Eastern District of California

FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment today against Michael Erin Vandeventer, 21, of Sparks, Nevada, charging him with interference with commerce by robbery, known as Hobbs Act Robbery, and conspiracy to commit interference with commerce by robbery, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, on April 19, Vandeventer and others robbed a CVS Pharmacy in Madera. The additional currently unidentified suspects, one armed with a handgun, entered the pharmacy and breached the barrier to enter the employee-only area. Using the firearm as intimidation, the robbers then demanded controlled substances — “oxy,” “promethazine,” and others — and after obtaining them, fled to a getaway car, alleged to have been operated by Vandeventer. A search of Vandeventer’s phone revealed conversations and web searches showing knowledge of and preparation for the robbery.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Madera Police Department, the Fresno Police Department, and the Reno Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Justin J. Gilio and Laura Jean Berger are prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Vandeventer faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 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.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a 17-count indictment Thursday against Hopelyn Rhiannon Ausk, 24, of Stockton, charging her with mail fraud, bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, possession of stolen U.S. mail, unlawful possession of U.S. Postal Service keys, and obstruction of justice, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Ausk engaged in two separate fraud schemes that caused significant harm to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Unemployment Insurance program and identity-theft victims throughout Northern California. First, in 2020, she perpetrated a mail fraud scheme that targeted the Unemployment Insurance benefit program that California administers through its Employment Development Department (EDD). Under the 2020 CARES Act and the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program, EDD is responsible for administering unemployment insurance benefits for qualifying residents who can no longer find employment due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ausk obtained the personally identifiable information (PII) of at least 20 individuals and filed fraudulent unemployment insurance benefit claims under their identities. EDD approved many of these applications and mailed benefits in the form of prepaid debit cards to addresses under Ausk’s control. Once received in the mail, she activated the cards and spent the benefits on herself.

“The EDD is committed to doing everything possible to protect the unemployment insurance program and the essential benefits it provides to Californians in need,” said EDD Director Sharon Hilliard. “We are grateful for the partnership with law enforcement and other agencies at the federal, state and local level to expose, charge, and prosecute offenders to the fullest extent of the law.”

Second, in 2019 and 2020, Ausk perpetrated a bank fraud scheme that involved theft of U.S. mail, identity theft, and fraudulent use of stolen bank cards. Ausk manufactured counterfeit U.S. Postal Service keys to break into cluster mailboxes and steal mail containing victim PII, financial information, and bank cards. She then used the bank cards and victim accounts to obtain cash and purchase merchandise for herself. Some of the stolen mail also included U.S. Economic Impact Payment checks (i.e., stimulus checks) mailed to California residents.

Ausk is also charged with obstruction of justice because, as alleged in the indictment, she corruptly obstructed, influenced, and impeded an official proceeding, and attempted to do so, by warning criminal associates about the existence and course of a criminal investigation and prosecution and directing those criminal associates to destroy evidence.

This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Stockton Police Department with assistance from the California Employment Development Department, Investigation Division. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert J. Artuz is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Ausk faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison for mail fraud, 30 years in prison for bank fraud, and 20 years in prison for obstruction of justice. Ausk also faces a mandatory additional sentence of two years in prison if convicted of aggravated identity theft. She also faces a maximum fine of $250,000 on each count. 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. — A federal grand jury returned two indictments today separately charging Cynthia Seeley, 66, of Magalia, and Kristen Canapary, 53, of Butte County, with making false statements in an application for FEMA benefits in connection with the 2018 Camp Fire, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

“These indictments are the result of ongoing efforts to investigate and prosecute a variety of disaster related frauds, including fraudulent claims for disaster assistance,” U.S. Attorney Scott said. “In 2018, in the aftermath of the Carr and Camp Fires, we encouraged the public to report any suspected fraudulent activity and promised to aggressively pursue and prosecute fraud and abuse. As California continues to be affected by wildfires, we stand by that commitment, and want to remind those who would try to fraudulently profit from the situation, that the U.S. Attorney’s Office together with the federal law enforcement will continue to aggressively pursue and prosecute disaster fraud.”

Following the 2018 Camp and Carr Fires, FEMA assistance was available to individuals who, as a result of the fires, had emergency needs for food, shelter, and personal items. To qualify for certain benefits, an individual’s primary residence—the place where the individual resided at the time of the fire—had to have been destroyed or damaged by the fire, among other eligibility criteria.

According to court documents, Seeley and Canapary each filed a fraudulent claim with FEMA seeking disaster assistance. They falsely claimed a primary residence that was not their true residence at the time of the fire. Seeley falsely claimed she rented a residence located at 13756 Eureka Road in Magalia and received $11,604.79 in cash benefits from FEMA. Canapary falsely claimed that she rented a home located at 1555 Sylvan Way in Paradise, and received $8,973.05 in cash benefits as well as temporary housing provided by FEMA. Seeley and Canapary are each charged with one count of fraud in connection with a major disaster or emergency benefits.

These indictments are the result of ongoing investigations into disaster fraud related to the California wildfires. In December 2019, six defendants were indicted for making a false statement about their primary residence in an application for FEMA assistance in connection with the Camp Fire: Patrick Prigmore, 2:19-cr-226; Daniel Connelly, 2:19-cr-223; Evan Palmer, 19-cr-225; Deborah Laughlin, 2:19-cr-229; Kristy Marie Tapp, 19-cr-227; and Andrew Keffer, 19-cr-228. Prigmore and Connelly have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. The whereabouts of Kristy Marie Tapp, 34, and Andrew Keffer, 44, are unknown. If anyone has information about Keffer’s or Tapp’s whereabouts, they can call DHS-OIG’s duty line at (619) 235-2514. The charges against Tapp, Keffer, Palmer, and Laughlin are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

These cases are the result of investigations by the Department of Homeland Security, Office of the Inspector General with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Shelley Weger is prosecuting the cases.

If convicted, Seeley and Canapary, each face a maximum statutory penalty of 30 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.

The U.S. Department of Justice established the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) to investigate, prosecute, and deter fraud in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, when billions of dollars in federal disaster relief poured into the Gulf Coast region. Its mission has expanded to include suspected fraud from any natural or manmade disaster. More than 20 federal, state, and local agencies participate in the NCDF, which allows the center to act as a centralized clearinghouse of information related to disaster relief fraud.

California residents are encouraged to watch for and report any suspicious activity or potential fraud from scam artists, identity thieves, and other criminals who may try to prey on vulnerable survivors of the California fires or the various programs assisting survivors. Anyone with knowledge of fraud, waste, or abuse may call the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Disaster Fraud Hotline at (866) 720-5721. You may also send an email to DHSOIGHotline@dhs.gov.

FRESNO, Calif. — Edgar Barrera, 31, of Fresno, was sentenced to 15 years in prison today for being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court records, on Nov. 10, 2019, Barrera was stopped for a traffic violation in the residential neighborhood near the intersection of Carmen and Winery Avenues in Fresno. During the stop, a New England 12-gauge shotgun was found hidden in the backseat of Barrera’s vehicle. Barrera is a convicted felon with three prior felony convictions for domestic violence.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Fresno Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Barton 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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

FRESNO, Calif. — As part of an ongoing concerted effort by local, state and federal law enforcement to address the significant uptick in violent crime in the City of Fresno, a federal grand jury returned indictments today against four Fresno County residents with various firearms and drug offenses, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

“These defendants were all on active parole for prior gun or drug charges— three had ties to criminal gangs, and when arrested, three were in possession of guns and the fourth was in possession of drugs,” said U.S. Attorney Scott. “The U.S. Attorney’s office has focused enforcement efforts against the most violent criminals in our district and will continue to work with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and community partners to reduce crime, save lives, and restore safety to our communities. The bloodshed must stop.”

“The importance of today’s announcement cannot be overstated,” said Fresno County District Attorney Lisa A. Smittcamp. “These indictments not only send a message to criminals that seek to wreak havoc on our communities, but they offer some assurance that our proactive collaboration with our state, local and federal partners is delivering tangible results. As the state continues to reduce accountability for those that would do us harm, our ongoing partnership with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and their willingness to bring federal prosecutions, will be critical to achieving truth-in-sentencing and, most importantly, justice for victims.”

Reyes Diaz, 26, of Fresno, was charged with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and heroin. According to court documents, a parole search of Diaz’s apartment yielded over 2 kilograms of methamphetamine, over 300 grams of heroin, digital scales, and over $11,000 in cash. Diaz is on parole for permitting another to shoot a firearm from a vehicle with a gang enhancement.

Alejandro Chavarria, 33, of Mendota, was charged with being a felon in possession of ammunition. According to court documents, Chavarria was a wanted parolee. Police found Chavarria in Oakhurst coming out of a motel carrying a backpack and duffle bag. When officers approached him, he dropped the backpack, which was found to contain a Glock-style pistol bearing no serial number with an extended magazine loaded with 30 rounds of ammunition. Chavarria ran back into the unit from which he had emerged, and after a stand-off with police, was arrested. The duffle bag contained two disassembled AR‑style rifles, and three 30-round magazines. Chavarria has been convicted of attempted carjacking, drug possession and robbery. He is on parole for robbery.

Shawn Darnyel Matthews, 23, of Clovis, was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. According to court documents, Matthews, who was wanted on several felony warrants as well as a parole warrant, was arrested in Fresno, and found to be in possession of a loaded firearm. Matthews admitted to being a West Roy gang member. He is a convicted felon prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition. According to Fresno County Superior Court records, Matthews has been arrested and released on three occasions in 2020 for domestic violence, pimping, robbery, and assault. He is currently in custody on a federal detainer. Matthews is on parole for assault with a firearm.

