District of Columbia

WASHINGTON – Ramanan Pathmanathan, 40, of Toronto, Canada, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in connection with a prolific sextortion scheme that targeted more than 100 young children across the United States, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro and Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

Pathmanathan pleaded before Chief Judge James E. Boasberg to one count of production of child pornography and one count of coercion and enticement of a minor. Chief Judge Boasberg scheduled sentencing for May 27, 2026.

“Today my prosecutors took a particularly heinous child predator offline,” said U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro. “Pathmanathan targeted over a hundred children across our country, exposing them to pornography and then forcing them to commit horrendous acts for his own pleasure. Now, the only thing he will be exposed to is the inside of a prison cell. ”

“Today’s guilty plea marks a critical step toward justice for over 100 targeted victims in the United States who this predator harmed with his diabolical actions,” said Assistant Attorney General Duva. “For years, while hiding in another country behind a fabricated online persona, he used manipulation, threats, and fear to coerce unsuspecting juveniles into producing and engaging in sexually explicit acts, robbing them of their innocence. We will hold accountable anyone who preys on our children, including those who do it from behind a computer screen to ensure that victims are protected and treated with the dignity they deserve.”

According to court documents, Pathmanathan used multiple social media accounts – primarily Instagram and Facebook Messenger – to establish contact with at least 145 young girls and boys. Between at least March 2014 up until the day of his arrest on March 10, 2021, Pathmanathan posed as a teenage boy from New Jersey.

Pathmanathan demanded the minor victims engage in sexually explicit conduct while they participated in video chats with him. He directed them to expose their genitals, to penetrate their vaginas, and to engage in sexual acts with dogs, siblings, and other relatives. In almost all the video chats with his minor victims, Pathmanathan sent the children images of adults engaged in sexual acts to show them how to do what he was requesting.

Pathmanathan recorded his victims’ sexually explicit conduct and saved the files on his desktop computer. Some of the victims were as young as six-years-old. When the minor victims would decline to continue to engage in sexually explicit conduct or blocked Pathmanathan’s social media accounts, he threatened to send images to the children’s friends or family.

On Oct. 27, 2022, Pathmanathan pleaded guilty to similar offenses in Canada, and was later sentenced to 12 years in prison.

This case was investigated by the FBI Houston Field Office. The Department of Justice is grateful to the Toronto Police Service for their invaluable assistance. The Office of International Affairs of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division secured the temporary surrender of Pathmanathan from Canada.

It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Shinskie and Trial Attorney Kaylynn Foulon of the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section.

This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative. In February 2006, the Attorney General created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorney's Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

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WASHINGTON — The United States last week obtained legal title to more than $400 million worth of seized cryptocurrencies, real estate, and monetary assets tied to the operation of the darknet mixing service Helix, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

The assets were previously seized from Larry Dean Harmon, the operator of the Helix mixing service, which processed transactions involving over $300 million worth of cryptocurrency from 2014 to 2017.

“This case demonstrates that those who think the darknet provides a safe harbor for crime are dead wrong," said U.S. Attorney Pirro. "My office, the Department of Justice, and our law enforcement partners will continue to hold criminals accountable—whether they act in broad daylight or hide behind a computer screen. We will find them, we will prosecute them, and we will cut them down.”

Harmon pleaded guilty in August 2021 to conspiracy to commit money laundering. He was sentenced in November 2024 to 36 months imprisonment, three years of supervised release, a forfeiture money judgment, and forfeiture of seized property. On Jan. 21, 2026—following the government’s settlement with a mortgage-holder on one of Harmon’s properties—Judge Howell of the District Court for the District of Columbia entered a final order of forfeiture, declaring the assets forfeited to the government.

According to court documents, Helix was one of the most popular mixing services on the darknet and was highly sought after by online drug dealers who needed to launder their illicit proceeds. Helix was connected to Grams, a darknet search engine also run by Harmon. Helix processed at least approximately 354,468 bitcoin — the equivalent of approximately $311,145,854 in U.S. dollars at the time of the transactions — on behalf of its customers. Much of those funds were coming from or going to darknet drug markets. Harmon retained a percentage of these transactions as his commissions and fees for operating Helix.

Grams and Helix were designed to connect to or otherwise support all of the major darknet markets at the time. Helix’s Application Program Interface (API) enabled darknet markets to integrate Helix directly into their bitcoin withdrawal systems. Investigators traced tens of millions of dollars from darknet markets to Helix.

Joining in the announcement were Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Chief of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Guy Ficco, and FBI Assistant Director Brett Leatherman of the FBI’s Cyber Division.

The IRS-CI Cyber Crimes Unit and FBI Washington Field Office investigated the case, with valuable assistance for the investigation and seizure of assets provided by the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio.

The Attorney General’s Ministry of Belize and the Belize Police Department provided essential support for the investigation and seizure of assets, coordinated through U.S. Embassy Belmopan. The investigation was coordinated with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

This case was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rick Blaylock, Jr. of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, Trial Attorneys C. Alden Pelker of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) and Christopher B. Brown of the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section (formerly of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia).

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Last week, the government obtained legal title over more than $400 million in seized cryptocurrencies, real estate, and monetary assets tied to the operation of the darknet mixing service, Helix. As a mixing service, Helix blended cryptocurrency from multiple users and routed the funds through a series of transactions designed to obscure the funds’ sources, destinations, and owners.

The United States previously seized the assets from Larry Dean Harmon, the operator of Helix, which processed transactions involving over $300 million worth of cryptocurrency from 2014 to 2017. Harmon pleaded guilty in August 2021 to conspiracy to commit money laundering and was sentenced in November 2024 to 36 months’ in prison, three years of supervised release, a forfeiture money judgment, and forfeiture of seized property. On Jan. 21, Judge Beryl A. Howell of the District Court for the District of Columbia entered a final order of forfeiture, declaring the assets forfeited to the government.

According to court documents, Helix was one of the most popular mixing services on the darknet and was highly sought after by online drug dealers seeking to launder their illicit profits. Helix processed at least approximately 354,468 bitcoin — the equivalent of approximately $300 million in U.S. dollars at the time of the transactions — on behalf of its customers. Much of those cryptocurrency were coming from or going to darknet drug markets. Harmon retained a percentage of these transactions as his commissions and fees for operating Helix.

Harmon designed Helix and darknet search engine, Grams, to connect to or otherwise support all of the major darknet markets at the time. Helix’s Application Program Interface (API) enabled darknet markets to integrate Helix directly into their bitcoin withdrawal systems. Investigators traced tens of millions of dollars from darknet markets to Helix.

Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro for the District of Columbia; Chief of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Guy Ficco; and Assistant Director Brett Leatherman of the FBI’s Cyber Division made the announcement.

The IRS-CI Cyber Crimes Unit and FBI Washington Field Office investigated the case, with valuable assistance provided by the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio.

The Attorney General’s Ministry of Belize and the Belize Police Department provided essential support for the investigation, coordinated through U.S. Embassy Belmopan. The investigation was coordinated with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

Trial Attorneys C. Alden Pelker of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) and Christopher B. Brown of the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section (formerly of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Rick Blaylock Jr. of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia handled the case.

CCIPS investigates and prosecutes cybercrime in coordination with domestic and international law enforcement agencies, often with assistance from the private sector. Since 2020, CCIPS has secured the conviction of over 180 cybercriminals and court orders for the return of over $350 million in victim funds.

WASHINGTON – Javan King, 42, of Laurel, Maryland, has been charged with stealing thousands of government cell phones when he worked for the Department of Justice, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. 

             According to the criminal Information, which was filed on Tuesday and appeared on the Court’s docket today, between approximately 2021 and 2025 while he worked as an information technology contractor for the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, King defrauded DOJ out of more than $1.3 million by successfully requesting that DOJ order thousands of mobile devices that the Department did not need.

            After phones were shipped to King at DOJ, he sold them to phone reselling businesses. In total, those businesses paid him more than $1.3 million for the phones. The Information, which charges King with one count of mail fraud, further alleges that the Department of Justice suffered an actual loss of over $1.3 million because of fees that it paid AT&T for the unnecessary phone lines and phones. 

           This case is being investigated by the Department of Justice’s Office of Inspector General. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kondi Kleinman.

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

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WASHINGTON – Michelle Shropshire, 55, of Waldorf, Md., and Harlisha Jones, 50, of Clinton, Md., and Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in connection with a health care fraud scheme in which they conspired to obtain fraudulent health care and disability payments totaling nearly $60,000. Shropshire also admitted to spearheading a broader scheme involving other WMATA employees that resulted in approximately $360,000 in fraudulent health care and disability payments, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. 

          Shropshire and Jones pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras to conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, and health care fraud. Sentencing for Shropshire is scheduled for June 11, 2026. Jones will be sentenced June 15, 2026. Judge Contreras will determine any sentences for Shropshire and Jones after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. 

           In pleading guilty, Shropshire and Jones admitted that, from approximately June 2021 through January 2024, while employed as Train Operators by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), they conspired to use Jones’s insurance policies with American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus (AFLAC) to submit fraudulent health care and short-term disability insurance claims for injuries, medical treatments, and disability periods that did not exist. 

           Shropshire and Jones also admitted that, in executing their scheme, they used the information of real doctors to create fraudulent medical excuse notes and physician’s statements, including forged doctors’ signatures, and then submitted those documents to AFLAC in support of the insurance claims. Shortly after AFLAC paid each claim to Jones, she paid a kickback to Shropshire using a percentage of the total claim payment. As a result of those fraudulent insurance claims, AFLAC paid Jones approximately $58,750, of which Jones paid approximately 20% back to Shropshire.

          Shropshire also admitted that in addition to Jones, she assisted numerous other WMATA employees with submitting fraudulent health care and short-term disability insurance claims to AFLAC. As a result of that broader scheme, AFLAC paid at least $362,035 in phony insurance benefits to Shropshire, Jones, and other WMATA employees. In addition to Shropshire and Jones, five other former WMATA employees previously admitted to their involvement in Shropshire’s scheme, including paying kickbacks to Shropshire using a portion of the claim payments they received, and have pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud.  Each is currently awaiting sentencing.

           Joining in the announcement were Assistant Director in Charge Darren B. Cox of the FBI Washington Field Office and Inspector General Michelle Zamarin of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Office of Inspector General.

          These cases are being investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office and the WMATA Office of Inspector General. They are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian P. Kelly and Diane Lucas.

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WASHINGTON – Andre Foster, 49, a previously convicted felon residing in the District of Columbia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 15 months in federal prison for illegally possessing a Glock 19 pistol that had been modified for fully automatic fire, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

Foster pleaded guilty Oct. 24, 2025, before Judge Amy Berman Jackson to one of count of felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. In addition to the 15- month prison sentence, Judge Berman Jackson ordered Forster to serve three years of supervised release.

According to court documents, Metropolitan Police officers and emergency workers were called April 15, 2025, to the 2500 block of Sheridan Road, SE, for a report of an unconcious man on the sidewalk.

As EMT personnel rendered aid. Foster regained consciousness and MPD officers observed a firearm protruding from Foster’s right-side jacket pocket. The firearm was a Glock19 9mm handgun loaded with a 17-round extended magazine containing 14 rounds of ammunition and one round in the chamber. The Glock also was modified with a “giggle switch” that allowed the firearm to function as a machine gun.

Foster previously had been convicted of attempted distribution of cocaine and sentenced in Superior Court to three-to-nine years in prison. Because of his conviction, he was prohibited from carrying any firearm.

This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Washington Field Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter V. Roman.

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WASHINGTON – Darran Joyner, 33, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 32 years in prison for sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl on multiple occasions, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Joyner was convicted by a Superior Court jury on July 8, 2025, on seven felony charges, including multiple counts of first- and second-degree child sexual abuse. In addition to the prison term, the Honorable Todd Edelman ordered Joyner to serve 10 years of supervision. He also will be required to register as a sex offender.

