District of Connecticut

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that SHAMARI SMITH, also known as “Dakota,” 34, of Manchester, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Omar A. Williams in Hartford to 25 months of imprisonment, followed by one year of supervised release, for failing to report to law enforcement information she knew about the murder of a Massachusetts man in December 2020.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on December 24, 2020, Brandon Batiste and Calvin Roberson, also known as “Cutty,” kidnapped Francisco Roman, Jr., 28, at gunpoint from a residence in Chicopee, Massachusetts.  Batiste and Roberson threatened to harm Roman if he did not comply with their orders, handcuffed him, and stole cash, marijuana, and other items from Roman.  Batiste and Roberson forced Roman into the rear of Roman’s 2010 Acura ZDX, and transported Roman and the other stolen property to Connecticut.  Batiste shot and killed Roman while the car was en route to Hartford.  They then drove the car to Shultas Place in Hartford and left it parked on the street.

Batiste and Roberson then drove a separate car to an apartment that Roberson shared with Smith in Waterbury, and took most of the property stolen during the robbery, including a Gucci hat, earrings, a necklace with an “F” pendant, and a PlayStation 5, into the apartment.  On December 26, 2020, Smith wore the hat, earrings, and necklace in a video on Snapchat.  The following day, Smith received information that Roman’s family members had seen the Snapchat video, and that the items she wore belonged to Roman, who had been murdered.  Instead of notifying law enforcement, Smith disposed of the items by selling them.  In an interview with the FBI on February 11, 2021, Smith lied about what she knew about Roberson’s actions and her role in the disposal of the stolen property.

On June 5, 2023, Smith pleaded guilty to misprision of felony.  Smith, who is released on a $150,000 bond, is required to report to prison on December 13.

Batiste and Roberson have each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping and one count of causing the death of a person through the use of a firearm.  They are detained while awaiting sentencing.

This investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force, FBI’s Springfield Gang Task Force, Massachusetts State Police, Hampden County (Mass.) District Attorney’s Office, Hartford Police Department’s Major Crimes Division, Chicopee Police Department and Springfield Police Department, with the assistance of the Waterbury Police Department and the FBI’s Atlanta Field Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Angel M. Krull.

U.S. Attorney Avery thanked the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts for their assistance in this matter.

KIVEON HYMAN, also known as “Tiny, ” 25, of New Haven, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in New Haven to an offense stemming from his role in a violent New Haven street gang.

Today’s announcement was made by Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; John P. Doyle, Jr., State’s Attorney for the New Haven Judicial District; James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division; Robert Fuller, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England; and New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in an effort to address violence in New Haven, including murders and attempted murders, the ATF, FBI, DEA and New Haven Police Department, working closely with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office, have been investigating an ongoing gang war between members and associates of the Exit 8 street gang and rival gangs in the Hill section and other areas of the city.  The Exit 8 gang is named after the geographic area accessed by exiting Interstate 91 at Exit 8 in New Haven.  Recently, younger members of Exit 8 are identifying themselves with the word “Honcho,” which is derived from the street name of an Exit 8 member who was murdered on Quinnipiac Avenue in February 2020.

The investigation has revealed that Hyman and other members of the Exit 8 gang engaged in drug trafficking, used and shared firearms, and, since June 2018, have committed at least three murders and 16 attempted murders.  Exit 8 members and associates stole vehicles, at times from outside of the state, and used those stolen vehicles when committing acts of violence.  Gang members also promoted, coordinated, facilitated, and celebrated their narcotics distribution and acts of violence through text messaging and the use of social media applications and websites including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube.

Specifically, on June 16, 2018, Hyman shot and attempted to kill a member and associate of a rival gang, and shot another individual in the vicinity.

Hyman pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.  A sentencing date is not scheduled.

Hyman has been detained since his arrest on March 24, 2023.

This investigation is being conducted by ATF, the FBI, the DEA, the New Haven Police Department, and the New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office, with the assistance of the Connecticut State Police and the Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tara E. Levens, Rahul Kale and Jocelyn C. Kaoutzanis.

This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), Project Longevity and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.

PSN is a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone.  Project Longevity is a comprehensive initiative to reduce gun violence in Connecticut’s major cities.  Through Project Longevity, community members and law enforcement directly engage with members of groups that are prone to commit violence and deliver a community message against violence, a law enforcement message about the consequences of further violence and an offer of help for those who want it.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Robert Fuller, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson today announced that the following 11 individuals have been charged with federal offenses stemming from the illegal distribution of narcotics in and around the Fair Haven neighborhood of New Haven:

MARIANO IRIZARRY, a.k.a. “Pop” and “Papo,” 39, of New Haven
LUIS SANCHEZ-VAZQUEZ, 35, of New Haven
DIANNA ZEILIK, 53, of New Haven
LUIS GARCIA, 34, of New Haven
KELVIN ALVARADO, a.k.a. “Kelz” and “Kel Bucks,” 23, of New Haven
RYAN BRAMWELL, a.k.a. “Corona” and “Rona,” 29, of New Haven
YHAMANDA WALLEN, 29, of New Haven
JAQUET JACOBS, a.k.a. “Fifty,” 32, of New Haven
MARCUS JACOBS, a.k.a. “Slice,” 31, most recently of New Haven
JUSTIN GALLOGLY, a.k.a. “White Pudge,” 28, of New Haven
DENZEL SUGGS, 27, of Hamden

Alvarado, Wallen, Jaquet Jacobs, Marcus Jacobs, and Gallogly were arrested yesterday, and Bramwell and Suggs were arrested on March 10.  Irizarry, Sanchez-Vazquez, Zeilik, and Garcia were previously arrested.

As alleged in court documents and statements made in court, in June 2022, the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force initiated an investigation into a drug trafficking organization headed by Irizarry that was operating in the Fair Haven neighborhood of New Haven.  The investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps, physical surveillance, and several controlled purchases of fentanyl, heroin, cocaine and crack cocaine.  Irizarry distributed narcotics to a network of street-level dealers, as well as to his own customers.  The investigation also revealed that Zeilik and Garcia were acquiring and distributing prescription narcotic pills, some of which they distributed to Irizarry.

During the course of the investigation, investigators seized more than 250 grams of fentanyl from Alvarado, more than 400 grams of fentanyl and 160 grams of heroin from Sanchez-Vazquez, more than 1,000 oxycodone pills from Zeilik, and seven firearms.

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

This investigation is being conducted by FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force, which includes members from the FBI, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, and the New Haven, Milford, East Haven, West Haven, and Wallingford Police Departments.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brendan J. Keefe through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JOEL DeLEON, JR., also known as “Psycho,” 42, of Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 63 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for narcotics distribution and firearm possession offenses, and for violating the conditions of his supervised release from a prior federal conviction.

According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from an investigation into gang-related drug trafficking and firearm possession by members of Los Solidos.  The investigation, which included court-authorized wiretaps, revealed that Luis Feliciano, also known as “Louminaty,” distributed fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, and crack to customers and other distributors in the Hartford area, and also to individuals in New York and Maine.

On March 8, 2022, investigators approached DeLeon, who was sitting in his vehicle on Wolcott Street, after they had observed him meeting with Feliciano and engaging in suspected drug activity.  DeLeon was arrested on state charges after he was found with packaged fentanyl and crack cocaine, and a loaded .22 magnum revolver.

DeLeon’s criminal history includes multiple felony narcotics convictions, including a federal conviction for possession with intent to distribute heroin, for which he was sentenced in November 2015 to 51 months of imprisonment and four years of supervised release.  He was released from federal prison in August 2018 and was on supervised release at the time of his arrest in March 2022.

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 8, 2022, a grand jury returned an indictment charging DeLeon, Feliciano, and 14 others with various narcotics distribution and firearm possession offenses.

DeLeon has been detained since his federal arrest on July 5, 2022.  On January 19, 2023, he pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine.

Judge Shea sentenced DeLeon to 57 months of imprisonment for the narcotics and firearm offenses, and a consecutive six months of imprisonment for violating his supervised release.

Feliciano pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.

This investigation has been conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force and the Hartford Police Department.  The Task Force includes members of the FBI, Hartford Police Department, East Hartford Police Department, New Britain Police Department, West Hartford Police Department, Connecticut State Police and Connecticut Department of Correction.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Ruff, with the assistance of Law Student Intern Christopher D’Urso, through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MIGUEL ANTONIO CONTRERAS-MARTINEZ, 54, a citizen of Honduras residing in Stamford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 36 months of imprisonment for illegally reentering the U.S.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Contreras-Martinez was deported from the U.S. to Honduras in 2006, following the completion of a Connecticut state sentence for a violation of probation and violation of a protective order, and in 2010, following the completion of a Connecticut state sentence for carrying a dangerous weapon.  Contreras-Martinez returned to the U.S., was convicted in Connecticut state court of criminal trespass and in federal court of illegal reentry, and was deported to Honduras in 2013.  He was subsequently again found in the U.S. and deported to Honduras in 2016.

In 2021, Contreras-Martinez was arrested by Stamford Police for operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol/drugs, and operating a motor vehicle under suspension.  He subsequently failed to appear for a court proceeding.  On September 30, 2022, Contreras-Martinez turned himself into the Fairfield Police Department following a hit and run incident.

Contreras-Martinez has been detained since his federal arrest on November 10, 2022.  On July 13, 2023, he pleaded guilty to illegal reentry of a removed alien.

This investigation was conducted by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patricia Stolfi Collins.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ERIC WHITE, 31, of Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to 48 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 February 17, 2021, Hartford Police arrested White after a foot chase and they found him in possession of a loaded .45 caliber Taurus handgun.

White’s criminal history includes state felony convictions for assault and narcotics offenses, and he was on special parole with the state when he was arrested in February 2021.  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.

White has been detained since his arrest.  On June 30, 2022, he pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.

This investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Connecticut Violent Crime Task Force and the Hartford Police Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer R. Laraia and Elena L. Coronado.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven has returned an indictment charging SEAN FALZARANO, 37, of Southbury, with five counts of tampering with a consumer product.

Falzarano is a Registered Nurse.  The indictment alleges that, on January 31, 2022, Falzarano took five vials containing 2mg/ml of Lorazepam solution that he knew was intended to be dispensed to patients, removed the Lorazepam solution from the vials, replaced it with saline, and returned the adulterated vials to be used in medical procedures.

The indictment was returned on October 3.  Falzarano appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Maria E. Garcia in New Haven and pleaded not guilty to the charges.  He is released on a $50,000 bond pending trial.

