Southern District of California

Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew J. Galvin (619) 546-9721

 

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – September 11, 2015

SAN DIEGO –Tamara Azizov, formerly an accounts payable clerk at the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center (“JCC”) in La Jolla, was sentenced today by U.S. District Chief Judge Barry T. Moskowitz to 12 months and one day in jail for embezzling over $150,000 from the JCC, and concealing this income on her federal income tax returns.

Azizov served as an accounts payable clerk from June 1989 to May 2014.  In this position, she had access to the JCC’s bank accounts, credit card accounts, and bookkeeping records.  Azizov abused this access to misappropriate $154,192.74, which she used for a variety of purchases including: Tom Ford sunglasses; $1,820 for sushi at Zip Fusion; Simone Pérèle lingerie; and thousands of dollars’ worth of clothing from Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, and Anthropologie.

At the same time Azizov was embezzling funds to pay for jewelry and designer clothing, the JCC had to reduce its community programs because Azizov was siphoning from the JCC coffers.  Moreover, due in part to the embezzlement, the JCC was forced to cut personnel in order to balance its budget.  Azizov continued her theft until leaving the JCC in May of 2014.

Azizov was able to carry out the embezzlement by virtue of her access to the full range of the JCC’s financial records and accounts. On most occasions, Azizov would simply use the JCC’s credit cards to make personal purchases.  In order to fool the JCC’s executive staff, auditors, and bookkeepers, Azizov falsely characterized her personal purchases as legitimate JCC expenses.

The JCC was founded in 1945 and promotes the continuity and vibrancy of the Jewish community by offering social, cultural, educational, and recreational programs and services.

The JCC operates, among other things, a preschool, a center for senior citizens, and one of the largest single-site summer day camps in California.  Each year, thousands of community members attend the JCC’s San Diego Jewish Film Festival and the San Diego Jewish Book Fair.

United States Attorney Duffy said that charitable organizations such as the JCC add much to the region’s quality of life, and need protection from the unscrupulous.

“This office is committed to ensuring that white collar predators don’t prevent those less fortunate from receiving all the benefits that the generous citizens of San Diego County provide through organizations such as the JCC.”

Chief Judge Moskowitz also ordered Azizov to pay $154,192.74 in restitution to the JCC.

This is the second conviction and sentencing associated with embezzlement from the JCC.  On August 28, 2015, District Judge Dana M. Sabraw sentenced former CFO Nancy Johnson to 12 months and one day for a similar embezzlement scheme that she executed for several years while employed at the JCC. Please see U.S. v. Nancy Johnson, 15-CR-1446-DMS.

DEFENDANT:                                             Case Number 15cr1447-BTM

Tamara Azizov                                                Age: 62                       San Diego, CA

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Wire Fraud – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1343

Maximum penalty: 20 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

Filing a False Tax Return – Title 26, U.S.C., Section 7206(1)

Maximum penalty: 3 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

 

 

 

 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily W. Allen (619) 546-9738

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – September 8, 2015

SAN DIEGO – Robert Moreno, a GMAC banker, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Roger T. Benitez to 37 months in prison for his role in a widespread commercial bribery and tax evasion scheme.

Moreno admitted accepting more than $1 million in bribes while he worked for GMAC in return for rigging bids for secondary market mortgages in favor of his preferred customers. At the sentencing hearing, Judge Benitez described Moreno as “the kingpin in this whole nasty affair,” and noted that the bribe payments had an adverse economic impact on the market. He ordered Moreno to pay back $1,143,560 in restitution to GMAC and an additional $140,941 to the IRS.

According to court records, Moreno admitted that between December 2011 and July 2013, he used his position and influence at GMAC to ensure that his preferred customers, including San Diego businessman Israel Hechter and Woodland Hills businessman Ben Keisari, won their bids to purchase mortgage loans that were being resold by GMAC.  In order to ensure Hechter’s and Keisari’s bids won, Moreno would alter other bids, reject bids, and erase or ignore bids from qualified competitors, so that his corrupt customers would appear to be the most qualified bidders.  Moreno also provided Hechter and Keisari with “inside information” about prices and competing bids, giving them a leg up in the bidding process and ensuring that they won the most lucrative deals.

In exchange, Hechter and Keisari, and others who worked for them, delivered bribe payments to Moreno totaling more than $1 million. Initially, Moreno arranged to be paid by personal check or in hand-delivered cash payments in order to conceal the bribes and avoid reporting them to the IRS.  For example, Hechter recruited his father to deliver hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash bribes to Moreno on New York City street corners and at a car wash. In a similar vein, Moreno would meet Keisari in Las Vegas hotels and other places to arrange in-person deliveries of tens of thousands of dollars in cash.  Moreno never disclosed the income on his 2011 and 2012 tax returns.

As the amount of the bribe payments increased, Moreno revised the plan to create a “cover story” that could be used to explain his illegal activity.  He entered into sham “consulting” agreements with Hechter and Keisari, to make it appear as if the bribes were legitimate fees paid for services unrelated to Moreno’s work at GMAC. Using a business bank account opened for the purpose of receiving these bogus “consulting” payments, Moreno took in $550,000 in bribes. When later confronted by federal agents, Moreno stuck to the cover story and claimed that the bribe payments were consulting fees for legitimate work.  Eventually, in October 2014, Moreno pleaded guilty and admitted his role the bribery scheme.

Including Moreno, over half a dozen defendants have been convicted for their roles in this bank bribery ring. Hechter, the owner of San Diego-based mortgage investment firms Ocean 18, LLC, and Note Tracker Corporation, pleaded guilty in September 2014.  As part of his guilty plea, he admitted that he paid bribes to Moreno and to Lynda Sanabria, another banker who sold mortgages on the secondary market on behalf of JP Morgan Chase Bank.  Sanabria also pleaded guilty, and admitted receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribe payments from Hechter in return for her influence over Chase’s mortgage sales.

Zeev Hechter, Amir Hechter, and Jack Prober also pleaded guilty and admitted that they participated in the bribery on behalf of Ocean 18, LLC.  Both Prober and Amir Hechter admitted writing personal checks to Moreno and Sanabria in order to assist the bankers in evading taxes on the illegal income.  Zeev Hechter admitted hand-delivering approximately $330,000 in cash to Moreno.  Ben Keisari, who operated the business BGK Investments out of Woodland Hills, California, also pleaded guilty to participating in the bribery scheme. Keisari admitted paying more than $350,000 in bribes to Moreno in return for Moreno’s help ensuring that BGK Investments won its bids to purchase mortgage notes from GMAC.

Moreno is the fifth defendant in this bribery ring to be sentenced. On March 2, 2015, Judge Benitez sentenced Zeev Hechter to six months in custody and ordered him to pay a $50,000 fine and restitution of $165,000.  On May 11, 2015, Judge Benitez sentenced Amir Hechter to 18 months in prison for his role in the offense, and ordered him to pay a $25,000 fine and restitution of $63,474.  On June 1, 2015, Judge Benitez sentenced Lynda Sanabria to six months in prison followed by six months of home confinement, and ordered her to pay $40,420 in restitution to the IRS. And on August 28, 2015, Judge Benitez sentenced Israel Hechter to 18 months in custody, along with restitution of nearly $400,000.

Jack Prober and Ben Keisari are both scheduled to be sentenced on October 18, 2015, at 9:00 am.  Each of these defendants will also be sentenced by Judge Benitez.

U.S. Attorney Duffy praised the coordinated efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Federal Housing Finance Agency – Office of Inspector General, and Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation to dismantle Moreno’s bank bribery ring.

DEFENDANT SENTENCED TODAY:

Robert Moreno, 14CR2277-BEN                   Age: 42                       Tempe, AZ

ADDITIONAL DEFENDANTS:

Israel Hechter, 14CR2703-BEN                     Age: 47                       San Diego, CA

Amir Hechter, 14CR2701-BEN                     Age: 42                       San Diego, CA

Jack Prober, 14CR2704-BEN                         Age: 56                       La Jolla, CA

Zeev Hechter, 14CR2702-BEN                     Age: 68                       Aventura, FL

Lynda Sanabria, 14CR2980-BEN                  Age: 51                       Rockwall, TX

John Crisci, 14CR3269-BEN                         Age: 33                       San Diego, CA

Ben Keisari, 15CR0550-BEN                        Age: 31                       Woodland Hills, CA

CHARGES

Conspiracy to commit bank bribery and tax evasion, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371.

Maximum Penalties: 5 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine or twice the pecuniary gain or loss resulting from the offense, $100 special assessment, restitution.

AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Federal Housing Finance Agency – Office of Inspector General

Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Renee Green (619) 546-6775

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – September 1, 2015

SAN DIEGO – Christopher Andrew Gibson, dubbed the “Bearded Bandit,” was sentenced yesterday to 70 months in prison in connection with a string of bank robberies in the San Diego area in late 2014.

United States District Judge Marilyn L. Huff also ordered Gibson to pay restitution to the victim banks. During the sentencing hearing, prosecutors urged the judge to impose a significant sentence in part because of a bank teller’s continued emotional distress due to Gibson’s threats during one of the robberies.

In the course of the investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation learned that Gibson committed the first bank robbery within hours of being released from the George Bailey Detention Facility, where he was held on unrelated charges. Gibson was dubbed the “Bearded Bandit” because of the shaggy facial hair he had in the first two robberies.

According to his plea agreement, Gibson entered Wells Fargo Bank, located at 685 Saturn Boulevard, San Diego, on October 7, 2014, and presented a bank employee with a note that was paraphrased as follows: “I know your training. No dye packs. No GPS devices. I want $4,567. Hurry cause I'm not waiting all day.” Gibson then took approximately $1,419.00 from the employee and fled the bank.

Gibson admitted in his plea agreement that he followed up with a robbery a week later in Vista at a Chase Bank, located at 1641 South Melrose Drive, on October 15, 2014. During the robbery, Gibson presented a bank employee with a note, which in effect said, “I know your training. I want $4,788 in 15 seconds. No dye packs or GPS devices.” Gibson took approximately $2,240.00 from the employee and fled the bank.

Gibson’s final robbery occurred at a second Chase Bank, located at 985 Vista Way in Vista, on November 6, 2014.  During the robbery, Gibson presented a bank employee with a note, reading to the effect, “Don't be stupid and press any buttons. I know your training so just cooperate. I want $4,000 and no GPS devices or dye packs. No fake bills. I'm counting to 30.” Gibson took approximately $4,000.00 from the employee and fled the bank. The demand notes were not recovered.

Gibson has been in custody since his arrest on November 10, 2014.

DEFENDANT                                 

Christopher Andrew Gibson               Age: 27                       Vista, California

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Counts 1-3: Bank Robbery – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 2113(a)

Maximum penalty: 20 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

AGENCY

FBI

 

For Further Information, Contact: Assistant U.S. Attorney Melanie K. Pierson (619) 546-7976

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – August 21, 2015

SAN DIEGO –Sarah Elizabeth Martin, a registered nurse from San Diego, was sentenced today to three years of probation, a $1,000 fine, 100 hours of community service and was ordered to pay restitution and complete a six-month residential drug rehabilitation program for removing Meperidine Hydrochloride (a generic form of Demerol®) from vials at the clinic where she worked in La Jolla with a syringe and replacing them with saline solution.

In order to conceal the adulteration, Martin glued the caps back on the vials and placed them back in the locker at the clinic with the other drugs to be administered to patients, intending to make it appear that the vials were untouched.  Although the adulterated drugs were administered to between 50-250 patients at the clinic, based on the investigation, there is no evidence that Martin’s conduct led to the harm of any patient, or involved a conscious or reckless risk of death or serious bodily injury.

At sentencing, Martin acknowledged that as a result of receiving treatment for a medical condition, she developed an addiction to pain medication, and began injecting herself with the generic Demerol® she had taken from the clinic.

“Consumers and especially patients rely on FDA to ensure that the prescription drugs they take are safe and effective; when actions compromise either the safety or the effectiveness of those medications, we will intervene,” said Lisa L. Malinowski, Special Agent in Charge, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations’ Los Angeles Field Office. “We will continue our vigilance and work to ensure that those who violate the public’s trust and endanger the public health will be brought to justice.”

 

DEFENDANT                                 

Sarah Elizabeth Martin                                               Age: 25                     

 

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Adulteration of Drug Held for Sale– Title 21, U.S.C., Sections 331(k) and 333(a)(2)

Maximum penalty: Three years in custody and $250,000 fine

 

AGENCY

Food and Drug Administration, Criminal Investigations Division

For Further Information, Contact: Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kathleen J. O’Hara (619) 546-7945 or
Michelle M. Pettit (619) 546-7972
 

SAN DIEGO – A former Marine was convicted by a federal jury yesterday of sneaking into the Camp Pendleton apartment of a female Marine he did not know and sexually assaulting her as she slept.

Pedro Javier Orellana, 24, was convicted of one count of sexual abuse of an incapacitated victim following a three-day trial. The jury deliberate for one day. The defendant, who had been released on bond with GPS monitoring since his arrest in March, 2015, was immediately taken into custody upon conviction. U.S. District Judge Larry Alan Burns scheduled sentencing for November 30, 2015.

According to evidence presented at trial, after the sexual assault, Orellana went to a neighbor’s house where he hid and the victim reported it to her friends. The Naval Criminal Investigative Service tracked Orellana down approximately five days later in Vista, California.  He admitted to NCIS and to the jury at trial that he had only seen the victim in passing twice, that he did not know her name, and that he had never had a conversation with her.

Despite that fact, he walked into the apartment without knocking, looked for her on the couch, and then walked into a dark bedroom, where she lay asleep on top of the bed. When he spoke to NCIS, Defendant used the words “deep sleep,” “unconscious,” and “too drunk to know what was going on” to describe the victim’s state. Orellana also stated that he had received training as a former Marine regarding sexual assault prevention, and he knew that alcohol impaired a person’s ability to consent to sex.

“It is important for the security of our community and our military installations to pursue justice for sexual assault victims,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy.  “We will continue to support our NCIS partners to aggressively investigate and prosecute crimes on federal property, particularly when service members are victimized.”

 

DEFENDANT                                 

Pedro Javier Orellana                                                              Age: 24                       Laurel, MD

 

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

18 U.S.C. § 2242(2) – Sexual Abuse- Incapacitated Victim (Maximum Life Sentence)

 

AGENCY

Naval Criminal Investigative Service

For Further Information, Contact: Assistant U.S. Attorney Sherri Hobson (619) 546-6986

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – August 19, 2015

SAN DIEGO – Evelio Padilla-Zepeda, a Honduran national, pleaded guilty in federal court today, admitting that he donned a wetsuit and scuba gear and smuggled 55 pounds of cocaine through an underwater drug tunnel that exited into the All-American Canal just north of the international border.

Padilla-Zepeda entered his plea before U.S. Magistrate Judge William Gallo. He is scheduled to be sentenced on December 7, 2015 at 9:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez.

On April 25, 2015, Border Patrol Agents were patrolling about seven miles east of the Calexico West Port of Entry at 10:25 p.m. when they were informed by a remote video surveillance operator that there was an individual along the All-American Canal.

According to court records, agents searched the southern embankment and encountered the defendant, who was soaking wet and dressed in a wetsuit. Agents apprehended the defendant and continued to search the immediate area and found 25 one-pound vacuum-sealed weighted and gift-wrapped packages of cocaine plus  scuba tanks and diving gear, including two rebreather tanks which recirculate a diver’s exhaled breath and prevent tell-tale bubbles – a giveaway that a diver is in the water.

Subsequently, Border Patrol Agents found an underground tunnel from Mexicali, Mexico, continuing under the border and ending at the south bank of the canal. The exit point of the tunnel is in the embankment of the canal, partially submerged by the canal’s water and covered with rocks which have to be moved to access the exit. The tunnel was approximately 45 to 50 yards long.

In court, Padilla-Zepeda admitted that he entered the south canal bank of the All-American Canal in Calexico through an underground tunnel from Mexico into the United States, wearing scuba gear and carrying 25 packages of cocaine. The defendant also admitted that he intended to use his scuba gear to transport the cocaine in the canal and  underwater to another location in the All-American Canal.

“Drug smugglers will try anything to move their product – even scuba diving in an underwater tunnel,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. “The ingenuity of the smugglers is matched only by our determination to thwart it, as we have done in this case.”

“This investigation demonstrates the incredible lengths that these drug trafficking organizations will go to ensure that their product makes it to the streets,” said DEA San Diego Special Agent in Charge William R. Sherman. “With the assistance of our law enforcement partners, a cross-border drug tunnel was shut down, keeping our communities safe.”

“We are pleased with the conclusion of this serious matter resulting from the arrest of this man and dangerous drugs seized by El Centro Sector Border Patrol  agents,” said Chief Patrol Agent Carla Provost.

DEFENDANT                                  Criminal Case No. 15CR1375-BEN                                   

Evelio Padilla-Zepeda                         Age: 28           Hometown: Mexicali, Mexico;  Citizen of Honduras             

SUMMARY OF CHARGE

Possession of Cocaine With Intent To Distribute -- Title 21, U.S.C., Section 841(a)(1)
Maximum penalty: 20 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

AGENCIES

United States Border Patrol, Calexico Station

Homeland Security Investigation

Drug Enforcement Administration

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Haden (619) 546-6961

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – August 18, 2015

SAN DIEGO – A Holtville man pleaded guilty to a firearms charge in federal court today, admitting that he fraudulently obtained an Arizona identification card in order to illegally purchase at least 54 firearms in that state and illegally transport them to California.

Scott Singh Dhalliwal admitted in his plea agreement that he illegally sold many of those weapons in California. He entered his plea before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen S. Crawford, who set sentencing for November 9, 2015.

Dhalliwal acknowledged that he claimed to live in Arizona in order to obtain an identification card there.  There are fewer restrictions – such as registration requirements and waiting periods - on gun purchases in Arizona.

According to the plea agreement, Dhalliwal then used his fake identification at Sprague’s Sports Inc. in Yuma, Arizona, on July 22, 2011, to purchase a Smith and Wesson .357-caliber revolver. On the required paperwork, Dhalliwal swore under penalty of perjury, and federal prosecution, that his primary residence was in Arizona. He then took the weapon to California.

Dhalliwal further admitted that the July 22nd transaction was one example of a much larger gun trafficking scheme.  According to the plea agreement, Dhallliwal had similarly – and illegally – acquired at least fifty four firearms in Arizona.  He illegally sold many of those firearms to other people in the Imperial Valley.

“The United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California is committed to finding and pursuing anyone who violates our nation’s firearms laws.  The illegal acquisition and sale of firearms will not be tolerated because it makes our community less safe—plain and simple.”

DEFENDANT                                              Case Number 15cr2117-MMA                               

Scott Singh Dhalliwal                                     Age: 61           Hometown: Holtville, CA

SUMMARY OF CHARGE

Unlicensed Transportation of Firearms – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 922(a)(3)

Maximum penalty: Five years in prison and $250,000 fine

AGENCY

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

 

 

Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey D. Hill (619) 546-7924

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – August 18, 2015

SAN DIEGO -- Escondido resident James Dean Salmon pleaded guilty in federal court today, admitting that he stole thousands of dollars of United States property from Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.

In entering his plea, Salmon admitted that he exploited his position as a civilian contractor to cause unnecessary purchases of equipment. In doing so, Salmon would falsely represent functioning equipment as broken, or repairable equipment as unrepairable. When new equipment would arrive, Salmon would then falsely claim to have installed it – while, in fact, he would steal the new items for his own personal use.

From December 2007 through August 2011, Salmon used this scheme to steal a total of $27,362.68 worth of government equipment, much of it recovered from inside his residence during a search warrant. Salmon is scheduled to be sentenced on November 16, 2015, before U.S. District Judge John A. Houston.

DEFENDANT                                  Criminal Case No. 15cr02116-JAH                        

James Dean Salmon                            Escondido, CA           Age: 47                     

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Theft of Public Property – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 641
Maximum penalty: 10 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

AGENCIES

United States Marine Corps, Criminal Investigation Division

Department of the Navy, Naval Criminal Investigative Service

 

 

For Further Information, Contact: Assistant U.S. Attorney Sherri Hobson (619) 546-6986

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – August 18, 2015

SAN DIEGO, CA –Ignacio Gonzalez, the prior owner of Del Valle Auto Sales in Calexico, California, pleaded guilty in federal court today, admitting that he laundered tens of thousands of dollars in illicit drug proceeds and failed to file the required financial reports associated with the vehicle sales. In addition to his guilty plea, Gonzalez also agreed to forfeit $43,920 and pay a $20,000 fine.