            According to the government’s evidence, on May 27, 2023, the twelve-year-old victim was spending Memorial Day weekend with Joyner and Joyner’s girlfriend and slept in the bed with them. In the early morning of May 28, 2023, Joyner’s girlfriend pulled back the covers and saw that the Joyner’s hand was inside of the front of the victim’s pants. Later that night Joyner texted the victim, first asking her to lie about the sexual abuse, then asking the victim if she wanted him to touch her. Joyner raped the victim after sending the text messages. On May 29, the victim disclosed the abuse to her mother. Joyner’s DNA was on swabs collected during the victim’s sexual assault examination. The victim told the jury that the May incident was not the first time that Joyner had abused her, and that he had also raped her at his house, also located in Washington, D.C.

           Joining the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Pirro and Interim Chief Carroll commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Victim Advocates Maria Sanchez-Garcia and Johnny Da Silva; Paralegals Nancy Murillo and Veronica Yale; and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Folse and Richard Kelley, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

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WASHINGTON – A complaint was unsealed today charging Angel Anthony Rios, 29, of the District of Columbia, with distribution of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

“Those who exploit children will find no refuge,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “My office will pursue swift and decisive prosecution of anyone involved in the creation, possession, or distribution of child sexual abuse material.”

According to court documents, starting on Dec. 18, 2025, Rios exchanged messages with another user on X regarding a variety of topics including politics. Rios ultimately stated that he has a sexual interest in children. He further stated that he communicated with the father of a three-year-old boy who sent Rios videos depicting his sexual abuse of his son. Rios distributed five videos depicting the abuse of the three-year-old son. During the course of his communications, Rios stated, “Kids are here to be used.”

Joining U.S. Attorney Pirro in the announcement was FBI Assistant Director in Charge Darren B. Cox of the Washington Field Office.

This case is being investigated by FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Janani Iyengar.

This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative. In February 2006, the Attorney General created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorney's Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Charges in a complaint are merely allegations, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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WASHINGTON – Lawerence Perryman, 76, of Washington, D.C., was arrested and charged today, with first-degree cruelty to children and first-degree felony murder for the death of a 17-month-old child on March 12, 2025, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Perryman made his initial appearance before Superior Court Magistrate Judge Dorsey Jones on January 23, 2026, where Judge Jones found probable cause that Perryman committed the offense of first-degree cruelty to children and felony murder and ordered that Perryman be held without bond pending a preliminary hearing which is scheduled for February 2, 2026, before Judge Neal Kravitz. 

           According to court documents, on March 12, 2025, at approximately 7:00 a.m., Perryman contacted 911 for an unconscious 17-month-old child.  A post-mortem examination was conducted on the child’s remains and his cause of death was determined to be “Combined Toxic Effects of Diphenhydramine and Methadone.” 

           Joining the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

           This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Emma McArthur.

           These charges are merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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WASHINGTON – Thierno Barry, 23, of Queens, New York, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to the March 2025 swatting of a random Northwest residence and a subsequent carjacking of an elderly couple the same day at Union Station, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Barry pleaded guilty to one count of carjacking, to one count of interstate transport of a stolen vehicle, and to making false alarms and reports before Judge Reggie B. Walton.

            According to court documents filed by the Government, at about midnight on March 31, 2025, Barry was being pursued by Virginia State Police when he drove into the District. Barry abandoned the vehicle he was driving in an alley behind 4300 block of Reno Road, NW. Metropolitan Police officers responded to the area at 12:21 a.m., recovered the vehicle, but were unable to locate Barry.

            At 1:30 a.m., Barry called 911 and falsely reported to the operator that his ex-husband had shot his wife in the face and chest. He indicated that the shooter had driven away. Barry provided an address on Brandywine Street NW where he claimed the shooting had occurred. At the time Barry made the report, he knew that it was false.

            MPD responded to the address of the reported shooting and made contact with the residents of the house, who were asleep when MPD arrived.

            Barry remained in the area until 2:30 a.m., then traveled by bus to Union Station. At 3:37 a.m., Barry approached a Buick sedan occupied by an 88-year-old man and an 87-year-old woman who had been stopped directly in front of the station.

            Barry approached the driver’s side, then reached into the open window and opened the driver’s side door. Barry ordered the couple out of the car repeatedly, stating “Get out of the car! If you don’t, I’m gonna kill you.” Barry told the victims that he had a gun and held his hand in the pocket of his sweatshirt to imitate a firearm.

            The victims told Barry that they could not give him the car because they were on their way to the hospital, but Barry continued to threaten them and demand the car.

            With the driver’s door still opened,  Barry grabbed hold of the driver’s upper body, physically wrenched him out of the vehicle, and threw him to the ground. Barry stepped over the man and climbed into the driver’s seat. The woman passenger got out of the car. With the doors still open and the man still on the ground, Barry drove away, eventually reaching a gas station in Greenbelt, Maryland. During that drive, images of the car were captured by a speed camera. Barry only stopped driving after the car suffered a flat tire.

            The Greenbelt Police Department apprehended Barry, who initially identified himself as with the alias “Usaman Barrie.”

            This case was investigated by the MPD, the FBI Washington Field Office, and the Greenbelt Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brendan M. Horan, who is detailed to the U.S. Attorney’s Office from the United States Capitol Police.

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WASHINGTON – Daniel Ivan Cruz Ramirez, 28, of Brandywine, Maryland, was ordered detained pending trial today in U.S. District Court in connection with producing child pornography of a 13-year-old girl, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            On Jan. 13, 2026, Cruz Ramirez was charged by complaint with one count of sexual exploitation of a child for producing a 26-minute video depicting his rape of the 13-year-old victim. At a Jan. 22, 2026, detention hearing, Magistrate Judge Zia M. Faruqui detained Cruz Ramirez pending trial.

            “This case represents the ultimate nightmare for any parent,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “An individual who targets his victim at church, exploits a place meant to protect children – to prey on the most innocent and vulnerable. My office will use every tool available to bring to justice those who exploit our children.”

            According to court documents, Cruz Ramirez met the victim at church services when she was twelve-years-old. Cruz Ramirez began texting the victim and told her that he liked her on her first day of school in the eighth grade. Cruz Ramirez sexually abused the victim multiple times in 2025, including vaginally penetrating her. On Nov.17, 2025, Cruz Ramirez recorded a series of videos with the victim, including a 26-minute video depicting vaginal and oral penetration of the victim.

            This case was investigated by FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force and the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth Division. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard Kelley and Amanda Swanson.

            This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative. In February 2006, the Attorney General created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorney's Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

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WASHINGTON – Elmer Bonilla, 23, of the District of Columbia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 84 months in federal prison in connection with his role in a 2024 violent carjacking conspiracy which operated in the District and Maryland and continued even after several members were arrested, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Bonilla pleaded guilty on May 30, 2025, before Judge Rudolph Contreras to one count of using a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence and aiding and abetting.

            According to court documents, on Jan. 24, 2024, Bonilla and two co-conspirators were driving an SUV in Northwest when they stopped and blocked a Dodge Challenger. Two of the armed and masked men approached the driver, ordered him to get out, punched him in the face, then stole the car. 

            On Jan. 25, 2024, Bonilla and his co-conspirators were driving in a white Kia Sportage when they pulled into the parking lot of a pharmacy in Hyattsville, Maryland. The Kia pulled behind a black BMW and blocked it from leaving. Two armed men in ski masks approached the BMW’s driver, opened the driver’s side door, pointed a gun at the driver’s torso and demanded the car. The gunmen took the BMW, drove it away, and the Kia Sportage followed.

            On Jan. 26, 2024, after the arrest of Bonilla’s, co-defendant, Gregory Giron, Bonilla and two other co-conspirators drove to Giron’s house in a tan SUV. One co-conspirator used a key to enter the Giron’s residence. A few minutes later, the same individual exited the rear of the residence carrying a white trash bag. The co-conspirator got back into the SUV and law enforcement stopped the SUV as it began to drive away.

            The front seat passenger, Dylan Giron, was the same individual who had entered and exited the house, carrying a white trash bag. The driver of the vehicle was Dylan Giron’s girlfriend. Sitting in the backseat were Bonilla and Christian Rodriguez. When Dylan Giron was inside the residence, Bonilla and Rodriguez were directing Dylan Giron to remove evidence via text message.

            Months later, on Aug. 6, 2024, Bonilla and others stole a 2021 Infinity Q50 in Silver Spring, Maryland. At the time it was stolen, the car contained the owner’s ID and bank cards, which were found in a later search of Rodriguez’s residence.

            On Aug. 7, 2024, Bonilla broke into another vehicle in Silver Spring and took a wallet, which was also later found in Rodriguez’s residence. The same day, Bonilla and co-conspirators stole a Corvette in Alexandria, Virginia using an Autel device. The device was later recovered in Bonilla’s car. On Aug. 9, 2024, pursuant to a search warrant, law enforcement searched Bonilla’s residence and recovered a Glock magazine hidden in a crawl space, a 1911-style BB gun, $3,920 in cash, a baggie of white, rock-like substance, and a programmable key fob.

            This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department, Prince George’s County Police, Baltimore County Police, Alexandria City Police Department and the FBI Washington Field Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Caelainn Carney with assistance provided by former Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Martin.

The firearm police recovered from Bonilla’s residence.

A baggie of white, rock-like substance that police recovered from Bonilla’s residence.

A programmable key fob recovered from Bonilla’s residence.

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WASHINGTON – Armando Gomez Nunez, a Mexican national and senior leader of the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG), was charged in a two-count indictment unsealed today in U.S. District Court with conspiracy to distribute cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine for importation into the United States and carrying and using firearms, including machine guns and destructive devices, in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            “President Trump has made it clear that we will pursue every legal avenue to hold transnational criminal organizations accountable for their crimes against the American people,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “Now one of the most dangerous criminals in Mexico is in U.S. custody as we continue our fight against one of the largest, most violent drug trafficking organizations in the Western Hemisphere.”

            CJNG is one of the largest and most violent drug trafficking organizations operating in Mexico and is responsible for exporting tonnage quantities of cocaine, methamphetamine, and illicit opioids into the United States. CJNG was designated by the U.S. Department of State as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) for conducting intimidating acts of violence, including attacks on Mexican military and police with military grade weaponry, the use of drones to drop explosives on Mexican law enforcement and assassinations or attempted assassinations of Mexican officials.

            Gomez Nunez, aka “Delta 1” and “Maximo,” is the reputed leader and commander of Los Deltas, a violent enforcement and assassination cell of CJNG. Mexican authorities arrested Gomez Nunez in December 2025. He is one of 37 Mexican nationals who arrived in the United States on Jan. 20, 2026 following their expulsion by Mexico.

            “Securing the largest transfer to date of fugitives from Mexico to the United States is another victory in the Department of Justice’s battle to eliminate transnational criminal organizations and secure our border,” said U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “Mexico’s use of its National Security Law to transfer these 37 fugitives ensures that justice will neither be delayed nor denied. With great thanks to our law enforcement partners and the Government of Mexico, the Department of Justice intends to move swiftly to prosecute each fugitive to the fullest extent of the law.”  

            This transfer marks only the third time that Mexico has used its National Security Law to expel fugitives to the United States. It is also the largest such transfer of fugitives to occur—the first transfer, on Feb. 27, 2025, involved 29 fugitives, and the second, on Aug. 12, 2025, involved 26 fugitives.

            The investigation is being conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, FBI, U.S. Marshal’s Service, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

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

WASHINGTON – Felipe Contreras-Varillas, 31, a Mexican citizen who has been previously deported three times, was charged in a complaint unsealed today in U.S. District Court with unlawful re-entry after removal from the United States, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Contreras-Varillas was arrested Jan. 12, 2026, on a felony charge out of the Superior Court for the District of Columbia of arranging for a sexual contact with a real or fictious child by the United States Attorney’s Office Investigations Unit and the Metropolitan Police Department. When he was processed by law enforcement later that day, his fingerprints matched those on file with the FBI and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

            The fingerprints confirmed that Contreras-Virallas was a citizen of Mexico, had been deported on three separate occassions from the United States, and had not obtained permission to re-enter the United States from either the Attorney General or the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

            “Here is yet another case of an illegal immigrant, coming to the United States, after being deported three times with nothing more than a slap on the wrist, with the purpose of preying on our children,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “Now, this criminal is finally being held accountable and will be enjoying his latest illegal stay in America from the confines of his prison cell.”