Each charge of tampering with a consumer product carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.

Falzarano’s nursing license is currently suspended.

This matter is being investigated by the Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations; the DEA’s Hartford Diversion Control Division; and the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection, Drug Control Division.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ray Miller.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Robert Fuller, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that JONATHAN VINCENT GLENN, 54, of Greenwich,  waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty yesterday in Hartford federal court to defrauding investment clients through a “cherry-picking” securities scheme.

“Cherry-picking” is a fraudulent securities trading practice in which the responsible individual executes trades without assigning those trades to a particular trading account until the individual determines whether or not the trade has become profitable or suffered losses.  The responsible individual then allocates the profitable trades to favored accounts – often the individual’s own accounts – and assigns unprofitable trades to disfavored client accounts.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Glenn owned Glenn Capital LLC, also known as GlennCap LLC, an investment advisory firm headquartered in Greenwich.   Through Glenn Capital, Glenn provided clients with portfolio management services including asset selection and asset allocation.  Glenn managed all of Glenn Capital’s advisory clients’ accounts and was authorized to make trading decisions on each client’s behalf without seeking approval for each trade.  Glenn placed trades on behalf of advisory clients, himself, or family members by trading directly in the relevant individual account, or by placing block trades in Glenn Capital’s omnibus account and allocating the block trades among the relevant individual accounts.  Glenn Capital’s Code of Ethics required Glenn to determine and document the specific allocation of each block trade prior to the execution, and to allocate block trades to individual accounts at an average price.

In pleading guilty, Glenn admitted that he defrauded clients by retroactively allocating profitable omnibus-account trades to favored clients, family, and personal accounts, and unprofitable omnibus-account trades to non-favored-client accounts.  Notwithstanding the requirements set forth in the Code of Ethics, Glenn did not determine the allocation of block trades until after they were executed, when he knew if the trades were profitable in the hours following the execution. When a block purchase of an equity security increased in value in the hours after the purchase, Glenn generally realized the profits by selling the security.  He then allocated those profits to favored-client, family, firm, and personal accounts. When a block purchase of an equity security decreased in value, Glenn generally allocated those block purchases to the non-favored-client accounts.  Glenn did not inform his clients that he was “cherry picking.”  Instead, he gave the false impression that he allocated trades fairly and according to a pre-determined allocation methodology.

Through this scheme, Glenn defrauded more than 45 clients of a total of more than $2.7 million.

Glenn pleaded guilty to one count of securities fraud, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 25 years and a fine of up to approximately $5.4 million.  Glenn is released pending sentencing, which is scheduled for December 28.

This matter has been investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with the assistance of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which has settled fraud charges with Glenn and GlennCap LLC.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather L. Cherry.

TAVAUGHN WRIGHT, also known as “Teddy,” 29, of Waterbury, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to 63 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for narcotics and firearm offenses related to his role in a violent Waterbury street gang.

Today’s announcement was made by Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; Maureen T. Platt, State’s Attorney for the Waterbury Judicial District; Waterbury Police Chief Fernando C. Spagnolo; Robert Fuller, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in an effort to address escalating violence in Waterbury, the FBI, ATF, and Waterbury Police have been investigating multiple Waterbury-based groups whose members are involved in narcotics trafficking, murder and other acts of violence.  The investigation revealed that Wright, a member of the 960 gang, was distributing narcotics and using a location on Buckingham Street to store and process narcotics.

On February 13, 2020, investigators executed search warrants at Wright’s residence on Bucks Hill Road and the Buckingham Street location.  The search of Wright’s residence revealed nearly 500 dose bags of heroin/fentanyl and other items, and the search of the Buckingham Street location revealed approximately 60 dose bags of heroin/fentanyl, a loaded 9mm handgun, and other items.  Analysis of the firearm revealed that it was stolen in Maine in 2016.

Wright’s criminal history includes felony convictions, and 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.

Wright has been detained since February 13, 2020.  On June 13, 2023, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.

This investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force, ATF and Waterbury Police Department, with the assistance of the Watertown Police Department, New Milford Police Department and Connecticut Department of Correction.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Geoffrey M. Stone, John T. Pierpont, Jr. and Natasha M. Freismuth, and Supervisory Assistant State’s Attorney Don E. Therkildesen, Jr. and Assistant State’s Attorney Alexandra Arroyo of the Waterbury State’s Attorney’s Office, who have been cross-designated as Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys in this matter.

This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.

PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that GABRIEL HORACE WILLIAMS-BEY, 34, of Hartford, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford to unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on June 30, 2022, Hartford Police seized a loaded semi-automatic pistol from inside a vehicle that Williams-Bey was driving. 

Williams-Bey’s criminal history includes a state firearms conviction, multiple state narcotics convictions, and a federal narcotics conviction for which he was sentenced, in June 2016, to eight years of imprisonment and four years of supervised release.

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.

Williams-Bey was released from federal prison in August 2021 and was on federal supervised release at the time of this offense.

At sentencing, which is not scheduled, Williams-Bey faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 15 years.  He also faces additional penalties for violating the conditions of his supervised release.

Williams-Bey has been detained in federal custody since July 12, 2022.

This matter has been investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Hartford Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth L. Gresham through Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

The United States Attorney’s Office Law Enforcement Awards Ceremony was celebrated this afternoon in New Haven.  The ceremony at the City of New Haven’s aldermanic chambers recognized approximately 140 individuals for their investigative efforts and other contributions to significant federal criminal prosecutions and civil cases in Connecticut.

“This past year has been marked by a succession of critically important prosecutions and impactful settlements that would not have been possible without the law enforcement partners recognized today, and their dedication to justice,” said U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery.  “Day after day, we are honored to work together with them to uphold the rule of law, safeguard civil rights, and enhance the public safety of people in all communities across Connecticut.”

In addition to criminal and civil case awards that recognized investigators of violent crime, drug trafficking, child exploitation, public corruption financial fraud, tax fraud, health care fraud, pandemic relief fraud, identity theft, and other matters, U.S. Attorney Avery presented three special awards during the ceremony.

The U.S. Attorney’s Award for Outstanding Investigator was presented to Connecticut State Police Detective Jonathan Carreiro.  Detective Carreiro, a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Task Force Officer and member of the Internet Crimes Against Children’s Task Force, has displayed an unwavering dedication to the protection of children from dangerous predators who lurk in cyberspace and our community.  He has spearheaded investigations of several individuals who were convicted of federal child exploitation offenses and are currently serving lengthy prison terms.

The U.S. Attorney’s Outstanding Community Award was presented to the founding members of FED-UP: Working Together for a Safer Community.  Created in 2021, FED-UP is run by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in conjunction with Project Longevity, local hospitals, and community-based organizations, to stop the gun violence that is destroying the lives of students and their families in Connecticut’s cities.  FED-UP sends seasoned violent crime prosecutors, law enforcement officers, medical professionals, and returning citizens into middle schools, where the program teaches students to understand that what they experience with gun violence is not normal, and that there is nothing wrong about being angry or scared by it. FED-UP has reached thousands of students in Bridgeport, Waterbury, and New Haven, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office is planning to expand the program to other cities.

A Special Recognition Award for Outstanding Service, Friendship, and Humanity was presented posthumously to Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Supervisory Special Agent Nicholas “Nick” Scorza, who died in June at the age of 52.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office is charged with enforcing federal criminal laws in Connecticut and representing the federal government in civil litigation.  The Office is composed of approximately 68 Assistant U.S. Attorneys and 57 staff members at offices in New Haven, Bridgeport and Hartford.

The Justice Department announced yesterday that it is awarding more than $4.4 billion to support state, local, and Tribal public safety and community justice activities. The grants, from the Department’s Office of Justice Programs (OJP), will help build community capacity to curb violence, serve victims and youth, and achieve fair outcomes through evidence-based criminal and juvenile justice strategies.

More than 40 grants totaling approximately $39 million were awarded to Connecticut state agencies, municipalities, and service organizations.  Bridgeport, Bristol, Danbury, East Hartford, Hamden, Hartford, New Britain, New Haven, New London, Norwalk, Norwich, Stamford, Stratford, Waterbury, and West Haven will each receive grants through the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program.  The full list of Connecticut grant awardees can be found here.

“Everyone in this country deserves to be safe in their communities,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “That is why, in addition to continuing our efforts to identify and prosecute the most violent criminals, the Justice Department is putting every available resource to work to support the efforts of our law enforcement and community partners nationwide. This significant investment will go directly to state and local programs that support the victims of crime, support officer safety and wellness, build the public trust in law enforcement essential to public safety, and help make all of our communities safer.”

“These Justice Department grants will help stem violence, solve crimes, assist victims, treat addiction, and support law enforcement throughout our state to keep our officers and the Connecticut communities they serve healthy and safe,” said Vanessa Roberts Avery, U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut.

The more than 3,700 OJP grants being awarded this fiscal year will support state, local, and community-based efforts and evidence-based interventions that reduce violence, crime, and recidivism while delivering treatment and services to those at-risk of justice system involvement. Funding will expand partnerships between criminal justice professionals and behavioral health experts, help people safely and successfully transition from confinement back to their communities, reach crime victims in underserved areas, steer young people away from justice system contact, improve the management of sex offenders, and support a wide range of research and statistical activities that will help justice system professionals meet community safety challenges.

“Across the country, the Justice Department is working side-by-side with our partners in state and local law enforcement to combat violent crime by using our federal resources to amplify their work on the front lines,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “The billions of dollars in grants announced today will augment those efforts and the tools law enforcement is using to curb violence, counter deadly drug abuse, and promote safety and public trust. Together with our state and local partners, the Department will continue to do everything we can to protect the communities we all serve.”

“The Department of Justice is investing in community-based approaches to violence prevention, law enforcement health and wellness, Tribal courts, improved services for victims, research and data collection efforts, reentry programs, and much more,” said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. “The grants announced today further our commitment to working with our state, Tribal, and local partners to increase public safety, build police-community trust, and ensure safe, healthy, and just communities for all.”

“Every sector of our society — not only the justice system, but nonprofit and faith-based groups, local leaders, and advocates, and people with lived experience who serve as credible messengers — plays a critical role in ensuring public safety and public health,” said OJP Assistant Attorney General Amy L. Solomon. “The Office of Justice Programs is proud to make these substantial investments in building community infrastructure and supporting communities as co-producers of safety and justice.”

