Middle District of Florida

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the unsealing of an indictment charging Joshua Gilliland (31) and Chawalit (“Chow”) Wongkhiao (28), both of Jacksonville, with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. If convicted on all counts, each faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison. The indictment also notifies both men that the United States intends to seek forfeiture of $1.13 million, which represents the proceeds of the wire fraud offense, and $4,104,823, the amount of money involved in the money laundering offense.

According to the indictment, Gilliland and Wongkhiao, doing business as Allied Markets LLC, solicited money for purported investments in foreign currency exchange (“forex”) transactions. Between March 2012 and July 2014, based on their representations, investors gave them substantial amounts of money. Contrary to their representations, Gilliland and Wongkhiao allegedly invested only about one-fifth of the total investors’ funds in forex transactions, which resulted in a loss. A large portion of the funds were used for personal expenses, including cash withdrawals, rent, furnishings, clothing, travel, food, and entertainment. They also used some of the funds received from later investors to pay off earlier investors.

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

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the Florida Office of Financial Regulation, and the Jacksonville Beach Police Department. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Arnold B. Corsmeier.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the return of an indictment charging Chad Jason Lansford (29, Jacksonville) with advertising for child pornography. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years, up to 30 years, in federal prison, and a potential life term of supervision. During his initial court appearance, Lansford was ordered detained pending his arraignment and detention hearing scheduled for March 24, 2015.  

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 until, and unless, proven guilty.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. 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 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, FL – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Ankana Pecault Stovall (47, Riverview) has pleaded guilty to an indictment charging her with conspiracy to pay gratuities and supplement the salary of members of the U.S. military in order to gain favorable contracting treatment in Iraq. She faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set. The indictment also notifies Stovall that the United States is seeking a money judgment in the amount of $19,500.

Two co-conspirators, U.S. Army Master Gunnery Sergeant Timothy Lerone Benton (Virginia) and U.S. Army First Sergeant Richard Allen Smith (Delaware), previously pleaded guilty in federal court in Tampa to accepting gratuities from Stovall during their time in Iraq in exchange for preferential contracting treatment for Stovall and her associated contracting companies.

According to court documents, between June 2007 and October 2009, Stovall was working for a defense contractor in Iraq and operating her own Riverview-based contracting company, Logistics Support and Services Company (“LSS”), which were both doing business with the U.S. military on Camp Liberty in Baghdad. Stovall was involved in a personal and financial relationship with Benton, who used his official position in Iraq to benefit Stovall, LSS, and Stovall’s employer by escorting trucks loaded with furniture, gravel, and other supplies through Camp Liberty to circumvent the required security procedures on the base. For his assistance, Stovall would pay Benton cash. Benton also assisted Stovall and LSS in receiving cash purchase orders for supplies through his unit at Camp Liberty, including two 47-inch LCD televisions for $6,400 and 100 digital cables for $5,500. After Benton returned from Iraq, Stovall used LSS funds to pay for a vacation to the Bahamas for her and Benton. Later that year, she gave Benton a $5,000, no-interest loan. In early 2010, Benton used his official position at the Pentagon to draft two official memoranda sponsoring and endorsing Stovall and LSS to conduct business on Camp Liberty.

In addition to the payments to Benton, Stovall regularly made cash payments in the amount of $3,000 to Smith on behalf of her employer. Smith was the U.S. government employee in charge of the motor pool on Camp Liberty and was responsible for assigning military vehicle maintenance work to contractors. On multiple occasions, Stovall made cash payments to Smith to ensure that her employer would receive favorable treatment and contracts to perform work at the motor pool.

This case was investigated by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the United States Army – Criminal Investigation Command, and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Josephine W. Thomas.

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Stephany West (51, Bradenton) today pleaded guilty to theft of federal funds. She faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to the plea agreement, from June 2, 2008, until September 19, 2013, West, a/k/a “Stephany Shaw,” was employed as the Project Director of the Bradenton Housing Authority (“BHA”). The BHA is a local housing authority agency of the City of Bradenton and received $10,000 or more in federal funds from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Between September 2010 and September 2013, West was routinely absent from the BHA and engaged in non-BHA activities during work hours. She failed to take annual or sick leave for these absences, and accepted her regular salary for work. From September 2010 through September 2012, West was absent and engaged in non-BHA activities at least 25 percent of the time. Between September 2012 and September 19, 2013, West was absent and engaged in non-BHA activities approximately 50 percent of the time. In total, West stole and knowingly converted to her own use approximately $73,783. from the BHA by taking salary, benefits, and bonuses that she had not earned and to which she was not entitled. She stole another $30,767.60 by cashing out unused annual and sick leave, which she should have otherwise used while spending work hours attending to personal affairs. Thus, West’s actions caused a total loss to the BHA of approximately $104,550.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development - Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Bradenton Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer L. Peresie.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron has sentenced William Demethris Bass (40, Oviedo) to 15 years in federal prison for bank robbery. He pleaded guilty on November 4, 2014.

