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

ST. PAUL, Minn. – A Mankato man has been charged with illegal possession of a firearm after firing at police officers during a violent home invasion, announced U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger.

“These charges allege a night of terrifying home invasions and violent assaults,” said U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger. “I commend the law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line to apprehend this defendant.”

According to court documents, on January 14, 2024, a woman called 911 to report that a man had broken into her apartment in south Minneapolis. The woman and her two children fled the apartment after the man, identified as Kamau Evans, 31, shattered a window and entered the woman’s bedroom. Evans then went to a second residence in north Minneapolis and broke into the home by shattering a sliding glass door. Once inside, Evans assaulted two of the residents with a firearm and brandished the firearm at a minor who was hiding inside a closet. Evans then held all three residents in the home against their will. 

According to court documents, officers of the Minneapolis Police Department arrived at the residence and were able to pull one of the victims out of the house to safety. Officers entered the home behind a ballistic shield and as they were walking upstairs, Evans appeared in the stairwell and fired a shot at them. Evans then leaped out of a bathroom window and tried to escape through the backyard but was apprehended and arrested. Officers recovered an SCCY model CPX-1 9mm semiautomatic pistol on the side of the garage where Evans was apprehended.

Because Evans has prior felony convictions, he is prohibited under federal law from possessing firearms or ammunition at any time.

The complaint charges Evans with one count of possession of a firearm as a felon. Evans made his initial appearance yesterday in U.S. District Court before Magistrate Judge Elizabeth Cowan Wright.

This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI and the Minneapolis Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Calhoun-Lopez and Kristian Weir are prosecuting the case.

A complaint is merely an allegation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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

NEWARK, N.J. – An Iowa man was sentenced today to 94 months in prison for robbing a bank in Secaucus, New Jersey, in January 2017, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.

Jose Luis Martinez, 33, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge John M. Vazquez to a two-count indictment charging him with armed bank robbery and brandishing a firearm during a bank robbery. U.S. District Judge William J. Martini imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.

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

On Jan. 5, 2017, Martinez walked into a bank in Secaucus and pointed a handgun at a bank employee while demanding cash. Martinez told the bank employee that he would shoot her and other customers if the employee did not comply. Martinez took cash from the bank and fled. 

In addition to the prison term, Judge Martini sentenced Martinez to three years of supervised release and ordered restitution of $31,000.

U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy, Newark, with the investigation leading to the sentencing. He also thanked the FBI’s White Plains, New York Office; the New York City Police Department; the Greenwich, Connecticut, Police Department; and the Port Chester, New York, Police Department for their assistance.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Garrett Schuman of the Criminal Division in Newark.

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

NEWARK, N.J. – A former president of a pharmacy business was sentenced today to 36 months in prison for his role in a health care kickback conspiracy involving prescriptions for Medicare and TRICARE beneficiaries, Attorney for the United States Vikas Khanna announced today.

Elan Yaish, 54, of Israel, previously pleaded guilty on Aug. 16, 2023, before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas to an information charging him with conspiracy to violate the Federal Anti-Kickback statute. Judge Salas imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.

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

From September 2017 to around December 2020, Yaish participated in operating pharmacies, including Apogee Bio-Pharm LLC, in Edison, New Jersey. Yaish and others agreed to engage in a scheme to pay marketing companies to direct prescriptions for expensive medications to the pharmacies. 

The marketing companies identified Medicare and TRICARE beneficiaries to target for expensive drugs and contacted the beneficiaries by telephone to pressure them to agree to try expensive medications, such as pain creams, scar creams, eczema creams, and migraine medication. The marketing companies then transmitted recordings of telephone calls with the beneficiaries, together with pre-marked prescription pads for particular drugs that would yield exorbitant reimbursements, to telemedicine companies. The marketers paid the telemedicine companies kickbacks for every beneficiary referred for a prescription, and the telemedicine companies paid doctors to approve the prescriptions. The marketing companies then directed the prescriptions to pharmacies, including Apogee, with which they had kickback arrangements. The pharmacies filled the prescriptions and sought reimbursement from federal health care benefit programs, including Medicare and TRICARE. The pharmacies, including Apogee, then paid a portion of each reimbursement to the marketing companies as a kickback. As a result of the scheme, Yaish and his conspirators caused a loss to Medicare and other federal health care benefit programs of over $32 million.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Salas sentenced Yaish to three years of supervised release and ordered restitution of $32 million.