Grants will support five major community safety and justice priorities:

• Awards totaling more than $1 billion will promote safety and strengthen trust, helping communities tackle the proliferation of gun violence in America and restore bonds of trust between community residents and the justice system. Grants will support innovative and evidence-based strategies designed to prevent and reduce violent crime, support the health and safety of law enforcement and public safety professionals, promote rehabilitation and reentry success, and address the rise in hate crimes across the country.
• More than $437 million in grant awards will accelerate justice system reforms designed to achieve equal justice and fair treatment for all. Grants will expand access to services among historically underserved and marginalized communities, reduce counterproductive involvement in the justice system, increase opportunities for diversion, and build pathways to treatment for people with substance use and mental health disorders.
• Over $192 million will improve the fairness and effectiveness of the juvenile justice system by supporting developmentally appropriate and culturally responsive interventions for youth. Funding will ensure that young people are served at home in their communities whenever possible, are equipped to transition to a healthy adulthood free of crime, and are protected from violence and abuse.
• More than $1.7 billion will expand access to victim services by investing in programs that provide trauma-informed and culturally responsive services to victims. Funding will support thousands of local victim assistance programs across the country and victim compensation programs in every state and U.S. territory, while helping these programs build their capacity to reach those disproportionately affected by crime and victimization.
• Over $418 million in awards will advance science and innovation to strengthen the base of knowledge that policymakers and practitioners can use to design and deploy effective community safety strategies. Awards will support research and data collection on a wide range of public safety issues, help maintain timely and accurate criminal history records, and improve the capacity of crime labs and forensic analysts to solve crimes, absolve the innocent, and deliver justice to victims.

In addition, OJP will award more than $611 million to continue its support of other previously funded programs and congressionally directed spending.

More information about the awards announced today can be found by visiting www.ojp.gov/funding/fy23awards.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that KENOY STEWART, 27, of Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to nine months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for defrauding Amazon.com, Inc. (“Amazon”).

According to court documents and statements made in court, Stewart created multiple vendor accounts with Amazon allowing him to sell merchandise through the website on a third-party basis.  He often opened the accounts using false names, email addresses and other identifying information.  After setting up the accounts, Stewart represented to Amazon that he was shipping it valuable merchandise to be held for sale by the company.  In reality, he would not ship the merchandise, and would later falsely claim that it had been lost, supporting his false claims with fabricated documents.  Amazon sent Stewart a series of refunds for the purportedly lost merchandise.

Through this scheme, Stewart defrauded Amazon of $1,063.762.82.  Judge Thompson ordered him to pay full restitution.

On February 10, 2022, Stewart, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.  Stewart, who is released on a $50,000 bond, is required to report to prison on October 30.

Two other individuals involved in this scheme pleaded guilty to the same charge.  On September 5, 2023, Stewart’s brother, Oshane Stewart, who defrauded Amazon of approximately $742,000, was sentenced to 18 months of imprisonment.  On September 27, 2023, Rajhni Yankana, who defrauded Amazon of approximately $210,000, was sentenced to five months of imprisonment and five months of home detention.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from Amazon.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Conor M. Reardon and Christopher W. Schmeisser.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ROBERT SMITH, also known as “Robbie,” 19, of New Haven, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to offenses related to his role in the gunpoint robbery of a North Haven gas station last year.

According to court documents and statements made in court, ATF and the New Haven Police Department investigators identified an individual who is alleged to have committed a series of gunpoint robberies and a carjacking that occurred in late June and early July 2022.  The investigation revealed that Smith assisted the individual commit an armed robbery of a Shell Gas Station located at 195 State Street in North Haven on July 6, 2022.

Smith pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting Hobbs Act robbery, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years, and one count of aiding and abetting the carrying, using, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, which carries a mandatory consecutive term of imprisonment of at least seven years.

Smith has been detained since January 3, 2023.

This matter is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) with the assistance of the New Haven, East Haven, West Haven, Ansonia, and North Haven Police Departments.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nathaniel J. Gentile and Sean P. Mahard.

U.S. Attorney Avery thanked the State’s Attorneys for the Judicial Districts of New Haven and Ansonia/Milford for their cooperation in investigating and prosecuting this matter.

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

U.S. Attorney Avery stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and Smith’s co-defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that RAJHNI YANKANA, 28, of Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to five months of imprisonment, followed five months of home detention and three years of supervised release, for defrauding Amazon.com, Inc. (“Amazon”).

According to court documents and statements made in court, Yankana created multiple vendor accounts with Amazon allowing him to sell merchandise through the website on a third-party basis.  He often opened the accounts using false names, email addresses and other identifying information.  After setting up the accounts, Yankana represented to Amazon that he was shipping it valuable merchandise to be held for sale by the company.  In reality, he would not ship the merchandise, and would later falsely claim that it had been lost, supporting his false claims with fabricated documents.  Amazon sent Yankana a series of refunds for the purportedly lost merchandise.

Through this scheme, Yankana defrauded Amazon of  $210,836.97.  Judge Thompson ordered him to pay full restitution.

On August 26, 2022, Yankana pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.  Yankana, who is released on a $50,000 bond, is required to report to prison on October 27.

Two other individuals involved in this scheme pleaded guilty to the same charge.  On September 5, 2023, Oshane Stewart who defrauded Amazon of approximately $742,000, was sentenced to 18 months of imprisonment.  Stewart’s brother, Kenoy Stewart, who defrauded Amazon of more than $1 million, is scheduled to be sentenced tomorrow.

This matter has been investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from Amazon.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Conor M. Reardon and Christopher W. Schmeisser.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that CHRISTOPHER ALAMO, also known as “Tito,” 36, of Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 108 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for narcotics distribution and firearm possession offenses.

According to court documents and statements made in court, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Hartford Task Force identified Alamo as a distributor of heroin and cocaine in Connecticut, New York, and elsewhere.  Alamo was arrested on January 13, 2021, after a court-authorized search of his residence revealed approximately 13,000 wax folds of fentanyl, more than 300 grams of loose fentanyl, approximately one kilogram of cocaine, quantities of crack cocaine and marijuana, items used to process and package narcotics for street sale, a .40 caliber handgun equipped with a loaded 28-round high-capacity magazine, a separate loaded 50-round “drum” magazine, assorted ammunition, a ballistic vest, and approximately $5,000 in cash.

While Alamo was detained in federal custody awaiting trial, he continued to coordinate the distribution of fentanyl through his wife, Maria Maldonado, as well as Maldonado’s son, Carlos Santiago, Jr., and a drug supplier, Henry DeJesus-Morales.  On June 2, 2021, a court-authorized search of Maldonado’s residence, the same residence that was search in January 2021, revealed approximately 71 grams of loose fentanyl, approximately 1,800 wax folds of fentanyl, distribution quantities of marijuana, drug packaging supplies, a loaded pistol, a loaded shotgun, and approximately $13,000 in cash.  The same day, a court-authorized search of Alamo’s father’s house revealed approximately $60,000 in U.S. currency and assorted jewelry, which were seized as proceeds of drug trafficking.

Alamo’s criminal history includes multiple felony convictions.

Alamo has been detained since his arrest.  On February 7, 2023, he pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.

Maldonado, Santiago, and DeJesus-Morales pleaded guilty to related charges and were sentenced to prison terms of 24, six, and 44 months, respectively.

The DEA’s Hartford Task Force includes personnel from the DEA Hartford Resident Office and the Bristol, Hartford, East Hartford, Enfield, Manchester, New Britain, Rocky Hill, Wethersfield, and Windsor Locks Police Departments.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Ruff through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that BRANNON WINSTON, 23, of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to firearm trafficking and possession offenses.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Winston purchased firearms in Georgia, where he resided at times, and provided them to customers in Connecticut.  Winston personally purchased at least 18 firearms in Georgia, and he had others purchase additional firearms on his behalf.  The investigation, which included gun recoveries after shooting incidents in Bridgeport, revealed that some of the firearms were provided to members of the East End and PT Barnum gangs in Bridgeport.

On March 16, 2022, a federal grand jury in Bridgeport returned an indictment charging Winston with firearms trafficking offenses.  During his arraignment on March 29, 2022, Winston was informed that he could be required to serve a consecutive term of imprisonment of up to 10 years if he committed a federal felony while on pretrial release.  Winston was released on a $100,000 bond on that date.

On December 21, 2022, Winston was arrested by Bridgeport Police for possessing a .357 caliber handgun with a loaded high-capacity magazine.  He has been detained in federal custody since January 3, 2023.

Winston pleaded guilty to one count of crossing state lines with the intent to engage unlicensed dealing of firearms, and one count of receipt of a firearm by a person under indictment.  Judge Thompson scheduled sentencing for December 20, at which time Winston faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 25 years.

This matter is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Bridgeport Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rahul Kale through Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

WASHINGTON – Yale University and Dr. John Krystal have agreed to pay $1,507,743.67 to resolve False Claims Act and common law allegations that they failed to disclose certain patents and failed to share patent royalties with the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) for inventions made by Dr. Krystal when he worked for both institutions. The settlement resolves alleged conduct between March 2006 and February 2023.

“Universities and their professors must properly disclose and share royalties on inventions they discover while working for the government,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The department will ensure that those who benefit from government funding and resources properly compensate the taxpayers.”

“It is critical that inventions funded with taxpayer money be fully and timely disclosed to the government,” said U.S. Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery for the District of Connecticut. “This settlement shows our commitment to ensuring that the government is fairly compensated for all taxpayer funded inventions.”

“The VA Office of Inspector General is committed to ensuring the VA is appropriately and fairly compensated for all intellectual property developed through VA-funded research projects,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher Algieri with the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General’s (VA OIG) Northeast Field Office. “The VA OIG thanks the Department of Justice for its efforts to reach this settlement.”

At the time of the inventions, Dr. Krystal was employed part time at Yale in various positions and with various research responsibilities, including as a Professor of Psychiatry, Neuroscience and Psychology, and Chair of the Department of Psychiatry in the Yale School of Medicine. He was also employed part time by the VA as a salaried clinical psychiatrist with research responsibilities at the VA Medical Center located in West Haven, Connecticut.

VA and Yale are parties to an agreement under which Yale and the VA agreed to promptly and in confidence disclose to each other all “Joint Inventions,” which included “any future invention or discovery, which is or may be patentable… in which at least one employee with compensation from the VA and at least one person who has an appointment with Yale is named as a co-inventor.” In addition, VA regulations require all VA employees to promptly disclose their inventions to the VA so the VA can make a determination as to whether it is entitled to ownership.