According to court documents, Bass robbed three Orlando-area banks. He robbed a SunTrust Bank branch on June 10, 2014, and two different Fairwinds Credit Union branches on June 14, 2014. Bass continued his spree of robberies in Hinesville, Georgia, and he faces additional federal charges in the Southern District of Georgia.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Embry J. Kidd.

Orlando, FL – Adventist Health System Sunbelt Healthcare Corporation (Adventist) has agreed to pay $5,412,502 to resolve claims that it violated the False Claims Act by providing radiation oncology services to Medicare and TRICARE beneficiaries that were not directly supervised by radiation oncologists or similarly qualified persons, the Department of Justice announced today.  Adventist is a non-profit healthcare organization operating a large network of hospitals in the South and the Midwest, and doing business in Florida as Florida Hospital.        

“Today’s settlement demonstrates our continued vigilance to ensure that federal health care beneficiaries receive the highest quality of patient care,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer of the Justice Department’s Civil Division.  “It is critical that health care providers adequately supervise the services they provide to their patients.”

Radiation oncology services provided to patients served by Medicare and TRICARE, the Department of Defense’s health care program, must be directly supervised by a radiation oncologist or similarly qualified personnel.  The United States alleged that, from Jan. 1, 2010, through Dec. 31, 2013, Adventist violated this supervision requirement for radiation oncology services provided to federal health care program beneficiaries at several Florida locations, including in Altamonte Springs, Daytona Beach, Deland, Kissimmee, Orange City, Orlando, Palm Coast and Winter Park.  These services included radiation simulation, dosimetry, radiation treatment delivery and devices, and intensity-modulated radiation therapy.

“Medicare and TRICARE patients deserve high quality health care,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley III of the Middle District of Florida.  “We will not tolerate providers recklessly cutting corners, particularly when furnishing such critical medical services as radiation oncology.”

The settlement partially resolves allegations made in a qui tam lawsuit under the False Claims Act filed in Tampa, Florida, by Dr. Michael Montejo, a radiation oncologist and former employee of Florida Oncology Network P.A., a radiation oncology group.  The act permits private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery.  Montejo will receive $1,082,500 as his share of the recovery.

“Providing proper supervision of radiation oncology services is an important requirement in federal health care programs such as Medicare,” said Special Agent in Charge Derrick L. Jackson of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. “Our agency will continue to hold health care providers accountable for meeting the requirements in these taxpayer-funded programs.”

This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating healthcare fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services.  The partnership between the two departments has focused on efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid fraud through enhanced cooperation.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act.  Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $23.8 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $15.2 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.

The settlement was the result of a coordinated investigation between the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General.   

The case is captioned United States ex rel. Montejo v. Adventist Health System Sunbelt Healthcare Corp., Case No. 8:13-CV-206-T-23AEP (M.D. Fla.).  The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States District Judge Timothy J. Corrigan has sentenced Anthony Vincent Burkitt, a/k/a “Vincent Thomas Wolfe,” (45, Jacksonville) to 27 months in federal prison for failing to register as sex offender after traveling to Florida from Maryland. He pleaded guilty on December 5, 2014. Burkitt has been in custody since his arrest on April 13, 2014.   

According to court documents, on or about June 24, 2002, Burkitt was convicted of attempted second degree rape in Baltimore County, Maryland.  Subsequent to his conviction, and after being released from prison, he traveled from Maryland to Jacksonville, where he established residency in February 2013, but failed to register as a sex offender as required by the federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act. On April 13, 2014, a Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office deputy was dispatched to a residence in Jacksonville, in reference to a domestic disturbance. At the time, Burkitt was living at the residence under the alias “Vincent Thomas Wolfe” and was arrested. Further investigation revealed that he was a sex offender, and that he had been living in Jacksonville since February 2013 without registering as required by law.

The Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act is part of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006. The Adam Walsh Act provides for the use of federal law enforcement resources, including the United States Marshals Service (USMS), to assist state and local authorities in locating and apprehending non-compliant sex offenders. This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the USMS, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys D. Rodney Brown and Kelly S. Karase.

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, FL – Gilbane Building Company will pay the United States $1.1 million to resolve allegations that W.G. Mills Incorporated – a company with which Gilbane merged in November 2010 – violated the False Claims Act by creating a front company, Veterans Constructors Incorporated (VCI), in order to be awarded a Coast Guard contract that was designated for Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSBs), the Justice Department announced today.  The Justice Department also announced that VCI has agreed to pay the United States $50,000 plus five annual contingency payments equal to one percent of VCI’s total annual revenues to resolve these same allegations.

