Category: United States Department of Justice

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International Arms Dealer Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Export Firearms to Russia

Source: United States Attorneys General

Defendant Unlawfully Exported American-Made Firearms Through JFK International Airport

Yesterday in federal court in Brooklyn, Sergei Zharnovnikov, 46, of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit export violations. The defendant exported firearms and ammunition worth over $1.5 million from the United States to Russia, in violation of U.S. law. When sentenced, Zharnovnikov faces up to 20 years in prison.

“By his own admission, Zharnovnikov willfully violated U.S. export controls to smuggle American-made firearms into Russia,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “The National Security Division will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to disrupt illicit arms networks and prosecute those who illegally transfer U.S. weaponry abroad.”

“The defendant admitted that he purchased American-made, military-grade firearms and re-exported them to Russia,” said U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella for the Eastern District of New York. “Today’s guilty plea is the culmination of extensive investigative work, showing that this office will not allow merchants of lethal weapons and Russia to flout U.S. sanctions.”

According to court filings and statements made during the plea proceeding, the defendant is the owner of an arms dealer located in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan (Kyrgyzstan Company-1). Since at least March 2020, the defendant, together with others, has conspired to export firearms controlled by the U.S. Department of Commerce from the United States to Russia. The defendant exported $1,582,836.52 worth of U.S.-manufactured firearms and ammunition from the United States to Russia without the required licenses from the Department of Commerce. In one transaction, he entered into a five‑year, $900,000 contract with a company in the United States (U.S. Company‑1) to purchase and export U.S. Company-1 firearms to Kyrgyzstan. DOC issued a license for U.S. Company-1 to export firearms to Kyrgyzstan Company-1. The license, however, explicitly prohibited the export or re-export of the firearms to Russia. Nevertheless, the defendant exported and re-exported U.S. Company‑1 firearms, including semi‑automatic hybrid rifle-pistols, to Russia via Kyrgyzstan without the necessary approvals.

According to an export filing, in connection with the defendant’s contract with U.S. Company-1, U.S. Company-1 exported semi-automatic rifles from John F. Kennedy International Airport to Kyrgyzstan Company-1 on or about July 10, 2022. On or about Nov. 14, 2022, the General Director of a Russian company that is a client of the defendant executed a tax form listing the same semi‑automatic rifle‑pistols that U.S. Company‑1 had exported to Kyrgyzstan Company‑1, the defendant’s company. The defendant did not apply for, obtain, or possess a license to export or re-export the semi‑automatic pistol-rifles to Russia.

The defendant traveled from Kyrgyzstan to the United States on or about Jan. 18, 2025. The defendant traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada, where he attended the Shooting, Hunting, and Outdoor Trade (SHOT) Show to meet with U.S. arms dealers.

The FBI New York Field Office and U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Industry and Security Office of Export Enforcement are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ellen H. Sise for the Eastern District of New York and Trial Attorney Leslie Esbrook of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case, with assistance from Litigation Analyst Rebecca Roth. 

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Venezuelan National Residing Unlawfully in the U.S. Indicted on Federal Charges

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

TOLEDO, Ohio – A federal grand jury has returned a four-count indictment charging Anthony Emmanuel Labrador-Sierra, 24, a Venezuelan national residing in Perrysburg, Ohio, with possession of a firearm by an alien unlawfully in the United States, making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm, and making or using false writings or documents.

According to the indictment, the defendant is accused of submitting a false date of birth to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on federal applications for Temporary Protective Status and Employment Authorization Documents in 2024 and 2025.

In the original criminal complaint and underlying affidavit filed May 22, 2025, investigators learned that Perrysburg Schools reported to the Perrysburg Police Department that they received information that Labrador-Sierra, a student attending Perrysburg High School, was actually a 24-year-old man who enrolled under false pretenses.

The grand jury further charges that Labrador-Sierra was in possession of a Taurus G3C 9mm, semiautomatic pistol, which he did not have lawful status to purchase or own in the United States, and that he submitted false information on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Form 4473 to purchase the firearm. Among the alleged false statements the defendant submitted that were intended and likely to deceive the licensed firearms dealer at the point of sale, were that:

  • He was a United States citizen or national.
  • He was not illegally or unlawfully in the United States.
  • He was not an alien who had entered the United States under a nonimmigrant visa.

If convicted, Labrador-Sierra faces up to 15 years in prison for possession of a firearm by an alien; 10 years in prison for making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm; and up to five years in prison for making or using false writings or documents.

This case is being investigated by the City of Perrysburg Police Department, United States Border Patrol−Sandusky Bay Station, the FBI Toledo Field Office, and the ATF, with assistance from the Wood County Prosecutor’s Office.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert N. Melching and Tracey Tangeman for the Northern District of Ohio, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Dobson.

