 years to life in federal prison for the enticement charge and faces 15 to 30 years for the production of child pornography charge. If convicted, a federal district court judge will determine the appropriate sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberley Crockett is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the West Virginia State Police, and the Preston County Sheriff’s Office investigated.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael John Aloi presided.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (b)
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Richmond, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for receiving child pornography, after having a prior state conviction for possession of child pornography.
Derek Shain, 36, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to 25 years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Shain to serve supervised release for Life following his incarceration.
On January 16, 2025, Shain pleaded guilty to one count of receiving child pornography, after having a prior state conviction for possession of child pornography. According to court documents, Shain communicated with a 15-year-old minor female on a social media platform. He requested and received an image of child pornography from the minor female. A background investigation of Shain confirmed that Shain was a registered sex offender at the time of this offense. Shain also has prior state convictions for attempted child molestation in the first degree and age misrepresentation with intent to solicit a minor.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Maureen A. Brackett. It was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Sugar Creek, Missouri Police Department.
Project Safe Childhood
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA
Alongside energy, the Director General and Foreign Minister Sommerfeld also discussed how IAEA initiatives to promote the benefits of nuclear science are supporting Ecuador’s progress in many key development areas.
High on the agenda was cancer care, where IAEA flagship initiative Rays of Hope is increasing access to radiotherapy in the country. During his trip, Mr Grossi visited Carlos Andrade Marin Hospital where he was pleased to see “how IAEA efforts and local investment in cancer care — including access to radiotherapy — are making a life-changing difference.”
Nuclear science is also a powerful tool to boost food security and strengthen food export potential, and the IAEA’s Atoms4Food is helping Ecuador and other countries battle invasive insect pests like Mediterranean Fruit Fly, make banana crops more resilient to disease and map water resources to ensure a sustainable supply.
NUTEC Plastics, the IAEA initiative to use nuclear science to monitor and reduce marine plastic pollution, is also of relevance to the coastal country. During his trip, the Director General exchanged on the importance of tackling plastic pollution in valuable ecosystems, such as Antarctica where he recently launched microplastics research, and the Galapagos Islands of Ecuador where the IAEA has helped establish one of the world’s leading laboratories in microplastics. He also met with a range of local partners already working with the IAEA on the archipelago to preserve biodiversity and work for a healthier ocean.
Source: US Department of Homeland Security
WASHINGTON – Internal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) data shows a massive spike in applications to join the United States Secret Service (USSS).
From January 20, 2025, to May 1, 2025, USSS received over 22,000 applications to join its ranks. This is a 200% increase over the same period from 2024, where only 7,000 applied. This surge of applications comes as President Trump and Secretary Noem have put an end to DEI-based hiring practices in the Secret Service and across the Department. Secret Service officers are now being hired and promoted based on their merit.
“For four years, the previous administration demoralized and denied resources to our brave men and women in law enforcement, including in the Secret Service,” said a DHS spokesperson. “We are reinvigorating the Secret Service and providing it with the resources our brave and women need to do their jobs. We are seeing a historic surge in applications. Americans want to protect and serve, and we simply must let them.”
These officers are charged with a no-fail mission, and that mission demands only the best of the best.
Further, by putting an end to the distractions imposed upon them by political operatives in the previous administration, we have freed up the Secret Service to once again focus on its core mission of protecting the President.
If you or someone you know is interested in joining the Secret Service, please go to the Careers at Secret Service webpage to apply online.
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Source: United States INDO PACIFIC COMMAND
PUERTO PRINCESA, Philippines — From the northern coast of Australia to the southern edge of the Philippine archipelago, U.S. Marines with the Marine Rotational Force – Darwin (MRF-D) 25.3 Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF) spent the last month executing rapid maneuver, joint and combined integrated fires, and combined exercises alongside Philippine and Australian allies across one of the world’s most complex and challenging maritime regions.
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Durante King-Mclean, age 26, of Cambridge, Ontario, Canada, pled guilty today before United States District Judge Jennifer P. Wilson to a single count of a multi-count indictment charging him with conspiring with others to illegally traffic in firearms.
