Middle District of Florida

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven has sentenced Kenneth Minnick (43, Fort Myers) to 20 years in federal prison for receiving and possessing images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children. 

Minnick had pleaded guilty on December 12, 2018.

According to court documents, between September 16 and October 25, 2016, the FBI downloaded multiple child pornography files from an Internet Protocol address associated with Minnick’s residence. On December 9, 2016, the FBI and local law enforcement executed a search warrant on Minnick’s home and seized his computer and two flash drives. A forensic analysis of the devices revealed 253 images and 13 videos of child pornography. Some of the images and videos depicted infants, toddlers and pre-school age children engaging in sex acts.

"Together with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners, we are taking action to protect our children from sexual exploitation and abuse," said Eric Sporre, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Tampa Division. "I would like to thank all the investigators, attorneys and other professional staff who do this difficult but extremely important work."

This case was investigated by the FBI’s Innocent Images Task Force in Fort Myers, which includes the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, the Sarasota Police Department, the Cape Coral Police Department, and the Bradenton Police Department. The New York Police Department also assisted with this case. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Charlie D. Connally and Jennifer Peresie.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton, Jr. today sentenced Brian Burt, a/k/a “Sledge,” (47, Port Orange) to 11 years in federal prison for conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine.

Burt pleaded guilty on January 16, 2019.

According to court documents, in April 2017, the FBI, and later the DEA, began an investigation into the drug trafficking organizations (DTO) that had supplied motorcycle clubs, including the Pagans Motorcycle Club, operating in the Middle District of Florida with distribution amounts of methamphetamine. At the time, Burt was a member of the Pagans’ Mother Chapter, a group of 13 that directed the Pagans’ criminal activities throughout the United States and conspired with different DTOs to distribute methamphetamine in and around Daytona Beach.

To date, 19 individuals have been found guilty as a result of this joint investigation.

“This case exemplifies the cooperation among federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to dismantle dangerous criminal organizations that threaten the safety of our communities," said Rachel L. Rojas, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Jacksonville Division. "The FBI will continue to target the leadership of these organizations and bring them to justice for the harm caused by their criminal actions.”

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Volusia Bureau of Investigation, the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office, and the Daytona Beach Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sean P. Shecter.

WASHINGTON – One of the largest health care fraud schemes investigated by the FBI and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) and prosecuted by the Department of Justice resulted in charges against 24 defendants, including the CEOs, COOs and others associated with five telemedicine companies, the owners of dozens of durable medical equipment (DME) companies and three licensed medical professionals, for their alleged participation in health care fraud schemes involving more than $1.2 billion in loss, as well as the execution of over 80 search warrants in 17 federal districts.  In addition, the Center for Medicare Services, Center for Program Integrity (CMS/CPI) announced today that it took adverse administrative action against 130 DME companies that had submitted over $1.7 billion in claims and were paid over $900 million.

Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Sherri A. Lydon of the District of South Carolina, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito of the District of New Jersey, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez of the Middle District of Florida, Assistant Director Robert Johnson of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Gary Cantrell of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Chief Don Fort of the IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) and Deputy Administrator and Director of CPI Alec Alexander of the CMS/CPI made the announcement.

Today’s enforcement actions were led and coordinated by the Health Care Fraud Unit of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section in conjunction with its Medicare Fraud Strike Force (MFSF), as well as the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Districts of South Carolina, New Jersey and the Middle District of Florida.  The MFSF is a partnership among the Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney’s Offices, the FBI and HHS-OIG.  In addition, IRS-CI and other federal law enforcement agencies participated in the operation.

The charges announced today target an alleged scheme involving the payment of illegal kickbacks and bribes by DME companies in exchange for the referral of Medicare beneficiaries by medical professionals working with fraudulent telemedicine companies for back, shoulder, wrist and knee braces that are medically unnecessary.  Certain of the defendants allegedly controlled an international telemarketing network that lured over hundreds of thousands of elderly and/or disabled patients into a criminal scheme that crossed borders, involving call centers in the Philippines and throughout Latin America.  The defendants allegedly paid doctors to prescribe DME either without any patient interaction or with only a brief telephonic conversation with patients they had never met or seen.  The proceeds of the fraudulent scheme were allegedly laundered through international shell corporations and used to purchase exotic automobiles, yachts and luxury real estate in the United States and abroad.

“These defendants — who range from corporate executives to medical professionals — allegedly participated in an expansive and sophisticated fraud to exploit telemedicine technology meant for patients otherwise unable to access health care,” said Assistant Attorney General Benczkowski.  “This Department of Justice will not tolerate medical professionals and executives who look to line their pockets by cheating our health care programs.  I commend the Criminal Division prosecutors and our partners from U.S. Attorney’s Offices and law enforcement agencies across the country for their unrelenting efforts to stop this alleged fraud before more money was stolen from American taxpayers.”

“Simply put, the law applies equally to all in South Carolina,” said U.S. Attorney Sherri Lydon.  “The same spoon that serves indictments on drug dealers, felons in possession of firearms, and corrupt officials will also feed those companies and individuals who engage in Medicare fraud.  White collar crime is not victimless.  All taxpayers will endure the rising cost of health care premiums and out-of-pocket costs as a result of fraud on our Medicare system.  I am honored to stand with our partners at the FBI, HHS-OIG, and IRS-CI, who led this outstanding and nationally significant investigation from right here in South Carolina.”

“The indictments we are unsealing today charge the defendants with running a complex, multilayered scheme to defraud our Medicare system and avoid detection by government regulators,” said U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito.  “The defendants took advantage of unwitting patients who were simply trying to get relief from their health concerns.  Instead, the defendants preyed upon their weakened state and pushed millions of dollars’ worth of unnecessary medical devices, which Medicare paid for, and then set up an elaborate system for laundering their ill-gotten proceeds. We are proud to join our law enforcement partners in New Jersey and around the country to put a stop to this unscrupulous criminal activity.”

“Protecting the integrity of America’s health care programs is necessary to ensure that our citizens receive the care they have paid for and deserve,” said U.S. Attorney Chapa Lopez.  “The mammoth coordination and cooperation demonstrated among the various offices, districts, and agencies involved in this case leaves no doubt. We will leverage the full weight of our resources to combat fraud and abuse, wherever it is found.”

“Today, one of the largest health care fraud schemes in U.S. history came to an end thanks to close collaboration and coordination between the FBI and partners including HHS-OIG and IRS-CI,” said FBI Assistant Director Robert Johnson.  “Health care fraud causes billions of dollars in losses, it deprives real patients of the critical health care services they need, and it can endanger the lives of real patients so individuals like those arrested today can profit from their criminal activity.  Through today’s coordinated national effort, we put an end to this egregious and costly health care fraud scheme, and the public can rest assured the FBI will continue to make health care fraud investigations a top priority.”

“Our law enforcement officers are focused on preventing and uprooting health care fraud schemes like those alleged today,” said Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Gary Cantrell.  “These schemes divert money from taxpayer-funded federal health care programs into the hands of criminals.  Working closely with our law enforcement partners, our agency will continue to investigate and disrupt attempts to undermine Medicare and target beneficiaries.”

“The breadth of this nationwide conspiracy should be frightening to all who rely on some form of healthcare,” said IRS-CI Chief Don Fort.  “The conspiracy described in this indictment was not perpetrated by one individual.  Rather, it details broad corruption, massive amounts of greed, and systemic flaws in our healthcare system that were exploited by the defendants.  We all suffer when schemes like this go undiscovered and I’m proud of the work our agents did in working with our partners to uncover this complex scheme.”

“The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Center for Program Integrity (CPI) is proud to work very closely everyday with our law enforcement partners to stop exploitation of vulnerable patients and misuse of taxpayer dollars,” said Deputy Administrator and CPI Director Alec Alexander.  “In this case CMS has taken swift administrative action and has suspended payments to 130 distinct providers thereby likely preventing billions of additional dollars in losses.  CMS remains committed to protecting the millions of beneficiaries we are honored to serve and to preventing fraud of all sorts in the Medicare and Medicaid programs.”

According to allegations in court documents, some of the defendants obtained patients for the scheme by using an international call center that advertised to Medicare beneficiaries and “up-sold” the beneficiaries to get them to accept numerous “free or low-cost” DME braces, regardless of medical necessity.  The international call center allegedly paid illegal kickbacks and bribes to telemedicine companies to obtain DME orders for these Medicare beneficiaries.  The telemedicine companies then allegedly paid physicians to write medically unnecessary DME orders.  Finally, the international call center sold the DME orders that it obtained from the telemedicine companies to DME companies, which fraudulently billed Medicare.  Collectively, the CEOs, COOs, executives, business owners and medical professionals involved in the conspiracy are accused of causing over $1 billion in loss.

The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force.  Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 14 strike forces operating in 23 districts, has charged nearly 4,000 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $14 billion.  In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

Amongst those charged by Strike Force attorneys include:

In the District of New Jersey, charges were brought against Creaghan Harry, 51, of Highland Beach, Florida; Lester Stockett, 51, of Deefield Beach, Florida; and Elliot Loewenstern, 56, of Boca Raton, Florida; the owner, CEO and VP of marketing, respectively, of purported call centers and telemedicine companies, for their alleged participation in a $454 million illegal health care kickback and international money laundering scheme related to the solicitation of illegal kickbacks and bribes in exchange for the referral of DME orders to DME providers.  In addition, Joseph DeCoroso, M.D., 62, of Toms River, New Jersey, was charged in a $13 million conspiracy to commit health care fraud and separate charges of health care fraud for writing medically unnecessary orders for DME, in many instances without ever speaking to the patients, while working for two telemedicine companies.  The cases are being prosecuted by Fraud Section Acting Assistant Chief Jacob Foster and Trial Attorney Darren Halverson.

In the Middle District of Florida, charges were brought against Willie McNeal, 42, of Spring Hill, Florida, the owner and CEO of two purported telemedicine companies, for his alleged participation in a $250 million scheme related to the solicitation of illegal kickbacks and bribes in exchange for the referral of DME orders to DME providers.  The case is being prosecuted by Fraud Section Acting Assistant Chief Jacob Foster and Trial Attorneys John Michelich, Catherine Wagner and Sara Clingan.

In the Northern District of Texas, charges were brought against Leah Hagen, 48, and Michael Hagen, 51, of Dalworthington Gardens, Texas, owners and operators of two DME companies, for their alleged participation in a $17 million illegal health care kickback scheme related to the payment of kickbacks in exchange for the referral of medically unnecessary DME orders.  The case is being prosecuted by Fraud Section Trial Attorneys Brynn Schiess and Carlos Lopez.

