Eastern District of California

FRESNO, Calif. — Antonio Zamora, 36, of Mexico, was sentenced today to four years and nine months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Zamora facilitated the delivery of 5 pounds of methamphetamine to an undercover agent; and an additional pound of methamphetamine was found at his residence when agents executed a federal search warrant.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Fresno Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica A. Massey prosecuted the case.

The remaining defendants are scheduled for trial on Aug. 14, 2023. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

FRESNO, Calif. — Francisco Javier Melgoza, 41, of Delano, was sentenced today to seven years and eight months in prison for being a felon in possession of ammunition, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on June 25, 2021, during a traffic stop, a law enforcement officer searched Melgoza’s bag and found a handgun with five rounds and a high-capacity magazine. Melgoza is prohibited from possessing ammunition because he has five prior felony convictions, including for grand theft auto, vehicle theft, possession of a controlled substance for sale, and two convictions for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Melgoza was on probation at the time of the crime.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Shafter Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Arin C. Heinz prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

Joshua Christopher Astorga, 29, of Fresno, pleaded guilty today to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on Feb. 8, 2022, Astorga was arrested in Madera County in possession of 2,500 counterfeit M-30 pills laced with fentanyl.

During a months’ long investigation, agents learned Astorga was involved in dealing M-30 pills laced with fentanyl. In Sept. 2021, Astorga conspired with another individual to distribute 100 M-30 pills. On Feb. 8, 2022, Astorga negotiated the sale of 500 M-30 pills. A subsequent traffic stop conducted by the California Highway Patrol recovered 2,500 M-30 pills from his car.

The case was the result of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations and the California Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Antonio J. Pataca is prosecuting the case.

Astorga is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 27, 2023. He faces a minimum sentence of five years and a maximum of 40 years in prison and a fine up to $5 million. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced an Environmental Justice Initiative in coordination with federal, state, and local partners. Community members should report potential violations of environmental law impacting human health and quality of life to the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners. Notifying law enforcement and the U.S. Attorney’s Office about environmental justice concerns will assist us in protecting the community and environment.

“The United States Attorney’s Office will vigorously investigate and prosecute persons and businesses who violate environmental laws and endanger the health of Californians,” announced U.S. Attorney Talbert. “The first step to holding offenders accountable is learning the facts. The public can play a valuable role by speaking up about potential violations of law in the community. Please reach out if you have information to report about chemical or pollutant releases, the use of unlawful pesticides, dumping of waste, lead paint or asbestos issues, or other environmental violations that impact the quality of life and safety of the residents of our District.”

The United States Attorney’s Office investigates violations of environmental law in close partnership with our state and federal law enforcement partners, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the California Department of Toxic Substances Control.

Community members wishing to report potential violations should contact the U.S. EPA through the following portal: https://www.epa.gov/report-violation. Those with information to report or who are interested in learning more about our environmental justice practice may also reach out to the U.S. Attorney’s Office directly by emailing USACAE.Environment@usdoj.gov.

FRESNO, Calif. —Janardhan Grandhe, 65, of Bakersfield, pleaded guilty today to tax evasion, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Grandhe was a pain management doctor in Bakersfield, California doing business as Central Valley Pain Management (CVPM). In 2017, 2018 and 2019, Grandhe willfully filed false tax returns for CVPM with overstated expenses and false individual tax returns for himself that omitted gross receipts he received. In total, Grandhe evaded personal tax liability exceeding $300,000.

Between 2017-2019, Grandhe provided checks to employees claiming to be reimbursements for employee expenses that were then included as deductions on the CVPM tax returns. Grandhe claimed the reimbursements were for out-of-pocket costs incurred by employees for continuing medical education, meals, mileage, and travel expenses. In many cases, those expenses were never incurred by the employees. Grandhe instead instructed those employees to cash the checks and provide cash back to Grandhe, which he deposited into accounts controlled by him or his family members. Grandhe then provided false documentation to his tax preparer to support the false deductions.

Between 2017-2019, Grandhe diverted business receipts to his personal bank accounts and did not provide his tax preparer with these personal bank account records so these amounts were not included as business gross receipts on the CVPM tax returns. These unreported business receipts included checks from customers for stem cell injections. Additionally, Grandhe diverted credit card receipts received by his business for medical services rendered into his personal bank account. The unreported income on the CVPM tax returns resulted in decreased net income on the Grandhe’s personal tax returns.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey A. Spivak is prosecuting the case.

Grande is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston on Feb. 3, 2023. Grandhe faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $100,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment today against Desteny Estrella Leilani Salazar, 24, of South San Francisco, charging her with failure to appear, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Salazar was charged in 2020 with possession of stolen firearms and burglary of a federally-licensed firearms dealer. While that case was pending, Salazar failed to appear for a court-ordered hearing.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Lee is prosecuting the case.

If convicted of failure to appear, Salazar faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. If Salazar is convicted in the original burglary case, she faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for both counts. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

FRESNO, Calif. — Brigit Marie Bissell, 27, of Bothell, Washington, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to destroy or remove property to prevent seizure, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on Jan. 14, 2022, Bissell was arrested in Fresno County. Following Bissell’s arrest, agents seized two of her cellphones and informed her they would be seeking a search warrant to search the contents of her phones.

Between Jan. 16, 2022, and Jan. 17, 2022, Bissell called her associate from jail and explained that the FBI had seized her phones and was in the process of obtaining a search warrant. Bissell then instructed her associate to log in to her iCloud account and delete the contents of her phone. Bissell’s associate agreed to carry out their plan of deleting the contents of the phone for the purpose of preventing or impairing the FBI’s investigation.

The case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the California Highway Patrol’s Special Operations Unit, and the Fresno High Impact Investigations Team. Assistant U.S. Attorney Antonio J. Pataca is prosecuting the case.

Bissell is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ana de Alba on Jan. 17, 2023. Bissell faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine up to $250,000. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

FRESNO, Calif. — Jonathan Gallegos, 32, of Ivanhoe, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and marijuana and using a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, the charges arose from a long-term investigation that uncovered evidence of a scheme involving the trade of illegal drugs sourced in Mexico and California for firearms sourced in Texas. In 2021, a team of local, state, and federal law enforcement officers partnered in an investigation into the Tulare County Surenos Street Gang. Part of the investigation focused on Gallegos and his associates, who were involved in shipping illegal drugs and firearms across state lines.

Between April 6, 2021, and Dec. 17, 2021, Gallegos and associates shipped kilograms of marijuana and methamphetamine from post offices in Central California to residences in San Antonio, Texas. Gallegos’s drug-buying customers shipped firearms back to Gallegos and his associates in California, as payment for the narcotics they had received. Gallegos is a felon who cannot lawfully possess firearms.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office, the Tulare County Area Regencies Gun Enforcement Team, the Visalia Police Department, the California Department of Justice’s Bureau of Investigation, the California Highway Patrol’s Special Operations Unit, and the Tulare County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Justin J. Gilio and Antonio J. Pataca are prosecuting the case.

Gallegos is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ana de Alba on Jan. 17, 2023. Gallegos faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years up to life in prison. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Three defendants were sentenced today for trafficking fentanyl pills and other drugs, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

The three defendants were sentenced for their involvement with a Sacramento-based drug trafficking organization (DTO). According to court documents, the DTO was led by Jose Lopez-Zamora, and from at least May 2019 until January 2021, it was responsible for importing tens of thousands of fentanyl-laced counterfeit oxycodone “M-30” pills from Mexico and distributing them in northern California and elsewhere. In addition, they distributed cocaine and methamphetamine.

Rudi Jean Carlos Flores, 29, of Manteca, was sentenced to 10 years and one month in prison for conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine. According to court documents, Flores was a Manteca-based distributor for the Lopez-Zamora DTO. During a federal wiretap in October through December 2020, agents intercepted calls in which Flores ordered 1,000 or more M-30 pills from Lopez-Zamora on multiple occasions. In one wiretapped call, Lopez-Zamora admonished Flores to make sure his customers did not text him, because if one of Flores’s customers were to die from the pills, the texts would hurt Flores. Flores laughed and said he understood. In another wiretapped call, Flores promised to look into and confront some “gangsters” whom Lopez-Zamora suspected of stealing a load of 11,000 M-30 fentanyl pills from him. Agents searched Flores’s residence on Jan. 13, 2021, and found about 400 M-30 fentanyl pills, $33,470 in cash, and two loaded handguns. Text messages on Flores’s seized phone revealed that he informed an associate that there would be retaliation if someone “snitched” on them.