According to Acting United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, the charges stem from a September 2, 2023, traffic stop by the Pennsylvania State Police in Franklin County of a rental vehicle operated by King-Mclean who was the only occupant of the vehicle. During the stop King-Mclean fled on foot and was apprehended after a brief foot chase. A subsequent search of the rental vehicle led to the recovery of 65 handguns in the vehicle’s trunk that were all individually concealed in socks. Of the 65 handguns that were recovered, two were fully automatic, 11 were stolen, and one had an obliterated serial number. King-Mclean had been in communication with his co-conspirators from April of 2023 until his arrest on September 2, 2023, and had been staying at an Airbnb in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, until he rented the vehicle at the end of August 2023 and headed north towards Canada with the illegally purchased handguns. Sometime after his arrest and incarceration on September 2, 2023, King-Mclean was charged by Canadian authorities for his alleged participation in the April 17, 2023, heist of approximately $22.5 million dollars in gold bars and foreign currency from the Air Canada cargo terminal at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport. It was shortly after this heist that King-Mclean illegally entered the United States where he remained until his arrest on September 2, 2023, as he was headed back to Canada with the 65 handguns.
“King-Mclean’s international firearms trafficking scheme had 65 guns destined for the hands of violent criminals and other prohibited people who threaten their communities,” said Eric J. DeGree, Special Agent in Charge (SAC) for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Philadelphia Field Division. “ATF’s highest priority is reducing violent gun crime, and thanks to our cooperative efforts, this action kept dozens of crime guns off the street — preventing them from being used in any number of killings and other crimes.”
“This guilty plea highlights the serious consequences of international arms trafficking and the dangers it poses to public safety. By illegally moving firearms across borders, criminal networks fuel violence and threaten communities,” said Special Agent in Charge of HSI Philadelphia Edward V. Owens. “HSI remains dedicated to working with our domestic and international partners to disrupt these illicit operations and ensure that those who engage in trafficking are held accountable.”
King-Mclean faces a potential sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000.00 fine, and a three-year term of supervised release.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives – Harrisburg Office, the Pennsylvania State Police, and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Assistant United States Attorney William A. Behe is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
This prosecution is also part of an extensive investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). OCDETF is a joint federal, state, and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking and is the nation’s primary tool for disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations, targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations and coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources to disrupt or dismantle the targeted criminal organization and seize their assets.
All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
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Source: Office of United States Attorneys
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Springfield, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to burglarizing a local post office building and stealing mail from this facility.
Zachary M. Walker, 38, waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge Willie Epps, Jr., to a federal information charging him with one count of burglary of a post office building and one count of theft of mail matter.
Walker, a former United States Postal Service employee, used his knowledge of building security to gain unauthorized access to a local post office, stealing mail matter and selling those items over the internet.
According to the plea agreement, Walker was observed on secretly installed video cameras within a local post office building. Walker was able to burglarize the post office because he had previously worked at that facility and knew the authorization codes that allowed him to circumvent building security. While in the United States Post Office building, Walker would examine letters and mail matter, stealing those items that he could easily sell.
Under federal statutes, Walker is subject to a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Carney. It was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the Springfield, Missouri, Police Department
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
CAMDEN, N.J. – A father and son were sentenced on May 13, 2025, for their roles in orchestrating a large-scale market manipulation scheme related to two publicly traded companies, U.S. Attorney Alina Habba announced.
Peter Coker, Sr., 82, of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and Peter Coker, Jr., 56, formerly of Hong Kong, China, had pleaded guilty, on December 19, 2024, before U.S. District Judge Christine P. O’Hearn to securities fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud. Coker, Sr. was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment, three years’ supervised release, including six months’ home detention, and fines totaling $500,000. Coker, Jr. was sentenced to 40 months’ imprisonment, three years’ supervised release, and fines totaling $250,000.