“Those who seek to do business with the government must do so fairly and honestly,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer of the Justice Department’s Civil Division.  “We will not tolerate contractors who seek to profit at the expense of our veterans and taxpayers.”

“Those who apply for federal contracts must be honest and forthright in their dealings, especially when seeking contracts set aside for service-disabled veterans,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley III of the Middle District of Florida.  “Working jointly with DOJ and our agency partners has allowed us to make substantial recoveries in these types of cases in recent months. Our office remains committed to pursuing these matters vigorously.”

To qualify as a SDVOSB, a company must be operated and managed by service-disabled veterans and must not be affiliated with a large company.  The government alleged that W.G. Mills created VCI merely as a contracting vehicle and that VCI’s affiliation with W.G. Mills rendered it ineligible to be awarded set-aside contracts for SDVOSBs.  The government further alleged that W.G. Mills performed the work that VCI was required to perform under the Coast Guard contract, and alleged that if the Coast Guard and the Small Business Administration (SBA) had known that VCI was nothing but a front company, the Coast Guard would not have awarded it the contract.

“Providing the government false information to gain access to set-aside contracts is unacceptable,” said Inspector General Peggy E. Gustafson of the SBA.  “The OIG will aggressively investigate such misrepresentations to ensure only eligible businesses are awarded these contracts.  I want to thank the U.S. Department of Justice for its dedication to pursuing justice in this case.”

“SBA’s contracting programs, including the Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Program, provide eligible small businesses with the opportunity to grow and create jobs,” said General Counsel Melvin F. Williams Jr of the SBA.  “SBA has no tolerance for fraud or abuse in any government contracting program and is committed to working with our federal partners to ensure the benefits of these programs flow only to the intended recipients.”

This case was investigated jointly by Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Harden of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida; Trial Attorney David Finkelstein of the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division; Adam Kaplan, Assistant Counsel to the Inspector General of the U.S. Small Business Administration; Trial Attorney Sabrina Daly of the Office of General Counsel for the U.S. Small Business Administration; and Kevin Kupperbusch, Supervisory Special Agent of the Atlanta office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

The settlement resolves allegations originally filed in a lawsuit by Michael Jeske and Samuel McIntosh.  The investigation was a coordinated effort among the Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, and the SBA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG).  The lawsuit was filed in the Middle District of Florida and is captioned United States ex rel. Michael Jeske and Samuel McIntosh v. Gilbane Building Company, W.G. Mills, Inc., and Veterans Constructors Inc., Case No. 8:11-cv-1205 (M.D. Fla.).

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

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Male Yahaira Rivera (35, Orlando) today pleaded guilty to embezzlement from a federally insured credit union. She faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to court documents, Rivera was an Assistant Branch Manager of Fairwinds Credit Union. Over a period of about 10 months, she stole $258,000 in cash from the credit union.  Funds were taken on 16 separate occasions in amounts ranging from $2,000 to $40,000. Each of the thefts involved cash that was supposed to be deposited into an ATM machine or cash that was removed from an ATM machine.  Rivera used more than $44,000 as a partial payment for a Porsche.

This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.

Jacksonville, Florida - U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that the United States has settled allegations that a Jacksonville-based dermatology practice knowingly billed the government for services that were cosmetic in nature and not medically necessary, as well as “up-coded” certain bills to receive higher than allowed reimbursement. The allegations resolved included liability under the False Claims Act (FCA).

The government announced today that it has reached a settlement with the defendant, Coastal Dermatology, and the physician who owned the practice – Dr. Sanjiva Goyal. In reaching this settlement, the parties resolved allegations that from January 1, 2009, until April 2014, Dr. Goyal operated a dermatology practice that routinely had a practice of billing for cosmetic dermatological procedures, billing for services when all the Medicare and TRICARE requirements were not established, and billing for services at a higher rate of reimbursement than appropriate. The government agreed to accept $787,814 to resolve these allegations.

This settlement involved false claims submitted to both the Medicare and TRICARE programs. This case was developed by proactively mining healthcare reimbursement data.  In mining through this data, Coastal Dermatology was identified as a top biller of procedures related to skin lesion removal procedures and removal of inflamed seborrheic keratoses. Among the 3,814 TRICARE-participating dermatologists in the South Region, Coastal Dermatology was number one in terms of billings for lesion removals.

"The United States Attorney's Office is committed to taking the steps necessary to protect Medicare, TRICARE, and other federal health care programs from fraud," said U.S. Attorney Bentley.  "By bringing FCA cases such as this, we hope to recover funds obtained through the fraud and deter others from attempting similar schemes."