Oshay Laray Pullen, 24, of Fresno, was charged with being a felon in possession of ammunition. According to the criminal complaint, on Oct. 21, during a parole-compliance check, a law enforcement officer searched Pullen and found a loaded handgun magazine in his pocket. The magazine contained 10 rounds of .40-caliber ammunition. Inside a car Pullen had been seen exiting, detectives found a .40‑caliber Glock-style unserialized firearm hidden underneath a child’s safety seat. The handgun was loaded with a high‑capacity magazine attached to it. Pullen is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because of his prior criminal record. Pullen is on parole for assault with a firearm.

These cases are the product of investigations by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Fresno Police Department, the Madera Police Department, the Multi-Agency Gang Enforcement Consortium, and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica A. Massey, Kate Schuh, Justin Gilio, and Antonio Pataca are prosecuting the cases.

If convicted, Diaz faces a mandatory minimum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $10 million fine. If convicted, Chavarria, Matthews, and Pullen face a maximum statutory penalty of 10 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.

These cases are 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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.

These cases are also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Stephen Gordon Wood, 41, of Yuba City, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez to five years in prison to be followed by 10 years of supervised release for receipt of child pornography, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, in 2012, federal agents discovered that Wood had made available thousands of images of suspected child pornography on a peer-to-peer file-sharing network that operated over the internet. Agents later searched Wood’s home and laptop computer pursuant to a search warrant. A forensic review of Wood’s laptop uncovered at least 792 images and 59 videos of child pornography, including images of prepubescent children being sexually exploited that had been deleted. Wood later admitted to searching for, downloading, and viewing child pornography for at least a year prior to his arrest in 2013.

This case was the product of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew C. Thuesen and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert J. Artuz prosecuted the case.

Wood was ordered to surrender to the Bureau of Prisons or the U.S. Marshals Service on Jan. 11, 2021, to begin serving his sentence.

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. — The United States Attorneys for the Eastern District of California, Central District of California, and Southern District of California and the District Attorneys of Sacramento, Alameda, Ventura, and San Diego counties launched an online outreach campaign to help victims of domestic violence during the COVID-19 pandemic, announced U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott.  The United States Attorneys and District Attorneys are joined by Childhelp, a national nonprofit organization aiding victims of child abuse.

The outreach campaign was created to combat unintended consequence of COVID-19 public health measures— an alarming rise in domestic violence with victims trapped at home with their abusers under increasing stress. The National Domestic Violence Hotline has reported an increase in contacts to the hotline during COVID-19. Reports show that physicians are treating more domestic violence injuries and that these injuries are more severe. According to the CDC, roughly 1 in 6 homicide victims are killed by an intimate partner. Research further shows that abusers with a gun in the home are five times more likely to kill their partners than abusers who don’t have access to a firearm.

Under federal law, individuals with domestic violence misdemeanor and felony convictions, as well as individuals subject to domestic violence protective orders, are prohibited from possessing firearms. Earlier this month, the Department of Justice announced it has charged more than 500 domestic violence cases involving firearms during Fiscal Year (FY) 2020, and 13 were brought by the Eastern District of California.

“The U.S. Attorney’s Office regularly works with local law enforcement and this joint outreach is another example of this partnership,” said U.S. Attorney Scott. “With Childhelp, our offices have come together across California to try to reach as many victims of domestic violence as we can, and to help prevent domestic violence by providing resources and raising awareness.” 

According to Childhelp Founder & CEO, Sara O’Meara, “The partnership of California’s safety leaders with Childhelp to secure children during COVID-19 is a model for child welfare across the country. All these huge hearts coming together to find children trapped in the shadows of abuse will not only save lives, but create a culture of compassion that will exist long after this virus is behind us.”

The campaign includes a video public service announcement and public awareness messages posted on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media platforms with a new post made each day for one week. The posts provide information for victims with resources, such as 24-hour hotlines and other services vital to reporting abuse. The posts also provide tips for concerned friends, relatives, and educators on how they can help victims of abuse. This outreach campaign follows a July campaign addressing domestic violence and child abuse and exploitation by U.S. Attorney Scott, Childhelp, and the District Attorneys of Alameda, Sacramento, and San Diego counties.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced today that Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Khasigian will serve as the District Election Officer (DEO) for the Eastern District of California in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the Nov. 3 general election. The DEO is responsible for overseeing the District’s handling of complaints of election fraud and voting rights abuses in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.

In addition, Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Hemesath will serve as the National Security Cyber Specialist (NSCS) and is tasked with preparing for and responding to digital election threats.

Counties in the Eastern District are: Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, El Dorado, Fresno, Glenn, Inyo, Kern, Kings, Lassen, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Modoc, Mono, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Solano, Stanislaus, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Tulare, Tuolumne, Yolo, and Yuba.

U.S. Attorney Scott said, “Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted without it being stolen because of fraud. The Department of Justice will always act appropriately to protect the integrity of the election process.”

The Department of Justice has an important role in deterring election fraud and discrimination at the polls, and combating these violations whenever and wherever they occur. The Department’s long-standing Election Day Program furthers these goals, and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the integrity of the election process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible election fraud and voting rights violations while the polls are open through Election Day.

Federal law protects against such crimes as intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input. It also contains special protections for the rights of voters, and provides that they can vote free from acts that intimidate or harass them. For example, actions of persons designed to interrupt or intimidate voters at polling places by questioning or challenging them, or by photographing or videotaping them, under the pretext that these are actions to uncover illegal voting may violate federal voting rights law. Further, federal law protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice (where voters need assistance because of disability or illiteracy).

The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy. We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice. In order to respond to complaints of election fraud or voting rights concerns during the voting period that ends on Nov. 3, and to ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities, DEO Khasigian will be on duty in this District while the polls are open. He can be reached by the public at: (916) 554-2700 and (916) 554-2723.

In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on Election Day. The FBI can be reached by the public in the Eastern District of California at (916) 746-7000 or at tips.fbi.gov.

Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC, by phone at 800-253-3931 or by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov.

FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment today against Amy Campos, 37, of Bakersfield, charging her with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, on July 28, 2019, Campos possessed a Glock 27 .40 caliber semi-automatic handgun. Additionally, on Feb. 15, she possessed in excess of 50 grams of methamphetamine. Campos suffered two prior convictions for possession for sale of a controlled substance, one prior conviction for possession for sale of a narcotic, two prior convictions for felon in possession of a firearm, one prior conviction for felon in possession of ammunition, and one prior conviction for second degree burglary. These prior convictions prohibited Campos from possessing either a firearm or ammunition.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Bakersfield Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Jean Berger is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Campos faces a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $10 million 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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment today against Jayson Fernandez Butay, 25, of Sacramento, charging him with production and possession of child pornography, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Butay produced child pornography with a minor victim on Sept. 28, 2019, and possessed prepubescent images of child pornography.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tanya B. Syed is prosecuting the case.

If convicted of the production of child pornography count, Butay faces minimum of 15 years in prison, a maximum statutory penalty of 30 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine. If convicted of the possession of child pornography charge, Butay faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 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 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. — Following his wife’s sentencing, Satish Kartan, 46, currently residing in Sacramento, was sentenced today to 15 years and eight months in prison for forced labor violations. In addition, U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr. ordered $15,657 be paid in restitution to three victims, in part to cover their back wages and other losses.

On March 14, 2019, after an 11-day trial, a federal jury found Kartan and his wife, Sharmistha Barai, 40, guilty of conspiracy to obtain forced labor and two counts of obtaining forced labor. Kartan was also found guilty of one count of fraud in foreign labor contracting. On Oct. 2, Barai was sentenced to 15 years and eight months in prison for forced labor violations.

Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband for the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division; U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott; Matthew Perlman, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), San Francisco Field Office; Sean Ragan, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Sacramento Field Office; and Tatum King, Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations for San Francisco and Northern California made the announcement.

“Kartan earned his sentence by the systematic abuse and exploitation of vulnerable women for the benefit of his wife and family,” said U.S. Attorney Scott. “He verbally abused multiple victims, withheld basic sustenance from them, and physically intimidated them. Today’s sentence will send a loud message to others engaged in human trafficking and labor. Moreover, it will give Kartan’s victims the peace of mind that he will never be able to abuse them again.”

“The United States abolished slavery and involuntary servitude more than 150 years ago,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband for the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. “Yet, inhuman forced labor and deprivations of liberty and dignity persist because human traffickers proliferate modern-day slavery, and endeavor to exploit their fellow human beings for profit and other gruesome purposes. The sentence imposed today sends a stern message that human trafficking and forced labor will not be tolerated in the United States. The defendant’s role in this scheme to compel the victims into servitude for up to 18 hours a day, with minimal pay, through intimidation, threats, and violence, is an unconscionable and illegal criminal violation of the victims’ individual rights, freedom, and dignity. The Civil Rights Division remains committed to pursuing justice relentlessly on behalf of victims of human trafficking and prosecuting perpetrators to the fullest extent of the law.”

“Those engaged in the heinous crime of forced labor will face severe consequences for their actions,” said SAC Perlman of the Diplomatic Security Service, San Francisco Field Office. “The Diplomatic Security Service and our partner agencies will continue to aggressively pursue and prosecute those who commit visa fraud to exploit others for their own personal gain.”

“Victims of labor trafficking are often unaware of how to get help and that services are available to help them after they are recovered,” said SAC Ragan of the FBI Sacramento Field Office. “The FBI is committed to working with our law enforcement partners and investigating allegations of human trafficking and to break the cycle of force, fraud, or coercion that has bound victims to their traffickers. To be successful, we need your help. Please report alleged human trafficking to law enforcement or submit a tip to tips.fbi.gov.”

“This sentencing is a success in the fight against the heinous crime of human trafficking in our region and our dedication to bring these criminals to justice,” announced Tatum King, Special Agent in Charge Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) NorCal. “We are grateful to our law enforcement partners, especially the Stockton Police Department, USDOJ’s Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, DSS, and the FBI, for their unwavering efforts not only in this investigation, but in our continued fight to disrupt and dismantle human trafficking networks worldwide. We also are appreciative of the critical work that community-based organizations provide in bringing these heinous violations to light as well as the critical resources they provide to victims to assist in their recovery.”