Jason Lamar Lee, 49, of Sparks, Nevada, was sentenced to eight years and seven months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine. According to court documents, Lee was a Reno-based distributor for the Lopez-Zamora DTO who obtained one to two thousand fentanyl M-30 pills and pound quantities of methamphetamine from Lopez-Zamora. In multiple wiretapped phone calls, Lee and Lopez-Zamora discussed how they needed to identify a suspected informant so they could retaliate by murdering him. Agents searched Lee’s residence on Jan. 13, 2021, and found over 1,000 fentanyl M-30 pills, almost a pound of methamphetamine, and two handguns.

Mateo Elias Guerrero-Gonzales, 24, of Sacramento, was sentenced today to two years and three months in prison for distribution of fentanyl. According to court documents, on Feb. 6, 2020, Guerrero-Gonzales sold 100 fentanyl M-30 pills to a confidential source. When co-defendant Christopher Williams began to snort one of the pills that he received as payment for brokering the deal, Guerrero-Gonzales warned him to snort only half the pill because they contained fentanyl. On Jan. 13, 2021, agents searched Guerrero-Gonzales’s residence and found psilocybin mushrooms, marijuana, $7,675 in cash, seven firearms, and numerous firearm magazines and boxes of ammunition. One of the firearms was a short-barrel rifle and one was a fully automatic Glock handgun.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Yuba-Sutter Narcotic and Gang Enforcement Task Force (NET-5), the California Highway Patrol, the Butte Interagency Narcotics Task Force (BINTF), the Tri-County Drug Enforcement Team (TRIDENT), the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department, the Sacramento Police Department, the Roseville Police Department, the Manteca Police Department, the Yuba City Police Department, and the West Sacramento Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney David W. Spencer is prosecuting the case.

Three other defendants have pleaded guilty:  Christopher Kegan Williams pleaded guilty, and on Dec. 14, 2021, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison. Alejandro Tello pleaded guilty and is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 17, 2023. Baudelio Vizcarra Jr., pleaded guilty, and is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 3, 2022.

Charges are pending against the following defendants:  Jose Guadalupe Lopez-Zamora, Leonardo Flores Beltran, Christian Anthony Romero, Joaquin Alberto Sotelo Valdez, Erika Gabriela Zamora Rojo, Jose Luis Aguilar Saucedo, Rosario Zamora Rojo, and Sandro Escobedo. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sponsored by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, more than 325 educators, school nurses, counselors, mental health clinicians, public health professionals and others with an interest in student health have convened today at Sacramento State University for the Opioid Awareness Summit for Educators and Public Health Professionals.

The summit is focused on four specific goals 1) building awareness of the scope and state of the national opioid epidemic and its impact on young adults in our region; 2) destigmatizing opioid misuse to provide for more effective treatment interventions; 3) encouraging beneficial conversations with students if approached about drug misuse; and 4) building awareness of the warning signs that a student or child is misusing opioids.

Participants will hear from medical, public health and law enforcement professionals about the science of addiction, treatment options, ready-for-use resources for educators, and best practices for implementing an opioid awareness program in their own schools. Additionally, U.S. Department of Justice policy and current enforcement efforts will also be discussed.

U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert said: "Opioid trafficking and opioid misuse are some of the most urgent law enforcement and public health challenges facing our country today and need education and prevention, treatment, and enforcement. Today’s Opioid Awareness Summit for educators brings together all of these and highlights our office’s ongoing commitment to keeping communities safe by preventing drug misuse and overdose deaths."

The U.S. Attorney’s Office is sponsoring the summit along with the Sierra Sacramento Valley Medical Society, the Sacramento State University, Sacramento County, The Well at Sac State, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Central Valley High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area.

FRESNO, Calif. — Mario Carranza, 38, of Mexico, pleaded guilty today to being a felon in possession of ammunition, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on March 17, 2020, law enforcement officers responded to a house in Fresno County after receiving a report of shots being fired in the backyard. Carranza and another individual were observed entering a car and leaving the area. The officers stopped the car, searched it, and recovered a disassembled, short-barrel, AR-15 style rifle with no serial number (known as a ghost gun) and a compatible firearm magazine loaded with 10 rounds of ammunition. Carranza had fired the AR-style rifle in the backyard of the residence. He is a convicted felon and prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition.

Carranza is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ana de Alba on Jan. 23, 2023. Carranza faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine up to $250,000. Any sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, the Fresno Police Department, the Special Operations Unit of the California Department of Justice and the California Highway Patrol, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Justin J. Gilio and Antonio J. Pataca are prosecuting the case.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

FRESNO, Calif. — Wes Parker McDaniel, 53, of Merced, pleaded guilty today to manufacturing destructive devices and maliciously destroying two residential rental properties in Merced by means of explosive materials, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, between Feb. 1, 2021, and June 22, 2021, McDaniel made 10 destructive devices or bombs from illegal fireworks that he had purchased in Nevada, ammunition, shrapnel, fire starting material, and other items. On June 20, 2021, he deployed three of the bombs at a house in Merced. One of the bombs hit the wall of the house, exploded, and destroyed the fence, which was shared with a neighboring property. Shrapnel emitted from the device created pockmarks on the wall of the house, and a propane tank was badly burned. McDaniel threw another bomb at a different residence in Merced and placed two bombs near a car at an apartment complex in Lemoore. Those bombs did not detonate.

Following these incidents, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at McDaniel’s residence, yard, and shed and found four bombs, fireworks, bottle rockets, a .22-caliber rifle, boxes of ammunition, fire starting material, and other items used to construct bombs.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Merced Police Department, the Lemoore Police Department, and the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Escobar is prosecuting the case.

McDaniel is scheduled for sentencing on Jan. 17, 2023, before U.S. District Judge Ana De Alba. McDaniel faces a mandatory prison term of five years in prison and a maximum prison term of 20 years for the malicious destruction of property by means of explosive materials. He faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison for manufacturing the bombs. Each of the charges carries a maximum fine of $250,000. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

FRESNO, Calif. — Maria Garcia, 27, of Fresno, was sentenced today to 12.5 years in prison for conspiring to distribute over 40 grams of fentanyl, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, between October and December 2020, Garcia was incarcerated at the Fresno County Jail awaiting trial on a state offense. While in custody, he used the jail’s telephones to discuss with his brother, Isaiah Garcia (who was not incarcerated) a plan for Isaiah Garcia to sell fentanyl pills. During the calls, Mario Garcia advised his brother on how to store and deal his fentanyl pills and referred customers to him. In December 2020, law enforcement officers searched Isaiah Garcia’s residence and found over 1,000 fentanyl pills. Isaiah Garcia had been charged, has pleaded guilty, and is sent for sentencing on Oct. 31, 2022.

The case is the result of an investigation by the FORT (a multi-agency team composed of Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Fresno Police Department) and the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin J. Gilio is prosecuting the case.

FRESNO, Calif. — Charles Abieanga, 31, Viviana Cervantes, 23, and Simon Abieanga, 28, all of Bakersfield, pleaded guilty today to separate fraud charges, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Charles Abieanga and Viviana Cervantes, husband and wife, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft for their roles in two different fraud schemes. The first scheme involved submitting false claims to the California Employment Development Department and obtaining benefits associated with those claims. The second scheme involved impersonating a supplier of personal protective equipment (PPE) and defrauding hospitals by selling non-existent medical supplies including surgical gowns and N-95 protective masks. Charles Abieanga also pleaded guilty separately to a scheme involving the sale of non-existent pets, horses, and vehicles to victims online. Charles Abieanga and Viviana Cervantes’s conduct caused actual losses of over $210,000.

Simon Abieanga, Charles’s brother, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud for his role in a two separate, but similar, fraud schemes. The first scheme involved submitting false claims to the California Employment Development Department and obtaining benefits associated with those claims. Simon Abieanga’s second scheme involved the sale of non-existent pets, horses, and vehicles to victims online. Simon Abieanga’s conduct caused actual losses of over $105,000.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Secret Service, the California Employment Development Department, and the Bakersfield Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alexandre Dempsey and Joe Barton are prosecuting the case.

