Posted on

FBI Media Alert: FBI Warns of Scam That Uses Purported Law Enforcement Credentials

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

Headline: FBI Media Alert: FBI Warns of Scam That Uses Purported Law Enforcement Credentials

The FBI is warning the public to be aware of a scam that uses a text message with a photograph of purported FBI credentials and threatens to arrest the person if money isn’t sent.  

These text messages are false and the photograph of the credentials is not real. The FBI defines this type of scam as government impersonation fraud in which cyber criminals threaten to extort victims with physical or financial harm or the release of sensitive data.

The FBI wants to remind the public that federal law enforcement will not send photographs of credentials or badges to demand any kind of payment and that victims should not send any money to these cyber criminals.  

Anyone who feels they were the victim of this or any other online scam should report the incident immediately using the Internet Crimes Complaint Center’s (IC3) website at www.ic3.gov. 

In one instance reported in New Mexico this month, a victim said she received a Facebook message that claimed to come from the company’s CEO. 

It informed her she had won a $800,000 prize. Subsequent cell phone text messages from different area codes told the victim to send money to cover taxes associated with her  apparent winnings. 

Other texts followed that claimed to be from the Internal Revenue Service and FBI.  The phony FBI text included a photograph that purported to be FBI credentials, which were fake. The message warned the victim she would be arrested if she didn’t send money.

More information about government impersonation schemes and other online frauds can be found at https://pdf.ic3.gov/2016_IC3Report.pdf and www.fbi.gov.

Posted on

FBI Media Alert: FBI, Navajo Nation Seek Help Identifying Body Found in Shiprock Fire

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

Headline: FBI Media Alert: FBI, Navajo Nation Seek Help Identifying Body Found in Shiprock Fire

The FBI and Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety are seeking to identify a body found in a burned trailer in Shiprock, New Mexico.

The fire on Mesa Farm Road 4th Lane South was reported early Thursday morning, February 8, 2018.

The body of an unknown male was discovered inside the trailer.

The cause of death is pending an autopsy.

Anyone with information on the victim’s identity is asked to contact the FBI at 505-889-1300.

The San Juan County Fire Department is investigating the cause of the fire.

Posted on

Update: Newark Police Division Fugitive Apprehension Team and FBI Fugitive Task Force Arrest East Orange Man Wanted for Attempted Murder

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

Headline: Update: Newark Police Division Fugitive Apprehension Team and FBI Fugitive Task Force Arrest East Orange Man Wanted for Attempted Murder

Newark Public Safety Director Anthony F. Ambrose reports that members of the Newark Police Division’s Fugitive Apprehension Team (F.A.T.) and the FBI’s Fugitive Task Force have arrested Jamil M. Sutton, 39, of East Orange, for an attempted murder that occurred February 8, 2018.

At approximately 12:12 a.m., police responded to the area of Riverview Court and Chapel Street on a call of shots fired. A man fired a handgun at a woman he knows following a dispute. No injuries were reported as a result of this incident, which resulted in property damage.

Detectives investigating this incident have developed sufficient evidence to identify Jamil M. Sutton as a suspect in this incident and obtained a warrant for his arrest.

Sutton was arrested today in Newark without incident. He is charged with Attempted Murder, Aggravated Assault, Unlawful Possession of a Weapon, and Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose, Criminal Mischief, and Conspiracy.

These charges are merely accusations. The suspect is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Posted on

Fourteen New Defendants Added to Federal Racketeering Indictment Against Chicago Gang Members; New Charges Allege Multiple Murders and Acts of Violence

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

Headline: Fourteen New Defendants Added to Federal Racketeering Indictment Against Chicago Gang Members; New Charges Allege Multiple Murders and Acts of Violence

CHICAGO — A federal indictment unsealed this week charges 34 alleged members of the Latin Kings street gang with participating in a criminal organization that murdered its rivals and violently protected its drug-dealing territories in Chicago and the suburbs.

Authorities uncovered the criminal activity through an investigation conducted under the umbrella of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF).  During the course of the probe, law enforcement agents confiscated 18 firearms.