            According to court documents, law enforcement arrested Contreras-Virallas at a hotel on the 1700 block of Euclid Street, NW, where Contreras-Varillas allegedly had intended to meet an individual he believed to be a 14-year-old boy.

            At the time of his arrest, Contreras-Viralles was in possession of both his Mexican passport and his birth certificate. He was previously removed from the United States by ICE on three separate occasions, with the most recent removal occurring at Laredo, Texas, in 2017.  

            This case is being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office Investigations Unit and the MPD. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amanda Swanson, Josh Satter, and David Liss. 

 

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WASHINGTON – Joseph Fargnoli, 61, of Rochester, New York, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in connection with his role in a multi-year scheme to defraud investors and lenders out of approximately $250 million, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Fargnoli is one of five former principals of the now-defunct Theia Group, a DC-based aerospace start-up company. He pleaded guilty today to one count of wire fraud before Judge Royce C. Lamberth.

            Fargnoli, who served as Theia Group’s Chief Technology Officer, is the first defendant to plead guilty in the case. The four additional Theia Group defendants include executives Erlend Olson, John Gallagher, Stephen Buscher, and Jamil Swati, who each face similar charges. Olson is additionally charged with evading more than $3.9 million in personal federal income taxes.

            According to court documents, Theia planned to launch 112 satellites starting in 2022 at a cost of $10 billion to $15 billion. Theia’s principals originally planned to raise the requisite funds from various nation-states by promising perpetual data and analytics for an upfront cost of $2 billion. However, from Theia’s founding in 2015 through its placement into receivership in 2021, Theia was unsuccessful in obtaining any funding from nation-states. Instead, Theia obtained approximately $250 million in loans and investments that Theia’s principals induced by fraud.

            The fraud scheme allegedly included materially false statements about revenue from non-existent government contracts, provision of multiple false financial statements, including a fake $6 billion escrow account statement, and false representations about Theia’s technical capabilities.

            This case is being investigated by the Justice Department’s Tax Division, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Office of Inspector General, and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Washington D.C. Office.

            The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rebecca G. Ross and Jolie F. Zimmerman and Trial Attorney Alexis Hughes of the Tax Division.

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WASHINGTON – Nicholas Moore, 24, of Springfield, Tennessee, pleaded guilty this morning in U.S. District Court in connection with hacking the electronic filing system of the U.S. Supreme Court at least 25 times and additionally hacking accounts at AmeriCorps and the Veterans Administration Health System, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Moore pleaded guilty to a one count information charging him with fraud activity in connection with computers, a Class A misdemeanor. Moore is eligible for up to one year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000 when he is sentenced by Judge Beryl A. Howell on April 17.

            According to court documents, the electronic filing system was restricted to authorized users. Between Aug. 29, 2023, and Oct. 22, 2023, Moore accessed the filing system without authorization using the stolen credential of an authorized user over 25 days, sometimes returning to the site multiple times on the same day.

            On three occasions, Moore posted screenshots to his Instagram account, @ihackedthegovernment, of his victim’s Supreme Court filing system details including the victim’s name and other information.

            Moore also used the stolen credentials of an authorized user of MyAmeriCorps to access a second victim’s AmeriCorps account. Between Aug. 17, 2023, and Oct. 13, 2023, Moore obtained the second victim’s personal information from the AmeriCorps servers. On Oct. 17, 2023, Moore posted that victim’s personal information to the @ihackedthegovernment Instagram account.

            Additionally, Moore used the stolen login credentials of a U.S. Marine Corps veteran to access the Department of Veterans Affairs “MyHealthEVet” platform on five days between Sept. 14, 2023, and Oct. 14, 2023. The hack allowed Moore to access the veteran’s private health information including prescribed medications and other intimate data. Moore then posted the veterans' health information to @ihackedthegovernment and boasted about gaining access to the VA’s servers.

            This case was investigated by the Supreme Court of the United States Police - Protective Intelligence Unit and the FBI Washington Field Office with assistance from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, and the AmeriCorps Office of Inspector General.

            The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Borchert and Rami Sibay for the District of Columbia.

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WASHINGTON – Darrell Hinkle, 37, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 21 years in prison for the April 2023 murder of Dajuan Blakney in front of an apartment complex in Southeast Washington, DC, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            On September 4, 2025, defendant Hinkle pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree murder while armed in D.C. Superior Court. In sentencing the defendant, the Honorable Jason Park accepted the agreed-to sentencing range of 17 to 21 years and sentenced the defendant to 21 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, at 12:01 a.m. on April 21, 2023, Hinkle parked his vehicle in front of an apartment complex located at 1511 19th Street SE. Thereafter, the defendant approached the victim, who was seated on the steps leading to the entrance of the complex. When Hinkle was within a few feet of the victim, he shot him with an assault-style rifle, killing him. He then fled the scene in his vehicle.

            The defendant was arrested in October of 2023 and has been in custody since.

            Joining in the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery W. Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            This case was investigated by officers, detectives, and other personnel of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Carson.

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WASHINGTON – Erick Blanco-Cordova, 24, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty today to pointing a firearm at a taxicab driver in November 2019, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Blanco-Cordova pleaded guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to one count of assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of carrying a pistol without a license. The Honorable Judge Robert Salerno scheduled sentencing for March 18, 2026.

            Blanco-Cordova’s codefendant, Lesly Taracena, was found guilty by a jury in April 2025 of conspiracy to commit an armed crime of violence, assault with a dangerous weapon, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and other related charges, and was sentenced to five years in prison in June 2025.

            According to the government’s evidence, at approximately 6:55 p.m., on November 11, 2019, Blanco-Cordova  and Taracena were picked up in Arlington, Virginia by the victim, a taxicab driver, and asked to be taken to Union Station in Washington, D.C. The victim drove the defendants to the corner of 7th and F Street, NW, at which point Blanco-Cordova and Taracena exited the victim’s taxicab without paying their fare. The victim followed them and asked them to pay. Taracena turned around and pulled a firearm out of her pocket, pointing it at the victim while Blanco-Cordova stood next to her. The victim ran away in fear. When MPD stopped the defendants, they found a 40 caliber Smith and Wesson SD40VE semi-automatic handgun on Blanco-Cordova.

            Blanco-Cordova was arrested in Maryland in March 2025 on weapons charges and has been in custody ever since.

            This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department.

            This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Katerina Qesari.

            The co-defendant Lesly Taracena was prosecuted by former Assistant U.S. Attorney Hannah Skopicki and Assistant U.S. Attorney Katerina Qesari.

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WASHINGTON – Marcus Hazel, 32, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty today to strangling his romantic partner Sandy Watts, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

           Hazel pleaded guilty today in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to a charge of strangulation. A Superior Court judge released the defendant today over the government’s objection pending sentencing, which is set for March 20, 2026.

           According to the government’s evidence, at approximately 9:00 a.m., on November 28, 2025, the defendant and Ms. Watts were at an apartment in the 2700 block of New York Avenue, NE, when Hazel became angry about losing his cell phone. Ms. Watts offered to let the defendant use her cell phone until his was found or he bought a new one. Hazel became upset by this response and told Ms. Watts he did not want to use her phone. He wanted her to buy him a new cell phone. He began cursing at Ms. Watts and arguing with her. She asked the defendant several times to leave the apartment. He then placed both hands around Ms. Watts’ neck, applying pressure and restricting her ability to breathe. After that, he slammed the victim to the floor and continued applying pressure to her neck with both hands, again restricting her breathing. By the time Hazel released her, the victim had nearly lost consciousness. He then fled the scene on foot.

The defendant was arrested on November 29, 2025, and has been in custody ever since. 

           Joining in the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery W. Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

           The case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department.

           The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elias Feldman of the Sex Offense and Domestic Violence Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

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WASHINGTON – George Sydnor, 46, of Washington, DC, was sentenced today for charges related to the stabbing of Christy Bautista, 31, in March 2023, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. 

           Sydnor pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree murder while armed (premeditated) on October 17, 2025. Superior Court Judge Neal Kravitz sentenced Sydnor to the prison term to be followed by five years of supervised release.

           “The victim, Christy Bautista, was visiting D.C. to attend a concert—an experience that should have been safe and routine,” said U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. “Instead, this monster brazenly rode his bike up to her motel, entered her room, and launched a deadly stabbing attack against an innocent woman. Today’s 40-year prison sentence delivers justice and sends a clear message: those who commit acts of extreme violence will be held fully accountable.”

           According to the government’s evidence, at approximately 5:22 p.m., on March 31, 2023, the victim, Ms. Bautista, arrived at the Ivy City Hotel, located in the 1600 block of New York Avenue Northeast, D.C., after traveling from her home in Harrisonburg, Virginia to D.C. to attend a concert. She rented a room at the hotel and, after checking in, began to unload her personal items from her car. Sydnor was captured on surveillance footage, arriving at the hotel on a rideshare bike, approximately an hour and a half later. The defendant rode his bike towards a group of hotel rooms located on the ground floor—near Ms. Bautista’s room. The rooms were accessible from the street. Sydnor parked his bike in front of Ms. Bautista’s window and then stood at her door as if listening in before abruptly entering her room slamming the door behind him. Once inside, the defendant attacked Ms. Bautista, stabbing her multiple times, killing her. Hotel surveillance footage captured several loud thud noises immediately after Sydnor entered Ms. Bautista’s room and a witness heard a woman screaming for help. At the time of this offense, Sydnor was on release for a previous attempted robbery case.

           Sydnor was arrested on March 31, 2023, and has been in custody since.

           Joining in the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

           In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Pirro and Interim Chief Carroll commended those who worked on the case from the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. They also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Santiago and Lindsey Merikas, who prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department has filed a forfeiture complaint against two mission crew trainers that were interdicted in transit from the Test Flying Academy of South Africa to the People’s Republic of China’s People’s Liberation Army, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            The mission crew trainers (MCTs) are mobile classrooms intended to assist the Chinese military to train personnel on the use of airborne warning and control system and antisubmarine warfare aircraft.

            “This seizure demonstrates the ongoing threat that China and its enablers pose to the national security of the United States through the unlawful procurement of U.S. military technology,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “The Department of Justice and our law enforcement partners continue to be steadfast in our commitment to use every lawful tool available to keep this critical technology out of the hands of our adversaries.”

            “TFASA masquerades as a civilian flight-training academy when in fact it is a significant enabler of the Chinese air and naval forces and a pipeline for transferring NATO aviation expertise, operational knowledge, and restricted technology directly to the People’s Liberation Army,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “The National Security Division will continue to act decisively to preserve the U.S. military’s qualitative edge by preventing U.S. technology from falling into the hands of our adversaries.”

            “This successful interdiction highlights the critical role HSI plays in safeguarding U.S. national security and preventing sensitive technology from reaching adversarial military forces,” said Special Agent in Charge Ricky J. Patel of Homeland Security Investigations New York. “By disrupting the transfer of advanced anti-submarine warfare training equipment to the Chinese military, HSI New York and our partners denied adversaries access to vital U.S. tactics and capabilities and, in turn, protected vital American interests. I commend HSI New York and our law enforcement counterparts for their steadfast commitment to countering illicit procurement networks and defending the integrity of U.S. defense technology worldwide.”

            “The Test Flying Academy of South Africa illegally exported U.S. military flight simulator technology and recruited former NATO pilots for the purpose of training China’s military, jeopardizing U.S. national security and placing the lives of American service members at risk,” said Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division. “The U.S. government will pursue every avenue available to defend the homeland, protect our warfighters, and hold accountable anyone who aids our adversaries.”