The brothers are scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ana de Alba Jan. 17, 2023, and Cervantes is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 23, 2023. Charles Abieanga and Viviana Cervantes face a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the conspiracy to commit wire fraud and a mandatory two years in prison consecutive to any other sentence for the aggravated identity theft. Simon Abieanga faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The actual sentences, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

FRESNO, Calif. — Michael Marcum, 46, of Bakersfield, pleaded guilty today to being a felon in possession of ammunition and possession of a counterfeit postal key, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Marcum was being investigated for his involvement in breaking into multiple community mailboxes. While executing a search warrant at Marcum’s residence, law enforcement officers found a semi-automatic firearm with no serial number, rounds of 9 mm ammunition, stolen mail, and a counterfeit postal key that was subsequently discovered to have been forged by Marcum. Marcum is a convicted felon who is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition.

This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandre Dempsey is prosecuting the case.

Marcum is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ana de Alba on Jan. 23, 2023. Marcum faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

FRESNO, Calif. — Sarah Jo Sumpter, 30, of Fresno, pleaded guilty today to one count of mail fraud, one count of bank fraud, and one count of aggravated identity theft, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, between November 2019 and January 2020, Sumpter stole mail from a number of locations in California and used the stolen mail to commit multiple identity theft-related fraud schemes. One of these schemes involved Sumpter stealing a victim’s driver’s license and impersonating the victim in order to purchase a vehicle. Another scheme involved Sumpter depositing stolen checks into victim accounts and then withdrawing the money from the accounts without the victim’s consent.

This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Madera County Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alexandre Dempsey and Henry Carbajal are prosecuting the case.

Sumpter is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston on Jan. 20, 2023. Sumpter faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the mail fraud, 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine for the bank fraud, and a mandatory two years in prison consecutive to any other sentence for the aggravated identity theft. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

FRESNO, Calif. — Andres Nunez, 25, of Fresno, pleaded guilty today to distributing fentanyl to a person under 21 years old and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, in February 2021, Nunez delivered counterfeit M30 pills, laced with fentanyl, to a juvenile. A search warrant was later executed at Nunez’s residence. During the search, law enforcement officers found several firearms, including an automatic handgun, as well as 4 pounds of marijuana that Nunez possessed with intent to distribute.

This case is the product of an investigation by FORT, a multi-agency team composed of Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Fresno Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin J. Gilio is prosecuting the case.

Nunez is set for sentencing on Jan. 31, 2023, by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston. Nunez faces a mandatory minimum sentence of six years in prison, up to a maximum sentence of life in prison, and a fine up to $2 million. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case is part of Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge (S.O.S.) a program designed to reduce the supply of deadly synthetic opioids in high impact areas as well as identifying wholesale distribution networks and international and domestic suppliers. In July 2018, the Justice Department announced the creation of S.O.S., which is being implemented in the Eastern District of California and nine other federal districts.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Patrick Botello, 36, of Richmond, was sentenced today to 11 years and three months in prison for participating in a conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and heroin, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert  announced.

According to court documents, Botello and another inmate incarcerated at California’s Pelican Bay State Prison arranged with four people outside the prison to obtain methamphetamine and heroin, conceal the drugs within balloons, and then smuggle the drugs into the prison.

Botello was one of 27 federal defendants arrested in February 2018 on narcotics and weapons-related charges as part of Operation Silent Night, a multi‑agency law enforcement investigation into coordinated criminal activity in Woodland. Beginning in the spring of 2016, the investigation uncovered organized criminal activity in Woodland with ties to criminal organizations in California’s jail and prison system. Although centered in Yolo County, the investigation revealed that at least nine other California counties were negatively impacted by these criminal organizations: Sacramento, Sutter, Colusa, Yuba, Del Norte, Solano, Fresno, Santa Clara, and Siskiyou.

Operation Silent Night is the product of an investigation by the FBI, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office, the Woodland Police Department, and the California Highway Patrol. The following agencies provided substantial assistance: the Colusa County Sheriff’s Office, the Sacramento Police Department, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office, the West Sacramento Police Department, the Yolo County Sheriff’s Office, the Davis Police Department, the Yuba City Police Department, the Yuba County Sheriff’s Office, the Sutter County Sheriff’s Office, the Solano County Sheriff’s Office, the Vacaville Police Department, the Correctional Intelligence Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Lee is prosecuting the cases.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — William Josiah Scrivner, 36, of Fairfield, pleaded guilty today to being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on March 23, 2022, law enforcement officers observed Scrivner as the driver and sole occupant of a vehicle in the parking lot of the NorthBay Medical Center in Fairfield. The officers arrested Scrivner on an outstanding Solano County arrest warrant. A post-arrest search of his person and vehicle resulted in approximately 40 grams of methamphetamine, $551 on his person, and a digital scale in his car. A probation search of Scrivner’s residence resulted in the discovery of two firearms, one of which was stolen, firearm parts and ammunition, additional methamphetamine, and two more scales. Scrivner is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because he has been convicted of several felonies, including two prior convictions for possession of methamphetamine for sale and a prior conviction for being a felon in possession of ammunition.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Fairfield Police Department, the Solano County District Attorney’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the FBI’s Solano County Violent Crimes Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adrian T. Kinsella is prosecuting the case.

Scrivner is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 23, 2023, by U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley. He faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

ACRAMENTO, Calif. — Philip Rich, 50, of West Sacramento, was sentenced today to three years and three months in prison for one count of mail fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. Rich was also ordered to pay $113,400 in restitution.

According to court documents, between March 2019 and March 2021, Rich and co-defendant Kimberly Acevedo perpetrated a mail fraud scheme that involved theft of U.S. mail, identity theft, and unlawful possession of dozens of stolen bank cards. Generally, Rich and Acevedo obtained the personally identifiable information (PII) of victims and used that information to apply for new credit cards, debit cards, checkbooks, and other financial instruments to be sent to the victims’ real home addresses. The defendants then submitted change-of-address requests to U.S. Postal Service at www.usps.com using the victims’ PII. These change-of-address requests rerouted the victims’ mail to defendants’ shared home address, where they would open the mail and use its contents to make fraudulent purchases and cash fraudulent checks.

When federal agents executed a search warrant at defendants’ residence on Oct. 14, 2020, they seized dozens of notebooks filled with hundreds, if not thousands, of identity-theft victim PII. The notebooks were scattered throughout the house, though mainly located in defendants’ shared bedroom. In addition, agents recovered an envelope, labeled “ID Templates,” in the bedroom containing approximately 10-15 fake California Driver’s Licenses in the names of various victims, but featuring Rich and Acevedo’s photographs and fake authentication features. Agents also recovered the tools required to construct the fake IDs as well as a magstripe device. Further, agents recovered over 50 credit and debit cards in the home as well as approximately 40 checkbooks in victims’ names as well as in the names of Rich and Acevedo. In total, defendants’ scheme caused over $110,000 in actual and intended loss.

This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Yolo County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Denise N. Yasinow and Robert J. Artuz are prosecuting the case.

Charges of mail fraud, aggravated identity theft, possession of stolen mail, and unlawful possession of 15 or more unauthorized access devices remain pending against Acevedo. The charges are only allegations; she is presumed innocent until and unless proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Kaymeisha Keyes, 30, most recently of Tracy, was arrested today after a federal grand jury returned a 16-count indictment on Aug. 11, 2022 , charging her with wire fraud, mail fraud, access device fraud, and aggravated identity theft, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, between April 2020 and August 2021, Keyes executed a scheme to defraud the California Employment Development Department (EDD) by filing over 70 fraudulent unemployment insurance claims with EDD, seeking Pandemic Unemployment Assistance and other benefits under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. During the scheme, Keyes collected personally identifiable information of numerous individuals — including names, birth dates, and Social Security numbers — and used their identities to file fraudulent unemployment insurance claims. The filings represented, among other things, that the claimants had recently lost employment or were unable to find employment due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These unemployment insurance claims were fraudulent because, for example, the claimants were not unemployed, they were not eligible for California unemployment insurance benefits, or Keyes did not have authority to file claims on their behalf.