In the Western District of Texas, Christopher O’Hara, 54, of Kingsbury, Texas, the owner of a purported telemedicine company, was charged in an $40 million scheme related to the alleged solicitation of illegal kickbacks and bribes in exchange for the referral of DME orders to DME providers.  The case is being prosecuted by Fraud Section Trial Attorney Kevin Lowell.

In the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Randy Swackhammer, M.D., 60, of Goldsboro, North Carolina, was charged for an alleged $5 million conspiracy to commit health care fraud that involved writing medically unnecessary orders for DME while working for a telemedicine company, in many instances with only a brief telephonic conversation with the patients.  The case is being prosecuted by Fraud Section Trial Attorney Adam Yoffie.

In the Central District of California, charges were brought against Darin Flashberg, 41, of Glendora, California, and Najib Jabbour, 47, of Glendora, California, owners of seven DME companies, for their alleged participation in a $34 million scheme related to their payment of kickbacks and bribes in exchange for medically unnecessary DME orders.  The case is being prosecuted by Fraud Section Trial Attorney Robyn Pullio.

In addition to the Strike Force prosecutions, other enforcement actions were taken, including the execution of search warrants to support related investigative efforts in seven additional U.S. Attorney’s Offices to include in various investigations conducted by the District of New Jersey, District of South Carolina, Southern District of California, District of Nebraska, Middle District of Florida, Eastern District of Missouri and Western District of Washington.

In the District of South Carolina, charges were brought against Andrew Chmiel, 43, of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, owner of over a dozen companies involved in the scheme, for his alleged participation in a $200 million scheme related to the payment of kickbacks and bribes in exchange for medically unnecessary DME orders.  The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jim May and Will Lewis of the District of South Carolina.

In the District of New Jersey, charges were brought against Neal Williamsky 59, of Marlboro, New Jersey, and Nadia Levit, 39, of Englishtown, New Jersey, owners of approximately 25 DME companies, for their alleged participation in a $150 million scheme related to the payment of kickbacks and bribes in exchange for medically unnecessary DME orders.  Albert Davydov, 26, of Rego Park, New York, was also charged for his alleged participation in a $35 million scheme related to the payment of kickbacks and bribes in exchange for medically unnecessary DME orders.  The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian Urbano and Stephen Ferketic of the District of New Jersey.

In the Middle District of Florida, search and seizure warrants are being executed at 20 different business locations, including numerous DME companies and a fraudulent telemarketing company. The search and seizures are being executed by over 100 law enforcement officers from six federal agencies, including HHS-OIG, FBI, IRS-CI, VA-OIG, SSA-OIG, and USPS-OIG.  In addition to the 20 search warrants, millions of dollars and other assets tied to the conspiracy are being seized and/or frozen, including through a civil injunction naming 13 defendants as authorized under 18 U.S.C. § 1345.

The cases announced today are being prosecuted and investigated by U.S. Attorney’s Offices nationwide, along with MFSF teams from the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and from the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the District of New Jersey, District of South Carolina, Southern District of California, District of Nebraska, Middle District of Florida, Eastern District of Missouri and Western District of Washington; and agents from the FBI, HHS-OIG, IRS-CI and other federal law enforcement agencies.

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

Any doctors or medical professionals who have been involved with alleged fraudulent telemedicine and DME marketing schemes – including Video Doctor USA, AffordADoc, Web Doctors Plus, Integrated Support Plus and First Care MD – should call to report this conduct to the FBI hotline at 1-800-CALL-FBI.

Additional documents related to this announcement will shortly be available here: https://www.justice.gov/opa/documents-and-resources-april-9-2019-press-release-health-care-fraud.

One of the largest health care fraud schemes investigated by the FBI and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) and prosecuted by the Department of Justice resulted in charges against 24 defendants, including the CEOs, COOs and others associated with five telemedicine companies, the owners of dozens of durable medical equipment (DME) companies and three licensed medical professionals, for their alleged participation in health care fraud schemes involving more than $1.2 billion in loss, as well as the execution of over 80 search warrants in 17 federal districts.  In addition, the Center for Medicare Services, Center for Program Integrity (CMS/CPI) announced today that it took adverse administrative action against 130 DME companies that had submitted over $1.7 billion in claims and were paid over $900 million.

Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Sherri A. Lydon of the District of South Carolina, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito of the District of New Jersey, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez of the Middle District of Florida, Assistant Director Robert Johnson of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Gary Cantrell of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Chief Don Fort of the IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) and Deputy Administrator and Director of CPI Alec Alexander of the CMS/CPI made the announcement.

Today’s enforcement actions were led and coordinated by the Health Care Fraud Unit of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section in conjunction with its Medicare Fraud Strike Force (MFSF), as well as the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Districts of South Carolina, New Jersey and the Middle District of Florida.  The MFSF is a partnership among the Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney’s Offices, the FBI and HHS-OIG.  In addition, IRS-CI and other federal law enforcement agencies participated in the operation.

The charges announced today target an alleged scheme involving the payment of illegal kickbacks and bribes by DME companies in exchange for the referral of Medicare beneficiaries by medical professionals working with fraudulent telemedicine companies for back, shoulder, wrist and knee braces that are medically unnecessary.  Some of the defendants allegedly controlled an international telemarketing network that lured over hundreds of thousands of elderly and/or disabled patients into a criminal scheme that crossed borders, involving call centers in the Philippines and throughout Latin America.  The defendants allegedly paid doctors to prescribe DME either without any patient interaction or with only a brief telephonic conversation with patients they had never met or seen.  The proceeds of the fraudulent scheme were allegedly laundered through international shell corporations and used to purchase exotic automobiles, yachts and luxury real estate in the United States and abroad.

“These defendants — who range from corporate executives to medical professionals — allegedly participated in an expansive and sophisticated fraud to exploit telemedicine technology meant for patients otherwise unable to access health care,” said Assistant Attorney General Benczkowski.  “This Department of Justice will not tolerate medical professionals and executives who look to line their pockets by cheating our health care programs.  I commend the Criminal Division prosecutors and our partners from U.S. Attorney’s Offices and law enforcement agencies across the country for their unrelenting efforts to stop this alleged fraud before more money was stolen from American taxpayers.”

“Simply put, the law applies equally to all in South Carolina,” said U.S. Attorney Sherri Lydon.  “The same spoon that serves indictments on drug dealers, felons in possession of firearms, and corrupt officials will also feed those companies and individuals who engage in Medicare fraud.  White collar crime is not victimless.  All taxpayers will endure the rising cost of health care premiums and out-of-pocket costs as a result of fraud on our Medicare system.  I am honored to stand with our partners at the FBI, HHS-OIG, and IRS-CI, who led this outstanding and nationally significant investigation from right here in South Carolina.”

“The indictments we are unsealing today charge the defendants with running a complex, multilayered scheme to defraud our Medicare system and avoid detection by government regulators,” said U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito.  “The defendants took advantage of unwitting patients who were simply trying to get relief from their health concerns.  Instead, the defendants preyed upon their weakened state and pushed millions of dollars’ worth of unnecessary medical devices, which Medicare paid for, and then set up an elaborate system for laundering their ill-gotten proceeds. We are proud to join our law enforcement partners in New Jersey and around the country to put a stop to this unscrupulous criminal activity.”

“Protecting the integrity of America’s health care programs is necessary to ensure that our citizens receive the care they have paid for and deserve,” said U.S. Attorney Chapa Lopez.  “The mammoth coordination and cooperation demonstrated among the various offices, districts, and agencies involved in this case leaves no doubt. We will leverage the full weight of our resources to combat fraud and abuse, wherever it is found.”

“Today, one of the largest health care fraud schemes in U.S. history came to an end thanks to close collaboration and coordination between the FBI and partners including HHS-OIG and IRS-CI,” said FBI Assistant Director Robert Johnson.  “Health care fraud causes billions of dollars in losses, it deprives real patients of the critical health care services they need, and it can endanger the lives of real patients so individuals like those arrested today can profit from their criminal activity.  Through today’s coordinated national effort, we put an end to this egregious and costly health care fraud scheme, and the public can rest assured the FBI will continue to make health care fraud investigations a top priority.”

“Our law enforcement officers are focused on preventing and uprooting health care fraud schemes like those alleged today,” said Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Gary Cantrell.  “These schemes divert money from taxpayer-funded federal health care programs into the hands of criminals.  Working closely with our law enforcement partners, our agency will continue to investigate and disrupt attempts to undermine Medicare and target beneficiaries.”

“The breadth of this nationwide conspiracy should be frightening to all who rely on some form of healthcare,” said IRS-CI Chief Don Fort.  “The conspiracy described in this indictment was not perpetrated by one individual.  Rather, it details broad corruption, massive amounts of greed, and systemic flaws in our healthcare system that were exploited by the defendants.  We all suffer when schemes like this go undiscovered and I’m proud of the work our agents did in working with our partners to uncover this complex scheme.”

“The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Center for Program Integrity (CPI) is proud to work very closely everyday with our law enforcement partners to stop exploitation of vulnerable patients and misuse of taxpayer dollars,” said Deputy Administrator and CPI Director Alec Alexander.  “In this case CMS has taken swift administrative action and has suspended payments to 130 distinct providers thereby likely preventing billions of additional dollars in losses.  CMS remains committed to protecting the millions of beneficiaries we are honored to serve and to preventing fraud of all sorts in the Medicare and Medicaid programs.”

According to allegations in court documents, some of the defendants obtained patients for the scheme by using an international call center that advertised to Medicare beneficiaries and “up-sold” the beneficiaries to get them to accept numerous “free or low-cost” DME braces, regardless of medical necessity.  The international call center allegedly paid illegal kickbacks and bribes to telemedicine companies to obtain DME orders for these Medicare beneficiaries.  The telemedicine companies then allegedly paid physicians to write medically unnecessary DME orders.  Finally, the international call center sold the DME orders that it obtained from the telemedicine companies to DME companies, which fraudulently billed Medicare.  Collectively, the CEOs, COOs, executives, business owners and medical professionals involved in the conspiracy are accused of causing over $1 billion in loss.