Beginning in March 2006, Dr. Krystal and four co-inventors applied for several patents related to the use of intranasal ketamine for treatment of depression and suicidal ideation. The patent applications allegedly acknowledged VA funding support. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued three patents. Dr. Krystal assigned his interests in those three patents to Yale.

In February 2015, Yale and Dr. Krystal began receiving royalty payments arising from the three ketamine patents. The United States alleged they never shared these royalty payments, now totaling more than $3 million, with the VA, and did not disclose the patents to the VA until 2017. In September 2017 and then again in January and June 2019, another school (which had been assigned as agent for the ketamine patents), in coordination with Krystal and Yale, allegedly submitted documents to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office removing the acknowledgement of VA support from the three ketamine patents.

The United States alleged that after a VA employee reminded Dr. Krystal of VA employees’ obligations to disclose inventions to the VA, in December 2017, Dr. Krystal submitted the required disclosure to the VA of the three ketamine patents. The VA then issued a determination that it was entitled to an ownership interest in the patents. Dr. Krystal appealed that determination to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the VA prevailed.

The settlement announced today resolves allegations that during the time-period from March 2006, when Dr. Krystal and the other co-inventors filed the first patent application, to Dec. 8, 2017, when Dr. Krystal disclosed the ketamine patents to the VA, Yale and Dr. Krystal knowingly and improperly avoided their obligations to disclose the ketamine patents to the VA and to pay the VA its share of the royalty payments for the patents. The settlement also resolves allegations that from the date that Dr. Krystal disclosed the patents through Feb. 3, Yale and Dr. Krystal were in breach of contract and unjustly enriched by their failure to share the royalty payments. 

As part of this settlement, Dr. Krystal agreed to forego any entitlement to share in the settlement paid to VA, pursuant to rights that he would otherwise have as a VA employee inventor. Simultaneously with this settlement, Yale, Dr. Krystal and the VA also entered into a separate agreement, under which Yale and VA agreed to share future royalties associated with the ketamine patents and assign the patents to the VA.  

The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut and the VA’s Office of General Counsel.

Fraud Section Attorney Jonathan T. Thrope and Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard M. Molot for the District of Connecticut handled this matter.

The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JAIME DIAZ, 30, of Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 24 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for illegally purchasing, possessing, and selling firearms.

According to court documents and statements made in court, between August 2020 and November 2021, Diaz purchased approximately 17 handguns from two Connecticut firearm dealers.  At the time of the purchases, Diaz was an unlawful user of controlled substances.  After obtaining the firearms, Diaz sold them to others in exchange for cash, as well as narcotics.

On November 30, 2021, ATF special agents interviewed Diaz and seized the only firearm that remained in his possession.  Diaz sold one handgun back to the firearm dealer he had purchased it from.  Another handgun that Diaz purchased was recovered by the Hartford Police Department from an individual charged with drug trafficking.  The remaining 14 firearms handguns have not been recovered.

On September 7, 2022, Diaz pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, and one count of dealing in firearms without a license.  Diaz has been detained since April 10, 2023, when his bond was revoked.

This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney A. Reed Durham through Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JOSE LORA, 30, of Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 24 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for his role in a narcotics trafficking organization that distributed oxycodone pills, counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl, and other drugs in the Hartford area.

According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from a joint investigation by the DEA Tactical Diversion Squad and the FBI Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force targeting individuals who were distributing oxycodone pills, counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl, and other drugs from neighborhood grocery stores in New Britain and Hartford.  Between January 2020 and March 2021, investigators made several controlled purchases of illegal pills at the Washington Market, formerly located at 453 Washington Street in Hartford; JZ Tobacco, located at 25 New Britain Avenue in Hartford, and Prestige Market, located at 23 New Britain Avenue in Hartford.  Lora worked at the stores and served as a drug runner and lookout for the organization.

On December 20, 2020, investigators stopped a vehicle registered to Ray Urena and found approximately 4,000 oxycodone pills and $51,000 in cash in a hidden “trap” beneath the front passenger seat of the car.

Lora, Urena, and others were arrested on May 18, 2021.  On that date, searches of an apartment on Colonial Street in Hartford that was used by the drug trafficking organization, and two vehicles parked outside of the stash house, revealed approximately two kilograms of fentanyl, approximately 170 grams of heroin, more than 5,000 real and counterfeit oxycodone pills, approximately 2,000 xanax pills, approximately one kilogram of cocaine, approximately 100 grams of crack, items used to process and package narcotics, two handguns, and ammunition.  A search of Urena’s residence in Waterbury revealed approximately $54,000.

On May 11, 2023, Lora pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, fentanyl.

Urena pleaded guilty to the same charge and awaits sentencing.

Lora, who is released on a $25,000 bond, is required to report to prison on November 29.

The DEA’s New Haven Tactical Diversion Squad is composed of personnel from the DEA and the Bristol, East Windsor, Hamden, New Britain, West Haven, Newington, Manchester, Glastonbury, and Watertown Police Departments. The FBI’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force includes members of the Hartford Police Department, East Hartford Police Department, New Britain Police Department, West Hartford Police Department, Connecticut State Police and Connecticut Department of Correction.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Pierpont, Jr.

On September 19, 2023, TAE’RON WOMACK, 22, of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to making a false declaration before a federal grand jury.

Today’s announcement was made by Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; Joseph T. Corradino, State’s Attorney for the Fairfield Judicial District; Bridgeport Police Chief Roderick Porter; Robert Fuller, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division; Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England, and Acting U.S. Marshal Lawrence Bobnick.

According to court documents and statements made in court, the FBI, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service and Bridgeport Police have been investigating multiple Bridgeport-based gangs whose members are involved in narcotics trafficking, murder and other acts of violence.  On July 20, 2020, Womack appeared before a grand jury in New Haven.  Womack had been called to testify because his car was used during the shooting and killing of Myreke Kenion on January 26, 2020.  The grand jury had developed information that Jaheim Warren was involved in the shooting.  Womack was shown a picture of Warren and was asked “Have you seen this person before?”  Womack, under oath, responded, “No.”  He was then asked “You don’t recognize this person at all?”  Womack responded, “Probably like seen him around but like overall, I don’t know him.”

Shortly after Womack’s grand jury testimony, investigators discovered a YouTube rap video in which Warren and Womack appeared together throughout the video.

Womack was arrested on September 9, 2020.

Judge Dooley scheduled sentencing for December 12, at which time Womack faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years.  He is released on a $25,000 bond pending sentencing.

Jaheim Warren, 19, was shot and killed on December 20, 2020.

This investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Safe Streets and Violent Crimes Task Forces, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Bridgeport Police Department, Connecticut State Police and the Bridgeport State’s Attorney’s Office, with the assistance of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory and the Waterbury Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rahul Kale and Jocelyn C. Kaoutzanis.

This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), Project Longevity and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.

PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Project Longevity is a comprehensive initiative to reduce gun violence in Connecticut’s major cities.  Through Project Longevity, community members and law enforcement directly engage with members of groups that are prone to commit violence and deliver a community message against violence, a law enforcement message about the consequences of further violence and an offer of help for those who want it.  If a group member elects to engage in gun violence, the focused attention of federal, state, and local law enforcement will be directed at that entire group.

OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

HARRY BATCHELOR, also known as “Bookie,” 27, of Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to 50 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for a racketeering offense stemming from his involvement in a violent Bridgeport street gang.

Today’s announcement was made by Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; Joseph T. Corradino, State’s Attorney for the Fairfield Judicial District; Bridgeport Police Chief Roderick Porter; Robert Fuller, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division; Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England, and Acting U.S. Marshal Lawrence Bobnick.

According to court documents and statements made in court, the FBI, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service and Bridgeport Police have been investigating multiple Bridgeport-based gangs whose members are involved in narcotics trafficking, murder and other acts of violence.  Batchelor has been a member of the “East End gang,” which began as a local street gang based in the East End of Bridgeport, but currently has members and associates who are either incarcerated or living throughout Bridgeport and surrounding towns.  The East End gang has been aligned with other groups, including the PT Barnum Gang, the East Side gang and 150, which is a geographic gang based on the West Side of Bridgeport.  These groups were aligned against rival organizations in Bridgeport, including the “Original North End” (“O.N.E.”) and the “Greene Homes Boyz,” (“GHB/Hotz”), based in the Charles F. Greene Homes Housing Complex in Bridgeport’s North End.

East End gang members distributed heroin, crack cocaine, marijuana and Percocet pills; used and shared firearms; and committed at least six murders and other acts of violence against rival gang members and other individuals.  East End members celebrated their criminal conduct on social media websites such as Facebook and YouTube, and committed acts of intimidation and made threats to deter potential witnesses to their crimes and to protect gang members and associates from detection and prosecution by law enforcement authorities.

On June 5, 2023, Batchelor pleaded guilty to one count conspiracy to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity and specifically admitted that he distributed narcotics, that he knew the East End gang was involved in violent activity, and that a firearm that belonged to him was used by another East End member to shoot a rival O.N.E. member on October 17, 2019.

Batchelor has been detained since May 6, 2021.

This investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Safe Streets and Violent Crimes Task Forces, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Bridgeport Police Department, Connecticut State Police and the Bridgeport State’s Attorney’s Office, with the assistance of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory and the Waterbury Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rahul Kale, Jocelyn C. Kaoutzanis, and Stephanie T. Levick.

This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), Project Longevity and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.

PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Project Longevity is a comprehensive initiative to reduce gun violence in Connecticut’s major cities.  Through Project Longevity, community members and law enforcement directly engage with members of groups that are prone to commit violence and deliver a community message against violence, a law enforcement message about the consequences of further violence and an offer of help for those who want it.  If a group member elects to engage in gun violence, the focused attention of federal, state and local law enforcement will be directed at that entire group.

OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Robert Fuller, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven has returned a five-count indictment charging GARY GIBSON, JR., 24, of New Haven, with offenses stemming from the armed robberies of two convenience stores in May.

The indictment was returned on September 12, 2023.  Gibson appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert M. Spector in New Haven and pleaded not guilty to the charges.  He has been detained since his arrest on related state charges on May 8, 2023.

As alleged in the indictment, on May 7, 2023, Gibson, brandishing a Glock semiautomatic handgun, robbed the Star Food & Convenience Store, located at 193 Boston Post Road in West Haven.  On May 8, 2023, Gibson robbed the 7th Haven Convenience Store, located at 129 Sylvan Avenue in New Haven, and discharged the same handgun during the robbery.  Gibson stole cash from both stores.

