District of Connecticut

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JERMAINE McGEE, 35, of New Haven, was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Alfred V. Covello in Hartford to 30 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for illegally possessing a firearm.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on July 11, 2012, McGEE possessed a Bryco Arms .380 automatic handgun.  Prior to July 2012, he had sustained felony convictions in New York and Connecticut.

It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.

On June 26, 2013, McGEE pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

This matter was investigated by the New Haven Police Department and Drug Enforcement Administration.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Gustafson.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ENRIQUE LUCIANO, also known as “Pucho,” 26, of Hartford, pleaded guilty today before Senior United States District Judge Warren W. Eginton in Bridgeport to one count of escape from the custody of the Attorney General.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on May 27, 2010, LUCIANO was sentenced in Hartford federal court to 60 months of imprisonment for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.  On February 20, 2013, he was transferred to Watkinson House Residential Reentry Center, a halfway house in Hartford.  On July 11, 2013, after being denied a job search pass by Watkinson staff, LUCIANO was seen leaving the halfway house with most of his belongings.  He did not return.

On July 19, 2013, LUCIANO was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service.  At the time of his escape, LUCIANO had a projected release date of August 18, 2013.

Judge Eginton has scheduled sentencing for December 12, 2013, at which time LUCIANO faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years and a fine of up to $250,000.

LUCIANO has been detained since his arrest.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Marshals Service and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Freimann.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MARCELLUS CATCHINGS, 27, of Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford to 90  months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for illegally possessing a firearm.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on March 18, 2011, CATCHINGS engaged a Stamford Police officer in a foot chase in the vicinity of Pacific Street.  During the chase, CATCHINGS pointed a firearm at the officer, and then dropped it.  CATCHINGS was apprehended and officers recovered a Browning 9mm handgun.  The gun’s chamber contained two bullets, indicating that someone had attempted to fire it, but that it had jammed when two bullets had simultaneously entered the chamber.

Prior to March 2011, CATCHINGS had been convicted of multiple felony offenses, including first degree robbery, possession of narcotics and carrying a dangerous weapon.  It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.

CATCHINGS has been detained since his arrest.  On January 24, 2012, he pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Judge Chatigny ordered the 90-month federal sentence to be served concurrent with a 15-year state sentence CATCHINGS is currently serving.

This matter was investigated by the Stamford Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rahul Kale.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Rhonda M. Glover, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced that JOSHUA NASSI, 35, formerly of Fairfield, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 28 months of imprisonment, followed by one year of supervised release, for his role in a scheme to direct illegal campaign contributions into the campaign of a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives.  NASSI also was ordered to pay a $6,000 fine.

“Seeking to gain an edge in a high-pressure congressional campaign, this defendant traded promises of legislative action in exchange for illegal campaign contributions,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Daly.  “His criminal behavior undermines the principles of transparency and fairness that are the bedrock of our electoral and political processes.  We are confident that this prison term, along with those previously imposed in this case, send a clear message to campaign workers whose ethics may be tested.”

“Good honest government, for the people and by the people, has no room for the actions of political insiders like Mr. Nassi, who was willing to trade influence over pending legislation in exchange for contributions to a federal campaign that he was steering,” stated Acting FBI Special Agent in Charge Glover.  “The election process in this country is the very foundation of democratic society and the integrity of that process must be protected.  Today’s sentence is appropriate and just, and serves as notice that the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office are fully committed to investigating and prosecuting corruption at all levels of government.”

According to court documents and statements made in court, in August 2011, the State of Connecticut applied for a court order enjoining Roll Your Own (“RYO”) smoke shops from continuing to operate without complying with state law governing tobacco manufacturers.  RYO smoke shops are retail businesses that sell loose smoking tobacco and cigarette-rolling materials and offer customers the option of paying a “rental” fee to insert the loose tobacco and the rolling materials into a RYO machine, which is capable of rapidly rolling large quantities of cigarettes.  Customers did not pay a tax on the RYO cigarettes when rolled by the RYO machines, in contrast to cigarettes purchased over-the-counter.

Fearing that the Connecticut General Assembly would enact legislation harmful to RYO smoke shop owners’ business interests during the 2012 legislative session, certain RYO smoke shop owners and their associates engaged in a scheme to direct conduit campaign contributions into the campaign of Christopher Donovan, a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives.  At the time, Donovan was also the Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives.  As part of the scheme, the co-conspirators recruited multiple individuals to serve as conduit contributors to the campaign.  These individuals permitted checks to be written in their own names to the campaign and were then reimbursed with cash, thereby concealing the fact that RYO smoke shop owners were contributing to the campaign.

At the time, NASSI was the campaign manager for the Chris Donovan for Congress campaign.

In November and December 2011, participants in the scheme made four $2,500 conduit contributions to the Chris Donovan for Congress campaign.  On approximately January 31, 2012, the campaign submitted to the Federal Election Commission (“FEC”) a report of campaign committee’s receipts and disbursements for the period October 1, 2011 through December 31, 2011.  The report falsely stated the source and amount of the four $2,500 contributions that were received and deposited by the campaign committee during that time period.

On April 3, 2012, Harry “Ray” Soucy, who had helped facilitate the scheme, contacted NASSI and told him that RYO owners wanted to provide additional contributions to the campaign.  That same day, the Connecticut General Assembly’s Joint Committee on Finance, Revenue and Bonding voted in favor of Senate Bill 357, legislation that would have deemed RYO smoke shop owners to be tobacco manufacturers under Connecticut law, a designation that would have subjected RYO smoke shop owners to a substantial licensing fee and tax increase.  Later that day, Soucy contacted NASSI again to state his displeasure with the vote.

Approximately one week later, Soucy, RYO smoke shop owner Paul Rogers and an FBI special agent working in an undercover capacity delivered four $2,500 checks in the names of conduit contributors to NASSI.  On April 23, 2012, NASSI advised Soucy that one of the checks had bounced and Soucy indicated that the contributor had been given cash to deposit.  NASSI stated that the campaign needed the check by midnight the following day, and Soucy delivered a replacement check by that deadline.  On May 2, 2012, the campaign submitted a fundraising report to the FEC stating that the four contributions given in April were from the conduit contributors when, in fact, they were not.

Over the next two weeks, NASSI continued to advise Soucy on the status of the RYO legislation and Soucy told NASSI that he would be delivering $10,000 if the legislation died.  On May 9, 2012, the legislative session ended and the legislation had not been called for a vote by either chamber of the General Assembly.

On May 14, 2012, Soucy provided Rogers with $10,000 in cash to be used to reimburse additional conduit contributors.  Soucy then collected three $2,500 checks made payable to the Donovan for Congress campaign from conduit contributors, and, at Nassi’s request, one $2,500 check from a conduit contributor that was payable to a political party.  Soucy delivered the four checks to Nassi at a political event later that day.

On May 16, 2012, Soucy informed the Donovan for Congress campaign finance director Robert Braddock that one of the contributions had been made in the name of an RYO shop owner and should not be deposited, and Braddock stopped the check from being deposited.  Soucy then met NASSI and provided him with a replacement $2,500 check in the name of someone who was not affiliated with any RYO shops.

On April 12, 2013, NASSI pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to make false statements to the Federal Election Commission and to impede the FEC’s enforcement of federal campaign finance laws.

Rogers, Soucy, Braddock and four others have also been convicted of charges stemming from this scheme.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher M. Mattei and Eric J. Glover.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that OBED FRANCO, also known as “Obie,” 23, of Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 66 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for illegally possessing firearms.

According to court documents and statements made in court, FRANCO was a member of a drug trafficking organization that sold heroin in the Hartford area.  One of FRANCO’s heroin customers held a Connecticut pistol permit.  On five occasions between February 2011 and May 2011, FRANCO and others drove the drug customer to a federally-licensed firearms dealer in East Hartford and identified a total of eight guns for the customer to purchase.  FRANCO and his other co-conspirators, including Wilson Morillo, then provided the customer with money to complete the purchases.  After purchasing the firearms and leaving the store, FRANCO and his co-conspirators gave the drug customer heroin and cash in exchange for the firearms.

In May 2011, FRANCO also purchased a firearm from another heroin customer in exchange for cash and heroin.

FRANCO has been detained since his arrest on June 15, 2011, on unrelated state charges.  On June 26, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

On May 28, 2013, Morillo pleaded guilty to the same charge.  He awaits sentencing.

This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Hartford Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan S. Freimann and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Natasha Dye.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JUAN JOSE ALVAREZ DE LUGO AZPURUA, 53, of Branford, waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty today before Senior U.S. District Judge Warren W. Eginton in Bridgeport to one count of wire fraud stemming from his operation of a real estate investment scheme that defrauded individuals out of more than $2 million.

According to court documents and statements made in court, ALVAREZ DE LUGO held himself out as the president of multiple successful businesses specializing in real estate development programs.  ALVAREZ DE LUGO represented to victim investors that his business was acquiring houses from the City of New Haven and from local banks, which houses would be remodeled and sold, and that invested funds would be used for this project.  At times, ALVAREZ DE LUGO represented to victim investors that he was working jointly with New Haven on the Livable City Initiative, and he stated that the remodeled homes would be used and occupied by low income families that secured financing from a local bank and State of Connecticut agencies.  ALVAREZ DE LUGO also told investors that he was developing a senior housing facility in New Haven.  ALVAREZ DE LUGO provided investors with Promissory Notes and other documentation that promised to pay investors interest of 20 percent per year, and a full return of principal in one year.

In pleading guilty, ALVAREZ DE LUGO admitted that the representations he made to victims were materially false, and that he did not invest his victims’ money as promised.  He did not own and develop the large number of properties he represented to investors, and he had no relationship with the City of New Haven or the State of Connecticut.  ALVAREZ DE LUGO spent investment money on his own personal expenses, and enriched himself and his relatives.

Between approximately 2005 and 2010, ALVAREZ DE LUGO defrauded more than 10 victims out of least $2 million.

ALVAREZ DE LUGO’s three companies, Arquin Decoraciones LLC, Arquin Development LLC, and Juko Investments, LLC, and the investment instruments he provided, were never registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission or Connecticut Department of Banking.

Judge Eginton has scheduled sentencing for December 11, 2013, at which time ALVAREZ DE LUGO faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.

ALVAREZ DE LUGO has been detained since January 18, 2013, when he was arrested on a federal criminal complaint.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with the assistance of the State of Connecticut Department of Banking.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. McGarry.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that KENNETH DeVRIES, also known as “Lyme,” 53, of Waterbury, was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Alfred V. Covello in Hartford to 27 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for his role in a meth distribution ring.