The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force.  Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 14 strike forces operating in 23 districts, has charged nearly 4,000 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $14 billion.  In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

*********

Amongst those charged by Strike Force attorneys include:

In the District of New Jersey, charges were brought against Creaghan Harry, 51, of Highland Beach, Florida; Lester Stockett, 51, of Deefield Beach, Florida; and Elliot Loewenstern, 56, of Boca Raton, Florida; the owner, CEO and VP of marketing, respectively, of purported call centers and telemedicine companies, for their alleged participation in a $424 million illegal health care kickback and international money laundering scheme related to the solicitation of illegal kickbacks and bribes in exchange for the referral of DME orders to DME providers.  In addition, Joseph DeCorso, M.D., 62, of Toms River, New Jersey, was charged in a $13 million conspiracy to commit health care fraud and separate charges of health care fraud for writing medically unnecessary orders for DME, in many instances without ever speaking to the patients, while working for two telemedicine companies.  The cases are being prosecuted by Fraud Section Acting Assistant Chief Jacob Foster and Trial Attorney Darren Halverson.

In the Middle District of Florida, charges were brought against Willie McNeal, 42, of Spring Hill, Florida, the owner and CEO of two purported telemedicine companies, for his alleged participation in a $250 million scheme related to the solicitation of illegal kickbacks and bribes in exchange for the referral of DME orders to DME providers.  The case is being prosecuted by Fraud Section Acting Assistant Chief Jacob Foster and Trial Attorneys John Michelich, Catherine Wagner and Sara Clingan.

In the Northern District of Texas, charges were brought against Leah Hagen, 48, and Michael Hagen, 51, of Dalworthington Gardens, Texas, owners and operators of two DME companies, for their alleged participation in a $17 million illegal health care kickback scheme related to the payment of kickbacks in exchange for the referral of medically unnecessary DME orders.  The case is being prosecuted by Fraud Section Trial Attorneys Brynn Schiess and Carlos Lopez.

In the Western District of Texas, Christopher O’Hara, 54, of Kingsbury, Texas, the owner of a purported telemedicine company, was charged in an $40 million scheme related to the alleged solicitation of illegal kickbacks and bribes in exchange for the referral of DME orders to DME providers.  The case is being prosecuted by Fraud Section Trial Attorney Kevin Lowell.

In the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Randy Swackhammer, M.D., 60, of Goldsboro, North Carolina, was charged for an alleged $5 million conspiracy to commit health care fraud that involved writing medically unnecessary orders for DME while working for a telemedicine company, in many instances with only a brief telephonic conversation with the patients.  The case is being prosecuted by Fraud Section Trial Attorney Adam Yoffie.

In the Central District of California, charges were brought against Darin Flashberg, 41, of Glendora, California, and Najib Jabbour, 47, of Glendora, California, owners of seven DME companies, for their alleged participation in a $34 million scheme related to their payment of kickbacks and bribes in exchange for medically unnecessary DME orders.  The case is being prosecuted by Fraud Section Trial Attorney Robyn Pullio.

*********

In addition to the Strike Force prosecutions, other enforcement actions were taken, including the execution of search warrants to support related investigative efforts in seven additional U.S. Attorney’s Offices to include in various investigations conducted by the District of New Jersey, District of South Carolina, Southern District of California, District of Nebraska, Middle District of Florida, Eastern District of Missouri and Western District of Washington.
 

In the District of South Carolina, charges were brought against Andrew Chmiel, 43, of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, owner of over a dozen companies involved in the scheme, for his alleged participation in a $200 million scheme related to the payment of kickbacks and bribes in exchange for medically unnecessary DME orders.  The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jim May and Will Lewis of the District of South Carolina.

In the District of New Jersey, charges were brought against Neal Williamsky 59, of Marlboro, New Jersey, and Nadia Levit, 39, of Englishtown, New Jersey, owners of approximately 25 DME companies, for their alleged participation in a $150 million scheme related to the payment of kickbacks and bribes in exchange for medically unnecessary DME orders.  Albert Davydov, 26, of Rego Park, New York, was also charged for his alleged participation in a $35 million scheme related to the payment of kickbacks and bribes in exchange for medically unnecessary DME orders.  The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian Urbano and Stephen Ferketic of the District of New Jersey.

In the Middle District of Florida, search and seizure warrants are being executed at 20 different business locations, including numerous DME companies and a fraudulent telemarketing company. The search and seizures are being executed by over 100 law-enforcement officers from six federal agencies, including HHS-OIG, FBI, IRS-CI, VA-OIG, SSA-OIG, and USPS-OIG.  In addition to the 20 search warrants, millions of dollars and other assets tied to the conspiracy are being seized and/or frozen, including through a civil injunction naming 13 defendants as authorized under 18 U.S.C. § 1345.

The cases announced today are being prosecuted and investigated by U.S. Attorney’s Offices nationwide, along with MFSF teams from the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and from the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the District of New Jersey, District of South Carolina, Southern District of California, District of Nebraska, Middle District of Florida, Eastern District of Missouri and Western District of Washington; and agents from the FBI, HHS-OIG, IRS-CI and other federal law enforcement agencies.

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

Any doctors or medical professionals who have been involved with alleged fraudulent telemedicine and DME marketing schemes – including Video Doctor USA, AffordADoc, Web Doctors Plus, Integrated Support Plus and First Care MD – should call to report this conduct to the FBI hotline at 1-800-CALL-FBI.

Additional documents related to this announcement will shortly be available here: https://www.justice.gov/opa/documents-and-resources-april-9-2019-press-release-health-care-fraud.

Jacksonville, Florida – Christopher Shawn Potter (50, Jacksonville) has pleaded guilty to distributing a video over the internet that depicts a young child being sexually abused. Potter faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 5 years, and up to 20 years, in federal prison, and a potential life-term of supervised release. He has been detained since his arrest on September 20, 2018.

Potter worked as a teacher at Clay High School in Green Cove Springs from 2016 - 2017, and was a teacher at Orange Park High School from 1997 - 2004. 

According to court documents, in February 2018, Potter, utilizing the user name “Catsfan1987,” responded to a notice posted online by an undercover officer with the Orange Park Police Department who was posing as a 14-year-old child. Potter engaged in online conversations with the undercover officer during which Potter requested photos of the “child” and discussed meeting the “child” for sex. Potter sent the undercover officer a video clip depicting a young child being sexually abused and a video of Potter performing a sexual act. 

On September 20, 2018, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Potter’s home and seized several computer devices and smartphones. During an interview, Potter admitted sending the video and stated that he fantasizes about sexual acts with young girls. One of Potter’s smartphones contained 21 videos depicting child pornography.     

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Orange Park Police Department, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, and the Palatka Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge William F. Jung has sentenced William Beach (40, Tampa) to eight years and three months in federal prison for tampering with a federal witness.

Beach was found guilty following a jury trial on December 17, 2018.

According to court documents and trial testimony, Beach threatened to shoot a key federal witness in a case (United States v. Corey Damond Smith, Jr., involving a death caused by a fentanyl overdose), if that witness continued to cooperate with the investigation and prosecution of the defendant. Law enforcement immediately intervened to protect the safety of the federal witness.

This case was investigated by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Thomas N. Palermo. It is part of the Middle District of Florida’s anti-opioid strategy to combat opioid trafficking and abuse.   

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces that a federal jury has found Ashanti Roundtree (44, North Port) guilty of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and heroin, possessing a firearm in the furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, and possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Roundtree faces a maximum penalty of life and a mandatory minimum of 20 years in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 11, 2019.

Roundtree was indicted on November 21, 2017.

According to testimony presented at trial, from about October 2014 through on or about February 26, 2015, Roundtree directed the illegal narcotics distribution activities at a “trap house” located at 200 Granada Boulevard, in North Port, Florida. Roundtree supplied drugs to the residents of the house, then sold the drugs on Roundtree’s behalf, purchased the drugs for their own use, or used them with the promise of paying Roundtree later. Along with supplying the residents with heroin, cocaine, synthetic marijuana (spice), marijuana, and a variety of prescription pills, Roundtree supervised the sale of the drugs, including setting the prices and the hours of sale. He also collected the proceeds from the various drug transactions and participated in drug transactions, by either selling drugs directly to customers or giving drugs in exchange for sexual favors.

During the illegal activities, Roundtree used violence, fear, and intimidation to maintain his position as leader of the conspiracy. While at the trap house, he commonly carried a Taurus firearm for protection. Additionally, co-conspirators and other witnesses saw Roundtree pistol-whip someone with the gun and point it at persons. As a previously convicted felon, Roundtree is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law.

On February 26, 2015, law enforcement executed a search warrant at the trap house and recovered a loaded Taurus firearm. Forensic testing confirmed Roundtree’s DNA on the firearm and ammunition magazine. Agents also recovered an assortment of controlled substances, including heroin, marijuana, cocaine, prescription pills, and drug paraphernalia.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office, and the North Port Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michael C. Baggé-Hernández and Kaitlin R. O’Donnell.

Ocala, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces the return of an indictment charging Brian Alan Jones (36, Lady Lake) with producing child pornography. If convicted, Jones faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 15 years, and up to 30 years, in federal prison.     

According to court documents, Jones produced sexually explicit images of a minor. Jones took photographs of the victim’s genitalia on his cellphone and sent them to an undercover officer who was posing as a pedophile.

An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has violated one or more of the federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael P. Felicetta.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Jacksonville, Florida – Marc Lionel Lewis (51, Jacksonville) has pleaded guilty to a federal charge that he distributed images depicting the sexual abuse of children over the internet. Lewis faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 5 years, and up to 20 years, in federal prison, and a potential life term of supervised release. He must also register as a sex offender. A sentencing date has not been set.

According to court documents, agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) began an investigation to identify individuals who were using a particular file-sharing network to access and distribute child pornography over the internet. Agents confirmed that a host computer located in Jacksonville, Florida was offering files depicting child pornography for sharing over the internet, and were able to download images of young children being sexually abused from this host computer. Further investigation revealed that these files were being shared over the internet, by Lewis, at his Jacksonville residence.      

On July 17, 2017, HSI agents executed a federal search warrant at Lewis’s residence and seized several computer devices. Forensic analysis of the computer media revealed approximately 37 images of child pornography and 142 images of child erotica. Lewis had attempted to delete these files using anti-forensic software, but the contraband images, as well as evidence of the file sharing program, remained and were recovered. By accessing and downloading child pornography through the file-sharing program, Lewis knowingly made it available for sharing and distribution to other users over the internet.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard today sentenced Pedro Sanchez (35, Plant City) to five years in federal prison for arson.  The court also ordered Sanchez to pay $15,000 in restitution.

Sanchez was found guilty on January 3, 2019, following a bench trial.

According to court documents, on January 10, 2018, Sanchez set fire to a house located at 8579 Lamanto Avenue North in Jacksonville. The house belonged to his employer, and the employer had assigned Sanchez to renovate the house and prepare it for sale. Eyewitnesses observed Sanchez walking away from the house after it had erupted into flames. Sanchez later admitted to law enforcement that he had set the house on fire.