Attorney for the United States Khanna credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy in Newark; the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Naomi Gruchacz; and U.S. Department of Defense, Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Northeast Field Office, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Brian J. Solecki, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine M. Romano of the Health Care Fraud Unit and Barbara Ward, Senior Trial Counsel of the Asset Recovery and Money Laundering Unit, in Newark.

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

Searching for Liam 

The FBI’s been on the case since January 2023, when the Marlboro Police Department in New Jersey sought our help, Suazo said. 

Soon after joining the investigation, case agents learned that Biran’s belongings—including camping equipment, clothes, and an electronic device they hope might yield clues—had been discovered in Italy’s Aosta Valley region. FBI case agents hope to leverage any information our Italian partners share to help find Biran. 

Meanwhile, Bureau agents have conducted extensive interviews with Biran’s relatives, friends, and former coworkers, Suazo said. And FBI Newark has also coordinated with its international law enforcement partners on a social media advertising campaign about Biran’s disappearance. 

“We’ve been reaching out to the public for help because there’s a big time gap between when he went missing from the train station versus them finding his stuff out in the in the Aosta Valley,” Suazo explained. “We want to encounter anyone who might have seen him or spoken to him while he was in transit there.” 

The FBI encourages anyone who traveled in Israel, Greece, or Italy in April 2019 and recognizes Biran from their travels to contact FBI Newark by calling 973-792-3000 or to submit a tip by visiting tips.fbi.gov. Overseas tipsters can also reach out to the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate to submit a tip. The public can share information with the FBI anonymously. 

Any recollections from the road—whether a conversation from a hostel or a chance sighting—could potentially help the Bureau find Biran and make sure he’s safe. Suazo believes tips from travel acquaintances can be powerful tools in the search for this missing man. Biran’s family is concerned for his safety. 

“Liam, if you are out there,” Suazo said, “your family just wants to know you’re OK.” 

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

HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Zsanett Nagy, age 32, was given a sentence of time served, followed by two years of supervised release, for the offense of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering.

According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, Nagy was previously indicted, along with her then-husband Earl Marshawn Washington, for selling counterfeit artistic goods known as “woodblocks” or “woodcuts” to various buyers and then laundering the proceeds from the sale of those goods between 2018 and 2021. Washington and Nagy both pleaded guilty last year.

According to the indictment, xylography is the art of making “woodcuts,” or engravings made from wooden blocks, especially for printing using historical techniques. In traditional xylography, an artist uses a sharpened tool to carve a design into the surface of a woodblock. The raised areas that remain after the block has been cut are inked and printed, while the recessed areas that are cut away do not retain ink and will remain blank in the final print. Woodblock images can be printed onto paper, fabrics, textiles, or other materials. The technique has been used in different geographic regions at different times. One woodblock tradition stems from Germany starting around the 14th century and continuing for several hundred years thereafter.

Washington and Nagy sold inauthentic woodblocks and prints made from woodblocks that they as advertised as being from between the 15th and early 20th centuries. The buyers included a pair of woodblock collectors residing in France, as well as a buyer of a woodblock print who then resided in Hummelstown, Pennsylvania, in the Middle District of Pennsylvania. The buyers of the woodblocks in France made PayPal payments to Nagy before learning that the woodblocks they purchased were not from the 15th and 16th centuries, as advertised. Nagy received these payments, moved the proceeds to a bank account in her name, and then quickly converted the proceeds to cash through withdrawals of several thousand dollars or more.

Nagy was ordered to pay restitution to these victims in the amount of $107,159.25. She also faces potential deportation for her conviction.

Washington is scheduled to be sentenced in March 2024.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ravi Romel Sharma and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Art Crime Team.