Since at least October 2021, EDD has partnered with ID.me — a private company used by the EDD for ID verification of claimants — to implement a system for verifying claimant identities before EDD can process unemployment insurance claims.

In executing this fraudulent scheme, Keyes also submitted false information to ID.me that allowed fake and stolen identities to be verified. This false information included images of fake driver’s licenses that contained photos of Keyes and co-schemers and the names of the purported claimants. She also submitted photos of herself and co-schemers that were used to verify the photos on the fake driver’s licenses. Once these false identities were verified, Keyes filed the fraudulent unemployment insurance claims with EDD under the same identities.

In the fraudulent unemployment insurance applications, Keyes requested that the unemployment insurance benefits be mailed to various addresses under her control, including her residence in Tracy. EDD approved dozens of the fraudulent claims and authorized Bank of America to mail out EDD debit cards containing unemployment insurance benefits. Keyes then activated the EDD debit cards and spent the benefits on herself. The scheme sought over $2 million in unemployment insurance benefits and caused EDD and the United States to incur actual losses exceeding $1.1 million.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Office of Correctional Safety, and the California Employment Development Department (EDD) – Investigation Division, with assistance from the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Denise N. Yasinow and Robert J. Artuz are prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Keyes faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each of the 14 wire and mail fraud counts. She faces a maximum statutory penalty of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the access device fraud count, and she faces a two-year mandatory prison sentence if convicted of aggravated identity theft, which must run consecutive to any sentence received on the other counts. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case was prosecuted as part of the California COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Strike Force, one of three interagency COVID-19 fraud strike force teams established by the Department of Justice. The California Strike Force combines law enforcement and prosecutorial resources in the Eastern and Central Districts of California. The strike forces focus on large-scale, multistate pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations and transnational actors. The strike forces are interagency law enforcement efforts, using prosecutor-led and data analyst-driven teams designed to identify and bring to justice those who stole pandemic relief funds.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. —Andrew Jace Larrabure-Tuma, 20, of Sacramento, pleaded guilty today to unlawful dealing and manufacturing firearms, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Larrabure-Tuma used Snapchat to advertise guns for sale. During the investigation, Larrabure-Tuma sold guns to undercover officers and a confidential informant. Larrabure-Tuma, who could not legally purchase a gun in the state of California, ordered kits from the internet, including from a company called Polymer80, a licensed firearms manufacturer in Nevada, and manufactured his own firearms and then sold the guns he had manufactured. A search warrant was executed at Larrabure-Tuma’s residence in Sacramento and law enforcement officers found what appeared to be a firearm manufacturing operation, including partially complete firearms, firearm kits from Polymer80, firearm parts, tools for manufacturing and finishing firearms, firearm accessories, completed firearms, and ammunition.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Western El Dorado Narcotics Enforcement Team. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Lee is prosecuting the case.

Larrabure-Tuma is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Jan. 10, 2023. Larrabure-Tuma faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Chi Meng Yang, 36, of Montague, and Gaosheng Laitinen, 41, of St. Paul, Minnesota, were sentenced today for their respective roles in a bribery scheme aimed at protecting illicit marijuana grows in Siskiyou County from law enforcement, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

Yang was sentenced to five years and 11 months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Laitinen was sentenced to time-served and a $50,000 fine to be followed by two years of supervised release.

On March 18, 2022, a federal jury had convicted Yang of bribery of a public official, conspiracy to commit bribery, and manufacturing more than 100 marijuana plants. Shortly before the trial, in February 2022, Laitinen—Yang’s sister—pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery and conspiracy to manufacture marijuana.

According to evidence presented at trial, the charges arose from a four-month effort by Yang to bribe Jon Lopey, the elected sheriff of Siskiyou County, so that  a county ordinance banning outdoor marijuana grows would not be enforced. As part of that scheme, Yang enlisted Laitinen to assist in structuring the scheme and developing a timeline for payments.

According to court documents, on May 17, 2017, Yang met with Sheriff Lopey and offered a million-dollar donation to the charity of the sheriff’s choice in exchange for the sheriff’s “friendship” and help with a lobbying effort to legalize medical marijuana in Missouri. Yang, a Siskiyou County resident, also purported to represent a group of local cannabis farmers. Believing he was being offered a bribe, Sheriff Lopey called the FBI, who recorded all of the meetings that followed.

At the outset, Yang explained he wanted “no enforcement” on the properties or the two water trucks that he used to water the marijuana grows. He offered the sheriff $5,000 per parcel for “protection,” with another $5,000 per parcel as a contribution to the sheriff’s re-election campaign. He made clear that he wanted the payments to be “private, discreet … anonymous.”

In total, Yang met with Sheriff Lopey seven times, with Laitinen present for two of these meetings. Together, Yang and Laitinen provided the sheriff with a list of eight properties that they wanted the sheriff not to raid. To guarantee the properties would not get raided before they could realize their profit, Yang and Laitinen offered $1,000 per property up front, with the remaining $4,000 in protection fees and $5,000 in re-election money to be paid after the harvest. They paid $8,000—in envelopes of cash—as the initial protection payment for each of the eight properties. They also gave the sheriff cash “bonuses” totaling $2,500.

Over time, Yang asked for favors outside the original protection scheme. He told the sheriff he wanted to add more marijuana plants to each property and to add greenhouses to his properties, so that he could grow marijuana throughout the year. He asked the sheriff to send his deputies to serve other growers with violation notices to get them to join the protection racket, and he even asked the sheriff to raid a rival grower’s operation. Moreover, Yang asked if the sheriff could prevent the California Highway Patrol from enforcing the law against his water trucks, and also asked for the sheriff’s help concerning a family member’s DUI arrest.

Eventually, FBI agents arrested Yang at a final meeting in Sheriff Lopey’s office on Aug. 31, 2017. That day, law enforcement teams eradicated the more than 1,000 marijuana plants that were found on the eight properties identified by Yang and Laitinen.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Land Management, the Siskiyou Unified Major Investigations Team, the Shasta Interagency Narcotics Task Force, the North State Marijuana Investigation Team, and the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys James Conolly and Aaron Pennekamp prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Beckwith, Kevin Khasigian, and Ross Pearson assisted in the prosecution.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A human smuggler (also known as a “coyote”) was taken into federal custody today on a criminal complaint charging him with unlawful transportation of noncitizens without status in the United States, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

Mateo Gomez Gonzalez, 29, of Mexico, was arrested at a gas station near Dunnigan, California, and currently is in federal custody in Sacramento.

According to court documents, on Sept. 28, 2022, a concerned resident of Sacramento called law enforcement to report that his relative and a friend were being held over a payment dispute in a human smuggling operation. Specifically, the driver of a vehicle involved in the transport of Mexican citizens to the United States was threatening to drop the relative and family friend at an unknown stash house rather than to the awaiting family members if additional payment was not made. Acting on the tip, law enforcement met the vehicle at a gas station, discovered four passengers in the vehicle who did not have lawful status in the United States, and arrested the driver, Gomez.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Audrey B. Hemesath and Denise Yasinow are prosecuting the case. The investigation is ongoing.

If convicted, Gomez faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison per individual smuggled. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Adilson Jose Montiero, 42, of Sacramento, was sentenced today to seven years and 10 months in prison for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on Nov. 19, 2020, agents executed a federal search warrant at Montiero’s residence in Sacramento and found a total of more than 1.5 pounds of crystal methamphetamine, about half a pound of counterfeit Ecstasy pills containing methamphetamine, and smaller amounts of cocaine, crack cocaine, heroin, and counterfeit M-30 pills containing fentanyl. Agents also found four handguns, three of which were Glock-style handguns with no serial number known as “ghost” guns.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney David W. Spencer prosecuted the case.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

FRESNO, Calif. — Sholanda Thomas, 38, a former Hoover Crips gang member and an inmate at the Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF) in Chowchilla, was sentenced today to five years and five months in prison for conspiring to submit fraudulent unemployment insurance claims to the California Employment Development Department (EDD) in the names of other CCWF inmates, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Thomas sent her own and other inmates’ personally identifiable information to Christina Smith, a parolee and a former Hoover Crips gang member, to submit the unemployment insurance claims in their names. The underlying applications falsely represented that the inmates had been working as carpet cleaners, hair stylists, mechanics, and other jobs. This was impossible because they were incarcerated and ineligible for benefits. The intended loss to the EDD and the United States was over $250,000 and the actual loss was more than $200,000. The proceeds were spent on various personal expenses, including plastic surgery for Smith.