According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from a joint investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Connecticut State Police’s Statewide Narcotics Task Force.  The investigation, which included the use of court-authorized wiretaps, controlled purchases of meth, physical surveillance and the use of an undercover officer, revealed that Kevin Wallin of Waterbury received shipments of meth from individuals in California on consignment with the understanding that he would pay his sources with proceeds generated by his distribution of the drug.  After receiving the shipments of meth, he distributed the drug to other dealers and sold it to his own customers.

On six occasions between September 2012 and January 2013, Wallin sold meth to the undercover officer.

DeVRIES resided in an apartment located across the hall from Wallin’s apartment.  At Wallin’s direction, DeVRIES sold meth to Wallin’s customers when Wallin was unavailable.

DeVRIES has been detained since his arrest on January 3, 2013.  On June 17, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine (“meth”).

Wallin and three other defendants have also pleaded guilty and await sentencing.

This matter is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Patrick Caruso and H. Gordon Hall.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MATTHEW WALLACE, 32, formerly of Ledyard, was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Warren W. Eginton in Bridgeport to 100 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release.  On March 6, 2013, a jury found WALLACE guilty of one count of receiving child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography. 

According to the evidence disclosed during the trial, on January 19, 2010, a Milford Police detective assigned to the Connecticut Child Exploitation Task Force logged into a peer-to-peer Internet file sharing network and downloaded several images of child pornography from an Internet Protocol (“IP”) address assigned to WALLACE at his Ledyard residence.  On May 28, 2010, law enforcement agents conducted a court-authorized search of WALLACE’s residence and seized computers and hard drives.  Forensic examination of the seized items revealed more than 500 images and videos of children, some as young as five years old, engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

WALLACE was arrested on December 16, 2010.  He has been detained since March 13, 2013.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Connecticut Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, including the Milford Police Department.  The Connecticut State Police and the Ledyard Police Department provided valuable assistance to the investigation.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Neeraj Patel and Ray Miller.

The Connecticut Child Exploitation Task Force, which is housed at the main FBI office in New Haven, investigates crimes against children occurring over the Internet, and provides computer forensic review services for participating agencies.  For more information about the Task Force, or to report child exploitation crimes, please contact the FBI at 203-777-6311.

This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

To report cases of child exploitation, please visit www.cybertipline.com.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that LARRY HARRIS, 57, of Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 37 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for distributing heroin.

In early 2012, Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), the U.S. Secret Service and the New London Police Department initiated an investigation to combat the large-scale trafficking of heroin and cocaine from the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico into and around southeastern Connecticut.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on November 16, 2012, HARRIS traveled to a residence on Belden Street in New London, entered the house, exited approximately two minutes later and then drove away in his car.  New London Police officers stopped the car a short distance away.  During the traffic stop, officers found HARRIS with approximately 40 grams of heroin packaged in four separate plastic bags, and approximately $972 in cash on his person.  HARRIS has admitted that some of the heroin was for personal use, and some he intended to sell to others.

On June 17, 2013, HARRIS pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute heroin.

Judge Arterton ordered the sentence to be served concurrent with a state sentence that HARRIS is currently serving.

More than 100 individuals have been charged with federal and state offenses as a result of this investigation.

This matter is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations; U.S. Secret Service; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Air and Marine; Connecticut State Police; New London Police Department, Norwich Police Department, Waterford Police Department, Groton Town Police Department, East Lyme Police Department and Putnam Police Department.  The United States Marshals Service; ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations; Drug Enforcement Administration; HSI Assistant Attaché, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; HSI Arecibo, Puerto Rico Resident Office;  Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation; Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services; and the Groton City, Willimantic, New Haven and Bristol Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.

The federal case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Alina P. Reynolds, Sarah P. Karwan and Henry K. Kopel.  The state cases are being prosecuted by the State’s Attorney for the New London Judicial District and Senior Assistant State’s Attorneys Paul Narducci and Stephen Carney.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that CHARLES ROSS, 41, of Surprise, Ariz., pleaded guilty today before Senior U.S. District Judge Warren W. Eginton in Bridgeport to one count of wire fraud stemming from his role in an extensive federal income tax refund scheme.

According to court documents and statements made in court, between November 2012 and May 2013, ROSS and others conspired to file false federal income tax returns in the names of individuals in Connecticut and elsewhere without the individuals’ knowledge.  As part of the scheme, ROSS and others recruited victims by advertising that individuals were eligible for government funding.  ROSS’s co-conspirator, who held herself out falsely to be a certified public accountant, used the victims’ names, dates of birth, and Social Security Numbers to prepare and file false federal income tax returns, and then directed a portion of the resulting tax refunds to herself, to ROSS, and to the victims through a prepaid debit card.  ROSS also paid another co-conspirator who helped recruit victims.

When he is sentenced, ROSS faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years.

This matter is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and the United States Postal Inspection Service, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarala V. Nagala.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Michael E. Horowitz, Inspector General for the Department of Justice, today announced that a former Assistant Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Criminal Investigative Division has been charged with violating a federal ethics law that prohibits senior executive branch personnel from making professional contacts with the agency in which they were employed for one year after leaving government service.

In an Information that was filed today in U.S. District Court in Boston, KENNETH W. KAISER, 57, of Hopkinton, Mass., is charged with one count of making prohibited post-employment contacts.  KAISER, a 27-year employee of the FBI, served as the Special Agent in Charge of the Boston office of the FBI from April 2003 through December 2006, and then as an Assistant Director at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C., until his retirement in July 2009.

According to the Information, on July 3, 2009, the same day that he retired from the FBI, KAISER was hired as a consultant by LocatePlus to handle an internal investigation regarding corporate wrongdoing by the company’s former Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, and to help generate government sales for the company’s products and services.  In March 2010, KAISER became a full-time employee of LocatePlus, holding the title Director of Government Sales.  Beginning just 17 days after his retirement, KAISER had numerous prohibited electronic, telephonic and in-person contacts with FBI employees regarding a then-ongoing FBI investigation involving LocatePlus and the actions of its former executives.  During the one-year ban period, KAISER also had prohibited contacts with FBI employees in an effort to gauge the FBI’s interest in LocatePlus’ products and services in an attempt to generate sales to the FBI.

As further alleged in the Information, in August 2009, KAISER was hired by a corporate executive living in Gloucester, Mass., who had received a threatening letter in the mail.  Working on behalf of this individual, KAISER had additional improper contacts with the FBI Boston office.

If convicted, KAISER faces a maximum term of imprisonment of one year and a fine of up to $100,000.

This matter is being investigated by the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane C. Freniere.

Acting U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that the details contained in the Information are allegations, and a defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that PAUL E. BRENNAN, 45, formerly of Old Saybrook, Conn., and Phoenix, Ariz., was sentenced today by Senior United States District Judge Alfred V. Covello in Hartford to 71 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for operating multiple fraud schemes.

According to court documents and statements made in court, from approximately March 2009 to August 2011, BRENNAN convinced women with whom he was romantically involved, and other acquaintances, to cash checks for him at financial institutions knowing that the checks were drawn on closed or underfunded accounts and would be returned for nonpayment.  BRENNAN also cashed, or had others cash for him, fraudulent checks at check cashing businesses in Connecticut.

Also, from approximately November 2010 to June 2011, BRENNAN defrauded individuals by pitching phony investment deals and soliciting money from victims for fraudulent business ventures.  During the scheme, BRENNAN convinced one victim to give him more than $100,000 for property deals and stock market investments, and he convinced other victims to give him money for investments in fraudulently-operated businesses, including BC Property Management and B&D Powerwashing.  BRENNAN also persuaded certain victims to grant him authorization to use their credit cards and lines of credit. 

In total, BRENNAN’s fraud schemes victimized more than 10 individuals and caused more than $370,000 in losses to those victims.  BRENNAN used much of the money he received from his victims to pay personal expenses.

BRENNAN has been detained since his arrest on February 27, 2013.  On June 18, he waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of mail fraud.

BRENNAN’s criminal history dates to 1986, and includes more than 35 convictions for various state offenses, including including assault, weapons possession, trespass, check fraud, forgery, and larceny.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Old Saybrook Police Department and the State’s Attorney for the Judicial District of New London.  The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Kerry L. Quinn.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that SAMIR ZAKY, 38, of Brookfield, was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Alfred V. Covello in Hartford to 41 months of imprisonment, followed by one year of supervised release, for defrauding Medicare.

On June 14, 2013, a jury found ZAKY guilty of 14 counts of health care fraud and 14 counts of making false statements relating to health care matters.  According to the evidence at trial, ZAKY is a podiatrist who operated Affiliated Podiatrists, LLC in Brookfield.  From August 2010 to July 2011, ZAKY submitted numerous claims to the Medicare program stating that he had performed nail avulsions, a surgical procedure that requires use of an injectable anesthetic and removes the entire border of a patient’s toenail.  In fact, ZAKY had only clipped or trimmed the patient’s toenails.

Judge Covello ordered ZAKY to pay $134,139 in restitution to Medicare, which includes restitution for fraudulent claims dating back to 2005.

ZAKY has been detained since June 17, 2013, after U.S. Magistrate Judge Holly B. Fitzsimmons determined that ZAKY had violated the conditions of his bond by traveling to the house of a 93-year-old patient shortly after his conviction to ask his patient why he had testified against him during the trial.

This matter was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys David J. Sheldon and Christopher W. Schmeisser, and Auditor Kevin Saunders.

Acting U.S. Attorney Daly encouraged individuals who suspect health care fraud to report it by calling the Health Care Fraud Task Force at 203-777-6311 or 1-800-HHS-TIPS.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JENNIFER CARRION-SEGARRA, 29, of Bristol, pleaded guilty today before United States Magistrate Judge Donna Martinez in Hartford to one count of possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on May 22, 2012, CARRION-SEGARRA sold a pink Kahr .380 pistol, which she had nicknamed “Pinky,” to an undercover agent from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Fireworks and Explosives (ATF).  The firearm was previously purchased by CARRION-SEGARRA’s husband.

Prior to May 22, 2012, CARRION-SEGARRA had been convicted of possession of narcotics and sale of narcotics, both felony offenses.  It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.

CARRION-SEGARRA is scheduled to be sentenced by United States District Judge Robert N. Chatigny on December 11, 2013, at which time she faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of up to $250,000.

CARRION-SEGARRA has been released on a $150,000 bond since her arrest on March 26, 2013.

This case is being investigated by ATF and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Freimann and Special Assistant United States Attorney Natasha Dye.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

New Haven, Conn. – The United States Attorney’s Offices for the District of Connecticut, Eastern District of Virginia, Middle District of Florida and Western District of Kentucky announced that Amed Villa pleaded guilty today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Joan G. Margolis in New Haven to federal conspiracy and theft charges stemming from his participation in warehouse burglaries in Virginia, Florida and Kentucky.  On July 1, 2013, Villa pleaded guilty in the District of Connecticut to charges stemming from the theft of approximately $90 million in pharmaceuticals from the Eli Lilly Company warehouse and storage facility in Enfield, Conn., in March 2010, and more than $8 million in cigarettes and a cargo trailer from a warehouse in East Peoria, Ill., in January 2010.