# # #

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

SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Brandon B. Boyer, age 34, of Pottsville, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on January 18, 2024, by United States District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion, to 18 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by a two-year term of supervised release, for the computer hacking offense of obtaining information from protected computers.

According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, for a two-year period from approximately February 2020 to February 2022, Boyer unlawfully accessed the computers of dozens of adult female victims in order to search for and obtain nude photographs that he could then sell.  Boyer accessed victims’ Snapchat accounts at the behest of “clients” who paid him to break into the accounts and obtain the images.  Boyer admitted that he accomplished this, in part, through use of an app that allowed him to send text messages to victims posing as a Snapchat representative.  Through a technique known as “phishing,” Boyer then coaxed the victims into changing their passwords and sending him the verification codes that were generated.  This allowed him to then access the otherwise private sections of the accounts.  Boyer acknowledged earning between $50,000 and $60,000 from this activity.  Some of Boyer’s “clients” utilized the photographs that they obtained via Boyer to cyberstalk and to attempt to extort victims into providing additional photographs.       

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – Philadelphia Division.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffery St John prosecuted the case.

# # #

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

PHILADELPHIA – U.S. Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Jessica Navarro, 31, of Winter Springs, Florida, was sentenced to nine months’ imprisonment and one year of supervised release by the Honorable Judge Nitza I. Quinones Alejandro.

In June 2023, Navarro pleaded guilty to one count of interfering with a flight crew, one count of assaulting a flight attendant, and one count of assaulting a passenger. On January 11, 2022, the defendant, under the influence of alcohol, had kicked the seats in front of her, spat on passengers, and physically resisted the flight crew. The defendant’s conduct escalated, with Navarro striking a flight attendant and a passenger, causing a Frontier Airlines flight that departed Orlando, Florida, to be diverted from its intended Islip, New York, destination and land at Philadelphia International Airport.

“Jessica Navarro’s violent conduct endangered and traumatized passengers, and severely inconvenienced everyone aboard that plane,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Air travel can already be a stressful experience, and the last thing anyone should have to deal with is such drunken and dangerous behavior en route to their destination. If you commit a federal crime aboard an aircraft, expect to be held accountable.”

“Passengers like Navarro do more than disrupt a flight, they put all passengers and the entire crew at risk,” said Wayne A. Jacobs, FBI Philadelphia’s Special Agent in Charge. “Today’s sentencing sends a message to anyone who might engage in disruptive behavior or violence aboard an aircraft: Upon your arrival, FBI agents will be waiting to bring you to justice.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Josh A. Davison.

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

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that a jury returned a guilty verdict against AMIT DAGAR for insider trading and conspiracy to commit insider trading.  The defendant was found guilty following a two-week trial before U.S. District Judge Andrew L. Carter.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “As the jury’s swift verdict shows, the proof at trial was overwhelming that Amit Dagar stole information about Paxlovid from his employer, Pfizer, and used that illegal edge to profit in the stock market.  Combatting the corruption of our financial markets continues to be a top priority of this Office.  Would-be insider traders tempted by the prospect of easy money should know that the Southern District of New York is watching, we’ll catch you, and we’ll make sure you pay the price for violating the law.”

According to the Indictment, statements made in public court proceedings and filings, and the evidence at trial:

In November 2021, DAGAR participated in an insider trading scheme to reap illicit profits from options trading based on inside information about the results of clinical trials of Paxlovid, a medicine used to treat COVID-19.  DAGAR was an employee of Pfizer Inc. (“Pfizer”) and assisted in managing the data analysis in certain clinical drug trials.

On November 4, 2021, DAGAR learned that a Pfizer trial of the drug Paxlovid, a medicine designed to treat mild to severe COVID‑19 infection, had produced positive results.  The results were confidential and meant to remain so until Pfizer publicized them on November 5, 2021.

Later that same day, and while the results remained confidential, DAGAR purchased short-dated, out-of-the-money Pfizer call options that expired days and weeks later.  DAGAR also tipped a close friend, who also purchased short-dated, out-of-the-money Pfizer call options.