Smith was sentenced in September 2021 to five years in prison for her role in the conspiracy.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation’s Investigative Services Unit, and the EDD. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Barton prosecuted the case.

This case was prosecuted as part of the California COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Strike Force, one of three interagency COVID-19 fraud strike force teams established by the Department of Justice. The California Strike Force combines law enforcement and prosecutorial resources in the Eastern and Central Districts of California. The strike forces focus on large-scale, multistate pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations and transnational actors. The strike forces are interagency law enforcement efforts, using prosecutor-led and data analyst-driven teams designed to identify and bring to justice those who stole pandemic relief funds.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Richard Lant, 77, of Las Vegas, Nevada, pleaded guilty today to a conspiracy to export to an embargoed country, Iran, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. On Sept. 19, 2022, Dariush Niknia, 59, of Elk Grove, entered a guilty plea to the same charge.

According to court documents, between May and October 2015, Niknia, Lant and others conspired to unlawfully sell and supply 500 Russian-made tank helmets to Niknia’s contact in Tehran, Iran. The helmets were to be configured for a Russian-produced T-72S battle tank and were required to have a five-pin plug, a feature that is necessary to enable a tank communication device.

In May 2015, Niknia contacted Lant, who operated R&L Ltd., a company that sold Russian items, and requested to purchase 500 T-72S tank helmets and to have the helmets shipped to Tehran. Niknia initially paid R&L monies to purchase sample tank helmets and to have the helmets sent from Russia to Iran. Prior to the shipment of the first sample helmet both Lant and Niknia were told that the United States’ sanctions prohibited the shipment of items to Iran, but both proceeded with the transaction.

Niknia’s customer rejected the first sample helmet because it did not have a rectangular five-pin plug, but approved the second sample tank helmet that was sent to Tehran. In an email communication with Niknia, Niknia’s Iranian contact discussed the fact that the helmets would be inspected by the ultimate buyer, the “GOI” or Government of Iran. Niknia then requested additional helmets be sent to Tehran, 50 at a time, and paid Lant money for the purchase and shipment of the first 50 helmets. However, the deal ultimately fell apart before additional helmets were sent because Lant’s associate could not obtain and ship the tank helmets in the quantities and timeframe Niknia required. The Russian supplier said the difficulties stemmed from the fact that it was illegal to both sell large quantities of tank helmets and to send modern military items to countries such as Iran that might use them in “terroristic or any war ways.”

In May 2015, prior to contacting Lant, Niknia attempted to purchase battle tank helmets from another individual who sold Russian military memorabilia online. This individual did not sell Niknia any helmets and instead reported him to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The embargo on Iran, which is enforced through the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations, prohibits the export, sale, and supply of goods to Iran by United States persons with very limited exceptions. It also prohibits, with very limited exceptions, United States persons from engaging in any transaction or dealing related to the sale or supply of goods to Iran.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Shelley D. Weger is prosecuting the case with assistance from Trial Attorney Scott Claffee of the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section of the National Security Division.

Niknia and Lant are scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kimberley J. Mueller on Dec. 5, 2022, and Jan. 9, 2023 respectively. Both face a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

FRESNO, Calif. — John Perry, 64, of Bakersfield, was sentenced today to 20 years in prison for receiving child pornography, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, in February 2020, Perry was found to have received on a cellphone, as well as on the internet through both the use of an email account as well as cloud data storage, over 1,000 image files depicting minors suffering various acts of sexual abuse. Many of the images depicted prepubescent minors and Perry likewise engaged in a pattern of activity involving the sexual abuse of minors. Perry had prior convictions in the states of Washington and California for committing crimes, including rape of a child, communicating with minors for immoral purposes, and possession of child pornography.

This case was the product of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian W. Enos prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about internet-safety education.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Jason Tolbert, 45, of Sacramento, was sentenced yesterday by United States District Judge Troy L. Nunley to 57 months in prison for possession with intent to distribute cocaine, United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Tolbert was one of 15 federal defendants arrested in 2021 for trafficking narcotics as part of a DEA-led multi-agency operation targeting cocaine and heroin traffickers in North Sacramento. Tolbert was intercepted during wiretaps in 2018 trafficking powder cocaine. Upon his arrest, he was in possession of over a kilogram of cocaine and a loaded firearm. Tolbert is the first defendant to be sentenced.  

This case was the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Sacramento Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, United States Marshals Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and California Highway Patrol. Assistant United States Attorneys Cameron L. Desmond and Aaron Pennekamp prosecuted the case.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

FRESNO, Calif. — Carson Shane Wilhite, 43, of Ahwahnee, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to manufacture, distribute, and possess with intent to distribute marijuana and possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

Wilhite has agreed to pay $46,680 in restitution to the U.S. Forest Service for the damage sustained to the environment as a result of his marijuana cultivation activities.

According to court documents, Wilhite was involved in a marijuana cultivation operation at his residence on private land in the Carter Creek watershed drainage network in the Sierra National Forest and on public land adjacent to the residence. During the execution of a federal search warrant in the summer of 2019, law enforcement officers located marijuana growing inside and outside of Wilhite’s residence and 2,261 marijuana plants growing on the adjacent public land. In exchange for $3,000 in cash and an additional $300 per month, Wilhite allowed other individuals to pass through his property to the public land so that they could grow marijuana there. Upon harvest, he was going to be paid in marijuana and would receive an additional $10,000. In total, officers located 2,353 marijuana plants.

While serving the warrant in Wilhite’s residence, officers found three firearms, including an AR-15 type assault rifle with no serial number and a Springfield .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol with a live round chambered. In a second residence on the property, officers located a safe, which Wilhite controlled, that contained an additional 11 guns. Wilhite advised the officers that he had been carrying the loaded semi-automatic pistol prior to the arrival of law enforcement officers and was armed when he checked on the marijuana in the forest.

This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Forest Service, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the Madera County Sheriff’s Office. Integral Ecology Research Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the research and conservation of wildlife and their ecosystems, analyzed and documented the environmental damage. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen A. Escobar is prosecuting the case.

Wilhite is scheduled for sentencing on January 13, 2023, before United States District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston. He faces a maximum prison term of five years in prison on the drug conspiracy and a mandatory consecutive prison term of at least five years for the firearms charge. He also faces a $250,000 fine, as to each charge. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

FRESNO, Calif. — Brian Zamora, 30, of Fresno, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston to four years in prison for being a felon in possession of ammunition, United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, officers stopped the car Zamora was traveling in after learning that he was a wanted parolee-at-large and had been spotted in the area. Officers found Zamora’s loaded AR-style “ghost gun” without a serial number and 30-round magazine concealed in a duffle bag in the car. Zamora is a felon, so he is prohibited from possessing both firearms and ammunition. In addition to three felony convictions for vehicle theft, one felony conviction for carrying a loaded firearm, two felony convictions for second degree burglary, one felony conviction for felon in possession of a firearm, Zamora was on parole for second degree attempted robbery at the time of the crime.

This case was the product of an investigation by the FBI, the Fresno Police Department Multi-Agency Gang Enforcement Consortium (MAGEC), and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Assistant United States Attorney Laura Jean Berger prosecuted the case.

Zamora remains in federal custody.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Justin Wade Johnson, 38, of Woodland, pleaded guilty today to the unlawful sale of a firearm to a felon and being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Johnson is one of 27 federal defendants arrested in February 2018 on narcotics and weapons-related charges as part of Operation Silent Night, a multi-agency law enforcement investigation into coordinated criminal activity in Woodland. Johnson is the 27th and final defendant to plead guilty. Beginning in the spring of 2016, the investigation uncovered organized criminal activity in Woodland with ties to criminal organizations in California’s jail and prison system. Although centered in Yolo County, the investigation revealed that at least nine other California counties were negatively impacted by these criminal organizations: Sacramento, Sutter, Colusa, Yuba, Del Norte, Solano, Fresno, Santa Clara, and Siskiyou.