James Patten, 65, of Winston-Salem, North Carolina also previously pleaded guilty to the same charges and is awaiting sentencing.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From 2014 through September 2022, Peter Coker Sr., Peter Coker Jr., and Patten conspired to enrich themselves through a scheme to manipulate securities prices via a pattern of coordinated trading, which injected inaccurate information into the marketplace, creating false impressions of supply and demand for these securities.
As part of the securities fraud scheme, the defendants targeted two publicly traded companies—Hometown International Inc. and E-Waste Corp.—which both traded on the OTC Link Alternative Trading System, also known as the OTC Marketplace. The OTC Marketplace is an alternative trading system that contains three tiers of markets, which are largely based on the quality and quantity of the listed companies’ information and disclosures.
Coker Sr., Coker Jr., and Patten took steps to gain control of both entities’ management and stock with the ultimate intention of entering reverse mergers, a transaction through which an existing public company merges with a private operating company. A successful reverse merger would allow the defendants to sell shares of each entity at a significant profit.
In or around 2014, two New Jersey residents began the process of opening a local deli in Paulsboro, New Jersey. One of the individuals discussed his interest in opening the deli with Patten, a long-time friend, who suggested the creation of Hometown International, an umbrella corporation, under which the deli would operate as a wholly owned subsidiary. Unbeknownst to the deli owners, after Hometown International was formed, Patten and his associates began positioning Hometown International as a vehicle for a reverse merger that would yield substantial profit to them.
Around October 2019, Hometown International began selling shares on the OTC Marketplace. Patten, Coker Sr., and Coker Jr. furthered their scheme by gaining control of Hometown International’s management and its shares from the deli owners. Coker Sr., Coker Jr., and Patten took similar actions to gain control of E-Waste Corporation’s stock and management. The defendants also arranged for the transfer of millions of shares of stock to a number of nominee entities, including entities controlled by Coker Jr., in an effort to mask their control of the shares.
In addition, the defendants transferred shares to family members, friends, and associates and gained control over their trading accounts by obtaining their log-in information to conceal the defendants’ involvement. The defendants then used those accounts to commit a number of coordinated trading events, often referred to as match and wash trades, to trade in Hometown International and E-Waste Corp.’s stock on both sides of the transaction.
These tactics artificially inflated the price of Hometown International and E-Waste’s stock by giving the false impression that there was a genuine market interest in the stock. Their scheme had the ultimate impact of artificially inflating Hometown International’s stock by approximately 939 percent and E-Waste’s stock by approximately 19,900 percent.
U.S. Attorney Habba credited special agents of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Wayne A. Jacobs, and special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jenifer L. Piovesan in Newark, with the investigation. He also thanked special agents from FBI Charlotte, FBI Los Angeles, FBI San Francisco, FBI Denver, and FBI Knoxville, for their assistance.
The government is represented by Lauren E. Repole, Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Webman of the Economic Crimes Unit.
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Defense counsel:
Peter Coker, Sr.: John Azzarello, Esq. (Morristown, New Jersey), William McGovern, Esq. (New York, New York)
Peter Coker, Jr.: Zach Intrater and Marc Agnifilo (New York, New York)
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Defendants, one of whom is 19-years-old, allegedly conspired to sex traffic a minor victim
BOSTON – A superseding indictment was unsealed today in federal court in Boston charging two men with conspiring to engage in the sex trafficking of a minor victim.
On April 16, 2025, David Kaufman, 44, was arrested on an indictment charging him with one count of knowingly persuading, inducing, enticing and coercing an individual to travel in interstate commerce to engage in prostitution and aiding and abetting.
The superseding indictment adds Darren Zaldivar, 19, of Ludlow, Mass., charging him with transporting an individual with intent the individual engage in prostitution. Both defendants are also charged with conspiring to engage in sex trafficking of a minor. The superseding indictment also adds the charge of sex trafficking of a minor against Kaufman.
Zaldivar will appear in federal court in Boston later today. Kaufman remains detained in federal custody.