The following day, on November 5, 2021, Pfizer publicly released results of its Paxlovid study prior to the market opening.  That same day, following the publication of the positive results, Pfizer’s stock price increased substantially, opening — and eventually closing — more than 10% higher than the prior day’s closing price.  In the following weeks, DAGAR sold his Pfizer call options for profits of more than $270,000.

*                *                *

DAGAR, 44, of Hillsborough, New Jersey, was convicted of one count of securities fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

The maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge. 

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Mr. Williams also thanked the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which has filed a parallel civil action, for its assistance and cooperation in the investigation.

This case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alex Rossmiller and Justin V. Rodriguez are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Paralegal Specialists Madeline Sonderby and Anna Gamboa.

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

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and James Smith, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced today the arrest of KYLE WHITE.  WHITE is charged with advertisement, receipt, and distribution of child pornography.  WHITE was presented this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Colin H. Lindsay of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Kyle White’s alleged conduct is abhorrent and depraved.  As alleged, from behind a computer screen in the comfort of his own home, White ran a lucrative and illegal online pornography marketplace called ‘The Ho Zone,’ where he sold access to child pornography and illegally obtained adult pornography to thousands of people.  White’s alleged callous disregard for his victims is striking — White profited at the expense of innocent children, whose sexual abuse and trauma White broadcasted to the world in high definition.  Let these charges against White serve as a warning to anyone who seeks to capitalize on the sexual exploitation of children: this Office will work relentlessly to hold you accountable for your crimes.”

FBI Assistant Director in Charge James Smith said: “Kyle White’s actions – allegedly running an online marketplace selling access to child pornography – are unconscionable.  Thankfully, he now faces a lengthy punishment for his crimes.  The FBI remains vigilant in our efforts to protect children.  Removing predators who seek to exchange and profit from sexually explicit material of minors will remain a top priority.”

According to the allegations in the Complaint:[1]

WHITE ran an online pornography marketplace known as “The Ho Zone” on the messaging application Telegram.  WHITE categorized the pornography he advertised and sold on “The Ho Zone” into dozens of groups and channels with thousands of members and subscribers, such as “Other Teen (18+) Leaks,” “THZ Black Market,” “MOST POPULAR GIRLS LISTS,” “Tiktoker Private Leaks,” “ATHLEAKS,” and more.  Within each of these groups and channels, WHITE further categorized the pornography by the name of the woman or minor girl featured in the sexually explicit content.  Each group and channel on “The Ho Zone” featured a variety of free content as a preview of what users could get if they were to pay WHITE for full access.  Such access cost between $15 and $75 depending on the pornography purchased.  Once a user paid WHITE for the content of a specific woman or minor girl available on “The Ho Zone,” the user gained permanent access to numerous sexually explicit photographs and videos of that woman or minor girl that WHITE had compiled, enhanced, and edited.

WHITE advertised and sold child pornography on “The Ho Zone,” which depicted minor victims as young as 11 years old, as well as minor victims engaging in sexually explicit conduct with their minor victim siblings. 

WHITE also sold illegally obtained adult pornography on “The Ho Zone,” including pornography that had been hacked from women’s cellphones and pornography that was the product of blackmail.  The victims featured in such pornography included women with large social media followings and female athletes, among others.

WHITE knew that running “The Ho Zone” was illegal but he continued to sell child pornography and illegally obtained adult pornography on the marketplace because it was lucrative.  For example, WHITE claimed in a message to another Telegram user that he “made over 300k in the first year” of operating “The Ho Zone.”[2]  In a chat with another Telegram user, WHITE stated that he “[p]rob made over $10k off the girls” in the “THZ Black Market” channel.  WHITE also stated that he did not want to stop selling child pornography because “[i]t’s just easier said than done givin up $1,000’s.”

*                *                *

WHITE, 24, of Louisville, Kentucky, is charged with advertisement of child pornography, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.  WHITE is also charged with receipt and distribution of child pornography, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

The mandatory minimum and maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by a judge.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI’s Criminal Guardian Squad.

This case is being supervised by the Office’s General Crimes Unit.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Chelsea L. Scism is in charge of the prosecution.

