Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Sisseton Woman Charged with Misprision of a Felony

United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced that a Sisseton, South Dakota, woman was indicted by a federal grand jury for Misprision of a Felony on August 16, 2016.

Tylynn St. John, age 25, appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge William D. Gerdes on February 5, 2018, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.

The maximum penalty upon conviction is 3 years of custody and/or a $250,000 fine, 5 years of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.  Restitution may also be ordered.

The Indictment alleges that on or about June 10, 2014, St. John failed to report a crime of which she had knowledge, to the proper authorities.  St. John and another are alleged to have witnessed an assault resulting in serious bodily injury and failing to report, or help seek aid, for a victim who ultimately died of her injuries.

The charge is merely an accusation and St. John is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. 

The investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy R. Morley is prosecuting the case.   

St. John was released pending trial, which has been set for April 10, 2018.

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Business Manager Sentenced to 41 Months in Prison for Embezzling $1.5 Million from Boilermakers Local 154

PITTSBURGH – A former Boilermakers union official has been sentenced in federal court to 41 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, on his conviction of embezzlement and theft of Labor Union assets and income tax evasion, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.

United States District Judge Mark R. Hornak imposed the sentence on Raymond Ventrone, 60, of Hope Street, Pittsburgh, Pa., 15220.  In addition to the prison sentence, Judge Hornak ordered Ventrone to pay $2,391,183 in restitution to the Boilermakers Union, followed by restitution of $500,000 to Zurich Surety and Financial Claims of Schaumburg, Illinois, and ordered him to pay $223,881 to the Internal Revenue Service.

According to information presented to the court, Ventrone caused a loss to Local 154 of approximately $3,000,000 over a four-and-one-half-year period between January 2010 and June 2015.  When his thefts were discovered he was forced to resign his position as Business Manager of Local 154.  That position was the most powerful job within the union.  Ventrone used his unchecked power to authorize payments of retail goods that were of no use to the union.  Some of these items were stored in his home, others were stored in storage units paid for by the Local, and others were on the Local’s premises, but not accessible to members. 

Judge Hornak said that, “By any measure, this is an extraordinarily serious offense…Officers have a significant fiduciary responsibility to the members they represent.”  The court also noted that Ventrone had engaged in “plainly unlawful and inappropriate conduct” by sending one of his subordinates to cash three Local 154 checks totaling $105,000 from a gas station owner friendly with Ventrone.  The cash was returned to Ventrone. 

Listed below are totals of payments to various retail establishments made by Local 154 at Ventrone’s direction:

• Approximately: $970,000 at Best Buy;
• $105,000 at the Apple Store;
• $527,000 spent on Louis Vuitton purchases;
• $198,602; $38,000 spent on drums, percussion instruments and musical accessories, from Drum World that the defendant maintained under lock and key on the premises of Local 154, unavailable and off limits to Local 154 members;
• $10,623.95 spent on Coco Lunette eye glasses for the defendant; $26,000 spent on concrete work at the defendant’s home;  and
• $9,000 spent on a kitchen remodel at the defendant’s home.

The court noted that Ventrone had unnecessarily involved his son, a former NFL player, by renting him a spacious and extravagantly furnished apartment on the Local’s property for a mere $500 per month.  The furnishings for the rental were from Restoration Hardware, Levins, Macy’s, Williams Sonoma, Best Buy and Pool City. The rental included a full and complete private fitness center with several large televisions that was not for the use or benefit of union members, but only for his son’s use.  Local 154 also paid the utilities.  The rental wasn’t vacated until this investigation became public.  The loss to the union for the rent and furnishings was approximately $39,000, and the loss for the private fitness center was approximately $44,000.

Assistant United States Attorney Nelson P. Cohen prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

U.S. Attorney Brady commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations, the Department of Labor-OIG and the Office of Labor Management Standards for conducting the investigation leading to the prosecution of this defendant.