According to the plea agreement, Gonzalez knowingly transferred and delivered funds from the sales of vehicles that were “represented by a law enforcement officer to be the proceeds of…drug trafficking” during the undercover operation. He then failed to file currency transaction reports, as required by law, in connection with the receipt of $19,420 in cash and $24,500 in cash for the purchase of these vehicles. He agreed to place the vehicles in nominee names, manipulated the purchase agreements, generated false receipts, and agreed not to report the cash transactions to the Internal Revenue Service or any other entity.

Gonzalez entered his plea before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen Crawford. He is scheduled for sentencing on November 4, 2015, at 9:00 a.m. before Judge Janis L. Sammartino.

 

 

 

 

 

For Further Information: Assistant U.S. Attorney Melanie K. Pierson (619) 546-7976

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – August 17, 2015

SAN DIEGO – Clemente Leon of Chula Vista was sentenced to four months in custody followed by five months in a halfway house for selling counterfeit World Cup soccer jerseys valued at between $120,000 and $320,000 over the internet.  Leon was also ordered by U.S. District Court Judge John A. Houston to forfeit $50,000 of the proceeds and all the counterfeit merchandise seized by federal agents.

Leon pleaded guilty in May, admitting that he sold soccer jerseys bearing counterfeit trademarks over Amazon as well as from his own website, www.playerasfutbol.com.  Among other methods, he used PayPal to process the proceeds of his crime. Leon imported the counterfeit soccer jerseys from China even after receiving a Cease and Desist letter from Nike in August of 2013.  This allowed him to capitalize on the popularity of the World Cup. Leon further modified the counterfeit team jerseys in his garage in Chula Vista by attaching counterfeit World Cup team patches and stencils with World Cup player’s names on the backs of the jerseys, in order to be able to charge a higher price. 

DEFENDANT                                              Criminal Case No. 15cr1326-JAH                          

Clemente Leon                                                Age: 37           Chula Vista, California                   

SUMMARY OF CHARGE

Importation Contrary to Law—Title 18, United States Code, Section 545

Maximum penalty:      20 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

AGENCY

Homeland Security Investigations

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Contact: Assistant U.S. Attorney Sherri Walker Hobson (619) 546-6986

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – August 12, 2015

SAN DIEGO – El Centro residents Jonathan Elias and Brayan Valle pleaded guilty in federal court Tuesday to drug charges, admitting that they smuggled 28 pounds of heroin into the United States using drones.

This is believed to be the first international narcotics seizure by U.S. law enforcement involving the use of drones by Mexican drug traffickers, according to Homeland Security Investigations.

The defendants entered guilty pleas before U.S. Magistrate Judge Peter Lewis to possession of heroin with intent to distribute and aiding and abetting, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841 and Title 18, United States Code, Section 2. The offense involved approximately 28.55 pounds of heroin.

According to their guilty pleas, on or about April 28, 2015, Elias drove Valle to pick up packages of drugs that were smuggled by drones near an agricultural field in Calexico near the border. Using a drone controller, Valle picked up packages of narcotics and placed them inside a bag. They placed the bag in the trunk of their vehicle and were subsequently stopped by U.S. Border Patrol agents. As part of their plea, defendants admitted that they knew that there were narcotics inside the bag, but did not know the quantity or type of narcotics inside the bag.

“With border security tight, drug traffickers have thought of every conceivable method to move their drugs over, under and through the border,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. “We have found their tunnels, their Cessnas, their jet skis, their pangas, and now we have found their drones.”

“The use of drones to smuggle drugs across the U.S./Mexico border is an emerging threat, which fortunately, has not proven to be a lucrative criminal enterprise in the Imperial Valley,” said Ronnie Martinez, assistant special agent in charge for HSI El Centro. “HSI and our law enforcement partners on the Imperial Valley Border Enforcement Security Task Force are working together to identify and dismantle the criminal organizations behind drone smuggling activity and to wipe out their illicit experiments. As part of this effort, a dedicated group of investigators from multiple law enforcement agencies are assigned to investigate all aerial smuggling activity along the border, and to seize any illicit proceeds linked to their failed attempts.”

Sentencing is scheduled for October 20, 2015 at 8:30 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Gonzalo P. Curiel.

DEFENDANTS                                            Case Number 15-cr-01437

Jonathan Elias             Age 18                        El Centro, California

Brayan Valle               Age 19                                    El Centro, California

SUMMARY OF CHARGE

Title 21, United States Code, Section 841 and Title 18, United States Code, Section 2

Maximum Penalty: Twenty years in custody; $250,000 fine; three years of supervised release

INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Homeland Security Investigations – Special Agents (HSI)                    

U.S. Border Patrol, El Centro Sector

 

 

 

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – August 7, 2015

SAN DIEGO – Jocelyn J. Brown, a loan broker for the now-defunct La Jolla Bank, was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury on charges that she paid kickbacks to the bank’s vice president and Small Business Administration (“SBA”) lending department manager.

According to the indictment, which was unsealed today, Brown paid the bribes in return for the banker’s assurance that the loans Brown referred would be approved and funded, and, more importantly, that Brown’s commissions would keep on flowing. Brown allegedly collected tens of thousands of dollars in referral fees from La Jolla Bank, and kicked back a portion to the bank manager, in cash, every time she was paid, the indictment said.

La Jolla Bank was a bank and financial services company that provided consumer, business, and construction loans.  It opened its SBA lending department in 2005.  In February 2010, the bank failed, and was taken over by the FDIC.  At the time of its failure, the bank had outstanding debt of over $1 billion, which the FDIC absorbed—and ultimately passed on to the American taxpayers.

According to the indictment, Brown worked as an unofficial broker for La Jolla Bank, referring business loan customers to the bank’s SBA department. As part of this job, Brown helped her borrowers compile their loan application packages and submit them to the bank. In return for generating business, La Jolla Bank paid Brown a commission or referral fee, calculated as a percentage of each loan she referred.

In 2006, as alleged in the indictment, Brown and the SBA manager made a deal where Brown would pay a portion of her commissions back to the SBA manager, in cash, after her clients’ loans were funded.  In turn, the SBA manager would make sure that Brown’s clients’ loans were approved so that Brown could continue collecting tens of thousands of dollars in commission payments.  In addition, the bank manager arranged to pay Brown a fraudulent $30,000 “commission” for a loan she in fact had no part in brokering or referring to the bank. Brown went so far as to generate a fake invoice, pretending that she had earned the commission. After she was paid, Brown cashed the $30,000 check and gave a portion of the cash to the bank manager.

Brown and the SBA manager allegedly agreed to conceal these bribe payments by hiding the commissions from borrowers, making the payments in cash, and lying to law enforcement agents if they were asked about the payments. In fact, the indictment charges, Brown did lie to law enforcement to conceal the conspiracy.  Despite the fact that she and the SBA manager traded several phone calls and text messages and had a sit-down meeting in June 2014, Brown falsely reported to federal agents in September 2014 that she had not spoken to or seen the bank manager since before she learned about the federal investigation.

Brown was taken into custody this morning after self-surrendering at the San Diego FBI Field Office.

“As this case demonstrates, bribing bank officials to issue loans threatens the security of the banking system and our economy,” said U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy.  “These charges reflect our commitment to rooting out corruption at all levels.”

“Inside deals like the one alleged in this case undermine our nation’s financial system and cost taxpayers millions of dollars,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric S. Birnbaum. “The FBI is committed to rooting out fraud and corruption within the financial industry.”

“Today’s indictment is a reminder that those who corrupt the banking system and place the integrity of government programs at risk will be brought to justice and held accountable for their actions,” said Inspector General Peggy E. Gustafson of the Small Business Administration.  “Lies by individuals that are afforded a degree of trust by virtue of their professions are particularly egregious.  I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for its dedicated leadership and professionalism in the pursuit of justice in this matter.”

“The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration is committed to investigating and prosecuting individuals to the fullest extent of the law when they choose to commit acts of bribery,” said TIGTA Special Agent in Charge Rod Ammari. “Bribery will never be tolerated and TIGTA is committed to rooting out such illegal activity, especially when the millions of dollars that are lost from bribery are passed on to the hard working American taxpayer.”

These charges are the result of an active, ongoing criminal investigation. Anyone with information relating to these charges should contact the San Diego branch of the Federal Bureau of Investigation at (858) 320-1800.

*An indictment is not evidence that the defendant committed the crime charged.  The defendant is presumed innocent until the United States meets its burden in court of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

 

DEFENDANT                      Case Number 15CR2049-AJB

 

Jocelyn J. Brown,                    Age: 59           San Diego, CA

 

CHARGES

 

Conspiracy, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371

Maximum Penalties: 5 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine or twice the pecuniary loss or gain, three years supervised release, $100 special assessment, restitution.

 

Bank bribery, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 215

Maximum Penalties: 30 years’ imprisonment, $1,000,000 fine or three times the value of the thing given, offered, or promised, five years’ supervised release, $100 special assessment, restitution.

 

Making a false statement to a federal agent, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1001

Maximum Penalties: 5 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine, $100 special assessment, restitution.

 

 

AGENCIES

 

Federal Bureau of Investigation

U.S. Small Business Administration – Office of Inspector General

Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation – Office of Inspector General

Department of the Treasury – Office of Inspector General

Federal Housing Finance Agency – Office of Inspector General

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – August 7, 2015

SAN DIEGO - Two brothers were sentenced today for leading an international gambling ring that took millions of dollars in illegal sports wagers over the last decade in the San Diego and Los Angeles areas.

U.S. District Judge Janis L. Sammartino sentenced Jan Harald Portocarrero to 18 months in custody and a $50,000 fine; Erik Portocarrero received a 22-month sentence and a $50,000 fine.

Judge Sammartino ordered the Portocarreros to forfeit $1.7 million that they obtained from their illegal gambling business, “Macho Sports.” In addition, the brothers and 16 other defendants were ordered to forfeit unlawful gambling proceeds valued at over $10 million.

According to court documents, the FBI investigation of Macho Sports began in 2011, and employed wiretaps and undercover agents to infiltrate the organization and uncover the defendants’ illegal gambling and extortionate debt collection activities. Nearly two years ago, in coordinated law enforcement actions in Norway, Los Angeles, and San Diego, FBI agents and Norwegian police arrested 18 members of Macho Sports, and seized nearly $12 million in illegal assets.

Jan Portocarrero and Erik Portocarrero were both arrested in June 2013, although they were half a world apart – Jan Portocarrero surrendered to authorities in Los Angeles, California, and Erik Portocarrero was arrested in Oslo, Norway. For the next 22 months Erik Portocarrero fought his extradition from Norway, but that legal battle ended when the Kingdom of Norway extradited him to the United States.

According to the superseding indictment and admissions in court, Jan Portocarrero and Erik Portocarrero started their illegal gambling business shortly after the 1995 Super Bowl. Although originally from California, the Portocarrero brothers set up Macho Sports in Peru after being investigated for gambling crimes in the Los Angeles area.

Using the Internet and toll-free telephone lines, Macho Sports accepted high-stakes sports bets from customers throughout California. The organization ensured the prompt payment of gambling debts through, among other means, intimidation and a reputation of violence toward delinquent customers. The co-conspirators avoided detection by laundering their illegal proceeds and maintaining a company headquarters and physical platform outside the United States.

The Portocarreros employed managers in Peru to oversee the enterprise’s telephone and internet operations, resolve disputes and adjust customers’ lines of credit. The organization also used teams of bookies—such as Amir Mokayef of La Jolla, California (who operated primarily in the San Diego area) and Joseph Barrios (who operated primarily in the Los Angeles area)—to recruit customers, pay off winning bets, and collect losing bets.

Mokayef and Barrios, in turn, managed their own network of “sub-bookies” to recruit customers and collect payments. The enterprise also used “runners,” who dealt directly with customers and maintained thousands (and sometimes millions) of dollars in cash to handle customer payments and collections. Millions of dollars from these “banks” – which the conspirators kept in their homes and safe deposit boxes – were seized by authorities as part of the investigation.

Mokayef and Barrios have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. The other individual defendants have also pleaded guilty and either have been sentenced, or are awaiting sentencing.

“After running an international racketeering organization for two decades, Jan and Erik Portocarrero finally faced American justice today,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. “Despite attempting to evade U.S. law enforcement by moving their sophisticated operations to Peru and Norway, they must now face substantial custodial sentences and millions in forfeitures. No longer can their global Macho Sports enterprise engage in violence, threats, and intimidation to amass illegal profits.”

Duffy added: “We wish to thank our law enforcement partners in Norway for their invaluable assistance throughout this case.”

FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric S. Birnbaum commented, “Today’s sentencings mark the end of a sophisticated international gambling criminal enterprise that preyed upon the gambling addiction of its customers.  It also reaffirms the FBI’s commitment to working with our domestic and international law enforcement partners, integrating intelligence into our criminal investigations and dismantling sophisticated criminal enterprises such as Macho Sports.”

The Portocarreros were ordered to report to prison on August 31, 2015.

 

DEFENDANTS                                Case Number: 13CR2196-JLS       

Jan Harald Portocarrero                      Age: 42                       Los Angeles, CA

Erik Portocarrero                                 Age: 44                       Oslo, Norway

 

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Count 1: Racketeering Conspiracy to Conduct Enterprise Affairs (RICO Conspiracy), in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1962(c)&(d)

Maximum penalties: 20 years in prison, 3 years supervised release; and a $250,000 fine

 

INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation

Norwegian Police

 

For Further Information, Contact:

Assistant U.S. Attorney Melanie K. Pierson (619) 546-7976

SAN DIEGO – Salt Lake City resident Beth Campbell pleaded guilty in federal court today, admitting that she fraudulently sold a prescription medical device to an undercover agent who she knew did not have a prescription.

In pleading guilty, Beth Campbell admitted that she sold medical devices from her home in Utah over the Internet, and in December of 2014, she offered to sell an undercover agent a medical device without a prescription, to treat a condition for which the device was not approved for use. Campbell acknowledged that she sold the device for $3,495, knowing that a prescription was required and that the agent had no prescription.

Campbell stated that she told the undercover agent that the device required a prescription, which could be easily obtained from a chiropractor, or one could enroll as a distributor with her and then buy the device without a prescription. Campbell advised the agent that it was not necessary to sell the machines to be a distributor, but only to enroll as one to purchase the machine. Campbell admitted that when the agent expressed discomfort over the distributorship agreement, she offered to personally order a machine herself and then ship it to the agent, without a prescription or distributorship agreement.

Campbell admitted that she acted with the intent to defraud by attempting        to make it appear that this transaction was a legitimate sale of a prescription medical device by ordering it herself, and falsely representing that  it was a display model for a distributor.

The device, the Wellness Pro, is a prescription medical device approved by the FDA for use to treat pain, and not to treat cancer, as she claimed. The Wellness Plus device sold in this transaction was misbranded because it lacked adequate directions for use in that it was a prescription device sold to a layperson who was not under the supervision of a licensed practitioner.

Campbell is scheduled to be sentenced on November 2, 2005, at 9:00 a.m. before the Honorable Roger T. Benitez.

 

DEFENDANT                                  Criminal Case No. 15cr0360-BEN           

Beth Campbell                                  Age: 54                 Salt Lake City, Utah

 

SUMMARY OF CHARGE

Misbranding– Title 21, U.S.C., Sections 331(a) and 333(a)(2)
Maximum penalty: Three years in prison and $250,000 fine

 

AGENCIES

Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations
Homeland Security Investigations
Postal Inspection Service

For Further Information, Contact: Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric J. Beste (619) 546-6695

SAN DIEGO – Attorney Gino Paul Pietro appeared in two federal courthouses this week, where he was collectively sentenced to serve 30 months in prison for participating in separate fraud schemes in Orange and San Diego counties.

On July 20, 2015, U.S. District Judge Andrew Guilford in Santa Ana ordered Pietro to serve 24 months in custody for a sophisticated loan fraud scam that used a “straw buyer” to conceal his client’s receipt of over $4 million in commercial loans that were backed by the federal government.

And on July 24, 2015, Pietro was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dana M. Sabraw in San Diego to serve 10 months in custody for defrauding six different defendants being held in pretrial detention (and their families) out of $3,000 each by falsely representing that his investigator was a licensed attorney who could “globally” resolve their criminal and immigration cases. Six months of that sentence are to be served consecutive to the Orange County sentence; four months concurrently.

In imposing additional custodial time on Pietro, Judge Sabraw told the defendant his conduct had brought “dishonor and disgrace to the entire legal profession.”  And although his six victims had committed crimes by entering the country illegally, “they didn’t deserve this.”

Pietro was ordered to repay $18,000 in restitution to the victims of the San Diego fraud scheme, and is scheduled to appear in federal court in Santa Ana on October 26, 2015, to determine the amount of restitution he must pay to the victims of the loan fraud scheme.

Pietro was ordered to report to prison on November 27, 2015.

Pietro’s sentencing in federal court in Santa Ana concerned his role in defrauding Hana Bank out of two commercial loans that his client – Donald Goff – used to purchase lucrative gas stations in Anza and Imperial, California.  In order to facilitate these transactions and conceal Goff’s involvement, defendant Pietro created two shell companies (Rock Petroleum, Inc. and the Golden Oso Group, Inc.) and made it appear that a “straw buyer” was actually going to purchase the properties for over $6 million – using a $2.1 million down payment and $4.5 million in loans from Hana.  In truth, however, the purchase price was closer to $3.45 million, and the “down payment” was a total fabrication. And to secure favorable lending terms, the schemers fraudulently obtained guarantees from the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”).

Soon after the fraudulent loan scheme was underway, Goff, his wife and stepdaughter were indicted in the Central District of California for executing similar loan fraud schemes. Instead of backing out of the Hana Bank scam, Pietro appeared in federal district court in Santa Ana and represented Goff in the criminal case – at the same time he was working with Goff to defraud Hana Bank. On December 7, 2012, the loans with Hana Bank closed, and over half a million dollars was diverted from these loan proceeds to pay the schemers – including $250,000 to defendant Pietro.  The loans ultimately went into default, resulting in Hana Bank suffering the substantial losses that will ultimately be borne by the SBA and taxpayers.

Don Goff was sentenced to 78 months in prison. His wife, Melanie Goff, was sentenced to eight months custody; stepdaughter Monty Brown was sentenced to 18 months custody.

The following year, after withdrawing from representing Goff in the criminal case, Pietro embarked on a second fraud scheme that targeted defendants held in federal custody on immigration charges in San Diego.  To obtain access to federal detainees facing criminal charges, Pietro arranged for an investigator to falsely represent to authorities that he was a licensed attorney.  The investigator used this fraudulent access to falsely claim to detainees that he and Pietro could “globally” resolve their criminal and immigration charges within a matter a matter of months if they retained them for between $6,000 and $10,000.  Between September 2013 and January 2014, Pietro and the investigator fraudulently induced six detainees and their family members to wire transfer $3,000 each to Pietro’s client trust account.  Pietro then appeared in federal court for these defendants, replacing their court-appointed counsel.  In the end, of course, Pietro was unable to execute a favorable “global” resolution of the criminal and immigration charges.  Soon after pleading guilty in Santa Ana for his role in the Hana Bank scam, Pietro withdrew from representing these San Diego clients.

“Because members of the bar are given special privileges, they are rightly held to a strict standard of honesty and fair dealing,” said U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy.  “Unfortunately, Pietro placed his own financial interests ahead of his obligations to his clients, to banks, and to the courts.  Attorneys who engage in fraudulent conduct should not be surprised to find themselves in federal court – but this time, as defendants.”

Because the United States Attorney for the Central District of California was recused from the prosecution of Pietro, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of California handled both of these prosecutions.