Original charges in the case were filed in 2016 against 20 alleged members of the Latin Kings.  The superseding indictment unsealed this week adds 14 more defendants and charges numerous acts of violence, including six murders, three attempted murders, and three arsons.  Thirty three of the defendants are charged with racketeering conspiracy, while the 34th defendant faces a firearm charge.

The superseding indictment was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Jeffrey S. Sallet, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and Eddie T. Johnson, Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department.  Substantial investigative assistance was provided by the Cook County Sheriff’s Police Department and Hammond (Ind.) Police Department.  The FBI Task Force investigating the case was comprised of agents and task force officers from the Joliet Police Department, Evergreen Park Police Department, Bolingbrook Police Department, Orland Park Police Department, Cook County Sheriff’s Police Department, Will County Sheriff’s Office, and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division.  Additional support was provided by the Merrillville (Ind.) FBI office, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Indiana.

The superseding indictment was returned on Feb. 1, 2018, and ordered unsealed this week.  Several of the new defendants were arrested this week, and arraignments for most of the defendants have been held in federal court in Chicago.

The superseding indictment alleges that members of the Latin Kings violently enforced discipline within their ranks and retaliated against rivals and former members to prevent cooperation with law enforcement.  The charges accuse nine defendants of committing six murders in furtherance of the gang’s activities:

ALONZO HORTA, 20, of Hammond, Ind., and GEOVANNI LOPEZ, 28, of Oak Forest, allegedly murdered Alfonso Calderon on April 9, 2017, in Chicago.

DEAN TREVINO, 25, of Chicago, and EMANUEL MENDEZ, 29, of Hammond, Ind., allegedly murdered Ismael Perez on Nov. 3, 2012, in Chicago.

GERONIA FORD, 23, of Chicago, and WILLIAM HAYSLETTE, 24, of Chicago, allegedly murdered Sergio Hernandez on May 15, 2012, in Chicago.

JUAN JIMENEZ, 35, of Blue Island, allegedly murdered Isiah Cintron on Jan. 18, 2007, in Hammond, Ind.  

THOMAS LUCZAK, 44, of Chicago, allegedly murdered Juan Serratos on June 11, 2000, in Chicago.

JOSE JARAMILLO, 35, of Hammond, Ind., allegedly murdered Jeremy Ward on Nov. 15, 1999, in Chicago.

Mendez and two other defendants – ORLANDO MARIN, 29, of Chicago, and ROY VEGA, 35, of Chicago – are also charged with committing attempted murders.

The defendants participated in the Southeast Region of the Latin Kings, which contains more than a dozen chapters answering to a regional structure of leadership, according to the indictment.  Each chapter is typically named after the city in which it operates, or by a street or streets that run through the chapter.  Among the Chicago chapters in the Southeast Region are 82nd Street, 88th and 89th Streets, 97th Street, 99th Street, 102nd Street, 104th Street, and the Roseland neighborhood.  Other regional chapters operated in the south suburbs of Blue Island, Dolton, Harvey and Chicago Heights, as well as in Kankakee and communities across the border in Indiana, according to the indictment.

 The indictment charges defendants who serve in various high-ranking positions of the Latin Kings.  These positions include “Regional Enforcers,” who violently instill discipline within the ranks; “Incas,” who serve as chapter leaders; “Caciques,” who are second in command behind the Incas; “Soldiers,” who often carry dangerous weapons to carry out the gang’s activities; and “Regional Treasurer,” who collects dues from Latin King chapters to finance the gang’s activities. 

Several firearm offenses are also charged in the indictment, including unlawful possession of guns, assault with a dangerous weapon, illegal dealing of guns, and multiple counts of witness intimidation.

The investigation was conducted under the umbrella of the OCDETF program, a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  The principal mission of OCDETF is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations.

The public is reminded that an indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt.  The defendants are presumed innocent and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Racketeering conspiracy generally carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, but a life sentence is possible for certain underlying racketeering activities, including certain murders charged in the indictment.  If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal sentencing statutes and the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian Wallach, Derek Owens and Vikas Didwania are representing the government.