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, between February 2014 and October 2016, Kartan and Barai hired workers from overseas to perform domestic labor in their home in Stockton. In advertisements seeking workers on the internet and India-based newspapers, the defendants made false claims about the wages and conditions of employment. Once the workers arrived at the defendants’ Stockton residence, Kartan and Barai compelled them to work up to 18 hours a day with limited rest and nourishment. Few of them were paid any wage. As part of the conspiracy, the couple kept the domestic workers from leaving and coerced them to continue working by threatening them, by creating an atmosphere of fear, control, and disempowerment, and at times by physically hitting or burning them. When a victim resisted or expressed a desire to leave, the threats and abuse became worse.

This case was the product of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the FBI, and the State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service. The Stockton Police Department provided the initial investigation and later assistance with victim services. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason Hitt and Katherine Lydon prosecuted the case with the assistance of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.

The Eastern District of California (Sacramento) is one of six districts designated through a competitive, nationwide selection process as a Phase II Anti-Trafficking Coordination Team, through the interagency ACTeam Initiative of the Departments of Justice, Homeland Security and Labor. ACTeams focus on developing high-impact human trafficking investigations and prosecutions involving forced labor, international sex trafficking and sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion through interagency collaboration among federal prosecutors and federal investigative agencies.

The Justice Department today announced that former Stockton, California resident Satish Kartan, 46, was sentenced today to 188 months in prison for forced labor violations. In addition, U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr. ordered $15,657 be paid in restitution to three victims, in part to cover their back wages and other losses.

On March 14, 2019, after an 11-day trial, a federal jury found Kartan and his wife, Sharmistha Barai, 40, guilty of conspiracy to obtain forced labor and two counts of obtaining forced labor. Kartan was also found guilty of one count of fraud in foreign labor contracting. On Oct. 2, Barai was sentenced to 15 years and eight months in prison for forced labor violations.

“The United States abolished slavery and involuntary servitude more than 150 years ago,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband for the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. “Yet, inhuman forced labor and deprivations of liberty and dignity persist because human traffickers proliferate modern-day slavery, and endeavor to exploit their fellow human beings for profit and other gruesome purposes. The sentence imposed today sends a stern message that human trafficking and forced labor will not be tolerated in the United States. The defendant’s role in this scheme to compel the victims into servitude for up to 18 hours a day, with minimal pay, through intimidation, threats, and violence, is an unconscionable and illegal criminal violation of the victims’ individual rights, freedom, and dignity. The Civil Rights Division remains committed to pursuing justice relentlessly on behalf of victims of human trafficking and prosecuting perpetrators to the fullest extent of the law.”

“Kartan earned his sentence by the systematic abuse and exploitation of vulnerable women for the benefit of his wife and family,” said U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott for the Eastern District of California. “He verbally abused multiple victims, withheld basic sustenance from them, and physically intimidated them. Today’s sentence will send a loud message to others engaged in human trafficking and labor. Moreover, it will give Kartan’s victims the peace of mind that he will never be able to abuse them again.”

“Those engaged in the heinous crime of forced labor will face severe consequences for their actions,” said Matthew Perlman, Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), San Francisco Field Office. “The Diplomatic Security Service and our partner agencies will continue to aggressively pursue and prosecute those who commit visa fraud to exploit others for their own personal gain.”

“Victims of labor trafficking are often unaware of how to get help and that services are available to help them after they are recovered,” said SAC Sean Ragan of the FBI Sacramento Field Office. “The FBI is committed to working with our law enforcement partners and investigating allegations of human trafficking and to break the cycle of force, fraud, or coercion that has bound victims to their traffickers. To be successful, we need your help. Please report alleged human trafficking to law enforcement or submit a tip to tips.fbi.gov.”

“This sentencing is a success in the fight against the heinous crime of human trafficking in our region and our dedication to bring these criminals to justice,” said Tatum King, SAC, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) for San Francisco and Northern California. “We are grateful to our law enforcement partners, especially the Stockton Police Department, Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, DSS, and the FBI, for their unwavering efforts not only in this investigation, but in our continued fight to disrupt and dismantle human trafficking networks worldwide. We also are appreciative of the critical work that community-based organizations provide in bringing these heinous violations to light as well as the critical resources they provide to victims to assist in their recovery.”

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, between February 2014 and October 2016, Kartan and Barai hired workers from overseas to perform domestic labor in their home in Stockton. In advertisements seeking workers on the internet and India-based newspapers, the defendants made false claims about the wages and conditions of employment. Once the workers arrived at the defendants’ Stockton residence, Kartan and Barai compelled them to work up to 18 hours a day with limited rest and nourishment. Few of them were paid any wage. As part of the conspiracy, the couple kept the domestic workers from leaving and coerced them to continue working by threatening them, by creating an atmosphere of fear, control, and disempowerment, and at times by physically hitting or burning them. When a victim resisted or expressed a desire to leave, the threats and abuse became worse.

This case was the product of an investigation by HSI, the FBI, and DSS. The Stockton Police Department provided the initial investigation and later assistance with victim services. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason Hitt and Katherine Lydon prosecuted the case with the assistance of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.

The Eastern District of California (Sacramento) is one of six districts designated through a competitive, nationwide selection process as a Phase II Anti-Trafficking Coordination Team, through the interagency ACTeam Initiative of the Departments of Justice, Homeland Security and Labor. ACTeams focus on developing high-impact human trafficking investigations and prosecutions involving forced labor, international sex trafficking and sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion through interagency collaboration among federal prosecutors and federal investigative agencies.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Roeuth Korm, 33, of Stockton, pleaded guilty Monday to being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, on July 26, 2019, deputies encountered Korm near East Waterloo Road in Stockton. Korm was on parole and subject to search. When deputies searched his car, they found a Glock semi‑automatic handgun. Korm has been convicted of several felonies and is prohibited by law from possessing a firearm.

This case is the product of an investigation by the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tanya B. Syed and Cameron Desmond are prosecuting the case.

Korm is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller on Jan. 11, 2021. Korm 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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.

FRESNO, Calif. — Oscar Reyes, 31, of Mendota, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd to three years in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Reyes 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. Reyes pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute controlled substances on behalf of the MS-13 gang, the proceeds of which were the lifeblood of an extremely violent gang.

On Aug. 31, 2018, U.S. Attorney Scott announced the results of a multi-agency operation in Mendota where 25 individuals associated with MS-13 were arrested in California on federal and state charges. The investigation began after reports that MS-13 had established a presence in Fresno County. The investigation centered in and around the City of Mendota, a Central Valley town 35 miles west of Fresno. Investigators found evidence of broad criminal activity, including murder, assault, firearms possession and drug trafficking activity.

Of the federal defendants charged in this case, four have previously been sentenced, four others have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. The remaining eight co-defendants are scheduled for trial on Feb. 2, 2021. These remaining defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

The investigation was conducted by the California Department of Justice and California Highway Patrol Special Operations Unit, the Multi-Agency Gang Enforcement Consortium (MAGEC), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), 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). The CHP Special Operations Unit is a collaborative investigative effort between the California Department of Justice and California Highway Patrol that provides statewide enforcement to combat violent career criminals, gangs, and organized crime groups, along with intrastate drug traffickers. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ross Pearson, Kathleen Servatius and Kimberly Sanchez are prosecuting this and related cases.

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF is the largest anticrime task force in the country, and its mission is to disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug trafficking and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States. The prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi‑agency task forces leverage the authorities and expertise of federal, state, and local law enforcement.

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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Eric Michael Smith, 38, of Redding, has been charged with setting fire to lands owned by the United States, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, between June 23, and July 29, 2020, Smith allegedly set four wildland fires on the Shasta-Trinity National Forest within Shasta County. He is alleged to have used a virtually untraceable cigarette lighter or pen torch to light the fires. One of these fires started near Turntable Bay and required the temporary closure of lanes on Interstate 5 while firefighters suppressed the blaze. Two other fires started along Gilman Road, in the general area where the devastating Hirz Fire began during the summer of 2018. A fourth fire was started in the area of Jones Valley.

“This investigation exemplifies the dedication of the men and women in the United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service Law Enforcement and Investigations to the mission of protecting our public lands,” said Don Hoang, Special Agent in Charge, Forest Service Law Enforcement and Investigations, Pacific Southwest Region. “With the apprehension of this arsonist who was responsible for setting multiple fires, our officers protected our national forests from critical environmental and wildlife habitat loss, reducing the danger to our local communities, including firefighters on the frontline, especially in a year dominated by large wildfires during a pandemic. This showcases our office’s priority of bringing to justice those who wish harm to our communities and our public lands.”

This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Forest Service and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection with support from the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Samuel Stefanki is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Smith faces a maximum statutory penalty of five 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.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Today, the Department of Justice announced it has charged more than 14,200 defendants with firearms-related crimes during Fiscal Year (FY) 2020, despite the challenges of COVID 19 and its impact on the criminal justice process. These cases have been a Department priority since November 2019 when Attorney General William P. Barr announced his commitment to investigating, prosecuting, and combatting gun crimes as a critical part of the Department’s anti-violent crime strategy. These firearms-related charges are the result of the critical law enforcement partnership between United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, led by Acting Director Regina Lombardo, who has made firearms-related investigations a priority.

“The number one priority of government is to keep its citizens safe,” said Attorney General Barr. “By preventing firearms from falling into the hands of individuals who are prohibited from having them, we can stop violent crime before it happens. Violating federal firearms laws is a serious crime and offenders face serious consequences. The Department of Justice is committed to investigating and prosecuting individuals, who illegally buy, sell, use, or possess firearms. Reducing gun violence requires a coordinated effort, and we could not have charged more than 14,000 individuals with firearms-related crimes without the hard work of the dedicated law enforcement professionals at the ATF, our U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the country, and especially all of our state and local law enforcement partners.”