“Today’s sentence reflects the serious nature of the defendant’s breach of public trust through his fraud schemes,” said David L. Bowdich, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI Los Angeles Field Office. “Mr. Pietro was entrusted to uphold the law but instead, gave in to greed and broke the law, while enabling others to do the same. This sentence should serve as a deterrent for anyone contemplating similar criminal activity.”

“Pietro’s sentence is a reminder that those who defraud the government will be brought to justice and held accountable for their actions,” said Inspector General Peggy E. Gustafson of the Small Business Administration.  “Lies by individuals that are afforded a degree of trust by virtue of their professions are particularly egregious. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney's Office for its dedicated leadership and professionalism in pursuit of justice in this case.”

 

DEFENDANT                                 
Gino Paul Pietro                                  Age: 54                       Newport Beach, CA

 

SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Case No. SA CR 14CR0019-AG (C.D.C.A.)
Wire Fraud – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1343

Maximum penalty: Twenty years in prison; $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss caused by the offense; mandatory restitution; $100 special assessment.

 

Case No. 14CR1623-DMS (S.D.C.A.)
Wire Fraud – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1343

Maximum penalty: Twenty years in prison; $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss caused by the offense; mandatory restitution; $100 special assessment.

 

AGENCIES
U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Inspector General
Federal Bureau of Investigation

For Further Information, Contact: Assistant U.S. Attorneys
John Parmley (619) 546-7957 or Michael Kaplan (619) 546-7927

SAN DIEGO – Animal-rights activists Joseph Buddenberg and Nicole Kissane were arrested by the FBI today and charged with terrorizing the fur industry during cross-country road trips in which they released thousands of mink from farms around the country and vandalized various properties.

According to a federal grand jury indictment unsealed today, Buddenberg and Kissane caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage during the nationwide spree in the summer of 2013. The indictment alleges that the pair snuck onto farms and freed minks and destroyed breeding records in Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania during multiple trips, and in one case they released a bobcat from a farm in Montana.

The defendants were charged under the Conspiracy to Violate the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act. They were arrested in Oakland this morning by agents from the FBI’s San Francisco field office. The government will seek the removal of Buddenberg and Kissane to the Southern District of California to face charges.

In one instance described in the indictment, the defendants traveled from Oregon to San Diego in their 2012 Honda Fit on July 15, 2013 and used paint, paint stripper, a super glue-type substance, butyric acid, muriatic acid and glass etchant to vandalize Furs by Graf, a retail furrier located in San Diego, as well as the Spring Valley and La Mesa residences and personal property of the current and former owners of the business.

To publicize their crimes, the defendants drafted “communiqués” describing their conduct and posted them on websites associated with animal rights extremists, the indictment said.

Among some of the incidents of vandalism cited in the indictment: The defendants slashed tires of a meat distributor’s truck in San Francisco; smashed windows and glued the door locks at a furrier business in Minneapolis, Minnesota; vandalized and attempted to flood the Sun Prairie, Wisconsin home of an employee of the North American Fur Auctions.

According to the indictment, the unemployed defendants sold items on eBay and Amazon to finance their trips. To avoid detection by law enforcement, the defendants withdrew large sums of cash from their bank accounts immediately before setting off on a road trip. During the trips, they largely avoided the use of phones, used only cash for purchases and stopped logging in to known online accounts and email. Instead, they used public internet computers and encrypted email.

Once they returned from the trips, they resumed normal use of phones and computers and no longer relied solely on cash to make purchases.

“Whatever your feelings about the fur industry, there are legal ways to make your opinions known,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. “The conduct alleged here, sneaking around at night, stealing property and vandalizing homes and businesses with acid, glue, and chemicals, is a form of domestic terrorism and can’t be permitted to continue.”

“Today's indictment represents the collective efforts of several FBI Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTF) around the country,” said Eric S. Birnbaum, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's San Diego Field Office.  “The FBI and our JTTF partners will continue to investigate and seek the prosecution of those who engage in similar criminal conduct for the purpose of advancing their own personal agenda.”

 Indictment Document (335.58 KB)

DEFENDANTS                               
Joseph Brian Buddenberg                               Age: 31                       Oakland, CA
Nicole Juanita Kissane                                    Age: 28                       Oakland, CA

 

SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Conspiracy to Violate the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 43 (a) (1), (2) (c) and (b) (3) (A) Maximum penalty: Ten years in prison and $250,000 fine

 

AGENCIES
Federal Bureau of Investigation, San Francisco and San Diego Field Offices
Joint Terrorism Task Force

 

*The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty

Crystal Palace II

Unsealed Indictments

 

CHIEN VAN NGUYEN    Indictment

CU VAN HUYNH    Indictment

DAT MINH TO    Indictment

DUNG VAN NGUYEN    Indictment

KHAMSOUK INTHAVONG    Indictment

MARIO ALBERTO MIRANDA-VERDUGO    Indictment

VINH VAN PHAN    Indictment

VINCENT RUBIO    Indictment

ISRAEL SOTO    Indictment

TAM MINH TA    Indictment

 

Search Warrant

Search Warrant-2943 Reynard.pdf

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San Diego, CA - April 19-25, 2015 is National Crime Victims’ Rights Week – a time for law enforcement, prosecutorial agencies, victim advocates and community members to come together and support victims of crime.

Enforcing victims’ rights protects victims, enhances public safety and fosters public confidence in our criminal justice system. Agencies that partake in this Tribute and those who attend will acknowledge and honor crime victims nationwide.

The Victim Assistance Coordinating Council (VACC) and the United States Attorney’s Office in San Diego invite you to attend the 26th annual Candlelight Tribute for Crime Survivors on Monday, April 20, 2015 at 5:30 p.m. The Tribute will be held at the San Diego Police Officers’ Association Hall, 8388 Vickers St., San Diego, CA 92111. The keynote speaker will be San Diego Police Chief Shelley Zimmerman. The Tribute is a time to memorialize victims and to hear inspirational words from local law enforcement agencies, victim advocates and personal stories from the victims themselves.

The Tribute is sponsored by the Victim Assistance Coordinating Council (VACC). VACC is comprised of the following agencies: Alliance for Community Empowerment, the Crime and Trauma Recovery Program, the District Attorney’s Victim Assistance Program, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Victim Witness Program, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Victim Assistance Program, First Avenue Counseling Centre, the Jenna Druck Center, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), Parents of Murdered Children, San Diego Police Department Crisis Intervention, San Diego County Sherriff’s Department, the San Diego Police Officers Association, Therapy Changes, the United States Attorney’s Office Victim/Witness Program, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and other victim advocates.

By providing a single, uniform message from these agencies and service providers, we can help increase awareness and improve the assistance provided to all crime victims.

To receive further information about National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, and ideas on how to serve victims in your community please visit www.ovc.gov or www.sdvacc.com.

###

San Diego, CA - Donny Love, Sr., 44, was sentenced today to serve 55 years in federal prison and pay $325,000 in restitution to the General Services Administration, based on his conviction for the use of a weapon of mass destruction and other charges, arising from the bombing of the Edward J. Schwartz Federal Courthouse in San Diego on May 4, 2008, United States Attorney Laura E. Duffy announced. Love was found guilty by a federal jury on June 6, 2011, following a two-week trial before the Honorable M. Margaret McKeown.

U.S. Attorney Duffy praised the perseverance and coordinated effort of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and other federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies that participated in the Joint Terrorism Task Force in the investigation and prosecution of this case.

U.S. Attorney Duffy also expressed satisfaction as to the sentence imposed by the court. “Over twenty-one months ago, a federal jury held defendant Donny Love, Sr., accountable for masterminding the May 4, 2008 bombing of the Edward J. Schwartz Federal Courthouse. The sentence imposed by the Court today recognizes the extreme act of violence committed by Love. It is only by blind luck that no one, including Love’s coconspirator, Rachelle Carlock, was killed or injured by Love’s actions. The device detonated at the doors of the federal courthouse in the early morning hours of May 4, 2008, contained over two pounds of explosive powder jammed into three galvanized steel pipes with end caps, along with over 100 roofing nails. The subsequent explosion not only blew out the doors to the federal courthouse, causing substantial property damage, but also sent shrapnel and nails flying in all directions – over a block away and at least six stories into the air. Defendant’s actions showed a callous disregard for the lives of those individuals who were still working in the federal courthouse in those early morning hours, as well as the lives of pedestrians passing by. Today’s sentence ensures that the defendant will never again be able to endanger the lives of the citizens of our community.”

According to evidence presented at trial, Love was the person who instructed Rachelle Lynette Carlock and Ella Louise Sanders to purchase explosive powder and to steal bombmaking materials. Love and others constructed pipe bombs at Love's residence in Menifee, California, and then Love directed others to test pipe bombs by detonating them at various locations leading up to the courthouse bombing. According to testimony presented at trial, on the night of the courthouse bombing, Carlock and Eric Reginald Robinson drove from Love's residence to San Diego with a backpack containing three pipe bombs, and Carlock then detonated the bombs at the front doors of the federal courthouse.

The evidence further showed that Love was the mastermind and driving force behind the federal courthouse bombing. At the time of the bombing, he was in dire financial straits and faced significant jail time arising from two pending California state criminal cases. The evidence showed that he directed the May 4, 2008, bombing for the purpose of obtaining reward money and consideration on his state charges by providing information about the bombing to law enforcement. The success of this fraudulent scheme required that he provide false and misleading information about the bombing and induce others to do the same in order to conceal his own involvement.

Judge McKeown previously sentenced co-defendants Carlock and Sanders to serve ten years, and Robinson to serve eleven years, in federal prison for their roles in the bombing.

This investigation was coordinated by special agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Joint Terrorism Task Force and prosecuted in the Southern District of California by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shane P. Harrigan and Fred A. Sheppard.

SAN DIEGO – A Mexican airplane broker, his wife and others are charged in a 200-count grand jury indictment with laundering the funds of drug traffickers through the sale of 35 Cessna airplanes intended for use in illicit smuggling.

Vincente Contreras-Amezquita, who lived in San Diego during the time period in question, was arrested last week and appeared in court today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Bernard G. Skomal. The judge scheduled a detention hearing for July 30, 2015 at 2:30 p.m.

According to the indictment, Contreras-Amezquita and others facilitated the acquisition and purchase of the Cessnas and airplane parts, including auxiliary fuel tanks, heavy duty tires and landing gear for landing on clandestine airfields. Cessna 206s and 210s are types of airplanes preferred by drug-trafficking organizations operating in Mexico because of their reliability, speed and ability to carry heavy payloads over long distances.

The indictment alleged that Contreras-Amezquita and others used 46 different U.S. bank accounts to deposit $3.6 million in cash deposits during a five-year period and initiated inter-fund transfers for the purchase of airplanes and airplane parts.

The indictment further alleged that in order to conceal his crimes, Contreras-Amezquita  collected the unlawful drug proceeds in random locations, like strip malls, parking lots, aircraft hangars and fast-food restaurants.

In order to hide the source of the illicit cash, and to evade the currency reporting requirements, Conreras-Amezquita instructed his money laundering crew to arrange for structured cash deposits under $10,000 into multiple bank accounts at different U.S. financial institutions to avoid reporting requirements.

As part of the money laundering scheme, defendant Contreras-Amezquita and his money laundering crew opened new accounts using different names, different forms of identification, and different addresses.  Often times, the money laundering crew would conduct multiple deposits on the same and consecutive days, into multiple bank accounts at multiple branch offices of these financial institutions. On occasion, defendants would travel to multiple branches of the financial institutions located within the same geographic location.  They would also travel to multiple states, including Connecticut, Texas, Georgia, Arizona, Michigan, and California, to conduct these financial transactions.

Immediately following the structured deposits, defendants Vincente Contreras-Amezquita and his crew engaged in convoluted financial transactions by initiating and authorizing various fund transfers between these multiple bank accounts. Defendants would engage in fund transfers into designated bank accounts because these designated bank accounts would be used to initiate payment for the airplanes or airplane parts.

Contreras-Amezquita faces up to 20 years in custody.

 

DEFENDANT                                  Case Number 15CR1144MMA

Vicente Contreras-Amezquita                     Age 44                  Tijuana

CHARGES    

CONSPIRACY CHARGES

 

Count 1

Conspiracy To Launder Money

• Avoid a transaction reporting requirement
• To Conceal & Disguise Nature, Location, Source, Ownership, and Control of Proceeds

 

18/1956(h)

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(ii)

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(i)

Count 2

Conspiracy to Engage in Monetary Transactions

18/1956(h)

18/1957

 

Count 3

Conspiracy to Violate Structure Currency Deposits

 

31/5324(a)(3)

 SUBSTANTIVE COUNTS

 

CESSNA #1 – N761KT

 

Counts

4-17

Aiding and Abetting/ML - Avoid a transaction reporting requirement  (deposits only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(ii)

18/2

Counts

18-22

Aiding and Abetting/ML – Conceal & Disguise Nature, Location, Source, Ownership & Control of Proceeds

(inter fund transfers only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(i)

18/2

Counts

23-24

Aiding and Abetting/ Engage in Monetary Transactions  (payments from accounts only)

18/1957

18/2

 

Count

25

Aiding and Abetting/Structuring

 

31/5324(a)(3)

18/2

 

 

CESSNA #2 – N6474C

 

Counts

26-45

Aiding and Abetting/ML - Avoid a transaction reporting requirement  (deposits only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(ii)

18/2

Counts

46-51

Aiding and Abetting/ML – Conceal & Disguise Nature, Location, Source, Ownership & Control of Proceeds

(inter fund transfers only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(i)

18/2

Counts

52-53

Aiding and Abetting/ Engage in Monetary Transactions  (payments from accounts only)

18/1957

18/2

 

Count

54

Aiding and Abetting/Structuring

 

31/5324(a)(3)

18/2

 

 

CESSNA #3 – N6364Y

 

Counts

55-65

Aiding and Abetting/ML - Avoid a transaction reporting requirement  (deposits only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(ii)

18/2

Count

66

Aiding and Abetting/ML – Conceal & Disguise Nature, Location, Source, Ownership & Control of Proceeds

(inter fund transfers only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(i)

18/2

Counts

67-68

Aiding and Abetting/ Engage in Monetary Transactions  (payments from accounts only)

18/1957

18/2

 

Count

69

Aiding and Abetting/Structuring

 

31/5324(a)(3)

18/2

 

 

 

CESSNA #4 – N4960C

 

Counts

70-84

Aiding and Abetting/ML - Avoid a transaction reporting requirement  (deposits only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(ii)

18/2

Counts

85-86

Aiding and Abetting/ML – Conceal & Disguise Nature, Location, Source, Ownership & Control of Proceeds

(inter fund transfers only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(i)

18/2

Counts

87-88

Aiding and Abetting/ Engage in Monetary Transactions  (payments from accounts only)

18/1957

18/2

 

Count

89

Aiding and Abetting/Structuring

 

31/5324(a)(3)

18/2

 

 

 

CESSNA #5 – N6195Y

 

Counts

90-105

Aiding and Abetting/ML - Avoid a transaction reporting requirement  (deposits only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(ii)

18/2

Counts

106

Aiding and Abetting/ML – Conceal & Disguise Nature, Location, Source, Ownership & Control of Proceeds

(inter fund transfers only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(i)

18/2

Counts

107-109

Aiding and Abetting/ Engage in Monetary Transactions  (payments from accounts only)

18/1957

18/2

 

Count

110

Aiding and Abetting/Structuring

 

31/5324(a)(3)

18/2

 

 

CESSNA #6 – N345HI

 

Counts

111-120

Aiding and Abetting/ML - Avoid a transaction reporting requirement  (deposits only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(ii)

18/2

Counts

121-122

Aiding and Abetting/ML – Conceal & Disguise Nature, Location, Source, Ownership & Control of Proceeds

(inter fund transfers only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(i)

18/2

Counts

123-124

Aiding and Abetting/ Engage in Monetary Transactions  (payments from accounts only)

18/1957

18/2

 

Count

125

Aiding and Abetting/Structuring

 

31/5324(a)(3)

18/2

 

 

 

CESSNA #7 – N7615Q

 

Counts

126-136

Aiding and Abetting/ML - Avoid a transaction reporting requirement  (deposits only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(ii)

18/2

Counts

137-139

Aiding and Abetting/ML – Conceal & Disguise Nature, Location, Source, Ownership & Control of Proceeds

(inter fund transfers only)

 

18/1956(a)(1)(B)(i)

18/2

A Los Angeles-based furniture business, Kaven Company, Inc. (“Kaven”) and its owner, Kam Wing Chan, pled guilty today on charges related to the smuggling of endangered abalone and Totoaba that could have been sold for millions of dollars in China.

The charging documents allege that Chan used Kaven, which was ostensibly an importer of Asian furniture, to purchase endangered fish in Mexico, import them into the United States, and then export them to Asia. For example, in entering guilty pleas, Chan admitted that on one occasion on October 9, 2013, he smuggled into the United States 37 pounds of dried abalone (including the endangered white and black abalone) and 58 Totoaba swim bladders, which had been purchased in violation of Mexican law. The seafood was then illegally exported to companies owned by one of Chan’s relatives in China. Both abalone and Totoaba are prized in Asia where they are considered "culinary delicacies," and often adorn the buffets of festival meals and are served at formal dinners.

As part of their plea agreements, the defendants agreed to forfeit the smuggled wildlife and make restitution to the government of Mexico in the total amount of $55,000 for the loss of the natural resource, and pay fines totaling $14,500.

Background on Totoaba: Totoaba macdonaldi, also known as Cynoscion macdonaldi, is a species of marine fish. It can grow to more than 6½ feet in length, weigh up to 220 pounds, and live up to 25 years. This marine fish is the largest species within the scaienidae family. It is endemic only to the Gulf of California, the narrow inlet between Baja California and the Mexico’s mainland (also called the Sea of Cortez). During the Totoaba’s spawning season, which runs from approximately March to May each year, Totoaba fish travel to the shallower waters at the mouth of the Colorado River, making them vulnerable to commercial and sport fishermen.

Totoaba fish have internal air bladders that help them control their buoyancy in water. These air bladders, also called swim bladders, are highly prized in Asia for a variety of uses: as an ingredient in a specialty soup, for perceived therapeutic and medicinal purposes, and to improve the complexion. Swim bladders from the endangered Totoaba fish can be identified by distinctive tubes that are attached to the bladders. Totoaba fish are protected as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. § 1531, et seq.) (“ESA”), the Lacey Act (16 U.S.C. § 3731, et seq.), and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (“CITES”). These laws generally prohibit the taking, possessing, transporting, importing, sale, and trade of Totoaba fish.

Based on information law enforcement officers have developed from conversations with researchers in Mexico and Totoaba fish smugglers, the value of Totoaba swim bladders in Mexico is approximately $1,500-$1,800 each. Once imported into the United States, the value increases to $5,000 each. They can be resold for $10,000 to $20,000 apiece in the overseas market.

As it is not legal to fish for Totoaba in Mexico, a poacher cannot risk being caught in possession of the easily-identified body of the endangered fish. It is much simpler to transport only the bladder, which is lighter, smaller, and much more valuable. As a result, PROFEPA (the Mexican federal agency tasked with the protection of endangered species) reports encountering Totoaba taken from the Colorado River, carved open so their swim bladders can be removed, and left to die on the shores.

       

Background on White Abalone: White abalone (Haliotis sorenseni) are herbivorous gastropods (the same taxonomic class as snails and slugs) that live in rocky ocean waters. Their shell is oval-shaped and very thin. The bottom of their feet is orange, and the epipodium (a sensory extension of their foot that has tentacles) is a mottled orange-tan. They are generally 5-8 inches (13-20 cm) long, but can grow to as big as 10 inches (25 cm). They weigh about 1.7 pounds (0.8 kg) on average. They were the first marine invertebrate to be listed as endangered under the ESA.

Due mainly to overfishing, there has been a 99% reduction in white abalone density since the 1970’s. Once occurring in numbers as high as 1 per square meter of suitable habitat, recent surveys show that densities average 1 per hectare (10,000 square meters) in the Channel Islands off southern California. Although historically there have been millions of white abalone off our coast, recent studies suggest that the current population is approximately 1,600-2,500 individuals. Unfortunately, adults do not occur in high enough densities to successfully reproduce, contributing to repeated recruitment failure and an effective population size near 0.