In pleading guilty to the additional charges, Villa, 49, admitted that he and others stole more than $13.3 million in pharmaceuticals from the GlaxoSmithKline warehouse in Colonial Heights, Va., in August 2009, approximately $7.8 million in cellular telephones and multimedia tablets from the Quality One Wireless warehouse in Orlando, Fla., in January 2011, and more than $1.5 million in cigarettes from the Coremark Cigarette Warehouse in Leitchfield, Ky., in March 2011.

Villa was charged with the additional thefts in the Eastern District of Virginia, Middle District of Florida and Western District of Kentucky, respectively, and the cases were transferred to the District of Connecticut for further prosecution.

During each of the thefts, Villa and his co-conspirators gained entry into the warehouse through the roof, disabled the alarm system and loaded the stolen goods into tractor trailers.

Villa’s DNA was identified on items discarded during the thefts in Connecticut, Illinois, Florida and Virginia.

To date, Villa has pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to commit theft from an interstate shipment and five counts of theft from an interstate shipment.  He is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven on December 4, 2013, at which time he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years on each of the conspiracy counts, and a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years on each of the theft counts.

Villa, a citizen of Cuba who last resided in Miami, has been detained since his arrest on May 3, 2012.
The investigation of the Connecticut warehouse theft is being led by the FBI in New Haven and the Enfield Police Department, the investigation of the Illinois theft is being led by ATF and the East Peoria Police Department, the investigation of the Virginia theft is being led by the FBI, the investigation of the Florida theft is being led by the FBI and the Orlando Police Department, and the investigation of the Kentucky theft is being led by ATF.

This case is being prosecuted in the District of Connecticut by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anastasia E. King, with the assistance of Assistant U.S. Attorney K. Tate Chambers of the Central District of Illinois, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Aber of the Eastern District of Virginia, Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher LaForgia of the Middle District of Florida and Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Judd of the Western District of Kentucky.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that PATRICK PINTO, 45, of Bohemia, N.Y., was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to two years of probation, the first six months of which PINTO must spend in home confinement, for bribing an executive of U.S. Bank.  PINTO also was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and perform 100 hours of community service.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Oxford Collection Agency (“Oxford”) was a private financial services company that engaged in accounts receivables management, primarily debt collecting, with offices in New York, Pennsylvania and Florida.  Between 2007 and 2011, Oxford executives engaged in a multi-year scheme to defraud its lender, Connecticut-based Webster Bank, as well as its investors, clients and the commercial debtors that Oxford collected from.  Oxford’s victims lost more than $12 million as a result of this scheme.

The investigation also revealed that Oxford sometimes obtained and retained business with its banking clients by paying bribes and kickbacks to bank officials.  As part of the scheme, PINTO, a Vice President of Oxford, and other Oxford executives made monthly payments of between $2,500 and $3,500, which were hidden in cigar boxes, to an Assistant Vice President of U.S. Bank in Ohio.  The bank official received at least $24,000 in bribes from Oxford.

U.S. Bank and Webster Bank received funds through the U.S. Department of the Treasury Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).

PINTO was arrested on December 7, 2012.  On June 17, 2013, he waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to commit bank bribery.

In May 2012, Richard Pinto, Oxford Collection Agency’s Chairman of the Board, and his son, Peter Pinto, Oxford’s President and Chief Executive Officer, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering and one count of wire fraud stemming from this scheme.  In December 2012, Oxford Vice-President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer Randall Silver, Executive Vice President Charles Harris, and Chief Operations Officer Carlos Novelli, also pleaded guilty to various charges.

On January 30, 2013, Richard Pinto, who is now deceased, was sentenced to 60 months of imprisonment.  The other defendants await sentencing.

PATRICK PINTO is the son of the late Richard Pinto.

This matter is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP), and the Connecticut Securities, Commodities, and Investor Fraud Task Force.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Liam Brennan and Special U.S. Attorney John McReynolds.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that a federal grand jury sitting in New Haven has returned an 18-count indictment charging three individuals with operating an extensive federal income tax refund scheme.  The indictment, which was returned yesterday, charges KENYA MALCOLM, 34, and CHARLES ROSS, 40, both of Surprise, Ariz., and BERNARD BRANTLEY, 43, of Waterbury, Conn., with various conspiracy, fraud, theft and identity theft offenses.

The indictment alleges that between November 2012 and May 2013, MALCOLM, BRANTLEY, ROSS and others conspired to file false federal income tax returns in the names of individuals without the individuals’ knowledge.  As part of the scheme, BRANTLEY, ROSS and others advertised to victims that they were eligible for “Obama stimulus money” or “government funding” through a prepaid debit card, and then obtained personal identifying information from the victims.  MALCOLM, who operated a business in Arizona called “Biggest Refund Taxes,” used the victims’ names, dates of birth, and Social Security Numbers to prepare and file false federal income tax returns.  MALCOLM then directed tax refunds totaling more than $2.5 million to be deposited partially into bank accounts controlled by MALCOLM, her family members, her employees, and ROSS, and partially into bank accounts linked to prepaid debit cards that were sent to the victims.

The indictment charges MALCOLM, BRANTLEY and ROSS with one count of conspiracy, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years.  The indictment also charges each defendant with six counts of mail fraud and six counts of wire fraud, which carry a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years on each count.  The defendants are also charged with theft of public money, a charge that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. Finally, MALCOLM and BRANTLEY are each charged with one count of aggravated identity theft, an offense that carries a mandatory consecutive two-year prison term.

The case has been assigned to Senior U.S. District Judge Warren W. Eginton in Bridgeport.

This matter is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and the United States Postal Inspection Service, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarala V. Nagala.

Acting U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt.  Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that a federal grand jury sitting in Hartford returned an indictment today charging RAFAEL ORTIZ, also known as “Rizz,” 48, of New Haven, with trafficking heroin.

The indictment alleges that on August 2, 2013, ORTIZ possessed with intent to distribute heroin.

ORTIZ was arrested yesterday on a criminal complaint.  He is currently detained.

If convicted, ORTIZ faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years and a fine of up to $2 million.
This case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New Haven Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John H. Durham.

Acting U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an Indictment is not evidence of guilt.  Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that FRANCISCO TELLADO, 37, of Waterbury, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford to 120 months of imprisonment, followed by six years of supervised release, for illegally possessing a firearm and for violating the conditions of his supervised release from a previous federal conviction.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on August 24, 2012, TELLADO used a 9 millimeter handgun to shoot his brother and his cousin in Naugatuck.  He was subsequently apprehended in Waterbury.

TELLADO has prior state felony convictions for criminal possession of a firearm and possession of narcotics, and a prior federal conviction for conspiring to distribute crack cocaine.  He was released from federal prison on November 1, 2011 and was serving a six-year term of supervised release at the time of the shootings.

It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.

On January 23, 2013, TELLADO pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and admitted to having violated the terms of his supervised release.

Judge Chatigny sentenced TELLADO to 96 months of imprisonment for illegally possessing a firearm and a consecutive 24 months of imprisonment for violating his supervised release.

TELLADO was also charged with state offenses as a result of these shootings and, in February 2013, was sentenced to 10 years of incarceration.  Judge Chatigny ordered the 10-year federal sentence to be served concurrent with the state sentence.

This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Waterbury Police Department and the Naugatuck Police Department.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert M. Spector.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Kimberly K. Mertz, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced that GEORGE TIRADO, 36, of Wolcott, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 26 months of imprisonment, followed by one year of supervised release for his participation in a scheme to direct illegal campaign contributions into the campaign of a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives.  TIRADO was also ordered to pay a $5,000 fine.  At the time of the offense, TIRADO was the co-owner of a Roll Your Own (“RYO”) smoke shop while also serving as a detective with the Waterbury Police Department.

“A substantial prison term is warranted for any individual who violates federal campaign finance laws in order to influence elected officials for personal gain,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Daly.  “That this defendant was a veteran police detective who ignored his oath and broke the law makes this sentence even more appropriate.”

“Today’s sentence sends a clear message to those of us who are sworn to uphold the law, that no one is above the law,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Mertz.  “It should be an honor and privilege to protect and serve the public.  Instead, George Tirado betrayed his oath of honor when he conspired with others to direct illegal campaign contributions.  This conduct threatens to undermine both the public’s faith in the election process and in law enforcement.”

According to court documents and statements made in court, in August 2011, the State of Connecticut applied for a court order enjoining RYO smoke shops from continuing to operate without complying with state law governing tobacco manufacturers.  RYO smoke shops are retail businesses that sell loose smoking tobacco and cigarette-rolling materials and offer customers the option of paying a “rental” fee to insert the loose tobacco and the rolling materials into a RYO machine, which is capable of rapidly rolling large quantities of cigarettes.  Customers did not pay a tax on the RYO cigarettes when rolled by the RYO machines, in contrast to cigarettes purchased over-the-counter.

TIRADO and Paul Rogers co-owned Smoke House Tobacco, a RYO smoke shop with two locations in Waterbury.  Fearing that the Connecticut General Assembly would enact legislation harmful to RYO smoke shop owners’ business interests during the 2012 legislative session, TIRADO, Rogers, Harry Raymond “Ray” Soucy and others engaged in a scheme to direct conduit campaign contributions into the campaign of Christopher Donovan, a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives.  At the time, Donovan was also the Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives.  As part of the scheme, the co-conspirators recruited multiple individuals to serve as conduit contributors to the campaign.  These individuals permitted checks to be written in their own names to the campaign and were reimbursed with cash, thereby concealing the fact that RYO smoke shop owners were contributing to the campaign.

On November 15, 2011, TIRADO obtained a signed blank check from one of his smoke shop employees.  TIRADO then made the check payable to the campaign in the amount of $2,500, and assured the employee that she would be reimbursed.  That same evening, TIRADO attended a campaign fundraising event where he completed a contribution form in the employee’s name.  The contribution form contained a representation that the contribution was being funded by the individual named on the form.   He then provided the check to Rogers who delivered it to a campaign employee.

The next morning, TIRADO provided another conduit contribution in the amount of $2,500 to Soucy prior to a meeting that they had scheduled with the candidate.  Soucy then gave the check to a campaign employee.

On November 21, 2011, TIRADO deposited $2,500 in cash into the checking account of the employee who had served as a conduit contributor on November 15.  The $2,500 came from the business proceeds of Smoke House Tobacco.

In December 2011, Rogers, Soucy and others attended another fundraising event and delivered two more $2,500 conduit contributions to the campaign.

