Category: Office of United States Attorneys

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England, and Hartford Police Chief Jason Thody today announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven has returned an indictment charging STANDFORD SMITH, also known as “Pops,” 34, of Hartford, with narcotics distribution and firearm possession offenses.

As alleged in court documents and statements made in court, in March 2021, Smith was sentenced in Hartford federal court to 55 months of imprisonment and four years of supervised release for his role in a gun trafficking ring and for distributing crack cocaine.  He was released from prison in February 2022.  On June 2, 2023, Smith was arrested by Hartford Police after he was found in possession of distribution quantities of cocaine and fentanyl, and a loaded Ruger LCP Max .380 caliber firearm.

It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.

The indictment, which was returned on January 23, 2024, charges Smith with one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and fentanyl, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years, and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 15 years.

Smith has been detained since his arrest.  He appeared yesterday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert A. Richardson in Hartford and pleaded not guilty to the charges.

U.S. Attorney Avery stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt.  A charge is only an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This investigation is being conducted by the Hartford Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patricia Stolfi Collins, through Project Safe Neighborhoods (“PSN”), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

HARRISBURG- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Zedan RaShwan, age 25, formerly of Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, was sentenced yesterday by United States District Judge Sylvia H. Rambo, to 28 months of imprisonment, for wire fraud conspiracy and aggravated identity theft offenses.

According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, RaShwan pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to use the stolen identities and DEA registration numbers of healthcare providers to order fraudulent prescriptions at various pharmacies.  RaShwan and his coconspirators obtained and distributed those prescription medications, which included the controlled substances and prescription medications Promethazine with Codeine, Oxycodone, Hydrocodone, and Clonazepam.  RaShwan has been in custody since pleading guilty on March 1, 2023.

The case was investigated by the Food and Drug Administration, Office of the Inspector General, and by the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Phillip J. Caraballo prosecuted the case.

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Source: Office of United States Attorneys

AUSTIN, Texas – The United States reached a letter agreement under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with the Hilton Garden Inn Austin University Capitol District, to resolve alleged violations of Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The agreement requires the hotel to train its staff and provide equal service to customers with disabilities.

The Department of Justice received an ADA complaint alleging that after reserving an accessible room, when an individual with a disability attempted to check-in, the Hilton Garden Inn provided a standard room that lacked bathroom grab bars or shower accommodations. This left the complainant without a usable bathroom during her stay. The complaint prompted an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas. The ADA requires that hotels provide access to individuals with disabilities, including honoring reservations, providing fully accessible rooms, and making accommodations.

“For people with disabilities, travel can be stressful due to concerns that they won’t have basic accommodations, such as a place to sleep at night or access to appropriate hygiene facilities,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas. “People with disabilities should not be denied these necessities in lodging. The ADA ensures that all people traveling with disabilities who are traveling can find hotels that will provide equal access to their rooms and facilities.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Liane Noble represented the government during the resolution process.

For more information about the ADA, visit www.ada.gov, or call the Department of Justice’s toll-free information line at (800) 514-0301 or (800) 514-0383 (TDD). Information about filing a complaint, including instructions for filing a complaint online, can be found at https://www.justice.gov/crt/how-file-complaint.

The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.

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Source: Office of United States Attorneys

GREENVILLE, S.C. — Randy James Kennedy, 35, of Piedmont, was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

Evidence presented to the court showed that Kennedy obtained methamphetamine through the mail and directed others on its handling and distribution. While in jail on state charges, Kennedy attempted to have drugs brought into the jail by others. Kennedy had multiple prior drug and firearms related convictions at the time he committed the federal offense.

United States District Judge Bruce Howe Hendricks sentenced Kennedy to 216 months imprisonment, to be followed by a five-year term of court-ordered supervision.  There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie Lea Schoen is prosecuting the case.

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Source: Office of United States Attorneys

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Nay Thar, age 25, of Utica, New York, was sentenced today to serve 157 months (13-years and one month) in federal prison for committing the armed robbery of a restaurant in Utica, and use of an unregistered short-barreled shotgun to commit the robbery, announced United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman, John B. DeVito, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Chief Mark Williams, City of Utica Police Department, New York State Police Acting Superintendent Steven G. James, Acting Commissioner Daniel F. Martuscello III, New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, and Oneida County District Attorney Todd Carville.