This case was investigated by the Florida Bureau of Fire, Arson, and Explosives Investigations, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ashley Washington and Frank Talbot.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide, crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities. It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety — one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Virginia Hernandez Covington has sentenced Nishitkumar Patel (31, Tampa) to eight years and nine months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, relating to his participation in an India-based call center scam. As part of his sentence, the court also entered a money judgment of $200,000, and ordered Patel to forfeit cash and a 2015 Land Rover that was seized in October 2018.

Patel pleaded guilty on January 9, 2019.

According to court documents, from 2014 through at least 2016, Patel conspired with U.S.-based coconspirators and India-based call centers to extort money from U.S. residents by impersonating IRS officers and misleading victims to believe that they owed money to the IRS and would be arrested and fined if they did not pay their alleged back taxes immediately. The conspirators collected the fraud proceeds by (1) withdrawing cash from prepaid cards purchased and funded by victims; (2) hiring other conspirators (runners) to retrieve money wired by the victims to those runners; and/or (3) hiring runners to open bank accounts into which victims deposited fraud proceeds. The defendants collected the proceeds by providing the runners with the victims’ names, locations, and amounts paid. The runners were directed to retrieve the fraud proceeds in cash and turn the funds over to the defendants, often less a payment to the runner for opening the account or conducting the transaction.

Four others previously pleaded guilty for their roles in the scheme. On March 25, 2019, Alejandro Juarez was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison. Hemalkumar Shah, Sharvil Patel, and Brenda Dozier are currently awaiting sentencing.

“As a proud IRS Special Agent of 20 years, this fraud infuriates me,” stated Special Agent in Charge Mary Hammond of IRS Criminal Investigations Tampa Field Office. “We here at IRS CI recognize the heartache and concern these crooks cause innocent people. This is why we are eager to team up with our law enforcement partners to track down these impersonators in whatever corner of the globe they may be hiding in.”

“This terrible scam took advantage of people who wanted to comply with what they thought were proper authorities,” said FDLE’s Tampa Special Agent in Charge Mark Brutnell. “Thank goodness, investigators from several agencies were able to put an end to it and those responsible will no longer be able to mislead innocent people.”

“Over the last several years, American taxpayers have been subjected to unprecedented attempts to fraudulently obtain money by individuals impersonating Internal Revenue Service employees,” said J. Russell George, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. “Victimizing taxpayers by impersonating IRS employees is a serious crime,” George continued. “TIGTA and our law enforcement partners will continue working to ensure that those involved in the impersonation of IRS employees are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. This significant sentencing should serve notice to those who engage in this type of criminal activity that they will be held accountable.”

This case was investigated by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Tampa Police Department, and the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rachel K. Jones.

Orlando, Florida – United States District Judge Paul G. Byron has sentenced Vincenzo (Vincent) G. Savarese (36, Melbourne) to 15 years in federal prison, for accessing with the intent to view child pornography and for violating the terms of his supervised release. The court also ordered Savarese to serve a lifetime of supervision following his release from prison.

Savarese pleaded guilty on October 5, 2018.

According to court documents, in 2009, Savarese was convicted in the United States District Court in Utah of possession of child pornography. Savarese was sentenced to 6 years and 6 months in federal prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release. On June 9, 2015, Savarese completed his prison term and returned to Brevard County, Florida, where he began his supervised release.   

On May 24, 2018, while on supervised release, Savarese accessed and attempted to access child pornography with the intent to view it, using a computer at a job placement business that was open to the public. Savarese stated that he had gone to the business several times a week and used the computers there to search for child pornography. Law enforcement officers searched the computer used by Savarese and located more than 85 searches for child pornography and 4 images depicting child pornography.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Karen L. Gable.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Tampa, Florida – Howard Joseph Vorder Bruegge, III (36, Tampa) pleaded guilty today to possessing and distributing child pornography. Vorder Bruegge, a former mathematics professor at Hillsborough Community College (HCC), faces a minimum mandatory penalty of five years, and up to 40 years, in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to the plea agreement, Vorder Bruegge, using the internet monikers “JoeBlow73” and “JoeBlowFL,” distributed child pornography on multiple occasions. He also collected child pornography on his cellphone, including sex-abuse videos of babies and toddlers.

Vorder Bruegge also used his phone to film and publically share voyeur videos on the internet. He employed peepholes in bathrooms on the HCC campus to film college students while they were in restroom stalls. He then distributed those videos on websites that host voyeur content. Vorder Bruegge’s phone contained at least four videos capturing adult males through peepholes in public HCC restrooms.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s  Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Murray.

This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge James D. Whittemore has sentenced Nicholas Whitetto (39, Quincy) to 42 months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit access device fraud. As part of his sentence, the court also entered a money judgment of $65,000, the proceeds of the credit card fraud.

Whitetto pleaded guilty on January 11, 2019.

According to court documents, Whitetto and others devised a scheme wherein they called a credit card company (referred to in court documents as the Banking Institution) and provided the personal identifying information of actual credit card account holders. Whitetto or another coconspirator then requested to be added as an authorized user on the credit card accounts and directed that the new authorized user’s credit cards be mailed to addresses controlled by the conspirators. The conspirators utilized this plan to fraudulently obtain at least 50 unauthorized credit cards.

Once they received the fraudulently-obtained credit cards in the mail, the conspirators went to various banks and made cash advance withdrawals. The conspirators also used the fraudulently-obtained cards to make unauthorized purchases. The Banking Institution suffered a loss exceeding $100,000.

On January 11, 2019, co-conspirator Frank Tillman pleaded guilty to his role in the scam. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 8, 2019.

This case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rachel K. Jones.

Orlando, Florida – United States District Judge Carlos E. Mendoza has  sentenced Keneon Fitzroy Isaac (45, Cocoa) to 80 years in federal prison for production and possession of child pornography. The court also ordered Isaac to forfeit the smart phones that he used to commit the offenses.

Isaac was found guilty on January 4, 2019.

According to court documents, Isaac sexually abused a homeless, 13-year-old child on at least two occasions, and recorded the abuse using his smart phone. Isaac met the victim at a gas station, where she was panhandling with her mother. During the next two months, Isaac gained the family’s trust by providing basic necessities for the family including food, clothing, and shelter. Isaac also obtained 213 images of child pornography from the internet, some of which depicted the sexual abuse and exploitation of infants, toddlers and prepubescent children.

“This criminal abused the trust of a family under the worst of circumstances,” said HSI Tampa Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero. “While this predator has essentially received a life sentence, we hope it can provide some closure for the young victim during the healing process.”

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, and the Cocoa Beach Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Karen L. Gable.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Orlando, Florida– United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces that Charles S. Leis (48, Tampa) has pleaded guilty to attempted enticement of minors to engage in sexual activity and possession of child pornography. Leis faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years, and up to life, in federal prison for the attempted enticement count and up to 10 years in federal prison for the possession offense. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to the plea agreement, on October 24, 2018, an FBI special agent in Orange County, Florida initiated an undercover investigation within an online chat group that alluded to “family fun.” Leis joined the chat group and initiated conversations with the undercover agent, who identified himself as the father of two girls, ages 9 and 11. During the span of several days, Leis solicited sex, including oral, vaginal, and anal sex, from the minors. In that process, Leis distributed images of child pornography to the “father” in an effort to prove that he was “real” about his intent to engage the “girls” in sexual activity. Leis made plans to meet the “girls” in Tampa on November 2, 2018. However, on that date, the agent could not find Leis at the agreed upon location.

Further investigation revealed that around the same time (October 2018), Leis had been in contact with another FBI agent through another chat group. That undercover agent was acting as the father of 6 and 7-year-old girls. Leis also distributed child pornography to that agent and requested to have sexual intercourse with his “children.” 

On November 29, 2018, FBI agents executed a search warrant at Leis’s residence in Tampa and seized his computer. The computer had depictions of girls between 3 and 10 years of age engaged in sexually explicit conduct.  

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ilianys Rivera Miranda and Francis D. Murray.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Corrigan today sentenced Daniel Francesco Vidal (29, Jacksonville) to 10 years in federal prison for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The court also ordered Vidal to forfeit the Walther PPK pistol that he had possessed.

Vidal pleaded guilty on August 6, 2018.

According to court documents and information presented at sentencing, on March 12, 2017, Vidal was driving a car on Interstate 95, in Jacksonville, when a Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (“JSO”) patrol officer determined there was probable cause to believe that the car had been stolen. Three JSO patrol officers attempted a traffic stop of Vidal’s vehicle, but Vidal failed to comply. Ultimately, Vidal stopped his car after the officers forced him off the road. Vidal was detained, and inside his car, an officer found a Walther PPK pistol, along with drug packaging and paraphernalia consistent with trafficking in marijuana.

On May 22, 2017, Vidal made a call for service to JSO, and two JSO patrol officers responded to Vidal’s house, where two additional firearms were found in plain view.

On July 25, 2017, JSO officers attempting to execute a federal arrest warrant for Vidal encountered him driving a pickup truck on Interstate 95 in Jacksonville.  During the stop, Vidal used his pickup truck to intentionally ram JSO vehicles, then attempted to flee on foot. Vidal was apprehended, and a search of his truck revealed several pounds of marijuana and approximately $37,000, as well as a gun safe in the bed of the truck.

Prior to committing these crimes, Vidal was a 10-time convicted felon, and thus is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Laura Cofer Taylor.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide, crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities. It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety — one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

Tampa, Florida – James Lockhart (31, Bradenton) today pleaded guilty to an information charging him with producing, distributing, and possessing child pornography. Lockhart, formerly a paramedic for a private ambulance company, faces up to 70 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not been set.

According to the plea agreement, between March 2016 and February 2018, Lockhart produced a four-video series of child sex abuse where he recorded himself having sex with a one-year-old child. In the videos, Lockhart displayed signs bearing the dark web forum’s name and his online moniker in order to gain notoriety in the forum and elsewhere. In addition to the dark web series, Lockhart created other sex abuse videos and images of the child.

Lockhart also collected child pornography not involving the one-year-old victim. Following the execution of a search warrant on Lockhart’s residence, authorities seized devices containing 43 videos depicting child pornography and at least 4,000 images of child pornography. Lockhart’s child pornography collection included infants and sadomasochistic and violent conduct.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (Boston and Tampa), with assistance from the Queensland Police Service (Commonwealth of Australia). It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Murray.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Charlene E. Honeywell has sentenced Ryan J. Fluke (28, Port Richey) to 21 months in federal prison for aiming a laser at a police helicopter. Fluke pleaded guilty on November 20, 2018.