"Patients unable to receive necessary medical care suffer the cost of Medicare fraud when those funds are purposely stolen and diverted to pay for uncovered voluntary procedures," stated Special Agent in Charge Derrick Jackson of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. "We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect the integrity of entitlement programs like Medicare."

This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by the Department of Justice and the Department of Health and Human Services. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act.  Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $19 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $13.4 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.

"This settlement highlights the commitment of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) and its law enforcement partners to protect the integrity of the Department of Defense (DoD) health care program," said Special Agent in Charge John F. Khin, Southeast Field Office.  “DCIS' aggressively investigates health care providers that defraud the DoD, to preserve American taxpayer dollars intended to care for our Warfighters, their family members, and military retirees."

This case was investigated by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS/OIG), HHS Office of Counsel to Inspector General (HHS/OCIG), the Defense Health Agency Program Integrity Office, and Assistant United States Attorney Jason Mehta.

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

Fort Myers, Florida – United States District Judge John E. Steele has sentenced William G. Roberts (55, St. Petersburg) to 12 years in federal prison for receiving, possessing, and distributing child pornography. The Court also ordered him to serve a life term of supervision following his release from prison, and to register as a sex offender. Roberts pleaded guilty on December 11, 2014.

According to court documents, Roberts sought out and caused a nine-year-old child to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing videos of the explicit conduct. The child was directed by Roberts to upload the requested videos to his private YouTube account. The child’s mother discovered the explicit videos and chats and contacted police. Subsequent investigation by law enforcement identified Roberts as the individual with whom the child had been communicating.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Child Exploitation Unit and the Cape Coral Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tama Koss Caldarone.

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 Mary S. Scriven has sentenced Lonzine Adams (58, Sarasota) to 15 years in federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm and for possessing with the intent to distribute crack cocaine. The Court also ordered him to forfeit the firearm and ammunition. Adams pleaded guilty on July 15, 2014.

According to court documents, a confidential informant purchased drugs from Adams on two occasions at his store in Sarasota. Law enforcement officers then obtained a search warrant for “Bud’s Store” and found Adams in possession of a revolver and ammunition. Officers also found crack cocaine, which was intended for sale, and $12,000 in cash, which were the proceeds of Adams’s drug sales.

Adams had multiple prior felonies, including at least four convictions related to the sale of cocaine. As a convicted felon, he was prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Sarasota Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer L. Peresie.

This is another case prosecuted as a part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy.  United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, along with Regina Lombardo, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, is coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials. It is also a part of ATF’s Frontline strategy to reduce violence in our communities.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the return of an indictment charging Robert Lee Craddock (54, Port Orange) with wire fraud arising out of a scheme to defraud the compensation fund established as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. The indictment also notifies Craddock that the United States is seeking a money judgment in the amount of $135,153, the proceeds of the charged criminal conduct.

According to the indictment, following the April 2010 explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig (which was being leased by BP, formerly known as British Petroleum), Craddock submitted a claim to BP and the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (“GCCF”), an independent facility established by BP to compensate qualified claimants, for lost earnings purportedly related to the impact of the oil spill on his businesses. As part of the scheme, Craddock crafted fictitious invoices to support the amount of lost earnings that he claimed. The fraudulent scheme resulted in BP and GCCF transmitting a total of $135,153 to Craddock.

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 United States Secret Service. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Embry J. Kidd.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the unsealing of an indictment charging Dr. Russell Sachs (56, Green Cove Springs) with four counts of dispensing and distributing, and causing to be dispensed and distributed, certain Schedule II and IV controlled substances to patients that were outside the usual course of professional practice and for no legitimate medical purpose. Count one also charges Sachs with dispensing controlled substances that resulted in the death of a patient. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum of 20 years, up to life, in federal prison on count one and up to 20 years’ imprisonment on each of the remaining three counts in the indictment.

According to the indictment, Dr. Sachs, a licensed medical doctor in Florida, owned and operated Physician Pain Management in Green Cove Springs. On various dates between 2011 and 2012, he dispensed and distributed, and caused to be dispensed and distributed, various combinations of the following controlled substances, outside the usual course of professional practice and for no legitimate medical purpose: alprazolam (Xanax), carisoprodol (Soma), clonazepam, hydromorphone (Dilaudid), methadone, morphine, and oxycodone.