       

Background on Black Abalone: Black abalone (Haliotis cracherodii) are large marine gastropod mollusks found in rocky intertidal and subtidal habitats. Both their "mantle" and "foot" are black. They have 5-9 open respiratory pores along the left sides of their shell and spiral growth lines on the rear. Their tentacles (surrounding their foot and extending out of their shell) sense food and predators. Black abalone are herbivores. They primarily eat giant kelp and feather boa kelp in southern California (i.e., south of Point Conception) habitats, and bull kelp in central and northern California habitats.

Black abalone commercial fishing peaked in 1973 at 868 metric tons (nearly 2 million pounds). By 1993, both commercial and recreational fisheries for black abalone closed. Black abalone have experienced significant declines in abundance and have gone locally extinct in most locations south of Point Conception, CA.

Increasing distance among spawning males and females has led to reproductive failure as population density decreases. In addition to disease, black abalone face challenges due to elevated water temperature caused by the thermal discharge of power plants. Other factors responsible for the decline of black abalone are illegal harvest and habitat destruction. Natural predation by a variety of predators (sea stars, the southern sea otter, and striped shore crab) as well as competition with purple and red sea urchins for space also threaten their survival.

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: 14-CR-3662-AJB Kaven Company   Los Angeles, California Kam Wing Chan Age; 61 Monterey Park, California   CHARGES

Counts 3 and 6

Smuggling/Importation Contrary to Law, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 545

          Maximum Penalty: 20 years in custody, the greater of a $250,000 fine or twice the illegal gain or loss and a $100 penalty assessment

Forfeiture in violation of Title 16, United States Code, Section 3374 and Title 18, United States Code, Section 981.

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Office of Law Enforcement
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement

SAN DIEGO – Paul Moore IV pleaded guilty in federal court today to defrauding local investors through his purported hedge fund. Moore admitted that he falsely told investors he was an experienced financial professional and investment adviser, and that his “hedge fund” traded investors’ money in the stock market on their behalf. In reality, Moore had no relevant education or experience, and was actually stealing most of the investors’ money in the course of running a Ponzi scheme.

In a parallel action, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced today that it has filed a civil complaint alleging that Moore siphoned nearly $2 million of client funds to pay travel expenses and buy retail goods. Please see http://www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease/2015-148.html.

According to his plea agreement in the criminal case, Moore established Coast Capital Management LLC in 2009, when he began soliciting friends and acquaintances to invest in this “hedge fund.” Moore told investors that he had earned an undergraduate degree in economics from a respected state university, had worked as a senior analyst at a large, national securities firm, had registered himself and his firm with securities regulators, and was making tremendous profits for his clients through his knowledge and expertise in securities trading. In truth, Moore quit college without earning any credits toward a degree, had never worked for the securities firm he touted, did not register himself or his fund with regulators, and when he did trade a small portion of the investor funds entrusted to him, he was losing money.

Moore ultimatley stole most of clients' funds in the course of perpetrating a Ponzi scheme. Of the $2.8 million he “managed” for investors, Moore used $1.7 million of it for personal travel, shopping sprees, meals, entertainment, and other expenses. To keep the scheme going and to conceal his theft, Moore complied with certain investor’s redemption requests by paying them with funds deposited by other, usually more recent, investors. And when it came time to tell investors about his performance in the stock market, Moore added another deception – he created and distributed false account statements showing large volumes of highly profitable trades that he supposedly made on behalf of investors. The problem, of course, was that the trades never happened and Moore had concocted the account statements from whole cloth.

United States Attorney Laura E. Duffy warned investors to perform their own due diligence before turning money over to an investment advisor, and to be wary of performance figures that seem “too good to be true.” The public can obtain additional information regarding Ponzi Schemes, and how to avoid them, on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s website posts, at http://www.sec.gov/answers/ponzi.htm.

The defendant is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Cynthia Bashant on October 5, 2015 at 9:00 a.m.

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: Paul Moore IV            Age: 51 San Diego, California   CHARGES

Securities Fraud, in violation of 15 U.S.C. §§ 78j(b) and 78ff.
Maximum Penalties: 20 years’ imprisonment, $5,000,000 fine, $100 special assessment, restitution.

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Securities and Exchange Commission

SAN DIEGO – A federal jury returned guilty verdicts this afternoon against Judith Paixao and Kevin Lombard, a husband and wife who embezzled federal funds that were intended to provide job training, benefits and equipment for injured Marines returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Instead, the jury found, the couple used some of the funds to pay for a variety of personal expenses, including a vacation in Bermuda, cell phone bills for their family members, and the costs of a New Year’s Day sailing trip around San Diego Bay.

“Any fraud against our federal agencies is a serious matter,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. “But the fraud committed by these defendants -who used money set aside to help wounded veterans and spent it on themselves - is particularly offensive. These defendants capitalized on the misfortune of wounded marines in their time of vulnerability and took advantage of the VA’s commitment to serving wounded veterans to defraud the VA and enrich themselves.”

“Today, the jury’s guilty verdicts of Kevin Lombard and Judith Paixao send a clear message that fraud against our veterans will not be tolerated. These veterans endured many sacrifices to protect our country from harm. IRS-Criminal Investigation is committed to working with our partners to protect America’s veterans from tax evaders and fraudsters.”

From 2007-2009, Paixao and Lombard were directors of the Wounded Marine Careers Foundation (“the Foundation”), a tax-exempt entity that trained injured veterans for careers in the film industry. Evidence presented at trial showed that the defendants conspired to defraud the Department of Veterans Affairs (“VA”) and submitted false claims to the VA to get funds for training and equipment they never provided. In addition, the defendants were convicted on several felony counts related to embezzling funds from the Foundation. Finally, Defendant Paixao was convicted on one count of mail fraud for her role in a scheme to defraud another charity out of scholarship funds.

Evidence presented at trial showed that the defendants made numerous false and misleading statements to the VA in order to obtain funds for training and equipment, and then did not provide the training or equipment to the veterans. Although the defendants claimed to have donated over $200,000 to start the Foundation, they ended up taking over $400,000 from the Foundation’s accounts over the course of two years.

Rather than paying the Foundation’s creditors (some of whom were board members), the defendants transferred funds to their own personal credit cards and bank accounts. Although some of this money went to repay expenses they had fronted to the Foundation, the defendants ended up taking over $100,000 for themselves. The defendants then used these funds to pay for a variety of personal expenses, including a vacation in Bermuda, cell phone bills for their family members, and the costs of a New Year’s Day sailing trip around San Diego Bay.

The defendants routinely commingled the finances of the Foundation with their personal finances, thereby obstructing the ability of the Internal Revenue Service to monitor the Foundation’s tax-exempt status and determine the defendants’ personal income tax liability.

Among the witnesses who testified at trial were three of the injured veterans who used their vocational rehabilitation benefits to participate in the first training class: Gunnery Sergeant Nick Popaditch and Lance Corporal Joshua Frey. Lance Corporal Frey, who had previously been quoted in a favorable New York Times article, testified at trial that after the article was published the defendants did not give him all the equipment he was promised, and failed to provide him with certain training and job placement.

Evidence at trial also showed that Defendant Paixao defrauded the Bob Woodruff Foundation in connection with a restricted grant of almost $100,000 by concealing the fact that one of the intended recipients – a Marine who had been injured in Fallujah – had left the program. Instead of notifying the Bob Woodruff Foundation and asking for a reallocation of the funds, Ms. Paixao took the grant money and used it for other purposes.

Both defendants remain on bond and were ordered to return to court on October 19, 2015 for a sentencing hearing.

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: 13cr3788-JM Judith Ann Paixao Age: 61 Brunswick, Georgia Kevin Lombard Age: 64 Brunswick, Georgia   CHARGES

Count 1: Conspiracy to defraud the United States and commit the offenses (18 U.S.C. § 371).
Guilty as to both defendants

Counts 2-9: Theft from an organization receiving federal funds (18 U.S.C. § 666(a)(1)).
Defendant Paixao:  Guilty as to all counts
Defendant Lombard: Guilty on counts 2-4, 6-10; not guilty on count 5.

Counts 10-12: False claims (18 U.S.C. § 287)
Guilty as to all counts for both defendants

Count 13: Mail fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1341)
Defendant Paixao:  Guilty
Defendant Lombard: Not Guilty

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General
Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation

SAN DIEGO – Norwegian businessman Mohamed Daoud has pleaded guilty to laundering the proceeds of a complex scheme to steal real property.

According to his plea agreement, between July 2012 and February 2013, Daoud helped to launder some of the millions of dollars in proceeds generated by a group of confederates who posed as the real owners of Southern California homes in order to “sell” the properties to unsuspecting buyers – who later learned that they had actually purchased nothing. Immediately after each sale, Daoud admitted, the confederates would disburse the money, ensuring that the funds vanished and the buyers could not recover their stolen money.

During his guilty plea, Daoud admitted that he worked with a co-conspirator who used Daoud’s company, “Norway LLC,” as well as other business names, to pretend to acquire title to properties. The co-conspirator created fake deeds that made it appear the true owners had transferred the property to these companies, when in fact, the deeds were just forgeries, and the true owners had never really deeded the properties to anyone. He then arranged to have the forged deeds and other official documents recorded at the county recorder’s offices, so that the title records would make it appear that he was the property owner.

The confederates used a complex web of aliases and fake identities in order to shield themselves and protect the proceeds of the scheme. They diverted the proceeds of each transaction to bank accounts held in the name of fake businesses, then distributed the money further to conceal and disguise the location of the proceeds. Daoud admitted that during his participation in the money laundering conspiracy, his confederates induced at least six different buyers to purchase properties they did not own, leaving them with worthless claims to title and generating at least $1.4 million in proceeds from the fraud. Daoud received approximately $270,000 of the proceeds.

Another co-schemer, Daniel Deaibes, pleaded guilty in March 2015 to participating in the fraud. Deaibes admitted that he and others continued to operate the scheme until November 2014 (when Daoud, Deaibes, and another co-defendant were each indicted and arrested). In total, Daoud and Deaibes have admitted that they and their confederates fraudulently sold or attempted to sell at least 13 homes for more than $3 million.

As Deaibes admitted during his guilty plea, the schemers even took steps to thwart efforts by the true owners to regain clean title to the properties. In one instance, true owner Fannie Mae discovered that a fraudulent grant deed had been recorded on a property it owned in Rowland Heights, California. Shortly after discovering the fraudulent deed, Fannie Mae filed a lawsuit to recover control over the property and notify prospective buyers of the fraudulent deed. Undeterred, the schemers created a fake “Withdrawal of Lis Pendens” in an effort to proceed with the fraudulent sale. When Fannie Mae won a judgment in its favor and obtained a court finding that the deed was fraudulent, they created a fake “Satisfaction of Judgment” and recorded that fraudulent document as well.

Deaibes also admitted that he used the alias “John Moran” to pose as the seller’s representative in several of the fraudulent sales. He introduced himself as “Moran” and presented a fake driver’s license to two different notaries in 2014. Deaibes admitted that he signed fraudulent documents using this alias in an effort to sell or encumber properties that belonged to unsuspecting owners.

Most of these properties were actually owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- government sponsored enterprises with a mission to provide liquidity, stability, and affordability to the United States housing and mortgage markets. As part of their mission, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac purchase residential mortgages in the secondary market, enabling lenders to replenish their funds to finance additional single family loans. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can become the property owners if they own the mortgage loan at the time a home is foreclosed.

U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy commented, “The Department of Justice and our law enforcement partners are committed to protecting the recovering housing market from those who misuse the process to commit fraud. We will act aggressively to root out these invidious schemes and to protect the public’s confidence in the security of their most important investment, their homes.”

Leslie P. DeMarco, Special Agent in Charge, Western Region, Federal Housing Finance Agency – Office of Inspector General, said: “Mohamed Daoud will be held responsible for his role in a scheme that has caused loss to innocent victims and also worked to undermine the recovery of the housing market. FHFA-OIG will continue to work aggressively with our law enforcement partners to root out fraudsters and protect the taxpayers and unwitting victims in the housing market.”

Eric S. Birnbaum, FBI Special Agent in Charge in San Diego, commented, “The FBI is committed to working with our law enforcement partners in identifying, disrupting and dismantling complex fraudulent schemes that undermine our economy. Today's conviction is an example of the collective efforts of the FBI and our partners to hold accountable those individuals that seek to steal money from taxpayer funded programs.”

Erick Martinez, Special Agent in Charge, IRS – Criminal Investigation, said, “These types of real estate fraud schemes perpetuated on an unsuspecting public are very damaging to our economy. IRS-CI and our law enforcement partners are committed to protecting the integrity of our recovering housing market and the financial system. IRS-CI has the financial investigators and expertise to uncover these complex fraudulent transactions and follow the money trail to expose money laundering activities by these criminals.”

Daoud’s sentencing is set for September 28 at 9:00 am before U.S. District Judge Cynthia Bashant.

Daoud was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport as he prepared to depart for his home country of Norway. Deaibes and another co-defendant, Mazen Alzoubi, were arrested in November 2014 in a related case and charged with mail fraud. Deaibes is scheduled to be sentenced on August 31, 2015. No trial date has yet been set in Alzoubi’s case.

The investigation into this fraud scheme is continuing. Anyone with information relating to these charges or similar scams is encouraged to contact the San Diego FBI Field Office, (858) 320-1800 or the Federal Housing Finance Agency - Office of Inspector General hotline at (800) 793-7724.

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 14CR3326-BAS Mohamed Daoud Age: 50 Norway   CHARGES

Conspiracy to launder money, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1956(h)
Maximum Penalties: 20 years’ imprisonment, $500,000 fine or twice the value of the property involved in the transaction, $100 special assessment, restitution.

      DEFENDANTS PREVIOUSLY CHARGED   Mazen Alzoubi, 14CR3325-BAS Age: 31 Rancho Cucamonga, California Daniel Deaibes, 14CR3325-BAS Age: 36 Rancho Cucamonga, California   CHARGE

Mail fraud, 18 U.S.C. § 1341

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Housing Finance Agency – Office of Inspector General
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations

As to defendant Mazen Alzoubi, the public is reminded that the charges are not evidence that the defendant committed the crime charged. The defendant is presumed innocent until the United States meets its burden in court of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

SAN DIEGO – Lamar Moore, a.k.a. “El Brivv,” a.k.a. “Briv,” a twenty-four year-old resident of San Diego, was sentenced today to 120 months in prison for trafficking two minor girls for commercial sex.

In February 2014, Detectives Chris Haughey and Eric Drilling, members of the San Diego Police Human Trafficking Team, rescued a 17-year-old girl from Moore at a local motel. They then arrested Moore.

Moore pleaded guilty on October 9, 2014. In his plea agreement, he admitted that he coerced the rescued 17-year-old, and a second, 15-year-old victim, to engage in commercial sex for his financial benefit. He also provided hotel rooms, condoms, and internet advertisements for their sexual services. Moore received hundreds of dollars in proceeds from the victims’ acts of prostitution.

Moore’s crimes were part of a criminal enterprise which he led that involved two additional minor males, one additional adult male, and two additional adult females. Since his arrest, one of those males – a San Diego resident named Darius Chambers – has also pled guilty to child sex trafficking. Another – San Diegan named Daijon Vailes – has been arrested and charged with the same offense. Chambers will be sentenced on July 31, 2015 by U.S. District Judge Janis L. Sammartino. Vailes entered a plea of not guilty and awaits trial.

United States Attorney Laura Duffy said, “We take these crimes very seriously. If you traffic a child for commercial sex in the Southern District of California, you should expect to spend many, many years in federal prison.”

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 14CR1754-AJB Lamar Moore Age: 24     CHARGES

Child sex trafficking, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1591         
Maximum penalty: Life

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

San Diego Police Department

SAN DIEGO – Jing Wang, former Executive Vice President and President of Global Business Operations for Qualcomm Inc., was sentenced today to 18 months in prison and fined $500,000 for his role in a three-year insider trading scheme.

Wang, 52, who pleaded guilty in July 2014 to insider trading, money laundering and obstruction of justice charges, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William Q. Hayes for orchestrating a scheme to trade on the confidential information of Qualcomm and covering up his criminal conduct.

“Jing Wang was a powerful insider at one of the world’s top corporations – but he threw it all away to make a few hundred thousand dollars,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. “While Wang has lost his power, his position and his freedom, the real losers here are investors who play by the rules, and our nation’s financial system, which is diminished with every one of these schemes.”

“Through his position as a high-ranking executive at Qualcomm, Jing Wang gained unique access to information about the company’s earnings and intended acquisitions and illegally exploited that inside information for personal gain,” said Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell. “He then enlisted the services of others – his stock broker and his brother – to cover up the scheme. This prosecution demonstrates the Criminal Division’s commitment to holding accountable corporate executives who would undermine the integrity of the financial marketplace.”

In connection with his plea, Wang admitted that he made three, separate insider trades using a brokerage account in the name of his British Virgin Island (BVI) shell company, Unicorn Global Enterprises. First, in early 2010, prior to Qualcomm’s announcement of a dividend increase and stock repurchase, Wang bought company stock valued at approximately $277,000. He also admitted that, in December 2010, while attending Qualcomm’s Board of Directors meeting in Hong Kong, and hours after the Board approved a non-public offer to purchase Atheros, a developer of semiconductors for wireless communications, Wang purchased stock in Atheros. Wang further admitted that, just a few weeks later, he directed his stockbroker, Gary Yin, to sell the Atheros stock, for approximately $481,000, and purchase Qualcomm stock one day before the company announced record earnings.

Wang also pleaded guilty to money laundering for transferring the illegal proceeds from Unicorn’s account to an account of a new BVI shell company he controlled. He further admitted to obstructing justice by creating a false cover story in which he and co-conspirator Yin would blame Wang’s brother Bing Wang, who resides in rural China, for the insider trading and ownership of the Unicorn Account. Among other acts, Wang collected incriminating evidence and provided it to Yin to take to China, and arranged meetings between Yin and Bing Wang during which the two rehearsed the false account.

Yin pleaded guilty to conspiring to obstruct justice and launder money, and currently is scheduled to be sentenced on July 17, 2015. Bing Wang has been charged in connection with the scheme, and is wanted on an international arrest warrant.

This case was investigated by the FBI’s San Diego Field Office and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation’s San Diego Field Division. The SEC’s Los Angeles Regional Office provided substantial assistance. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric J. Beste of the Southern District of California and Trial Attorney James P. McDonald of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 13CR3487-WQH Jing Wang Age: 51 Del Mar, California   CHARGES

Count 1: Title 15, United States Code, Sections 78j(b), 78ff and 17 C.F.R. § 240.10b-5—Securities Fraud (Insider Trading).  Maximum Penalty: 20 years’ custody, a $5 million fine, 3 years’ supervised release, and a $100 special assessment.

Count 2: Title 18, United States Code, Section 1956 – Money Laundering.  Maximum Penalty: 20 years’ custody, a fine of $500,000 or twice the value of the property involved in the transaction, 3 years’ supervised release, and a $100 special assessment.

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation

SAN DIEGO – Drug trafficker Juan Castro-Navarro - who a prosecutor contends used his cell phone to document the kidnapping, torture and murder of a man in retaliation for the theft of 10 pounds of methamphetamine - was sentenced in federal court today to 182 months in prison.

According to court documents, Castro, aka “J,” sent photos of the victim in a series of text messages to fellow traffickers and his girlfriend or wife, at one point telling her during one exchange: “I just want you to know that I love you guys and that I’m only going to kill one more. I have never killed anyone who didn’t deserve it. I’ll see you later.”

Upon receiving the images, the girlfriend replied: “What is this? Are you OK? Thank God. Be careful my love. I love you with all my heart.”

In other text exchanges, Castro and other traffickers bent on revenge for the robbery of the methamphetamine used emoticons to express feelings. According to court records, one individual, identified as Pokemon, texted: “Did you beat him or choke him?” Castro replied: “The second.” Pokemon’s response, “Very well,” and then he used a semi-colon and a parenthesis to denote a winking face.