New Haven Police, with the assistance of West Haven Police, arrested Gibson shortly after the New Haven robbery and seized from him the handgun he allegedly used during the robberies.  The gun had an attached laser sight and a loaded 15-round magazine.

It is alleged that Gibson’s criminal history includes six felony convictions for weapon possession, robbery, and larceny 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.

The indictment charges Gibson with two counts of interference with commerce by robbery (Hobbs Act robbery), an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years on each count; one count of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, an offense that carries a mandatory consecutive term of imprisonment of at least seven years; one count of discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, an offense that carries a mandatory consecutive term of imprisonment of at least 10 years; and one count of  unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 15 years.

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

This matter is being investigated by the FBI’s Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force with the assistance of the New Haven and West Haven Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Ruff through Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that ANTRUM COSTON, 41, of New Haven, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 37 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for fraud, money laundering, and drug offenses.

In March 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act provided emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

According to court documents and statements made in court, in April 2021, Coston applied for and subsequently received two PPP loans, totaling $41,666, purportedly in relation to a cleaning business he operated.  In association with the loan applications, Coston made multiple false statements, including that his business was established in 2018 when, in fact, no cleaning business associated with Coston had been formed in 2018, and that the business had total gross income for 2019 of $114,658 when, in fact, the business had not earned such income, and Coston was incarcerated for all of 2019.  In February 2022, Coston sought forgiveness of both loans, falsely asserting in each instance that the funds had been spent on payroll costs.

On December 31, 2021, police stopped a car Coston was driving in West Haven.  After initially stopping, Coston drove off, nearly striking the officer as he fled.  Coston was found hiding in a parking lot a short distance away.  A search of vehicle and person revealed distribution quantities of heroin/fentanyl, cocaine, and crack cocaine, and more than $2,000 in cash.  A related search of Coston’s residence revealed a ballistic vest, $2,790 in cash, a small quantity of crack, and narcotics paraphernalia.

On December 20, 2022, Coston pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud, one count of money laundering, and one count of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances.

Coston, who is released on bond, is required to report to prison on November 29.

Coston’s criminal history includes multiple convictions, including two federal convictions.  In 2004, Coston was convicted in federal court of possession of a firearm by a felon.  He was sentenced to 37 months of imprisonment for that offense, and, in June 2007, received an additional 18 months of imprisonment for violating the conditions of his supervised release.  In December 2017, Coston was sentenced to 40 months of imprisonment and three years of supervised release for gun and drug offenses.  He was released from federal prison in April 2020, and was on supervised release when he committed the PPP loan fraud, money laundering and drug possession offenses.

This matter was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, the Bureau of Alcohol. Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the West Haven Police Department.   The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer R. Laraia.

Individuals with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 are encouraged to report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721, or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ZAIQWAN FOTHERGILL, 21, of Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 72 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for robbing a Hartford credit union last year.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on June 29, 2022, Fothergill, armed with a .40 caliber ghost gun, robbed the Cencap Federal Credit Union, located at 2775 Main Street in Hartford, of $24,214.  Fothergill’s associate, Hakeem Robinson, stood watch in the credit union during the robbery.  Hartford Police officers located and arrested Fothergill and Robinson in Keney Park in Hartford shortly after the robbery.

On February 2, 2023, Fothergill pleaded guilty to armed bank robbery.

Robinson, 28, of Hartford, pleaded guilty to the same charge and, on May 8, 2023, was sentenced to 56 months of imprisonment.

Fothergill and Robinson have been detained since their arrests.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Connecticut Violent Crime Task Force and the Hartford Police Department.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian P. Leaming and Jocelyn Courtney Kaoutzanis.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division, and Bridgeport Police Chief Roderick Porter today announced that a federal grand jury in Bridgeport has returned a two-count indictment charging JONATHAN BONAPARTE, 35, of Bridgeport, with drug distribution and firearm possession offenses.

The indictment was returned on September 7, 2023.  Bonaparte appeared yesterday before U.S. Magistrate Judge S. Dave Vatti in Bridgeport and entered a plea of not guilty.  He has been detained since his arrest on related state charges on March 31, 2022.

The indictment alleges that on March 31, 2022, Bonaparte possessed fentanyl and cocaine that he intended to distribute, six firearms, and approximately 100 rounds of ammunition.  The indictment further alleges that Bonaparte’s criminal history includes state felony convictions for robbery and firearm 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.

The indictment charges Bonaparte with possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years, and unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition by a felon, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.

U.S. Attorney Avery stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. A charge is only an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This investigation has been conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco and Explosives (ATF), and the Bridgeport Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patricia Stolfi Collins, through Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JUSTIN GAY, 27, of East Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 96 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for multiple gun and drug possession and trafficking offenses.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on July 6, 2016, Gay’s associate, Daniel Vazquez, shot a rival drug dealer who was driving a car at the intersection of Tolland Street and Moore Avenue in East Hartford.  Vazquez was arrested on that date, and a search of his residence revealed a Ruger LC93 9mm handgun, which he had used in the shooting, and a Taurus 9mm handgun.  The two firearms were traced to Minot, North Dakota.

The investigation revealed that Gay, Vazquez, and others trafficked firearms from North Dakota to Connecticut.  In late June 2016, Gay, Vazquez, and others traveled to Minot where they purchased, sometimes with counterfeit currency, firearms from sellers who had advertised the guns for sale on a website.  Gay and Vazquez then transported five firearms from North Dakota to Connecticut.  Two of these five firearms were found in Vazquez’s residence on July 6, 2016.  Several of the trafficked firearms were used in shootings in and around Hartford.

On December 8, 2016, East Hartford Police arrested Gay on state charges after he sold marijuana to an individual and was found in possession of one of the handguns he had obtained in North Dakota.

On September 1, 2019, Gay pleaded guilty in federal court to possession with intent to distribute marijuana, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and conspiracy to unlawfully transport firearms in interstate commerce.

On April 30, 2020, Gay, who had been detained while awaiting sentencing, was released on bond due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

On June 14, 2021, Gay was arrested after an investigation into drug trafficking by his roommate, Alexander Belen, led to a search of Gay’s vehicle.  The search revealed a loaded 9mm handgun fitted with a “sear switch” that made the firearm fully automatic, a separate 50 round drum magazine, another loaded 9mm handgun, and distribution quantities of fentanyl, cocaine, and crack.

On April 20, 2023, Gay pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, receipt of a firearm by a person under indictment, and commission of offenses while on release.

Gay has been detained since June 14, 2021.

On March 5, 2019, Vazquez was sentenced to 84 months of imprisonment.

Belen has pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing.

The gun trafficking investigation was conducted by the ATF and East Hartford Police Department, with the assistance of the Connecticut Department of Correction and the Minot (N.D.) Police Department.  The drug trafficking investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Hartford Task Force.  This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patricia Stolfi Collins and Brendan J. Keefe.

MICHAEL LOCKHART, also known as  “Mikey RTN,” 24, and JAHAZ LANGSTON, also known as “Haz,” 23, pleaded guilty yesterday in Bridgeport federal court to charges related to their involvement in a violent Bridgeport street gang.

Today’s announcement was made by Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; Joseph T. Corradino, State’s Attorney for the Fairfield Judicial District; Bridgeport Police Chief Roderick Porter; Robert Fuller, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division; Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England, and Acting U.S. Marshal Lawrence Bobnick.

According to court documents and statements made in court, the FBI, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Connecticut State Police, and Bridgeport Police have been investigating multiple Bridgeport-based gangs whose members are involved in narcotics trafficking, murder and other acts of violence.  Lockhart and Langston were members of the Original North End (“O.N.E.”), a gang based in the Trumbull Gardens area of Bridgeport that committed acts of violence against rival gangs, including the East End gang, the East Side gang, and the PT Barnum gang.  O.N.E. members also robbed drug dealers, customers and others, sold narcotics, and stole cars from inside and outside Connecticut, often using the cars to commit crimes.  They frequently used social media to promote and coordinate their criminal activities.

Lockhart was arrested on June 29, 2021, after a search of his residence revealed large bags of marijuana, numerous items used to process and package narcotics for street sale, five handguns, two empty boxes for other handguns, extended magazines, ammunition, body armor, and other gun accessories.  Laboratory analysis of the seized items revealed that presence of Lockhart’s DNA on one of the handguns and a magazine.  He has been detained since his arrest.

Lockhart pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years, and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.

Langston, who has been detained since his arrest on July 20, 2021, pleaded guilty to one count of racketeering conspiracy, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.

This investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Safe Streets and Violent Crimes Task Forces, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Bridgeport Police Department, Connecticut State Police and the Bridgeport State’s Attorney’s Office, with the assistance of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory and the Naugatuck Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen L. Peck, Tara E. Levens, Patrick J. Doherty, Rahul Kale, and Jocelyn C. Kaoutzanis.

This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), Project Longevity and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.

PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Project Longevity is a comprehensive initiative to reduce gun violence in Connecticut’s major cities.  Through Project Longevity, community members and law enforcement directly engage with members of groups that are prone to commit violence and deliver a community message against violence, a law enforcement message about the consequences of further violence and an offer of help for those who want it.  If a group member elects to engage in gun violence, the focused attention of federal, state, and local law enforcement will be directed at that entire group.

OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that HECMARIELIZ CRUZ-ACEVEDO, 24, of Bayamon, Puerto Rico, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to a cocaine trafficking offense.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on May 9, 2021, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) received information from U.S. Department of Agriculture inspectors at San Juan International Airport that Cruz-Acevedo had boarded a flight to Baltimore-Washington International Airport, with a final destination of Bradley International Airport, and had checked a piece of luggage that contained five rectangular-shaped objects consistent with narcotics packages.  After the flight landed at Bradley Airport, a Connecticut State Police canine detected the presence of narcotics in the checked bag.  Investigators stopped Cruz-Acevedo when she retrieved the bag at baggage claim.  She was arrested after a search of the bag revealed five individual parcels, each containing slightly more than one kilogram of cocaine, located between articles of clothing.

Cruz-Acevedo pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute cocaine, and offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.

Cruz-Acevedo is released on a $100,000 bond pending sentencing, which is not scheduled.

This matter has been investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Connecticut State Police.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathaniel J. Gentile.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that CAMRON HILL, 36, of Hartford, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to 18 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for a federal firearm offense.

According to court documents and statements made in court, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Hartford Task Force and Hartford Police Department conducted an investigation of a business located at 136 Barbour Street in Hartford that was suspected of trafficking narcotics.  The business, a purported clothing store, had an awning that read “The HOLE Ex-Con 360 the movement.”  In October 2022, investigators made two controlled drug purchases of marijuana from the store.