This investigation is ongoing. Anyone with knowledge and information about this matter, please call the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or visit fbi.gov/tips.

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

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Venezuelan National Residing Unlawfully in the U.S. Indicted on Federal Charges

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

TOLEDO, Ohio – A federal grand jury has returned a four-count indictment charging Anthony Emmanuel Labrador-Sierra, 24, a Venezuelan national residing in Perrysburg, Ohio, with possession of a firearm by an alien unlawfully in the United States, making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm, and making or using false writings or documents.

According to the indictment, the defendant is accused of submitting a false date of birth to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on federal applications for Temporary Protective Status and Employment Authorization Documents in 2024 and 2025.

In the original criminal complaint and underlying affidavit filed May 22, 2025, investigators learned that Perrysburg Schools reported to the Perrysburg Police Department that they received information that Labrador-Sierra, a student attending Perrysburg High School, was actually a 24-year-old man who enrolled under false pretenses.

The grand jury further charges that Labrador-Sierra was in possession of a Taurus G3C 9mm, semiautomatic pistol, which he did not have lawful status to purchase or own in the United States, and that he submitted false information on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Form 4473 to purchase the firearm. Among the alleged false statements the defendant submitted that were intended and likely to deceive the licensed firearms dealer at the point of sale, were that:

  • He was a United States citizen or national.
  • He was not illegally or unlawfully in the United States.
  • He was not an alien who had entered the United States under a nonimmigrant visa.

If convicted, Labrador-Sierra faces up to 15 years in prison for possession of a firearm by an alien; 10 years in prison for making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm; and up to five years in prison for making or using false writings or documents.

This case is being investigated by the City of Perrysburg Police Department, United States Border Patrol−Sandusky Bay Station, the FBI Toledo Field Office, and the ATF, with assistance from the Wood County Prosecutor’s Office.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert N. Melching and Tracey Tangeman for the Northern District of Ohio, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Dobson.

This investigation is ongoing. Anyone with knowledge and information about this matter, please call the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or visit fbi.gov/tips.

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

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McKeesport Felon Sentenced to Prison for Possession of Ammunition Collected from Scene of Fatal Apartment Complex Shooting

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

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A resident of McKeesport, Pennsylvania, was sentenced in federal court to 33 months of imprisonment on his conviction of possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.

Senior United States District Judge Nora Barry Fischer imposed the sentence on Desmond Dontae Lee, 47.

According to information presented to the Court, on March 1, 2023, Lee and his son were both part of a group of individuals congregating outside of an apartment in a McKeesport apartment complex. When the resident of the apartment confronted the group and asked them to leave, one of the group members approached the resident and struck him with a closed fist, which led to the resident shooting and killing his attacker. Lee entered and proceeded through the apartment next to the resident’s, exiting that apartment from the rear, and then approached the rear of the resident’s apartment, firing five rounds from a 9mm semi-automatic pistol into the apartment before fleeing the scene. At that time, Lee’s son shot back at and killed the resident at the front of the apartment. The firearm used by Lee was never recovered, but investigators with the Allegheny County Police Department Homicide Unit collected the shell casings fired from Lee’s gun.

Lee was previously convicted on state drug trafficking and firearms offenses. Federal law prohibits possession of a firearm or ammunition by a convicted felon.

Assistant United States Attorney V. Joseph Sonson prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

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

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McKeesport Felon Sentenced to Prison for Possession of Ammunition Collected from Scene of Fatal Apartment Complex Shooting

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

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A resident of McKeesport, Pennsylvania, was sentenced in federal court to 33 months of imprisonment on his conviction of possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.

Senior United States District Judge Nora Barry Fischer imposed the sentence on Desmond Dontae Lee, 47.

According to information presented to the Court, on March 1, 2023, Lee and his son were both part of a group of individuals congregating outside of an apartment in a McKeesport apartment complex. When the resident of the apartment confronted the group and asked them to leave, one of the group members approached the resident and struck him with a closed fist, which led to the resident shooting and killing his attacker. Lee entered and proceeded through the apartment next to the resident’s, exiting that apartment from the rear, and then approached the rear of the resident’s apartment, firing five rounds from a 9mm semi-automatic pistol into the apartment before fleeing the scene. At that time, Lee’s son shot back at and killed the resident at the front of the apartment. The firearm used by Lee was never recovered, but investigators with the Allegheny County Police Department Homicide Unit collected the shell casings fired from Lee’s gun.

Lee was previously convicted on state drug trafficking and firearms offenses. Federal law prohibits possession of a firearm or ammunition by a convicted felon.