The charges contained in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

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

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York; Stuart M. Goldberg, the Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Tax Division; James Smith, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”); Thomas M. Fattorusso, the Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (“IRS-CI”); and Jonathan Mellone, the Special Agent in Charge of the Northeast Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General (“DOL-OIG”), announced the arrests today of five defendants on fraud charges: MARK ANGAROLA, ALLISON ANGAROLA, JOSE GARCIA, MICHELLE COX, and LISA MINCAK.  The five defendants are charged with perpetrating a yearslong embezzlement scheme that involved both no-show jobs and disguising personal expenses as purported business expenses.  In addition, three of the defendants — MARK ANGAROLA, GARCIA, and COX — are charged with tax fraud for their failures to report income to the IRS, including income derived from the embezzlement scheme.  MARK ANGAROLA and ALLISON ANGAROLA were arrested earlier this week in Point Lookout, New York, and were presented in Manhattan federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Katharine H. Parker; JOSE GARCIA and MICHELLE COX surrendered today and will be presented in Manhattan federal court before Magistrate Judge Parker; and LISA MINCAK surrendered yesterday and was presented in the Eastern District of Texas before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kimberly C. Priest Johnson.  The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Dale E. Ho.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “As alleged, the five defendants engaged in a brazen, lengthy embezzlement scheme that involved no-show jobs, false timesheets, fraudulent billings, and disguising personal expenses as purported business expenses.  In total, they allegedly bilked a corporate victim out of more than $7 million.  As part of the alleged scheme, the defendants charged an array of personal expenses to a corporate victim, including a cruise, hotels, private car service, gentlemen’s clubs, and more.  Several defendants also allegedly sought to conceal the fraud by failing to report, or pay taxes on, the income they received from the scheme.  Today’s arrests are yet another example of this Office’s commitment to holding accountable those who commit financial fraud.”

FBI Assistant Director in Charge James Smith said: “When an individual puts in an honest day’s work, they deserve to be compensated fairly.  The defendants in this case allegedly sought to do the opposite, scheming to create a dishonest plan involving no-show jobs and reporting personal spending as business.  Through their alleged scam, they received significant benefits including payment, travel, and entertainment.  The FBI will ensure that anyone attempting to benefit from deceit is instead held accountable in the justice system.”

IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge Thomas M. Fattorusso said: “The five defendants allegedly created a web of lies, resulting in a scheme to embezzle millions, while three are additionally charged with evading taxes on their illicit gains.  Though it’s purported they ‘lived the good life’ through this deception, today’s arrests ensure that their very near future won’t be so comfortable.”

According to the allegations in the Indictment:[1]

From at least in or about May 2010 through at least in or about February 2019, the five defendants and others (the “Conspirators”) executed a fraudulent scheme to unlawfully enrich themselves by submitting and causing to be submitted fraudulent invoices and expenses to an information technology (“IT”) services company (the “Contractor”), at which MARK ANGAROLA was employed in a senior position. 

Specifically, MARK ANGAROLA was a Global Account General Manager at the Contractor, working out of the Contractor’s office in New York, New York.  MARK ANGAROLA was responsible for managing the Contractor’s relationship with a particular client, which was a subsidiary of a global financial institution (the “Client”).  The Contractor had a service contract with the Client, pursuant to which the Contractor would provide IT support services to the Client at locations across the United States.  The Contractor subcontracted certain of its work under the Service Contract to a technology solutions company (the “Subcontractor”) based in New Jersey.  Pursuant to the agreement between the Contractor and the Subcontractor (the “Subcontract”), the Subcontractor provided certain IT support services directly to the Client in the place of the Contractor.  MARK ANGAROLA was responsible for oversight of the Subcontractor’s performance under the Subcontract, which included approving payment to the Subcontractor on invoices submitted for work purportedly performed and expenses purportedly incurred in the Subcontractor’s performance on the Subcontract. 