According to the detention brief previously filed, Kaufman had allegedly been victimizing minor males and young adults ranging in ages from 14–20 by paying the minors for Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) and coercing and enticing some of them to travel to his penthouse condominium at the Four Seasons in Baltimore, and elsewhere, to engage in sex acts with him, which he video recorded. Zaldivar is alleged to have conspired with Kaufman in the sex trafficking of a minor victim in 2024. Zaldivar is also alleged to have transported the minor victim with the intent that the victim engage in commercial sex.
According to court filings, Kaufman coerced an 18-year-old victim to travel from Massachusetts on two occasions to visit his penthouse condominium at the Four Seasons in Baltimore, paying for the plane tickets. While there, Kaufman allegedly provided the victim with alcohol and drugs, including cocaine, until the victim was intoxicated. It is alleged that Kaufman would then persuade the victim to engage in sex acts, which Kaufman videotaped so that he could watch them later in order to get pleasure for himself. In exchange for the sex acts, it is alleged that Kaufman paid the victim with cash, electronic money transfers and gifts. For example, after he engaged in sex acts in February 2024, Kaufman allegedly bought the victim a Louis Vuitton bag.
If you have information or questions about this investigation, or someone you know may be impacted or experiencing commercial sex trafficking or child exploitation, please contact USAMA.VictimAssistance@usdoj.gov.
The charge of coercing a person to travel for purposes of prostitution provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of sex trafficking a minor provides for a sentence of up to life, up to life and no less than five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.The charge of transporting an individual with intent the individual engage in prostitution provides for up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.The charge of conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of a minor provides for a sentence of up to life, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Kimberly Milka, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Maryland; the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; and the Baltimore Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Torey B. Cummings and Craig E. Estes of the Human Trafficking & Civil Rights Unit are prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Chicago, Il., woman pleaded guilty in federal court today for her role in a wire fraud conspiracy that targeted United States Service men and women who had recently joined the military.
Jetauwn T. Griffin, 31, waived her right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge Willie Epps, Jr., to a federal information charging her with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Griffin conspired with others that sought to defraud United States military service men and women through the use of social media.
According to the plea agreement, Griffin conspired with others that employed a scheme to defraud United States military service men and women. Service members who had recently joined the United States military were contacted through various social media platforms. Upon communicating with each military member, a person within the conspiracy would use the information obtained from the social media platform and then contact the service member claiming to be a senior military official. As a senior military member, they would tell each service member that they were receiving the wrong salary, and they were owed more money than they were being paid. The perpetrators of the scheme who advise the service member that they needed to return their prior pay using a cash application and then they would receive the higher pay once the other money was returned. If a service member followed these instructions, the members of this scheme would take the monies transferred and would never return any monies to the victim. Griffin conspired with others in this scheme by taking the cash application transfers and conducted financial transactions that transferred the victim’s money to accounts that were accessed by all members of the scheme.
Under federal statutes, Griffin is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Carney. It was investigated by the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Greenbelt, Maryland – Today, Vincent Ford, 22, of Baltimore, Maryland, pled guilty in federal court to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and oxycodone; possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon; and wire fraud, in connection with fraudulently obtaining COVID-19 unemployment insurance (UI) benefits.
Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the plea with Special Agent in Charge Toni M. Crosby, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF); Special Agent in Charge Troy W. Springer, National Capital Region, U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG); and Chief Malik Aziz, Prince George’s County Police Department (PGPD).
According to the guilty plea, on February 17, 2023, PGPD officers conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle with heavily tinted windows. During the traffic stop, officers detected the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle. The driver acknowledged there was marijuana in the car.
Ford was the passenger in the vehicle and officers noticed that he was wearing an unzipped gray satchel. After searching the vehicle, officers found a loaded Taurus G3C semi-automatic firearm under the passenger seat where Ford had been sitting. It was loaded with 13 rounds of 9mm ammunition in the magazine and one round of 9mm ammunition in the chamber ready to be fired. The firearm was previously reported stolen from a vehicle in Baltimore County.