On October 5, 2022, Hill and others were in the store when investigators conducted a court-authorized search of the store and seized quantities of suspected crack cocaine, psychedelic mushrooms, cocaine, marijuana, heroin, synthetic opioid films, fentanyl pills disguised as oxycodone, MDMA, drug packaging and processing materials, U.S. currency, and five handguns.  One of the handguns seized was a loaded 9mm privately made firearm (“PMF” or “ghost gun”) that was found behind the counter of the store in a black satchel-type bag.  Surveillance video the morning of the search showed Hill using keys to open the store and carrying a black satchel-type bag.  Subsequent forensic testing of the firearm revealed Hill’s DNA.

Hill has a prior felony conviction.  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 April 18, 2023, Hill pleaded guilty to possession of ammunition by a felon.

Hill, who is released on bond, is required to report to prison on October 17.

This investigation has been conducted by the DEA’s Hartford Task Force and the Hartford Police Department, with the assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and the Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory.  The DEA Task Force includes personnel from the DEA Hartford Resident Office, the Connecticut State Police, and the Bristol, Hartford, East Hartford, Enfield, Manchester, New Britain, Rocky Hill, Wethersfield, Windsor Locks and Willimantic Police Departments.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys A. Reed Durham and Brendan J. Keefe.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that DAVID KAMAL, 61, of Stafford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to eight months of imprisonment, followed by two years of supervised release, for tax evasion. Judge Shea also ordered Kamal to pay a $20,000 fine.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Kamal, who formerly resided in Hebron, willfully evaded taxes for the 2012 tax year by filing a false tax return for that year.  On the tax return, Kamal claimed false deductions, including deductions for moving expenses and medical expenses he had not incurred.  Kamal subsequently provided false documentation for the moving expenses, including invoices and bank statements, to an attorney for the IRS in connection with U.S. tax court proceedings.  Kamal also filed false tax returns for the 2013 through 2017 tax years by claiming false and inflated unreimbursed medical and dental expenses.

Kamal has agreed to cooperate with the IRS to pay $163,264 in back taxes, as well as interest and penalties.

Kamal pleaded guilty to the offense on December 7, 2022.

Kamal, who is released on a $50,000 bond, is required to report to prison on November 17.

This matter was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David T. Huang.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that ANDREW FRANCOEUR, 36, of Manchester, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant to 33 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for offenses related to his illegal possession, manufacture, and sale of firearms.

According to court documents and statements made in court, as part of an ongoing investigation into the proliferation of privately made firearms (“PMFs” or “ghost guns”) in Connecticut, ATF investigators determined that Francoeur was buying firearm parts from a Missouri company, having the parts shipped to him, and manufacturing guns inside a shipping container on a property in Suffield.  Francoeur sold some of the firearms he manufactured.

In September 2022, while Francoeur was incarcerated in state custody for drug and firearm offenses, investigators searched the shipping container and found tools for manufacturing firearms, gun parts, ammunition, and other firearms-related items.  In November 2022, investigators retrieved two storage bins used by Francoeur that contained firearm parts, a .22 caliber rifle, more than 1,800 rounds of ammunition, 25 high-capacity magazines, M-80 explosives, firearm gear, and other items.

Francoeur’s criminal history includes felony convictions for firearm, drug, burglary, and failure to appear 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.

On April 27, 2023, Francoeur pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon, and one count of manufacturing and dealing in firearms without a license.

Judge Bryant ordered that the 33-month federal sentence run consecutively to the state sentence that Francoeur is currently serving.

This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney A. Reed Durham.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

LUIS GARCIA, 25, of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty yesterday before U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to a racketeering charge stemming from his participation in a violent Bridgeport street gang.

Today’s announcement was made by Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; Joseph T. Corradino, State’s Attorney for the Fairfield Judicial District; Bridgeport Police Chief Roderick Porter; Robert Fuller, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division; Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England, and Acting U.S. Marshal Lawrence Bobnick.

According to court documents and statements made in court, the FBI, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service and Bridgeport Police have been investigating multiple Bridgeport-based gangs whose members are involved in narcotics trafficking, murder and other acts of violence.  Garcia was a member of the Original North End (“O.N.E.”), a gang based in the Trumbull Gardens area of Bridgeport that committed acts of violence against rival gangs, including the East End gang, the East Side gang, and the PT Barnum gang.  O.N.E. members also robbed drug dealers and others, sold narcotics, and stole cars from inside and outside Connecticut and used the cars to commit crimes.

Text messages and social media posts reviewed during the investigation confirmed that Garcia possessed and sold narcotics and firearms, stole vehicles, and was involved in related violent criminal activity alongside other O.N.E. members and associates.

On August 9, 2018, O.N.E. members stole a Jeep Grand Cherokee in Newburgh, New York, and drove it back to Bridgeport.  In the following days, O.N.E. members conspired to use the car to kill East End gang members and their allies who they had learned through social media were at a deli on Stratford Avenue in Bridgeport.  Although that plan fell through, in the early morning hours of August 13, 2018, O.N.E. members drove the stolen Jeep to Stratford and Union Avenues in Bridgeport where they shot and killed Len Smith, 25, who they mistook for a rival East End group member, and shot and seriously wounded Smith’s female companion, both of whom were seated in a parked car.  After the shooting, O.N.E. members transported the Jeep to Indian Wells State Park in Shelton where they burned the vehicle in an effort to destroy evidence of the murder.

It is alleged that O.N.E. members committed other violent crimes, including murder.

Garcia pleaded guilty to conspiring to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.  A sentencing date is not scheduled.

Garcia has been detained since his arrest on September 8, 2021.

This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Safe Streets and Violent Crimes Task Forces, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Bridgeport Police Department, Connecticut State Police and the Bridgeport State’s Attorney’s Office, with the assistance of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory and the Waterbury Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen L. Peck, Rahul Kale, Jocelyn C. Kaoutzanis and Tara E. Levens.

This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), Project Longevity and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.

PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Project Longevity is a comprehensive initiative to reduce gun violence in Connecticut’s major cities.  Through Project Longevity, community members and law enforcement directly engage with members of groups that are prone to commit violence and deliver a community message against violence, a law enforcement message about the consequences of further violence and an offer of help for those who want it.  If a group member elects to engage in gun violence, the focused attention of federal, state and local law enforcement will be directed at that entire group.

OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ALEXANDER LEE, 22, of Windsor, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to 60 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for trafficking counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl.

According to court documents and statements made in court, a DEA New Haven Tactical Diversion Squad investigation, which included court-authorized wiretaps, controlled purchases of narcotics and the seizure of drugs that had been shipped through the U.S. Mail, revealed that Lee and others received thousands of counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl, and other controlled substances, from a source of supply on the west coast of the U.S., and then distributed the drugs to various street-level distributors and numerous drug customers in Connecticut.

In February 2022, Lee traveled to California and shipped a package back to his Windsor residence.  The package, which was intercepted and searched pursuant to a federal search warrant, contained approximately 18,000 fentanyl pills disguised as oxycodone.  In May 2022, Lee again traveled to California and shipped a package to an associate in Bloomfield.  A search of the package revealed 1,800 tablets of Alprazolam (Xanax) that appeared to be manufactured in Mexico.

During the investigation, investigators also seized approximately 25 pounds of marijuana, seven firearms, and thousands of dollars in cash.

Lee was arrested on June 29, 2022.  On May 22, 2023, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl.

Lee, who is released on a $100,000 bond, is required to report to prison on October 10.

This matter has been investigated by the DEA New Haven Tactical Diversion Squad, with the assistance of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Connecticut State Police; East Central Narcotics Task Force; and the Windsor and Enfield Police Departments.  The DEA Tactical Diversion Squad is composed of personnel from the DEA and the officers from the Bristol, East Windsor, Hamden, New Britain, West Haven, Newington, Manchester, Glastonbury, and Watertown Police Departments.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lauren C. Clark and Stephanie T. Levick through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that DENNIS DELLAGHELFA, 54, of Waterbury, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to 48 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for health care fraud.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Dellaghelfa is a licensed hearing instrument specialist and the owner of General Hearing, a Waterbury-based hearing aid dealer.  Since approximately 2013, General Hearing has been a participating provider enrolled in the Connecticut Medical Assistance Program (CTMAP), Connecticut Department of Social Services-administered program that provides medical assistance to low income persons.  CTMAP’s benefit packages, referred to as “HUSKY” or “Connecticut Medicaid,” are jointly funded by the State of Connecticut and the federal government.

From approximately June 2016 to April 2022, Dellaghelfa submitted, or caused to be submitted, false and fraudulent claims for payment for services and equipment that were not provided or were medically unnecessary.  For example, in November 2018, Dellaghelfa submitted claims to Connecticut Medicaid for services provided to six patients during a period of time that Dellaghelfa was traveling outside the U.S.  In 2019 and 2020, some of the fraudulent claims involved services that were purportedly provided by his three employees.  However, Dellaghelfa knew that the employees performed hearing tests without having the required professional permit, and submitted paperwork for hearing tests and services that did not occur or were not medically necessary.

In addition, in violation of the CTMAP provider agreement, Dellaghelfa paid third-party “patient recruiters” for each Medicaid patient they brought to General Hearing for a hearing test, and that then failed the hearing test and received hearing aids.  He also submitted false claims to Connecticut Medicaid for testing and hearing aids for five of the patient recruiters who did not need hearing aids.

Judge Thompson ordered Dellaghelfa to pay restitution of $6,141,857 to the Connecticut Medicaid program.  As part of his restitution obligation, Dellaghelfa agreed to forfeit $332,675 held in personal and business bank accounts.

On February 9, 2023, Dellaghelfa pleaded guilty to health care fraud.

Dellaghelfa, who is released on bond, is required to report to prison on October 10.

This investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG), with the assistance of the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Connecticut Chief State’s Attorney’s Office and the Waterbury Police Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Heather L. Cherry and Elena L. Coronado.

People who suspect health care fraud are encouraged to report it by calling 1-800-HHS-TIPS.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that DAVID ETIENNE, 49, a Norwich tax return preparer, pleaded guilty yesterday in New Haven federal court to a tax fraud offense.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Etienne operated as a tax return preparer through several businesses, including Los Maestros Inc, Los Maestros Group, Tax Experts USA, and Tax Experts USA Inc.  For the 2012 through 2021 tax years, Etienne prepared numerous federal tax returns for clients that included false expenses and losses in connection with sole proprietorship businesses when he knew the taxpayers had not operated sole proprietorship businesses, false unreimbursed employee expenses, and, in certain instances, false medical, dental or education-related expenses.  Etienne’s criminal conduct involved tax loss, affecting both the IRS and the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services, of approximately $600,000.