“Protecting the public from violent crime involving firearms is at the core of ATF’s mission,” commented ATF Acting Director Regina Lombardo. “Every day the men and women of ATF pursue and investigate those who use firearms to commit violent crimes in our communities, many of whom are prohibited from possessing firearms from previous convictions. ATF, in collaboration with the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the nation, is committed to bringing these offenders to justice for their egregious and violent criminal acts.”

“Our office has a strong track record of working with our federal, state and local partners to prosecute cases aimed at reducing violent crime in our cities and counties,” said U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott. “We have developed a model that targets the most violent offenders and gangs plaguing counties in our district, and we have focused on stemming the tide of illegal firearms flowing into our communities, prosecuting those who manufacture, distribute, and possess those weapons.”

Of the more than 14,200 cases charged, 94 cases have been brought by the Eastern District of California, announced U.S. Attorney Scott.

Under federal law, it is illegal to possess a firearm if you fall into one of nine prohibited categories including being a felon, illegal alien, or unlawful user of a controlled substance. Further, it is unlawful to possess a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense or violent crime. It is also illegal to purchase – or even to attempt to illegally purchase - firearms if the buyer is a prohibited person or illegally purchasing a firearm on behalf of others. Lying on ATF Form 4473, which is used to lawfully purchase a firearm, is also a federal offense. The Department is committed to prosecuting these firearms offenses as well as using all modern technologies available to law enforcement such as the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network, known as NIBIN, to promote gun crime intelligence. Keeping illegal firearms out of the hands of violent criminals will continue to be a priority of the Department of Justice and we will use all appropriate, available means to keep the law abiding people of this country safe from gun crime.

For more information on the lawful purchasing of firearms, please see: https://www.atf.gov/qa-category/atf-form-4473.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A Sacramento man was arrested yesterday afternoon on charges of sex trafficking of a child, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

On Oct. 1, a federal grand jury in Sacramento returned a sealed indictment against Michael Anthony Butler Jr., 41, aka Spice916 and Spice, charging him with sex trafficking of a child. The indictment was unsealed today after Butler’s arrest.

Butler recruited, harbored, and transported a minor victim, knowing that the minor victim was younger than 18 years old and would be caused to engage in prostitution. Butler also advertised the minor victim’s prostitution activity.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Yuba City Police Department with assistance from the Yuba County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian A. Fogerty and Quinn Hochhalter are prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Butler faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum statutory penalty of life 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 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. – Today, the Department of Justice announced it has charged more than 500 domestic violence cases involving firearms during Fiscal Year (FY) 2020. A Department priority since 2019 when Attorney General William P. Barr created the Department of Justice’s first ever-Domestic Violence Working Group, these charges are the result of the critical law enforcement partnership between United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, led by Acting Director Regina Lombardo, who has made domestic violence firearms-related investigations a priority.

“Keeping firearms out of the hands of dangerous criminal offenders is one of the Department of Justice’s top priorities,” said Attorney General Barr. “This is especially important when it comes to individuals with prior domestic violence convictions. The statistics are clear that when domestic violence offenders have access to guns, their partners and their families are at much greater risk of falling victim to gun violence. In fact, in some communities across America, roughly half of the homicides are related to domestic violence. The Department of Justice is committed to keeping guns out of the hands of those who are prohibited from having them, and we will continue investigating and prosecuting all domestic violence firearms related crimes.”

“According to the CDC, data suggests that about one in six homicide victims are killed by an intimate partner,” said ATF Acting Director Lombardo. “Nearly half of female homicide victims in the U.S. are killed by a current or former male intimate partner. ATF is committed to aggressively pursuing prohibited possession of firearms due to domestic violence convictions and certain protective orders. It is another way we prevent violent gun crime within our communities.”

Of the more than 500 cases charged, 13 cases have been brought by the Eastern District of California, announced U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott.

“Our goal of ending domestic violence cannot be reached as long as those with a history of domestic violence against their partners have access to guns,” said U.S. Attorney Scott. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office routinely works with federal, state, and local law enforcement to charge previously convicted felons with firearm possession crimes, especially domestic violence convictions. This is an effective way to reduce violent crimes against women across the country.”

Under federal law, individuals with domestic violence misdemeanor and felony convictions, as well as individuals subject to domestic violence protective orders, are prohibited from possessing firearms. The data shows that offenders with domestic violence in their past pose a high risk of homicide. In fact, domestic violence abusers with a gun in the home are five times more likely to kill their partners.

The Working Group, chaired by U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox, of the Northern District of Texas, disseminates legal guidance on keeping guns out of the hands of domestic violence abusers using three federal statutes:

• 18 USC § 922 (g)(1), felon in possession of a firearm
• 18 USC § 922 (g)(9), possession of a firearm by a prohibited person (misdemeanor crime of domestic violence)
• 18 USC § 922 (g)(8), possession of a firearm while subject to a domestic violence protective order

Based on the Working Group’s guidance, in FY 2020, U.S. Attorneys’ Offices nationwide brought 337 domestic violence felon-in-possession charges, 54 possession while subject to a protective order charges, and 142 possession by a prohibited person charges.

For more information on domestic violence or to get help, visit the National Domestic Violence Hotline website or call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233).

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The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

FRESNO, Calif. — Alejandro Lopez, 50, a citizen of Mexico, pleaded guilty today to possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Lopez was stopped for a traffic violation in Merced County as he was driving northbound on Highway 99. Following the stop, law enforcement officers discovered approximately 32 pounds of methamphetamine in a spare tire of the vehicle that Lopez had been driving.

This case is the product of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations and California Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen A. Escobar is prosecuting the case.

Lopez is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Jan. 11, 2021. Lopez faces a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison, a mandatory minimum prison term of 10 years, 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.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Cory Beck, 39, of Sunnyvale, pleaded guilty today to three counts of filing false tax returns, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Beck worked in the information technology department of an electric vehicle and clean energy company based in Palo Alto. In his position, Beck had access to the company’s inventory of Apple MacBooks. From October 2015 through March 2018, Beck stole MacBooks from the company and sold them for cash. In total, Beck made over $220,000 from selling the stolen laptops. He failed to report any of the cash he received from the sales on his tax returns for 2015, 2016, and 2017, which were processed in Fresno.

This case is a product of an investigation by the IRS-Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Thuesen is prosecuting the case.

U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller is scheduled to sentence Beck on Jan. 4. Beck faces a maximum statutory penalty of three years in prison and a $100,000 fine on each of the three counts to which he pleaded guilty. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the court’s discretion after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sharmistha Barai, 40, formerly of Stockton, was sentenced on Friday, Oct. 2 to 15 years and eight months in prison for forced labor violations. In addition, U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr. ordered more than $15,000 in restitution to the victims.

On March 14, 2019, after an 11-day trial, a federal jury found Barai and her husband Satish Kartan guilty of conspiracy to obtain forced labor and two counts of obtaining forced labor. Kartan is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 22.

Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband for the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division; U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott; Matthew Perlman, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), San Francisco Field Office; Sean Ragan, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Sacramento Field Office; and Tatum King, Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations for San Francisco and Northern California made the announcement.

“The United States abolished slavery and involuntary servitude more than 150 years ago.  Yet, inhuman forced labor and deprivations of liberty and dignity persist because human traffickers are modern-day slave masters who endeavor to exploit their fellow human beings for profit and other gruesome purposes.  The sentence imposed today sends a strong message that human trafficking and forced labor will not be tolerated in the United States. The defendant’s role in this scheme to compel the victims into servitude for up to 18 hours a day, with minimal pay, through intimidation, threats, and violence, is an unconscionable violation of the victims’ individual rights, freedom, and dignity. The Civil Rights Division remains committed to relentlessly pursuing justice on behalf of victims of human trafficking and holding perpetrators accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband for the Civil Rights Division.

U.S. Attorney Scott stated: “The defendants’ horrendous conduct, done in the privacy of their home, was publically exposed during the trial. One by one the victims told their stories of the brutality they experienced: long hours of labor, inadequate food, and physical assault. Today’s sentence sends a clear message to others that systematic brutality against vulnerable victims will not be tolerated.”

“This sentencing sends a strong message: DSS is committed to ensuring that those who exploit and traffic individuals for personal gain will face severe consequences for their criminal actions,” said SAC Perlman of the Diplomatic Security Service, San Francisco Field Office.

“No human being should be lured into servitude with promises of employment. This form of human trafficking is heart wrenching: victims are often assaulted and live their lives in fear behind closed doors where escape seems all but impossible,” said SAC Ragan of the FBI Sacramento Field Office. “The FBI will stand with our law enforcement partners to investigate reports of human trafficking and ensure victims receive the services they need.”

“This sentencing is a success in the fight against the heinous crime of human trafficking in our region and our dedication to bring these criminals to justice,” announced Tatum King, Special Agent in Charge Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) NorCal. “We are grateful to our law enforcement partners for their unwavering efforts not only in this investigation, but in our continued fight to disrupt and dismantle human trafficking networks worldwide.  We also are appreciative of the critical work that Community Based Organizations provide in bringing these heinous violations to light as well as the critical resources they provide to victims to assist in their recovery.”

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, between February 2014 and October 2016, Kartan and Barai hired workers from overseas to perform domestic labor in their home in Stockton. In advertisements seeking workers on the internet and India-based newspapers, the defendants made false claims about the wages and conditions of employment. Once the workers arrived at the defendants’ Stockton residence, Kartan and Barai compelled them to work up to 18 hours a day with limited rest and nourishment. Few of them were paid any wage. The defendants kept the domestic workers from leaving and coerced them to continue working by threatening them, by creating an atmosphere of fear, control, and disempowerment, and at times by physically hitting or burning them. When a victim resisted or expressed a desire to leave, the threats and abuse became worse.