Castro pleaded guilty on January 13, 2015, to conspiracy to distribute over 40 kilograms of methamphetamine and two kilograms of heroin. In furtherance of the conspiracy, Castro admitted that he managed other codefendants in the distribution of methamphetamine and heroin within California, and from California to Utah, Washington and other parts of the United States. He was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Gonzalo P. Curiel, who granted the government’s request for a sentencing enhancement because of the evidence of violence found on Castro’s cell phone. At the sentencing hearing, Judge Curiel stated that Castro had become a “monster” based on the violence shown in the case, and deemed the narcotics that Castro trafficked within the United States “poison.”

U.S. authorities did not charge Castro with murder because the U.S. government lacked jurisdiction since it appears the victim was not a U.S. citizen and the crime occurred in Tijuana. However, in order to get the sentencing enhancement, the prosecutor filed, among other things, a supplemental sentencing document – a newspaper article. The article from a Tijuana newspaper said that a dead person wrapped in a blanket, wearing a black sweatshirt and jeans and showing signs of beating on his entire body, was found on January 23, 2014 – the day after Castro sent the text messages. The victim in the text message photos had been wearing the same clothing.

In the spring of 2013, HSI agents began investigating Castro and his distribution network. Their investigation indicated that Castro was a narcotics broker who would pair Mexico-based sources of supply with customers outside California, and facilitate the transportation of narcotics to the customers. To further the investigation, in November 2013 court authorization was received to intercept two telephones used by Castro. During the first 30-day period of interception, agents successfully seized 19 pounds of methamphetamine and over two pounds of heroin from a load car leaving a stash house, located in Ontario, California, used by Castro. Following the seizure, based on interceptions indicating that the stash house was being emptied, a court-authorized search was executed at the stash house and agents seized an additional 41 pounds of methamphetamine, $68,850 and three firearms.

According to court documents, in January 2014, interception continued on one of Castro’s telephones. While intercepting Castro’s telephone, agents learned that Castro and codefendant Oscar Ureta-Cervantes, who has also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and heroin and awaits sentencing, and another individual known as Marlon coordinated the sale of 10 pounds of methamphetamine. Ureta was to deliver the methamphetamine to an individual known as David in Los Angeles. However, on the morning of January 22, 2014, Ureta was robbed of the 10 pounds of methamphetamine. In retaliation and in order to recover the stolen methamphetamine, a gang member associated with David was kidnapped in Tijuana, Mexico by Marlon and other individuals.

After the kidnapping, Castro joined Marlon. Castro then took photographs of the kidnapped victim with his cell phone and sent them to Ureta, and the girlfriend and others. The first photograph shows an individual with a black eye, tied and taped, sitting in a chair with hands behind his back. The victim is wearing a black sweatshirt and green/gray jeans. After Castro sent the first photograph, he sent a message to Ureta, stating: “I’m so f---ing pissed and these people are doing as I say.” In another conversation, Castro informed Ureta that they were “extracting information” from the victim.

In another conversation, Castro informed Ureta: “I haven’t killed him because he says he is going to bring me 20 pieces” [units of narcotics]. Castro then sent another photograph to Ureta. The photograph shows a person wearing a black and white jacket holding down the victim with one knee on the victim’s back as the person pulls on one end of a baseball bat. The victim is face down on a concrete floor with his pants half off. Another person in a blue plaid shirt is holding the victim’s head down. A third person, wearing black boots, is standing nearby holding a baseball bat.

Half an hour later, Castro sent Ureta another photograph of the victim. The photograph shows the victim, face down and naked from the waist down, with a green plastic bag over his head as one person is stepping on the back of the victim’s head, another is holding the victim’s arms behind his back, and a third is stepping on the victim’s legs. The victim’s buttocks show signs of bruising. Castro then stated that the victim was “gone.” Shortly thereafter, Castro admitted via text message to Pokemon, as noted above, that the victim had been choked. Castro then sent Ureta a final photograph of the victim. The last photograph shows a lifeless body, wrapped in a blanket.

During the torture, Castro also sent his girlfriend the photographs described above and several messages, telling her not to worry because he was working. Castro instructed her to “look at it [the first photograph] and erase it,” and further reminded Eloisa “not to forget to erase” their conversations. Then, in the early morning hours of January 23, 2014, Castro messaged his girlfriend: “Open up, Hun,” showing that Castro had arrived home.

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DEFENDANT     Juan Castro-Navarro Age: 43 Hometown: Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico   CHARGES

Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine and Heroin – Title 21, U.S.C., Sections 841(a)(1) and 846
Maximum penalty: Life imprisonment and a mandatory minimum term of 10 years and $10 million fine

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)

SAN DIEGO – Tony McLeod of Tampa, Florida, was convicted by a federal jury this afternoon of multiple counts of sexual crimes against two minors following an eight-day trial before U.S. District Judge Janis L. Sammartino.

A jury deliberated for less than two hours and found McLeod guilty of seven counts of sexual exploitation of a child, one count of attempted sexual exploitation of a child, one count of travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, and one count of transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity as to a 14-year-old victim, and one count of attempted sexual exploitation of a child as to a 15-year-old victim. McLeod has been in custody since his arrest in Tampa, Florida in June 2013.

Sentencing is scheduled for September 11, 2015 at 9:00 a.m.

According to evidence presented to the jury, in spring 2013, McLeod struck up a friendship with the minor victims through on-line gaming. These friendships spilled over into phone calls, texts, and video chats between McLeod and the minors in which they discussed their personal lives, including the fact that both minors attended middle school.

Around May of 2013, McLeod’s relationships with the minors turned sexual in nature. The jury found that McLeod engaged in sexual behavior with both minors. Some of this behavior included masturbation and the exchange of sexually explicit photographs and videos.

Both victims testified against McLeod during the trial.

The 14-year-old’s family learned of the illicit relationship, confiscated the minor’s phone and reported the matter to local authorities. In June 2013, McLeod traveled from where he lived in Tampa, Florida to Escondido, California in order to meet up with the child. McLeod picked up the child at school before the end of the school day and took the child to Los Angeles International Airport.

According to testimony at trial, McLeod purchased an airline ticket for the 14-year-old under an alias and they flew to Tampa, Florida. In the meantime, the family reported the minor as missing to Escondido Police Department. The Escondido Police Department tracked down McLeod’s whereabouts and informed the Tampa Police Department that McLeod and the victim (under an alias) were on a flight to Tampa. On arrival of the flight, McLeod was arrested and taken into custody.

McLeod faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years and up to 30 years in prison for each of the sexual exploitation and attempted sexual exploitation counts, a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years up to life imprisonment for the transportation of a minor for the purpose of engaging in criminal sexual activity count, and a maximum of 30 years for the travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct count.

McLeod’s arrest and prosecution was the result of coordination between multiple federal and state agencies in both San Diego, California and Tampa, Florida. The U.S. Attorney’s Office commends law enforcement from the FBI, Escondido Police Department, and Tampa Police Department who worked tirelessly to collect and preserve evidence as to numerous electronic devices and interview witnesses in order to bring McLeod to justice.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office appreciates the San Diego District Attorney’s Office, the Florida State’s Attorney’s Office, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida for their involvement in the case at the outset.

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 13CR2297-JLS Tony Lee McLeod Age: 38 Tampa, Florida   CHARGES

Title 18, United States Code, Section 2221(a) and (e) – Sexual Exploitation of a Child
Title 18, United States Code, Section 2251(a) and (e) – Attempted Sexual Exploitation of a Child
Title 18, United States Code, Section 2423(b) – Travel with Intent to Engage in Illicit Sexual Conduct
Title 18, United States Code, Section 2423(a) – Transportation of a Minor with the Purpose of Engaging in Criminal Sexual Activity

  LEAD INVESTIGATIVE AGENCY San Diego FBI   INVESTIGATIVE AGENCIES Escondido Police Department
Tampa Police Department
San Diego Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory
San Diego District Attorney’s Office
San Diego Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force
San Diego Sheriff’s Department
Tampa FBI
United States Marshal’s Service Task Force (Tampa)
Tampa International Airport Police
Florida State’s Attorney’s Office
US Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida

SAN DIEGO – Nelson Leone, the owner and operator of six San Diego-based medical marijuana clinics, pleaded guilty to identity theft in federal court today, admitting that he forged a doctor’s signature and fraudulently used that doctor’s name and license number in order to issue medical marijuana recommendations.

Leone’s six clinics were located throughout San Diego County in Pacific Beach, Mission Valley, Midway, and El Cajon. He advertised them under the name Green Cross Evaluations in The Reader and on the Internet. These advertisements made it clear that the clinics were set up to be “consumer friendly” with on- site ATM services, accommodations for walk-in patients, and a $25 “new” patient special. According to his website, Leone’s clinics were supposed to provide patients with access to a “licensed physician” that would evaluate them in his clinic for a medical condition.

Five of Leone’s six clinics, however, did not have a licensed medical doctor. Leone (who was stripped of his medical license in 1995) employed a licensed doctor at just one of the six clinics to meet with customers and issue medical marijuana recommendations. In the absence of a licensed physician who could validly evaluate patients, Leone issued medical marijuana recommendations to customers at the other five clinics under his sole doctor’s name and license number. These recommendations falsely certified that the customers were evaluated in the doctor’s office and suffered from a medical condition that “may benefit from the use of medical marijuana.”

U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy emphasized that every patient – regardless of whether they’re seeking medical marijuana or other prescription drugs – has the right to have a licensed medical professional advising them on matters that affect their health. “It is simply unacceptable to have someone forge a doctor’s signature for their own personal financial gain.”

As part of his plea, Leone agreed to shut down the six Green Cross Evaluations clinics.

Leone is scheduled to be sentenced on September 14, 2015, at 8:30 a.m. before U.S. District Judge M. James Lorenz.

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: 15cr1650-L Nelson Leone Age: 72 San Diego, California   CHARGES

Identity Theft – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1028(a)(7)
Maximum penalty: 5 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations

SAN DIEGO - Victor Amezcua, a resident of Winchester, California, pleaded guilty in federal court today to dumping raw sewage on Camp Pendleton.

According to his plea agreement, Amezcua admitted that on at least four occasions during 2013 and 2014, while he was employed at a firm which had a contract to dispose of porta-potty waste from Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, he pumped the sewage into a ravine in area 53 on the base. Amezcua acknowledged that he was employed as the driver of a vacuum truck and he was supposed to collect the sewage from the porta-potties and dispose of it in large holding tanks located on the base, which would be later pumped out and their contents disposed of at the sewage treatment plants on base. Instead, Amezcua admitted that he knowingly pumped the contents of his vacuum truck into a ravine in Area 53, without testing the sewage or notifying anyone at the base, as required by federal regulations.

Amezcua is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Larry A. Burns on September 28, 2015, at 9:30 am.

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 15cr1645-LAB Victor Amezcua Age: 44 Winchester, California   CHARGES

Count 1: Unlawful Disposal of Sewage, in violation of 33 U.S.C. § 1319(c)(2)(A) and 1345.
Maximum Penalties: 3 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine or $50,000 per day of violation, whichever is greater, a minimum fine of $5,000 per day of violation, $100 special assessment, restitution.

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Criminal Investigations Division
Naval Criminal Investigative Service

SAN DIEGO – San Diego-based money transmitter Francisco Cuevas pleaded guilty in federal court today to participating in a money laundering conspiracy.

In a hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge David H. Bartick, Cuevas admitted that he and coconspirators operated an unlicensed money transmitting business, in criminal violation of the Bank Secrecy Act, and conducted nearly $12 million worth of international financial transactions in an attempt to promote their unlicensed money transmitting business.

According to the plea agreement, Cuevas and his coconspirators operated a commercial enterprise willing and able to transfer cash on behalf of third parties without registering the business with the Secretary of the Treasury, as required by Title 31, United States Code, Section 5330. In turn, the defendants’ customers availed themselves of Cuevas’ services, and those of his alleged co-conspirators, to collect cash anywhere throughout the United States, and transmit it anywhere in the world. The defendants obtained commissions for their services, extracting a fee from the millions of dollars transmitted abroad.

The criminal case is assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Roger T. Benitez (14cr2936). Judge Bartick allowed Cuevas to remain on pretrial release, pursuant to the terms of a bond posted by Cuevas. Cuevas is scheduled to be sentenced on September 21, 2015 at 9 a.m. before Judge Benitez.

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 14cr2936 Francisco Cuevas Age: 38     CHARGES

Money Laundering Conspiracy – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1956(h)
Maximum penalty:      20 years’ imprisonment, $500,000 fine, and forfeiture

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Drug Enforcement Administration
Internal Revenue Service

SAN DIEGO – United States Attorney Laura E. Duffy announced the unsealing of a 24-count indictment today against four defendants for a conspiracy to unlawfully enrich themselves with millions of dollars by submitting fraudulent claims to Medicare for tests allegedly performed at the El Centro Medical Clinic in El Centro, California (“El Centro Clinic” or “Clinic”). The announcement was made in conjunction with a nationwide Medicare Fraud Takedown executed around the country.

The indictment alleges that defendants Paul Robinson, Levon Tovmassian, Hasmik Senekerimyan, and Nazar Muradyan, conspired with Gevorg Kupelian and others to commit health care fraud and pay kickbacks for Medicare patient referrals. Kupelian – who already pleaded guilty and was sentenced in a related case (Case Number 14CR3419-BAS) -- opened the El Centro Clinic and acted as its organizer and leader. He has admitted he recruited a doctor to serve as a “front” for the Clinic in order to use his Medicare billing number to submit fraudulent Medicare claims. Kupelian also admitted he recruited and paid “cappers” to find senior citizens in El Centro and convince them to go to the Clinic for a gauntlet of tests without justification or proper supervision by a physician.

The indictment alleges that Robinson, a licensed physician, acted as the nominal owner of the El Centro Clinic and that the conspirators submitted claims for the treatment of more than 1,100 Medicare beneficiaries under Robinson’s Medicare billing number between September 2012 and February 2014. The El Centro Clinic generated over $2.7 million in claims to Medicare, which resulted in payments of approximately $1.3 million to Robinson. Robinson is accused of paying 75% of the Medicare reimbursements to Kupelian. Kupelian, in turn, paid Tovmassian, Senekerimyan, Muradyan, and others for various activities and claims designed to make the Clinic appear to be a legitimate medical service provider. Robinson is also charged with obstructing a federal audit by submitting falsified and misleading medical records.

Tovmassian, the indictment alleges, was hired to pose as a Physician’s Assistant (“PA”) who saw and treated patients at the Clinic despite not having the requisite license from the State of California. Tovmassian also allegedly ordered unnecessary medical tests that were billed to Medicare under Robinson’s billing number. Additionally, Tovmassian is charged with making a false statement to one of the investigating agents.

Senekerimyan is accused of completing fraudulent allergy test order forms and falsely claiming to administer allergy tests at the El Centro Clinic. Her husband, Muradyan, is charged with falsely claiming to drive Senekerimyan from their home in North Hollywood, California to the El Centro Clinic several times a week for her to administer allergy tests when, in fact, no tests were ever performed. Senekerimyan and Muradyan are also charged with obstructing a health care crime investigation.

“Health care fraud remains a pervasive and destructive trend nationwide, cheating our nation’s taxpayers outs of millions that could be put to better use,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. “In conjunction with our colleagues nationwide, we will continue to diligently investigate and prosecute these crimes on the nation’s behalf.”

“Aggressively combating health care fraud continues to remain a top priority of the FBI,” said San Diego FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric Birnbaum. “These indictments demonstrate that utilizing senior citizens as pawns in schemes to defraud Medicare will not be tolerated. The FBI remains committed to working with our partners in order to ensure that Medicare, which provides health care to our nation’s elderly, will be there when they need it the most.”

On April 6, 2015, U.S. District Court Judge Cynthia Bashant sentenced Kupelian to 30 months’ of custody and ordered he pay restitution in the amount of $964,011. Kupelian is currently scheduled to self-surrender on July 8, 2015. The defendants will be summoned to appear before U.S. District Court Judge Cathy Ann Bencivengo for an arraignment on the indictment.

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: 15CR1572-CAB Paul Robinson Age: 52

(Counts 1-20)  

Levon Tovmassian      Age: 51 (Counts 1, 3-4, 8-13, 21)

Hazmik Senekerimyan

Age: 46 (Counts 1, 4, 8-9, 11-12, 15-18, 22-23) Nazar Muradyan Age: 50 (Counts 1, 24)   SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Count 1:          Title 18, United States Code, Sections 371 (Conspiracy to Commit Health Care Fraud and Pay Remuneration for Health Care Referrals)      
                        Maximum penalty: 5 years of custody; $250,000 Fine

Counts 2-19:   Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1347 (Health Care Fraud)   
Maximum penalty: 20 years of custody; $250,000 Fine

Count 20:        Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1516 (Obstruction of Federal Audit)          
Maximum penalty: 5 years of custody; $250,000 Fine

Count 21:        Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1001 (False Statement)        
Maximum penalty: 5 years of custody; $250,000 Fine

Counts 22-24: Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1518 (Obstructing a Health Care Crime Investigation)      
Maximum penalty: 5 years of custody; $250,000 Fine

 

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

SAN DIEGO – Former Carl DeMaio campaign staffer Todd Bosnich pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice in federal court today, admitting that he instigated and impeded an FBI investigation by sending a threatening email to himself and falsely claiming that it was likely from DeMaio.

Bosnich, who served as policy director for the unsuccessful congressional campaign, made the admissions before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jan Adler. Bosnich was allowed to remain free on a $10,000 bond and was ordered to appear for sentencing on August 31, 2015, at 9 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Larry A. Burns.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Phil Halpern told the court during today’s hearing that Bosnich’s offense “had the potential to effect a national election.” He added: “Mr. Bosnich, for whatever reason, had a great deal of hostility and personal animus towards Mr. DeMaio. As a result of his feeling aggrieved, Bosnich wanted to get back at Mr. DeMaio.”

According to his plea agreement, after he was terminated from his job in May of 2014, a disgruntled Bosnich made sexual harassment accusations against DeMaio. Among other things, he claimed that DeMaio offered him $50,000 in hush money to keep quiet about the harassment.

Bosnich also told a radio reporter during an interview on June 2, 2014 that he had received threatening emails from an anonymous source that he was “positive” were from DeMaio or someone closely associated with DeMaio.

According to his plea agreement, Bosnich admitted that three days later, on June 5, 2014, Bosnich set up a dummy yahoo email account, elimanagment@yahoo.com, from his North County residence using bogus personal information including a false date of birth and gender. According to his admissions, he then sent a “particularly ugly and threatening message” to his own personal email account. The email suggested that the “anonymous” author of the email would ensure that Bosnich never again worked in politics if he didn’t stop making accusations against DeMaio.

During multiple interviews with the FBI, Bosnich – supposedly the victim of threatening emails - continued to claim that he did not know who sent the emails, but he believed DeMaio was behind the anonymous threats. Based on these false claims, a grand jury issued subpoenas attempting to identify the source of the emails. All the while, it was Bosnich himself who had sent the emails.

“The integrity of the American electoral process is the very bedrock of our democracy,” said U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy. “These actions were far from a harmless prank and cannot be tolerated.”

FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric S. Birnbaum commented, “Mr. Bosnich engaged in a pattern of lies and deceitful acts in an effort to obstruct FBI agents from getting to the truth in this case. Even when given opportunities to recant his statements he continued to knowingly provide false information portraying himself as a victim in this matter and giving the appearance that a candidate running for office was behind the threatening emails. Today’s conviction sends a clear message that the FBI will aggressively investigate and pursue prosecution of those who attempt to obstruct federal investigations and illegally undermine our electoral process.”

The background of Bosnich’s obstruction was detailed in Court documents, which recalled how DeMaio announced his intention to run for California's 52nd Congressional District in May 2013 (the year before the actual election). In October 2013, Bosnich was hired by DeMaio's campaign to serve as its Policy Director.