Johnson is a felon who is prohibited from possessing any firearm because he was previously convicted of felonies for assault with a deadly weapon, possessing a weapon while being a prisoner, and possession of marijuana for sale. In October 2017, Johnson sold an AR-15 rifle to a convicted felon. At the time of the sale, Johnson knew that he was selling the rifle to a felon. Later in October, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Johnson’s storage unit in Woodland and seized a shotgun, a rifle, and four handguns.

Operation Silent Night is the product of an investigation by the FBI, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office, the Woodland Police Department, and the California Highway Patrol. The following agencies provided substantial assistance: the Colusa County Sheriff’s Office, the Sacramento Police Department, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office, the West Sacramento Police Department, the Yolo County Sheriff’s Office, the Davis Police Department, the Yuba City Police Department, the Yuba County Sheriff’s Office, the Sutter County Sheriff’s Office, the Solano County Sheriff’s Office, the Vacaville Police Department, the Correctional Intelligence Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Lee is prosecuting the cases. Johnson is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley on Feb. 23, 2023. Johnson faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

The other defendants that have been convicted are listed below:

• Aldo Arellano, 28, of Marysville, was convicted of distribution of methamphetamine and sentenced to eight years in prison;
• Raul Barajas, 24, of Woodland, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute controlled substances and was sentenced to five years in prison;
• Patrick Botello, 36, of Pelican Bay State Prison, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute methamphetamine and heroin. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 6, 2022;
• Israel Covarrubias, 30, of Woodland, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute controlled substances and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime and was sentenced to 15 years in prison;
• Mike Do, 40, of Sacramento, was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced to three years of supervised release;
• Milton Escobedo, 33, of Woodland, was convicted of distribution of cocaine and was sentenced to 33 months in prison;
• Rachel Felix, 43, of Woodland, was convicted of distribution of methamphetamine and was sentenced to seven years in prison;
• Daisy Gonzalez, 37, of Termo, was convicted of conspiracy to manufacture marijuana and was sentenced to four years of supervised release;
• Ashley Habash, 32, of Marysville, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute methamphetamine and heroin and was sentenced to five years of supervised release;
• Jose Heredia, 39, of Los Banos, was convicted of conspiracy to manufacture marijuana and was sentenced to five years in prison;
• Edgar Jimenez, 23, of Sacramento, was convicted of using a cellphone to facilitate a drug trafficking offense and was sentenced to three years in prison;
• Stefanie Lavan, 69, of Woodland, was convicted of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and was sentenced to two years in prison;
• John Lemus, 35, of Woodland, was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced to 46 months in prison;
• Jose Madrigal-Vega, 37, Woodland, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute controlled substances and was sentenced to eight years in prison;
• Victor Magana, 28, of Woodland, was convicted of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and was sentenced to 11 years in prison;
• Carlos Martinez, 43, of Woodland, was convicted of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and was sentenced to five years in prison;
• James Masterson, 28, of Newcastle, Pennsylvania, was convicted of using a cellphone to facilitate a drug trafficking offense and was sentenced to four years in prison;
• Brenda Miranda, 25, of Napa, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute methamphetamine and heroin and was sentenced to five years of supervised release;
• Reginald Pajimola, 28, of Marysville, was convicted using a cellphone to facilitate a drug trafficking offense and was sentenced to two years of supervised release;
• Blas Ramirez, 24, of Sacramento, was convicted of unlawful possession of a firearm and was sentenced to 18 months in prison;
• Mercedez Silva-Sims, 26, of Colusa, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute methamphetamine and heroin and was sentenced to five years of supervised release;
• Joshua Sims, 27, of Colusa, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute methamphetamine and heroin, and attempted distribution of methamphetamine and was sentenced to 10 years in prison;
• Erica Umbay, 47, of Woodland, was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced to six years in prison;
• Trevor White, 27, of Sacramento, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute controlled substances and was sentenced to 10 years in prison;
• Ricardo Villa, 43, of Woodland, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute methamphetamine and heroin. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 3, 2022.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned an indictment today against Eric Terrell Christian, 31, of Vacaville, charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on July 21, 2022, Christian failed to yield during an attempted law enforcement traffic stop and sped away from the officer. Moments after this evasion, a witness called 911 and reported seeing a firearm in a parking lot Christian had just driven through. On Aug. 11, 2022, officers attempted to stop Christian; he fled on foot from his car but was quickly apprehended. In his vehicle, officers located a Glock handgun with a round in the chamber and another 17 rounds in an inserted high-capacity magazine. Officers subsequently searched the apartment in this complex that Christian had access to and located a Palmetto Arms AR-style pistol with a round in the chamber and 40 rounds in an inserted, high-capacity magazine. Christian is not allowed to possess firearms because he has previously been convicted of three felony offenses, including two convictions for assault with a deadly weapon. Christian was on parole from his second assault conviction when he committed the current offenses.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Vacaville Police Department, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation - Division of Adult Parole Operations, the Solano County District Attorney’s Office, the FBI’s Solano County Violent Crimes Task Force, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adrian T. Kinsella is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Christian faces a maximum statutory penalty of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Zarko Danilov, 67, of Folsom, was sentenced today to 12 months and one day in prison for two counts of making and subscribing a false tax return, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. Danilov was also ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and $283,359 in restitution.

According to court documents, Danilov owned and operated a dental laboratory business called Danilov’s Dental Lab. Danilov hid the true amount of gross receipts received from his business from his tax return preparers. For the tax years 2015 and 2016, Danilov failed to provide his return preparer the bank statements for one additional business bank account and one personal bank account. For the tax year 2017, Danilov failed to provide his return preparer the bank statements for that same business bank account and a different personal bank account. During a civil audit by the IRS, Danilov lied to a tax examiner about only having one bank account for business and personal matters. On May 19, 2022, Danilov pleaded guilty to two counts of making and subscribing a false tax return.

In total, Danilov’s income for tax years 2015, 2016, and 2017 was underreported by at least $1,271,694. The total amount lost by the IRS as a result of defendant’s criminal conduct for those tax years was approximately $283,359, which is the amount of restitution ordered.

This case was the product of an investigation by the IRS-Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Denise N. Yasinow prosecuted the case.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned an indictment today against Terry Francis Le Clair, 64, of Shingle Springs, charging him with sexual exploitation of a child, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Le Clair sexually exploited a minor in his care when in a foreign country in the summer of 2017. Le Clair used the camera on his tablet computer to create photos of the minor victim depicting sexually explicit conduct, which he then brought back to California. While executing a search warrant at Le Clair’s residence, investigators also found video recordings showing various teenagers changing into and out of their swimsuits and showering in Le Clair’s bathroom. Le Clair made these video recordings using hidden cameras he set up in the bathroom.

Anyone who has information related to this case can contact the FBI at 916-746-7000.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Sacramento Hi-Tech Crimes Task Force, which is part of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christina McCall is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Le Clair faces a minimum of 15 years in prison up to a maximum statutory penalty of 30 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, a minimum of five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and restitution. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about internet-safety education.

FRESNO, Calif. — After a six–day trial, a federal jury found Ramonchito Racion, 52, of Merced, guilty today of one count of attempted sexual abuse and one count of abusive sexual contact, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to evidence presented at trial, Racion, who was working as a cook in Yosemite in the summer of 2019, sexually assaulted his roommate while the roommate was sleeping.

This case is the product of an investigation by the National Park Service. Assistant United States Attorneys Michael G. Tierney and Justin J. Gilio are prosecuting the case.

Racion is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston on Jan. 20, 2023. Racion faces a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

FRESNO, Calif. — On Friday, Sept. 23, 2022, a jury found Israel Alberto Rivas Gomez, 27, a citizen of El Salvador unlawfully residing in Mendota, guilty of kidnapping and murder in aid of racketeering, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Rivas Gomez was a member of La Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), a violent criminal street gang that engages in racketeering activity, including murder, kidnapping, extortion, and drug trafficking. On Dec. 18, 2017, Rivas Gomez and other MS-13 gang members kidnapped a 19-year-old man in Mendota, drove him to a remote location approximately 30 minutes away, and used a knife and machete to murder him, all in furtherance of MS-13’s criminal gang enterprise.

