Category: United States Attorneys General

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Former Newspaper Publisher, Mortgage Broker, Mortgage Lender and Real Estate Agent Sentenced in $20 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme

A former Miami newspaper publisher, mortgage broker, mortgage lender and real estate agent was sentenced in federal court today to serve 180 months imprisonment for leading a $20 million mortgage fraud scheme.

Benjamin G. Greenberg, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Robert F. Lasky, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

Marco Laureti, 46, of Sunny Isles Beach, was sentenced to 180 months imprisonment, to be followed by five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $8,316,135, in restitution.  In November 2017, after a three-week trial, Laureti was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349 and seven counts of wire fraud affecting a financial institution, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343 (Case No. 16-60340-CR-Bloom(s)(Cohn)). 

“The sentence imposed is a success in our continuing efforts to fight mortgage fraud that jeopardizes our nation’s financial institutions,” said U.S. Attorney Benjamin G. Greenberg.  “Laureti was a prominent businessman who used his reputation to perpetrate the $20,000,000 mortgage fraud scheme, which thanks to the efforts of law enforcement, was successfully unraveled.  We will continue to investigate and prosecute individuals who engage in deceptive and fraudulent behavior that is fueled by greed.”

“Criminals are always looking for ways to exploit vulnerabilities and devise methods to defraud,” said Robert F. Lasky, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Miami.  “Marco Laureti and his co-conspirators implemented a mortgage fraud scheme for their own personal enrichment, but instead got an investigation, a trial and a conviction.  Would-be mortgage fraudsters beware: The FBI remains committed to rooting out this type of fraud.”

According to evidence presented at trial, Laureti and co-conspirators were involved in a $20 million mortgage fraud scheme.  Laureti was a former newspaper publisher and owner of Laureti Publishing Company and multiple companies, including Northview Equities LLC, Northview Real Estate LLC, Northview Capital LLC, Laureti Holdings Company, Laureti Media Group, Inc., ReTrade, Inc., and M4 Management LLC, in addition to being a licensed Florida real estate agent and formerly licensed Florida mortgage broker. 

At trial, the government presented evidence that the defendant and his co-conspirators engaged in a fraud scheme involving a condominium complex located at 45 Hendricks Isle in Fort Lauderdale.  The defendant and other co-conspirators made false and fraudulent statements to a financial institution on mortgage loan applications, including grossly inflating income and bank account balances.  These defendants also made fraudulent representations on the closing statements for these multi-million dollar condominiums. Once these loans were approved, a co-conspirator, at Laureti’s direction, diverted the loan proceeds to fund the cash the borrower was expected to bring to the property’s closing, as well as diverting additional monies from the loan proceeds to various companies owned by Laureti and another co-conspirator.  The evidence showed Laureti paid a co-conspirator $10,000 for each fraudulent transaction.  Furthermore, Laureti and a co-conspirator utilized the same scheme on the mortgage loan applications and closing statements to purchase their own multi-million dollar residential properties in Miami Beach, including Laureti’s $6.9 million home and a co-conspirator’s $6.5 million dollar condominium.  The defendants’ scheme defrauded the financial institution of approximately $20 million in disbursed mortgage loans.

Mr. Greenberg commended the investigative efforts of the FBI.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Randy Katz and Karen O. Stewart. 

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Gustavo Falcon Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Possess With Intent to Distribute and to Distribute Cocaine

On February 1, 2018, Gustavo Falcon, of Miami, member of the Falcon-Magluta organization, pled guilty in federal court to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute cocaine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846, an offense punishable by up to twenty years in prison.  Prior to his arrest in April 2017, Falcon was a fugitive for 26 years.

Randy A. Hummel, Executive Assistant United States Attorney, U.S. Attorney’s Office for  the Southern District of Florida, Adolphus P. Wright, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Miami Field Division, and Amos Rojas, Jr., United States Marshal, United States Marshals Service (USMS), made the announcement.