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 Drug Enforcement Administration and the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Diidri W. Robinson.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Wei Zhang, a/k/a David Liteng (35, Tianjin, China) has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to import controlled substance analogues (synthetic cannabinoids), knowing that they were intended for human consumption. He also pleaded guilty to two counts of aiding and abetting the importation of controlled substances and cathinones, also known as “bath salts.” Zhang faces a maximum penalty of 60 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

According to the plea agreement, in late 2010, an individual met with Dan and Kevin Louie, the owners and operators of Source1Herbs, in Toronto, Canada. Source1Herbs was a large wholesale business that sold synthetic cannabinoids and cathinones. This individual met with the owners and learned that their Chinese-based supplier was Wei Zhang, a/k/a “David Liteng.” In October 2010, the individual made contact with Zhang and discussed ordering chemicals from him directly. In late February 2011, the individual and his business partner traveled to China and met with suppliers, including Zhang. During these meetings, the individual and Zhang discussed finding a replacement chemical for (1-napthoyl)indole (JWH-018), which was set to be temporarily listed as a Schedule I controlled substance by the DEA on March 1, 2011. As a result of the meeting, the individual obtained a more favorable pricing from Zhang for synthetic chemicals. Zhang, having a significant chemistry background, explained the best chemical alternatives for JWH-018 that would give the end user a similar high, including stimulant and hallucinogenic effects.

On March 1, 2011, Zhang and others exchanged e-mail communications (including news articles) for specific chemicals banned that day, which included JWH-018. One such e-mail from Zhang states, “Hi we know there will be ban jwh and similar product on 1th (sic) march. Pls let me know what happen tomorrow.” When JWH-018 was placed on the DEA’s banned list, Zhang and others began selling other chemicals, including AM-2201, JWH-081, JWH-122, JWH-203, JWH-210, and JWH-250. Zhang routinely shipped large quantities of those chemicals to customers in the United States, Russia, and Europe, distributing a portion of the synthetic cannabinoids through mailing facilities in the Middle District of Florida. From March 2011 through February 2012, Zhang shipped approximately 798 kilograms of these chemicals to the individual. In addition, he supplied Source1Herbs with large quantities of synthetic cannabinoids and cathinones.

On May 7, 2014, the United States Treasury Department - Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) used the Kingpin Act to designate Source1Herbs and Dan and Kevin Louie, both Canadian nationals, on the Specially Designated National (SDN) List. The Kingpin Act permits the imposition of economic sanctions to preclude a variety of worldwide economic transactions.

In July 2013, the Zhang and the individual had several discussions about synthetic cannabinoids, the latest trends in the worldwide industry, and the controlled status of certain chemicals, including UR-144, 5F-UR-144, and RCS-4. Zhang sent the individual various samples of synthetic chemicals known as 5 Meo Dalt (a synthetic cathinone), A834, 5F-UR-144, JWH-308, and WIN48098. Zhang also discussed emerging synthetic cannabinoids PB-22 and 5F-PB-22, both of which were controlled substance analogues of JWH-018 at the time, and then later a Schedule I controlled substance. After receiving a spreadsheet of Zhang’s inventory, the individual negotiated a purchase deal with Zhang for large quantities of UR-144, 5F-UR-144, and RCS-4. The negotiated price for approximately 773 kilograms of chemicals was $265,000, and Zhang agreed to provide the chemicals on consignment. Zhang agreed to ship mislabeled parcels containing 2 or 3 kilograms of those substances per parcel to various mailing facilities within the Middle District of Florida.

From February 3, 2014, through May 16, 2014, Homeland Security Investigations received 48 packages containing 144 kilograms of UR-144, 47 packages containing 106 kilograms of 5F-UR-144 (XLR-11), and 8 packages containing 16 kilograms of RCS-4.  During the receipt of those packages, the individual further negotiated to pay Zhang $150,000 for the 266 kilograms of Schedule I controlled substances. In April 2014, Zhang traveled to the United States to retrieve $150,000 in cash for the substances, where he was ultimately arrested.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and the North Florida High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force, as part of the Special Operations Division Project Synergy. The Special Operations Division, along with the Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section of the Department of Justice, coordinated Project Synergy to investigate and prosecute the leaders in the synthetic drug business, both domestically and internationally. The Office of International Affairs in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division also provided assistance. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney A. Tysen Duva.

Jacksonville, Florida. – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the unsealing of an indictment charging Orange Park residents Paul Reynolds Friel, Jr. (47) and Marisol Del Carmen Rodriguez Chavarria (39) with conspiracy to commit visa fraud. Additionally, Friel has been charged with four separate counts of making a materially false statement. If convicted on all counts, Friel faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in federal prison. Rodriguez faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison.