This case is the product of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the FBI, and the State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service. The Stockton Police Department provided the initial investigation and later assistance with victim services. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason Hitt and Katherine Lydon prosecuted the case with the assistance of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.

The Eastern District of California (Sacramento) is one of six districts designated through a competitive, nationwide selection process as a Phase II Anti-Trafficking Coordination Team, through the interagency ACTeam Initiative of the Departments of Justice, Homeland Security and Labor. ACTeams focus on developing high-impact human trafficking investigations and prosecutions involving forced labor, international sex trafficking and sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion through interagency collaboration among federal prosecutors and federal investigative agencies.

Sharmistha Barai, 40, formerly of Stockton, California, was sentenced Friday, Oct. 2 to 15 years and eight months in prison for forced labor violations.

On March 14, 2019, after an 11-day trial, a federal jury found Barai and her husband Satish Kartan guilty of conspiracy to obtain forced labor and two counts of obtaining forced labor. Kartan is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 22.

“The United States abolished slavery and involuntary servitude more than 150 years ago,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband. “Yet, inhuman forced labor and deprivations of liberty and dignity persist because human traffickers are modern-day slave masters who endeavor to exploit their fellow human beings for profit and other gruesome purposes.  The sentence imposed today sends a strong message that human trafficking and forced labor will not be tolerated in the United States. The defendant’s role in this scheme to compel the victims into servitude for up to 18 hours a day, with minimal pay, through intimidation, threats, and violence, is an unconscionable violation of the victims’ individual rights, freedom, and dignity. The Civil Rights Division remains committed to relentlessly pursuing justice on behalf of victims of human trafficking and holding perpetrators accountable to the fullest extent of the law.” 

“The defendants’ horrendous conduct, done in the privacy of their home, was publicly exposed during the trial,” said U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott of the Eastern District of California. “One by one the victims told their stories of the brutality they experienced: long hours of labor, inadequate food, and physical assault. Today’s sentence sends a clear message to others that systematic brutality against vulnerable victims will not be tolerated.”

“This sentencing sends a strong message: DSS is committed to ensuring that those who exploit and traffic individuals for personal gain will face severe consequences for their criminal actions,” said Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Matthew Perlman of the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), San Francisco Field Office.

“No human being should be lured into servitude with promises of employment. This form of human trafficking is heart wrenching: victims are often assaulted and live their lives in fear behind closed doors where escape seems all but impossible,” said SAC Sean Ragan of the FBI Sacramento Field Office. “The FBI will stand with our law enforcement partners to investigate reports of human trafficking and ensure victims receive the services they need.”

“This investigation is just another unfortunate example of cruel and inhumane crimes, like labor trafficking, being committed by some of the worst violators our society has to offer. Though justice has been served, this sentence still pales in comparison to the lifelong emotional trauma the victims of these crimes are forced to live with,” said SAC Tatum King of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) of San Francisco. “Homeland Security Investigations agents globally remain committed to prioritizing, identifying, rescuing and providing services and benefits to victims of crime regardless of citizenship and continue to demonstrate a laser focus to bringing criminals to justice.”

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, between February 2014 and October 2016, Kartan and Barai hired workers from overseas to perform domestic labor in their home in Stockton. In advertisements seeking workers on the internet and India-based newspapers, the defendants made false claims about the wages and conditions of employment. Once the workers arrived at the defendants’ Stockton residence, Kartan and Barai compelled them to work up to 18 hours a day limited rest and nourishment. Few of them were paid any wage. The defendants kept the domestic workers from leaving and coerced them to continue working by threatening them, by creating an atmosphere of fear, control, and disempowerment, and at times by physically hitting or burning them. When a victim resisted or expressed a desire to leave, the threats and abuse became worse.

This case is the product of an investigation by HSI, the FBI, and the State Department’s DSS. The Stockton Police Department provided the initial investigation and later assistance with victim services. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason Hitt and Katherine Lydon prosecuted the case with the assistance of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.

The Eastern District of California (Sacramento) is one of six districts designated through a competitive, nationwide selection process as a Phase II Anti-Trafficking Coordination Team, through the interagency ACTeam Initiative of the Departments of Justice, Homeland Security and Labor. ACTeams focus on developing high-impact human trafficking investigations and prosecutions involving forced labor, international sex trafficking and sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion through interagency collaboration among federal prosecutors and federal investigative agencies.

FRESNO, Calif. – A federal grand jury has returned a two-count indictment against Todd Eric Mumma, 57, of Fresno, charging him with actual and attempted sexual exploitation of a minor and receipt of child pornography, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced today.

According to court documents, Mumma used hidden digital video recording devices in a residence to create sexually explicit images of a minor. He edited recordings on a computer and then transferred selected images onto a cellphone where the images were stored in a password‑protected application. Forensic review of devices seized with a search warrant revealed images of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct that had been downloaded onto a computer.

The investigation was conducted by the Central Valley Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, specifically Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney David L. Gappa is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Mumma faces a minimum statutory penalty of 15 years in prison and a maximum of 30 years in prison for the count of sexual exploitation of a minor and a minimum of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years in prison for the receipt of child pornography 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.

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. — A federal grand jury returned two indictments Thursday arising from a single investigation into a drug trafficking organization operating in California and trafficking drugs to Colorado, Nebraska, Oregon, and Washington, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced today.

The grand jury charged Fresno residents Jesus Gonzalez-Burgos, 36, Gabriel Gomez-Nunez, 36, and Jose Rubalcalva Gutierrez Jr., 34, with conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl.

The grand jury also charged the following defendants with conspiring to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl: Juan Alejandro Comparan-Guzman, 34, of Kerman; Quintin Jeuh Carlos-Bañuelos, 25, of Palo Alto; Hector Gomez, 27, of Omaha, Nebraska; Francisco Ramírez, 20, of Fresno; Lorena Ramírez, 36, of Fresno; Christina Maria Nino, 57, of Fresno; Anna Concepcion Jimenez-Ambriz, 21, of Fresno; Rafael Zaragoza, 28, of Fresno; Carol Maldonaldo Vasquez, 32, of Corcoran; and Rita Ann-Marie Louis, 29, of Carnation, Washington.

According to court documents, the nine-month investigation revealed these individuals were involved in trafficking methamphetamine, fentanyl-laced counterfeit OxyContin pills, and heroin between California and Colorado, Nebraska, Oregon, and Washington. Law enforcement seized approximately 34,144 pills of counterfeit OxyContin pills containing fentanyl, 7 pounds of cocaine, 2 pounds of heroin, 137 pounds of methamphetamine, and $142,000 during the course of the investigation.

This case is the product of an investigation by the High Impact Investigation Team (HIIT), a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Initiative (HIDTA), composed of personnel from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, California Department of Justice -Fresno Regional Office, Homeland Security Investigations, the Fresno Police Department, Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, Tulare County Sheriff’s Office, Kings County Sheriff’s Office, Fresno County District Attorney's Office, and the California Highway Patrol. HIIT conducts major narcotic and other major criminal investigations in the counties of the California Central Valley. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathleen A. Servatius is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, all defendants face a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years and up to life in prison and a fine of up to $10 million. 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.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a 10-count indictment today against Michael Garcia, 32; Nancy Garcia, 31; Gonzalo Garcia, 55; and Tylor Combs, 40, all of Sacramento, charging them with narcotics and firearms offenses, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, while serving a sentence for narcotics offenses at the Tulare County Jail, Michael Garcia conspired with his wife Nancy Garcia and his father Gonzalo Garcia to sell methamphetamine and heroin in Sacramento and Solano counties.

Once out of custody, Michael Garcia continued the conspiracy to sell narcotics. In addition, Michael Garcia set up a deal with Combs to sell firearms to another person. Both men were present at this deal, which involved ten firearms, including an unserialized machine gun. As a previously convicted felons, both Michael Garcia and Combs are prohibited from possessing a firearm. Combs is charged with two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm and one count of possession with intent to sell heroin and methamphetamine.

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

If convicted of the narcotics offenses, each defendant faces a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $10 million fine. If convicted of the firearms offenses, Michael Garcia and Tylor Combs each face a maximum statutory penalty of 10 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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — John Maasen, 64, of Olivehurst, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez to 10 years in prison for possession of child pornography, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

Maasen pleaded guilty in June 2020, and according to the plea agreement, on Jan. 16, 2019, Maasen knowingly possessed visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shea J. Kenny and Amy S. Hitchcock 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. — Loretta Darlene Stewart-Cabrera, also known as Loretta Dexter, 55, of Sacramento, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller to 30 months in prison for wire fraud and money laundering, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Stewart-Cabrera was a professional fiduciary who served as the trustee of a trust that owned a Sacramento property. After the trust grantor died in December 2012, Stewart-Cabrera executed a scheme to obtain and spend the trust assets. Stewart-Cabrera did this by selling the trust’s property, only distributing to the trust beneficiaries approximately $30,000 of the more than $300,000 she received from the sale of the property, and spending the remaining money without the permission or knowledge of the trust beneficiaries. She used a portion of the trust funds to gamble and dine in Las Vegas casinos, pay family members, and purchase merchandise.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and IRS Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian A. Fogerty prosecuted the case.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Alfred David Villasenor, 36, of Chico, pleaded guilty on Monday to being a prohibited person in possession of ammunition, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

On Nov. 20, 2019, law enforcement officers conducted a welfare check at Villasenor’s residence. They located Villasenor hiding underneath a blanket on the floor of the master bedroom with a shouldered, loaded non-serialized AR-15 rifle on a bipod. Villasenor had been pointing this rifle at the door officers had used to enter the room. Officers seized approximately 900 rounds of ammunition of various sizes. At that time, Villasenor was subject to a domestic violence restraining order that prohibited him from possessing firearms or ammunition.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Chico Police Department, the California Department of Parks and Recreation, and the Butte County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys James Conolly and Adrian T. Kinsella are prosecuting the case.