Posted on

FBI Seeking Information for Colorado Bank Robberies

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

Headline: FBI Seeking Information for Colorado Bank Robberies

The Lone Tree and Denver Police Departments and the FBI Rocky Mountain Safe Streets Task Force are investigating two bank robberies believed to have been committed by the same individual.

US Bank (inside Safeway grocery store)
9229 East Lincoln Avenue
Lone Tree, Colorado
October 31, 2017, 6:10 p.m.

Bank of the West
2720 South Colorado Boulevard  
Denver, Colorado
January 23, 2018, 4:15 p.m.

The suspect is described as a white female, 20 to 25 years of age, 110 to 120 pounds, approximately 5’2” to 5’3” tall, with a thin build.

During the first bank robbery, the suspect presented a demand note and was observed fleeing the area in a 2004 to 2008 silver Pontiac Grand Prix sedan. The suspect did not display a weapon.

During the second bank robbery, the suspect presented a demand note and was observed fleeing the bank on foot in an unknown direction. The suspect did not display a weapon.

Bank robbery is punishable by a 20-year prison sentence for each offense and increases if a dangerous weapon is used in the commission of the crime.

The FBI continues to provide financial institutions with the best practices for security to make them less vulnerable to robberies.

If anyone has any information on the bank robbery above, or any bank robbery, please call the FBI Rocky Mountain Safe Streets Task Force at 303-629-7171; or, you can remain anonymous and earn up to two thousand dollars ($2,000) by calling CRIMESTOPPERS at 720-913-STOP (7867).

Posted on

U.S. Attorney’s Office Based in Los Angeles Collected nearly $220 Million in Civil and Criminal Actions for Taxpayers in Fiscal Year 2017

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: U.S. Attorney’s Office Based in Los Angeles Collected nearly $220 Million in Civil and Criminal Actions for Taxpayers in Fiscal Year 2017

         LOS ANGELES – United States Attorney Nicola T. Hanna announced today that his office collected $219,179,887 in criminal and civil actions in Fiscal Year 2017. Of this amount, nearly $56 million was collected in criminal cases, and more than $163 million was collected in civil actions.

        The United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California worked with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and components of the Department of Justice to collect another $431,216,222 in cases that were pursued jointly with at least one other office. The vast majority of this money was collected in civil actions. Overall, the Justice Department collected just over $15 billion in civil and criminal actions in the 2017 fiscal year, which ended on September 30, 2017.

         Additionally, the United States Attorney’s office, working with partner agencies and divisions, collected $34,749,352 in asset forfeiture actions in FY 2017. Forfeited assets deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund are used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.

         “Each and every year, this office is involved in the collection and recovery of tens of millions of dollars that are used to assist crime victims, as well as help fund important government programs,” said United States Attorney Hanna. “The United States Attorney’s Office is dedicated to recovering criminal restitution owed to the victims of federal crimes and recouping losses sustained by taxpayers as a result of fraud.”

         The United States Attorneys’ Offices, along with the Justice Department’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the United States, as well as criminal debts owed to victims of federal crimes. Federal law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss. While restitution is paid to victims, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the department’s Crime Victims’ Fund, which distributes the funds to state victim compensation and victim assistance programs.

        Of the approximately $56 million collected in criminal cases this past year, approximately $44.6 million in restitution was collected and disbursed directly individuals and private entities, and $1.6 million was paid directly to the Crime Victims Fund. Most of the remaining $10 million was disbursed to federal agencies that suffered losses.

         The largest civil collections last year were from affirmative civil enforcement cases in which the United States recovered government money lost to fraud or other misconduct, or collected fines imposed on individuals and/or corporations for violations of federal health, safety, civil rights and environmental laws. In addition, civil debts were collected on behalf of several federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Internal Revenue Service, the Small Business Administration and the Department of Education.

         During fiscal year 2017, prosecutors in the Central District of California recovered $42 million from a settlement with Pacific Alliance Medical Center to resolve allegations that the medical center had improper financial relationships with referring physicians.  Additionally, the Office recovered $26.5 million from a settlement with the City of Los Angeles Department of Water and Power for environmental and property damage sustained as a result of the 2013 Powerhouse Fire, which scorched more than 30,000 acres in northern Los Angeles County and destroyed 58 structures.