            “TFASA’s continued attempts to leverage our nation's military expertise and software gravely threaten United States' national security interests and the lives of American service members around the globe," said FBI Acting Assistant Director in Charge Vanessa Tibbits.  “May today’s disruption reflect the FBI’s unwavering commitment to protect our country from foreign adversaries.”

            According to court documents, the MCTs and associated software were designed and manufactured, using U.S.-origin software and defense technical data, by the Test Flying Academy of South Africa (TFASA). The purpose of the MCT project – dubbed “Project Elgar” by TFASA personnel – was to train Chinese aviators in the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) on anti-submarine warfare techniques, expanding their capability to locate and track U.S. submarines working in the Pacific.

            The MCTs’ layout was modelled after the P-8 Poseidon, which is manufactured by Boeing and serves as the United States’ primary anti-submarine warfare maritime patrol aircraft. The MCTs were designed to run software specially designed by TFASA for Project Elgar. The software used a basic flight simulator program designed and marketed by a U.S. company, which TFASA software engineers then enhanced using technical data relating to Western anti-submarine warfare aircraft, including the P-8 Poseidon. Former NATO aviators with training in anti-submarine warfare techniques were part of TFASA’s Project Elgar team.

            This interdiction is the latest instance implicating TFASA in its role as a primary trainer of the PLA. In June 2023, the Department of Commerce added TFASA and numerous of its subsidiaries and affiliates in South Africa and elsewhere to the Entity List “for providing training to Chinese military pilots using Western and NATO sources,” which the Department of Commerce noted was “contrary to U.S. national security and foreign policy interests.”

            This interdiction of the MCTs is a product of the U.S. government’s coordinated effort to stop the PLA and its enablers from further threatening U.S. national security. The forfeiture action comes as China, Russia, and Iran began a week of joint naval exercises in South Africa’s waters on Saturday, January 10.

            This case is being investigated by the FBI and HSI New York Field Offices and the Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security, Office of Export Enforcement, New York Field Office.

            The case is being litigated by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steven B. Wasserman and Rick Blaylock, Jr. for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Sean Heiden of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.

The burden to prove forfeitability in a forfeiture proceeding is upon the government.

Inside of one of the containers seized by the U.S. Government.

Documented construction progress on the MCT showed the building and installation in

the shipping containers of consoles closely mimicking those found in the Boeing P-8 Poseidon.

The burden to prove forfeitability in a forfeiture proceeding is upon the government.

WASHINGTON – Iesha Marks, 31, of Bowie, Maryland and Daniel Bangura, 22, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty this week to the July 2023 shooting of 46-year-old Donald Childs, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Marks pleaded guilty to second-degree murder while armed on January 13, 2026, and is facing a sentence between 13 and 25 years in prison, followed by a term of supervised release. Bangura also pleaded guilty on that day to obstruction of justice and is facing a sentence between 48 months and 96 months in prison, followed by a term of supervised release. Both guilty pleas are contingent upon the Court’s approval at sentencing. The Honorable Danya A. Dayson will sentence Marks on June 12, 2026, and Bangura on March 13, 2026.

            According to the government’s evidence, at 2:43 p.m. on July 30, 2023, Bangura drove Marks to the 100 block of Farragut Street, NW. As they rode through a busy intersection, Marks extended her arm out of the front passenger window and fired multiple shots directly into Farragut Street, striking and killing Mr. Childs, who was standing on the sidewalk. Bangura sped away from the scene and drove Marks to Pennsylvania in order to dispose of the murder weapon. 

            Marks was arrested in October of 2023 and has been in custody since. Bangura has been in custody since he was indicted in May of 2025.

            Joining in the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery W. Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            This case was investigated by officers, detectives, and other personnel of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Yasmin Emrani. 

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2025 CF1 005760

WASHINGTON – Rocky Lee Brown, 53, a previously convicted felon residing in the District of Columbia, was charged in an indictment returned today in U.S. District Court on one count of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Brown was wanted on an active warrant out of Maryland when he was arrested Dec. 29, 2025, by the United States Marshals Service on the 5200 block of Hayes Street, NE. An officer with the Metropolitan Police Department responded and allegedly recovered a SCCY CPX-1 9mm pistol from Brown’s  jacket pocket. The firearm contained nine rounds of 9mm ammunition in the magazine and one round in the chamber.

            Brown did not have a license to carry a firearm in the District. A criminal history check showed that Brown was previously convicted in D.C. Superior Court for second-degree Murder. On May 5, 2006, Brown was sentenced to 25 years of incarceration. As a convicted felon, he was prohibited from possessing a firearm.

            This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Liss.

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An indictment is only a formal accusation by a grand jury that there is enough evidence for a serious criminal case to proceed to trial.

WASHINGTON – Quateze Moore, 46, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty today to the shooting death of Martinez Robinson in Northwest D.C. on August 23, 2024, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

             Moore entered a global guilty plea to voluntary manslaughter while armed. Moore also pleaded guilty to possessing a controlled substance (cocaine) with the intent to distribute it while armed, before Superior Court Associate Judge Jason Park. Judge Park ordered that Moore continue to be held without bond pending sentencing.

             A sentencing hearing is scheduled to occur before Judge Park on March 27, 2026.

             According to the government’s evidence, on August 23, 2024, Moore was at 14th and Girard Street Park when he and the victim, Martinez Robinson, encountered one another. After a short period of time, Robinson ran out of the park and the defendant followed, shooting him as he was running away. Moore’s gunfire struck Robinson three times, once in the right arm, once in the right thigh, and once in the torso, causing injuries from which Robinson died. The defendant’s dog, Ace, was also struck by his gunfire and killed. Moore confirmed that, in shooting Robinson, he was acting voluntarily, and that he was not acting in self-defense. Robinson was found in possession of a Glock 23 .40 caliber firearm with a laser, a giggle-switch and 19 live cartridges in a 22-capacity magazine, which he had not fired.

             The defendant was arrested on January 1, 2024, while seated in the front passenger seat inside a vehicle. At the time of his arrest, members of MPD recovered a firearm from under Moore’s seat. MPD also recovered a clear plastic bag from in-between the center console and Moore’s seat. The clear plastic bag contained numerous substances that, after chemical testing, yielded positive results for cocaine, fentanyl, heroin, and oxycodone.

             Moore has been in custody since his arrest. 

            Joining in the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie Dinan.

WASHINGTON – Wayne Glymph, 59, of Port Tobacco, Maryland, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 13½ years in federal prison for his role in a drug trafficking organization that imported and distributed large quantities of high-purity fentanyl, heroin, PCP and cocaine in the Washington metropolitan area and elsewhere, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

Glymph pleaded guilty Sept. 15, 2025, before Judge Trevor N. McFadden to conspiracy to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, 100 grams or more of fentanyl analogue, 100 grams or more of heroin, and one kilogram or more of phencyclidine (PCP). In addition to the 162 month prison term, Judge McFadden ordered Glymph to serve seven years of supervised release.

According to court documents, the drug trafficking organization operated from at least July 2021 and August 2022, until November 2023. Glymph participated in the distribution of 12 kilos of fentanyl including carfentanil, almost two kilograms of a fentanyl analog (p-flourofentanyl), more than 236 grams of heroin, and more than two gallons of PCP.

Co-conspirator Michael Stewart, 61, of the District, was sentenced Dec. 22, 2025, to 71 months in prison for acquiring wholesale quantities of cocaine and fentanyl which he in turn cut, repackaged, and then sold in smaller quantities to other drug traffickers for redistribution.

On July 22, 2025, Kevin Quattlebaum pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine and more than 28 grams of crack cocaine base, and using, carrying, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. On Oct. 21, 2025, Quattlebaum was sentenced to 142 months incarceration, five years of supervised release, and ordered to forfeit $35,000 in cash, a Breitling watch valued at over $15,000, a 2019 SUV, a firearm, and ammunition.

Other co-conspirators, Samuel Braxton, 57, and Michael Owens, 38, both admitted guilt on Dec. 8, 2025, in connection with their roles in the same narcotics trafficking conspiracy.

Braxton, aka “Fatso,” of Temple Hills, Maryland, pleaded guilty December 8 before Judge McFadden to conspiracy to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, 100 grams or more of fentanyl analog, and 100 grams or more of heroin. Sentencing in this case for Braxton is scheduled for March 9, 2026. Owens, of St. Charles, Maryland, pleaded guilty on December 8 to conspiracy to distribute 40 grams or more fentanyl and to conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine. Sentencing for Owens is scheduled for March 20, 2026.

Glymph, Braxton, and another co-defendant, Ronnie Rogers, coordinated the ordering, shipment, and receipt of, and payment for, the drugs with other members of the conspiracy. On April 2, 2025, Rogers pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute 400 grams or more of a fentanyl, 100 grams or more of any analogue of fentanyl, 100 grams or more of a mixture containing a detectable amount of heroin, 500 grams or more of cocaine, and crack cocaine base, and to possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. Rogers, whose sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 24, 2026, is facing a statutory mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years incarceration and up to life.   

Communications evidence, as well as physical seizures and recoveries of many kilos of fentanyl and heroin over the course of the investigation, indicated that Glymph and others coordinated with foreign nationals and regional co-conspirators to traffic the narcotics.

Glymph has several previous convictions for conspiracy to distribute narcotics, weapons counts, and fraud. He was previously sentenced to two 10-year terms for drug trafficking for separate convictions.

Joining U.S. Attorney Pirro in the announcement were DEA Special Agent in Charge Christopher C. Goumenis of the Drug Enforcement Administration Washington Division, Inspector in Charge Damon E. Wood of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Washington Division,  Chief Tarrick McGuire of the Alexandria Police Department, FBI Assistant Director in Charge Darren B. Cox of the Washington Field Office, and Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

This case was investigated by the DEA Washington Division, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the FBI Washington Field Office, the Alexandria Police Department, and the Metropolitan Police Department.

Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms Washington Field Division, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, U.S. Bureau of Prisons, Montgomery County Police Department, Prince George’s County Police Interdiction Unit, Charles County Sheriff’s Office, Arlington County Police, Virginia State Police, Loudoun County Sherriff’s Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland (Greenbelt), the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee.

The matter was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys George Eliopoulos, Matthew Kinskey, and William Hart, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Stempel, for the Violent Crime and Narcotics Trafficking Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

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WASHINGTON – Trevor Jonathan Wright, 34, of the District of Columbia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 219 months in federal prison for leading a series violent armed robberies of South Asian jewelry stores that netted millions of dollars in cash and gold for his 15-member crew, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. 

           Wright, the D. C. rapper known as “Taliban Glizzy,” pleaded guilty Sept. 16, 2025, to conspiracy to interfere with interstate commerce by robbery (aka Hobbs Act Robbery); brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence; and unlawful possession of a firearm.

           In his plea agreement, Wright accepted responsibility for his roles in the June 10, 2022, armed robbery of Virani Jewelers in Iselin, New Jersey for $1.2 million in gold jewelry; the Oct. 25, 2022, armed robbery of Paradise Jewelry in Paterson, New Jersey, for $1.93 million in gold jewelry; and the Dec. 6, 2022, armed robbery of Kishek Jewelers in Jacksonville, Florida, for $700,000. He also accepted responsibility for unlawful possession of a machine gun in Miami, Florida on May 27, 2021.

           “Trevor Wright and his crew terrorized victims from Northern New Jersey to South Florida. His crew left behind a wake of destruction and great financial loss for family-owned businesses,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “They smashed glass display cases and shoveled the gold into laundry bags. After one armed robbery of nearly $2 million, Wright spent proceeds to purchase a Rolex. He sure won’t need a luxury watch to measure the more than 18 years he’ll now spend in prison.”

           In addition to the 219-month prison term, Judge Christopher R. Cooper ordered Wright to serve four years of supervised release.

           According to court documents, during the course of 18 months, Wright and his co-conspirators schemed to rob multiple South Asian jewelry stores of heavy gold jewelry of high purity. The conspiracy began in January 2022 and continued until August 2023.