Villasenor is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 14 by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller. Villasenor faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 on each count. 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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

FRESNO, Calif. — Ryan James Taylor, 34, of Oxnard, pleaded guilty today to burglary of a post office, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, on Aug. 26, 2018, Taylor forcibly broke into the Mojave Post Office in Kern County and stole United States Mail from the outgoing mail drop bin. After breaking into the post office, Taylor also stole a United States mail truck. The stolen mail included a Starbucks gift card that Taylor later used to purchase a coffee drink and a check that he endorsed over to himself, all without authorization.

This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Vincente Tennerelli and Joseph Barton are prosecuting the case.

Taylor is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Dec. 14. Taylor faces a maximum 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.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Thomas Wayne Capenhurst, 33, of Dixon, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy and malicious use of explosive materials, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Capenhurst offered to pay co-defendant Robert McGraw and another man $10,000 each to place pipe bombs at his brother’s house in Suisun City.

According to the plea agreement, on Feb. 17, 2018, McGraw walked to the front door of a home on Blue Jay Drive in Suisun City, just before 1:00 a.m., and set one of the pipe bombs on the front porch. He lit the fuse and then ran. Afterwards, the pipe bomb detonated and blew the front door off its hinges. Pieces of metal shrapnel were lodged in the home’s exterior walls, and windows were broken nearby. Court documents state that a family of five was active inside the home, having just returned from a trip to the Bay Area.

This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Solano County Violent Crimes Task Force, and the Suisun City Police Department. Special assistance was provided by the Dixon Police Department, Fairfield Police Department, Vacaville Police Department, Vallejo Police Department, Benicia Police Department, the Solano County Sheriff’s Office, and the California Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ross Pearson is prosecuting the case.

A status conference has been set for McGraw on Oct. 5. Capenhurst is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kimberley J. Mueller on Jan. 4, 2021. He faces a penalty of not less than five years, and up to 20 years, in prison, and a $250,000 fine for malicious use of explosive materials, and a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for conspiracy. 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. — Isaias Herrera-Ortiz, 29, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy and production of false identification documents, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, between February 2018 and November 2019, Herrera-Ortiz and his co-conspirators produced, possessed, transferred, and sold false identification documents. These documents included fraudulent lawful permanent resident or LPR cards and fraudulent social security number or SSN cards. In particular, Herrera-Ortiz admitted that on Feb. 28, 2018, he sold three LPR cards and three SSN cards to a customer for $390.00. A search of Herrera‑Ortiz’s electronic devices and those belonging to his co-conspirators prove that he participated in the manufacture of at least 36 and no more than 99 fraudulent documents or sets of documents.

This case is the product of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura D. Withers is prosecuting the case.

Herrera-Ortiz is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Dec. 14. He faces a maximum statutory 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.

The Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) will direct more than $33 million in grant funding to California to support efforts to curb domestic violence throughout the state, announced U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California McGregor W. Scott, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California David L. Anderson, U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Nicola T. Hanna, and U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California Robert S. Brewer Jr.

As the state grapples with the COVID-19 pandemic, reports indicate that many cities are experiencing surges in domestic violence. The OVW grants will provide resources to local prosecutors, victim service providers, healthcare professionals, training organizations, and academic researchers, including several with national scope. Even with limited prosecutorial authority in domestic violence cases, the federal government remains committed to working with all of its partners to end the scourge of domestic violence.

Disturbing research shows that intimate partner homicides are common. According to the CDC, roughly 1 in 6 homicide victims are killed by an intimate partner. In 2019, California law enforcement received 161,123 domestic violence-related calls for assistance, and 47% of those calls involved a weapon. Research shows that abusers with a gun in the home are five times more likely to kill their partners than abusers who don’t have access to a firearm.

Given these troubling statistics, in June 2019, Attorney General William P. Barr formed a Domestic Violence Working Group to encourage prosecution of armed domestic violence offenders. Federal law bars domestic violence offenders – those subject to certain protective orders or convicted of domestic violence misdemeanors or felonies – from possessing firearms. Districts across the nation, including all four districts in California, have prioritized their own initiatives designed to keep guns out of the hands of abusers.

“Putting an end to domestic violence requires effort from everyone in a community and OVW is proud to support the work being done in California,” said OVW Principal Deputy Director Laura L. Rogers. “Our funding supports law enforcement, prosecutors and brings people together to work for a common cause. These strong partnerships lead to creative solutions to prevent violence.”

“We remain committed to reducing domestic violence through enforcement and prevention, working together with our local law enforcement partners and service providers,” said U.S. Attorney Scott. “We must do everything we can to combat the rise in domestic violence during COVID, and these grants will be of great assistance.”

“Domestic violence crimes, especially those involving firearms, are a horrific victimization of some of the most vulnerable among us,” said U.S. Attorney Hanna. “These grants will provide substantial assistance to an array of entities, including those that provide immediate assistance to victims and others that are seeking long-term solutions. We value our ongoing partnerships with these community organizations and look forward to assisting, where we can, by filing federal domestic violence cases.”

“We are proud to stand with the Office of Violence Against Women in announcing these grants to deter domestic violence throughout the state,” said U.S. Attorney Anderson. “These tens of millions of dollars in grants will result in a better trained and more effective law enforcement community and will strengthen the coordination between the federal government and our state and local partners when confronted with domestic violence issues.” 

Among the $33 million in awards that will be issued to organizations and government agencies in California are:

• $14.77 million to the state to support law enforcement, prosecutors, victim services providers, and courts to respond to domestic and sexual violence, including 0ver $1 million to improve criminal justice responses in Marin and Alameda counties;
• $4.2 million to domestic violence organizations to provide legal service to victims, including $600,000 to the Los Angeles-based Peace Over Violence to provide no-cost legal assistance to victims of domestic violence, including those with disabilities;
• $4.13 million for improving criminal justice responses grant program also known as the Arrest Program, including $999,700 to Sacramento County and $1 million to Tulare County;
• $1.5 million to advocacy groups to help culturally and linguistically specific services programs, including $300,000 to the Sacramento-based My Sister’s House;
• $2.1 million to domestic violence shelters to provide transitional housing and therapy services, including $450,000 to Crisis Intervention Services dba Tahoe SAFE Alliance;
• $91,000 to the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence and $552,000 to the California Coalition Against Sexual Assault, two statewide organizations working to address violence against women; and
• $400,000 to promote enhanced training and services to end violence and abuse of elderly women in Contra Costa County.

New projects to provide training and technical assistance throughout the country include:

• The $5 million National Violence Against Women Law Enforcement Training and Technical Assistance Consortium, a project with the Institute for Intergovernmental Research, in Florida, that will deliver training on investigating and responding to domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking;
• $675,000 to continue the work of the San Diego-based Alliance for HOPE’s Training Institute for Strangulation Prevention, which provides education on investigating and prosecuting nonfatal strangulation in domestic violence cases; and
• $400,000 to the International Association of Forensic Nurses, headquartered in Maryland, to develop a national protocol to guide medical-forensic care for domestic violence victims who seek treatment for their injuries.

For more information on the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women, visit: https://www.justice.gov/ovw.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Marie Antoinette Alcanter, 48, of Sacramento, was sentenced today to four and a half years in prison for access device fraud and aggravated identity theft, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, between December 2016 and March 2018, Alcanter worked with co-defendant Rose Marie Segale, 42, of San Jose, formerly of Sacramento, to obtain money and other things of value using victims’ identities. Segale used her employment at a veterinary clinic and her pet-sitting work to obtain victims’ personal and financial information, which she provided to Alcanter. Alcanter made purchases by drawing on victims’ existing accounts. She also applied for new accounts using victims’ identities and then made purchases and cash withdrawals using those fraudulent accounts. As a result of the conspiracy, Alcanter and Segale obtained at least $46,615 worth of items and cash.

Alcanter possessed a veterinary clinic statement for euthanasia and cremation of a dog, on which Segale had recorded the victim’s credit card number. Alcanter also used counterfeit driver’s licenses with victims’ names but with Alcanter’s photograph.

This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Miriam R. Hinman is prosecuting the case.

Segale previously pleaded guilty to access device fraud and aggravated identity theft, and she is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 5. She faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the access device fraud offense, as well as a mandatory two-year prison term 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.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Kristy Lynn Felkins, 36, of Fallon, Nevada, was indicted today for a murder-for-hire plot, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Felkins sent 12 bitcoin (valued at approximately $5,000 at the time) to a darkweb hitman website to have her ex-husband murdered. From February to May 2016, Felkins regularly communicated with the administrator of the site to pay and arrange for the murder of her ex-husband. When her ex-husband was traveling to Chico, Felkins gave the administrator the specific location of her ex-husband in an attempt to have him murdered. The website turned out to be a scam, and Felkins was not refunded the bitcoin she sent to the site, which is no longer in operation.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Northern California Illicit Digital Economy (NCIDE) Task Force, consisting of agents from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. The NCIDE Task Force is focused on targeting all forms of darkweb and cryptocurrency criminal activity in the Eastern District of California. The HSI Reno Field Office also assisted in this investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Grant B. Rabenn and Paul Hemesath are prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Felkins faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison. 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. — Ismael Huazo-Jardinez, 34, a Mexican citizen previously residing in Yuba City, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr. to 15 months in prison for possessing a firearm while being an alien unlawfully in the United States, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. 

Huazo-Jardinez pleaded guilty to the charge on May 7. According to court documents, Huazo-Jardinez is suspected of having been the driver in a fatal car accident in Sutter County that killed three people — the parents and one child of a family of four — when the vehicle crashed into their mobile home as they slept on May 4, 2019. Huazo‑Jardinez was arrested at the scene of the accident. Authorities impounded the vehicle, a Chevrolet Avalanche registered to Huazo‑Jardinez, and later recovered a handgun from the vehicle’s center console. A database query revealed that the handgun had been reported stolen in Boise, Idaho.