Law enforcement also searched Ford’s satchel and person, recovering 46 30mg blue pills that contained fentanyl, a 20mg white pill that contained oxycodone, three 15mg green pills that contained oxycodone, and more than $1,000 in cash.
Ford admitted to possessing the fentanyl and oxycodone pills with the intent to distribute them. He also acknowledged that he possessed the loaded Taurus firearm in furtherance of his drug trafficking. Due to a previous felony conviction, Ford is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition.
Additionally, a subsequent investigation revealed that Ford also engaged in COVID-19 UI fraud. According to the plea, between at least June 13, 2020, and November 19, 2020, Ford participated in a scheme to defraud the Maryland Department of Labor of at least $17,000 in UI benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, several federal programs expanded UI eligibility and increased UI benefits to provide emergency assistance to struggling Americans. Ford fraudulently took advantage of that program and filed at least six false UI claims, using stolen identities of real persons. Two of the fraudulent claims resulted in the disbursement of $17,000 in funds in the names of two of the identity theft victims. He obtained $2,580 of that amount from a bank card in the name of one of the victims.
Ford faces a maximum sentence of 15 years for the felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition charge; a maximum of 20 years for possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and oxycodone; and a maximum of 20 years for wire fraud in connection with his fraudulent COVID-19 unemployment insurance scheme. Judge Deborah L. Boardman scheduled sentencing for Monday, November 3, at 2 p.m.
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.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
U.S. Attorney Hayes commended the ATF, DOL-OIG, and PGPD for their work in the investigation. Ms. Hayes also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patrick D. Kibbe and Nicholas F. Potter who are prosecuting the case.
For more information about the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Burlington, Vermont – The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont stated that on May 9, 2025, Adrian Santos-Miranda, 31, and Yanela Guerra-Matamoros, 36, citizens of Cuba, pleaded guilty to a criminal complaint charging them with illegally entering the United States at a time or place other than designated for entering the country by immigration authorities.
According to court records, on May 8, 2025, at approximately 3:40 p.m., U.S. Border Patrol received an image of two individuals, later identified as the defendants, walking south from the Canadian Border in the area of Mud Creek, approximately two miles east of the village of North Troy, VT. Border Patrol agents responded to the area, followed foot signs through the woods and mud, and at approximately 7:00 p.m., located the two defendants, who fled further into the woods when approached. The agents apprehended the two defendants, who appeared to be the same individuals in the image they had received. The agents then conducted an immigration inspection. Neither defendant was able to provide Border Patrol with the necessary documents that would allow them to stay or remain in the U.S. legally. Both defendants were placed under arrest. Border Patrol conducted further record checks, which identified the defendants as citizens of Cuba with no current legal status in the United States.
Santos-Miranda and Guerra-Matamoros had their initial court appearance before United States Magistrate Judge Kevin J. Doyle on May 9, 2025, where they pleaded guilty and received a time-served sentence. Santos-Miranda and Guerra-Matamoros had faced up to 6 months’ imprisonment.
Acting United States Attorney Michael P. Drescher commended the investigatory efforts of the United States Border Patrol.
The prosecutor is Assistant United States Attorney Andrew C. Gilman. Santos-Miranda is represented by Mark D. Oettinger, Esq. and Guerra-Matamoros is represented by Jason J. Sawyer, Esq.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
Source: NATO
Brussels, 14 May 2025 – The 193rd NATO Military Committee in Chiefs of Defence Session took place at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, today. Thirty two Allied Chiefs of Defence discussed NATO’s vigilance & deterrence, continued support to Ukraine, and preparations for the NATO Summit in The Hague in June. The final meeting of the day saw the Ukrainian Chief of Defence, General Sikyrsky, join the NATO-Ukraine Council virtually from Kyiv.
Opening the working session, the Chair of the Military Committee, Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, underscored that the meeting of Allied Chiefs of Defence is a testament to NATO’s enduring unity and strength, and that cohesion among Allied militaries is the bedrock of NATO’s collective defence. The Chair stressed the priorities for the NATO Military Authorities, especially in these challenging times: continue providing unfettered and timely military advice to political leadership, underpinned by collective clarity and decisiveness. The Allied Chiefs of Defence session focus was to discuss further strengthening NATO’S deterrence and defence, in order to continue adapting to the security challenges facing the Alliance.