           Each robbery was coordinated in advance. The crew selected their targets after careful research. To evade law enforcement detection, some of the suspect vehicles were rented, stolen, or outfitted with stolen tags. At least one of the vehicles was carjacked by the crew at gunpoint.

           The crew cased the stores in advance. They shattered the doors and windows with sledgehammers They employed a show of force to gain compliance from their victims. At least one co-conspirator was armed with a firearm during each robbery.

           The crew fenced the stolen jewelry in Miami or melted down the gold into bars which they later sold for cash.

           On Dec. 12, 2022, Wright was arrested on an outstanding warrant issued by the Southern District of Florida as he and his entourage departed the St. Yves nightclub in a Cadillac Escalade. Police recovered, among other things, more than $17,300 in cash, which investigators linked to proceeds from the Kishek robbery.

           Joining U.S. Attorney Pirro in the announcement were ATF Special Agent in Charge Anthony A. Spotswood of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Washington Field Division; FBI Assistant Director in Charge Darren B. Cox of the Washington Field Office; FBI Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Roddy of the Newark Field Office; Director Gadyaces Serralta of the United States Marshals Service; and Interim Chief Jeffery W. Carroll  of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

           This case was investigated by the ATF, the Metropolitan Police Department, and the FBI’s Newark, Jacksonville, and Washington Field Offices. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrea Duvall and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Sitara Witanachchi.

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Trevor Wright, aka Taliban Glizzy, in a portrait.

An AR-15 recovered on July 17, 2022, from the backseat of a rideshare vehicle in which Trevor Wright and other crew members had traveled.

Surveillance screen shot from the October 25, 2022, of a co-defendant during the armed robbery of Paradise Jewelry in Paterson, New Jersey, from which the crew netted $1.93 million in gold jewelry.

WASHINGTON – Dion Zellars, 37, a previously convicted felon from Capitol Heights, Maryland, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 30 months in prison for illegally possessing a Glock 29 pistol only one week following his release to a halfway house, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Zellars, aka “Thomas Good,” pleaded guilty on Sept. 30, 2025, to one count of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon. The case marks his fifth firearms conviction. In addition to the 30-month prison term, Judge Reggie B. Walton ordered Zellars to serve three years of supervised release.

            Joining U.S. Attorney Pirro in the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            According to court documents, on March 20, 2025, at about 4:25 p.m., four MPD officers were patrolling the 4200 block Southern Avenue SE, when they observed several individuals congregating on the sidewalk. One member of the group—later identified as Zellars—immediately attempted to hide behind a parked silver SUV, which drew the attention of the officers.

            As additional police arrived in an unmarked car, Zellars took off running down the sidewalk while clutching his waistband. Multiple officers chased Zellars. At one point, Zellars held up a black firearm with his left hand. Officers yelled at Zellars to drop the gun.

            As Zellars ran along the side of a house and into its back yard, he dropped the gun. He hopped a fence, ran down an alley, then tripped on the steps leading into another yard. Police caught and handcuffed him. Zellars initially identified himself to officers as Thomas Anthony Good, with Zellars’ same date of birth.

            Officers recovered cell phones and a Glock 29 10mm pistol with a laser attachment, with one round in the chamber, and a 15-round magazine containing 14 rounds.

            Zellars consented to the search of his phone. The phone contained text messages, photos, and videos from the same day documenting the Glock that Zellars dropped. Specifically, Zellars sent a text message to “Boo”  about 1:19 p.m., with multiple photos of the gun, asking “Yu like this joint?” In response, “Boo” warned Zellars not to touch the gun: “asking me about a gun when u just did 10 years ! u shouldn’t even be touching that.”

            Zellars had been released to a halfway house on March 12, 2025—about a week before this incident—and was on supervision for sentences for two different gun convictions.

            Joining U.S. Attorney Pirro in the announcement were ATF Special Agent in Charge Anthony Spotswood of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Washington Field Office, and Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            This case was investigated by Washington Field Division of the ATF and the Metropolitan Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael L. Barclay for the District of Columbia. 

Still image from body-worn camera showing Zellars (red) fleeing police

Still images of the gun from Zellars’ phone

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WASHINGTON – Ruby Jade Corado, 56, the founder of Casa Ruby, Inc., a Washington D.C.-based non-profit that provided services to the LGBTQ+ community, was sentenced today to 33 months in prison in connection with diverting at least $150,000 in taxpayer-backed emergency Covid-relief funds to private offshore bank accounts for personal use, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Corado, aka “Vladimir Orlando Artiga Corado,” pleaded guilty July 17, 2024, to wire fraud before U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden. In addition to the 33-month prison term, Judge McFadden ordered Corado to serve two years of supervised release and to pay $956,215 in restitution to the Small Business Administration.

            “Corado received more than $1.3 million from the Paycheck Protection Program and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program for the non-profit Casa Ruby,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “Instead of using the funds as promised, Corado stole over $950,000, transferred at least $150,000 to bank accounts in El Salvador, and hid it from the IRS.”

            According to court documents, in 2022, when financial irregularities at Casa Ruby became public, Corado sold her home in Prince Georges County, Maryland, and fled to El Salvador. FBI agents arrested Corado on March 5, 2024, at a hotel in Laurel, Maryland, when she unexpectedly returned to the United States.

            Casa Ruby had claimed to provide housing services for homeless LGBTQ+ youth including transitional housing. The organization also claimed to assist LGBTQ+ immigrants by providing social services such as case management and therapeutic mental health support for survivors of violence, and to assist with a wide array of services such as assisting with passport applications and certain visa applications. The non-profit’s website stated that Casa Ruby employed over 50 people and provided more than 30,000 social and human services to more than 6,000 people each year. Casa Ruby operated multiple shelters in Washington, D.C., that provided transitional housing.

           Casa Ruby effectively ceased operations in July 2022 when it shuttered its transitional housing, failed to pay its employees, and faced eviction from multiple properties for failure to pay rent.

            Joining in the announcement of the sentencing were FBI Assistant Director in Charge Darren B. Cox of the Washington Field Office and District of Columbia Inspector General Daniel W. Lucas.

           This case was investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office and the D.C. Office of Inspector General. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John Borchert and former U.S. Attorneys Madhu Chugh and Kathryn Rakoczy.

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WASHINGTON – Pernell Sims, 35, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty to the shooting death of his prior romantic partner, Tyshida Williams, in Southwest D.C. on July 30, 2023, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

           Sims entered a guilty plea to second degree murder while armed before Superior Court Associate Judge Todd Edelman on January 9, 2026.

          A sentencing hearing is scheduled to occur before Judge Edelman on March 20, 2026. Judge Edelman ordered that Sims continue to be held without bond pending sentencing.

           According to the government’s evidence, Sims and the victim Tyshida Williams were in a romantic relationship on July 30, 2023. After returning to the apartment after 7:00 a.m., the defendant became angry about Williams’ phone. Sims and Williams then went to the lobby and parking garage area of Sims’ apartment building and argued for more than an hour. While in the parking garage, the defendant threw Williams to the ground and kicked her in the chest. After returning upstairs to Sims’ apartment where his child was present, he and Williams went into the bedroom and closed the door. Sims then shot Williams in the left side of her head. Williams died from her injuries later that morning. Sims confirmed that, in shooting Williams, he was acting voluntarily, and that he was not acting in self-defense.

           The defendant was arrested in November 2023 and has been in custody ever since.

           Joining in the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

           This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emma McArthur and Stephanie Dinan.

WASHINGTON – Christopher Southerland, 43, of Glen Burnie, Maryland, was arrested Friday and charged in a federal indictment unsealed in U.S. District Court for stealing approximately 240 government cell phones, valued at over $150,000, from the U.S. House of Representatives, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            “As alleged, stealing 240 government-issued phones worth over $150,000 is a direct betrayal of the public trust,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “That’s taxpayer money meant to serve Americans, not line someone’s pockets. Accountability matters – and no one is above the law.”

            According to the government’s evidence, from approximately April 2020 until July 2023, Southerland worked as a system administrator for the House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. As a system administrator, Southerland was authorized to order cell phones for Committee staff members.

            From January 2023 through May 2023, Southerland allegedly used his position to cause 240 new government cell phones to be shipped directly to his home in Maryland. During that time, there were only approximately 80 staff members on the committee. Southerland then sold over 200 of the cell phones to a nearby pawn shop.

            As part of the scheme, Southerland allegedly directed an employee at the pawn shop only to sell the phones “in parts” in order to bypass the House’s mobile device management software, which enables the House to remotely secure and monitor its phones. The scheme was first discovered when one of the phones that Southerland stole was sold whole on eBay to an uninvolved purchaser. When the purchaser first booted up the phone, the phone displayed a phone number for the House of Representatives Technology Service Desk. The purchaser called that number, and House employees soon discovered that several phones purchased by Southerland were unaccounted for.

            This case is being investigated by the U.S. Capitol Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jake Green for the District of Columbia. Valuable assistance was provided by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sabena Auyeung and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Courtney.

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

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WASHINGTON – Santana Matthews, 20, of Washington, D.C., was arrested and charged with second-degree murder while armed for the death of 26-year-old Aaron Marckell Williams that occurred on January 7, 2026, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. 

            Matthews made his initial appearance before Superior Court Magistrate Judge Dorsey G. Jones, on January 8, 2026, where Judge Jones found probable cause that Matthews committed the offense of second-degree murder while armed and ordered that Matthews be held without bond pending a preliminary hearing scheduled for January 27, 2026.

            At approximately 3:49 p.m., a Chevrolet Malibu was operating at a high rate of speed southbound in the 1100 block of 16th Street, Northwest, when he entered the intersection with L Street against a red light. The Malibu collided with a Toyota Corolla that was traveling eastbound on L Street with a green light. The collision caused the Malibu to strike Mr. Williams walking eastbound in the crosswalk with the right-of-way, across 16th Street. Three additional vehicles stopped at the red light northbound on 16th Street were also damaged in the collision. Matthews was the operator and sole occupant of the Malibu and he attempted to flee the scene on foot but was apprehended by responding officers. DC Fire and EMS responded to the scene and after all lifesaving efforts failed, Mr. Williams was pronounced dead. The suspect and two additional victims were transported to local hospitals for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.

            Joining the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie Carter.

            These charges are merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

WASHINGTON – Jerrold Lonnell Coates, 47, of Washington, D.C., was arrested and charged with second-degree murder while armed for the vehicular death of Officer Terry Bennett on January 7, 2026 resulting from a crash on December 23, 2025, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. 

            Coates made his initial appearance before Superior Court Magistrate Judge Philip A. Medley, on January 10, 2026, where Judge Medley found probable cause that Coates committed the offense of second-degree murder while armed and ordered that Coates be held without bond pending a preliminary hearing which is scheduled for February 2, 2026 before Judge Rainey Brandt.

            According to court documents, on December 23, 2025 at approximately 10:09 p.m., Officer Bennett was behind a vehicle that had been involved in a different traffic crash with his cruiser lights activated and road flares deployed to protect that driver from traffic on eastbound I-695 just after the merger with 3rd Street tunnel.

            Suddenly, a Silver 2007 Volvo XC90 was driven at a high rate of speed through the otherwise slowed traffic, swerved over, and struck Officer Bennett while he was standing outside of his marked cruiser.  Officer Bennett was thrown into the air by the impact and suffered blunt force trauma injuries as a result of the collision.  He was taken to Washington Hospital Center, where doctors advised he had sustained a traumatic brain injury and a possible spinal injury. On January 7, 2026, after all life-saving efforts were made, Officer Bennett was pronounced dead.

            Joining the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie Carter.

            These charges are merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

WASHINGTON – Floyd Clark, 22, a previously convicted felon residing in the District of Columbia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 48 months in federal prison in connection with his illegal possession of a Glock 22 .40 caliber pistol that had been outfitted with a “switch” so it could fire as a machine gun, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Clark pleaded guilty on Sept. 24, 2025, before Judge Timothy J. Kelly to an Information charging him with unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition. In addition to the 48-month prison sentence, Judge Kelly ordered Clark to serve three years of supervised release.