Falcon’s conviction arises out of his participation in the cocaine trafficking organization headed by his older brother, Augusto Guillermo Falcon, a/k/a “Willie,” and Salvador Magluta.  From the early 1980s through mid-October 1991, the Falcon-Magluta organization was an extraordinarily prolific cocaine trafficking organization based in the Southern District of Florida and elsewhere.  As an illustration of the scope of the organization’s activities, cocaine ledgers seized from a residence controlled by Magluta that covered the period of January 1, 1990, through October 15, 1991, recorded the distribution of 8,921 kilograms of cocaine for a total price of $142,509,800.

In the mid-1980s, the Falcon-Magluta organization established a base in Southern California.  From that base, the organization distributed cocaine in the Southern California area and moved large tractor-trailer loads of cocaine from California to various destinations in the United States, including the Southern District of Florida.  On almost a daily basis, the organization’s local distribution operations in Southern California received between $50,000 and $200,000 in cash drug proceeds.

Falcon’s wife brother was a Falcon-Magluta organization cocaine trafficker.  In 1986, the defendant’s brother-in-law told the defendant that he had a client in California that he needed to supply with cocaine.  The defendant gave his brother-in-law the names of two organization members working in the Los Angeles area and told his brother-in-law that one of them would be able to supply any cocaine he needed.

After his arrest in Los Angeles in mid-December 1986, the defendant’s brother-in-law returned to South Florida.  In late 1987, Falcon asked his brother-in-law to receive large shipments of cocaine transported from California and introduced him to the organization member responsible for delivering the cocaine to a farm in west Miami-Dade County.  The tractor-trailers arrived every one to two months and generally contained 1,000 kilograms of cocaine per load.  After the loads were delivered to the farm, the defendant’s brother-in-law then would transport the cocaine to stash houses in the South Florida area.

In late 1989, Falcon contacted a separate organization member and offered him $10,000 per month to stash large quantities of cocaine in his house.  After this organization member accepted the defendant’s offer, he received and stored organization cocaine through 1991.  A search of that organization member’s house in early January 1992 yielded 3.093 kilograms of cocaine from his attic.

On April 10, 1991, a federal grand jury returned a cocaine trafficking indictment in this case that charged ten Falcon-Magluta organization members.  Those charged included Falcon, Willie Falcon, Salvador Magluta, and the defendant’s brother-in-law.  After the indictment was unsealed on May 20, 1991, Falcon and others learned of the charges against them.  In mid-September 1991, Falcon obtained a false Florida driver’s license in the name of “Luis Andre Reiss.”

In April 2017, the USMS located the defendant in the area of Kissimmee, Florida, where he had been living for a number of years under the “Luis Reiss” alias identity he had established in September 1991.  Deputy Marshals captured the defendant on April 12, 2017.

Sentencing for Falcon is scheduled for April 11, 2018, at 10:00 A.M., before United States District Judge Federico A. Moreno.

Mr. Hummel commended the investigative efforts to the DEA and USMS.  This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Clark.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Jacksonville Man Pleads Guilty To International Parental Kidnapping

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces that Dennis Lee Henning (42, Jacksonville) today pleaded guilty to international parental kidnapping. He faces a maximum penalty of three years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to court documents, as a result of divorce proceedings that concluded on May 25, 2017, Henning was ordered to share custody of a child with his ex-wife, the child’s mother, who was named as the majority timeshare parent.  Before that divorce was final, however, Henning made Facebook posts that were critical of his ex-wife, the court system, and the United States – expressing his willingness to give up his citizenship and leave the country with his child. He also confided in a friend that, to avoid losing custody, he might run away with the child to Costa Rica or Canada. 

On May 31, 2017, without telling the child’s mother, Henning drove to Mexico with his child. Unable to locate Henning or her son, Henning’s ex-wife repeatedly called and sent him text messages, which he ignored. After Mexican authorities arrested Henning on unrelated firearms charges, his ex-wife was able to travel to Mexico, recover her child, and return to Jacksonville.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Jacksonville Sherriff’s Office, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael J. Coolican.

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Two-Time Convicted Sex Offender Sentenced To 28 Years For Child Sex Crimes

Tampa, Florida –U.S. District Judge James S. Moody, Jr. has sentenced Clayton Junior Thornburg (55, Iuka, Mississippi) to 28 years in federal prison for attempting to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity, attempting to transfer obscene material to a minor, transporting child pornography, and being a registered sex offender who committed another sex offense involving a minor.