According to court documents, the offense occurred on December 5, 2017, around 10:50 p.m., when a Pasco Sheriff’s Office helicopter was dispatched to assist other deputies during an encounter with a barricaded individual at a residence in Port Richey. The helicopter flew over the house where the individual had barricaded himself. As the helicopter was providing assistance for the deputies who were preparing to enter the home, Fluke aimed a laser pointer at the helicopter. The laser pointer caused a high-intensity red laser beam to enter the interior cockpit and the pilot’s line of sight, initially blinding and disorientating the crewmembers for several seconds, and making it hard to operate the aircraft. At the time of the incident, the aircraft was flying low to the ground, over a heavily populated area. The aircraft was forced to abandon air support for the ground units.

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Pasco Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michael C. Baggé-Hernández and Charlie Connally.

Orlando, Florida – United States District Judge Roy B. Dalton has sentenced Shameer Hassan (45, Kissimmee) and Nadine Bromfield Alexander (39, Orlando) to 10 years and 7 years in federal prison, respectively, for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and aggravated identity theft. Hassan was sentenced to an additional 2 years’ imprisonment for money laundering. The court also ordered Hassan and Alexander to pay $150,314 in restitution to the identified victims of the fraud scheme.     

A federal jury found Hassan and Alexander guilty on November 6, 2018.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, Hassan and Alexander participated in a fraudulent sweepstakes scheme that operated in the Middle District of Florida and Jamaica. Members of the conspiracy targeted victims throughout the United States, many of whom were elderly, and falsely informed them that they had won a multi-million dollar prize in a sweepstakes contest. The conspirators instructed the victims to wire funds to “representatives” in Orlando in order to prepay fees and taxes associated with the prize. Upon receipt of the funds, other members of the conspiracy converted the funds to money orders and cash. They then paid Hassan, who operated several money transfer businesses, to wire the fraud proceeds to Jamaica.

Alexander stole the personal identity information belonging to more than 35 individuals from her workplace and gave that information to her co-conspirators. Hassan then used the stolen identity information to launder the funds. In less than two years, Hassan and his co-conspirators transferred $4.7 million in funds, obtained from victims, to conspirators in Jamaica. 

The court previously sentenced the following members of the conspiracy:

Charlton Morris (39, Casselberry) pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering. He was sentenced to 10 years, 1 month in prison.

Robert Blake Madurie (29, Jamaica) pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. He was sentenced to eight years in prison. 

Danny Lopez (32, Orlando) pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He was sentenced to seven years and eight months in prison.

Treysier LaPalme (25, Orlando) pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He was sentenced to seven years and three three months in prison.

Oral Anthony Stewart (35, Lithonia, Georgia) pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He was sentenced to five years in prison.

This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security and the SCIRS Federal Financial Crimes Task Force, whose members include the IRS- Criminal Investigation, the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, the St. Cloud Police Department, the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, the Winter Park Police Department, the Casselberry Police Department, the Kissimmee Police Department, the Maitland Police Department, the Palm Bay Police Department, and the U.S. Secret Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Karen L. Gable and Roger B. Handberg.

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis today sentenced Mohammad Abdul Malek (68, St. Marys, GA) to 10 years in federal prison for attempted enticement and coercion of a minor to engage in sexual activity. Malek pleaded guilty on October 30, 2018.

According to court documents, between August 23 and August 26, 2018, Malek engaged in email and text communications with an undercover agent posing as a 13 year-old girl. Malek asked for photos of the “child” and told her he wanted to teach her about “making love.” Malek was advised and acknowledged that the “child” was a minor, and he suggested that they meet to engage in sex. On August 26, 2018, Malek traveled to Jacksonville to meet the “child,” and was arrested by officers from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.

“This child predator thought he was traveling to sexually assault a child,” said HSI Tampa Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero. “Instead, he was met by undercover law enforcement who stopped him in his tracks.”

This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ashley Washington.          

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States District Judge Marcia Morales Howard has sentenced Michael Douglas McNeil (31, Jacksonville) to a term of 10 years in federal prison for using the internet to attempt to entice a child to engage in sexual activity. McNeil was also ordered to serve a 5-year term of supervised release and to register as a sex offender. McNeil is a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy; he has been detained since his arrest on August 30, 2018. 

According to court documents, on August 27, 2018, a detective with the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, who was posing online as a family member of a 12-year-old handicapped child, received a message on a social media application from McNeil, who identified himself as “Mark.” McNeil expressed interest in having sex with the “child” and was advised that the “child” was 12 years old. Between August 27 and August 30, 2018, McNeil and the undercover detective discussed plans for McNeil to meet the “child” for sex. McNeil asked for several photos of the “child,” sent the undercover detective an explicit photo of himself, and asked specific questions about the “child’s” sexual experience and abilities. On August 30, 2018, McNeil drove to a coffee shop in Orange Park to meet the “child” for sex and was arrested.

During an interview, McNeil admitted that he had engaged in online and text conversation with the “guardian” of the 12-year-old “child” and that he showed up to meet the “child” because of his “curiosity” about “a younger girl.”     

“With the help of HSI’s law enforcement partners at the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, this predator was stopped before he could harm a child,” said HSI Tampa Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero.

This case was investigated by the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Ocala, Florida – Ruth S. Sprake (60, Crystal River) today pleaded guilty to theft of government funds and making false statements to the Social Security Administration (SSA). She faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison for the theft offense and up to 5 years’ imprisonment for the false statements charge. Sprake was indicted on November 7, 2018. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to the plea agreement, Sprake is a former rural route carrier for the United States Postal Service (USPS). Since September 2002, she has been receiving full workers’ compensation disability benefits from the Department of Labor (DOL) for a work-related injury. Each year, since 2013, Sprake was required to submit a report to the DOL detailing her sources of income and any employment activities. However, from 2013-2018, Sprake failed to report her income from her dog-breeding business, as well as her clerical work for a real estate company. As a result, Sprake obtained more than $192,000 in benefit payments to which she was not entitled.

Further investigation revealed that, in December 2015, Sprake also made false written statements to the SSA in which she had underreported her personal and household income in an effort to obtain increased disability benefit payments from that agency.    

This case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Service – Office of the Inspector General and the Social Security Administration – Office of the Inspector General.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Carlos E. Mendoza has sentenced sex offender David Padilla-Rivera (39, Orlando) to two years in federal prison for failure to comply with the terms of his supervised release.

According to court documents, on April 5, 2017, Padilla-Rivera was sentenced to two years and three months in federal prison for failure to register as a sex offender pursuant to the requirements of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act. Padilla-Rivera’s registration requirements stem from his 2010 state conviction, for the false imprisonment and attempted sexual assault of a 16-year-old female. Following his release from prison, on February 26, 2018, Padilla-Rivera violated the terms of his supervised release by failing to notify his probation officer regarding anticipated changes in address and employment. He was then sentenced to 14 months in federal prison.

Upon his release from prison on December 21, 2018, within 24 hours, Padilla-Rivera was found possessing a smartphone, in violation of the conditions of his supervised release. A forensic search of the phone revealed that Padilla-Rivera had visited pornographic websites between December 22, 2018 and December 27, 2018.    

This case was investigated by the U.S. Probation Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ilianys Rivera Miranda.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge William Jung has sentenced Joseph David Caltagirone (61, Tampa) to 12 months in federal prison for possessing an unregistered destructive device. Caltagirone pleaded guilty on December 10, 2018.

According to court documents, on April 11, 2018, members of the Tampa Police Department Bomb Squad were conducting training on North 12th Street, in Tampa, when they heard a loud explosion. They saw a large greyish-white smoke plume several blocks away, rising above East Columbus Drive. Officers canvassed the neighborhood, eventually locating Caltagirone’s residence.

Inside that residence, law enforcement officers discovered PVC piping, a hobby fuse, and precursor chemicals such as potassium nitrate, air float charcoal, and sulfur. Officers also discovered an assembled destructive device resembling a “pipe bomb.” The device had been constructed using a PVC pipe, sealed at each end by PVC end caps, and an improvised initiator. The pipe contained Tannerite, an explosive mixture. Had the device exploded, it could have projected PVC fragments at high velocities in all directions.

Caltagirone admitted to having designed, constructed, and possessed the devices. He also admitted to having detonated an explosive device in the backyard of his residence—a house in a densely populated neighborhood just north of Ybor City and only a few blocks from a middle school.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Tampa Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Murray.

Ocala, Florida – U.S. Senior District Judge James D. Whittemore has sentenced Richard Mel Phillips (36, Fruitland Park) to 18 months in federal prison for transmitting threatening communications in interstate commerce. Phillips had pleaded guilty on November 8, 2018.

According to court documents, Phillips sent a series of threatening phone calls and voicemails to members of Congress. In the most recent of these voicemails, Phillips threatened to travel to a member of Congress’s home district to kill them, and threatened to “slaughter” any law enforcement agents that were sent to Phillips’ home. In a subsequent interview with the FBI, Phillips admitted to making the threatening voicemail.

This case was investigated by the FBI–Daytona Beach Resident Agency. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William S. Hamilton.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces the return by a grand jury of an indictment charging Sean Patrick Farrelly (47, Palm Coast) with sex trafficking of a minor girl. If convicted, Farrelly faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years, and up to life, in federal prison. 

According to the indictment, between approximately March 2018 and February 2019, Farrelly recruited, enticed, transported, obtained, maintained, patronized, and solicited a girl under the age of 18 years old to engage in a commercial sex act.

An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This case was investigated by the Flagler Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ashley Washington.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Fort Myers, FL – U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell has sentenced Eddie Junior Saez (28, Cape Coral) to nine years and seven months in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Saez was found guilty by a federal jury on December 12, 2018.

According to evidence presented at trial, on March 12, 2015, while executing a search warrant at Saez’s residence, Lee County Sheriff deputies located a loaded .45 caliber handgun that was concealed in a knit cap. The investigation had revealed that, in addition to the firearm, Saez had been storing lucrative quantities of narcotics at the home, which he shared with his parents. As a previously convicted felon, Saez is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition under federal law. 

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Simon R. Eth.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide, crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities. It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety – one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

Ocala, Florida – U.S. District Judge James D. Whittemore today sentenced Jason Earl Hill (53, Ingles) to 15 years in federal prison for bank robbery. The court also ordered Hill to make restitution to Center State Bank, N.A., in the amount of $2,250.

Hill had pleaded guilty on January 4, 2019.