            Joining U.S. Attorney Pirro in the announcement were ATF Special Agent in Charge Anthony Spotswood of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives - Washington Field Division and Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            According to court documents, on March 1, 2025, at 3:23 p.m., MPD officers responded to the 300 block of 50 Street NE, in the Lincoln Heights neighborhood for a report of 14 rounds of automatic gunfire. At the scene, officers recovered 14 shell casings. Police did not find any shooting victims. Surveillance video footage revealed that two shooters had fired from a black Infiniti Q50 sedan bearing a Maryland license plate. Immediately after the firing of the 14 rounds, the Infiniti fled the scene.

            On March 8, 2025, about 6:10 p.m. police were patrolling near the intersection of 60th Street and Eads Street, NE, when they spotted an Infiniti Q50 matching the description of the vehicle used in the previous week’s shooting. Officers followed the car.

            Clark, who was driving the Infiniti, stopped the vehicle. Then Clark and an unidentified passenger jumped out of the car and ran away from the police officers. Police arrest Clark after a brief foot chase and then recovered a loaded Glock 22 .40 caliber handgun from the car. The firearm was outfitted with a machine gun conversion device. Investigators linked the Glock to the March 1 discharge of 14 rounds in Lincoln Heights.  

            Clark previously pled guilty in April 2023 of attempted carrying a pistol without a license and of carrying a pistol without a license in October 2023 in D.C. Superior Court.

            This case was investigated by the MPD and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Washington Field Division. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared English and former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Monica Svetoslavov.

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WASHINGTON – An Indictment was unsealed today in U.S. District Court charging Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, with an array of offenses in the ambush-style shooting near the White House on November 26 that killed National Guardsman Sarah Beckstrom and seriously injured National Guardsman Andrew Wolfe, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            The Indictment adds two new counts of assault with intent to kill for additional victims, R.R. and E.S., two National Guard majors who subdued Lakanwal at the scene.

            In addition, the Indictment charges Lakanwal with first degree murder while armed (premeditated), assault with intent to kill while armed, transportation of a firearm & ammunition in interstate commerce with the intent to commit a felony;  and four counts of possession of a firearm during crime of violence or dangerous offense.

            “We are vigorously pursuing the prosecution of Lakanwal,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “Nothing is off the table, and we will continue to weigh additional charges.”

            According to court documents, Lakanwal allegedly drove his Toyota Prius from his home in Washington state to the District of Columbia. On the day before Thanksgiving, Wednesday, November 26, at about 2:13 p.m., Lakanwal opened fire without provocation at 17th and I Streets, NW, near the Farragut West Metro Station, shooting Beckstrom and Wolfe in the head. Two nearby majors in the National Guard responded immediately and subdued the suspect.

            At the scene, investigators recovered a .357 Smith & Wesson revolver that had been reported stolen in Seattle, Washington, in 2023.

            Ms. Beckstrom, 20, succumbed to her injuries on Thanksgiving, November 27. National Guardsman Andrew Wolfe, 24, was critically injured in the ambush.

            This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Metropolitan Police Department. The matter is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

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WASHINGTON – Linwood Barnhill, 59, a registered sex offender residing in the District of Columbia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 27 years in prison in connection with recruiting minor girls to engage in commercial sex, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Barnhill, a former Metropolitan Police Department officer, pleaded guilty on Sept. 17, 2025, before Judge Jia M. Cobb to sex trafficking of a minor, In addition to the 27-year prison term, Judge Cobb ordered Barnhill to serve a lifetime of supervised release and to pay restitution of $10,000.

            Joining U.S. Attorney Pirro in the announcement was FBI Special Agent in Charge Reid Davis of the FBI Washington Field Office's Criminal Division.

           “This former officer trafficked children on the streets of D.C. and at a strip club in Maryland. Then, after serving a seven-year sentence in prison, he resumed sex trafficking teen girls,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “Barnhill now has 27 years to think over what he did, and we won’t have to worry about his sex trafficking again.”

           "While serving as a police officer over a decade ago, Barnhill preyed on underage girls. He took explicit photos of them and even forced one victim to work as a prostitute," said the FBI’s Davis. "Upon his release from prison, he resumed trafficking minors for sex. He also forced his victims to find other vulnerable girls for him to exploit. As today's sentencing demonstrates, the FBI will use every tool at our disposal to put habitual child predators in prison where they belong."

           According to court documents, between April 2024 and April 2025, Barnhill recruited girls under the age of 18 to engage in commercial sex acts. Barnhill collected over $10,000 in profits from one of the minor girls whom he exploited in commercial sex. Barnhill also used his victims to find additional minor girls to victimize, by forcing them to work in commercial sex.

           In April 2024, Barnhill recruited a girl to work for him knowing that she was 15-years old and had run away from home. Barnhill had the girl audition for him using the stripper pole he had installed in his basement. He told her she could make money dancing at a strip club in Prince George’s County, Maryland, and would earn additional cash by having sex with men in private VIP rooms at the club. Barnhill transported her to the strip club and back multiple times a week.

           In the fall of 2024, Barnhill paid another 15-year-old girl to recruit other minor girls – all under the age of 18 -- to work for him as commercial sex workers. The girl invited the other minors to her house, where Barnhill would pick them up and drive them to a street in the District known for its commercial sex activity. Barnhill’s iCloud account included text messages with at least 10 other identified minor girls discussing working at “the club” and “VIP rooms.”

           Barnhill, a former officer in the Seventh District, previously was sentenced in October 2014 to seven years in prison after he pleaded guilty to two counts of pandering a minor and possession of child pornography in connection with recruiting two children to work in commercial sex for him. By 2024, Barnhill resumed sex trafficking teenage girls under the moniker "Nico."

           This case was investigated by FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Caroline Burrell.

           This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative. In February 2006, the Attorney General created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorney's Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

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WASHINGTON – Bruce R. Hart, 31, a previously convicted felon residing in the District of Columbia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 34 months in federal prison for his unlawful possession of a loaded pistol and a 28-round capacity magazine while he was on supervised release for a Maryland robbery, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Hart pleaded guilty Sept. 26, 2025, before Judge Amy Berman Jackson to unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon and to endangerment with a firearm in a public place. In addition to the 34-month prison term, Judge Berman Jackson ordered Hart to serve three years of supervised release.

            According to court documents, on Oct. 26, 2024, about 9:45 p.m., Hart was with two other men on the 1800 block of Wiltberger St., NW, when he fired one round from a handgun into the air. The incident was captured on surveillance camera. The men then ran north on Wiltberger St.

            A police officer later spotted Hart on the 1900 block of 7th Street about one block away from the shooting. At 10:43 p.m., the officer attempted to stop Hart. Hart fled, running through traffic across Florida Avenue. Officers apprehended Hart after a brief pursuit on Bohrer Street NW, and recovered a loaded firearm equipped with a large capacity magazine tucked into the waistband of his pants.

            Hart has a prior felony conviction for robbery in Prince George’s County, Maryland, for which he was sentenced on Nov. 29, 2023, to 10 years imprisonment, with nine years and six months suspended, and a three-year term of supervised probation.

            This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and the FBI Washington Field Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jacob Green and Brendan M. Horan. -  24cr528

Surveillance image showing a muzzle flash as Hart discharged a firearm on the 1800 block of Wiltberger Street NW

The firearm, magazine, and ammunition recovered from Hart’s waistband following his arrest.

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WASHINGTON – Anthony Niwatilagu Long, 45, of Washington, D.C., was arrested and charged with second-degree murder while armed for shooting and killing 44-year-old D.C. resident Melvin Saunders in the early morning of December 19, 2025, in Northeast, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

          Long was arrested yesterday at the D.C. Superior Court after the completion of a preliminary hearing for an assault with a deadly weapon-gun case where he was charged with both pistol whipping and stabbing another victim, Donald Cook, on January 3, 2026. 

          Long will made his initial appearance today in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Magistrate Judge Dorsey G. Jones, II found probable cause for second-degree murder while armed and held the defendant pending a preliminary hearing on January 20, 2026, at 9:30 a.m. before Judge Rainey Brandt in Courtroom 201.

          According to the affidavit in support of Long’s arrest, Saunders, and several other people were present in an apartment at the North Capitol Commons, John and Jill Ker Conway residence in the 1000 block of North Capitol Street, NE, when Long claimed to be a member of the “Crips” and accused the victim of being a member of the “Bloods” before shooting Saunders, execution style in his left temple. Long left the scene on foot and discarded some of his clothing to alter his appearance and evade detection by law enforcement.

          This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marybeth Manfreda.

           Joining in the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

           These charges are merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

WASHINGTON – Dwayne Taylor, 49,  a convicted murderer residing in the District, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to one year and one day in prison in connection with his illegal possession of a loaded revolver he carried into a government building that had been designated as a gun-free zone, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

Taylor pleaded guilty on Sept. 2, 2025, before Judge Jia M. Cobb to unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon. In addition to the prison term, Judge Cobb ordered Taylor to serve three years of supervised release.

Joining U.S. Attorney Pirro in the announcement were Special Agent in Charge Anthony Spotswood of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Washington Field Office, and Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

According to court documents, on June 30, 2025, shortly after 9 a.m. an MPD officer responded to the Minnesota-Benning Government Center on the 4000 block of Minnesota Avenue NE. The officer approached a security official who pointed to Taylor and identified him as a man who had a gun in his bag.

The officer asked Taylor, “What’s going on?” Taylor replied, “My weapon in my backpack.” The officer asked Taylor if he had a permit, Taylor stated, “No it’s at home, I don’t got none of my stuff with me . . . I forgot when I was rushing out the door this morning. I forgot. I just put it in my bag and ran out the door.”  The officer asked Taylor if he was licensed to carry. Taylor responded, “No, I’m not licensed to carry.” The officer then placed Taylor in handcuffs and called for more officers.

Officers recovered a Hopkins & Allen 36 .38 Special Revolver loaded with five rounds of ammunition from Taylor’s backpack.

As a previously convicted felon, Taylor was prohibited from possessing a firearm. In 1995, Taylor was convicted in D.C. Superior Court of second degree murder while armed; armed robbery; and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence in the 1994 execution-style killing of cab driver Keith Moore. Taylor was sentenced to 15-years-to-life in prison and served 27 years.

This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and the ATF Washington Field Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Liss for the District of Columbia.

An X-ray image of Taylor’s backpack as it passed through the X-Ray machine at the Minnesota-Benning Government Center. The revolver is circled in yellow.

In this photo, an officer pulls a revolver from Taylor’s backpack.

WASHINGTON – Saul Castillo-Crespo, 28, a citizen of Mexico, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to illegal re-entry into the United States, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

Castillo-Crespo, aka “David Crespo,” was previously convicted in August 2017 in D.C. Superior Court and sentenced to five years in prison in connection with the kidnapping and sexual abuse of an intoxicated stranger in Northwest Washington.

In January 2023, Castillo-Crespo was deported to Mexico. He illegally re-entered the country in March 2025, proceeded to violate the law by failing to register as a sex offender, and was arrested in June by local law enforcement.

Judge Timothy J. Kelly scheduled sentencing for March 13, 2026.

“This individual sexually assaulted a victim and got deported a few years ago, just to sneak back into the U.S. illegally,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “I will not allow this brazen defiance of our immigration laws to continue, especially from criminals who commit the most heinous illegal acts.”

According to the court documents, ICE learned that Castillo-Crespo had been arrested by MPD officers on June 27, 2025, and had been charged with unlawful entry and destroying property. On arrest, the defendant identified himself using the alias “David Crespo.”

On July 16, 2025, law enforcement fingerprinted “David Crespo.” The FBI identified him as Castillo-Crespo. ICE determined that the fingerprints matched those of a known and previously deported alien.