Judge Moody found him guilty on November 7, 2017, following a bench trial.

According to evidence presented during the trial, between August and November 2015, Thornburg communicated online with an undercover agent who he believed was a 13-year-old girl. He repeatedly expressed explicit interest in having sex with the “child,” and he sent multiple pornographic images and videos to illustrate what “it’s like for a young girl to have sex.” Thornburg is a two-time convicted sex offender and was on probation in Illinois for possession of child pornography at the time of the offenses in this case.

“This case should reassure the public that HSI is paying close attention to the safety of our children,” said HSI Tampa Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero. “HSI special agents will continue to take child predators off our streets.”

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lisa M. Thelwell.

It is another case 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 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.justice.gov/psc.  

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Jury Convicts Former Insurance Agent of Fraud Scheme

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A federal jury convicted an Ashburn woman today on charges of engaging in a fraud scheme that resulted in an attempted loss of approximately $182,000.

According to court records and evidence presented at trial, Semyya Cunningham, 40, was an agent and licensed representative of the Western Reserve Life Assurance Co. of Ohio, a company that issued life and other forms of insurance. In April 2014, Cunningham sold a life insurance policy to her close friend (identified in court records as Victim A). The policy included an accelerated death benefit option that permitted the holder, in the event he or she were ever diagnosed with a terminal illness, of claiming the proceeds before death. In July 2014, Victim A was diagnosed with a terminal illness. Shortly thereafter, Cunningham engaged in a scheme to fraudulently obtain the proceeds of the insurance policy for herself. Cunningham changed all of the contact information on the policy to her information, changed the beneficiaries on the policy from Victim A’s family members to friends of hers, and submitted a claim for the accelerated death benefit without Victim A’s knowledge or consent. Western Reserve paid the claim, and because the contact info had been changed to Cunningham’s information, the check was mailed to Cunningham’s residence. Cunningham then deposited the money into her own account, and then transferred the bulk of the money through several accounts in an apparent attempt to prevent the transaction from being reversed.

Cunningham faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison when sentenced on May 18th. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Tracy Doherty-McCormick, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Andrew W. Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Jay N. Lerner, Inspector General of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC-OIG), made the announcement after U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady accepted the verdict. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew Burke and Grace L. Hill are prosecuting 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 is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:17-cr-177.

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Former Controller At Portland Industrial Facility Indicted For Embezzlement

David G. King, 51, of Gallatin, Tennessee, was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury and charged with four counts of wire fraud, announced United States Attorney Don Cochran of the Middle District of Tennessee.

The indictment alleges that King, while employed at a Portland, Tennessee company as a controller, embezzled approximately $235,000 over a 23-month period, beginning in June 2014.  King allegedly concealed the fraud by creating fictitious vendor accounts in the company’s accounts payable system and then issued checks made payable to himself and linked to the fake vendors.

If convicted, King faces up to 20 years in prison and up to a $1million fine.

This case is being investigated by the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie N. Toussaint is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an accusation.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Midlands Area Man Found Liable for $51 Million in Health Care Fraud

Columbia, South Carolina – The United States Attorney’s Office announced today that a federal jury found Floyd Calhoun “Cal” Dent, III, of Lexington, South Carolina, and his two co-conspirators liable for defrauding the federal healthcare programs Medicare and Tricare of over $51 million.  The unanimous verdict was handed down on January 31, 2018, by a federal jury in Charleston, South Carolina. 

The United States alleged that Mr. Dent, along with his co-conspirators, paid illegal kickbacks to physicians across the country in order to get them to order medically unnecessary blood tests from Health Diagnostics Laboratory, Inc. (“HDL”) of Richmond, Virginia, and laboratory Singulex, Inc. of Alameda, California, in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute and the False Claims Act.

“This jury verdict sends a strong message of accountability to those who would seek to take advantage of federal health care programs,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Lance Crick.  “The District of South Carolina will continue to battle against Medicare and Tricare fraud.”