According to the indictment, Friel was an officer with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security. The indictment alleges that beginning in September 2007, he conspired with Rodriguez, a citizen of Nicaragua, for her to enter into a sham marriage with another man. That individual, Luis Aguilar, has been charged separately in another case. Friel allegedly conspired with Rodriguez and Aguilar to make false representations in applying for a visa that would enable Rodriguez to travel to the United States as Aguilar’s spouse. Friel paid for air travel for Aguilar and himself for the wedding of Aguilar to Rodriguez, which occurred in Nicaragua in January 2008. He also paid for Aguilar’s air travel to attend a visa interview in Nicaragua in November 2010, and for Rodriguez’s air travel to Florida in December 2010, after she was issued a visa. The indictment alleges that Friel assisted Rodriguez and Aguilar in filling out immigration forms, and that he loaned $3,500 to Aguilar in order to falsely portray Aguilar’s financial condition in an affidavit submitted to the State Department. Additionally, Friel coached Aguilar on what questions might be asked of him at the visa interview in order to detect relationship fraud. In December 2010, Rodriguez was issued a visa that enabled her to travel to the United States as Aguilar’s spouse. However, the indictment alleges that in or around March 2011, she moved in with Friel and that they had a romantic relationship. Subsequently, Rodriguez and Friel were married.

Friel is also charged with making materially false statements, including during a background investigation for a national security clearance. It is alleged that in December 2011, he failed to disclose his relationship with Rodriguez as his cohabitant, and failed to disclose his contact with her during the preceding seven years, as a foreign national, in connection with a background investigation done by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Office of Personnel Management. Rodriguez is a resident alien, not a U.S. citizen.

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.

On March 12, 2015, Friel and Rodriguez made their initial appearance before United States Magistrate Judge Patricia D. Barksdale. They were released on bond. An arraignment for Friel and Rodriguez has been scheduled for March 16 and 17, 2015, respectively.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector General, and the Jacksonville office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dale Campion.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven today sentenced Matthew William McLean (26, Minneapolis) to 31 years and 6 months in federal prison for attempting to transport a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, and for committing a felony sex offense as a registered sex offender.  He pleaded guilty on November 20, 2014.

According to court documents, McLean, a registered sex offender from Minnesota, traveled to Tampa to meet a 14-year-old minor with whom he had been corresponding with over the Internet. McLean picked the minor up from her house, brought her to the Greyhound bus station, and purchased two bus tickets to Brownsville, Texas. Upon discovering that the minor was missing, her family contacted law enforcement, who determined that McLean and the minor were on a Greyhound bus that had stopped in Tallahassee. Law enforcement officers recovered the minor victim and arrested McLean. McLean and the minor admitted that they had engaged in sex acts on the bus while traveling from Tampa to Tallahassee.

This case was investigated by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, the Tallahassee Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stacie B. Harris.

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 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 http://www.justice.gov/psc

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announced today the return of an indictment charging Gioacchino “Jack” Campo (56, Palm Coast) with two counts of receiving child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 5 years, up to a maximum of 20 years, in federal prison for each receipt count and up to 10 years in prison for the possession count. Campo was arrested at his home on March 9, 2015.   

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 until, and unless, proven guilty.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Jacksonville and Daytona Beach Offices. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

It is another 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, 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.

WASHINGTON – Recovery Home Care Inc., Recovery Home Care Services Inc. (collectively Recovery Home Care) and National Home Care Holdings LLC have agreed to pay $1.1 million to resolve allegations that the Recovery Home Care entities violated the False Claims Act by improperly paying doctors for referrals of home health care services provided to Medicare patients, the Department of Justice announced today.  The Recovery Home Care entities provide home health care services to Medicare beneficiaries and were purchased by National Home Care Holdings LLC in 2012, after the conduct addressed by the settlement occurred.

“Health care providers that attempt to profit by providing illegal inducements will be held accountable,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer of the Justice Department’s Civil Division.  “We will continue to advocate for the appropriate use of Medicare funds and the proper care of our senior citizens.”

From 2009 through 2012, Recovery Home Care, headquartered in West Palm Beach, Florida, allegedly paid dozens of physicians thousands of dollars per month to perform patient chart reviews.  According to the government’s lawsuit, the physicians were over-compensated for any actual work they performed and, in reality, payments to the physicians were used to induce them to refer their patients to Recovery Home Care, in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute and the Stark Law.

“Inducements of this kind are designed to improperly influence a physician’s independent medical judgment,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley III of the Middle District of Florida.  “This lawsuit and today’s settlement attests to our office’s on-going commitment to safeguard federal health care program beneficiaries from the effects of such illegal conduct.”

The Anti-Kickback Statute and the Stark Law are intended to ensure that a physician’s medical judgment is not compromised by improper financial incentives.  The Anti-Kickback Statute prohibits offering, paying, soliciting or receiving remuneration to induce referrals of items or services covered by federal health care programs, including Medicare.  The Stark Law forbids a home health care provider from billing Medicare for certain services referred by physicians who have a financial relationship with the entity.