Assistant United States Attorney V. Joseph Sonson prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

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

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Felon Indicted for Illegal Possession of a Firearm Following Arrest in Anacostia

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

Defendant Charged as Part of Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful Initiative

            WASHINGTON –Ronald Stevenson Richardson, 29, of the District of Columbia, has been indicted on a federal firearms charge as part of the “Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful” initiative. The indictment was announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro, Special Agent in Charge Anthony Spotswood of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Richardson is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon.

            According to court documents, on May 6, 2025, members of the Seventh District Special Missions Unit (SMU) were patrolling the area of 1509 W Street SE in Washington, D.C., in the Anacostia neighborhood. While on patrol, police observed allegedly Richardson standing at a bus stop with an open container of alcohol at the intersection of 16th Street SE and W Street SE.

            Richardson was subsequently arrested for possession of an open container of alcohol. During a search incident to the arrest, officers allegedly discovered a firearm in Richardson’s undergarments, beneath his waistband. The firearm was identified as a Glock 42, chambered in .380 auto, loaded with one round in the chamber and four additional rounds in its six-round capacity magazine.

            Richardson is prohibited from possessing a firearm and ammunition due to a prior conviction in D.C. Superior Court for carrying a pistol without a license outside home/business, establishing him as a felon in possession.

            This case is being investigated by the ATF Washington Field Office and the Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Truscott is prosecuting this case.

            The “Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful” initiative is a public safety effort surging resources to reduce violent crime in the District of Columbia. This initiative was created to address gun violence in the District, prioritize federal firearms violations, pursue tougher penalties for offenders, and seek detention for federal firearms violators.

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

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Felon Indicted for Illegal Possession of a Firearm Following Arrest in Anacostia

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

Defendant Charged as Part of Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful Initiative

            WASHINGTON –Ronald Stevenson Richardson, 29, of the District of Columbia, has been indicted on a federal firearms charge as part of the “Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful” initiative. The indictment was announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro, Special Agent in Charge Anthony Spotswood of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Richardson is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon.

            According to court documents, on May 6, 2025, members of the Seventh District Special Missions Unit (SMU) were patrolling the area of 1509 W Street SE in Washington, D.C., in the Anacostia neighborhood. While on patrol, police observed allegedly Richardson standing at a bus stop with an open container of alcohol at the intersection of 16th Street SE and W Street SE.

            Richardson was subsequently arrested for possession of an open container of alcohol. During a search incident to the arrest, officers allegedly discovered a firearm in Richardson’s undergarments, beneath his waistband. The firearm was identified as a Glock 42, chambered in .380 auto, loaded with one round in the chamber and four additional rounds in its six-round capacity magazine.

            Richardson is prohibited from possessing a firearm and ammunition due to a prior conviction in D.C. Superior Court for carrying a pistol without a license outside home/business, establishing him as a felon in possession.

            This case is being investigated by the ATF Washington Field Office and the Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Truscott is prosecuting this case.

            The “Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful” initiative is a public safety effort surging resources to reduce violent crime in the District of Columbia. This initiative was created to address gun violence in the District, prioritize federal firearms violations, pursue tougher penalties for offenders, and seek detention for federal firearms violators.

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

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Lone American indicted in international drug trafficking investigation sentenced to five years in prison

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

Local resident conspired with Mexican and Colombian nationals in drug distribution conspiracy

Seattle – A U.S. citizen deeply enmeshed in an international drug smuggling conspiracy was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to five years in prison, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Just over a year ago, law enforcement teams from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Seattle Police Department and IRS Criminal Investigation executed 24 search or arrest warrants taking four people into custody who were linked to the drug trafficking conspiracy. 56-year-old Curtis McDaniel was arrested at a Tukwila motel and has been in custody ever since. The drug conspirators arrested on June 5, 2024, have ties to suppliers in Mexico and Colombia.

In sentencing McDaniel to five years in prison and four years of supervised release to follow his prison term, U.S. District Judge Tana Lin referenced the significant impact that McDaniel’s distribution of methamphetamine and cocaine have upon our community—specifically noting that methamphetamine and cocaine were the second and third most common substances involved in overdose deaths in King County in 2024.

Lead defendant Ramon Duarte Garcia, 37, a citizen of Mexico who lived in Kent, Washington, was identified as a significant drug supplier when law enforcement stopped him driving back to the Pacific Northwest with 12 pounds of methamphetamine in his vehicle, along with a stolen firearm and $10,000 in drug trafficking proceeds. Duarte Garcia, was sentenced to ten years in prison in May 2025. Defendant Humberto Lopez Rodriguez, 30, a citizen of Mexico, formerly of Renton, Washington, is scheduled for sentencing on July 30, 2025.

Over the course of the investigation, law enforcement seized 84,000 fentanyl pills, more than a kilogram of fentanyl powder, 32 kilograms of cocaine, 15 kilograms of methamphetamine nearly three kilograms of heroin, and $71,000 in drug proceeds. They recovered nine guns, including an AK-47.