Huazo-Jardinez is a citizen and national of Mexico who has twice been removed from the United States and has not been granted permission to return. As an alien unlawfully in the United States, Huazo-Jardinez is prohibited by federal statute from possessing a firearm.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the California Highway Patrol, Sutter County Sheriff’s Office, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations. Assistant U.S. Attorneys James Conolly and Shea Kenny prosecuted the case. The Sutter County District Attorney’s Office is prosecuting Huazo-Jardinez in the state case related to the May 2019 fatal car accident.

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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a four-count indictment today against Andrew James Sarnowski, 22, of Rosamond, charging him with separate counts of production of child pornography and distribution of child pornography, and two additional counts of receipt of child pornography, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Sarnowski produced multiple videos depicting the sexual abuse of a minor less than a year of age and shared them online through an encrypted social media application. Pursuant to a search of his residence, additional electronic devices belonging to Sarnowski were identified and found to contain hundreds of additional child pornography files, including those depicting pre-pubescent boys and girls being sexually abused.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Bakersfield, Lancaster, Ventura and Los Angeles Offices of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, as well as the Kern County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian W. Enos is prosecuting the case.

If convicted of the production of child pornography charge, Sarnowski faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and maximum statutory penalty of 30 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine. If convicted of the distribution of child pornography charge or either of the two receipt of child pornography charges, Sarnowski faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and maximum statutory penalty of 20 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 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. — A federal grand jury returned an indictment today against Elisio Munoz, 40, of Hayward, charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, on Aug. 2, Munoz was arrested by police and found to be in possession of firearms. Munoz possessed the guns after previously being convicted of multiple felonies, including: vehicle theft, felon in possession of a firearm, possession of a controlled substance for sale, possession of a controlled substance, and reckless evading of a peace officer.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Vacaville Police Department and the Solano County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hitt is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Munoz faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 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.

FRESNO, Calif. — U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd sentenced Marco Lizandro Duarte-Beltran, 34, of Michoacán, Mexico, today to 10 years in prison for conspiring to manufacture, distribute, and possess with intent to distribute marijuana, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

Judge Drozd also ordered Duarte-Beltran to pay $12,644 in restitution to clean up the area.

According to court documents, Duarte-Beltran cultivated 1,082 marijuana plants in the Millwood Creek area of the Sequoia National Forest for four months. Duarte-Beltran was apprehended at the marijuana cultivation site after a two‑month investigation, wearing camouflage clothing and armed with a loaded revolver.

The marijuana cultivation operation caused extensive environmental damage: native vegetation and tree limbs had been cut down to make room for the plants; three areas had been terraced for the campsite where Duarte-Beltran resided; water had been diverted from a water source on federal land to irrigate the plants; and irrigation tubing, trash, seed trays, seed pots, fertilizers, and pesticides were scattered throughout the grow site.

This case was the product of an investigation by the U.S. Forest Service. Homeland Security Investigations, Enforcement and Removal Operations, the Campaign Against Marijuana Planting (CAMP), the California National Guard, and the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office assisted in the investigation. Integral Ecology Research Center, a non-profit 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 prosecuted the case.

FRESNO, Calif. — Sherman Smith, 74, of Monterey, pleaded guilty today to wire fraud, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Smith was the executive pastor of a church in Clovis. Smith induced investors, including church congregants, to give money to the church by representing that the money would be used to finance a real estate development project for the benefit of the church. Smith made appeals from the pulpit, via email, and in person for monies to pay off the church’s mortgage and fund an income-generating development.

Smith collected cash, checks, and rolled-over retirement accounts to fund the church’s project, but he did not disclose to investors that he used the money for personal expenses, to operate a publishing business, and to invest in foreign ventures. Smith defrauded investors of more than $2 million.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura D. Withers is prosecuting the case.

Smith is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Dec. 11. Smith faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 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. — A federal grand jury returned a five-count indictment today against Morgan Wency Ventura Sanchez, 23, of Fresno, charging him with possessing fentanyl, LSD, cocaine, and heroin with intent to distribute the controlled substances and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, on Aug. 24, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Ventura Sanchez’s residence and car. Over 300 fentanyl pills were in the car and approximately 280 more fentanyl pills were found in the house. In addition, agents found 158 grams of cocaine, 23 grams of heroin, LSD stamps, several kilograms of marijuana, multiple digital scales with suspected drug residue on them, $41,433 in cash, and a loaded Beretta 92 FS, 9 mm pistol. Messages recovered from Ventura Sanchez’s cellphone contained evidence that he was distributing controlled substances.

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

If convicted, Ventura Sanchez faces a five-year mandatory minimum sentence, a five-year consecutive mandatory minimum sentence (for a total 10-year mandatory minimum sentence), a maximum penalty of life in prison, and up to a $5 million 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 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.

FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a four-count indictment today against Steven Ray Martin, 39, of Bakersfield, charging him with burglary of a U.S. Post Office, obstruction of correspondence, unlawful possession of a postal key, and possession of stolen mail, U.S. Attorney McGregor Scott announced.

According to court documents, on Dec. 2, 2018, Martin forcibly broke into the Corcoran Post Office where he stole mail and a cash register. Two days later, Martin stole mail from the Arvin Post Office. Finally, on Jan. 8, 2019, Martin was found in unlawful possession of at least one postal key and hundreds of pieces of stolen mail.

This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Vincente Tennerelli and Joseph Barton are prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Martin faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each of the burglary, obstruction of correspondence, and possession of stolen mail charges, and 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the unlawful possession of a postal key charge. 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. — Katherine Decker, 49, of Fresno, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller to three years and seven months in prison for a disability benefits fraud and identity theft scheme, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, between June 14, 2013, and May 1, 2017, Decker and co‑defendant Angela Stubblefield, 49, of Tacoma, Washington, formerly of Martinez, participated in a scheme to defraud the State of California by filing fraudulent claims for disability insurance benefits with the California Employment Development Department (EDD). In furtherance of the scheme, Decker and Stubblefield used Decker’s position as an employee with the EDD to file fraudulent claims for disability benefits and to fraudulently extend existing disability claims, using the names and identities of real persons with and without their knowledge. In total, the conspiracy resulted in 15 fraudulent disability claims, resulting in a loss to the EDD of approximately $373,566.

This case is the product of an investigation by EDD’s Investigation Division and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shea J. Kenny and Amy S. Hitchcock are prosecuting the case.

On Feb. 10, Decker and Stubblefield pleaded guilty to the fraud scheme. Stubblefield is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Mueller on Nov. 9. A hearing to determine the restitution amount is also scheduled for Nov. 9.

Sacramento, Calif. - U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott of the Eastern District of California announced that $1,596,426 was awarded across the district from the Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP) to improve school safety. The Fort Sage Unified School District received $335,426; the Lodi Unified School District received $301,242; the Madera Unified School District received $408,053; the Woodlake United School District received $126,001; and the Yuba County Sheriff’s Department received $425,704. Nationally, the COPS Office SVPP awarded nearly $50 million in school safety funding. SVPP provides up to 75% funding for school safety measures in and around primary and secondary schools and school grounds.

 “Ensuring the safety of our children when they are at school is critical,” said U.S. Attorney Scott. “These grants will help schools across the district improve their safety, and begin to make these improvements during distance learning.”

“With the new school year underway, the safety of our nation’s students remains paramount,” said COPS Office Director Phil Keith.  “Although this school year may look different at the start, now is the ideal time to make preparations to enhance school safety for when all of our children are back in the classroom.”   

The Students, Teachers, and Officers Preventing School Violence Act of 2018 (STOP School Violence Act of 2018) gave the COPS Office authority to provide awards directly to states, units of local government, Indian tribes, and public agencies (such as school districts and law enforcement agencies) to improve security at schools and on school grounds in the jurisdiction of the grantee through evidence-based school safety programs.  The awards announced can be used for coordination with law enforcement; training for local law enforcement officers to prevent student violence; metal detectors, locks, lighting, and other deterrent measures; technology for expedited notification of local law enforcement during an emergency; and other measures that provide a significant improvement in security. The full list of SVPP awards can be found here: https://cops.usdoj.gov/pdf/2020AwardDocs/svpp/Award_List.pdf.

In addition to the school safety grants announced today, the COPS Office School Safety Working Group, which is composed of representatives from eight national law enforcement organizations, has identified 10 essential actions that can be taken by schools, school districts, and law enforcement agencies to help prevent critical incidents involving the loss of life or injuries in our nation's schools and to respond rapidly and effectively when incidents do occur. The Ten Essential Actions to Improve School Safety are applicable to school shootings as well as to other areas of school safety, including natural disasters and traumatic events such as student suicide. Adopting policies and practices based on the recommendations in this publication can help make school communities safer and save lives.

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The COPS Office is the federal component of the Department of Justice responsible for advancing community policing nationwide.  Since 1994, the COPS Office has invested more than $14 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of more than 134,000 officers and provide a variety of knowledge resource products including publications, training and technical assistance. 

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

FRESNO, Calif. — Jorge Luis Velasquez, 33, of Mexico, Omar Velazquez Landeros, 27, of Bakersfield, and Victor Romero Galvan, 29, of Mexico, were indicted today for conspiring and possessing with intent to distribute over 10,000 counterfeit oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl and approximately 10 pounds of methamphetamine, and for carrying firearms in furtherance of these crimes, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, on or about January 28, 2020, in Kern County, Landeros distributed approximately one pound of nearly pure methamphetamine to an undercover officer in Bakersfield. Velasquez assisted with coordinating that transaction. On or about March 13, 2020, Landeros distributed approximately 1,000 fentanyl-laced counterfeit oxycodone pills, which Velasquez helped to coordinate as well. On September 1, 2020, Landeros, Velasquez, and Romero Galvan conspired to distribute approximately 10,000 fentanyl-laced counterfeit oxycodone pills and 10 pounds of methamphetamine.  Each defendant possessed a firearm when they arrived at the prearranged drug deal in Bakersfield, California. When law enforcement arrived to arrest the defendants, Velasquez and Landeros fled with firearms in hand. Landeros was apprehended shortly thereafter.  Velasquez discarded his firearm and fled on foot onto the SR-99 where he obtained and attempted to escape in a CalTrans vehicle. Velasquez eventually abandoned the vehicle and again fled on foot, at which point he was apprehended by law enforcement. Law enforcement arrested the defendants, and seized the firearms and the controlled substances. 