On approximately January 31, 2012, the Christopher Donovan for Congress campaign committee submitted to the Federal Election Commission (“FEC”) a report of the committee’s receipts and disbursements for the period October 1, 2011 through December 31, 2011.  The report falsely stated the source and amount of the four $2,500 contributions that were received and deposited by the campaign committee during that time period.

In the spring of 2012, the conspirators made additional illegal campaign contributions totaling $17,500. 
During today’s sentencing, Judge Arterton also found that TIRADO lied to FBI special agents investigating this scheme during an interview that was conducted on June 4, 2012.

On April 19, 2013, TIRADO pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to make false statements to the FEC and to impede the FEC’s enforcement of federal campaign finance laws. 

Rogers, Soucy and five others, including two employees of the Donovan for Congress campaign, have also been convicted of charges stemming from this scheme.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher M. Mattei and Eric J. Glover.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that BENJAMIN HOGAN, 34, of Southington was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 21 months of imprisonment, followed by one year of supervised release, for participating in a scheme to direct illegal contributions into the campaign of a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives.  HOGAN also was ordered to pay a $5,000 fine.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in August 2011, the State of Connecticut applied for a court order enjoining Roll Your Own (“RYO”) smoke shops from continuing to operate without complying with state law governing tobacco manufacturers.  RYO smoke shops are retail businesses that sell loose smoking tobacco and cigarette-rolling materials and offer customers the option of paying a “rental” fee to insert the loose tobacco and the rolling materials into a RYO machine, which is capable of rapidly rolling large quantities of cigarettes.  Customers did not pay a tax on the RYO cigarettes when rolled by the RYO machines, in contrast to cigarettes purchased over-the-counter.  HOGAN was an employee and part-owner of Smoke House Tobacco, a RYO smoke shop with two locations in Waterbury.

Fearing that the Connecticut General Assembly would enact legislation harmful to RYO smoke shop owners’ business interests during the 2012 legislative session, HOGAN and others engaged in a scheme to direct conduit campaign contributions into the campaign of Christopher Donovan, a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives.  At the time, Donovan was also the Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives.  As part of the scheme, the co-conspirators recruited multiple individuals to serve as conduit contributors to the campaign.  These individuals permitted checks to be written in their own names to the campaign, and HOGAN and other conspirators reimbursed them with cash, thereby concealing the fact that RYO smoke shop owners were contributing to the campaign.

In November and December 2011, participants in the scheme made four $2,500 conduit contributions to the Chris Donovan for Congress campaign.  HOGAN was aware of the purpose of the contributions and that the contributions were being made in the names of others.

On approximately January 31, 2012, the Chris Donovan for Congress campaign submitted to the Federal Election Commission (“FEC”) a report of campaign committee’s receipts and disbursements for the period October 1, 2011 through December 31, 2011.  The report falsely stated the source and amount of the four $2,500 contributions that were received and deposited by the campaign committee during that time period.

On May 14, 2012, HOGAN, Harry “Ray” Soucy and Paul Rogers met at Smoke House Tobacco where Soucy provided Rogers with $10,000 in cash to be used to reimburse additional conduit contributors.  Prior to the meeting, HOGAN had approached Waterbury business owner Daniel Monteiro and an employee of Monteiro’s and asked them to serve as conduit contributors.  Monteiro subsequently wrote a $2,500 check to the Donovan for Congress campaign, and his employee obtained a bank check in the amount of $2,500.  Both were assured that they would be reimbursed.  These two checks, and another $2,500 bank check drawn on HOGAN’s own account but not in his name, were given to Soucy at the meeting.  Rogers also gave Soucy a fourth $2,500 check from a conduit contributor that was payable to a political party.  Soucy then delivered the four checks to Donovan for Congress campaign manager Joshua Nassi.

On April 12, 2013, HOGAN pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to make false statements to the Federal Election Commission and to impede the FEC’s enforcement of federal campaign finance laws.

Rogers, Soucy, Monteiro, Nassi and three others have also been convicted of charges stemming from this scheme.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher M. Mattei and Eric J. Glover.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MARCUS DWYER, 41, of New Haven, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 188 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for robbing a Killingworth bank.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in the afternoon of August 6, 2012, Jennifer Jacques drove DWYER and Dario Pabey to the TD Bank on Route 81 in Killingworth.  DWYER and Pabey then entered the bank wearing masks and demanded that everyone lie on the floor.  DWYER pointed a gun at bank employees and customers and then jumped over the teller door and ordered the employees to open the vault.  He accompanied the employees to the vault while Pabey controlled the lobby area.  Pabey used zip ties to tie the hands of one bank employee and demanded that the customers give him their wallets, mobile phones and car keys.  As Pabey was starting to restrain a second person with zip ties, DWYER ran past him with a bag of money that he had taken from the vault.  Pabey followed and grabbed a patron who had surrendered his car keys to him and forced him out of the bank.  DWYER and Pabey fled in the customer’s vehicle, which was abandoned a short distance from the bank at a pre-planned location where Jacques was waiting.  Jacques then drove DWYER and Pabey away from the bank while they changed out of the clothes they had worn during the robbery.

The investigation revealed that $43,573 was stolen from the bank and its patrons during the robbery.

DWYER has been detained since his arrest on September 19, 2012.  On May 13, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery.

Pabey pleaded guilty to the same charge and, on May 24, 2013, he was sentenced to 180 months of imprisonment.  Jacques also has pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Connecticut State Police.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ray Miller and Sarala Nagala.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that SHANE LEVERETTE, also known as Shane Baltas, 44, formerly of Meriden, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 126 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for illegally possessing a firearm and for violating the conditions of his supervised release from a previous federal conviction.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on February 16, 2011, at approximately 10:40 p.m., LEVERETTE and an accomplice, who was armed with a handgun, entered a residence in Middlefield for the purpose of stealing money and drugs.  LEVERETTE and his accomplice were dressed in black and wearing baseball hats with a DEA logo and gloves, and had bandannas covering their faces.  Inside the residence, LEVERETTE located and stole a semi-automatic rifle.  He and his accomplice then threatened two adults with their firearms and directed them to remain seated on the bed.  After demanding money, the accomplice struck a male victim with the handgun, causing the victim’s head to bleed, and the handgun discharged.  LEVERETTE and his accomplice then searched the bedroom for drugs and money.

After receiving a 911 call, the Connecticut State Police and Middletown Police Department arrived at the scene and surrounded the residence.  LEVERETTE and his accomplice surrendered and were arrested and charged with state offenses.  Law enforcement officers also seized the accomplice’s handgun and the semi-automatic rifle that LEVERETTE had stolen.

Prior to February 2011, LEVERETTE had sustained multiple federal and state felony convictions.  It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.  The rifle that LEVERETTE possessed was manufactured in Hungary.

In February 1999, LEVERETTE was sentenced in federal court in Massachusetts to 151 months of imprisonment for racketeering, narcotics and firearm offenses.  He was released from federal prison on April 23, 2007, and was serving a five-year term of supervised release at the time of the Middlefield home invasion.

On April 30, 2013, LEVERETTE pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon.  On that date, he also admitted to violating the conditions of her supervised release.

Judge Hall sentenced LEVERETTE to 96 months of imprisonment for illegally possessing a firearm, and a consecutive 30 months of imprisonment for violating his supervised release.

LEVERETTE has been detained since his arrest.  His accomplice was prosecuted in state court.

This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, the Connecticut State Police and the Middletown Police Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Peter S. Jongbloed.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Kimberly K. Mertz, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced that DAVID J. CRESPO, 59, of Guilford, pleaded guilty today before Senior U.S. District Judge Ellen Bree Burns in New Haven to one count of mail fraud stemming from his sale of fraudulent artwork.  CRESPO was an art dealer who conducted business under the name Brandon Gallery in Madison.

In August 2012, CRESPO was charged in a 12-count indictment alleging that he defrauded his customers by falsely representing that artwork he sold were original pieces by Pablo Picasso and original signed lithographs by Marc Chagall.  CRESPO pleaded guilty to Count 12 of the indictment, which relates to the fraudulent sale of an imitation Marc Chagall lithograph.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Marc Chagall is widely considered to be among the greatest and most influential artists of the 20th Century, and original lithographs of his work can be of substantial valuable.  An original lithograph is an authorized reproduction of a piece of artwork, map, or text that has been created using a distinctive printing process.  They may be signed by the artist or author and, depending on their condition, can be of substantial value.  Unlike other reproduction techniques that rely on the negative image being etched or raised on the print, lithography uses a smooth surface, typically, stone tablets or a metal plate, to transfer the image.

CRESPO obtained reproductions of original Chagall lithographs, but represented to potential customers that they were, in fact, original lithographs that had been produced through an artistic lithographic method, and under the direction and authority of Marc Chagall.

In January 2010, CRESPO met with an undercover FBI agent at Brandon Gallery.  During the course of the conversation with the undercover agent, which was recorded, CRESPO held himself out to be an expert in high-end art.  CRESPO and the agent discussed a lithograph known as “The Presentation of Chloe,” which CRESPO represented, among other things, was an “original lithograph” that was part of a limited edition collection made from “stone plates” from which multiple impressions were made from “the same plate.”  The agent agreed to purchase the purported lithograph for $2,000.

In May 2010, CRESPO shipped the purported lithograph along with a “Certificate of Authenticity,” which valued the piece at $12,750 “for insurance purposes,” stated that piece was “hand signed by Chagall in crayon after the artist personally examined this particular example,” and represented that “[t]his work came from the collection of Richard Riskin, a longtime friend of the artist.”

In fact, CRESPO had not obtained the purported Chagall lithograph from the estate of Richard Riskin, as no such person existed, and CRESPO knew that the piece was not a limited edition original lithograph manufactured under the artist’s direction using stone plates, but was a photo-mechanical production that was removed from a common edition book.

In November 2010, the FBI conducted a search of the Brandon Gallery and found packages of Chagall prints and practiced Chagall signatures.

Judge Burns has scheduled sentencing for November 26, 2013, at which time CRESPO faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.  CRESPO also may be ordered to pay restitution to any victims of his offense.

CRESPO has been released on bond since his arrest on April 3, 2012.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Madison Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Anthony E. Kaplan and Liam Brennan.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that DANIEL CARRIER, 34, formerly of Danielson, was sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to 54 months of imprisonment, followed by seven years of supervised release, for possessing and distributing child pornography.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in January 2012, FBI special agents acting in an undercover capacity logged into a publicly-available Internet file sharing program used by CARRIER to trade child pornography.  During these sessions, the FBI browsed CARRIER’s shared files, downloaded images from his shared directories and observed file titles suggestive of child pornography.