According to court documents, Hill robbed a branch of Harbor Community Bank (now known as Center State Bank) in Ocala, Florida on May 11, 2018. Hill presented the teller with a demand note, and with instructions to hand over large sums of money. Hill then fled with $2,250 in his green 2006 Saturn, which was caught on surveillance video at a nearby fast-food restaurant. After identifying the vehicle, law enforcement was able to obtain a positive identification from the victim-teller.

Hill was previously convicted in the District of New Mexico for three bank robberies in 1997. After serving time on those offenses, he was then convicted of bank robbery in the Eastern District of Tennessee in 2002. Following his 12-year sentence on that case, Hill relocated to Ocala, Florida, where he committed the latest bank robbery. In addition to his convictions for multiple bank robberies, Hill has several 1990s convictions for felony theft and burglary in Tennessee.

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael P. Felicetta.

Ocala, Florida – Senior United States District Judge James D. Whittemore today sentenced Stephen Cometa (63, Marion County) to 17 years and 3 months in federal prison for forcibly assaulting and resisting federal employees with a deadly and dangerous weapon, and for discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. A federal jury previously found Cometa guilty of the offenses on December 13, 2018. 

According to the testimony and evidence presented in court, in December 2016, Cometa entered a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) clinic in The Villages carrying a loaded AR-15 assault rifle, a concealed handgun, and hundreds of rounds of extra ammunition for both firearms. Cometa walked through the clinic to a psychiatrist’s office, interrupted an ongoing treatment session, and pointed the assault rifle at the psychiatrist as he opened the door. The psychiatrist, as well as a VA contractor and two VA police officers, struggled with Cometa for control of the assault rifle and eventually subdued him. During the struggle, Cometa fired the assault rifle, shooting holes in the walls, ceiling, and furniture.    

This case was investigated by the FBI—Ocala Resident Agency, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, and the Department of Veterans Affairs Police Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys William S. Hamilton and Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.

Tampa, Florida– A federal jury today found Justin Scott Hunt (31, Tampa) guilty of attempting to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity and attempting to transfer obscene material to a minor. Hunt faces a mandatory term of 10 years, and up to life, in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 14, 2019.

A grand jury had indicted Hunt on August 16, 2017.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, Hunt engaged in six months of online conversation with someone he believed to be a small child and the child’s mother. In reality, he was actually talking to an undercover agent. On numerous occasions, Hunt requested to meet the “child” and described, in graphic detail, the sex acts that he planned to engage in with the minor. He also sent two pictures of his erect penis to whom he believed to be the mother of the child, encouraging her to show the child the pictures, expressing hope that the child would then begin to develop “a lust or fantasy” about Hunt.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Gregory T. Nolan and Candace Garcia Rich.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Ocala, Florida – Senior United States District Judge James D. Whittemore today sentenced Willie Iva Jennings (36, Reddick) to 12 years and 7 months in federal prison for possession of a firearm affecting commerce by a previously convicted felon. Jennings previously had entered a guilty plea to the offense on October 22, 2018.

According to the plea agreement, on July 15, 2018, law enforcement discovered Jennings behind the wheel of a recently stolen automobile. While taking Jennings into custody, investigators located a loaded semi-automatic firearm in his pocket and Jennings admitted that the firearm belonged to him.

Jennings’s criminal history contains multiple drug sales and robbery convictions, as well as resisting a police officer with violence. As such, he is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law. As a result of his extensive prior criminal history, Jennings qualified for enhanced sentencing as an Armed Career Criminal.

This case was jointly investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Ocala Police Department, and the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide, crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities. It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety — one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

Jacksonville, Florida – Shawn Andrew Wilson (44, Yulee), a/k/a “Red Dog,” has pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm after having been convicted of a felony offense. Wilson faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to the plea agreement, on January 27, 2018, a 911-caller reported to the police that Wilson was at a trailer home in Yulee, Florida, and had fired what sounded like a pistol. Responding police officers arrested Wilson, and, with the consent of a resident of the home, entered and recovered a loaded pistol in a bedroom. Following his arrest, Wilson explained to an officer that he had shot a gun from the doorway of the home, but that he was not trying to hit the 911-caller.  Wilson has at least three prior felony convictions, and as such, is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office, the FBI, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael J. Coolican. 

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide, crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities. It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety — one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

Orlando, Florida – Bryan Matthew Cooney (30, Casselberry) has pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography. Cooney faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

According to court records, from September 19, 2018 through September 27, 2018, Cooney chatted with an FBI undercover agent (UC) via a social media application known as “KIK” about sexually exploiting a 12-year-old female child, which Cooney said was his daughter. During the chats, Cooney shared clothed images of the minor with the UC and said he had sexually abused and produced images of the minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct. 

During the investigation, FBI agents identified Cooney’s residence and obtained a warrant to search for evidence related to the allegations. On October 30, 2018, FBI agents executed the search warrant and interviewed Cooney, and Cooney admitted that he was the person chatting with the UC about sexually exploiting a 12-year-old child. Cooney also said that he had actually obtained images of the minor from his friend’s Facebook page and had shared those pictures with the UC during chats. Cooney also said that he had been viewing child pornography for the past four of five years, which he downloaded to his iPhone through KIK, and then uploaded to a Dropbox account.

Upon viewing the Dropbox account, agents found hundreds of videos and numerous images of child pornography depicting bestiality and other acts of sadistic conduct against prepubescent children between the ages of 4 and 10. Cooney had posted images of his friend’s daughter on KIK, and attempted to obtain images of child pornography from other KIK users, by trading clothed images of his friends’ daughter.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ilianys Rivera Miranda.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. 

 

Fort Myers, FL – Casey Lowell Hickok (32, Copeland) has been arrested and charged by criminal complaint with second-degree murder within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States. Hickok made his initial appearance in federal court yesterday afternoon and was ordered detained pending trial. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison.

According to the complaint, while aboard a commercial fishing vessel, Hickok was witnessed bludgeoning a sleeping member of the boat’s crew to death with a spare boat alternator, which he later threw off the vessel. At the time, the vessel was in the Gulf of Mexico, approximately 66 nautical miles west of Marco Island. 

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This case is being investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service and the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Simon Eth.

Fort Myers, Florida – U.S. District Judge John E. Steele today sentenced Kenneth Christian Javi Garcia (24, Fort Myers) to six years in federal prison for distribution of child pornography. The court also ordered Javi Garcia to forfeit his computer, which was used to commit the offense. 

Javi Garcia pleaded guilty on September 28, 2018.

According to court documents, between August 30, 2017, and September 20, 2017, the FBI was able to directly connect to Javi Garcia’s computer and download approximately 200 files containing depictions of child pornography. On November 14, 2017, a search warrant was executed at Javi Garcia’s residence, where his computer was located and seized. A subsequent forensic analysis of the computer revealed approximately 450 videos of child pornography, with created file dates ranging from February 2016 through October 2017.  

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Innocent Images Task Force, which includes law enforcement from the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, the Sarasota Police Department, and the Bradenton Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yolande G. Viacava.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Tampa, FL – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces the unsealing of an indictment charging Diego Fernando Cardona Lozano (43, Cali, Colombia), a/k/a “El Doctor” and “Pomada,” with conspiracy to commit international money laundering and conspiracy to import at least five kilograms of cocaine into the United States. If convicted on all counts, Cardona Lozano faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. The United States has also notified Cardona Lozano that it seeks the forfeiture of proceeds traceable to the charged offenses, approximately $1.4 million.

According to the superseding indictment, Cardona Lozano conspired to import at least five kilograms of cocaine, knowing that the drugs would be imported into the United States. Cardona Lozano is further charged with conspiring to launder the proceeds of the drug trafficking by using the Black Market Peso Exchange, a financial structure used by drug cartels in Colombia to exchange currencies.

An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This case was investigated by the Panama Express Strike Force, an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) comprised of agents and analysts from the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and the U.S. Southern Command's Joint Interagency Task Force South. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s drug supply. The Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Marshals Service provided assistance with the extradition process. The case will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dan Baeza.

Ocala, Florida – Willie Lee Lewis (47, Ocala) today pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. He faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years, and up to life, in federal prison. Lewis was indicted on February 13, 2019. 

According to the plea agreement, on November 28, 2018, a City of Ocala police officer attempted to stop Lewis for a tag violation. Rather than pulling over, Lewis led the officer on a low-speed chase during which Lewis discarded a loaded pistol, cocaine, and marijuana from the window of his van. Police recovered these items and arrested Lewis, who subsequently placed a recorded telephone call from the county jail in which he described the firearm and drugs that he had tossed from the van’s window.

Lewis has 20 prior felony convictions that include multiple drug sales and illegal firearm offenses, thus qualifying him for enhanced sentencing as an Armed Career Criminal. 

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Ocala Police Department jointly investigated this case. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide, crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities. It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety — one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

 

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Virginia Hernandez Covington has sentenced Mark Boring (47, St. Petersburg) to seven years in federal prison for his role in a telemarketing scheme. As part of Boring’s sentence, the court also entered a money judgment of $75,000, the proceeds of the wire fraud conspiracy. In addition, Boring was directed to pay a total of $895,011.03 to victims of the scheme.

According to court records, from 2016 through at least 2018, Boring conspired with others to take money from victims throughout the United States who wanted to sell their timeshare properties or other parcels of land. Boring and others placed telephone calls to these victims impersonating real estate professionals. They misled the timeshare owners to believe the conspirators had identified buyers for the victims’ timeshares and other property. The conspirators further advised the victims that the timeshare and property sales could be completed if the victims made one or more advanced payments to the conspirators for various fees purportedly associated with the sales, such as closing costs, courier services, title searches, transfer fees, and legal fees. Once the victims agreed to pay the bogus fees, the conspirators directed the victims to send funds via wire transfers to one of the conspirators. That conspirator then withdrew the fraud proceeds and shared them with the others, based on each conspirator’s role in the fraudulent transaction. The conspirators often repeatedly re-contacted their victims and fraudulently advised them that additional fees were needed in order to complete the sales, and they continued to dupe the victims into sending bogus advanced fees until the victims either ran out of money or became aware of the scam.     

Gary Kinard previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 7 years and 11 months in federal prison for his role in the scheme. Martin Steele, Troy Cater, and David Bell have also pleaded guilty to participating in the scheme and are pending sentencing.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the St. Petersburg Police Department, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rachel K. Jones.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States District Judge Brian J. Davis has sentenced Pryce Elijah Demars (25, Jacksonville) to 20 years in federal prison for distributing child pornography over the internet. Demars had pleaded guilty on May 25, 2018. As part of his sentence, Demars must also serve a lifetime term of supervised release and register as a sex offender.

Demars was arrested on November 15, 2017, and has been in custody since that day. 