As part of his previous guilty plea, Thar admitted that on August 5, 2022, he used an unregistered short-barreled 12-gauge shotgun to rob the Zam Zam Restaurant in Utica. Upon entering the restaurant wearing a ski-mask, Thar pointed the sawed-off shotgun at an employee and demanded she open the cash register. After she fled to the rear of the restaurant without opening the register, Thar stole a donation box on the counter containing cash for a charity, exited the building, and fled in a car. New York State Parole officers who happened to be in the area responded with Utica Police (UPD). After a short vehicle pursuit, Thar was taken into custody by Utica Police. The ski-mask, unregistered shotgun, and stolen money were recovered from the car Thar was driving.

Thar was also sentenced today to serve a 5-year term of post-incarceration supervised release following completion of his prison sentence.

The United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the Utica Police Department (UPD), the New York State Police (NYSP), and Officers of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (Parole) investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Southwick prosecuted (with assistance from the Oneida County District Attorney’s Office) the case as 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.

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Jesse Bedell, age 35, of Glens Falls, New York, was convicted yesterday of transmitting threats to injure another person, following a 2-day trial. United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman and Matthew Scarpino, Special Agent in Charge of the Buffalo Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), made the announcement.

The evidence at trial established that Bedell applied to work at Medline Industries’ NAMIC Division in Glens Falls and received an employment offer conditioned upon passing a background investigation. Bedell, however, failed to disclose a prior criminal conviction. As a result, on January 9, 2020, Medline withdrew the employment offer. The following morning, Bedell phoned Medline employees in Neptune, New Jersey, and Northfield, Illinois, and threatened to burn down and blow up the Glens Falls plant. Bedell also threated to kill the employee in Illinois.

The jury took 20 minutes to convict Bedell on both counts. Sentencing is scheduled for June 12, 2024, before United States District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino in Albany, at which time the defendant faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 5 years, a fine of up to $250,000 and a term of supervised release of up to 3 years. The defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors.

The case was investigated by the Glens Falls Police Department and HSI, with assistance from the Warren County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas Collyer is prosecuting the case.

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

LOS ANGELES – Five alleged members of an international drug trafficking ring based in the San Gabriel Valley were arrested today on a 27-count federal grand jury indictment charging them with conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

Two of the defendants also have been charged with maintaining a drug premises where the methamphetamine was stored and packaged. Specifically, the defendants are engaged in the mailing and shipping of methamphetamine from Los Angeles County to New Zealand and Australia.

The following defendants were arrested this morning are scheduled to be arraigned tomorrow in United States District Court in Santa Ana:

• Yangqiang Chen, 45, of Monterey Park;
• Jie Chen, 40, of Rosemead;
• MeiMei Chen, 41, of Rosemead;
• Guorong He, 50 of Rosemead; and
• Yien He, 32, of Rosemead.

Zuxing Lin, 44, of Rosemead is currently a fugitive. Xingyun Chen, 54, is currently in Louisiana in immigration custody.

As part of this investigation, law enforcement has seized 91 packages of methamphetamine destined for foreign countries. In those packages, law enforcement seized almost 200 kilograms of methamphetamine. The value of the drugs seized, if sold in Australia and New Zealand, exceeds $20 million, according to law enforcement estimates.

During search warrants executed today at three locations in Rosemead and Monterey Park, law enforcement seized approximately 40 pounds of methamphetamine, more than $100,000 in cash, and more than 1,000 gift cards from various retailers.

According to the indictment returned on Tuesday, defendants Yangqiang Chen and Jie Chen ordered and received items from online retailers, such as spools of 3D printing filament, utility cases, wine opener sets, and drive shafts, for use in concealing methamphetamine in international shipments to foreign drug customers. 

Zuxing Lin, Meimei Chen, Xingyun Chen, Guorong He, and Yien He packaged the methamphetamine, at a residence in Monterey Park and elsewhere, for delivery to foreign drug customers. Yangqiang Chen, Zuxing Lin, Meimei Chen, Xingyun Chen, and Yien He delivered the packages containing methamphetamine to UPS stores and international shipping companies so they could be shipped to foreign drug customers.