In May 2014, Bosnich was terminated by DeMaio’s campaign. The reason for his termination, as well as the events that occurred immediately before and after his termination, are a matter of dispute. Bosnich claimed that DeMaio made a series of unwanted sexual advances towards him in the Spring of 2014, and that when he complained to DeMaio’s campaign manager, he was first marginalized and later offered a $50,000 “payment” in exchange for signing a “non-disclosure” agreement

As revealed in the pleadings, the DeMaio campaign maintained that Bosnich was terminated not because of a sexual harassment claim, but because of poor work performance. Specifically, the campaign asserted that Bosnich was first terminated as a paid employee because he issued a report to the media that was both inaccurate and plagiarized. The campaign then alleged that Bosnich (on May 24, 2014) was barred from working in any capacity because he “misappropriated” several internal emails. Finally, the Campaign asserted that Bosnich vandalized its campaign headquarters (on May 28, 2014) after he had been fired for cause.

Sometime between the late evening of May 27, 2014, and the early morning of May 28, 2014, an intruder at DeMaio’s campaign headquarters cut telephone cords, broke laptop computers, damaged office equipment, and stole several items from the office. Among the items stolen was a notebook containing sensitive campaign information, as well as the office’s cable modem and router.

On May 29, 2014, Bosnich wrote several emails to the Chief-of-Staff for DeMaio’s opponent, Scott Peters. Bosnich initiated contact by sending several internal DeMaio campaign emails that he received during his time serving as the Campaign’s Policy Director. He also reiterated his claim that DeMaio had sexually harassed him and threatened to destroy him if he did not stay quiet about the harassment.

On May 31, 2014, the Peters’ Campaign chief of staff delivered the emails received from Bosnich to the San Diego Police Department (“SDPD”). She told the SDPD that the emails arrived unexpectedly and she decided to give them to the police because: (1) they included allegations regarding possible threats and sexual harassment; and (2) she thought there might be some connection between Bosnich’s emails and the recent burglary of the DeMaio campaign office.

Later that same day, SDPD detectives interviewed Bosnich, who denied any involvement in the burglary. To the contrary, Bosnich told the detectives: (1) he had been harassed by DeMaio on a number of occasions; (2) that he complained to DeMaio’s campaign manager about the harassment; and (3) the campaign manager offered Bosnich a job with the San Diego Republican Party if he would keep silent. In addition, Bosnich stated that he was informed that his career would be destroyed if he spoke to anyone about DeMaio’s harassment.

On June 2, 2014, Bosnich recorded an interview with a local radio personality. During the interview, he repeated the allegations he had previously told the detectives. He also stated for the first time that he had received threatening emails. Although these emails were allegedly anonymous, Bosnich stated that he was “positive” that DeMaio (or someone closely associated with DeMaio) was behind the threats. Subsequently, Bosnich repeated his allegations (including the allegedly anonymous threats) to an increasingly wide array of news media outlets.

On June 5, 2014, Bosnich set up the “dummy” Yahoo email account. After doing so, he used it (for the first and only time) to send a particularly ugly and threatening message to his own personal email account. The email referenced Bosnich’s disclosures to Peters’ chief of staff and suggested that the “anonymous” author of the email would ensure that Bosnich never again worked in politics if he didn’t stop making accusations against DeMaio.

Bosnich admitted in federal court that his main purpose in sending the threatening email to himself was to bolster his claims that DeMaio was threatening him to remain silent about the alleged sexual harassment. In this fashion, Bosnich’s claims about DeMaio’s sexual harassment appeared not only to be legitimate, but to take on a new and, perhaps, more sinister context. The SDPD was sufficiently concerned about the serious nature of the allegations that they notified the FBI.

On June 16, 2014, FBI agents and Halpern interviewed Bosnich in the presence of attorneys that he retained to prepare the filing of a sexual harassment suit against DeMaio. At the meeting, Bosnich reiterated his prior sexual harassment allegations against DeMaio. In an attempt to influence the investigation of DeMaio, Bosnich also falsely claimed that an anonymous source sent him the threatening email from the “elimanagment” account. Bosnich also speculated that the author of the emails was DeMaio or someone associated with his campaign.

During the late summer and early fall, the United States acted upon the false information provided by Bosnich in following up all available leads related to the threatening email. Rather than recant his false statements at an October 17, 2014 meeting with the FBI Agents and Assistant U.S. Attorneys, Bosnich continued to conceal the fact that he was the author of the threatening email. He also continued to suggest that the email might have been sent by DeMaio or one of his close associates.

Documentation:    Information...      Plea Agreement...

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: 15cr1544-LAB Todd Bosnich Age: 29 Del Mar, California   CHARGES

Obstruction of Justice – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1512
Maximum penalty: 20 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation

SAN DIEGO – Stock broker Sunil Sharma of Carlsbad pleaded guilty in federal court today, admitting that he stole more than $6 million from local investors by falsely claiming their funds were safe through conservative investments when, in reality, he was pursuing a risky day trading strategy that ultimately turned into a massive Ponzi scheme.

According to his plea agreement, Sharma covered up the massive losses by continuing to falsely tell investors that their investments were doing well. He would send his investors monthly or quarterly statements that falsely reflected that their investments were generating the promised returns. Sharma admitted that even while reassuring investors, he diverted approximately $2.5 million in investor funds for his own personal use, including: (1) approximately $700,000 towards the down payment of a $2 million home off Artesian Road in San Diego; (2) approximately $12,000 for a cruise in the Mediterranean; and (3) for leasing a Mercedes SL and a BMW.

As revealed in court documents, Sharma was a Series 7 licensed broker, who had worked for Merrill Lynch, AG Edwards, and as an independent broker for Raymond James. In 2000, Sharma moved to San Diego where he continued to practice as an independent broker. Due to the market crash that followed September 11, 2001, Sharma and his clients lost a substantial amount of money. As a result, Sharma voluntarily gave up his license to act as a securities broker.

After relinquishing his broker’s license, Sharma began to work in the insurance industry. In 2002, Sharma sold insurance from his business in Rancho Bernardo. He also began teaching seminars highlighting various types of insurance and annuities which could be purchased by his clients.

In 2007, Sharma attended an “Investools” workshop that convinced him that he could make money trading stock options in a conservative manner. After attending the workshop, he set up Gold Coast Holding, LLC (“Gold Coast”) as a vehicle to trade options. Sharma initially funded Gold Coast with approximately $50,000 of his own money that he had made selling insurance. Utilizing a bull and bear spread analysis, Sharma experienced “beginners luck” and began generating profits of more than 10% on his investment by late 2007.

Due to the fact that his insurance clients were making very little money on their personal investments due to low interest rates, Sharma believed that they could make a better return (somewhere in the “neighborhood” of 5%-6%) if he could “day trade” their money and “pocket the difference.” Recognizing that his insurance customers would not have given him money for this venture, he lied to them and falsely stated that Gold Coast was an extremely safe way to earn a monthly retirement income because their money was to be: (1) part of a diversified portfolio; (2) pooled with many other investors; (3) used to buy bonds from emerging markets in Brazil, Russia, India, and China (“BRIC”); and (4) managed by Goldman Sachs. Sharma guaranteed investors a rate of return (typically between 6%-7%) for two to three years and urged his clients to liquidate their retirement accounts and annuities based upon the safety of his investment scheme.

Although Sharma initially planned on buying BRIC bonds with half the investor funds and day trading with the other half, he never in fact purchased BRIC or any other type of bonds. Instead, Gold Coast Holding (and later a second company he established, Safe Harbor Tax Lien Acquisitions) day traded options using TDAmeritrade’s “thinkorswim” trading platform. Between January 2008 and November 2014, Sharma raised $8.36 million from 32 different clients using these two companies. In order to attract new investors, Sharma paid $2.12 million in “returns” to old clients from funds generally derived from the contribution of later investors. For example, of the approximately $3.5 million raised from investors in the first two years of day trading, Sharma – despite some early successes – was left with only about $250,000 by the end of 2009. As a result, Sharma turned Gold Coast into a classic “Ponzi scheme” by paying earlier investors their guaranteed rates of return with approximately $5 million in new funds solicited from later investors.

Prior to the investment scheme collapsing completely, Sharma stopped trading option spreads and switched over to purchasing straight “call” and “put” options. It was Sharma’s hope that adopting this new strategy would allow him to recoup all of his investment losses. Once again, however, Sharma’s strategy proved disastrous. Although he was able to make his December 2014 monthly payout to investors, he ran out of funds in January 2015.

United States Attorney Laura E. Duffy acknowledged that this Ponzi scheme was a bit harder to detect than usual as Sharma did not promise his investors outlandish returns. Nevertheless, she warned all investors to ensure that individuals soliciting money have appropriate licenses and audited financial statements. “All investors – especially when they are dealing with their retirement savings – must exercise due caution before turning over money even to long-time friends or else what appears to be a safe harbor might turn into a ship wreck.”

FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric S. Birnbaum commented, “Mr. Sharma's short term gains have resulted in long term losses for his victims. This case serves as a reminder to ask questions and conduct your own due diligence before investing your hard earned money with any broker or investment fund.” The defendant is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge John A. Houston on August 24, 2015 at 8:30 a.m.

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: 15cr1396 Sunil Sharma Age: 68 Carlsbad, California   CHARGES

Wire Fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343.
Maximum Penalties: 20 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine or twice the pecuniary gain or loss resulting from the offense, restitution.

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation

SAN DIEGO – Former Chief Financial Officer Nancy Johnson and Accounts Payable Clerk Tamara Azizov pled guilty today and admitted using their positions in entirely separate schemes to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars from the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center (“JCC”) located in La Jolla, California.

Johnson served as the JCC’s Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”) from April 1991 to April 2014, overseeing its $13 million annual budget. As CFO, Johnson had access to the JCC’s bank accounts, credit card accounts, and bookkeeping records. Johnson used her access (between 2008 and April 2014) to misappropriate $412,289.64, which she used for a variety of purchases including: a stay at the Grand Wailea Resort in Maui; airfare to the Bahamas; Jimmy Choo footwear; tickets to the ESPN X Games; and dinners at upscale eateries such Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse.

As detailed in Court, at the same time Johnson was embezzling funds to pay for lavish vacations and designer clothing, she claimed that the JCC could not afford the numerous programs and activities offered to the community. In fact, Johnson ordered JCC department heads to reduce expenses to make up for the hundreds of thousands of dollars she was siphoning off from the JCC coffers. Moreover, due in part to the embezzlement, the JCC was forced to cut personnel in order to balance its budget.

Azizov served as an Accounts Payable Clerk from June 1989 to May 2014. In this position, she also had access to the JCC’s bank accounts, credit card accounts, and bookkeeping records. In an entirely separate scheme unknown to Johnson, Azizoz misappropriated $154,192.74, which she also used for a variety of purchases, including: Tom Ford sunglasses; $1,820 for sushi at Zip Fusion; Simone Pérèle lingerie; and thousands of dollars’ worth of clothing from Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, and Anthropologie. Both Johnson and Azizov continued their thefts until leaving the JCC in the spring of 2014.

Johnson and Azizov were able to carry out the embezzlement by virtue of their access to the full range of the JCC’s financial records and accounts. On most occasions, they would simply use the JCC’s credit cards to make personal purchases. In order to fool the JCC’s executive staff, auditors, and bookkeepers, they both (without knowledge of the other) falsely characterized their purchases as legitimate JCC expenses. At the end of the year, Johnson would then allocate her personal expenses to the JCC departments that had not exceeded their budgets.

The JCC was founded in 1945 and promotes the continuity and vibrancy of the Jewish community by offering social, cultural, educational, and recreational programs and services. The JCC operates, among other things, a preschool, a center for senior citizens, and one of the largest single-site summer day camps in California. Each year, thousands of community members attend the JCC’s San Diego Jewish Film Festival and the San Diego Jewish Book Fair.

As part of their pleas, Johnson and Azizov will be required to pay the JCC the funds they stole. Johnson’s next court appearance is on August 28, 2015, at 9 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Dana M. Sabraw. Azizov’s next court appearance is on Sept. 11, 2015, at 10 a.m. before Chief U.S. District Judge Barry T. Moskowitz. Johnson and Azizov will appear for sentencing as well as a hearing to determine the amount of restitution.

“San Diego has many fine charitable institutions like the JCC,” said U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy. “I will do everything in my power to insure that individuals who donate to these charities know that their funds are going to be used in an appropriate manner.” FBI Special Agent in Charge, Eric S. Birnbaum commented, "While the FBI investigates many types of fraud, when charitable organizations are victimized by those it entrusts to safeguard its assets, it is profoundly disturbing. The defendants in this case stole money intended to help children and senior citizens to indulge their lavish lifestyles. The FBI remains committed to pursuing those who abuse their position of trust to unlawfully enrich themselves."

Erick Martinez, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation said, “The defendants misappropriated funds from a local community center designed to enrich the lives of those it served. IRS Criminal Investigation will not stand still while criminals line their pockets with illicit proceeds while community programs go underfunded. The defendants have overstepped their bounds feeling entitled to these funds.”

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 15cr1446-DMS Nancy Johnson Age: 59 Escondido, California       DEFENDANT   Case Number: 15cr1447-BTM Tamara Azizov Age: 62 San Diego, California   CHARGES

Wire Fraud – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1343
Maximum penalty: 20 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

Filing a False Tax Return – Title 26, U.S.C., Section 7206(1)
Maximum penalty: 3 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation

SAN DIEGO – After a six week continuance to investigate this military record, Defendant Scotty Kamakahohie White was sentenced by Judge Jeffrey T. Miller to 30 months in federal prison and three years of supervised release for his role smuggling an Alien into the United States.

At his initial sentencing hearing on April 17, 2015, White claimed to have served with the United States Army from 2001 until 2006, and to have received an honorable discharge at the rank of Sergeant after three separate tours of duty in Iraq. At that time, Judge Miller told White that his honorable service to the United States in a time of war would be a major consideration in his favor at sentencing. After his record was questioned by the Government, the Court continued the sentencing hearing so that White’s military records could be reviewed.

As revealed today in Court, White’s military record was very different from what he had claimed. Rather than serving for five years with three total tours of duty in a war zone, White served less than 10 months. Moreover, he had not been involved in any combat operations and was discharged as a Private E-1, not a Sergeant. When confronted with his actual military record, White admitted that he actually had gone AWOL and been kicked out of the Army without ever once setting foot in Iraq. With his false statements exposed, White agreed to not oppose a 30-month sentence for his crimes.

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: 15cr0028-JM Scotty Kamakahohie White Age: 30 Parker, Arizona   CHARGES

Transportation of Aliens – Title 8, U.S.C., Section 1324(a)(1)(A)(ii)
Maximum penalty: 10 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

United States Border Patrol

SAN DIEGO – This afternoon Clemente Leon of Chula Vista pled guilty to selling hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of counterfeit World Cup soccer jerseys over the internet.

In pleading guilty, Leon admitted that in August of 2013, approximately four months after he began importing soccer jerseys and other clothing from China, he received a Cease and Desist letter from Nike. Leon acknowledged that after learning that the jerseys were counterfeit, he nonetheless continued to import the counterfeit soccer jerseys, and then placed counterfeit World Cup team patches and stencils with the names of World Cup players on the backs of the jerseys, in his garage in Chula Vista. Leon admitted that he sold the jerseys bearing the unauthorized and counterfeit trademarks throughout the United States over the internet on his own website, www.playerasfutbol.com, and via Amazon.com, and received payment via PayPal and other means. Leon agreed that the value of the counterfeit goods he sold was between $120,000 and $320,000. As part of his plea, he agreed to forfeit $50,000 of proceeds from the sale of the counterfeit jerseys.

Leon is scheduled to be sentenced on August 17, 2015, at 8:30 a.m. before the Hon. John A. Houston, United States District Court Judge.

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: 15cr1326-JAH Clemente Leon Age: 37

Chula Vista, California

  CHARGES

Importation Contrary to Law—Title 18, United States Code, Section 545
Maximum penalty:      20 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Homeland Security Investigations

SAN DIEGO – Jose Rodrigo Arechiga-Gamboa, also known as “Chino Antrax,” pleaded guilty in federal court today, admitting that as a high-level member of the Mexico-based Sinaloa Cartel he and his co-conspirators coordinated the transportation of tons of cocaine and marijuana into the United States and ordered or participated in cartel-related violence. He also agreed to forfeit $1 million in drug-trafficking proceeds.

Arechiga-Gamboa, 34, entered his plea before U.S. District Judge Dana M. Sabraw to a superseding information charging him with conspiracy to import cocaine and marijuana into the United States. Arechiga-Gamboa faces a maximum term of life in prison when he is sentenced on October 16, 2015 at 1:30 p.m. before Judge Sabraw.

According to his plea agreement, Arechiga-Gamboa admitted that the Sinaloa Cartel uses violence and threats to intimidate rival cartels, and that he himself was “a direct participant in, and communicated to other members of the Sinaloa Cartel, orders to commit acts of violence or threats of violence.”

As set forth in an indictment in a related case, the Sinaloa Cartel operates across multiple continents and countries, importing large quantities of narcotics into Mexico from Asia and Central and South American countries including Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Peru, Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras and Guatemala.

The Sinaloa Cartel moves drugs by land, air, and sea, including cargo aircraft, private aircraft, submarines and other submersible and semi-submersible vessels, container ships, supply vessels, go-fast boats, fishing vessels, buses, rail cars, tractor trailers, trucks, automobiles, and private and commercial interstate and foreign carriers, according to the indictment.

Those narcotics are then smuggled across the international border to San Diego via automobiles, tractor trailers, trucks, fishing vessels and tunnels and stored at various stash houses, safe houses and warehouses in San Diego County. The narcotics are transported and distributed from there to locations throughout the United States.

“Chino Antrax is one of the highest-ranking Sinaloa Cartel kingpins ever prosecuted in the United States,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. “While we know that the world’s most powerful drug syndicate continues to operate, we also know that it is under intense pressure after a succession of high-impact, high-profile arrests and indictments of the organization’s highest-ranking players.”

“This plea today marks the end of a reign of terror that this particular violent enforcement arm of the Sinaloa Cartel has inflicted on innocent people both in Mexico and the United States,” says DEA San Diego Special Agent in Charge William R. Sherman. “Jose Rodrigo Arechiga-Gamboa, aka: Chino Antrax was the head of this violent group under the powerful Sinaloa Cartel. Once again, DEA commits to hunting down the remaining members of this weakening cartel and making sure the public is safe from any more drug related violence.”

Arechiga-Gamboa’s arrest and guilty plea come in spite of significant efforts by him to elude capture.

A federal grand jury in San Diego returned an indictment on December 20, 2013, charging Arechiga-Gamboa with Conspiracy to Distribute Controlled Substances Intended for Importation and Conspiracy to Import Controlled Substances. That same day, the Clerk of the Court issued a sealed warrant for his arrest.

Arechiga-Gamboa was arrested on December 30, 2013, at the Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, Netherlands at the request of the United States. Arechiga-Gamboa was taken into custody at the airport traveling under a fraudulent name, “Norberto Sicairos-Garcia,” as he deplaned a KLM flight from Mexico City, Mexico to Amsterdam. The United States made formal requests for assistance from foreign authorities via a provisional arrest warrant and an Interpol Red Notice.

According to formal documents filed in support of Arechiga-Gamboa’s extradition from the Netherlands, Arechiga-Gamboa is alleged to have worked for the Sinaloa Cartel as a bodyguard and the leader of an enforcement group called “Los Antrax.” In this position, he assisted the Sinaloa Cartel by providing security for narcotics shipments and conducting enforcement operations.

According to extradition documents, Arechiga-Gamboa later rose to become one of the highest-level leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel. Despite traveling under a fraudulent Mexican passport by assuming the identity of a deceased individual, undergoing significant plastic surgery and attempting to alter his fingerprints, U.S. law enforcement officials were able to confirm Arechiga-Gamboa’s identity through forensic techniques. A Dutch Court considered the extradition request and, on May 28, 2014, ordered that Arechiga-Gamboa be extradited to the United States to stand trial on the narcotics trafficking offenses. Arechiga-Gamboa was extradited to the United States on July 11, 2014 and arrived at San Diego International airport under heavy security.

The investigation and prosecution of Arechiga-Gamboa was conducted by agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration in San Diego, along with federal law enforcement from numerous other agencies. It was also conducted in close coordination with DEA agents in Chicago and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois.