This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Kern County Sheriff’s Office, the Bakersfield Police Department and the Kern County Probation Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Angela Scott is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, defendants face a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $10 million 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.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Anita Vijay, 50, of Sacramento, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to pay and receive illegal kickbacks in exchange for Medicare beneficiary referrals and to soliciting kickbacks in exchange for Medicare beneficiary referrals, United States Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Anita Vijay worked as the Social Services Director at a skilled nursing and assisted living facility in Sacramento. In her role, Vijay assisted Medicare beneficiaries in selecting home health care and hospice agencies following their discharge from the facility. Vijay used her position to steer Medicare beneficiaries to home health agencies in Folsom and El Dorado Hills and a hospice agency in Folsom. In exchange for the referrals, the agencies’ owners paid her and her husband, Jai Vijay, illegal cash kickbacks.

In her plea agreement, Vijay admitted that the agencies’ owners paid her and her husband kickbacks in exchange for the referral of approximately 60 beneficiaries. Medicare paid the agencies approximately $400,000 for services they purportedly provided to the beneficiaries. Because the agencies obtained the referrals by paying kickbacks, they should not have received any reimbursement from Medicare.

This case is a product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Thuesen is prosecuting the case.

U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley is scheduled to sentence Anita Vijay on December 3, 2020. She faces maximum statutory penalties of five years in prison for the conspiracy charge and ten years in prison for the kickback charge. Anita Vijay also faces a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the gross loss or gain. 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.

On February 6, 2020, Jai Vijay pled guilty to conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks in exchange for Medicare beneficiary referrals.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Jaquorey Rashawn Carter, 24, of Sacramento, was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge William B. Shubb to 14 years in prison for sex trafficking of a child, United States Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to evidence presented at a February 2020 jury trial, between 2013 and October 2018, Carter used a minor female and other adult women to work as prostitutes for him. As part of Carter’s pimping operation, he put the minor victim and other adult women in motel rooms and had them engage in prostitution on the street in order to make money from their prostitution activity. Carter ran his pimping operation in Sacramento, Stockton, Oakland, Sunnyvale, and Santa Ana.

In 2013, Carter began recruiting a then-14-year-old girl to work as a prostitute for him. In the years that followed, Carter took that minor victim to other cities where he would rent motel rooms in which the victim engaged in acts of prostitution. Carter continued to be involved in the use of this victim for acts of prostitution until 2018.

Evidence presented at the jury trial also showed that Carter had been arrested or contacted by law enforcement while he was transporting women to or from his illegal business opportunities. In September 2018, a federal judge authorized the wiretap of Carter’s cell phone. Sacramento-based task force agents then intercepted calls demonstrating that Carter was actively recruiting, harboring, transporting, and managing several women engaged in prostitution throughout California.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the California Department of Justice’s Special Operations Unit, and the Sacramento Police Department. The California Highway Patrol, Sacramento Sheriff’s Department, and the Sacramento District Attorney’s Office assisted in the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian A. Fogerty and Jason Hitt prosecuted the case.

FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment yesterday against Thomas Layman Binford, 55, of Clovis, California, charging him with separate counts of  attempting coercion and enticement of a minor and receipt of material involving the sexual exploitation of minors, as well as receipt of child pornography, United States Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. 

According to court documents, Binford traveled to a park in Fresno, California on the evening of July 28, 2020, with the intent of meeting and engaging in illegal sex acts with a 13 year-old minor he had earlier met online through the Skout social media application. Upon his arrest at the park, his cell phone was seized and subsequently searched, where over 250 images of minors being sexually exploited were found.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, Clovis Police Department, Fresno Police Department, and the Fresno Office of Homeland Security Investigations, the investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian W. Enos is prosecuting the case.

If convicted of the attempted online enticement charge, Binford faces a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years and maximum statutory penalty of life in prison, and a $250,000 fine. If convicted of the receipt of child pornography charge, Binford faces a mandatory minimum sentence of fifteen years and maximum statutory penalty of forty 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 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. — Joshua Wayne Thompson, 25, of Vallejo, pleadedd guilty today to being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, on Nov. 18, 2019, law enforcement arrested Thompson on multiple felony warrants. Before the arrest, law enforcement witnessed Thompson exit a home in Vallejo and approached him. Thompson ran toward and entered the driver’s side door of a Ford Fusion. While attempting to flee, Thompson rammed the Ford into a Deputy U.S. Marshal’s vehicle. Law enforcement converged on the Ford, removed Thompson, and placed him under arrest. At the time of the arrest, Thompson possessed a loaded pistol with a 25-round extended magazine. Thompson cannot possess a firearm or ammunition because he previously was convicted of a felony offense.    

This case is a product of an investigation by the U.S. Marshals Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the California Highway Patrol. Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Thuesen is prosecuting the case.  

U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England, Jr., is scheduled to sentence Thompson on December 3, 2020. Thompson 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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.

This case also is part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information, please see https://www.justice.gov.

FRESNO, Calif. — Oscar Rene Marrot-Garcia, 27, of Los Banos, was sentenced today to 6.5 years in prison for conspiring to manufacture, to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin, and marijuana, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

His sentence follows his guilty plea earlier this year. In pleading guilty, Marrot-Garcia acknowledged that he rented a residence in a rural location in Madera for the purpose of manufacturing methamphetamine and storing large quantities of other drugs at an unoccupied residence in Madera. He also acknowledged that he assisted in packaging the drugs for distribution. According to his plea agreement, at the end of January 2019, detectives of the Madera County Sheriff’s Office Narcotic Enforcement Team (MADNET) executed a search warrant at the residence and found Marrot-Garcia along with Francisco Alcantar-Miranda, 31, and Jose Monge-Ponce, 31, both of Mexico. The detectives found over 10 pounds of methamphetamine in crystallized form and in liquid, 4 pounds of heroin, 1 pound of cocaine, and 25 pounds of marijuana. U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd also ordered Marrot-Garcia to forfeit a handgun and approximately $18,000 in cash, which officers located at the residence.

Alcantar-Miranda previously entered a guilty plea and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Monge-Ponce is scheduled for a Status Conference on Nov. 30. The charges against Monge-Ponce are only allegations; he is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case is the product of an investigation by MADNET and the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) team, which consists of agents from Homeland Security Investigations, California Department of Justice, California Highway Patrol-Fresno, the Sheriffs’ Offices of Tulare and King Counties, and the Fresno Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen A. Escobar is prosecuting the case.

FRESNO, Calif. — Bryan Connor Herrell, 26, of Aurora, Colorado, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Dale A. Drozd to 11 years in prison, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott for the Eastern District of California and Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division announced.

According to court documents, Herrell was a moderator on the AlphaBay marketplace, an illegal website that operated on the so-called darknet. On AlphaBay, vendors and purchasers engaged in hundreds of thousands of illicit transactions for guns, drugs, stolen identity information, credit card numbers and other illegal items. At the time, AlphaBay was the world’s largest online drug marketplace.

“This sentence of an AlphaBay employee demonstrates the collective efforts of law enforcement authorities in the United States and Europe to find and prosecute transnational criminal actors wherever they hide,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Rabbitt.  “The department will continue to work tirelessly to hold accountable criminals who use the Dark Web to facilitate illegal activity no matter where they may be located.”

“This sentence serves as further proof that criminals cannot hide behind technology to break the law,” said U.S. Attorney Scott.  “Operating behind the veil of the darknet may seem to offer shelter from criminal investigations, but people should think twice before ordering or selling drugs online—you will be caught.  This office will continue using all means available to pursue darknet-based crimes, particularly those involving fentanyl, opioids, and other dangerous drugs.”

“The FBI is committed to developing highly trained cyber investigators who work with our international partners and perpetually evolve to counter the threat darknet criminals pose.  Cases like these exemplify how the FBI and our international partners are eliminating the false promise of anonymity dark marketplaces claim to provide and are successfully dismantling criminal organizations which prey upon communities through use of sophisticated computer code,” said Special Agent in Charge Sean Ragan of the FBI’s Sacramento Field Office.  “Herrell's sentence sends a clear message to criminals that the darknet is no safe haven for illegal transactions.”

As a moderator on AlphaBay, Herrell settled disputes between vendors and purchasers.  He is also served as a scam watcher – providing a service dedicated to monitor attempts to defraud AlphaBay users.  Herrell went by the monikers “Penissmith” and “Botah” and was paid in Bitcoin for his participation.

On June 1, 2017, a Fresno grand jury indicted the alleged founder of AlphaBay, Alexandre Cazes.  On July 5, 2017, the Royal Thai Police, with assistance from the FBI and DEA, executed an arrest warrant for Alexandre Cazes at his residence in Bangkok, in connection with his alleged involvement with AlphaBay.  At the time of his arrest, law enforcement discovered Cazes’s laptop open and in an unencrypted state.  Agents and officers found several text files that identified the passwords/passkeys for the AlphaBay website, the AlphaBay servers, and other online identities associated with AlphaBay.  The indictment against Cazes was dismissed as a result of his death.  The investigation of AlphaBay and its former administrators continues.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Sacramento and Philadelphia Field offices of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Paul Hemesath and Grant B. Rabenn, and Senior Counsel Louisa K. Marion of the Department of Justice’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section are prosecuting the case. The Philadelphia and Denver United States Attorney’s Offices provided substantial assistance.