During the following session, Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) briefed the Chiefs of Defence on NATO’s deterrence and defence posture, and the status quo and way ahead of NATO’s operations, missions, and activities.
Then, Chiefs of Defence discussed with Admiral Pierre Vandier, Supreme Allied Commander Transformation (SACT) about NATO’s Defence Planning Process and developments in innovation and the adoption of new systems.
The final session with the Chief of Defence of Ukraine, General Oleksandr Syrskyi (attending via videoconference), focused on the current state of play in Ukraine. Allies reiterated their support to Ukraine, and emphasised why now – more than ever – it is key for NATO to continue to provide Ukraine what is needed for its defence.
Wrapping up a fruitful meeting, CMC farewelled fellow Chiefs of Defence, looking forward to the next meeting in this format later in the year.
Source: United States Attorneys General 1
A Georgia attorney was sentenced today to 16 months in prison for obstructing the IRS in connection with his participation in the promotion of abusive syndicated conservation easement tax shelters.
The following is according to court documents and statements made in court: Vi Bui was an attorney and partner at Sinnott & Co., an Atlanta-based company. Beginning at least in 2012 and continuing through at least May 2020, Bui participated in a scheme to defraud the IRS by organizing, marketing, implementing, and selling illegal syndicated conservation easement tax shelters created and organized by co-conspirators Jack Fisher, James Sinnott, and others. Fisher and Sinnott were convicted at trial for their involvement in the scheme, and in January 2024, they were sentenced to 25 and 23 years in prison, respectively.
The scheme entailed the creation of partnerships that purchased land and land-owning companies and then donated conservation easements over that land or the land itself. Appraisers generated fraudulent and inflated appraisals of the conservation easements. The partnerships then claimed a charitable contribution tax deduction based on the inflated value of the conservation easement, resulting in a fraudulent tax deduction flowing to the wealthy clients who purchased units in the partnership. Many of these clients joined the tax shelters after the donation of the interest in land and after the end of the relevant tax year. Bui knew that in order to make it appear that the participants had timely purchased their units in the tax shelters, Fisher, Sinnott, and others backdated and instructed others to backdate documents, including subscription agreements, checks, and other documents.
Bui anticipated that the syndicated conservation easement transactions would be audited. In order to deceive the IRS, Bui and others took steps to make the partnerships appear as legitimate real estate development companies. They created and disseminated lengthy documents disguising the true nature of the transaction, instituted sham “votes” for what to do with the land that the partnership owned despite knowing that outcome was predetermined, and falsified paperwork such as appraisals and subscription agreements.
In one instance, when investigators conducted an undercover operation in 2018, Bui, believing that the IRS was auditing an individual’s tax returns, prepared false documents related to a 2014 syndicated conservation easement tax shelter with the intent to make it appear that the documents were executed before the purported donation of the conservation easement in 2014 and before the 2014 tax returns had been filed.
Bui earned substantial income for his role in the illegal scheme. He also used the fraudulent tax shelters to evade his own taxes, filing false personal tax returns from 2013 through 2018 that claimed false tax deductions from the illegal syndicated conservation easement tax shelters.
In addition to his prison sentence, U.S. District Court Chief Judge Timothy C. Batten Sr. for the Northern District of Georgia ordered Bui to serve one year of supervised release and to pay $8,250,244 in total restitution to the IRS.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Karen E. Kelly of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg for the Northern District of Georgia made the announcement. They also thanked the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina for their assistance in the investigation of this matter.
IRS Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case.
Senior Litigation Counsel Richard M. Rolwing, and Trial Attorneys Parker Tobin, Jessica Kraft, and Nicholas Schilling of the Tax Division prosecuted the case, with support from Assistant U.S. Attorney Samir Kaushal for the Northern District of Georgia.