“This conviction is the culmination of years of incredible teamwork between our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners,” said U.S. Attorney Talbert. “In August 2018, we announced the arrest of 25 individuals, including Rivas Gomez, associated with the MS-13 gang after investigators found evidence of broad criminal activity centered in and around the Central Valley town of Mendota. This defendant murdered a young man and brought untold harm to the victim’s family. The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to dismantling criminal enterprises like MS-13, and, equally important, to vindicating the rights of victims and seeking justice for their family members and loved ones.”

“This case highlights the importance and advantage of employing a collaborative investigative approach to disrupt MS-13’s violent activity in California’s central valley,” said Special Agent in Charge Sean Ragan of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Sacramento Field Office. “The FBI is deeply committed to mitigating the threat of violent criminal organizations nationwide and, locally, we are proud of the strong relationships we have with our law enforcement partners. Together, we can ensure a safer future for central valley families that deserve to live, work, and play without fear.”

“This verdict represents another important victory in the ongoing effort to rid our neighborhoods of violent transnational street gangs like MS-13 who terrorize our communities and commit the most heinous violent acts against their victims,” said HSI San Francisco / NorCal Special Agent in Charge Tatum King. “Bringing this criminal to justice is a direct result of the strong partnerships between HSI agents/analysts, and local and federal law enforcement officers and prosecutors who are all in this fight together. We will remain diligent in our pursuit of transnational criminal organizations that show no regard for the law or human life.”

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the California Department of Justice and the California Highway Patrol Special Operations Unit, the Multi-Agency Gang Enforcement Consortium (MAGEC), the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Special Services Unit (SSU). Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ross Pearson, Christopher D. Baker, and Kimberly Sanchez prosecuted the case.

Rivas Gomez is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston on Dec. 16, 2022. Rivas Gomez faces a mandatory statutory penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Tyler Rigsbee, 32, of Folsom, has signed a plea agreement admitting to committing aggravated identity theft, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

Rigsbee was charged in a criminal information filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court. In a plea agreement, filed today, Rigsbee agreed to plead guilty to one count of aggravated identity theft. Rigsbee is scheduled for an initial appearance on Oct. 5, 2022, before Magistrate Judge Kendall J. Newman.

According to court documents, from 2016 to 2021, Rigsbee worked as a financial advisor at a major bank in Sacramento. During his employment, Rigsbee stole over $158,000 from the accounts of two bank customers. Rigsbee stole this money by transferring it from customer accounts to brokerage accounts he created at E-Trade, a third-party financial institution. He then transferred the money from these brokerage accounts to his own personal bank account. Rigsbee also attempted to conceal his scheme by partially replacing some of what he stole from one of these bank customers with money he took from the account of a third bank customer.

After the death of one bank customer in August 2018, Rigsbee created a fraudulent request for distribution of eligible assets from a transfer-on-death account by falsely pretending that he was the deceased customer’s beneficiary. On March 15, 2019, Rigsbee submitted this request for distribution of eligible assets to the bank’s estate processing department, which caused the liquidation of the customer’s account and transfer of these funds to a brokerage account Rigsbee created and controlled.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elliot C. Wong is prosecuting the case.

Rigsbee faces a mandatory term of two years in prison and a statutory maximum fine of up to $250,000 fine or twice the gross gain or gross loss. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Adedayo Akinwunmi Agbayewa, 45, of College Park, Georgia, was sentenced today to five years in prison and ordered to pay $7,784,415 in restitution for a mail fraud and money laundering conspiracy, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Agbayewa and his co‑conspirators were involved in a lottery or sweepstakes telemarketing scheme that targeted elderly victims. The conspirators used false names and falsely notified the victims by mail or telephone that they had won a sweepstakes or lottery. The victims were told that they had to pay taxes or fees before they could receive their winnings. The victims mailed checks or deposited money into bank accounts as directed by the individuals involved in the scheme. However, the victims never received any prize money; in fact, no lottery or sweepstakes ever existed.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and IRS‑Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christina McCall prosecuted the case.

The U.S. Department of Justice, through the Elder Justice Initiative, works to combat elder abuse, neglect and financial fraud and scams that target our nation’s older adults. Through the Elder Justice Initiative, the department provides community presentations, educational webinars, summits, and resources to help older victims and their families. The Elder Justice Initiative’s website is: https://www.justice.gov/elderjustice. The National Elder Fraud Hotline number is: 1-833–FRAUD–11 (or 833–372–8311).

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A Vern Saeteurn, 34, of Sacramento, was sentenced Thursday to 15 years in prison for possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute it, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, law enforcement agents searched Saeteurn’s home on Sept. 6, 2018. They found about 11 kilograms of methamphetamine, a garage lab for adulterating and packaging methamphetamine, and several guns — two of which had been stolen from law enforcement agencies. Four children were also present in the home. Saeteurn was purchasing around 10 kilograms of methamphetamine several times a week.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the Sacramento Sheriff’s Office, the Sacramento Police Department, the California Highway Patrol, and the California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Beckwith prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Emilio Lara, 55, of American Canyon, pleaded guilty Tuesday to willfully aiding and assisting in the preparation and presentation of false and fraudulent income tax returns, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Lara was the owner of Lara’s Income Tax Services, an income tax preparation business in Vallejo. From 2009 to 2012, Lara prepared individual income tax returns for clients on which he falsely inflated certain Schedule A deductions. Lara listed inflated amounts for medical and dental expenses, charitable contributions by cash or check, charitable contributions other than by cash or check, and unreimbursed employee expenses, resulting in a loss to the IRS.

According to the plea agreement, Lara agreed to pay back $7,868 in restitution for tax loss to the IRS. Lara further agreed to a tax preparation injunction, which means he will be permanently prohibited from preparing or filing federal tax returns for anyone other than himself.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Anderson and Emily Sauvageau are prosecuting the case.

Lara is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Jan. 10, 2023. Lara faces a maximum statutory penalty of three years in prison and a $100,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

SACRAMENTO — James Dean Miller, 54, of Yuba City, was sentenced today to 15 years and eight months in prison for sexual exploitation of a child, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

Miller pleaded guilty to one count in April 2022. According to court records, on March 17, 2018, Miller produced a surreptitious video of a naked child and still images depicting himself engaged in sexually explicit conduct with the child while she slept. Miller subsequently possessed this child sexual abuse material over a period of several months.

Miller was convicted of state charges of unlawful sexual penetration of an unconscious victim in 2018. Upon his release from state custody, Miller was transferred to federal custody for federal prosecution.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau Investigation and the Yuba County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Denise N. Yasinow prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about internet-safety education.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Virgil Sever Santa, 49, formerly of Sacramento, pleaded guilty today to failing to file a report of foreign bank and financial accounts (FBAR) with the Department of the Treasury, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Virgil Santa’s wife, Maria Santa, was convicted of mail fraud in 2013 and was ordered to surrender in early 2014 for service of her prison sentence. In February 2014, Virgil Santa reported to local law enforcement that his wife was missing and had left a note suggesting that she had committed suicide. Despite search efforts, Maria Santa was not found. It was later determined that she had faked her purported suicide and fled the country to avoid going to prison. Documents obtained from the Romanian government confirmed that Maria Santa eventually made her way to Romania.

According to court documents, in December 2014, Virgil Santa opened a foreign bank account at Banca Comerciala Romana S.A., in Romania, over which he had signatory authority. In April 2015, he caused over $50,000 to be wired from the United States to this foreign bank account. Bank records show that, in June 2015, Virgil Santa added his wife to the account so that she was permitted to make withdrawals in Romania. While Maria Santa was hiding in Romania from United States authorities, the couple made significant withdrawals from the account between April and August 2015.

Because Virgil Santa’s Romanian bank account had a value of over $10,000 in the 2015 calendar year, he was required by law to file an FBAR, in the form of FinCEN Form 114, with the Treasury Department by June 30, 2016. Knowing that he had a duty to file such a report, Santa willfully failed to file an FBAR by the deadline. In 2016, Virgil Santa also filed a U.S. tax return for the 2015 tax year, which also failed to disclose the existence of this foreign account.