         The United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California is based in Los Angeles and has branch offices in Santa Ana and Riverside. Currently, approximately 275 Assistant United States Attorneys serve nearly 20 million residents of the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo.

         Assistant United States Attorney Indira Cameron-Banks is the Chief of the Financial Litigation Section in the Civil Division. The Financial Litigation Section coordinates efforts to collect criminal and civil debts owed to victims of federal crimes and the United States, including restitution, fines, civil settlements, penalties and defaulted federal loans. These efforts include locating debtors’ assets and initiating enforcement actions to secure collection on the outstanding debts.

Posted on

Associate Attorney General to Leave Justice Department for Private Sector

Source: United States Department of Justice

Headline: Associate Attorney General to Leave Justice Department for Private Sector

Today the Department of Justice announced that Associate Attorney General Rachel Brand will leave the Department of Justice in the coming weeks to take a position in the private sector.

“Rachel Brand is a lawyer’s lawyer,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said.  “She is a graduate of Harvard Law School, clerked at the Supreme Court, she worked at the White House, in academia, and has served in leadership positions spanning three administrations.  As Associate Attorney General, she has played a critical role in helping us accomplish our goals as a Department—taking on human trafficking, protecting free speech on campus, and fighting sexual harassment in public housing. And when I asked her to take the lead in the Department’s efforts on Section 702 re-authorization, she made this her top priority and combined her expertise and gravitas to help pass legislation keeping this crucial national security tool. Rachel has shown real leadership over many important divisions at the Department.  I know the entire Department of Justice will miss her, but we join together in congratulating her on this new opportunity in the private sector.  She will always remain a part of the Department of Justice family.”

“The men and women of the Department of Justice impress me every day,” Associate Attorney General Rachel Brand said. “I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish over my time here. I want to thank Attorney General Sessions for his leadership over this Department. I’ve seen firsthand his commitment to the rule of law and to keeping the American people safe.”

Rachel Brand has served as Associate Attorney General since May 22, 2017.

As Associate Attorney General, she has served as the third-ranking officer in the Department of Justice and oversees the following Department components: Antitrust Division, Civil Division, Civil Rights Division, Environment and Natural Resources Division, Tax Division, Executive Office for U.S. Trustees, Office of Justice Programs, Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), Office on Violence Against Women, Community Relations Service, Office of Access to Justice, Office of Information Policy, Foreign Claims Settlement Commission, and the Service members and Veterans Initiative. She also serves as the Department’s Regulatory Reform Officer and chairs the Regulatory Reform Task Force.

Before becoming Associate Attorney General, Ms. Brand had a diverse legal career in public service and in the private sector. From 2012 to 2017, she served as one of five Senate-confirmed Members of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, appointed by President Barack Obama. In that capacity, she provided advice and oversight to U.S. counterterrorism agencies to ensure that privacy and civil liberties are balanced with national security objectives.

Ms. Brand previously served in the Department of Justice from 2003 to 2007, first as the Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy, and then as the Senate-confirmed Assistant Attorney General for Legal Policy, appointed by President George W. Bush. In that capacity, Ms. Brand served as chief policy adviser to the Attorney General, handling a broad range of national security, law enforcement, and civil justice issues. She also oversaw the development of all regulations promulgated by the Department of Justice and managed the Department’s role in selecting federal judges, including running the confirmation process for Chief Justice John G. Roberts and Associate Justice Samuel Alito. Earlier, Ms. Brand was an Associate Counsel to President George W. Bush in the White House.

Outside of the federal government, Ms. Brand has been an Associate Professor of law at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School, an adjunct professor at George Washington University Law School, and a lawyer in private practice in Washington, D.C.

She served as a law clerk to Associate Justice Anthony M. Kennedy of the Supreme Court of the United States during the 2002 – 2003 Term and to Justice Charles Fried of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts. Ms. Brand graduated from Harvard Law School, where she served as deputy editor-in-chief of the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy, and earned a B.A. from the University of Minnesota-Morris.