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

The investigation is being led by the DEA and Seattle Police Department. The IRS Criminal Investigation and OCDETF Auditor for the U.S. Attorney’s Office are conducting the financial investigation that is focused on the money launderers responsible for the transfer of significant sums of drug trafficking proceeds to sources of supply in Mexico and Colombia. Additional assistance was provided by Renton Police Department, Centralia Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of the Inspector General (HUD OIG), Washington State Patrol, Pierce County and Valley SWAT teams.

The Colombian National Police (CNP) and Colombian Prosecutor’s Office (Fiscalia General) partnered with U.S. law enforcement on this investigation. The Justice Department’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section’s Office of the Judicial Attaché in Bogotá provided critical assistance.

The cases from this investigation are being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Joe Silvio and C. Andrew Colasurdo in the Western District of Washington.

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West Jordan Man Accused of Trafficking Cocaine in the District of Utah

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – A federal grand jury returned and indictment today charging a Utah man with drug crimes after federal agents allegedly seized over 4,800 grams of field-tested positive cocaine during an executed search warrant.

Evar Mahmood Hashim, 25, of West Jordan, Utah, was charged by complaint on June 12, 2025.

According to court documents, beginning in May 2025, the Davis County Metro Narcotics Strike Force initiated a criminal investigation into members of a drug trafficking organization that was believed to be distributing large quantities of narcotics in Utah. During the investigation, agents identified a vehicle believed to be used by the organization to traffic the suspected narcotics. On June 10, 2025, a search warrant was executed on the vehicle, which was located and secured in Juab County, Utah. At this time, Hashim was the driver of the vehicle. During the search of the vehicle, agents seized approximately 4,836 grams of a white powder, which field-tested positive for cocaine. Hashim was taken into custody.

Hashim is charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute. His initial appearance on the indictment is scheduled for June 26, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. in courtroom 8.4 before a U.S. Magistrate Judge at the Orrin G. Hatch United States District Courthouse in downtown Salt Lake City.

Acting United States Attorney Felice John Viti for the District of Utah made the announcement.

The case is being investigated jointly by the Davis County Metro Narcotics Strike Force and the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Special Assistant United States Attorney Kelsy Young of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah is prosecuting the case.

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 (OCDETF) and Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).

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

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Salem Man Sentenced to More Than 10 Years in Federal Prison for Attempting to Entice and Coerce Children Online

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

EUGENE, Ore.—A Salem, Oregon man was sentenced to federal prison today for requesting sexually explicit materials from undercover law enforcement officers posing as children online and attempting to persuade the purported children to engage in illicit sexual conduct.

Gary Wade Ronning, 40, was sentenced to 130 months in federal prison and ten years’ supervised release.

According to court documents, in March 2023, Ronning used Facebook Messenger, an online messaging application, to contact an undercover law enforcement officer posing as a 15-year-old girl as part of a broader investigation into online enticement of minors. For months, Ronning engaged in sexually explicit communications with the officer, requested sexually explicit images of the purported child, sent sexually explicit photos and videos of himself, and planned a meeting to engage in illicit sexual conduct. However, when it came time for the meetup, Ronning did not follow through with his plans.

Between October and November 2023, Ronning communicated with two other undercover officers posing as 13-year-old and 15-year-old children online. Ronning again engaged in sexually explicit conversations, sent sexually explicit images and videos of himself, and attempted to arrange meetups to engage in illicit sexual conduct. During these conversations, Ronning expressed awareness that his actions were illegal and repeatedly reminded the fictitious children not to tell anyone about his plans.

On January 18, 2024, a federal grand jury in Eugene returned a five-count indictment charging Ronning with attempted coercion and enticement of a minor, attempting to use a minor to produce a visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct, and attempted transfer of obscene material to a minor.

On January 22, 2025, Ronning pleaded guilty to attempted coercion and enticement of a minor.

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Redmond Police Department, with assistance from the Salem Police Department. It was prosecuted by William M. McLaren, Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Oregon.

Anyone who has information about the physical or online exploitation of children are encouraged to call the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov.

The FBI Child Exploitation Task Force (CETF) conducts sexual exploitation investigations, many of them undercover, in coordination with federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. CETF is committed to locating and arresting those who prey on children as well as recovering and assisting victims of sex trafficking and child exploitation.

Federal law defines child pornography as any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a minor. It is important to remember child sexual abuse material depicts actual crimes being committed against children. Not only do these images and videos document the victims’ exploitation and abuse, but when shared across the internet, re-victimize and re-traumatize the child victims each time their abuse is viewed. To learn more, please visit the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at www.missingkids.org.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Justice Department to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.