Etienne pleaded guilty to aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false income tax return, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of three years.  He is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer on November 29.

Etienne is released on a $100,000 bond pending sentencing.

This investigation has been conducted by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer R. Laraia and Lauren C. Clark.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that JUAN MARTINEZ, JR., 22, of the Bronx, New York, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to 12 months and one day of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for a narcotics offense.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in September 2020, law enforcement received court-authorization to install a GPS tracking device on a Volvo XC90 belonging to Martinez’s cousin, Joseph Matos, which investigators had learned contained a “trap” that was used to conceal and transport narcotics.  Matos lived in both Bridgeport and at a residence on Martha Place in the Bronx, New York.  Investigators tracked the Volvo for several months as it traveled between southern Connecticut and New York, on the west coast of the U.S., and to Tijuana, Mexico.

In March 2021, the Volvo was brought back to Connecticut via a car carrier from California.  On March 22, 2021, investigators surveilled Matos as he traveled from his Bronx residence to a location in Trumbull where he picked up the vehicle.  They stopped the vehicle and arrested Matos after a search revealed approximately two kilograms of cocaine hidden in the trap.  Martinez, who assisted Matos’s drug operation, was arrested that same day at the Martha Place residence.  A search of the residence revealed more than 500 grams of cocaine, approximately 50 pounds of marijuana, narcotics packing materials, more than $143,000 in cash, eight firearms, silencers, high-capacity magazines, and ammunition.  At the time of his arrest, Martinez was in the process of packing the contraband to remove it after learning that Matos had been stopped by police in Connecticut.

On April 4, 2023, Martinez pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact to Matos’ possession with intent to distribute narcotics.

Matos pleaded guilty and, on July 26, 2023, he was sentenced to 48 months of imprisonment.

This investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force, which includes personnel from the DEA Bridgeport Resident Office, the Connecticut State Police, and the Bridgeport, Danbury, Milford, Norwalk, Stamford, and Stratford Police Departments.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen L. Peck.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that OSHANE STEWART, 31, of Shelton, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to 18 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for defrauding Amazon.com, Inc. (“Amazon”).

According to court documents and statements made in court, Stewart created multiple vendor accounts with Amazon allowing him to sell merchandise through the website on a third-party basis.  He often opened the accounts using false names, email addresses and other identifying information.  After setting up the accounts, Stewart represented to Amazon that he was shipping it valuable merchandise to be held for sale by the company.  In reality, he would not ship the merchandise, and would later falsely claim that it had been lost, supporting his false claims with fabricated documents.  Amazon sent Stewart a series of refunds for the purportedly lost merchandise.

Through this scheme, Stewart defrauded Amazon of approximately $742,231.16.  Judge Thompson ordered him to pay full restitution.

On November 8, 2022, Stewart pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.

Stewart who is released on bond, is required to report to prison on December 5.

Two other individuals have pleaded guilty to charges in connection with this scheme.  On February 10, 2022, Stewart’s brother, Kenoy Stewart, pleaded guilty and admitted that his conduct resulted in a loss to Amazon exceeding $1 million.  Rajhni Yankana pleaded guilty on August 26, 2022.  Each awaits sentencing.

This matter has been investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from Amazon.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Conor M. Reardon and Christopher W. Schmeisser.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ROBERTO ALICEA, 31, of New Britain, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford to 54 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for offenses related to his participation in a stolen catalytic converter trafficking ring.

According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from an investigation into the coordinated theft of catalytic converters from motor vehicles across Connecticut.  A catalytic converter contains precious metals, can easily be removed from its vehicle, and is difficult to trace, making it a desirable target for thieves.  The average scrap price for catalytic converters currently varies between $300 and $1,500, depending on the model and type of precious metal component.

The investigation revealed that Downpipe Depot & Recycling LLC (“Downpipe Depot”), which had a warehouse on Park Avenue in East Hartford, purchased stolen catalytic converters from a network of thieves, including Alicea, and then transported and sold the catalytic converters to recycling businesses in New York and New Jersey.  Business records seized during the investigation revealed that, between December 2021 and May 2022, Downpipe Depot paid Alicea approximately $540,000 for catalytic converters.

Alicea’s criminal history includes convictions for larceny, criminal trespass, property damage, assault with a firearm, carrying a dangerous weapon, and engaging in a police pursuit.

Alicea has been detained since his arrest on August 23, 2022.  On June 13, 2023, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property, and one count of interstate transportation of stolen property.

This investigation is being led by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI), and the East Hartford Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lauren C. Clark and A. Reed Durham.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that GIOVANNI DONOFRIO, 22, of East Haven, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to six months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for manufacturing and selling firearms without a license.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on December 8, 2021, New Haven Police stopped a vehicle that was known to have been involved in a shots-fired incident.  Inside the vehicle officers found three firearms, two of which were privately-made Polymer80 semi-automatic pistols (“ghost guns”) with Glock slides.  A trace of the serial numbers on the Glock slides revealed that Donofrio had purchased them in November 2021.  A subsequent court-authorized search of Donofrio’s residence revealed gun-making equipment, including a power drill and bits, multiple Polymer80 jigs, empty packaging for 50 round 9mm drums, multiple slides, an AR15 Carbine Buffer Kit, and other items.  In addition, a search of Donofrio’s phone revealed numerous text messages indicating that Donofrio was manufacturing and selling firearms.

The investigation also revealed that between November 25 and December 5, 2021, the two ghost guns manufactured by Donofrio that were recovered during the car stop had been used in six shooting incidents where at least four houses were struck by gunfire.  Witnesses to some of the shooting incidents reported a vehicle chase with occupants shooting at each other.

Donofrio was arrested on October 31, 2022.  On June 12, 2023, he pleaded guilty to engaging in the business of dealing in firearms without a license, and admitted that he built and sold at least five firearms.

Donofrio, who is released on bond, is required to report to prison on October 3.

This investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the New Haven and East Haven Police Departments.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brendan J. Keefe and Lauren C. Clark through Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that KEVIN JONES II, also known as “Ox” and “Scott,” 31, of Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to 180 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for heading a Bridgeport narcotics trafficking organization.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in the summer of 2017, members of the FBI’s Bridgeport Safe Streets Task Force and Bridgeport Police Department began investigating individuals who were distributing narcotics in and around Bridgeport.  The investigation, which included the use of court-authorized wiretaps and controlled purchases of narcotics, revealed that Jones headed a Bridgeport-based drug trafficking network that distributed heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine, fentanyl, and other opioids.

The investigation resulted in federal charges against Jones, and 18 other defendants, and the seizure of narcotics, eight firearms, and more than $360,000 in cash.

Jones has been detained since his arrest on November 6, 2018.  He pleaded guilty on June 17, 2021.

This matter was investigated by the FBI’s Bridgeport Safe Streets Task Force and the Bridgeport Police Department, as well as the Drug Enforcement Administration, Connecticut State Police, and the Stratford, Norwalk, Seymour and Trumbull Police Departments.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen L. Peck and Patrick J. Doherty through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that MARIUS LAMONT MAYE, also known as “Pee Wee,” 49, of Bridgeport, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Omar A. Williams in Hartford to 72 months of imprisonment, followed by eight years of supervised release, for distributing fentanyl and heroin.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in January and February 2019, law enforcement made controlled purchases of fentanyl from Maye, and in September 2019, investigators conducted a controlled purchase of heroin from Maye.  On October 3, 2019, a court-authorized search of Maye’s Bridgeport residence revealed two handguns, gun magazines, and ammunition.

Maye was arrested on October 16, 2020.  On May 3, 2022, he pleaded guilty to three counts of possessing with intent to distribute, and distribution of, controlled substances.

Maye’s criminal history includes seven prior drug-related convictions and a manslaughter conviction.  In 2008, he was sentenced in Bridgeport federal court to 72 months of imprisonment and eight years of supervised release for a narcotics distribution offense.

Maye, who is released on $200,000 bond, is required to report to prison on October 30.

This investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Bridgeport Safe Streets Task Force, which includes personnel from the Connecticut State Police and the Bridgeport, Norwalk, and Trumbull Police Departments.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen L. Peck and Brendan J. Keefe.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Roberto Coviello, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and Robert Fuller, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that DENNIS TOMCZAK, 73, of Somers, has pleaded guilty in federal court to a false statement offense stemming from his role in a Medicaid fraud scheme.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Tomczak, a state-licensed alcohol and drug abuse counselor, offered substance abuse treatment and related counseling services through his business, Pathway to Peace, LLC.  Tomczak accepted Medicaid insurance and cash payments for his services.

In 2019, a medical provider asked Tomczak to use his own provider number to bill Medicaid for patients that the provider was allegedly seeing for psychotherapy sessions.  In exchange, Tomczak would retain 25 percent of the Medicaid claims paid and he would turn over 75 percent of the payments to the provider.  Tomczak agreed to do so, and from approximately April 2019 through October 2022, based upon a spreadsheet provided to him by the provider, Tomczak billed Medicaid for psychotherapy and related services allegedly rendered by the provider as if Tomczak had personally rendered those services himself.  Tomczak never met any of the provider’s clients and did not review records and treatment notes for any services allegedly rendered by the provider.

Through this scheme, Medicaid paid Tomczak approximately $338,427.11 for approximately 53 clients that the provider had allegedly treated.  Per his agreement with the provider, Tomczak retained approximately $84,000 of the claims money received from Medicaid.

On August 21, 2023, Tomczak waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to one count of making a false statement relating to a health care matter, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years.  Judge Dooley scheduled sentencing for November 13.

Tomczak is released on bond pending sentencing.

This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS-OIG), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah P. Karwan.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JERMAINE CANNON, 20, of New Haven, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to 162 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for robbery and firearm offenses related to his commission of five gunpoint robberies of the same New Haven business during a six-week period in 2021.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on September 30, October 27, November 6, November 10 (photo below), and November 11, 2021, Cannon, brandishing a handgun, robbed the Howard Mini Mart & Deli, located on Howard Avenue in New Haven.  During all five robberies, Cannon pointed the gun and threatened to shoot store employees.