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 13-CR-4517-DMS Jose Rodrigo Arechiga-Gamboa, aka “Chino Antrax,”
aka “Norberto Sicairos-Garcia” Age: 34     CHARGES

Conspiracy to Import 5 kilograms and more of cocaine and 1,000 kilograms and more of marijuana into the United States, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 952, 960 and 963.

Maximum Penalties: Life in prison and a mandatory minimum of 10 years; a maximum $10 million fine; forfeiture of all property constituting or derived from proceeds obtained as a result of the violation and all property used or intended to be used to commit the violation.

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Drug Enforcement Administration
Customs and Border Protection Office of Field Operations
Customs and Border Protection Office of Border Patrol
Internal Revenue Service
United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Illinois
Department of Treasury, Office of Foreign Asset Control
Department of Justice, Office of International Affairs
Interpol

SAN DIEGO – Across Town Movers, a San Diego-based storage company, and its owner, Daniel E. Homan, have agreed to pay nearly $170,000 to resolve allegations by the Department of Justice that it unlawfully sold U.S. Navy service members’ stored goods.

The settlement resolves a lawsuit filed in March by the U.S. Attorneys’ Office for the Southern District of California and the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. The lawsuit alleged that Across Town Movers had a practice of selling active-duty service members’ storage lots without obtaining necessary court orders.

The lawsuit was filed under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (“SCRA”), which protects the rights of service members while on active duty by suspending or modifying certain civil obligations. Under the SCRA, a storage lien may not be enforced against service members during, or 90 days subsequent to, their period of military service without a court order.

Among the aggrieved service members is Master Chief Petty Officer Thomas E. Ward, now retired, who will receive $150,000 as compensation for his auctioned personal property. A long-time car enthusiast and 30-year veteran, Master Chief Ward placed his valuable car parts and many household items into storage when he was deployed overseas. He entrusted Across Town Movers to keep his personal property safe until he returned to his home in San Diego. Just before completing his final tour, Master Chief Ward learned that Across Town Movers had auctioned all of his stored personal property, including rare, vintage car parts, without providing any notice or obtaining a court order. Moreover, Across Town Movers allegedly continued to collect payment of storage fees from the government after it sold Master Chief Ward’s goods.

“Federal law protects our military service members and their dependents from businesses taking certain adverse actions against them. These protections permit service members to devote their full attention to defending the United States,” said U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy. “While Master Chief Ward was overseas focusing on defending our country, he understandably did not expect the very company paid to safeguard his valuable property to instead auction it off in his absence. Across Town Movers’ $150,000 payment provides Master Chief Ward the opportunity to repurchase his lost goods.”

“This settlement will not only provide relief to ten service members, but also will ensure that business practices change to better protect others,” said Acting Associate Attorney General Stuart F. Delery. “I want to thank the United States Navy for referring this case to the Department of Justice. I’m hopeful that through the department’s newly created Servicemembers and Veterans Initiative, we will continue to build on our strong ties with federal partners and protect the rights of all the brave men and women who serve in our Armed Forces.”

“We hope that this consent order will send a clear message to all storage companies that before they auction off anyone’s belongings, they should check the Defense Department’s military database and their own files to see if the customer is protected by the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division. “The Department of Justice is committed to protecting the rights of the men and women who serve in our Armed Forces, and we will continue to devote time and resources to make sure that they are given the legal protections they deserve.”

Across Town Movers must also compensate other aggrieved service members for unlawfully auctioning their goods.

Furthermore, as part of the settlement, a consent order has been entered that requires Across Town Movers to make systemic changes to its business practices, including developing new policies and procedures consistent with the SCRA and providing SCRA training to its employees. Across Town Movers is enjoined from engaging in future SCRA violations.

A consent order incorporating the terms of this settlement was issued in the Southern District of California. This matter resulted from a referral to the Justice Department by the U.S. Navy.

Service members and their dependents who believe that their SCRA rights have been violated should contact the nearest Armed Forces Legal Assistance Program office. Office locations may be found at http://legalassistance.law.af.mil/content/locator.php. Additional information on the Justice Department’s enforcement of the SCRA and other laws protecting servicemembers is available at www.servicemembers.gov.

This matter is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dylan M. Aste and Leslie M. Gardner, and an attorney from the Civil Rights Division.

SAN DIEGO – U.S. Supervisory Border Patrol Agent Armando Gonzalez pleaded guilty in federal court today to one count of making a false statement to a federal officer and seven counts of video voyeurism, admitting that he placed a hidden camera in a floor drain of the women’s restroom at the Chula Vista Border Patrol station to capture images of female private parts.

Gonzalez, a supervisor, also admitted that when Border Patrol superiors confronted him about the camera, he lied to cover up his crimes, saying that he’d placed the camera in the bathroom to conduct a drug investigation of one of his female employees. Gonzalez made the admissions in a hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jill L. Burkhardt. Sentencing is scheduled for August 17, 2015 at 9 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Roger T. Benitez.

According to the plea agreement, Gonzalez acknowledged that he captured video images of the unclothed private parts of seven women – all federal employees - who used the bathroom between July 24, 2013 and April 11, 2014. The videos were as short as 24 seconds and as long as nine minutes, 17 seconds.

The defendant saved the video images from those instances, and dozens of others, on an SD card he kept hidden at his workplace, the plea agreement said. Gonzalez admitted that after the hidden camera was discovered, he destroyed or discarded the hard drive from the Apple MacBook used to edit the videos before law enforcement had a chance to execute a search warrant at his home.

“These crimes are an assault on the dignity of victims who are left to feel violated, powerless, anxious and unsafe,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. “It will always be a priority to protect our federal employees and the public from such despicable invasions of privacy.”

“The conduct in this case involves a violation of trust and common decency committed against the victims in this case,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge, Eric S. Birnbaum. “We believe that today's plea is the first step in bringing justice and a sense of closure to the victims in this case.”

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 15cr0806-BEN Armando Gonzalez Age: 46 El Cajon, California   CHARGES

One Count, False Statements to a Federal Officer, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1001
Maximum Penalty: Five years in prison, $250,000 fine

Seven Counts, Video Voyeurism, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1801
Maximum Penalty: One year in prison, per count, and $100,000 fine per count

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Department of Homeland Security
San Diego Police Department

SAN DIEGO – Clay Bautista-Marquez of Bonsall pleaded guilty in federal court this morning to a firearms trafficking violation, admitting that he and a co-conspirator sold six untraceable AR-15-style semi-automatic rifles for almost $6,000, and that the guns had been built from unfinished lower receivers.

According to his plea agreement, Bautista-Marquez pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jill L. Burkhardt to engaging in the business of manufacturing and dealing in firearms and illegally possessing three rifles and a shotgun to protect his marijuana manufacturing and trafficking operation.

Bautista-Marquez is scheduled to be sentenced before U.S. District Judge William Q. Hayes on August 31, 2015 at 9 a.m.

The case stemmed from an investigation that resulted in the seizure of more than 50 firearms and culminated in March with the arrests of Bautista-Marquez and four other men. Christian Romero, Matthew Nutt and Ruben Tovar-Ordonez were charged with participating in a scheme to manufacture and traffic in firearms. Michael Martin was charged with possession of a firearm – specifically two silencers - not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.

Romero was the first to plead guilty on April 28, 2015. In his plea agreement, Romero admitted to manufacturing and selling six AR-15 type semi-automatic rifles bearing no manufacturer’s markings or serial numbers and built from unfinished lower receivers between the dates of December 8, 2014, and March 6, 2015. Like Bautista-Marquez, Romero did not have a license to manufacture or deal in firearms at the time. Romero is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge William Q. Hayes on July 20, 2015.

Cases of the remaining defendants are pending.

During the searches and throughout the investigation, federal agents seized more than 50 firearms, including silencers, a short-barreled shotgun, unfinished lower receivers and AR-15-style homemade assault rifles. Some of the firearms were stolen, or had obliterated serial numbers, or both. Agents also found thousands of rounds of ammunition and numerous unfinished lower receivers commonly known as ULRs.

As part of his plea agreement, Bautista-Marquez has agreed to forfeit to the government three rifles, a shotgun and ammunition and $3,860, all of which were seized during searches.

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 14cr3360 Clay Bautista-Marquez Age: 31 Bonsall, California   CHARGES

Engaging in the Business of Dealing in Firearms without a License, in violation of 18 USC 922(a)(1)(A)
Maximum Penalties: Five years imprisonment, a fine of not more than $250,000, and a term of supervised release of not more than 3 years.

Possession of Firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, in violation of Title 18, USC 924(c)(1)(A). Maximum Penalties: Life in prison, with a mandatory minimum 5 years in prison and maximum fine of $250,000 fine

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 15mj0721 *Christian Romero Age: 22 Bonsall, California       CHARGES

Engaging in the Business of Dealing in Firearms without a License, in violation of 18 USC 922(a)(1)(A)

Maximum Penalties: Five years imprisonment, a fine of not more than $250,000, and a term of supervised release of not more than 3 years.

*Romero has pleaded guilty

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 15mj0740 Matthew Nutt Age: 29 Escondido, California       CHARGES

Engaging in the Business of Dealing in Firearms without a License, in violation of 18 USC 922(a)(1)(A)

Maximum Penalties: Five years imprisonment, a fine of not more than $250,000, and a term of supervised release of not more than 3 years.

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 14cr3360 Ruben Tovar-Ordonez Age: 45 Temecula, California       CHARGES

Unlawful Dealing in Firearms, in violation of18 USC 922(a)(1)(A). Maximum Penalties Five years imprisonment, a fine of not more than $250,000, and a term of supervised release of not more than 3 years.

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DEFENDANT   Case Number: 15mj0741 Michael Martin Age: 38 Bonsall, California       CHARGES

Possession of a Firearm not Registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, 26 U.S.C. § 5861(d). Maximum Penalties: Ten years in prison, $10,000 fine.

INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Drug Enforcement Administration
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
Internal Revenue Service
Bureau of Land Management
San Diego Police Department
Immigration and Customs Enforcement –Enforcement and Removal Operations
United States Marshal’s Service
San Diego Sheriff’s Department

*A complaint or indictment are not evidence that the defendants committed the crimes charged. The defendants are presumed innocent until the Government meets its burden in court of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

SAN DIEGO – Los Angeles police Officer Carlos Curiel Quezada, Jr., and his girlfriend, Angelica Godinez, were indicted by a federal grand jury today on charges that they attempted to smuggle a Mexican citizen into the United States in the trunk of Quezada’s car at the Otay Mesa border crossing in March.

According to court documents, Quezada drove his 2014 Nissan Juke, with Godinez as the front seat passenger, into the United States through the Otay Mesa Port of Entry on March 14, 2015, at about 6:30 p.m. They presented their U.S. passports and told a Customs and Border Protection Officer they had nothing to declare. The officer decided to refer them aside for a more intensive inspection.

During the inspection, officers examined the car with the Z-Portal, a non-intrusive imaging device similar to an X-ray, and detected something unusual in the rear cargo area of the vehicle. Antanasio Perez Avalos, a 26-year-old Mexican national, was found in a compartment in the spare-tire area. All three individuals were then taken into custody and interviewed.

Two days later, Quezada and Godinez were charged in a one-count complaint with Bringing in Illegal Aliens without Presentation. On March 19, 2015, the government’s motion to dismiss the complaint, without prejudice, was granted.

The pair was indicted by a federal grand jury today on the same charge - Bringing in Illegal Aliens without Presentation. Quezada is scheduled to be arraigned on the indictment May 7 at 2:00 p.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge William Gallo and Godinez on May 12 at 9:00 am before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara L. Major.

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: Carlos Curiel Quezada Jr. Age: 34 Los Angeles, California Angelica Godinez Age: 31     CHARGES

Bringing in Illegal Aliens without Presentation – Title 8 United States Code Sec. 1324(a)(2)(B)(iii)
Maximum penalty: 10 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

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

SAN DIEGO – James Yiu Lee, a resident of La Jolla, was sentenced today to 78 months in prison for fraud arising from the loss of clients’ funds through on-line trading.

Lee solicited clients through a string of false representations, including that he was a wealthy attorney with numerous graduate degrees who had significant trading experience. Among other things, Lee failed to disclose that he had previously been convicted of defrauding investors. As part of his sentence, U.S. District Court Judge Roger T. Benitez ordered Lee to repay over $10.5 million in losses to his former clients.

Lee pleaded guilty to obstructing justice in October 2014, at which time he admitted to hiding clients’ funds in shell corporation accounts and using a series of elaborate transactions to avoid having to pay restitution he owed the United States from his previous felony conviction. Lee was previously convicted of defrauding investors and embezzling from their pension funds in December 1997 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. For the prior offense, Lee was sentenced to 30 months in custody and ordered to pay $2.88 million in restitution. After his release from custody, Lee began a new scheme in San Diego by creating corporations in the names of other persons in order to prevent the United States from finding and collecting his assets. To date, Lee has paid less than $30,000 of the previously-ordered restitution.

By 2009, Lee actively sought clients’ funds for on-line trading by falsely claiming he was a CPA who had Ph.D., J.D., and M.B.A. degrees. Lee also lied about his professional trading experience and his ability to cover potential losses -- assuring clients he could and would cover 50% of any realized losses. In exchange, Lee instructed clients to send management fees and 50% of realized profits to bank accounts opened in the name of his shell corporations, including San Diego-based ELX Int., Inc. (“ELX”), which intentionally failed to list Lee as a corporate officer or on its bank account. Once the assets were under his control, Lee transferred them to other shell accounts under his control and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on personal expenses, including lavish international trips and credit card bills for high-end department stores.

By January 2011, Lee’s trading activity created significant realized losses for his various clients. Rather than pay clients for 50% of the losses as promised, Lee restructured billing invoices to disguise the losses. To compound the lies, he then fraudulently billed his clients for non-existent gains. Several victims reported losing retirement funds and life savings as a consequence of accepting Lee’s misrepresentations.

United States Attorney Laura Duffy said, “Although the significant custodial sentenced imposed on the defendant for his brazen and calculated crime may be of little compensation to his victims who lost millions, he will be unable to continue his fraudulent scheme to the detriment of others. It is unfortunate that Mr. Lee did not learn his lesson after his first fraud conviction. He will now have a significant period to reflect on the victims whose savings hard-earned money he squandered.”

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DEFENDANT     James Yiu Lee Age: 59     SUMMARY OF CHARGES   Case Number: 14CR2937-BEN Obstruction of Justice, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1503 
Maximum penalty: 10 years of custody; $250,000 Fine

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      DEFENDANT     James Yiu Lee Age: 59     SUMMARY OF PREVIOUS CHARGES   Case Number: 95CROO41-MMC-1 (NDCA) Wire Fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343) & Pension Embezzlement (18 U.S.C. § 664)   INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation

SAN DIEGO – In a lawsuit unsealed in federal court today, five ambulance companies have entered into civil settlements with the Department of Justice requiring them to collectively pay more than $11.5 million in payments to the United States to resolve kickback allegations.

The settling defendants include three Orange-County based companies - Pacific Ambulance, Inc. and Bowers Companies, Inc., (both of which were subsequently acquired by Rural/Metro Corporation after the alleged misconduct occurred) and Care Ambulance Service, Inc.; and two San Diego-based companies - Balboa Ambulance Service, Inc., and E.R. Ambulance, Inc.

The settlements resolve allegations that the defendants engaged in so-called “swapping” kickback schemes by providing deeply discounted – and often below cost – ambulance services to hospitals and/or skilled nursing facilities in exchange for exclusive rights to the facilities’ more lucrative Medicare patient referrals. Such swapping arrangements can lead to overutilization of medical services and inflated charges to the Medicare program. The government alleges that the arrangements in this case resulted in false claims for Medicare Part B transports which in essence subsidized the discounted trips.

The Anti-Kickback Statute prohibits payment arrangements that are intended to influence health care referrals. The statute generally prohibits anyone from offering, paying, soliciting or receiving remuneration to induce referrals of items or services covered by federal health care programs, including Medicare.

“It is a priority of this office to combat abuses that drive up the cost of health care and waste taxpayer dollars,” said Laura E. Duffy, United States Attorney for the Southern District of California. “We will continue to work closely with our investigative partners to pursue those who refuse to play by the rules and offer kickbacks to induce health care referrals.”

The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

“Today’s settlements resolve a thorough investigation of the practices by ambulance companies that offered significant discount services to facilities in exchange for patient referrals,” said Glenn R. Ferry, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) Los Angeles Region. “The OIG takes this type of activity very seriously and welcomes the public’s assistance in identifying any health care businesses that engage in similar types of schemes.”

“Protecting the integrity of the Medicare program so that it can continue to provide health care for its patients is a priority of the FBI,” commented San Diego FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric S. Birnbaum. “Today’s settlements reaffirm the FBI’s commitment to working with our partners and integrating investigative tools with intelligence in the effort to return fraudulently obtained money to the Medicare program.”

These settlements resolve a False Claims Act lawsuit filed in the Southern District of California by Kelvin Carlisle, a competitor in the San Diego, Orange and Los Angeles County ambulance marketplaces. The whistleblower or qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act permit the whistleblower (or relator) to recover a portion of the proceeds obtained by the federal government. As part of the resolution of the suit, Mr. Carlisle will receive in excess of $1.7 million.

These settlements illustrate the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $24 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $15.3 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.

Anyone suspecting Medicare fraud, waste, or abuse is asked to contact the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services at oig.hhs.gov/report-fraud, by calling 1-800-HHS-TIPS, or writing to the Office Inspector General, U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Attn: Hotline, P.O. Box 23489, Washington, DC 20026.

SAN DIEGO – Two men pleaded guilty in federal court this week to trafficking children for commercial sex.

On Tuesday, Darius Chambers, 19, admitted before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen S. Crawford that he trafficked two girls – ages 16 and 17 – for commercial sex. Chambers admitted that, knowing the victims were underage and engaged in prostitution, he collected the proceeds of acts of commercial sex from one victim and provided hotel rooms, cellular telephones, and email accounts for both victims to use for commercial sex. Chambers also admitted that he offered to rent one of his victims to a third trafficker for $100, in order to train that individual’s minor victim in the ways of prostitution.

On Thursday, Terrance Martel Soda, 20, pleaded guilty before Judge Mitchell D. Dembin to trafficking a fifteen-year old girl for commercial sex, knowing that she was a minor. Specifically, Soda admitted that he provided hotel rooms for the victim to use for commercial sex and that he gave her a cell phone, an email account, and online advertisements to recruit customers.

Soda also admitted providing hotel rooms for two additional underage girls for purposes of commercial sex, and that some of the proceeds of those commercial sex acts would go to Lamar Moore. Moore pleaded guilty in October 2014 to trafficking a 17 year-old for commercial sex and aiding and abetting in the trafficking of a 15-year old for commercial sex.

Soda and Chambers are scheduled to be sentenced on July 31, 2015 at 9:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Janis L. Sammartino.

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: Terrance Martel Soda Age: 20 San Diego, California Darius Chambers Age: 19 San Diego, California   CHARGES

Trafficking children for commercial sex, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1591.
Maximum Penalties: Life, mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison.

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

San Diego Police Department
San Diego Sheriff’s Department

SAN DIEGO - Two leaders and one major bookmaker for an international gambling ring pleaded guilty today to a racketeering conspiracy that took millions of dollars in illegal sports wagers over the last decade in the San Diego and Los Angeles areas. Brothers Jan Harald Portocarrero and Erik Portocarrero admitted operating for years an internet and telephone gambling enterprise called “Macho Sports,” which engaged in illegal activities on nearly a daily basis from its headquarters in Lima, Peru, and throughout Southern California. Joseph Barrios, a bookmaker for Macho Sports, also pleaded guilty today and admitted that he recruited and managed various sub-bookies for the racketeering enterprise, directing the payment of winnings and collection of gambling debts – oftentimes using threats of force. The defendants also agreed to forfeit nearly $12 million in cash, real property and other assets seized from the illegal enterprise.