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Illinois Resident Sentenced for Synthetic Drug Conspiracy

FRESNO, Calif. — Timothy Ortiz, 47, of Waukegan, Illinois, was sentenced today to three years in prison for conspiring to ship misbranded synthetic drugs in interstate commerce with intent to defraud , U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

On August 14, 2017, Ortiz pleaded guilty. According to court documents, from December 2011 to October 2013, he, along with his co-defendants, Douglas Jason Way, 44, of Evanston, Illinois: Timothy New, 35, of Pensacola, Florida; and Natalie Middleton, 32, of Clovis, California, were involved in the importation of chemicals from China that were substantially similar in structure and pharmacological effect to a Schedule I controlled substance. Ortiz and his associates then diluted the chemicals with acetone and mixed it with dried plant material to produce a smokeable synthetic drug commonly known on the street as “spice.”  The drugs were packaged and falsely labeled to say that the contents were legal and were not intended for human consumption, when in fact they were illegal and were intended for human consumption.

Ortiz and his associates then shipped the drug from warehouses in Pensacola, Florida and Millbrae and Stockton, California to smoke shops, gas stations, and retail outlets throughout the United States. Ortiz, utilizing an alias of Michael Fitton, set up and managed the Millbrae processing lab after the synthetic drug company was purchased by the owner of multiple smoke shops in the Central Valley operating under the name of The Stuffed Pipe that sold the synthetic drugs.

According to the plea agreement, Ortiz and his co-defendants shipped at least 24 tons of misbranded smokeable synthetic cannabinoids that contained the synthetic drugs AM-2201 and XLR11 to smoke shops and retail outlets throughout the United States. They generated in excess of $33 million in sales. At the time of the illicit enterprise, AM-2201 was a schedule I controlled substance and XLR11 was a controlled substance analogue that was placed under schedule I as a controlled substance in May 2013.  In sentencing Ortiz, District Judge Dale A. Drozd also ordered Ortiz to forfeit $109,590, which Ortiz had derived from his four-month participation in the illegal operation.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with assistance from the Food and Drug Administration and Fresno County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen A. Escobar is prosecuting the case.

This case was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The OCDETF program was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s drug supply. As a result of this investigation, law enforcement agencies seized and forfeited over $6.6 million representing drug proceeds.

Co-defendant New previously entered a guilty plea to the fraudulent shipment of misbranded drugs and is currently serving a 30-month sentence. Middleton previously entered a guilty plea to money laundering, was sentenced to four months in prison, and is currently under supervised release for two years. Way has requested a jury trial, which is set for June 16, 2018. Way is charged with multiple controlled substance offenses, in addition to the misbranding charge, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $10 million. The charges against him are only allegations; Way is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Brockton Man Pleads Guilty to Kidnapping

BOSTON – A Brockton man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to the armed kidnapping of a Quincy man and two children.

Diego Pires, 23, pleaded guilty to kidnapping before U.S. District Court Chief Judge Patti B. Saris, who scheduled sentencing for May 16, 2018. In January 2018, co-defendant Malik Bangura, 20, was sentenced to 17 years in prison and two years of supervised release. Sedrick Oliveira, 26, of Stoughton, and Yesenia Diaz, 23, of Brockton, were also charged. 

On Oct. 8, 2016, at approximately 10:25 p.m., a 30-year-old man was kidnapped from the driveway of his Quincy home after being struck in the head with a revolver as he got out of his truck, and dragged into a nearby sedan.  The victim had two children strapped into car seats in his truck.

Once the victim was in the sedan, two masked perpetrators, later identified as Pires and Bangura, drove the victim’s truck, with the children, to a secluded location where they unloaded approximately 30 pounds of marijuana and $20,000 from the victim’s truck, into the sedan.  The victim, who was face-down in the backseat of the sedan at gunpoint, begged for his life and the life of the two children who were still in their car seats in the back of his truck.   