On March 6, 2012, law enforcement officers searched CARRIER’s Danielson residence and seized a desktop computer and related components.  A forensic search of the computer revealed more than 850 images and 187 videos of child pornography, including numerous images of children under the age of 12 engaged in sexually explicit conduct, and images of children engaging in sadistic or masochistic conduct.

CARRIER was arrested on March 7, 2012.  On May 15, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of receipt and distribution of child pornography.

CARRIER, who was released on a $250,000 bond after his arrest, has been residing with family members in Rhode Island as a condition of his bond.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Connecticut Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, including the Connecticut State Police.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Felice M. Duffy.

The Connecticut Child Exploitation Task Force, which is housed at the main FBI office in New Haven, investigates crimes against children occurring over the Internet, and provides computer forensic review services for participating agencies.  For more information about the Task Force, or to report child exploitation crimes, please contact the FBI at 203-777-6311.

This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

To report cases of child exploitation, please visit www.cybertipline.com.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

PLACE TEXT HERE

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that FREEMAN LEWIS, also known as “Free,” 31, of New Haven, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in Hartford to 60 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for distributing crack cocaine.

LEWIS is one of more than 100 individuals charged as a result of “Operation Bloodline,” a joint law enforcement investigation targeting narcotics trafficking and gang violence in the Dwight-Kensington and Fair Haven sections of New Haven.  Led by the DEA New Haven Task Force and the New Haven and Hamden Police Departments, the year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps on numerous telephones, extensive physical surveillance, controlled purchases of narcotics, execution of search warrants and seizures of narcotics and firearms.  The investigation revealed that LEWIS conspired with others to purchase and redistribute crack cocaine.

On January 17, 2013, LEWIS pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 28 grams or more of cocaine base (“crack”).

LEWIS’ criminal history includes multiple felony convictions, including felony drug convictions.

This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, North Haven, Branford, Ansonia and Meriden Police Departments.  The United States Marshals Service, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services and the Milford, Hartford, New Britain, North Branford and Stratford Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys S. Dave Vatti and Marc Silverman.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MARK FULLER, 50, of New Haven, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in Hartford to 90 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for distributing crack cocaine.

FULLER is one of more than 100 individuals charged as a result of “Operation Bloodline,” a joint law enforcement investigation targeting narcotics trafficking and gang violence in the Dwight-Kensington and Fair Haven sections of New Haven.  Led by the DEA New Haven Task Force and the New Haven and Hamden Police Departments, the year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps on numerous telephones, extensive physical surveillance, controlled purchases of narcotics, execution of search warrants and seizures of narcotics and firearms.  The investigation revealed that FULLER conspired with others to purchase and redistribute crack cocaine.

On January 28, 2013, FULLER pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 28 grams or more of cocaine base (“crack”).

FULLER’s criminal history includes multiple felony convictions, including four felony drug convictions.

FULLER has been detained in federal custody since his arrest on May 17, 2012. 

This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, North Haven, Branford, Ansonia and Meriden Police Departments.  The United States Marshals Service, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services and the Milford, Hartford, New Britain, North Branford and Stratford Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys S. Dave Vatti and Marc Silverman.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that a federal jury in New Haven has found TYRON HAMMOND, 31, of New Haven, guilty of possession of ammunition by a previously convicted felon.  The trial before U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall began on August 26 and the jury returned the verdict yesterday afternoon.

According to the trial evidence, on December 11, 2012, the U.S. Marshals Service Violent Fugitive Task Force, executing a state arrest warrant, arrested HAMMOND at an apartment on Chambers Street in New Haven.  A subsequent court-authorized search of the apartment revealed a fully-loaded .22 caliber revolver with one expended casing.

The Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection’s Forensic Science Laboratory determined that HAMMOND’s DNA was on both the firearm and the ammunition.

Although the revolver was manufactured in Connecticut and could not be traced due to its age, the ammunition in the firearm was manufactured in Idaho.

It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.

HAMMOND’s criminal history includes a 2004 federal conviction for possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon.  That conviction stemmed from an incident in November 2003 when HAMMOND shot and injured an individual with a .44 caliber revolver in the Farnam Court housing complex in New Haven.  HAMMOND was also convicted in state court of first degree assault in relation to the shooting.

In December 2004, HAMMOND was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 10 years of imprisonment.  He was released from federal prison in July 2012.

Judge Hall has scheduled sentencing for November 21, 2013, at which time HAMMOND faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.  HAMMOND also faces up to two years of imprisonment for violating the terms and conditions of his supervised release from his prior federal conviction.

This matter was investigated Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Marshals Service Violent Fugitive Task Force and the New Haven Police Department.  This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anthony E. Kaplan, with the assistance of law student intern Allison Gorsuch.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

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Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MIGUEL ORTIZ, 48, of Hartford, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in Hartford to 37 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for illegally possessing firearms and ammunition.

According to court documents and statements made in court, between December 2011 and April 2012, ORTIZ stored firearms for his 19-year-old nephew, Johnny Rosa, and assisted Rosa in the illegal sale of those firearms.  ORTIZ is a felon who has prior convictions for firearms and narcotics offenses.

In May 2012, a search of ORTIZ’s Maple Avenue residence revealed an assortment of ammunition.

It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.

On January 17, 2013, ORTIZ pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon.

On November 9, 2012, Rosa, also known as “Johnny J,” pleaded guilty to one count of transferring a firearm to a prohibited person.  On May 28, 2013, he was sentenced to 36 months of imprisonment.

This matter was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Northern Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force, which includes members of the Connecticut State Police, Hartford Police Department, Connecticut Department of Correction and Connecticut National Guard.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Brian P. Leaming.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
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Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that AVIJIT MITRA, M.D., with an office at 270 Amity Road in Woodbridge, has entered into a civil settlement agreement with the government in which he will pay $45,000 to resolve allegations that he violated civil provisions of the Controlled Substances Act.

The allegations against MITRA involve claims that he wrote 13 prescriptions that were outside the normal scope of his medical practice.  The prescriptions were for Opana and Oxycontin, both Schedule II controlled substances.

Congress, with the passage of the Controlled Substances Act, took steps to attempt to create “a closed system” of distribution for controlled substances in which every facet of the handling of the substances, from their manufacture to their consumption by the ultimate user, was to be subject to intense governmental regulation. This mission was taken against the backdrop of trying to prevent the diversion and abuse of legitimate controlled substances while at the same time ensuring an adequate supply of those substances needed to meet the medical and scientific needs of the United States.

This investigation was conducted by investigators from the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Office of Diversion Control in Rocky Hill, the Drug Control Division of Connecticut’s Department of Consumer Protection, and the Clinton Police Department.  The prosecution was led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan M. Soloway.

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Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Kimberly K. Mertz, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced that ROBERT BRADDOCK, JR., 34, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 38 months of imprisonment, followed by one year of supervised release, for participating in a scheme to direct illegal campaign contributions into the campaign of a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives.  BRADDOCK was also ordered to pay a $7,500 fine.

“In imposing this sentence, the Court has made clear the risks of violating federal campaign laws,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Daly.  “These corrupt acts erode our trust in the integrity of our democratic electoral system.  Transparency in our elections and the legislative process is critical to ensuring honest government.  Federal law enforcement will not sit by as individuals attempt to buy the influence of elected officials for personal gain.  I applaud the excellent work of the FBI and our prosecution team in bringing this case to justice.”

“This sentence sends a message that knowingly concealing the origin of campaign contributions is a serious crime which cannot and will not be tolerated,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Mertz.  “Hopefully, those inclined to disregard campaign finance laws and diminish the voting public’s faith in our election process will be deterred by taking notice that federal prison is a very real possibility.”

On May 21, 2013, a jury convicted BRADDOCK of one count of conspiring to make false statements to the FEC and to defraud the U.S. by impeding the function of the FEC, one count of accepting more than $10,000 in federal campaign contributions made by persons in the names of others and one count of causing a false report to be filed with the FEC.

According to the trial evidence, court documents and statements made in court, in August 2011, the State of Connecticut applied for a court order enjoining Roll Your Own (“RYO”) smoke shops from continuing to operate without complying with state law governing tobacco manufacturers.  RYO smoke shops are retail businesses that sell loose smoking tobacco and cigarette-rolling materials and offer customers the option of paying a “rental” fee to insert the loose tobacco and the rolling materials into a RYO machine, which is capable of rapidly rolling large quantities of cigarettes.  Customers did not pay a tax on the RYO cigarettes when rolled by the RYO machines, in contrast to cigarettes purchased over-the-counter.

Paul Rogers and George Tirado co-owned Smoke House Tobacco, a RYO smoke shop with two locations in Waterbury.  Fearing that the Connecticut General Assembly would enact legislation harmful to RYO smoke shop owners’ business interests during the 2012 legislative session, Rogers, Tirado, Harry Raymond “Ray” Soucy, David Moffa, Benjamin Hogan and others engaged in a scheme to direct conduit contributions into the campaign of Christopher Donovan, a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives.  At the time, Donovan was also the Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives.  As part of the scheme, the co-conspirators recruited multiple individuals to serve as conduit contributors to the campaign.  These individuals permitted checks to be written in their own names to the campaign, and certain conspirators reimbursed them with cash, thereby concealing the fact that RYO smoke shop owners were contributing to the campaign.

BRADDOCK, the Finance Director of the Donovan for Congress campaign, and Joshua Nassi, the Campaign Manager, knew that Soucy, Rogers and others opposed legislation that would harm the business interests of the RYO smoke shop owners.  In November and December 2011, Rogers, Soucy, Tirado, Moffa, Hogan and others made four $2,500 conduit contributions to the Donovan for Congress campaign.
On April 3, 2012, Soucy contacted Nassi and told him that RYO owners wanted to provide additional contributions to the campaign.  That same day, the Connecticut General Assembly’s Joint Committee on Finance, Revenue and Bonding voted in favor of Senate Bill 357, legislation that would have deemed RYO smoke shop owners to be tobacco manufacturers under Connecticut law, a designation that would have subjected RYO smoke shop owners to a substantial licensing fee and tax increase.  Later that day, Soucy contacted Nassi again to state his displeasure with the vote.

On April 11, 2012, Soucy, Rogers and an FBI special agent working in an undercover capacity delivered four $2,500 checks in the names of conduit contributors to Nassi and Braddock.   On April 23, 2012, Nassi advised Soucy that one of the checks had bounced and Soucy indicated that the contributor had been given cash to deposit.  Nassi stated that the campaign needed the check by midnight the following day, and Soucy delivered a replacement check by that deadline.  On May 2, 2012, the Campaign submitted a fundraising report to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) stating that the four contributions given in April were from the conduit contributors when, in fact, they were not.

Over the next two weeks, Nassi continued to advise Soucy on the status of the RYO legislation and Soucy told Nassi that he would be delivering an additional $10,000 if the legislation died.  On May 9, 2012, the legislative session ended and the legislation had not been called for a vote by either chamber of the General Assembly.