The settlement partially resolves allegations made in a lawsuit filed in federal court in Tampa, Florida, by Gregory Simony, a former employee of Recovery Home Care.  The lawsuit was filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery.  The act also allows the government to intervene and take over the action, as it did in part in this case.  Simony will receive $198,000 of the recovered funds.  The government continues to litigate this case against Recovery Home Care’s previous owner, Mark Conklin.

This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services.  The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act.  Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $23.8 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $15.2 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.

The settlement was the result of a coordinated effort by the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida and HHS-OIG.    

The case is captioned United States ex rel. Simony v. Recovery Home Care, et al., Case No. 8-12-cv-2495-T-36TBM (M.D. Fla.).  The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge James S. Moody yesterday sentenced Rashia Wilson (29, formerly of Wimauma) to 21 years in federal prison for wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and being a felon in possession of firearms. The Court also ordered her to forfeit $2,240,096.39, which constitutes the proceeds traceable to the offense.

Wilson pleaded guilty to the felon-in-possession charge in on December 6, 2012, and later to the wire fraud and aggravated identity theft counts pursuant to a plea agreement on April 3, 2013. She was initially sentenced on July 16, 2013, after which she appealed. The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals granted her a re-sentencing following the appeal.

According to court documents, from at least April 2009, through September 2012, Wilson and her co-conspirator, Maurice J. Larry, engaged in a scheme to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by negotiating fraudulently obtained tax refunds. They did so by receiving U.S. Treasury checks and pre-paid debit cards that were loaded with proceeds derived from filing false and fraudulent federal income tax returns in other individuals' names, without their permission or knowledge. Wilson and Larry filed these tax returns from multiple locations, including Wilson's residence and hotels in the Tampa area. Wilson, Larry, and others then used these fraudulently obtained tax refunds to make hundreds of thousands of dollars of retail purchases, to purchase money orders, and to withdraw cash.

During the course of the investigation, agents searched Wilson's residence and Larry's storage unit, where they recovered thousands of names and social security numbers found in ledgers, and on various other records, including medical billing records.  Agents also found high-end accessories, jewelry, and a handgun in Wilson's home.  Further, additional reloadable debit cards loaded with fraudulent tax refunds were found in both locations.

Law enforcement also discovered that Wilson, who referred to herself as the "First Lady" and "Queen of Tax Fraud," had spent $30,000 on her daughter's first birthday party and had purchased a 2013 Audi valued at approximately $90,000, both of which had been funded by the proceeds of the tax fraud scheme. The government seized this vehicle and other items during the course of the investigation. The IRS estimates that the actual loss from Wilson and Larry's scheme is at least $3,147,477, and the intended loss was in excess of $11 million.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, the United States Secret Service, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Tampa Police Department, and the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Amanda L. Riedel and Sara C. Sweeney. The appeal was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Peter J. Sholl.

Orlando, Florida – Chief U.S. District Judge Anne C. Conway has sentenced Anthony Kenty Soto-Lopes (34, Orlando) to five years in federal prison for possessing an unregistered machinegun, silencer, and short barreled rifle, and for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The Court also ordered him to forfeit five Glock pistols that law enforcement recovered from his residence during the investigation. Soto-Lopes pleaded guilty on December 19, 2014.

According to court documents, on September 4, 2014, in Orlando, Florida, Soto-Lopes purchased four Glock pistols, a Glock machinegun, a silencer, and four devices designed for converting firearms into fully automatic weapons from an undercover agent and a confidential informant. As Soto-Lopes presented payment ($4,955) for these firearms, agents arrested him and recovered all of the firearms that he had purchased. After his arrest, Soto-Lopes admitted to agents that he had illegally shipped firearms and weapons from Florida to Puerto Rico using mail or commercial carriers, including the shipment of a grenade launcher. During a subsequent search of Soto-Lopes’s residence, agents recovered numerous other firearms and ammunition, including five Glock pistols and a short-barreled rifle.

Under federal law, Soto-Lopes was prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition because of a previous felony conviction in Puerto Rico. Neither the silencer, the machinegun, conversion devices, nor the short-barreled rifle were registered to Soto-Lopes in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, as required by federal law.   

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrew C. Searle.

This is another case prosecuted as a part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy.  United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, along with Regina Lombardo, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, is coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials. It is another example of ATF’s Frontline Strategy to impact violent crime within our communities.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announced that Samuel Franklin Crews (32, Lake City) today pleaded guilty to receiving child pornography over the Internet.  He faces a mandatory minimum penalty of five years, up to 20 years, in federal prison, and a potential life term of supervised release. Crews was arrested on December 31, 2013, in Lake City and has been in federal custody since that time.  A sentencing hearing has not yet been set.       