MARK ANGAROLA used his position at the Contractor — and in particular his oversight of the Contractor’s relationship with the Client and the Subcontractor — to fraudulently enrich himself, his family, and his friends.  For example, MARK ANGAROLA arranged for the Subcontractor to hire certain of his family members, friends, and subordinates, despite the fact that these individuals — which included a schoolteacher, a homemaker, a police sergeant, and a manager in the construction industry — lacked apparent qualifications to perform deskside IT work.  MARK ANGAROLA arranged for the Subcontractor to hire, among others, ALLISON ANGAROLA, JOSE GARCIA, MICHELLE COX, and LISA MINCAK, the defendants.  Thereafter, ALLISON ANGAROLA, GARCIA, COX, MINCAK, and others who MARK ANGAROLA caused to be hired by the Subcontractor, repeatedly falsely reported to the Subcontractor that they had performed work under the Subcontract and incurred business expenses.  GARCIA also used nominee corporate and limited liability entities to further disguise his receipt of funds for purported work performed under the Subcontract, including for alleged “Management Fees” due.  The Subcontractor submitted invoices to the Contractor for the hours purportedly worked by several of the Conspirators, for purported management fees allegedly due and for the purported business expenses incurred by several of the Conspirators in connection with that work, which hours, fees, and expenses were falsely reported to the Subcontractor by the Conspirators.  MARK ANGAROLA, in turn, caused the Contractor to pay the Subcontractor on these fraudulent invoices.

The purported business expenses incurred by several of the Conspirators and ultimately paid for by the Contractor at the direction of MARK ANGAROLA included, among other things, restaurant meals, hotel stays, transportation fees, a cruise, and gentlemen’s clubs.  In fact, the expenses were personal expenses and were not reimbursable.  In addition, to circumvent the Contractor’s expense policies, MARK ANGAROLA charged certain of his own personal expenses — including a private car service that he used for personal travel to restaurants, cigar bars, and gentlemen’s clubs, and to transport his children to visit family regularly and his friends to parties at his residence — to credit cards in the name of co-conspirators, including LISA MINCAK.  MARK ANGAROLA, with the assistance of MINCAK and others, who falsely represented to the Subcontractor that the expenses were incurred in connection with work for the Subcontractor, fraudulently caused the Contractor to pay for such personal expenses of MARK ANGAROLA.

As a result of the scheme, MARK ANGAROLA, ALLISON ANGAROLA, JOSE GARCIA, MICHELLE COX, and LISA MINCAK, and entities controlled by certain Conspirators, received personal benefits, including travel, meals, and entertainment, and were paid substantial sums.  For example, despite the fact that most Conspirators provided few, if any services, to the Client, the Conspirators fraudulently obtained at least the following approximate amounts through this scheme: $1,468,215 to MARK ANGAROLA; $751,641 to ALLISON ANGAROLA; $4,554,950 to JOSE GARCIA and entities he controlled; $335,500 to MICHELLE COX; $88,793 to LISA MINCAK; and $90,521 to Anthony Lisi, a previously charged co-conspirator who pled guilty for his involvement in the embezzlement scheme on September 13, 2022, before U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer.

Several participants in this fraud scheme also committed related tax fraud by concealing from the IRS substantial income that they had obtained through the scheme.  For several years, MARK ANGAROLA and JOSE GARCIA committed tax evasion, and MICHELLE COX failed to file individual income tax returns.

*                *                *

MARK ANGAROLA, 50, of Point Lookout, New York, is charged with one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; one count of wire fraud conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; and three counts of tax evasion, which each carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

ALLISON ANGAROLA, 53, of Point Lookout, New York, is charged with one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of wire fraud conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

JOSE GARCIA, 52, of New York, New York, is charged with one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; one count of wire fraud conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; and three counts of tax evasion, which each carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

MICHELLE COX, 52, of New York, New York, is charged with one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; one count of wire fraud conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; and two counts of failure to file an individual income tax return, which each carry a maximum sentence of one year in prison.

LISA MINCAK, 46, of Plano, Texas, is charged with one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of wire fraud conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

The statutory maximum sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding efforts of the FBI, IRS-CI, and DOL-OIG.  Mr. Williams also noted that the investigation is ongoing.

This matter is being handled by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael D. Neff, Timothy V. Capozzi, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jorge Almonte of the Tax Division are in charge of the prosecution.

The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.