Pires, Bangura, Diaz, and Oliveira then drove the sedan with the drugs, cash and the victim, from Quincy to Brockton and called the victim’s wife demanding $100,000.  Law enforcement officers spotted the sedan as it drove through Brockton, recognized the vehicle from a drive-by shooting that occurred in August 2016, and began to follow it. After the defendants recognized the police, they attempted to flee, but ultimately abandoned the sedan in a Brockton driveway. The victim escaped, flagged down law enforcement officers, and described to them the secluded location where the truck had been disserted.  Law enforcement located the truck with the children, who were unharmed. 

Diaz was subsequently found standing by the sedan and arrested. She previously pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing. Oliveira was arrested on Oct. 10, 2016, in Stoughton and charged in a federal criminal complaint. He pleaded not guilty to the kidnapping charge. Bangura was arrested and charged in April 2017. Pires remained a fugitive until he was apprehended in October 2017.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Mickey D. Leadingham, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division; Colonel Kerry A. Gilpin, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; Brockton Police Chief John Crowley; and Quincy Police Chief Paul Keenan, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily O. Cannon of Lelling’s Organized Crime and Gang Unit prosecuted the case.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Natick Man Charged with Child Pornography Offenses

BOSTON – A Natick man was arrested and charged today in federal court in Boston with distribution and possession of child pornography.

Francis Castellino, 19, was charged with one count of distribution of child pornography, and one count of possession of child pornography. Castellino remains in custody, after agreeing to voluntary detention during an appearance before Magistrate Judge Marianne B. Bowler. 

According to court records, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Castellino’s Natick home as part of an ongoing investigation into the online trade of child pornography through the use of Kik messenger. During the search, Castellino admitted to acting as a moderator of a Kik chat group dedicated to trading images and videos of child pornography with other Kik users. Preliminary on-scene forensic analysis of Castellino’s cell phone confirmed his admissions. 

The charge of distribution of child pornography provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 20 years in prison. The charge of possession of child pornography provides for a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison. Both charges also provide for a mandatory minimum of five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Michael Shea, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anne Paruti and Sandra S. Bower, of Lelling’s Major Crimes Unit, are prosecuting the case.

The case is brought as part of Project Safe Childhood.  In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse.  Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Cedar Rapids Felon Found Guilty of Possessing Two Firearms

A felon who illegally possessed two firearms in October 2016 was convicted by a judge today, following a bench trial in federal court last month in Cedar Rapids.

Christopher Matthew Davies, age 47, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm.  The verdict was returned today after about a 40-minute bench trial held on January 11, 2018.

The evidence at the trial showed that on September 8, 2016, the Iowa District Court for Linn County found Davies guilty of forgery and burglary, both felony offenses.  On October 25, 2016, after Davies pled guilty to those charges, but before his sentencing hearing, he knowingly possessed two firearms.  Specifically, Davies travelled to his mother’s home in Cedar Rapids, retrieved two firearms, and then pawned those firearms for $400.  Davies later attempted to retrieve the firearms from the pawnshop, but the pawnshop refused to return the firearms after the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System instructed the pawnshop to delay, and ultimately deny, any firearms transfer to Davies.  

Sentencing before United States District Court Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Davies remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing.  Davies faces up to ten years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, a $100 special assessment, and up to three years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Timothy L. Vavricek and was investigated by 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, as 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 launched in 2001.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 17-CR-26-LRR.

Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Five defendants plead guilty for roles in federal heroin conspiracy

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Five defendants implicated in a federal heroin conspiracy pled guilty today, announced United States Attorney Mike Stuart. Ralph White, Jennifer Benson, Rachel Kuhn, all 36 and of Parkersburg, and Dennis Carter, 28, of Detroit, entered their guilty pleas to conspiracy to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin. Additionally, Heather Wells, 25, of Parkersburg, entered her guilty plea to distribution of heroin.

U.S. Attorney Stuart commended the collaborative investigative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Parkersburg Drug Task Force, the West Virginia State Police, the Wood County Sheriff’s Department, and the Police Departments of the cities of Parkersburg, Vienna, and Williamstown.