Over the course of the two week trial, the United States presented evidence that the defendants Cal Dent, Robert Bradford “Brad” Johnson of Hanceville, Alabama, and LaTonya “Tonya” Mallory of Richmond, Virginia, conspired to pay kickbacks to induce physicians to refer patients to HDL and Singulex.  The defendants arranged for “process and handling fees” of $17 to be paid to the physicians per referral and for the routine waiving of patient co-pays and deductibles.  As a result of those kickbacks, physicians referred patients’ blood samples to HDL and Singulex for medically unnecessary blood tests.  HDL and Singulex then submitted fraudulent claims to federal health care programs Medicare and Tricare for payment for the medically unnecessary tests. 

The verdict illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act.  Tips and complaints from all sources about potential health care fraud, waste, and abuse can be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services at 900-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477). 

This case was investigated by Assistant U.S. Attorney James Leventis of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Carolina; the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division; the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia; Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General; the FBI; the U.S. Office of Personnel Management Office of Inspector General; and the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service.

The civil lawsuit was filed in the District of South Carolina and is captioned United States of America et al v. BlueWave Healthcare Consultants Inc., 9:14-cv-00230-RMG.

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Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Pennsylvania Business Owner Admits Defrauding Veterans’ GI Bill

Agrees to 60-Month Prison Term

NEWARK, N.J. – A Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, man today admitted his role in a conspiracy that fraudulently obtained more than $24 million from the Post 9/11 GI Bill, a federal education benefits program designed to help veterans who served in the armed forces following the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

David Alvey, 51, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Katharine S. Hayden in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

“Alvey and his codefendants stole money that was intended to provide educational opportunities to the armed services members who served following the attacks on 9/11,” U.S. Attorney Carpenito said. “Their scam targeted unwitting veterans, enrolling them in unapproved online courses without their knowledge. Our office will always work together with our law enforcement partners to find and stop this kind of government fraud, especially when it seeks to victimize those who serve our country with such courage.”

“The VA’s Post-9/11 GI Bill is a comprehensive educational program meant to help our nation’s veterans advance their education and careers as they move from military service to civilian life. Defrauding this important VA program costs our nation’s taxpayers and VA and does a tremendous disservice to our veterans,” Sean Smith, Special Agent in Charge, Northeast Field Office, U.S. Department of Veterans, Office of Inspector General, said. “VA OIG is committed to working closely with our fellow law enforcement partners and thanks the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of New Jersey, for its dedication to this time-intensive, complex case.”

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

The Post-9/11 GI Bill provides educational assistance to eligible veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces by paying for veterans’ tuition, housing costs, and other educational expenses as long as their courses meet certain criteria. Because these tuition benefits are paid by the United States directly to the school, all entities involved in developing and administering the courses must be fully disclosed to the United States in order to assess the courses for approval.

From 2009 through August 2013, Alvey – founder and president of Ed4Mil – Lisa DiBisceglie and Helen Sechrist, both of whom previously pleaded guilty to a similar wire fraud conspiracy count, and others, conspired to fraudulently obtain millions of dollars in tuition assistance and other education-related benefits under the Post-9/11 GI Bill.

DiBisceglie, then an associate dean at Caldwell University, helped Alvey get approval from Caldwell’s administration to develop and administer a series of non-credit online courses for veterans in Caldwell’s name. In order for the courses to be eligible for education benefits under the Post-9/11 GI Bill, DiBisceglie, Alvey, and others prepared and submitted an application with the Veterans Administration stating that the courses were developed, taught, and administered by Caldwell faculty and met Caldwell’s stringent educational standards. The courses were subsequently approved, and Alvey, Sechrist, and others aggressively marketed the courses to veterans who were eligible to receive the benefits.

However, Caldwell did not participate in developing or teaching the online courses. The veterans were instead enrolled in online correspondence courses developed and administered by a sub-contractor of Ed4Mil. Neither Ed4Mil nor its sub-contractor were disclosed to the government, and neither were eligible to receive Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits.

Alvey and others concealed the true nature of the courses from the government and the veterans who enrolled in the courses. Thousands of veterans enrolled in the online courses believing they were taking courses from Caldwell. The scheme caused the United States to pay more than $24 million in tuition benefits under the Post-9/11 GI Bill.