An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.

If convicted of all charges, each defendant would face a statutory maximum sentence of life in federal prison and a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.

The FBI; the Drug Enforcement Administration; Homeland Security Investigations; IRS Criminal Investigation; the Los Angeles Police Department; the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department; and the United States Postal Inspection Service are investigating this matter.

This case is the result of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, FBI, DEA, and IRS. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, firearms trafficking, and money laundering organizations, and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply. OCDETF uses an intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer L. Waier of the Santa Ana Branch Office is prosecuting this case.

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

Richland, Washington – Vanessa R. Waldref, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced today that Michael Lopez Ferrel, age 30, of Salinas, California, was sentenced after pleading guilty to Possession with the Intent to Distribute 50 Grams or More of Actual (Pure) Methamphetamine. United States District Judge Mary K. Dimke imposed a sentence of  108 months imprisonment to be followed by 5 years of supervised release.

According to court documents and information disclosed at sentencing, In February of 2022, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) learned Ferrel was supplying a large quantity of drugs to distributors in Eastern Washington. A confidential informant was used to set up a meeting to buy as much as 20 pounds of crystal methamphetamine and 500 fentanyl laced pills.

In March of 2022, a call was recorded between the Ferrel and the informant. During the call, Ferrel claimed he had been traveling from Mexico to Yakima every week with between 180 and 220 pounds of methamphetamine. Later that day, Ferrel and the informant met in person. Ferrel offered to provide the informant with 20 pounds of methamphetamine as well as pills that contained deadly amounts of fentanyl. Ferrel also said he had direct access to a source of drugs in Mexico and people in Mexicali and Tijuana to help move it.

On March 10, 2022, Ferrel called the confidential informant and made arrangements to sell the informant 10 pounds of methamphetamine. Surveillance units set up at Ferrel’s residence and the location where he was to meet the informant.  Agents followed Ferrel as he traveled from his residence to another location that was being used as a drug stash house. Agents then observed Ferrel put drugs into the trunk of the vehicle. Agents continued to follow Ferrel as he traveled to meet the informant.

When Ferrel arrived, he pulled up alongside the informant’s vehicle and retrieved the drugs from the truck. He then got into the informant’s vehicle and gave the informant 10 pounds of methamphetamine. The drugs were packaged in 10 pre-packed zip-lock bags, each containing 1 pound of meth.

The next day, Ferrel made arrangements to meet the informant in Prosser, Washington, to collect payment for the drugs. When Ferrel arrived at the location, he was taken into custody by investigators.

Later that day, agents executed a search warrant at the residence being used as a stash house for Ferrel’s organization. Agents located more than 10 pounds of methamphetamine, a digital scale, a loaded Colt .45 pistol and $32,000 in US currency.  

“Mr. Ferrel was part of a transnational drug trafficking scheme and was responsible for transporting massive amounts of illegal narcotics into the Eastern Washington and distributing those drugs into our communities,” stated U.S. Attorney Waldref. “I commend law enforcement for identifying Mr. Ferrel’s drug trafficking activities and preventing him from further distributing this poison in our neighborhoods. As a result of these efforts, Eastern Washington is safer and stronger.”

“The Drug Enforcement Administration and our Federal, state, tribal, and local partners, strive to keep us all safe from those who would prey on our communities,” said David F. Reames, Special Agent in Charge, DEA Seattle Field Division. “This sentence against a methamphetamine and fentanyl trafficker proves our resolve to stop traffickers like Mr. Ferrel wherever they operate.”

This case was investigated by DEA Tri-Cities, assisted by the Tri-Cities Metro Drug Task Force, Tri-Cities FBI, United States Border Patrol, and Tri-Cities Regional SWAT. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie Van Marter.

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

NEWARK, N.J. – A member of the Rollin’ 60s Neighborhood Crips gang was sentenced today to 144 months in prison for his role in a racketeering conspiracy, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.

Tre Byrd, aka “Bands,” aka “G Bandz,” 22, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton to a superseding indictment that charged him with Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) conspiracy. Judge Wigenton imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.