According to court documents, as well as evidence and testimony introduced during Demars’s sentencing hearing, FBI agents and other officers executed a federal search warrant at Demars’s residence in Jacksonville on November 15, 2017, in connection with an online child exploitation investigation. From August 3, 2016, through April 12, 2017, Demars had distributed videos depicting young children being sexually abused over the internet. He admitted, among other things, that he had searched for child pornography on the internet, downloaded it, and distributed it to another individual in exchange for $800-$1,000 and several video games.

FBI agents were also able to identify a minor child whom Demars had sexually molested on several occasions. Demars also had offered to take explicit photos of the child and had introduced the child to another individual, over the internet, to further victimize the child through online sexual exploitation.   

“Investigating child abuse and exploitation is among the most important work in the FBI,” said Charles P. Spencer, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Jacksonville Division. “This case represents both our relentless pursuit of predators who seek to harm innocent children, and steadfast determination to ensure they are sentenced to the maximum punishment possible under law.” 

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Jacksonville, Plano (Texas), and Springfield (Illinois), and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington has sentenced Roselle Fitzgerald to 21 months in federal prison for theft of government funds and counterfeit or forged securities. As part of her sentence, the court entered a money judgment of $185,731.71, the proceeds of the theft of criminal conduct, and ordered Fitzgerald to pay restitution.

Fitzgerald had pleaded guilty on December 11, 2018.

According to court documents, Fitzgerald worked as a title-closer at various law firms, while simultaneously receiving Social Security Disability Insurance Benefits to which she was not entitled. Fitzgerald also made material false statements to employees of the Social Security Administration regarding her work activity. In addition, she possessed counterfeit or forged checks from the law firms where she was employed and used the means of identification of others in connection with the counterfeit or forged checks. In total, Fitzgerald received approximately $184,400 in Disability Insurance Benefits to which she was not entitled, as well as $9,910.50 in Medicare benefits to which she was not entitled. The total loss to the law firms as a result of Fitzgerald’s counterfeit or forged checks was $7,685.

This case was investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and the Sarasota Police Department. It was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Suzanne Huyler.

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces the return of an indictment charging Joamary Rosario (28, Tampa) with conspiring to distribute a substance that contained a mixture of heroin, fentanyl, and acetyl fentanyl and distributing a substance that contained a mixture of heroin, fentanyl, and acetyl fentanyl, causing the death of an individual. If convicted, Rosario faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 20 years, and up to life, in federal prison. 

According to the

indictment and information presented in court, beginning on an unknown date but no later than November 6, 2018, and continuing through November 7, 2018, Rosario conspired with other individuals to possess and distribute heroin, fentanyl, and acetyl fentanyl.

On November 6, 2018, Rosario sold 10 plastic bags—each of which contained a substance composed of a mixture of heroin, fentanyl, and acetyl fentanyl—to an individual. The individual injected himself with the substance from one of the bags and died. A medical autopsy revealed that the cause of death was an accidental overdose caused by a mixture of heroin and fentanyl.

On November 7, 2018, an undercover law enforcement officer contacted Rosario, posing as the deceased individual, and asked her to bring him more of what she had delivered the previous night. Rosario agreed. When she arrived at the meeting place, she was arrested and found to be in possession of three more bags of the same substance.

An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This case is part of the Middle District of Florida’s anti-opioid strategy to combat opioid trafficking and abuse. This case was investigated by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office Heroin Working Group, with assistance from the Hillsborough County Medical Examiner’s Office and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael M. Gordon.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces that Colum Patrick Moran, Jr. (40, Jacksonville) has been arrested and charged by federal criminal complaint with soliciting child pornography using the internet. If convicted, Moran faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 15 years, and up to 30 years, in federal prison. Moran was arrested on March 6, 2019, and is currently detained. 

According to the

complaint , from on or about December 28, 2016, through October 31, 2018, Moran, using the name “Emily lover” and the email address emilylover@aol.com, made numerous postings to several internet blog websites hosted by mothers. These blog sites were designed and intended to share and exchange information about motherhood, raising children, and other related topics.  Moran repeatedly posted sexually explicit comments about young children on these motherhood blogs and also solicited others to produce and post sexually explicit photos and videos of children on the blog sites.

On March 6, 2019, FBI agents and other officers executed a search warrant at Moran’s apartment where Moran lived alone. The agents found a plastic storage bin containing at least 50 pairs of female child-sized underwear, a smart phone containing over 300 images depicting child pornography, a number of credit cards and Florida driver licenses that did not belong to Moran, and several firearms and a bulletproof vest. Moran was placed under arrest.   

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Jacksonville and Los Angeles, and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces that Todd Levant Asbey, Sr. (48, Jacksonville) has pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Asbey, who qualifies as an Armed Career Criminal, faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years, and up to life, in federal prison.  A sentencing date has not yet been set.                

According to the

plea agreement , on March 11, 2018, Asbey entered a Waffle House in Jacksonville carrying a 9 mm pistol, in search of an individual whom he believed had stolen his cellphone. After accosting a customer and striking him in the head, Asbey went out into the restaurant parking lot and discharged the pistol toward the customer and another individual, missing both. Patrol officers from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office responded pursuant to 911 calls and arrested Asbey as he was leaving the scene in a vehicle driven by a friend. In the vehicle, officers found the pistol Asbey had fired and two other firearms. The officers also located a cartridge case in the Waffle House parking lot that matched the pistol fired by Asbey. As a previously convicted felon, Asbey is prohibited under federal law from possessing a firearm.

This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys David B. Mesrobian and Frank Talbot.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities. It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety — one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

Tampa, FL – Attorney General William P. Barr and U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez today announced the largest coordinated sweep of elder fraud cases in history, surpassing last year’s nationwide sweep. The cases during this sweep involved more than 260 defendants from around the globe who victimized more than two million Americans, most of them elderly. Twenty individuals have been charged in the Middle District of Florida (see below for case summaries).

“Crimes against the elderly target some of the most vulnerable people in our society,” Attorney General William P. Barr said. “But thanks to the hard work of our agents and prosecutors, as well as our state and local partners, the Department of Justice is protecting our seniors from fraud. The Trump administration has placed a renewed focus on prosecuting those who prey on the elderly, and the results of today’s sweep make that clear. Today we are announcing the largest single law enforcement action against elder fraud in American history. This year’s sweep involves 13 percent more criminal defendants, 28 percent more in losses, and twice the number of fraud victims as last year’s sweep. I want to thank the Department’s Consumer Protection Branch, which led this effort, together with the Department’s Criminal Division, the more than 50 U.S. Attorneys’ offices, and the state and local partners who helped to make these results possible. Together, we are bringing justice and peace of mind to America's seniors.”

“Elder fraud and exploitation can have an especially severe effect on victims,” stated U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to work together with our law enforcement partners to pursue financial fraudsters who exploit our seniors for personal and financial gain and, we’ll continue our outreach efforts to educate our seniors on ways to avoid and report fraud scams.”

The Department took action in every federal district across the country, through the filing of criminal or civil cases or through consumer education efforts. In each case, offenders allegedly engaged in financial schemes that targeted or largely affected seniors. In total, the charged elder fraud schemes caused alleged losses of millions of more dollars than last year, putting the total alleged losses at this year’s sweep at over three fourths of one billion dollars.

The charges are merely allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The cases in the Middle District of Florida are being handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Rachel Jones, Jennifer Peresie, Nathan Hill, and Karen Gable.

Since President Trump signed the bipartisan Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act (EAPPA) into law, the Department of Justice has participated in hundreds of enforcement actions in criminal and civil cases that targeted or disproportionately affected seniors. The Justice Department has likewise conducted hundreds of trainings and outreach sessions across the country since the passage of the Act. 

Middle District of Florida Case Summaries

Tampa

Brenda Dozier has pleaded guilty to a one-count information charging her with money laundering conspiracy relating to her participation in an IRS impersonation scam. From July 2015 through at least November 2015, Dozier laundered money that had been extorted from U.S. residents by conspirators residing in the United States and overseas. India-based conspirators impersonated IRS officers and misled multiple victims to believe that they owed money to the IRS and would be arrested and fined if they did not immediately pay their alleged back taxes. Dozier received the fraud proceeds, typically via interstate wire transfers, and, once she received the funds, she provided them, less a fee, to other conspirators based in the United States. Dozier’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 10, 2019. She faces a maximum penalty of 20 years' imprisonment.

 

As alleged in the eleven-count indictment, from at least 2016 through January 2019, Glenn Francis conspired with India-based call centers to extract money from U.S. residents through a variety of confidence scams, including 1) impersonating IRS officers and misleading U.S. residents to believe that they owed money to the IRS and would be arrested and fined if they did not pay their alleged back taxes immediately; 2) impersonating loan officers and misleading U.S. residents to believe they would receive loan proceeds upon paying an advance fee to the defendant or others he hired; or 3) impersonating computer technicians and misleading U.S. residents to believe that their computers had been hacked, their identities had been stolen, and/or their computers were infected with viruses and in need of repair, and that the callers would resolve the purported computer problems if paid to do so. Francis collected the Fraud proceeds in the United States and transferred them back to his India-based conspirators. Francis is set for trial in September 2019. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison on each count of wire and mail fraud conspiracy, wire fraud, and mail fraud. He faces up to 10 years in federal prison for each of the three money laundering charges.

 

Anthony Trujillo has pleaded guilty to a one-count information charging him with receipt of stolen property relating to his participation in an IRS impersonation scam. In February 2016, Trujillo received approximately $8,200 in his bank account that had been defrauded from two California residents as a result of a confidence scam. Trujillo knew the money had been stolen but instead of reporting it, Trujillo withdrew the fraud proceeds and spent them of over the course of a month. Trujillo’s sentencing hearing is set for March 22, 2019. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years' imprisonment.

 

Alejandro Juarez has pleaded guilty to a one-count information charging him with money laundering conspiracy for his participation in an IRS impersonation scam. From July 2015 through at least September 2015, Juarez laundered money that had been extorted from U.S. residents by conspirators residing in the United States and overseas. India-based conspirators impersonated IRS officers and misled multiple victims to believe that they owed money to the IRS and would be arrested and fined if they did not immediately pay their alleged back taxes. Juarez received the fraud proceeds, typically via interstate wire transfers, and, once he received the funds, he provided them, less a fee, to other conspirators based in the United States. Juarez is scheduled to be sentenced on March 15, 2019. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years' imprisonment.