On May 14, 2012, Soucy, Rogers and Hogan met at Smoke House Tobacco where Soucy provided Rogers with $10,000 in cash to be used to reimburse additional conduit contributors.  Prior to the meeting, Hogan had approached Waterbury business owner Daniel Monteiro and an employee of Monteiro’s and asked them to serve as conduit contributors.  Monteiro subsequently wrote a $2,500 check to the campaign, and his employee obtained a bank check in the amount of $2,500.  Both were assured that they would be reimbursed.  These two checks, and another $2,500 bank check drawn on Hogan’s own account but not in his name, were given to Soucy at the meeting.  Also, at Nassi’s request, Rogers gave Soucy a fourth $2,500 check from a conduit contributor that was payable to a political party.  Soucy delivered the four checks to Nassi at a political event later that day.  As he was exiting the event, Soucy encountered BRADDOCK and stated that “twenty thousand was well worth it….And another ten grand.”  BRADDOCK responded, “You’re the man.”

On May 15, 2012, BRADDOCK and Soucy had a telephone conversation related to the four conduit checks that Soucy had delivered the previous day, and BRADDOCK indicated that he needed additional identifying information for Benjamin Hogan for FEC reporting purposes.  During the conversation, Soucy stated that a previous contributor “had bounced a check even though you put the money right in their hands.”  He later stated, “…grabbing these drunks and drug addicts and say ‘Here, write this check…,” to which BRADDOCK responded, while laughing, “Hey, it works.”

Later that day, Soucy called BRADDOCK to inform him that Hogan was a RYO smoke shop “owner,” his check should not be deposited and that Soucy would provide a replacement check.  BRADDOCK stopped the check from being deposited.

On May 16, 2012, Soucy met Nassi and provided him with a replacement $2,500 check in the name of someone who was not affiliated with any RYO shops.

In addition to the testimony of Soucy, Rogers, the undercover FBI special agent and others, the trial evidence included numerous audio and video conversations that were recorded during the course of the investigation.

Soucy, Rogers, Nassi, Moffa, Tirado, Hogan and Monteiro each pleaded guilty to charges related to this scheme.  On June 12, 2013, Moffa was sentenced to 24 months of imprisonment and a $5,000 fine.  The other defendants await sentencing.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher M. Mattei and Eric J. Glover.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
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Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that FEISAL SHARIF, 43, of Branford, waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty today before United States District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to fraud offenses stemming from his operation of a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors of approximately $3.6 million.

According to court documents and statements made in court, from approximately 2003 to September 2012, SHARIF ran an investment fraud scheme through First Financial, LLC, a firm he operated out of his Branford residence.  As part of the scheme, SHARIF convinced numerous individuals to give him money to invest in what they believed was a commodity pool to profit from trading in commodity futures.  In an effort to make investors believe that their money was safely invested and earning a sizeable return, SHARIF regularly would make monthly payments to investors, falsely claiming they represented returns on their investments.  He also supplied investors with monthly statements from First Financial that falsely reported the purported balances of their investments and their rate of return on the investments.

In reality, SHARIF was simply paying existing investors with new money he raised from other investors.  Very little of the investment money he raised was used to trade in commodity futures, and what he did invest in commodity futures did not generate returns anywhere near those he reported to investors.

Through this scheme, SHARIF defrauded more than 50 investors of approximately $3.6 million.  Many of these victims were relatives, friends and people he knew through their common connection with a religious institution.

SHARIF pleaded guilty to one count of fraud by a commodity pool operator, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years, and one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.  Judge Underhill has scheduled sentencing for November 19, 2013.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Postal Inspection Service.  Acting U.S. Attorney Daly also acknowledged the assistance of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the State of Connecticut Department of Banking.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Murphy.

Citizens are encouraged to report any financial fraud schemes by calling, toll free, 855-236-9740, or by sending an email to ctsecuritiesfraud@ic.fbi.gov.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
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Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that WILNER CASTELIN, also known as “Castro,” 44, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., was sentenced today by United States District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 27 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for participating in an oxycodone trafficking ring.  On May 13, 2013, a jury found CASTELIN guilty of one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute oxycodone, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. 

This matter stems from “Operation Blue Coast,” an investigation headed by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force into the large-scale trafficking of oxycodone pills from Florida to Connecticut.  The investigation revealed that an individual regularly purchased oxycodone from suppliers in Florida, transported the oxycodone to Connecticut by commercial airline or automobile, and sold the pills for profit to various Connecticut-based narcotics dealers.  He then transported the proceeds of his oxycodone sales from Connecticut to Florida, either by having a courier drive the money or by using commercial airline flights.

The evidence at trial revealed that the narcotics trafficker met David Gaudiosi and Bruce Yazdzik, two large-scale oxycodone distributors in Connecticut, in early 2010.  After the meeting, Gaudiosi and Yazdzik visited the narcotics trafficker in Florida on multiple occasions to obtain prescriptions for oxycodone from unscrupulous pain clinics, commonly referred to as “pill mills.”  The trafficker paid CASTELIN to chauffeur Gaudiosi and Yazdzik during their Florida visits.  CASTELIN subsequently agreed to travel to the northeastern U.S. to drive large amounts of U.S. currency, which were proceeds of the narcotics trafficker’s oxycodone sales in Connecticut, to Florida.  CASTELIN was paid approximately $1,000 to $1,250 for each trip.

CASTELIN was arrested on September 13, 2011.

Twenty individuals, including two law enforcement officers and three Transportation Security Agency officers, have been charged as a result of this investigation.

Gaudiosi and Yazdzik each pleaded guilty to oxycodone trafficking charges.  On November 14, 2012, Yazdzik was sentenced to 120 months of imprisonment.  Gaudiosi awaits sentencing.

This matter has been investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force, which includes personnel from the Connecticut State Police and the Bridgeport, Milford, Norwalk, Stamford and Westport Police Departments; the Drug Enforcement Administration in Florida and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General.  In addition, the U.S. Marshals Service and the Greenwich, Monroe, Danbury and Waterbury Police Departments have assisted the investigation.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Rahul Kale and Brian Leaming.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
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Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that a federal grand jury sitting in New Haven has returned a two-count indictment charging MAURICE L. MILLIGAN, 34, of New London with firearms offenses.  The indictment was returned on August 21, 2013.

As alleged in the indictment, between April 22 and April 25, 2013, MILLIGAN possessed a loaded 9mm semi-automatic pistol with an obliterated serial number.  Prior to April 2013, MILLIGAN had been convicted in the Queens County (N.Y.) Supreme Court of third degree criminal possession of a loaded firearm and second degree robbery.

MILLIGAN is charged with one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years imprisonment and a fine of up to $250,000, and one count of possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years and a fine of up to $250,000.

This matter has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in Hartford.

Acting U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt.  Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This matter is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with the assistance of the New London Police Department and the Office of the State’s Attorney for the Judicial District of New London.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John H. Durham.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
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Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Kenneth J. Croke, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the ATF Boston Field Division, announced that DAVID LAGUERCIA, 56, of Broad Brook, pleaded guilty today in Bridgeport federal court to violating federal firearms laws.  LAGUERCIA was the owner and operator of Riverview Gun Sales, located at 4 Prospect Hill Road in East Windsor.

According to court documents and statements made in court, LAGUERCIA, doing business as Riverview Sales, Inc. (“Riverview”), was a federal firearms licensed dealer in Connecticut (“FFL”) from 2005 to December 2012.  The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) conducted an investigation of LAGUERCIA and Riverview and discovered approximately 300 examples of false or missing information in Riverview’s acquisition and disposition (“A&D”) records.  The investigation also revealed at least two instances in which individuals received firearms prior to receiving approval from the national instant criminal background check system (“NICS”).  Riverview also failed to report the theft of a firearm within 48 hours, and failed to report multiple sales of handguns to the same individuals.

“This investigation of one of Connecticut’s largest gun dealers revealed hundreds of record-keeping violations, improper sales, shoddy inventory procedures and seemingly non-existent store security,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Daly.  “Federally-licensed firearms dealers are our first line of defense in making sure that firearms don’t wind up in the wrong hands, and gun dealers who don’t follow the rules and violate federal law will be prosecuted.”

“Today is an example of the consequences federal firearms dealers face when they commit violations and put communities in danger with their actions,” stated ATF Acting Special Agent in Charge Croke.  “It is critical for FFLs to comply with federal laws and regulations.  ATF has a responsibly to ensure they do, thereby keeping firearms out of the hands of individuals who are prohibited from having them to ensure that our citizens are safe.”

LAGUERCIA pleaded guilty today before United States Magistrate Judge Holly B. Fitzsimmons to one count of transfer of a firearm before completion of background check, and one count of failure to maintain proper firearm records.  LAGUERCIA also entered a guilty plea on behalf of RIVERVIEW SALES, INC. to one count of making false entries in dealer’s records.  The maximum penalty on each of the charges is one year of imprisonment, five years of probation and a $100,000 fine.

Sentencing has been scheduled for November 14, 2013.

On December 20, 2012, ATF issued a revocation of Riverview’s FFL, effective on that date.  LAGUERCIA has not appealed this administrative decision.

As part of his guilty plea, LAGUERCIA agreed that he will not be an FFL or a responsible party for an FFL for a period of five years.  He also has agreed to sell or transfer any firearms remaining in Riverview’s inventory to another FFL.

This matter is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert M. Spector.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
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Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced HECTOR VALLE, 43, a citizen of Mexico last residing in Norwalk, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 65 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for trafficking narcotics.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on March 27, 2012, New York Police Department officers conducting a narcotics trafficking investigation contacted the Drug Enforcement Administration in Bridgeport with information that individuals operating out of 18-20 Taylor Avenue and 20 Woodbury Avenue in Norwalk had just received a multiple-kilogram shipment of cocaine.  Based upon this information, on the morning of March 28, members of the DEA Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force and the Norwalk Police Department’s Special Services Division executed a court-authorized search of 20 Woodbury Avenue and encountered VALLE, Jose Mendez-Luna and others.  A search of VALLE’s bedroom revealed quantities of cocaine and heroin, drug ledgers and approximately $8,000 in cash.  In a bedroom that Mendez-Luna had been using, officers located a 9-millimeter firearm, a magazine with four rounds of ammunition, approximately 262 grams of cocaine, two digital scales, narcotics packaging materials and nine cell phones.  Approximately one ounce of heroin was also recovered from the kitchen of the residence.

A subsequent court-authorized search of 18-20 Taylor Avenue yielded approximately five kilograms of heroin, 10 pounds of Methamphetamine, $279,000 in cash, one handgun, ammunition and narcotics packaging materials.

VALLE has been detained since his arrest on March 28, 2012.  On March 15, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.