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

From 2015 through Sept. 22, 2022, Byrd was a member of the Rollin’ 60s Neighborhood Crips, a criminal enterprise responsible for acts of violence and the distribution of controlled substances in the District of New Jersey and elsewhere. In March 2019, Byrd worked with other members and associates of the gang to murder a gang rival, who was fatally shot on March 20, 2019, in Irvington, New Jersey. On June 20, 2020, Byrd and at least one other member and associate of the gang robbed a victim at gunpoint in Newark.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Wigenton sentenced Byrd to five years of supervised release.

U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the DEA, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Ortiz; special agents of IRS- Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Tammy Tomlins; and special agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Bryan Miller, as well as investigators of the U.S. Marshals Service, under Marshal Juan Mattos’ direction; the Irvington Police Department, under the direction of Police Division Director Tracy Bowers, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II, the Newark Police Department, under the direction of Public Safety Director Fragé, the Bloomfield Police Department, under the direction of Director of Public Safety Samuel A. DeMaio, the Essex County Sheriff’s Office, under Sheriff Armando B. Fontoura’s direction, the East Orange Police Department, under the direction of Chief Phyllis L. Bindi, the Elizabeth Police Department, under the direction of Police Director Earl J. Graves, the Edison Police Department, under the direction of Chief of Police Tom Bryan, the New Jersey State Police, under the direction of Colonel Patrick J. Callahan, the Union County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor William A. Daniel, the Spotswood Police Department, under the direction of Chief Philip Corbisiero, and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation Fugitive and Missing Person Task Force, which includes members of the FBI, for the investigations leading to the charges in the Rollin 60’s Neighborhood Crips investigation.

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. 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.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francesca Liquori of the Special Prosecutions Division.

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Two Corpus Christi brothers have been ordered to federal prison for manufacturing and distributing tens of thousands of fentanyl-laced pills disguised as legitimate pharmaceutical-grade pain medications, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.

Chad Williams Wesevich, 40, and his brother Jamie Wesevich, 41, pleaded guilty in August 2023 to conspiracy to manufacture and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

U.S. District Judge David S. Morales has now ordered both men to serve a total of 35 years in prison – 360 and 240 months concurrently on the drug and money laundering charges, respectively as well as a consecutive 60 months on the firearm charge. In imposing the sentence, the court noted the brothers possessed a network of friends and family who had said supportive and loving things in letters requesting leniency, but that those letters must be tempered against the facts that people had overdosed on these pills. “We can’t get those people back,” said Judge Morales.

“Synthetic opioids, like fentanyl, account for almost 70% of drug overdose deaths in the United States, and Corpus Christi is no stranger to this new epidemic,” said Hamdani. “The dismantling of this deadly drug trafficking organization including the seizure of two industrial fentanyl pill presses, has made Corpus Christi a better and safer place to live.”

“There were several overdose/fentanyl poisoning deaths tied to the Wesevich Drug Trafficking Organization,” said Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Daniel C. Comeaux of the Houston Division. “The exemplary work of DEA agents alongside our federal and state partners sought justice for the families of victims who lost their lives due to the poison spread by Chad Wesevich and his co-conspirators.”

Between 2017 and 2021, Chad and Jamie Wesevich acquired equipment and materials from foreign sources, which were used to manufacture pills disguised as legitimate medications such as hydrocodone. The equipment included two industrial pill presses capable of producing 9,000 pills per hour.

The fraudulent hydrocodone was distributed through a network of trusted associates throughout Corpus Christi and the surrounding areas. The pills the Wesevich brothers manufactured were linked to several overdoses, both fatal and non-fatal.

As a result of this investigation, authorities seized tens of thousands of

counterfeit hydrocodone pills containing over 1,500 grams of fentanyl as well as pill presses, pill dies, vacuums, separators and other tools used in the illicit production of fentanyl-laced pills. In addition, law enforcement seized seven vehicles, five houses, seven guns and $350,000 in cryptocurrency and bulk cash.

The brothers have been in custody since their arrests in May 2022 and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The DEA led the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation along with IRS Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, Corpus Christi Police Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with assistance of the Texas Department of Public Safety. 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 leveraging 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 Brittany Jensen and Tyler Foster prosecuted the case.