“This is exactly the kind of investigation and prosecution that’s going to help us take back our streets from the opioid crisis,” said U.S. Attorney Stuart. “Nearly a dozen drug criminals are facing hard time behind bars, and all as a result of the efforts of several law enforcement agencies working together. Job well done.”

White, Benson, Kuhn, and Carter admitted to their involvement with several other individuals in distributing heroin at various locations throughout the Parkersburg area. In addition, White, Kuhn, and Wells admitted selling heroin to a confidential informant working with the Parkersburg Drug Task Force and the FBI on numerous occasions between November 2016 and March 2017. Benson and Carter admitted distributing between one and three kilograms of heroin, while White and Kuhn admitted to distributing between 100 and 400 grams of heroin.

White, Benson, Kuhn, and Carter all face at least five and up to 40 years in federal prison when they are sentenced on May 7, 2018. Wells faces up to 20 years imprisonment when she is sentenced on the same date.

The five defendant who pled guilty today join Debra Martin, Joseph Reeder-Shaw, Bernard Spann, Jonathan Brown, and Sir Pritis Williams, all codefendants involved in the same conspiracy, who previously pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin. These defendants face at least five and up to 40 years in federal prison when they are sentenced in April 2018. Additionally, Kennedy Michele Walker previously pled guilty to distributing heroin supplied by this organization, and she faces up to 20 years imprisonment when she is sentenced in April 2018.

Assistant United States Attorney John Frail is in charge of these prosecutions. The plea hearings were held before United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin.

This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District. 

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: ISIS Supporter Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison

RICHMOND, Va. – A man who is a previously convicted felon and supporter of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), was sentenced today to the statutory of maximum of 10 years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm less than three weeks after he was released from prison.

According to court documents and statements made in court proceedings, Casey Charles Spain, 29, of Richmond, was in prison for over seven years after being convicted for abducting a 15-year-old girl with the intent to rape her. Separate and apart from this incident, Spain previously served time in prison for stabbing an individual with a sword. During his most recent period in prison, Spain became radicalized and swore a pledge of loyalty, commonly known as bayat, to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIS. Spain also obtained a tattoo of the ISIS flag on his back, and repeatedly expressed a desire to engage in acts of violence. Spain was reportedly fixated on attacking a target such as the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, and was excited about potentially attacking police stations, as well as an armory in Richmond.

After Spain was released from prison on Aug. 11, 2017, he discussed on recorded telephone calls with still-incarcerated prisoners his desire to travel overseas and join ISIS. The FBI began conducting surveillance of Spain immediately upon his release, including making covert contact with him using FBI undercover employees (UCE) and a Confidential Human Source (CHS). Spain spoke on multiple occasions to the CHS about his strong desire to obtain a firearm. During that same time period, Spain established a Facebook account to speak with individuals located overseas about ISIS and his desire serve as a mujahid (fighter) for the terrorist organization.

During a meeting on Aug. 30, 2017, with the CHS and a UCE, Spain described his intention to purchase a semiautomatic handgun with a 50-round barrel canister, and that he had made arrangements to buy the handgun from an individual online. Given Spain’s criminal history, his desire to obtain a firearm, and his apparent impatience to obtain one, the CHS—as part of a controlled FBI undercover operation—offered to provide Spain what the CHS described as his own personal weapon. In reality, the firearm, which was a 9mm Glock semiautomatic handgun, was the property of the FBI that had been rendered inert for safety reasons.

The next day, as part of the undercover operation, the CHS and UCE met Spain outside of his Richmond residence. The CHS provided Spain the Glock handgun, at which point members of the FBI Richmond SWAT team moved in to arrest Spain. Spain initially attempted to escape arrest by running and jumping a nearby fence, but FBI SWAT members pursued and quickly apprehended him.

Tracy Doherty-McCormick, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Edward C. O’Callaghan, Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security, and Adam S. Lee, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Field Office, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge John A. Gibney, Jr. Trial Attorney Raj Parekh of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Hood prosecuted the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:17-cr-123.