Castillo-Crespo previously was found guilty and sentenced for a sex crime in the District. On May 7, 2017, Castillo-Crespo encountered his victim in the early morning hours on a sidewalk near Lafayette Square in downtown Washington. The woman was extremely intoxicated, unable to walk, and told Castillo-Crespo that she wanted to go to her home. Castillo-Crespo hailed a passing taxi and took her to his apartment building in the 1700 block of Seventh Street NW. Once inside, the victim refused to enter Castillo-Crespo’s fourth-floor apartment and repeated that she wanted to go home. Castillo-Crespo carried her to a staircase where he sexually assaulted her. His conduct inside the building was captured on building surveillance cameras.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Metropolitan Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Josh Satter.

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WASHINGTON – Kevin Brent Buchanan, 64, of Tooele, Utah, was sentenced today in the District of Columbia to six months in prison in connection with threatening violence against the employees of a D.C.-based Palestinian rights organization, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Buchanan pleaded guilty on July 21, 2025, to a one-count information charging him with transmitting in interstate commerce a communication containing a threat to injure the person of another. In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ordered Buchanan to serve three years of supervised release with mandatory participation in a mental health program.

            Joining U.S. Attorney Pirro in the announcement were Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and FBI Assistant Director in Charge Darren B. Cox of the Washington Field Office.

            According to court documents, between Oct. 31, 2023, and Nov. 2, 2023, Buchanan used his cell phone to call and leave five voice mail messages for members of the organization. In his November 2 message, Buchanan stated in part: “Your families are going to be followed and watched;” “You don’t even belong in America;” “I hope every Muslim in the United States [expletive] croaks;” and “You are all going to [expletive] die, you pieces of [expletive] traitors.”

            Buchanan admitted that he intentionally targeted the organization because its staff and members are Palestinian, and because the organization advocates on behalf of Palestinians.

            The FBI Washington Field Office investigated the case. The case was prosecuted by former Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Gold for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Sanjay Patel of the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section.

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WASHINGTON – Maurice Felder, 54, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced to 54 months in prison for charges related to stabbing a man who was visiting D.C. on November 10, 2024, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

           Felder was found guilty by a Superior Court jury on October 15th, on one count each of assault with significant bodily injury while armed, assault with a dangerous weapon, and possession of a prohibited weapon. On January 6, 2026, the Honorable Todd Edelman sentenced Felder to a combined total of 54 months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release.

           According to the government’s evidence, at about 1:00 a.m., on November 10, 2024, as the victim and his friends were walking near the intersection of 7th Street N.W. and T Street N.W. , while visiting Washington, D.C. for a weekend from Pennsylvania, Felder followed the group down the sidewalk and began arguing with them. The victim got in between Felder and other members of his friend group, telling the defendant to leave. The defendant then asked the victim, “do you want to die,” pulled out a knife and stabbed the victim in his chest, leaving him with a stab wound two centimeters from his heart, which required urgent medical care.

           Felder was arrested the same day, within a block from the location of incident, and has been in custody since his arrest.

           Joining in the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

           In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Pirro and Interim Chief Carroll commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also acknowledged the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Valerie Tsesarenko and Randle Wilson, who prosecuted the case. 

WASHINGTON – Kahlil G. Felder, 41, of the District of Columbia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 157 months in prison for operating a fentanyl distribution network based in the Washington Highlands neighborhood in Southeast, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Felder, aka “Kahlil Hewitt,” pleaded guilty on Feb. 25, 2025, to conspiracy to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. In his plea, Felder acknowledged that he distributed at least 1.2 kilos, but less than 4 kilos, of fentanyl.

            In addition to the 157-month prison term, Judge Carl J. Nichols ordered Felder to serve five years of supervised release.

            Joining U.S. Attorney Pirro in the announcement were HSI Special Agent in Charge Christopher Heck of Homeland Security Investigations - Washington Field Office, Inspector in Charge Damon E. Wood U.S. Postal Inspection Service Washington Division, and Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

"This was a high-volume dealer responsible for distributing a significant amount of poison from his base in Southeast Washington,’ said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “When he was arrested, agents discovered three kilos of fentanyl inside one suitcase at his apartment – enough to potentially amount to millions of lethal doses. Even 157 months is not enough to pay for the hurt and damage he caused to this city when he was dealing during the height of the opioid epidemic.” 

           Felder’s arrest came after a yearlong multiagency investigation that identified him as a leader of a narcotics distribution network operating at Oxon Run Park, located at 1200 Mississippi Avenue SE, and the 100 block of Yuma Street SE, both in the Washington Highlands neighborhood. Both areas – including one within 1,000 feet of the Paramount Child Development Prep School -- functioned as an open-air drug market with narcotics dealers serving walk-up clients.

            According to court documents, Felder sold fentanyl in “purple lady bags” branded with a female figure and the words “Heavy D,” which he also supplied to others for redistribution. The financial investigation identified over $1 million in suspected cash drug proceeds deposited by Felder between January 2021 and his arrest in December 2023.

            During a search of Felder’s residence on Dec. 13, 2023, law enforcement recovered two loaded semiautomatic pistols and more than three kilograms of suspected fentanyl, including fentanyl pre-packaged in thousands of baggies or “zips.” Investigators also found tools and materials for packaging fentanyl, including a scale, test kits, gloves, a respirator, a sifter, and a money counter.

            This case was investigated by the Homeland Security Investigations Washington Field Office, U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Washington Division, and MPD’s Violent Crime Suppression Division.

            It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrea Duvall of the Violent Crime and Narcotics Trafficking Section for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro gave remarks at a press conference on the success of President Trump’s federal surge to bringdown crime rates in the District.

            In her remarks, U.S. Attorney Pirro reflected on the remarkable progress her office made towards fighting crime in the nation’s capital. She thanked President Donald J. Trump for his unwavering commitment to law and order by implementing a surge in federal law enforcement resources, which bolstered our teams with additional agents, advanced tools and a no-nonsense mandate, and helped to create a renewed focus to crack down on violent offenders, dismantle criminal networks and restore safety to our streets. 

            “When President Trump assigned me to this Office in May of last year, we knew there was a lot of work to do in fighting crime here in D.C., said U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. “The crime rate here is one of the worst in the country and we needed to work swiftly and aggressively to turn things around for the better. Because of the President’s push and my Office’s intentional efforts, we have now seen a huge downturn in the crime statistics in just a short period of time. There is a lot of work to do but we are up to the task and making tremendous progress.”

           She re-iterated her Office’s tough stance on crime by highlighting key successes in 2025 resulting from President Trump’s Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful Initiative. In 2025, there were 8,406 arrests and 856 illegal guns taken off the streets. As a result of the surge starting in August, homicides are down 60%, robberies are down 49%, carjackings are down 68% and overall crime is down 32% compared to the same time in 2024.

            Going forward, U.S. Attorney Pirro explained that the safety of the residents of D.C. remains her office’s top priority, and they are taking major steps to combat crime. 

WASHINGTON – Jaelen Jordan, 20, and Warren Montgomery, 21, both of Washington, D.C., and Bryon Gillum, 20, Isaiah Flowers, 20, Jahkai Goff, 21, Taj Giles, 20, and Irshaad Ellis-Bey, 20, all of Prince George’s County, MD, were found guilty today in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on charges pertaining to three armed carjackings on February 27, 2023, April 27, 2023, and May 16, 2023, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            The jury deliberated for approximately four days before finding the defendants guilty of multiple charges including armed carjacking. 

            “Stop lusting over other people’s cars and keep your hands to yourself unless you want to spend the next 15 years eating cold sandwiches in a correctional facility with likeminded lusters,” said U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Specifically, the jury found Goff guilty of armed carjacking, armed robbery, and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle for his role in the February 27, 2023, armed carjacking.

            The jury found Flowers guilty of conspiracy to commit a crime of violence, trafficking in stolen property, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle during a crime of violence, receiving stolen property, two counts of armed carjacking, two counts of armed robbery, and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, for his role in the February 27, 2023, and May 16, 2023, armed carjackings.

            The jury found Ellis-Bey guilty of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle during a crime of violence, armed carjacking, armed robbery, and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle for his role in the February 27, 2023, armed carjacking.

            The jury found Montgomery guilty of conspiracy to commit a crime of violence, trafficking in stolen property, two counts of armed carjacking, two counts of armed robbery, two counts of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, and four counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence for his role in the April 27, 2023, and May 16, 2023, armed carjackings.

            The jury found Giles guilty of conspiracy to commit a crime of violence, trafficking in stolen property, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle during a crime of violence, receiving stolen property, two counts of armed carjacking, two counts of armed robbery, and two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence for his role in the February 27, 2023, and April 27, 2023, armed carjackings.

            The jury found Jordan guilty of conspiracy to commit a crime of violence, trafficking in stolen property, two counts of armed carjacking, two counts of armed robberies, four counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and three counts of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle for his role in the February 27, 2023, April 27, 2023, and May 16, 2023, armed carjackings.

            The jury found Gillum guilty of conspiracy to commit a crime of violence, trafficking in stolen property, two counts of armed carjacking, two counts of armed robberies, and two counts of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle for his role in the February 27, 2023, and April 27, 2023, armed carjackings.

            The jury also found that the May 16, 2023, carjacking was committed against a senior citizen.

            According to the government’s evidence, on February 27, 2023, Goff, Flowers, Ellis-Bey, Giles, and Gillum carjacked the victim at gunpoint in the Dupont Circle area. The defendants used a Dodge Charger, carjacked in Maryland the day before, to commit this carjacking. After the carjacking, the victim’s vehicle, a 2013 Porsche Cayenne was brought to an apartment building parking garage in the 1300 block of Florida Avenue NE. Jordan subsequently sold the victim’s Porsche from that parking garage on March 1, 2023.

            On April 27, 2023, Montgomery, Giles, Jordan, and Gillum carjacked another victim at gunpoint at the intersection of 8th and K Street NE. After the carjacking, the victim’s vehicle, a BMW X6, was brought back to the same apartment building parking garage in the 1300 block of Florida Avenue NE. Jordan subsequently sold the victim’s BMW to undercover police officers on April 27, 2023.

            Finally, on May 16, 2023, Flowers, Montgomery, and Jordan carjacked a senior citizen at gunpoint in his driveway in the 600 block of Butternut Street NW. After the carjacking, the victim’s vehicle, a Porsche Cayenne GTS, was brought back to the same apartment building parking garage in the 1300 block of Florida Avenue NE. Jordan subsequently offered to sell the victim’s Porsche to undercover police officers on May 17, 2023.

            Jordan was arrested on May 17, 2023, and the remaining defendants were arrested between October and December of 2023 as law enforcement identified them.

            In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Pirro commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), United States Marshals Service (USMS), and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). She also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Prince George’s County Police Department. She also acknowledged the work of Assistant United States Attorneys Gregory Evans and Emily Clarke who investigated and prosecuted the case.

            WASHINGTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia announced today that it has reached civil settlement agreements with four different non-profit organizations to resolve allegations that the organizations violated the False Claims Act when they applied for and received loans under the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”).

            Our Office has entered into settlement agreements with the following organizations to resolve allegations that they falsely certified eligibility for PPP loans.

            League of United Latin American Citizens (the “LULAC”) is a Section 501(c)(4) non-profit organization that bills itself as the largest Hispanic civil rights organization in the United States. In 2020, LULAC applied for and received a first draw PPP loan in the amount of $122,644 and later sought and received forgiveness of that loan. In 2021, LULAC applied for and received a second draw PPP loan in the amount of $41,710 and later sought and received forgiveness of that loan as well. LULAC has agreed to pay $312,272.60 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by obtaining two PPP loans for which it was not eligible.

            National Bureau of Asian Research (the “Bureau”) is a Section 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that described its mission as a “research institution” that “helps decision-makers better understand Asia and craft concrete, actionable policy” and referred to itself as “the nation’s Asia policy think tank.” In early 2021, the Bureau applied for a “second draw” PPP loan in the amount of $411,111 and subsequently applied for and received complete forgiveness of that loan. After an analysis of the Bureau’s ability to pay pursuant to a settlement, the Bureau agreed to pay $475,000, plus interest, to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by obtaining a PPP loan for which it was not eligible.