Mendez-Luna also pleaded guilty and, on July 17, 2013, he was sentenced to 30 months of imprisonment.

This matter was investigated by Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force, which is composed of members of the Bridgeport, Milford, Norwalk, Stamford, Stratford and Westport Police Departments.  The investigation was significantly assisted by the Norwalk Police Department’s Special Services Division and the New York Police Department.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Sarah Karwan and Vanessa Richards.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that KEVIN DEAN BROWN, 43, a citizen of Jamaica last residing in Mount Vernon, N.Y., was sentenced today by United States District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to eight months of imprisonment for passport fraud.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on May 30, 2006, BROWN used the name and identity documents of a U.S. citizen when filing an application for a U.S. passport at a post office in Hamden.  A U.S. passport was issued to BROWN in November 2006.

BROWN has been detained since his arrest on April 4, 2013.  On May 29, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of making a false statement in an application for a U.S. passport.

BROWN faces deportation proceedings when he completes his prison term.

This matter was investigated by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Diplomatic Security, with the assistance of the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Deborah R. Slater.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that THOMAS J. TUREY, 64, of Norwalk, was sentenced yesterday by United States District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 54 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for embezzling more than $3.4 million from his employer.

According to court documents and statements made in court, TUREY served as the controller for a market research company located in Stamford.  As controller, TUREY’s responsibilities included aggregating the company’s monthly revenue and expense results, managing the company’s accounts receivable, performing financial analysis and reporting, and overseeing the company’s bookkeeper.  TUREY also was responsible for the company’s general ledger and was in charge of conducting the company’s bank reconciliations.  Between August 2005 and January 2013, TUREY embezzled approximately $3,462,435 from the company by writing checks to himself and to a fictitious entity for his personal benefit, and depositing those funds into bank accounts he controlled.  TUREY made numerous false entries in the company’s books and records to conceal this scheme.

The majority of the embezzled funds were subsequently transferred into TUREY’s online brokerage account.

On May 23, 2013, TUREY pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.

Judge Hall ordered TUREY to pay full restitution to the victim company.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Paul A. Murphy.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that VICTOR RAMOS, 31, of Waterbury, waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty today before United States Magistrate Judge Donna F. Martinez in Hartford to one count of bank robbery.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on February 1, 2013, RAMOS, Jose Rivera and others committed an armed robbery of the TD Bank located on Hartford Road in New Britain, stealing approximately $24,480.  On February 21, 2013, RAMOS, Rivera and others committed an armed robbery of the TD Bank located on North Main Street in Waterbury, stealing approximately $5,319.

In pleading guilty, RAMOS also admitted that he violently stole $100 from a small business in Waterbury on January 28, 2013.

RAMOS has been detained since his arrest on June 5, 2013.

Rivera, 41, of Waterbury, has been detained since his arrest on February 21, 2013.  On August 7, 2013, he also pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery.

RAMOS and Rivera are scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny on November 7, 2013, at which time they face a maximum term of imprisonment of 25 years.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Waterbury Police Department and the New Britain Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Douglas P. Morabito.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that IONUT-IULIAN VLAD, 29, a citizen of Romania, pleaded guilty today before United States Magistrate Judge Joan G. Margolis in New Haven to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud stemming from his role in an ATM “skimming” scheme.

According to court documents and statements made in court, VLAD and others conspired to install “skimming” devices on automated teller machines (“ATMs”) at Bank of America locations in Connecticut.  The devices were able to capture the information encoded on the magnetic strips of bank cards used by ATM customers.  The co-conspirators also placed devices on the ATMs that contained hidden pinhole cameras, which recorded the personal identification numbers that bank customers keyed into the ATMs to gain access to their accounts.  The co-conspirators used the stolen information captured by the skimming devices and pinhole cameras to create counterfeit bank cards that allowed them to withdraw more than $100,000 in funds from the customers’ accounts.

In February 2013, surveillance video captured VLAD removing skimming devices and pinhole cameras from Bank of America ATMs in Wallingford and Greenwich.

VLAD has been detained since his arrest by the Stamford Police Department on March 2, 2013.  At the time of his arrest, VLAD possessed ATM skimming tools and double-sided tape.

VLAD is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton on November 8, 2013, at which time he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years, a fine of up to $1 million and an order of restitution.

This investigation is being conducted by the Connecticut Financial Crimes Task Force, which includes members of the United States Secret Service, United States Postal Inspection Service, United States Department of State, Bureau of Diplomatic Security, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, Connecticut State Police, and the Greenwich, Hartford, Stamford, Shelton and Stratford Police Departments.  Acting U.S. Attorney Daly specifically recognized the efforts of the Greenwich and Stamford Police Departments for their assistance in the investigation and prosecution of this matter.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas P. Morabito.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that RAYMOND MASSAGLI, 31, formerly of New Fairfield, Conn. and Somerset, Mass., was sentenced today by United States District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 42 months of imprisonment, followed by two years of supervised release, for trafficking marijuana.

According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from a Drug Enforcement Administration and Connecticut State Police Statewide Narcotics Task Force investigation into a large-scale marijuana growing and trafficking organization that operated in the greater Danbury area and had ties to New York, Massachusetts, and Vermont.  Between June 2011 and June 2012, the drug trafficking organization conspired to manufacture, sell, and distribute more than 1,000 kilograms of marijuana.

The investigation, which included the use of court-authorized wiretaps, revealed that Nicolas Calamaras of New Fairfield was distributing marijuana to numerous individuals in the Danbury area.  Beginning in April 2012, investigators learned that MASSAGLI sold large quantities of marijuana to Calamaras, partnered with Calamaras to sell marijuana to co-defendant and Vermont resident Weston Robinson, bought marijuana plants from Calamaras to begin his own grow house operation, and conspired with Calamaras and others to expand their narcotics trafficking activities.

MASSAGLI was arrested on July 2, 2012.  On May 29, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute more than 100 kilograms of marijuana.

MASSAGLI has been detained since July 16, 2013, after he violated conditions of his release and his bond was revoked.

Thirteen individuals were charged a result of the investigation, during which investigators seized marijuana, more than $520,000 in cash, 10 firearms, vehicles and real property.

As part of his sentence, MASSAGLI was ordered to forfeit his 2008 Nissan Titan SE pickup truck.
Calamaras has pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.  Robinson also pleaded guilty and, on July 31, 2013, he was sentenced to 12 months and one day of imprisonment.

This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Connecticut State Police Statewide Narcotics Task Force Northwest Office.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Tracy L. Dayton and David X. Sullivan.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that BRUCE DAMICO, 35, formerly residing in Hartford, Providence, R.I., and Queens, N.Y., was sentenced today by United States District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 121 months of imprisonment, followed by 10 years of supervised release, for recruiting and transporting a minor to engage in prostitution.

According to court documents and statements made in court, DAMICO recruited, harbored and transported women and girls to engage in prostitution.  As a part of his prostitution business, DAMICO posted Internet advertisements offering the women and girls for commercial sex acts, and DAMICO was paid by each woman and girl $100 per day for maintaining the advertisements.  DAMICO booked hotel rooms where the women and girls would engage in commercial sex acts, and he transported, or arranged the transportation of, the women and girls to prostitution appointments.  DAMICO also sold drugs to the women and girls at inflated prices, often resulting in DAMICO obtaining all the money they made.  

In pleading guilty, DAMICO admitted that between June 2009 and January 2010, his prostitution enterprise employed a girl who was under the age of 18.  DAMICO posted pictures of the minor victim on the Internet to advertise her prostitution services, and he and others working for him transported the minor victim between Connecticut and surrounding states to engage in prostitution.

DAMICO has been detained since his arrest by the Bloomfield Police Department on January 22, 2010.  On March 4, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of sex trafficking of a minor.

Judge Underhill ordered DAMICO to pay $10,000 in restitution to the minor victim.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bloomfield Police Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David E. Novick.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that YVONNE DAVIS, 62, a prisoner at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) in Danbury, pleaded guilty today before Senior United States District Judge Warren W. Eginton in Bridgeport to one count of assault with a dangerous weapon.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on November 25, 2012, DAVIS assaulted another FCI Danbury inmate with a ballpoint pen that had been broken so as to have a sharp edge on it.  The victim suffered a laceration to the back of her arm that was five to six inches long and one-half inch deep.  The wound required 24 stitches to close.

Judge Eginton has scheduled sentencing for November 6, 2013, at which time DAVIS faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of up to $250,000.

DAVIS is currently serving a 37-month sentence after having been convicted in the Northern District of Texas of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Neeraj N. Patel.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that SHAUN WHITEHEAD, 26, of Brooklyn, N.Y., was sentenced today by Senior United States District Judge Alfred V. Covello in Hartford to 42 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for using counterfeit U.S. currency to purchase items at five Connecticut stores.

On April 10, 2013, a jury found WHITEHEAD guilty of five counts of passing counterfeit obligations.

According to the evidence presented during the trial, in January and February 2011, WHITEHEAD used counterfeit $100 bills to purchase iPads and Bose headsets from retail stores in Windsor, Waterford, Lisbon, South Windsor and Naugatuck.

WHITEHEAD has been detained since March 9, 2011, when he was arrested in Massachusetts on a state larceny charge.  He has been in federal custody since August 24, 2012.

This matter was investigated by the United States Secret Service, with the assistance of the police departments of Windsor, Waterford, South Windsor, Naugatuck and North Attleboro (Mass.), and the Connecticut State Police.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Felice Duffy and Ray Miller.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that BETTEJANE HOPKINS, 68, of Essex, was sentenced today by Chief United States District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to three years of probation, during which she is required to perform 300 hours of community service, for participating in a pyramid scheme known as “Gifting Tables.”

According to court documents, statements made in court and the evidence presented during a trial of her codefendants, a Gifting Table is configured as a four-level pyramid, with eight participants assigned to the bottom row, four participants assigned to the third row, two participants assigned to the second row, and one participant assigned to the top row.  The top row participant is referred to as the “Dessert,” the two participants on the second row as “Entrees,” the four participants on the third row as “Soup and Salads,” and the eight participants on the bottom row as “Appetizers.”  To join a Gifting Table, new participants were required to pay $5,000, typically cash, to the Dessert, that is, the participant occupying the top position on the pyramid.  The $5,000 payment, which was fraudulently characterized as a gift, secured the new participant a position as an Appetizer on the bottom row.  Participants progressed from the bottom row of the pyramid by recruiting additional people to join the Gifting Table.  When eight new participants joined a Gifting Table, each having made a $5,000 “gift” to the person occupying the Dessert position at the top of the pyramid, the Dessert left the Gifting Table and kept the $40,000 paid by the eight new participants.  That particular Gifting Table was then split, with the two participants occupying the Entree position on the second row moving to the top position (Dessert) of two new pyramids.  The other incumbent members of the Gifting Table moved up a row on one of the two newly-formed pyramids, and the search for 16 new participants began.  The success of the Gifting Tables depended on new participants joining and making the $5,000 “gift.”