In August 2016, federal agents found Maria Santa living as a fugitive with her husband back in Sacramento. She was arrested and eventually pleaded guilty to failing to surrender for service of her prison sentence. On Jan. 24, 2018, she was sentenced to serve a year and a day in prison consecutive to her original 20-month sentence.

This case is the product of an investigation by IRS Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert J. Artuz and Matthew Thuesen are prosecuting the case.

Virgil Santa is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 29, 2022, by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd. Santa faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

FRESNO, Calif. — Ulises Pena, 39, a former California Department of Motor Vehicles employee in Bakersfield, pleaded guilty Monday to illegally producing California commercial driver’s licenses (CDL) in exchange for bribes, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court records, Pena was a Motor Vehicle Representative at the DMV and was responsible for processing driver’s license applications. From January 2015 through August 2016, he arranged for the passage of written tests for students from co-defendant Bikramjit Singh Pannu’s truck driving school who were having trouble passing the tests in exchange for payments from Pannu. Pena improperly accessed the students’ DMV records and altered them to show that the students had passed the tests when that was not true. His alterations caused the fraudulent issuance of CDLs to the unqualified students.

This case is the product of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations and the California DMV’s Internal Affairs Division. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph Barton and David Gappa are prosecuting the case.

Charges are pending against Pannu. He is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Pena has agreed to cooperate with the government in its ongoing case against Pannu. Pena is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ana de Alba on Dec. 12, 2022. Pena faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Christopher Matthew Rougeau, 38, of Vallejo, pleaded guilty today to possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on April 20, 2022, law enforcement officers found Rougeau in his car and searched him pursuant to a search warrant. They found a pistol in a holster on his hip. On the passenger seat, officers found 159 grams of methamphetamine, which was 94% pure, and a digital scale. In the backseat, officers found another pistol. Rougeau has been previously convicted in California state court of multiple firearm and drug offenses.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Marin County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas M. Fogg is prosecuting the case.

Rougeau is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 5, 2022, by U.S. District Judge William B. Shubb. Rougeau faces a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $10 million fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sherri Papini, 39, of Redding, was sentenced today to 18 months in prison to be followed by 36 months of supervised release for making materially false statements to FBI agents about the circumstances of her own hoax kidnapping and committing mail fraud based on her being a kidnapping victim, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced today.

Papini was ordered to pay $309,902 in restitution for losses incurred by the California Victim Compensation Board, the Social Security Administration, the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

On April 12, 2022, Papini was charged in a criminal information with 34 counts of mail fraud and one count of making false statements. On April 18, 2022, Papini pleaded guilty to a single count of mail fraud and one count of making false statements.

According to the criminal complaint and Papini’s plea agreement, on Nov. 2, 2016, Papini was reported missing and was believed to be kidnapped. Extensive searches were conducted for her in Shasta County, throughout California, as well as other states. Twenty-two days later, on Nov. 24, 2016, Papini reappeared with various bindings on her body and injuries, including a “brand” on her right shoulder, and claimed that she had been abducted by two Hispanic women at gunpoint, held against her will, and that she had been abused by her captors. At that point, law enforcement efforts focused on finding her abductors. For over four years, Papini repeated her false story about her kidnapping, while law enforcement continued its investigation to identify Papini’s kidnappers.

Eventually, the evidence showed that Papini’s story was a carefully planned, false story. DNA, cellphone, and car rental evidence proved she had been voluntarily staying with a former boyfriend and that she had harmed herself to support her false statements. On Aug. 13, 2020, an FBI special agent and a detective with the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office met with Papini. At the outset of the meeting, they told Papini it was a crime to lie to federal agents. Papini continued to claim she was kidnapped. Later in the interview, Papini was again warned that it was a crime to lie to federal agents and was told about the DNA and telephone evidence showing that she had been with her former boyfriend. Yet, even after this second warning and evidence, Papini continued to make false statements.

Not only did Papini lie to law enforcement, her friends, and her family, she also made false statements to the California Victim Compensation Board and the Social Security Administration in order to receive benefits as a result of her alleged “post-traumatic stress” from being abducted.

This case was the product of an investigation by the FBI and the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office with assistance from the California Department of Justice’s Bureau of Forensic Services and Bureau of Investigation, and the California Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Veronica M.A. Alegría and Shelley D. Weger prosecuted the case.

FRESNO, Calif. — Jessie Gonzalez, 26, of Wasco, was sentenced today to three years and 10 months in prison for being a felon in possession of ammunition, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on Dec. 22, 2021, law enforcement officers arrested Gonzalez for an active parole violation warrant and found a Polymer 80 handgun in Gonzalez’s waistband, which was loaded with a high-capacity magazine and 16 rounds of 9 mm ammunition. At the time of the offense, Gonzalez, who uses the moniker “Creeper,” was a member of the Varrio Wasco Rifas, a southern criminal street gang in Wasco. Gonzalez may not lawfully possess firearms or ammunition because of criminal convictions he has sustained in Bakersfield, including assault with a firearm on a person and being a prisoner in possession of a weapon.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Kern County Sheriff’s Office, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorney Christopher D. Baker prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment today against residents of Everett, Washington, Brian Ulises Rangel, 21, and Martin Velazquez, 29, charging Rangel with being a felon in possession of a firearm and Velazquez with being a felon in possession of ammunition, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, on Aug. 15. 2022, law enforcement officers in Fresno County conducted a traffic stop on a car occupied by Rangel and Velazquez. Because neither individual had a valid driver’s license, the car was towed. During a search of the car, two firearms (one stolen and the other with an obliterated serial number) and ammunition were found.

Both defendants are prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because of  previous convictions in the state of Washington. Rangel was convicted for possession with intent to manufacture or deliver methamphetamine and Velazquez was convicted for unlawful firearm possession.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Fresno Police Department, and Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin J. Gilio is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, the defendants face a minimum of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A Foresthill couple was sentenced today for tax-related offenses, and have agreed to pay over $605,000 in restitution, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

Virendra (Vic) Maharaj, 55, was sentenced to 364 days in prison for willfully failing to file tax return information with the U.S. Treasury related to his receipt of cash while engaged in trade or business. Maharaj’s wife, Rosalin R. Prasad, was sentenced to 24 months’ probation for a conspiracy to defraud the United States with respect to the Internal Revenue Service’s assessment of income taxes. They pleaded guilty on Dec. 9, 2021.

According to court documents, Prasad conspired with Maharaj to defraud the IRS in the IRS’s attempts to assess the couple’s tax obligations for the years 2005, 2006, and 2007. Maharaj worked at car dealerships in Sacramento and Woodland in those years and earned substantial income. Several actions were taken to further the conspiracy to thwart the proper assessment of income taxes. Among other things, part of Maharaj’s wages were paid directly to Prasad; part of Maharaj’s compensation was paid directly to Prasad and Maharaj’s creditors through indirect payments; Maharaj took compensation in the form of currency; Prasad improperly deferred around $270,000 in capital gains related to her purchase of a $1.9 million residence; Prasad caused false tax returns to be filed in each of those years; and Prasad made false statements during an IRS audit. Prasad conspired to underreport over $819,000 in income and, in turn, underpay over $184,000 in federal income taxes. She received substantial tax refunds in 2005, 2006, and 2007.

According to court documents, Maharaj was an owner, general manager, and salesperson of Maharaja Motors LLC, which operated a used car lot in Woodland, from approximately 2007 through 2016. In 2015, Maharaj sold a vehicle to a customer and, in turn, received a cash payment of over $10,000. Maharaj willfully failed to file information with the U.S. Treasury, specifically an IRS Form 8300, which is required to be filed by a person engaged in certain trades or businesses, including an automobile sales business, who receives a cash payment exceeding $10,000.

These cases were the product of an investigation by IRS-Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nirav Desai and Audrey Hemesath prosecuted the cases.

FRESNO, Calif. — Anthony Rodriguez, aka Anthony Rito Lara, 34, of Modesto, was sentenced today to 45 years in prison for sexual exploitation of a minor, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, in September and October 2020, Rodriguez used a cellphone to create approximately 49 videos and 51 images of a child under 12 years old engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Rodriguez distributed some of these videos over the internet, including one video in which he engages in a sex act with the child.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Modesto Police Department with assistance from the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandre M. Dempsey prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about internet-safety education.