According to court documents, the FBI investigation of Macho Sports began in 2011, and employed wiretaps and undercover agents to infiltrate the organization and uncover the defendants’ illegal gambling and extortionate debt collection activities. Nearly two years ago, in coordinated law enforcement actions in Norway, Los Angeles, and San Diego, FBI agents and Norwegian police arrested 18 members of Macho Sports, and seized nearly $12 million in illegal assets. Macho Sports’ leaders, Jan Harald Portocarrero and Erik Portocarrero, were both arrested in June 2013, although they were half a world apart – Jan Portocarrero surrendered to authorities in Los Angeles, California, and Erik Portocarrero was arrested in Oslo, Norway. For the next 22 months Erik Portocarrero fought his extradition from Norway, but that legal battle ended on Wednesday when the Kingdom of Norway extradited him to the United States. Today, the Portocarreros and Barrios pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Janis L. Sammartino, who set sentencing hearings for Jan and Erik Portcarrero on August 7, 2015, and for Joseph Barrios on September 11, 2015. Erik Portcarrero also appeared today before Magistrate Judge Ruben B. Brooks, who denied his request for bond.

According to the superseding indictment and admissions in court, Jan Portocarrero and Erik Portocarrero started their illegal gambling business shortly after the 1995 Super Bowl. Although originally from California, the Portocarrero brothers set up Macho Sports in Peru after being investigated for gambling crimes in the Los Angeles area. Using the Internet and toll-free telephone lines, Macho Sports accepted high-stakes sports bets from customers throughout California. The organization ensured the prompt payment of gambling debts through, among other means, intimidation and a violent reputation as to its treatment of delinquent customers. The co¬ conspirators avoided detection by laundering their illegal proceeds and maintaining a company headquarters and physical platform outside the United States. The Portocarreros employed managers in Peru to oversee the enterprise’s telephone and internet operations, resolve disputes and adjust customers’ lines of credit. The organization also used teams of bookies—such as Amir Mokayef of La Jolla, California (who operated primarily in the San Diego area) and Joseph Barrios (who operated primarily in the Los Angeles area)—to recruit customers, pay off winning bets, and collect losing bets. Mokayef and Barrios, in turn, managed their own network of “sub-bookies” to recruit customers and collect payments. The enterprise also used “runners,” who dealt directly with customers and maintained thousands (and sometimes millions) of dollars in cash to handle customer payments and collections. Millions of dollars from these “banks” – which the conspirators kept in their homes and safe deposit boxes – were seized by authorities as part of the investigation.

The United States continues to pursue charges and forfeitures against Macho Sports International Corporation – the Panamanian entity allegedly used by the enterprise to conduct and legitimize its illegal gambling operation.

United States Attorney Duffy commented, “Although technology has made internet gambling more accessible, it is a mistake for criminals to believe that they can hide behind computer terminals in foreign countries. The United States and our international partners will use all means necessary to combat and disrupt such crimes, which too often are characterized by organized criminals, shady bookies, and actual acts of violence.

FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric S. Birnbaum commented, “Today’s convictions mark the end of a sophisticated international gambling criminal enterprise that preyed upon the gambling addiction of its customers. It also reaffirms the FBI’s commitment to working with our domestic and international law enforcement partners, integrating intelligence into our criminal investigations and dismantling sophisticated criminal enterprises such as Macho Sports.”

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: 13CR2196-JLS Jan Harald Portocarrero (1) Age: 42 Los Angeles, California Erik Portocarrero (2) Age: 44 Oslo, Norway Joseph Barrios (4) Age: 49 Marina Del Rey, California   CHARGES

Count 1:         Conspiracy to Conduct Racketeering Enterprise (RICO Conspiracy), in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1962(d).

Maximum penalties: 20 years in prison, 3 years’ supervised release, $250,000 fine, and forfeiture of all proceeds generated from operating the racketeering enterprise.

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation

SAN DIEGO – Two defendants were sentenced today for their roles in defrauding more than 3,000 homeowners across the nation through a sham law firm in Oceanside, California.

Dean Gregory Chandler, the former President, Chief Executive Officer, and attorney for the company, 1st American Law Center, was sentenced to 144 months. Michael Eccles, a manager in the company’s telemarketing call center, was sentenced to 60 months.

The two defendants were each convicted of multiple felony counts in November 2014, after a three-week jury trial. Chandler was convicted of 8 felony counts: three counts of mail fraud, three counts of wire fraud, and one count of conspiracy and money laundering. Eccles was convicted of five counts: conspiracy and two counts each of mail fraud and wire fraud.

The 1st American Law Center Scheme
According to evidence presented at trial, Chandler created 1st American Law Center in 2009 in partnership with convicted drug trafficker Gary Bobel (who has been separately convicted and sentenced for his role in the scheme). Chandler arranged to have Bobel oversee the call center and its teams of telemarketers, who pitched loan modification services on behalf of the law center. Those telemarketers, including Eccles, promised potential clients that a panel of attorneys would pre-screen applicants’ financial information to ensure that only the most qualified applicants would be approved as clients of the law firm; that a team of attorneys would negotiate with clients’ mortgage lenders; that those attorneys would draft all documents to be submitted to the mortgage lenders; that the “attorney retainer fee,” which averaged $3,495, would be preserved in an attorney-client trust account until the client was satisfied; and that clients were protected by a money-back guarantee.

As presented at trial, Michael Eccles was promoted to manager of the call center in December 2009, and he took advantage of the new position to script additional lies for the telemarketers to use with clients, including that the law firm had been in business since 1992; that they had been successfully modifying loans for over 20 years; that they had helped over a hundred thousand homeowners; and that it took attorneys on average 200 hours to complete a successful loan modification – all to suggest that the clients could take hope and comfort in the expertise and established success of the “law firm” they had hired. The telemarketers even persuaded homeowners to pay the company=s fees instead of using their limited funds to stay current on their mortgage payments.

Witness testimony and documentary evidence at trial proved that Chandler had almost no role in the loan modification process, and that nearly all of the statements made by telemarketers to the clients were lies. Chandler, the attorney, did not pre-screen all of the applications or negotiate with lenders. Rather than successfully modifying 98% of their client’s mortgages, as they claimed, the firm failed to modify three out of every four loans. Instead of keeping clients’ payments in an attorney trust account, they were funneled into various other accounts to pay co-schemers, sales commissions, and company expenses. Instead of having funds available to deliver on its money-back guarantee, the firm failed to provide refunds to untold numbers of clients who requested them.

For his part, Chandler served as the face of the law firm, and the firm’s commercial, website, and brochure featured Chandler’s name, image, and state bar license number. Chandler reviewed telemarketer call scripts submitted to him for approval, and also listened in real time and on recordings to telemarketer calls to clients.

Chandler Lied While Trying to Stay One Step Ahead of the Feds
According to evidence at trial, however, Chandler’s chief role was to mislead regulatory and enforcement agencies that threatened the law firm’s profitable operations. In that capacity, in October 2009 Chandler lied under oath in a sworn declaration to an Assistant Attorney General at the California Department of Justice. Multiple witnesses testified that the statements in Chandler’s declaration were false. And when the constant customer complaints threatened the company’s bottom line, Chandler also lied repeatedly to the Better Business Bureau in efforts to try to inflate the law center’s sagging ratings. For his role in the scheme, Chandler earned over $275,000 in about a 14-month period. In July 2010, after the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service executed a search warrant at his law firm, Chandler also drained one of the firm’s bank accounts of $16,500 and used it for his own benefit, instead of to pay employees or refund victims. This transaction was the basis of the money laundering charge.

Victims Speak
During the trial, multiple victims of the defendants’ fraudulent scheme came from across the country to testify about their experiences. For example, a couple from Evansville, Indiana, both in their 70s, related how they contacted 1st American Law Center to avoid losing the home where they had spent 27 years raising a family, which was specially modified to accommodate their paraplegic son’s wheelchair. Due to medical problems, which forced the husband to retire as an auto mechanic, the couple fell behind on their payments. The couple put their faith in the promise that an attorney would negotiate with their lender. They also counted on the money-back guarantee if the firm was unsuccessful. The couple ultimately lost their home, and their money.

With today’s sentencings, thirteen individuals have now been sentenced as a result of the fraudulent operation of 1st American Law Center. Gary Bobel received a sentence of 92 months. Telemarketer Shelveen Singh, who operated out of Riverside, was sentenced to 110 months. Other convicted telemarketers include Travis Iverson, Scott Spencer, Johnny Hearn, Anthony Calandriello, Mark Spencer, and Roger Jones. Information Technology Director Steven Gersztyn was convicted and sentenced for lying to federal agents during the investigation of the case, and Amy Hintz and Sarah Grimm were each convicted of theft of government property for stealing documents while making copies of evidence in the FBI’s custody.

Federal Law Enforcement Condemns Loan Modification Schemers
United States Attorney Laura E. Duffy commented, “The real tragedy of this case is that the defendants chose to profit from the suffering of others. In difficult economic times, they exploited a particularly vulnerable segment of our population—homeowners who were desperately trying to make ends meet and stay in their homes.”

“Mr. Chandler and Mr. Eccles misused and abused their positions of trust to prey upon those who were financially vulnerable and desperate to save their homes,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric S. Birnbaum. “The sentences imposed today reaffirm our commitment to hold accountable the guilty who profit by taking advantage of vulnerable people.”

“The defendants used a slew of lies to sell their loan modification services and obtain money from distressed homeowners throughout the United States,” said IRS Criminal Investigation’s Special Agent in Charge Erick Martinez. “Loan modification scams thrived for a time, but that time is gone, and as the sentences imposed today show, it’s time for those responsible to face judgment.”

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: 12CR4031-BEN Dean Gregory Chandler Age: 50 Fallbrook, California Michael Eccles Age: 35 Vista, California   CHARGES

Defendant Chandler was convicted of Counts 1-4 and 6-8.

Defendant Eccles was convicted of Counts 1, 3-4, 6 and 7.

Count 1: Conspiracy to commit mail fraud or wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1349.
Maximum Penalties: 20 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine or twice the pecuniary gain or loss resulting from the offense, $100 special assessment, restitution.

Counts 2-4: Mail Fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1341.
Maximum Penalties: 20 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine or twice the pecuniary gain or loss resulting from the offense, $100 special assessment, restitution.

Counts 6-7: Wire Fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343.
Maximum Penalties: 20 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine or twice the pecuniary gain or loss resulting from the offense, $100 special assessment, restitution.

Count 8: Money Laundering, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1957.
Maximum Penalties: 10 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine or twice the pecuniary gain or loss resulting from the offense, $100 special assessment, restitution.

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation

On April 23, 2015, a federal jury convicted a naturalized U.S. citizen and former Iranian national of violations of U.S. export and money laundering laws, arising from his involvement in a scheme to purchase marine navigation equipment and military electronic equipment for illegal export to, and end-use in, Iran.

The defendant, Arash Ghahreman, of Staten Island, New York, was convicted of: (1) attempted export to Iran, and conspiracy to do the same, in violation of the Iran Trade Embargo (formerly known as the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations); (2) smuggling goods from the United States, and conspiracy to the same; and (3) aiding and abetting the transfer of money from Dubai to the United States, in support of an illegal export activity, and conspiracy to do the same. The case involved a seven-day jury trial, beginning on April 13, 2015, and ending on April 23, 2015, when the jury returned a guilty verdict on seven counts of a nine-count indictment, after one day of deliberation. The jury was unable to reach a verdict on the two remaining two counts involving the attempted exportation and smuggling of a fiber optic gyrocompass, used in both military and civilian marine navigation applications.

The evidence presented at trial showed that Ghahreman acted an agent of an Iranian procurement network which used a front company in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (“UAE”), to acquire U.S. goods and technologies for illegal transshipment to, and end-use in, Iran. Codefendant Koorush Taherkhani (“Taherkhani”), an Iranian national and resident, was the managing director and founder of that front company, codefendant TIG Marine Engineering Services (“TIG Marine”). Because of his German nationality, codefendant Ergun Yildiz, a resident of UAE, was hired by Taherkhani to be the “face” of the front company, as the President/CEO of TIG Marine. Before Ghahreman immigrated to the U.S. in 2007, Ghahreman and Taherkhani had been friends and dorm mates at an Iranian University, where each received a degree in marine engineering. Upon graduation, both Ghahreman and Taherkhani worked as engineers for various Iranian shipping companies, including the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines and its subsidiaries. After immigrating to the United States, Ghahreman was employed by various shipyards in the U.S., and became a naturalized U.S. citizen. Because of his employment and citizenship status, Ghahreman was well placed to act as an agent of the illegal procurement network.

From December 2012, through June 17, 2013, Ghahreman and his codefendants negotiated, via email, text, telephone and meetings, with Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”) and Defense Criminal Investigative Service (“DCIS”) undercover agents to purchase marine navigation components (fiber optic gyrocompasses), military electronic components (electron tubes), and other U.S. technology for illegal export to, and/or end-use in, Iran. The undercover agents were posing as brokers of U.S. goods and technology, willing to sell U.S. goods to the defendants for end-use in Iran. Ultimately, as a result of these negotiations, Ghahreman and his codefendants agreed to purchase four (4) Navigat-2100 fiber optic gyrocompasses and fifty (50) Y-690 units (electron tubes). Pursuant to that agreement, Ghahreman and his codefendants wired approximately $60,000 in partial payment for the gyrocompasses and electron tubes from a bank in Dubai to the undercover agents’ bank account. Ultimately, on June 17, 2013, HSI agents arrested Ghahreman and Yildiz after they traveled to the U.S. and took partial delivery of one gyrocompass and two electron tubes and attempted to ship the items indirectly to Iran, via third countries.

Defendant Ghahreman is scheduled to be sentenced on July 17, 2015, before the Honorable Dana M. Sabraw. Codefendant Ergun Yildiz previously pled guilty to conspiracy to export to Iran on October 9, 2014, and is scheduled to be sentenced on May 8, 2015, before Judge Sabraw. Codefendant Taherkhani, an Iranian national and resident, remains a fugitive. Codefendant TIG Marine is a Dubai, UAE company.

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DEFENDANTS   Case Number: 13cr4228-DMS Arash Ghahreman Age: 45 Staten Island, New York Ergun Yildiz Age: 35 Dubai, UAE Koorush Taherkhani   Age: 43 Iran

TIG Marine, a UAE company

      CHARGES

Count 1:  Conspiracy to Export to Embargoed Country (Iran), 50 U.S.C. §§ 1702 and 1705; 31 C.F.R. §§ 560.203 and 560.204 - Maximum penalties: 20 years in prison, $1,000,000 fine, term of supervised release of three years, and $100 special assessment.  (defendant Ghahreman and Yildiz guilty on Count One.)

Counts 3 and 4:  Attempted Export to Embargoed Country (Iran), 50 U.S.C. §§ 1702 and 1705; 31 C.F.R. § 560.204 - Maximum penalties (per count): 20 years in prison, $1,000,000 fine, term of supervised release of three years, and $100 special assessment.  (Defendant Ghahreman guilty on Count 4; Government dismissed Count 3 after jury unable to reach verdict)

Count 2:  Conspiracy to Smuggle Goods from the United States, 18 U.S.C. '' 371 and 554 - Maximum penalty: Five years in prison, $250,000 fine, term of supervised release of three years, and $100 special assessment.  (Defendant Ghahreman guilty on Count 2)

Counts 5 and 6: to Smuggle Goods from the United States, 18 U.S.C. '' 371 and 554 - Maximum penalties (per count): Ten years in prison, $250,000 fine, term of supervised release of three years, and $100 special assessment.  (Defendant Ghahreman guilty on Count 6; Government dismissed Count 5, after jury unable to reach verdict)

Count 7 - Conspiracy to Launder Monetary Instruments, 18 U.S.C. § 1956(h) - Maximum penalties: Twenty years in prison, $500,000 fine, term of supervised release of three years, and $100 special assessment.  (Defendant Ghahreman guilty on Count 7)

Counts 8 and 9 -- Laundering of Monetary Instruments, 18 U.S.C. '' 1956(a)(2)(A) - Maximum penalties (per count): Twenty years in prison, $500,000 fine, term of supervised release of three years, and $100 special assessment.  (Defendant Ghahreman guilty on Counts 8 and 9) 

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Homeland Security Investigations, Department of Homeland Security
Defense Criminal Investigative Service

SAN DIEGO – Mohamad Saeed Kodaimati of San Diego was arrested and charged in a federal criminal complaint with two counts of making false statements involving international terrorism matters, announced U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy of the Southern District of California, Special Agent in Charge Eric S. Birnbaum of the FBI’s San Diego Field Office and Assistant Attorney General for National Security John P. Carlin.

A criminal complaint was filed today in the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of California charging Saeed with two counts of providing false statements involving international terrorism. In summary, the criminal complaint alleges that during interviews with agents from the FBI and the Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) which occurred in March 2015 at the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, Turkey, Saeed made material false statements about his recent activities and associations in Syria.

According to the complaint, Saeed falsely claimed that he had never been involved in any fighting, that he had never fired his weapon at anyone, that he did not know anyone who was a member of ISIL, that he had never told anyone else that he was involved with Al-Nusrah, and that he had never worked or volunteered at a Sharia court. Evidence gathered during the investigation contradicts these and other statements Saeed made to the interviewing agents.

According to the criminal complaint, Saeed was born in Syria and became a naturalized U.S. citizen in September 2008. In December 2012, Saeed travelled from San Diego to Istanbul and was in Syria and Turkey until his return to the United States.

In March 2015, Saeed returned to the United States and was interviewed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents and the FBI. Saeed was arrested by FBI agents and members of the San Diego Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) in Rancho Bernardo, California, without incident on April 22, 2015. Saeed is scheduled to make his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen Crawford on Thursday, April 23, 2015 at 2 p.m.

The charges in this matter are the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI’s San Diego Joint Terrorism Task Force, with assistance provided by the FBI’s JTTF in Charlotte, North Carolina.

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DEFENDANT     Mohamad Saeed Kodaimati Age: 24 San Diego, California   CHARGES

False Statements Involving International Terrorism, in violation 18 U.S.C. 1001(a)(2)
Maximum penalty eight years in prison per count, $250,000 fine

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation
San Diego Joint Terrorism Task Force
Homeland Security Investigations

*An arrest itself is not evidence that the defendant committed crimes charged. The defendant is presumed innocent until the government meets its burden in court of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

SAN DIEGO – Mohamad Saeed Kodaimati of San Diego was arrested and charged in a federal criminal complaint with two counts of making false statements involving international terrorism matters, announced U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy of the Southern District of California, Special Agent in Charge Eric S. Birnbaum of the FBI’s San Diego Field Office and Assistant Attorney General for National Security John P. Carlin.

A criminal complaint was filed today in the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of California charging Saeed with two counts of providing false statements involving international terrorism. In summary, the criminal complaint alleges that during interviews with agents from the FBI and the Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) which occurred in March 2015 at the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, Turkey, Saeed made material false statements about his recent activities and associations in Syria.

According to the complaint, Saeed falsely claimed that he had never been involved in any fighting, that he had never fired his weapon at anyone, that he did not know anyone who was a member of ISIL, that he had never told anyone else that he was involved with Al-Nusrah, and that he had never worked or volunteered at a Sharia court. Evidence gathered during the investigation contradicts these and other statements Saeed made to the interviewing agents.

According to the criminal complaint, Saeed was born in Syria and became a naturalized U.S. citizen in September 2008. In December 2012, Saeed travelled from San Diego to Istanbul and was in Syria and Turkey until his return to the United States.

In March 2015, Saeed returned to the United States and was interviewed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents and the FBI. Saeed was arrested by FBI agents and members of the San Diego Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) in Rancho Bernardo, California, without incident on April 22, 2015. Saeed is scheduled to make his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen Crawford on Thursday, April 23, 2015 at 2 p.m.

The charges in this matter are the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI’s San Diego Joint Terrorism Task Force, with assistance provided by the FBI’s JTTF in Charlotte, North Carolina.

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DEFENDANT     Mohamad Saeed Kodaimati Age: 24 San Diego, California   CHARGES

False Statements Involving International Terrorism, in violation 18 U.S.C. 1001(a)(2)
Maximum penalty eight years in prison per count, $250,000 fine

  INVESTIGATING AGENCIES

Federal Bureau of Investigation
San Diego Joint Terrorism Task Force
Homeland Security Investigations

*An arrest itself is not evidence that the defendant committed crimes charged. The defendant is presumed innocent until the government meets its burden in court of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.