“David Alvey knowingly and willfully abused his position for personal gain and did so at the expense of those who truly deserve better – our veterans who were looking to make their dreams of a higher education a reality,” Debbi Mayer, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Education Office of Inspector General’s Eastern Regional Office, said. “I’m proud of the work of OIG Special Agents and our law enforcement partners for holding Mr. Alvey accountable for his criminal actions. America’s veterans and students deserve nothing less.”

“The guilty plea by David Alvey sends a clear and unequivocal message that the FBI and our law enforcement partners will relentlessly pursue those who defraud the government.  This is the third conspirator who pleaded guilty in this fraud scheme. These crimes are especially egregious since they target our veterans and the educational system,” Timothy Gallagher, Special Agent in Charge of the Newark FBI Field Office, said.

The wire fraud conspiracy charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. As part of his plea agreement, Alvey has agreed to a prison term of five years and to forfeit proceeds of the crime, including $702,073 in cash proceeds, as well as artwork, and stock.  Sentencing is scheduled for May 15, 2018.

U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General, Criminal Investigation Division, Northeast field office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Smith in Newark; the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Gallagher in Newark; and the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Inspector General Eastern Regional Office, under the direction of Assistant Special Agent in Charge Mayer, with the ongoing investigation.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David M. Eskew and David Malagold of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark, Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Mastropieri of the Healthcare and Government Fraud Unit, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jafer Aftab of the Asset Recovery and Money Laundering Unit.

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Reeds Spring Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography, Faces at Least 25 Years in Prison

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Timothy A. Garrison, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a convicted sex offender in Reeds Spring, Mo., who pretended to be a woman online in order to solicit sexually explicit photos from a teenage boy, pleaded guilty in federal court today to the sexual exploitation of a minor.

Jeffrey Raymond Everett, Jr., 22, of Reeds Spring, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to the charge contained in a Sept. 20, 2017, federal indictment. Everett has a prior state conviction for possession of child pornography.

According to today’s plea agreement, another student turned in the 16-year-old child victim’s cell phone at school because he found nude photos of the victim on the phone. Investigators found Facebook Messenger conversations between the victim and “Alecia Valentine,” who was later determined to be Everett.

In those messages, Everett – pretending to be Alecia Valentine – asks for sexually explicit images and videos of the victim, who sent numerous sexually explicit images and videos to Everett. The victim told law enforcement officers that he had engaged in several chat sessions with Alecia Valentine. Everett sent him pictures of a nude female, purportedly of Alecia Valentine, and requested that he send sexual pictures and videos of himself in return, which he did.

Under federal statutes, Everett is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years in federal prison without parole, up to 50 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 defendants will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing hearings will be scheduled after the completion of presentence investigations by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Harshad Miller. It was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force and the Monett, Mo., 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: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Felons who Stole Guns Sentenced to Federal Prison

BOISE – Robby David Haley, 28, of Weiser, Idaho, and, Shawn Michael Hart, 28, of Payette, Idaho, were sentenced in federal court on Tuesday for unlawful possession of firearms, U.S. Attorney Bart M. Davis announced. U.S. District Judge David C. Nye ordered Haley to serve 30 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and ordered Hart to serve 54 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Judge Nye also ordered both defendants to pay restitution jointly and severally in the amount of $21,299.

According to court records, in February of last year, Haley and Hart broke into a home in Weiser, Idaho. The homeowner, who was out of state at the time, returned to discover that several items, including seven firearms and ammunition, were stolen. Several weeks later, Hart and Haley were arrested. Haley told police that he and Hart broke into the home, stole property including firearms, and pawned the property for cash. Haley and Hart, both felons, were prohibited from possessing firearms. Both pled guilty in federal court to one count of unlawful possession of firearms.

At his sentencing, Haley promised to work towards an associate degree in computer science while in prison to repay the victim. After the court sentenced Haley, the victim, a retired computer scientist, asked if she could use the restitution money to establish a fund for Haley’s education.

The case was investigated through the combined efforts of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, the Ontario Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has made turning the tide of rising violent crime in America a top priority. In October 2017, a part of a series of actions to address this crime trend, Attorney General Sessions announced the reinvigoration of PSN and directed all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to develop a district crime reduction strategy that incorporates the lessons learned since PSN launches in 2001.