Posted on

Florida Man Who Assaulted Airline Flight Crew and Passengers Enroute to China Pleads Guilty

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Florida Man Who Assaulted Airline Flight Crew and Passengers Enroute to China Pleads Guilty

          A Tampa, Florida, man who assaulted crew and passengers on a Delta Airlines flight bound for China pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to four federal felonies in connection with the July 16, 2017 incident, announced U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes.  JOSEPH DANIEL HUDEK IV, 24, is scheduled for sentencing by U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour on May 15, 2018.  The four federal felonies (interference with a flight crew and three counts of assault in a special aircraft jurisdiction) are punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

            According to records in the case and the plea agreement signed today, HUDEK was seated in first class on the Delta flight. The aircraft had 210 passengers on board and 11 crew members.  The plane had just passed over Vancouver Island and was over the Pacific Ocean when HUDEK came out of the first class bathroom and in an agitated state attempted to raise the lever of the exit door of the aircraft. Two flight attendants attempted to stop HUDEK and he threw one to the floor and punched the other. When a passenger attempted to assist the flight attendants, HUDEK hit him over the head with a wine bottle. Ultimately, multiple passengers were required to restrain HUDEK, and one lowered the exit handle of the door as the aircraft returned to Seattle.

            In court filings HUDEK admits he ingested marijuana edibles before the flight.  In a pretrial ruling Judge Coughnour barred HUDEK from using a mental incapacity defense based on his voluntary consumption of marijuana.

            HUDEK has agreed to pay restitution to the injured passengers in an amount to be determined at the sentencing hearing.

            HUDEK remains out of jail on bond, but is prohibited from traveling on aircraft.

            The case was investigated by the FBI.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stephen Hobbs.

Posted on

Pittsburgh Man Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Operating Forged Prescription Drug Ring

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Pittsburgh Man Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Operating Forged Prescription Drug Ring

PITTSBURGH – A resident of Pittsburgh, has been sentenced in federal court to 74 months, followed by three years supervised release and ordered to pay $3,533.62 on his conviction of a health care fraud conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States and aggravated identity theft, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.

United States District Judge Mark R. Hornak imposed the sentence on Barry Lee Dorsey, II, 26, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

According to information presented to the court, Dorsey operated a forged prescription ring. Prescriptions were forged with the names, DEA numbers, medical license numbers, and signatures of real medical doctors. The prescriptions, most of which were forged for oxycodone and Percocet, were filled at a large number of Western Pennsylvania pharmacies and primarily paid for with Medicaid funds. The fraudulently obtained prescription pills were then sold on the street for substantial profit.

Assistant United States Attorney Robert S. Cessar prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

U.S. Attorney Brady commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, Brentwood Police Department, Mt. Pleasant Police Department and Bellevue Police Department for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Dorsey.

Posted on

Pittsburgh Felon Admits Stealing Rifles and Ammunition from West Mifflin Sports Store

Source: United States Attorneys General

Headline: Pittsburgh Felon Admits Stealing Rifles and Ammunition from West Mifflin Sports Store

PITTSBURGH – An Allegheny County resident pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon and stealing firearms from a licensed firearms dealer, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.

Marquis Trammel, aka Marquis Botelho-Trammel, aka Marquis Motelho-Trammel, 20, formerly of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty to two counts before Chief U.S. District Judge Joy Flowers Conti.

According to information presented to the court, on December 20, 2016, Trammel and a juvenile stole five rifles from a display case they broke open and an unknown number of boxes of handgun ammunition from the drawer below the rifle case located inside the Dunham’s Discount Sports store located in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania. Trammel was convicted on or about December 9, 2015, in the Court of Common Pleas, County of Allegheny, Criminal Division of the crimes of Robbery, Terroristic Threats, and Theft by Unlawful Taking, which are crimes punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year, and preclude him under federal law from possessing a firearm or ammunition.

Judge Conti scheduled sentencing for May 31, 2018 at 3:30 p.m. The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine not greater than $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history of the defendant.

Assistant United States Attorney Amy L. Johnston is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosive and the West Mifflin Police Department conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case. 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.