From approximately 2008 to 2011, HOPKINS, Donna Bello and Jill Platt oversaw and profited from a Gifting Tables pyramid scheme operating primarily in Connecticut’s shoreline communities.  The defendants recruited individuals to join the scheme, prepared and distributed materials to recruits that contained false representations, and affirmatively misrepresented to recruits and participants that Gifting Tables was not a pyramid scheme. 

HOPKINS and her codefendants conspired to defraud the Internal Revenue Service by telling recruits and participants that monies given and received during the scheme were tax-free “gifts” under the IRS Code and that lawyers and accountants had approved Gifting Tables as legal ventures that generated tax-free proceeds.  They also advised and counseled participants not to report on their tax returns monies received through their participation in the scheme, or deposit a large amount of cash into bank accounts, which would require the bank to report the sum to the IRS.

HOPKINS received at least $89,500 from her participation in the scheme, none of which was reported on her individual income tax return.

On December 18, 2012, HOPKINS pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service.

On February 20, 2013, after a four-week trial, Bello and Platt were convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the IRS, multiple counts of wire fraud, and filing false tax returns.

Yesterday, Chief Judge Thompson sentenced Bello to 72 months of imprisonment and three years of supervised release, and Platt to 54 months of imprisonment and three years of supervised release.  Bello also was ordered to pay a $15,000 fine.

HOPKINS, Bello and Platt were ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $32,000 to several victims of the scheme.

This matter is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Douglas P. Morabito and Peter S. Jongbloed.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Phil Hall, Acting Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in New England, announced that two Guilford women who oversaw a pyramid scheme known as “Gifting Tables” were sentenced today in Hartford federal court.  Chief United States District Judge Alvin W. Thompson sentenced DONNA BELLO to 72 months of imprisonment and three years of supervised release, and JILL PLATT to 54 months of imprisonment and three years of supervised release.  BELLO also was ordered to pay a $15,000 fine.

 “These significant sentences are appropriate for two individuals who profited from an illegal pyramid scheme and conspired to conceal their income from the IRS,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Daly.  “The investigation into this and other Gifting Tables schemes in Connecticut is ongoing.  Hopefully, this successful prosecution and the prison terms imposed today will serve as a strong deterrent and end this criminal activity.”

According to the evidence presented during the trial, a Gifting Table is configured as a four-level pyramid, with eight participants assigned to the bottom row, four participants assigned to the third row, two participants assigned to the second row, and one participant assigned to the top row.  The top row participant is referred to as the “Dessert,” the two participants on the second row as “Entrees,” the four participants on the third row as “Soup and Salads,” and the eight participants on the bottom row as “Appetizers.”  To join a Gifting Table, new participants were required to pay $5,000, typically cash, to the Dessert, that is, the participant occupying the top position on the pyramid.  The $5,000 payment, which was fraudulently characterized as a gift, secured the new participant a position as an Appetizer on the bottom row.  Participants progressed from the bottom row of the pyramid by recruiting additional people to join the Gifting Table.  When eight new participants joined a Gifting Table, each having made a $5,000 “gift” to the person occupying the Dessert position at the top of the pyramid, the Dessert left the Gifting Table and kept the $40,000 paid by the eight new participants.  That particular Gifting Table was then split, with the two participants occupying the Entree position on the second row moving to the top position (Dessert) of two new pyramids.  The other incumbent members of the Gifting Table moved up a row on one of the two newly-formed pyramids, and the search for 16 new participants began.  The success of the Gifting Tables depended on new participants joining and making the $5,000 “gift.”

From approximately 2008 to 2011, BELLO, 57, and PLATT, 65, oversaw and profited from this Gifting Tables pyramid scheme.  The defendants recruited individuals to join the scheme, prepared and distributed materials to recruits that contained false representations, and affirmatively misrepresented to recruits and participants that Gifting Tables was not a pyramid scheme.  Also, in May 2010, the defendants attempted to intimidate a participant who had questioned the legality of the Gifting Table scheme.

BELLO and PLATT also conspired to defraud the Internal Revenue Service by telling recruits and participants that monies given and received during the scheme were tax-free “gifts” under the IRS Code and that lawyers and accountants had approved Gifting Tables as legal ventures that generated tax-free proceeds.  In addition, BELLO and PLATT filed false tax returns that failed to report income generated from the scheme.

Evidence at trial included several emails, including an email sent by PLATT in March 2009 that told a participant: “It’s sort of a joke that I refer to our freezer as the ATM.”  Later in March 2009, BELLO complained to a co-conspirator and another individual about two recalcitrant recruits, stating: “They have had enough parties. Its [sic] costing us a small fortune in their food and wine delights. No more parties until they commit with the cash.”

In June 2009, BELLO sent an email that said “I am not a . . . saint . . . . I’m teaching you all how to make an extra 80 grand a year . . . . Isn’t that enough?”

Later in October 2009, BELLO emailed a participant: “as women we like our own stash. Keep it in a safe.  Keep it quiet because rather not have red flags raised. Hiring accountants and atterneys [sic] is costly.”

On February 20, 2013, after a four-week trial, BELLO and PLATT were convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the IRS, multiple counts of wire fraud, and filing false tax returns.

BELLO and PLATT were ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $32,000 to several victims of the scheme.

This matter is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Douglas P. Morabito and Peter S. Jongbloed.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that HENRY J. PAPALE, 62, of Southington, pleaded guilty today before Senior United States District Judge Ellen Bree Burns in New Haven to federal wire fraud and money laundering offenses stemming from a mortgage fraud scheme.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in 2007, PAPALE used credit information of others to purchase four homes in Florida and obtain mortgage loans.  He submitted fraudulent invoices, work authorizations and wire transfer instructions to a settlement agent in Florida, each of which purported to be from a construction company for restoration on the properties.  In fact, the construction company was fictitious and no work was performed on the properties.  Following the closing on each property, the settlement agent wire transferred loan proceeds, in amounts that corresponded to the price for restoration work, to a bank account in Southington that it believed belonged to the fictitious construction company, but was actually held by certain of PAPALE’s family members.  A total of $360,307.23 was transferred to PAPALE’s family members in this manner.

Based on PAPALE’s representations, a member of PAPALE’s family then turned the majority of the fraudulently obtained loan proceeds over to PAPALE, who deposited them into his own bank account.  PAPALE transferred $255,500 in fraudulently obtained loan funds from his bank account to an investment trading account.

PAPALE pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years, and one count of money laundering, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.  Judge Burns has scheduled sentencing for November 5, 2013.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan N. Francis and Michael S. McGarry.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ALEXANDER LAPPIN, 34, of Brooklyn, N.Y., was sentenced today by United States District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 37 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing marijuana.  Judge Arterton also ordered LAPPIN to pay a $3,600 fine and to forfeit $105,825.

According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from a Drug Enforcement Administration and Connecticut State Police Statewide Narcotics Task Force investigation into a large-scale marijuana growing and trafficking organization that operated in the greater Danbury area and had ties to New York, Massachusetts, and Vermont.  Between June 2011 and June 2012, the drug trafficking organization conspired to manufacture, sell, and distribute more than 1,000 kilograms of marijuana.

The investigation, which included the use of court-authorized wiretaps, revealed that LAPPIN was selling multi-kilogram quantities of marijuana to Nicolas Calamaras of New Fairfield, who distributed the drug to numerous individuals in the Danbury area.

Thirteen individuals were charged a result of the investigation, during which investigators seized marijuana, more than $520,000 in cash, 10 firearms, vehicles and real property.

LAPPIN was arrested on June 14, 2012.  On that date, investigators seized more than $105,000 in cash from his Brooklyn apartment.

LAPPIN has been detained since his arrest.  On May 13, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute more than 100 kilograms of marijuana.

Calamaras has pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.

This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Connecticut State Police Statewide Narcotics Task Force Northwest Office.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Tracy L. Dayton and David X. Sullivan.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov

Deirdre M. Daly, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Bryan Greene, Acting Assistant Secretary of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, today announced that a federal judge in New Haven has found the owners of a property in Windsor Locks, Conn., liable for violating the Fair Housing Act by discriminating against prospective tenants based on their race.

In October 2011, the United States brought an action against Merline Hylton, the owner of 5 Townline Road in Windsor Locks, her husband Clifton Hylton and Hylton Real Estate Management (HREM), after the Connecticut Fair Housing Center filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development on behalf of alleged victims of discrimination.  In March 2013, U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall presided over a bench trial in the matter.

On May 1, 2013, Judge Hall issued a ruling that found that the defendants had violated the Fair Housing Act by refusing to rent to tenants based on their race; discriminating in the terms, conditions, or privileges of renting to prospective tenants based on their race; and making discriminatory statements based on race regarding the rental of their property.  Merline Hylton was ordered to pay compensatory damages for the actions of her husband and HREM, and Clifton Hylton and HREM were ordered to pay compensatory and punitive damages to the victims totaling $76,091.05.  Judge Hall found that Clifton Hylton acted with evil motive and showed no remorse for his conduct, justifying an award of punitive damages. 

On July 26, 2013, Judge Hall also ordered the defendants to pay attorneys’ fees in the amount of $37,422 to the Connecticut Fair Housing Center, who represented the victims and tried the case with the United States.

“Discrimination in housing in Connecticut will not be tolerated and those who discriminate will be aggressively pursued,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Daly.  “We will not hesitate to take enforcement action where a person’s federal rights are denied.”

“Racial discrimination in housing not only violates the law and our commonly-held moral precepts as Americans, it also causes great economic and social harm to the family denied the opportunity to live in the neighborhood of their choice,” stated HUD Acting Assistant Secretary Greene.  “HUD and the Department of Justice will continue to enforce the fair housing laws to ensure that everyone with the wherewithal to pay has equal access to America's neighborhoods.”

In addition to awarding monetary damages, Judge Hall ordered that the defendants complete three hours of fair housing training each year, post signs on their dwellings indicating that their dwellings are available on a non-discriminatory basis, and report to the government any complaints alleging discrimination filed by their tenants.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ndidi N. Moses and Timothy Bennett-Smyth from the Connecticut Fair Housing Center.

The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, and familial status.  More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.justice.gov/crt.

Individuals who believe that they may have been victims of housing discrimination can file a complaint with the U.S. Attorney’s Office at 203-821-3700, call the Housing Discrimination Tip Line at 1-800-896-7743, email the Justice Department at fairhousing@usdoj.gov, or contact HUD at 1-800-669-9777.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 thomas.carson@usdoj.gov