 

Nishitkumar Patel, Hemalkumar Shah, and Sharvil Patel have each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud relating to their participation in an IRS impersonation fraud scam. N. Patel and Shah have each also pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated identity theft. From 2014 through at least 2016, the defendants conspired with India-based call centers to extort money from U.S. residents by impersonating IRS officers and misleading U.S. residents to believe that they owed money to the IRS and would be arrested and fined if they did not pay their alleged back taxes immediately. They collected the fraud proceeds by (1) withdrawing cash from prepaid cards purchased and funded by victims; (2) hiring other conspirators (runners) to retrieve money wired by the victims to those runners; and/or (3) hiring runners to open bank accounts into which victims deposited fraud proceeds. On October 23, 2018, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at the home of Nishitkumar Patel and Hemalkumar Patel. Among other items, they seized approximately $50,000 in cash, hundreds of bank and wire receipts, and 20 electronic devices. Nishitkumar Patel is scheduled to be sentenced on March 28, 2019, the sentencing hearing for Hemalkumar Shah is set for April 18, 2019, and Sharvil Patel’s sentencing hearing is set for May 9, 2019. The defendants each face a maximum penalty of 20 years' imprisonment for the wire fraud conspiracy. N. Patel and Shah also face a minimum mandatory penalty of two years' imprisonment for aggravated identity theft to run consecutive to the term imposed for the fraud count.

 

Gary Kinard, Martin Steele, Mark Boring, Troy Cater and David Bell have each pleaded guilty for their roles in a timeshare fraud scam. The defendants conspired to take money from victims throughout the United States who wanted to sell their timeshare properties. They placed telephone calls to these victims, impersonated real estate professionals and attorneys, and misled the timeshare owners to believe the conspirators had identified buyers for the victims’ timeshares. They told the victims that the sales could be consummated if the victims made one or more advanced payments to the conspirators for various fees purportedly associated with the sales, such as closing costs, courier services, title searches, transfer fees, and legal fees. The conspirators often repeatedly re-contacted the victims and fraudulently advised them that additional fees were needed in order to complete the sales, and they continued to dupe the victims into sending bogus advance fees until the victims either ran out of money or became aware of the scam.  

After the victims had depleted their assets or recognized that they had been defrauded, the conspirators evolved the scheme by re-contacting their victims via email or phone and, now posing as helpful attorneys, told the victims that they had been defrauded in a timeshare scam. They then offered to “represent” the victims against the “first attorneys,” and to obtain settlements on their behalves. Once they had regained the trust of the timeshare victims, they directed the victims to forward additional bogus fees purportedly associated with the cost of litigation, settlement expenses, and other related expenses. Some victims paid the conspirators hundreds of thousands of dollars for the purported “litigation.” Over the course of the conspiracy, many victims lost their retirement savings and their homes.

Gary Kinard, Martin Steele, and Mark Boring have each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft relating to their participation in a timeshare fraud scam. On February 27, 2019, Kinard was sentenced to 7 years and 11 months in federal prison. Steele and Boring have not yet been sentenced. Each faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison for the wire fraud conspiracy and a minimum mandatory consecutive term of 2 years’ imprisonment for the aggravated identity theft count. Troy Cater and David Bell each pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering conspiracy. They each face a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

 

Orlando

Between February 2012 and October 2014, six individuals defrauded mostly elderly victims out of more than $3.6 million based on false promises that they had won a multi-million dollar sweepstakes prize. These individuals then used stolen identity information to transfer the fraud proceeds to prepaid debit cards and ultimately transmitted the proceeds to their co-conspirators in Jamaica. In November 2018, a federal jury convicted two of the defendants, Nadine Alexander and Shameer Hassan, of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and three counts of aggravated identity theft. The jury also found Hassan guilty of eight counts of money laundering. Alexander and Hassan each face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each of the conspiracy charges, and a mandatory minimum of two years’ imprisonment for the aggravated identity theft charges. Hassan also faces up to 20 years’ imprisonment on each of the money laundering charges. Their sentencing hearings are scheduled for March 25, 2019.

Four of the defendants pleaded guilty and have been sentenced. Robert Madurie was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment, Danny Lopez was sentenced to seven years and eight months in federal prison, Treysier Mikael LaPalme was sentenced to 7 years and 3 months' imprisonment, and Oral Stewart was sentenced to prison term of five years. In a related case, Charlton Morris, a money launderer for the Jamaican lottery scheme, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering. He was sentenced to 10 years and 1 month of imprisonment.

 

Rohan Brown has pleaded guilty to one count wire fraud, one count mail fraud, and one count of aggravated identity theft for his participation in two conspiracies targeting elderly victims. In one conspiracy, victims in the United States received a phone call from a conspirator in Jamaica who told them they had won a sweepstakes. The victims were told that before they could receive their winnings, they had to send money for “taxes” to Brown in Orlando. The second scheme involved using the stolen personal identification information of Social Security beneficiaries to redirect Social Security benefits into a bank account controlled by Brown. Between both schemes, Brown and his conspirators stole more than $170,000 from more than two dozen elderly victims across the United States.  Brown faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison for each fraud count and a mandatory consecutive of penalty 2 years’ imprisonment for the aggravated identity theft count.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven has sentenced Yanier Manso-Caballero (30, Miami) to four years and six months in federal prison for access device fraud and aggravated identity theft. As part of his sentence, the court also entered a money judgment of $53,567.78, the proceeds of the criminal conduct.

Manso pleaded guilty on December 5, 2018.

According to court documents, on at least 11 different occasions between January and March 30, 2018, Manso placed skimming devices on Chase Bank ATMs in the Tampa Bay area including, ATMs in Tampa, Valrico, and Largo.  Chase Bank provided law enforcement with ATM surveillance video of Manso attaching the skimmers. In some of the videos, Manso disguised himself with hats, wigs, and/or a beard. Manso typically applied a skimmer to the drive-through ATMs from his vehicle. He left the skimmer in place for approximately one to two hours and then returned to the ATMs and removed the skimmer, again from his vehicle.  Manso also used a mirror camera, which he placed on the ATMs, in order to capture customers’ PIN information. According to Chase Bank, hundreds of customers who used the ATMs that Manso had tampered with had their bank account information intercepted, compromised, and used to make purchases without their knowledge and consent.

Investigators determined that at least 167 accounts had been compromised during the periods when Manso had placed the skimmers. In addition, approximately 92 counterfeit and unauthorized access devices were located on Manso’s iPhone and in his vehicle. At the time of these offenses, Manso was on federal supervised release stemming from a 2010 credit card fraud and identity theft conviction in the Southern District of Florida.

This case was investigated by the Tampa Police Department and the United States Secret Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mandy Riedel.

Orlando, FL – U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton has sentenced Geo Geovanni (50, Moultrie, GA) to 37 months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit bank fraud and bank fraud. As part of his sentence, the court also entered a money judgment of $56,984.34, the proceeds of the fraud scheme. A federal jury found Geovanni guilty on November 29, 2018.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, Geovanni worked as a real estate broker who owned his own brokerage firm based in Orlando. Between May and August 2008, Geovanni sold condominium units at The Landing, located in Altamonte Springs, Florida. Geovanni engaged in a conspiracy to conceal from mortgage lenders sales incentives that he provided to the buyers. These undisclosed incentives included making the buyers’ down payments and paying kickbacks after closing. As a result of his actions, Geovanni helped cause the loss of approximately $736,000 to the Federal National Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae”), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac), and JP Morgan Chase Bank when the mortgages involved in the fraudulent transactions went into foreclosure.

This case was investigated by the Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorneys Chris Poor and Joseph Capone.

Ocala, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces that a federal jury has found Jovan Demetrius Fredericks (39, Ocala) guilty of possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, possessing with the intent to distribute controlled substances, and carrying a firearm in relation to a drug trafficking crime. Fredericks faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 20 years, and up to life, in federal prison. His sentencing hearing has not yet been set. Fredericks was indicted on January 9, 2019.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, on the morning of September 29, 2018, officers from the Ocala Police Department encountered Fredericks at the Parkside Gardens public housing complex. Fredericks, a multi-convicted felon, immediately tried to conceal a hand-rolled cigarette containing illegal narcotics from the officers. When the officers stopped to investigate, they saw a loaded, full-size handgun with an extended ammunition magazine tucked into the waistband of Fredericks’s pants. After arresting Fredericks for the firearm, a search of his person revealed multiple packages of illegal drugs ready for sale, including MDMA (“ecstasy”), N-Ethylpentylone (“bath salts”), and cocaine. Fredericks’s extensive criminal record—which includes prior convictions for robbery, possession of a firearm by a felon, and repeated sales of illegal drugs—will qualify him as an Armed Career Criminal for federal sentencing purposes.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities. It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety — one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

This case was investigated by the City of Ocala Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces the return of an indictment charging Douglas V. Oakes (60, Bella Collina) with one count of tax evasion and six counts of making false and fraudulent statements on tax returns. If convicted, he faces up to five years in federal prison on the tax evasion count and up to three years’ imprisonment on each of the false statement counts.

According to the

indictment , in 2015, in order to evade the payment of his income taxes for 2002 to 2005, Oakes falsely represented to the IRS that he was not employed or self-employed, earned no income, and that he did not have a financial interest in any business entities. In fact, Oakes was the CEO of Dealerindustry.com, LLC (“DI”) d/b/a Automotive Capital Corporation, a company in which he had a substantial financial interest. To conceal from the IRS his financial interest in DI, Oakes registered his daughters and others as DI’s managing members with the Florida Department of State, removed his name and title from DI’s website and from the website LinkedIn, and caused false DI ownership documents to be created, signed, and backdated. Between 2015 and 2018, Oakes further attempted to conceal his assets from the IRS by purchasing a beachfront home in Merritt Island in the name of a nominee, causing false DI ownership documents to be created, signed, and backdated, and having tax returns prepared for his deceased daughter in which DI’s income was falsely claimed to be his daughter’s income.

The indictment further charges that in September 2015, Oakes submitted fraudulent tax returns to the IRS for the 2009 to 2014 tax years, each of which falsely claimed that he had no tax due and owing. The Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation estimates that Oakes’s actions resulted in approximately $1.1 million of tax losses.

An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Chauncey A. Bratt.

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces that a federal jury has found Corey Damond Smith, Jr. (23, Tampa) guilty of distributing fentanyl resulting in death. Smith faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 6, 2019.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, on November 13, 2017, Smith sold what he said was “heroin” to T.M. who took the drugs to her boyfriend and, at his request, helped him to use them. Smith had actually sold T.M. fentanyl. The boyfriend died from the drugs.

This case was investigated by Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office with assistance by the Hillsborough County Medical Examiner’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Thomas N. Palermo.