            National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems (“NCPERS”) is a Section 501(c)(4) non-profit trade association working on behalf of public sector retirement systems. In 2020, NCPERS applied for and received a first draw PPP loan in the amount of $143,412 and later sought and received forgiveness of that loan. In 2021, NCPERS applied for and received a second draw PPP loan in the amount of $118,052 and later sought and received forgiveness of that loan as well. NCPERS has agreed to pay $457,562 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by obtaining two PPP loans for which it was not eligible.

            Prosperity Now is a Section 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that describes its mission as seeking “policy change at all levels of Government” and engages in public policy research, advocacy, and lobbying. In early 2021, Prosperity Now applied for a “second draw” PPP loan in the amount of $1,532,800 and subsequently applied for and received complete forgiveness of that loan. After an analysis of Prosperity Now’s ability to pay pursuant to a settlement, Prosperity Now agreed to pay $2,081,523.15, plus interest, to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by obtaining a PPP loan for which it was not eligible.

            The forgoing organizations were allegedly not eligible for the identified PPP loans based on the statutes and regulations governing the loan program. In March 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES Act”) was created to provide emergency financial support to Americans suffering economic hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Through the PPP, the CARES Act authorized billions of dollars in potentially forgivable loans to small businesses and other entities struggling to pay employees and other business expenses during the pandemic, but the Act also contained important limitations on loan eligibility. For example, the CARES Act permitted certain nonprofit organizations to obtain PPP loans, but organizations organized under Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code were never eligible for such loans. Similarly, Congress prohibited from “second draw” PPP loans those entities primarily engaged in political or lobbying activities, including those entities organized for research or for engaging in public policy advocacy or political strategy or publicly referring to themselves as “think tanks.” The non-profit organizations that entered settlement agreements with our Office were alleged to have falsely certified their eligibility for the PPP loans.

            The civil settlements resulted from investigations by Assistant United States Attorney Sean M. Tepe and Auditor Timothy C. Hurley. The United States Attorney further wishes to commend attorneys Caitlin J. Kelly and Kandace Zelaya of the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of the General Counsel for their assistance in the investigations.  

            Tips and complaint regarding potential fraud affecting COVID-19 government relief programs can be reported by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at (866) 720-5721 or by submitting a NCDF Web Complaint form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

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

WASHINGTON – James Outland, 26, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced   today to 16 years in prison for gunning down a crowd of people in Washington DC, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Outland pleaded guilty to one count of murder in the second degree while armed in April 2025, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Judge Danya Dayson ordered Outland to serve the prison term on January 6, 2026. Co-defendant Bobby Gupton was previously sentenced to 15 years in prison for the same incident.

            According to the government’s evidence, on June 28, 2023, in the vicinity of 748 19th Street NE, Washington D.C., co-defendants Bobby Gupton and James Outland, along with two other individuals, ran, in unison, towards a crowd located at a nearby intersection and each began discharging their firearms into the crowd. After discharging their respective firearms, all shooters fled the scene together. An innocent bystander, Ms. Tavonayna Glenn, sustained one gunshot wound to the chest, causing her death. Outland was arrested almost one year after the homicide and was in possession of a rifle-like firearm with 47 rounds of ammunition at the time of his arrest.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Pirro commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the U.S. Marshals Service and the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Alyssa Schroeder, and Victim/Witness Advocate Jennifer Allen.

            Finally, she commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shauna Payyappilly and Daniel Seidel who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Brian J. Cole, Jr., 30, of Woodbridge, Virginia, was charged in a federal indictment returned today in U.S. District Court in the planting of two improvised explosive devices (IEDs) on January 5, 2021, at the headquarters of both the Republican National Committee and the Democratic National Committee in Washington D.C., announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            The federal indictment, which supersedes a prior federal indictment returned during the holidays by a D.C. Superior Court grand jury, charges Cole with interstate transportation of explosives and with malicious attempt to use explosives.

            Joining in the announcement were U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel, ATF Special Agent in Charge Anthony Spotswood of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Washington Field Office, FBI Assistant Director in Charge Darren B. Cox of the Washington Field Office, and Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            “Given that Cole crossed state lines and targeted the political leadership of both parties for which there is an inherent crime of federal jurisdiction, handling this in federal court is most proper,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “The FBI and my office worked around the clock to ensure that this defendant is charged with the right crimes for his dangerous acts.”

            On January 6, 2021, law enforcement discovered the IEDs near the DNC and RNC headquarters in Washington, D.C., both in close proximity to the U.S. Capitol. The same day Congress convened to certify the results of the 2020 election, and U.S. lawmakers were assembled nearby to carry out that constitutional duty.

            Neither device detonated, and the U.S. Capitol Police were able to carry out a “render safe procedure” on the IEDs without incident. 

           According to a complaint filed on Dec. 3, 2025, Cole purchased multiple components consistent with those used to manufacture the two IEDs during 2019 and 2020, at several retailers in northern Virginia.

            At approximately 1 p.m. on Jan. 6, 2021, multiple law enforcement agencies received reports of a suspected IEDs near the headquarters of the RNC in Washington, D.C. About 1:15 p.m. the same day, a second suspected IED was reported just a few blocks away near the headquarters of the DNC.

            Video surveillance determined that the same individual placed the devices on the evening of January 5, 2021. The suspect had been wearing dark pants, a grey hooded sweatshirt, dark gloves, Nike Air Max Speed Turf shoes, and a facemask that obscured the person’s face. The video showed the individual adjusting eyeglasses and carrying a backpack.

            On January 5, 2021, about 7:10 p.m., Cole’s Nissan Sentra was observed driving past a License Plate Reader at the South Capitol Street exit from I-395 South, which is less than one-half mile from the location where the individual who placed the devices was first observed on foot near North Carolina and New Jersey Avenues, SE.

            Cell phone records further show that Cole’s cell phone communicated with cell towers in the area of the RNC and DNC on January 5, 2021, between 7:39 p.m. and 8:24 p.m. The FBI’s Cellular Analysis and Survey Team determined that the location of Cole’s cell phone during this period corresponded with the path of the suspect identified by the FBI through analysis of video from that day.

            This investigation is being conducted by the FBI Washington Field Office, the U.S. Capitol Police, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Metropolitan Police Department, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

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WASHINGTON – Keyonte Johnson, 16, of Washington, D.C., was arrested yesterday and charged as an adult with premeditated first-degree murder while armed for shooting and killing 20-year-old D.C. resident Roy Bennett, Jr., on the evening of December 5, 2025, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. 

            Johnson made his initial court appearance in the District of Columbia before Superior Court Magistrate Judge Renee Raymond, who found probable cause that Johnson committed the offense of premeditated first-degree murder while armed and ordered that Johnson be held without bond pending trial.

            “This is yet another example of the out-of-control underage crime plaguing the district” said U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. “President Trump is right – it is time to put an end to this predictable violence and time to lower the age of accountability so that I can start prosecuting these young criminals before they commit murder.”

            According to court documents, on December 5, 2025, Johnson, the victim, and several other people were present in an apartment near Union Market in Northeast D.C. that was being used as a recording studio. As the victim was standing at the microphone, Johnson, who was seated behind him on a sofa, began shooting Bennett, striking him seven times, including twice in the back of the head and twice in the chest.  As Johnson fled the scene, he threatened to kill a potential witness if they said anything about the murder.

            During the execution of a Maryland search warrant where Johnson was arrested, investigators recovered five magazines, one fully loaded, a box of 10mm ammunition, several iron rifle sights, rifle ammunition, an empty red dot sight box and various clothing items consistent with what was worn by Johnson during the murder.

            This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rashmika Nedungadi.

            Johnson will next appear on January 14, 2026, at 9:30 a.m. in courtroom 203 before Judge Michael Ryan for a preliminary hearing.

            These charges are merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

WASHINGTON – Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, an Afghan national who resided in Bellingham, Washington, was charged today in a complaint in U.S. District Court with federal counts in connection with the ambush-style shooting on November 26 that killed National Guardsman Sarah Beckstrom and seriously injured National Guardsman Andrew Wolfe, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            “The transfer of this case from Superior Court to District Court ensures that we can undertake the serious, deliberate, and weighty analysis required to determine if the death penalty is appropriate here,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “Sarah Beckstrom was just 20 years old when she was killed and her parents are now forced to endure the holiday season without their daughter. Andrew Wolfe, by the grace of God, survived but has a long road ahead in his recovery.”

            Lakanwal was charged today with transporting a firearm in interstate commerce with the intent to commit an offense punishable by imprisonment for more than one year, and with transporting a stolen firearm in interstate commerce.

            Lakanwal remains charged with first-degree murder while armed, assault with intent to kill while armed, and two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, in violation of the D.C. Code.

            According to court documents, Lakanwal allegedly drove his Toyota Prius from Bellingham, Washington, to the District of Columbia, while in possession of a stolen firearm. On Wednesday, November 26, at about 2:13 p.m., Lakanwal opened fire without provocation at 17th and I Streets, NW, near the Farragut West Metro Station, shooting Beckstrom and Wolfe in the head. Two Majors in the National Guard who were nearby subdued the suspect.

            At the scene, investigators recovered a .357 Smith & Wesson revolver that had been reported stolen in Seattle, Washington, in 2023. 

           Ms. Beckstrom, 20, succumbed to her injuries on Thanksgiving, November 27. National Guardsman Andrew Wolfe, 24, was critically injured in the ambush.

            This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Metropolitan Police Department. The matter is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia

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WASHINGTON – Levancie Carr, 43, a three-time convicted felon from the District of Columbia, was sentenced today to eight years in prison in connection with his role in a large open-air narcotics market that operated in the Trinidad neighborhood of the city, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Carr, aka “Locs,” pleaded guilty on Sept. 11, 2025, before Chief Judge James E. Boasberg to a two-count Information charging him with distribution of fentanyl and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. In addition to the eight-year prison term, Chief Judge Boasberg ordered Carr to serve five years of supervised release.

            Carr is the last of eight defendants to be sentenced in the prosecution of the Trinidad drug market.

            According to court documents, in June 2023, federal and local law enforcement agencies launched an investigation into drug sales in the Trinidad neighborhood of Northeast Washington. Surveillance cameras captured images of men on the 1100 block of Raum Street, NE, conducting hand-to-hand transactions of suspected narcotics on an almost daily basis. Members of the group routinely discouraged others from the block by approaching vehicles that came into the area and asking the occupants why they were there.

            From June 2023 through March 2024, law enforcement made 42 controlled purchases of narcotics totaling more than 600 grams of fentanyl and 150 grams of crack cocaine.

            Carr conducted 18 of the sales which include 15 grams of cocaine base, 28 grams of fentanyl, and 18 grams of fentanyl analogue. On May 27, 2024, agents executed a search warrant at Carr’s apartment, and recovered 375 grams of cocaine, five firearms, and $115,621 in cash.

During the course of the conspiracy, the Trinidad organization sold approximately 468 kilos of fentanyl, fentanyl analogue, and cocaine base.

            The Trinidad trafficking investigation was a multi-agency effort between the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Washington Division, the Narcotics Enforcement Unit of the Violent Crime Suppression Division of the Metropolitan Police Department, and the FBI Washington Field Office’s Violent Crimes Task Force.

            The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nihar Mohanty and Daniel Seidel of the Violent Crime and Narcotics Trafficking Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.  24cr246

NAME

AGE

AKA

CHARGES

Davon Cunningham

36

Tank,

Kevin

Levancie Carr

43

Locs

Roosevelt Richardson

48

Rose

Dandre Goodwine

30

Dreads

Jalonie Hooper

26

JR

Jvares Amaray Wright

49

Jay

Edward Frizell Williams,Jr.

53

Pooh

Arnez Mack

22

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