Cannon was arrested after the fifth robbery on November 11, 2021.  A search of a residence where Cannon was apprehended revealed a 9mm semiautomatic handgun, a distinctive hoodie he wore during the robbery on November 10, and a pair of latex gloves.

Cannon has been detained since his arrest.  On March 27, 2023, he pleaded guilty to five counts of interference with commerce by robbery, and one count of carrying, using and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and the New Haven Police Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nathaniel J. Gentile and Jocelyn Courtney Kaoutzanis.

U.S. Attorney Avery thanked the New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office for its close cooperation in investigating and prosecuting this matter.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that CHRISTIAN LUIS VELEZ-RUIZ, 25, formerly of New Britain, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford to 336 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for robbery, carjacking, and firearm offenses stemming from a violent crime spree in 2021.

According to court documents and statements made in court, between September 2021 into December 2021, Velez committed 28 armed robberies of convenience stores, six armed carjackings, and three additional car thefts, throughout Connecticut.  Velez began his crime spree shortly after he walked away from a halfway house where he was completing a state sentence for larceny and burglary offenses, and he continued committing his crimes after the FBI’s announcement in early November 2021 of a $25,000 reward for information leading to his arrest and conviction.

On December 17, 2021, law enforcement located Velez in a car in a parking lot in New Britain.  Velez attempted to escape by ramming police vehicles and he ultimately fled on foot.  A K9 pursuit ensued, and Velez was captured after he attempted to steal another vehicle.  He has been detained since his arrest.

On December 14, 2022, Velez pleaded guilty to one count of carjacking, two counts of interference with commerce by robbery, and two counts of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.  The carjacking occurred on September 2, 2021, when Velez stole at gunpoint a 2020 white Jeep Grand Cherokee from the driveway of a victim in Southington.  One of the robberies occurred on September 26, 2021, when Velez robbed at gunpoint a store located at a Sunoco gas station in Bristol.  Velez pistol-whipped the store employee and stole U.S. currency and cigarettes from the store.  The other robbery occurred on October 7, 2021, when Velez robbed at gunpoint a store located at a Citgo gas station in Southington.  Velez brandished a pistol at the store employee and stole cash and cigarettes from the store.  In pleading guilty, Velez took responsibility for all the offenses he committed during his crime spree.

This matter was investigated by the FBI, the Connecticut State Police, the Greater Hartford Regional Auto Theft Task Force, and the New Britain, Waterbury, Berlin, Bristol, Cromwell, East Hartford, Enfield, Farmington, Glastonbury, Manchester, Meriden, Middletown, Newington, Norwich, Plainville, Southington, Windsor, Wolcott, and Woodbridge Police Departments.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Ruff.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England, today announced that Clarest, LLC, doing business as Clarest Health, ProCare LTC New England LTC, and ProCare LTC Pharmacy of Connecticut LLC (“ProCare”), have entered into a civil settlement agreement with the federal government and have paid $499,525 to resolve allegations that they violated the civil provisions of the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”).

In passing the CSA, Congress took steps 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 still ensuring that an adequate supply of those substances meet the medical and scientific needs of the United States. 

ProCare LTC Pharmacy of Connecticut, LLC, is a pharmacy located in Cheshire, Connecticut, and is owned by ProCare LTC New England, LTC, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Clarest, LLC d/b/a Clarest Health.  Clarest Health consists of eight pharmacy locations in the Northeast and Midwest regions of the U.S.

ProCare LTC Pharmacy of Connecticut services 65 long-term care (“LTC”) facilities, skilled nursing facilities, assisted living locations, and rehab and nursing practices in Connecticut and Rhode Island.  In addition to filling prescriptions, it also fulfills orders for controlled substances for LTC facilities’ emergency stock needs.  This emergency stock is commonly referred to as a facility’s “emergency box.”

The settlement resolves allegations that between September 2020 and September 2022, ProCare violated the CSA and its implementing regulations when supplying controlled substances for LTC facilities’ emergency box stock.  The government contends that ProCare distributed controlled substances to practitioners that were not registered to dispense those controlled substances on 96 occasions.  The government also alleges that ProCare failed to record certain required information on DEA Form 222s (order forms) on numerous occasions, such as dates, numbers of containers furnished, and DEA registration numbers, and that ProCare failed to reject order forms that were not properly prepared, were incomplete, or had been altered.

“Strict compliance with the recordkeeping requirements of the Controlled Substances Act is a key part of preventing diversion and ensuring the safety of our community,” said U.S. Attorney Avery.  “Pharmacies play a vital role in ensuring controlled substances are properly handled, accounted for, and dispensed.  This settlement demonstrates our office’s continued commitment to hold pharmacies accountable for their responsibilities under federal law.”

“The DEA is committed to ensuring that all registrants, including ProCare, are in compliance with the required regulations, which are enforceable through the Controlled Substances Act,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Boyle.  “Failure to do so increases the potential for diversion and jeopardizes public health and public safety.  DEA pledges to work with our law enforcement and regulatory partners to ensure these rules and regulations are followed.”

As part of the settlement, ProCare has agreed to enter into a three-year Corrective Action Plan with the DEA that is designed to ensure future compliance with the requirements of the CSA and its implementing regulations.

This investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Office of Diversion Control, with the assistance of the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection, Drug Control Division.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Kaczmarek. 

A federal grand jury in the District of Connecticut returned a superseding indictment today charging a Connecticut-based oil and gas trader for his role in an alleged scheme to pay bribes to Brazilian officials to win contracts with Brazil’s state-owned and state-controlled energy company, Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. – Petrobras (Petrobras).  

According to court documents, Gary Oztemel, 66, of Riverside, was the owner and president of Oil Trade & Transport S.A. (OTT) and the owner of Petro Trade Services Inc. (Petro Trade), both of which operated in Connecticut. From 2010 through 2018, Gary Oztemel, his brother Glenn Oztemel, Brazil-based intermediary Eduardo Innecco, and others allegedly paid bribes to Petrobras officials for their assistance in helping two Connecticut-based trading companies and OTT obtain and retain business with Petrobras. As part of the scheme, a Petrobras official provided Gary Oztemel, Glenn Oztemel, Innecco, and others with confidential information regarding Petrobras’ fuel oil business. Gary Oztemel also used his company Petro Trade to conceal the proceeds of the scheme.

The original charges against Glenn Oztemel and Innecco were unsealed on Feb. 15. In addition to the original charges against Glenn Oztemel and Innecco, the superseding indictment charges Gary Oztemel with conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), conspiracy to commit money laundering, and two counts of money laundering. If convicted, he faces a maximum of five years in prison for the conspiracy to violate the FCPA charge, a maximum of 20 years in prison for money laundering conspiracy and the first money laundering charge, and a maximum of 10 years in prison for the second money laundering charge.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Vanessa R. Avery for the District of Connecticut, Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, and Assistant Director in Charge Donald Alway of the FBI Los Angeles Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI is investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys Allison L. McGuire and Clayton P. Solomon and Assistant Chiefs Derek J. Ettinger and Jonathan P. Robell of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael McGarry for the District of Connecticut are prosecuting the case.

The Fraud Section is responsible for investigating and prosecuting FCPA matters. Additional information about the Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal/fraud/fcpa.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that on August 25, 2023, JOSE L. GERENA, 33, of New Haven, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to 144 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for trafficking cocaine through the U.S. Mail.  Gerena was also ordered to pay a $10,000 fine.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in November 2020, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Narcotics and Bulk Cash Trafficking Task Force executed a federal search warrant on a suspicious package that had been sent through the U.S. Mail from New Haven to an address in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.  The package contained $102,450 in cash.  The investigation revealed that Gerena led an extensive drug trafficking organization and supervised the receipt of numerous parcels containing kilogram quantities of cocaine that had been shipped from Puerto Rico, the resale of the cocaine to others, and the shipment of narcotics proceeds to Puerto Rico.  Gerena was responsible for trafficking more than 100 kilograms of cocaine.

During the investigation, the organization regularly received cocaine shipments at various addresses in New Haven.  In August 2021, investigators intercepted two parcels, each containing a kilogram of cocaine, that had been sent through the U.S. Mail from Puerto Rico to addresses on Poplar Street and Exchange Street in New Haven.  Gerena was arrested on August 10, 2021, after investigators made a controlled delivery of a parcel containing a kilogram of cocaine to the Poplar Street address.

Gerena has been detained since his arrest.  On November 15, 2022, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine.

This matter was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Narcotics and Bulk Cash Trafficking Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Administration, with the assistance of the New Haven Police Department.  The Task Force includes members from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Postal Service – Office of the Inspector General, the Connecticut Army National Guard, and the Hartford, New Britain, Meriden, and Town of Groton Police Departments.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Konstantin Lantsman through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that LATRELL ROUNTREE, also known as “Roundtree,” 28, of Hamden, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to 60 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for possessing firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

According to court documents and statements made in court, an investigation into Rountree and his associates determined that Rountree was stashing narcotics in his apartment on Mix Avenue in Hamden.  On May 24, 2022, as investigators arrived to conduct a court-authorized search of the apartment, Rountree threw a backpack from the fourth floor balcony and attempted to flee by climbing over the railing of the balcony to the third floor apartment.  He was apprehended outside of the apartment building in a brush line.  A search of the backpack revealed approximately 106 grams of crack cocaine, approximately 12 grams of fentanyl, three loaded semi-automatic pistols, and ammunition.  An additional quantity of crack was found inside the apartment.

Rountree’s criminal history includes felony convictions for firearm offenses.

On April 24, 2023, Rountree pleaded guilty to possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

Rountree, who is released on a $200,000 bond, is required to report to prison on October 12.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New Haven and Hamden Police Departments.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth Gresham through Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  In May 2021, the Justice Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: Fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that FELIX OSORIO, JR., 27, of Plainville, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Osorio was arrested on June 7, 2022, after a court-authorized search of his residence on Basswood Street in Plainville revealed packaged fentanyl and loose fentanyl totaling more than 500 grams, a quarter-kilogram hydraulic press, and other items used in the processing and packaging of narcotics for street sale.

Judge Dooley scheduled sentencing for November 20, at which time Osorio faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.  Osorio is released on a $100,000 bond pending sentencing.

This matter has been investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Tactical Diversion Squad, with assistance from the New Britain Police Department.  The Tactical Diversion Squad included officers from the Bristol, East Windsor, Hamden, New Britain, West Haven, Newington, Manchester, Glastonbury, and Watertown Police Departments.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tara E. Levens and John T. Pierpont, Jr.