According to court documents, an agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Jacksonville began an undercover investigation to identify individuals in that area who had access to and/or were trading images and videos depicting child pornography over the Internet. The agent determined that a computer in the Lake City area was hosting images of child pornography using a peer-to-peer file sharing program and was able to download several videos depicting child pornography from this computer. Information from the Internet service provider traced the subscriber information to Crews’s Lake City residence.   

On June 5, 2013, law enforcement executed a federal search warrant at Crews=s residence and seized his computer. Crews told the agents, among other things, that he had come across child pornography using a file sharing program on the Internet and became “curious,” searched for and downloaded more child pornography using certain search terms, and knew that viewing such material is harmful to children.  A subsequent analysis of Crews’s computer revealed that it contained 124 images and 10 videos depicting the sexual abuse of minor children.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office.  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 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 A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Laura Butler (40, Jacksonville) has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States and one count of aggravated identity theft. She faces a maximum penalty of seven years in federal prison, with a two-year mandatory minimum term of imprisonment.

Butler was indicted on September 10, 2014. Her co-defendant, Cherica Daniels, pleaded guilty to the same charges on February 25, 2015.

According to the plea agreement, Butler worked at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida in 2011, where she had access to subscribers’ personal identifying information.  During her employment, she accessed several subscribers’ identities and later used them to complete false and fraudulent federal income tax returns.         

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelly S. Karase.

Orlando, FL – Chief United States District Judge Anne C. Conway yesterday sentenced Jesse Ausbin Brown (62, Orlando) to 20 years in federal prison for possession of child pornography, followed by a life term of supervised release. Brown pleaded guilty on October 23, 2014.

According to court documents, on September 20, 2012, the Winter Garden Police Department received a complaint regarding a man, later identified as Brown, who was attempting to lure young children into his car. Officers later pulled Brown over while he was driving and discovered that, in May of 1992, he had been convicted in the Western District of South Dakota for sexually abusing two children, and sentenced to almost 20 years in prison. Upon his release from prison, Brown completed his term of supervised release and moved from South Dakota to Winter Garden, Florida. Although he was required by law to register as a sex offender upon moving to Florida, he failed to do so. Officers then arrested Brown and he was later convicted in federal court of failure to register as a sex offender.

After Brown’s arrest, his car was sold on December 2, 2012. While cleaning out the car, the purchaser found a smartphone that contained images of child pornography.  Subsequent examination of the phone revealed that numerous images of child pornography had been saved to the phone, some with a receipt date of September 5, 2012. Brown later admitted to authorities that he had downloaded the child pornography onto his phone and hidden it in the trunk of the car.

This case was investigated by the Winter Garden Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joseph M. Schuster.

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 – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Makaeia Demps has pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft. She faces a mandatory penalty of two years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

According to the plea agreement, in late 2011, Clearwater Police arrested Demps. In her possession, they found two debit cards, each of which contained funds that were the results of fraudulently filed income tax returns. They also found her to be in possession of a piece of paper with the names and personal information of two other individuals. Further investigation by the Internal Revenue Service connected the use of the debit cards to a number of transactions involving Demps, including the purchase of a vehicle in October 2011. It also revealed that the amount of fraudulent income tax refunds connected directly to Demps via those identities and debit cards she controlled was approximately $74,000.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, with assistance from the Clearwater Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jay L. Hoffer.

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge James S. Moody, Jr. today sentenced Lamar “Budda” Wilson (33) to 10 years in federal prison for possessing with the intent to distribute 28 grams or more of cocaine base, commonly known as “crack.” He pleaded guilty on November 14, 2014.

According to court documents, Wilson arranged to sell an ounce of crack cocaine to a DEA confidential informant (CI). On September 23, 2013, Wilson met the CI at a location in Hillsborough County, where he was paid $1,050 for an ounce of crack cocaine.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shauna S. Hale.

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday has sentenced Octavius R. Henderson (35, St. Petersburg) to 20 years in federal prison for conspiring with others to possess with the intent to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine.  He pleaded guilty on December 16, 2014.

According to court documents, Henderson and others were involved in a years-long drug conspiracy that was responsible for the distribution of at least 149 kilograms of cocaine in St. Petersburg. During a search of a St. Petersburg residence used by Henderson and others as a “stash house” for narcotics and money, agents located digital scales, mixing agents, containers with cocaine residue, and a “kilo” press. Agents also located 850 grams of cocaine and $71,930 in U.S. currency inside the stash house.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shauna S. Hale. This case results from an ongoing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations, and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply.

WASHINGTON – Carbofin S.p.A., an Italian domiciled company that owned and operated the M/T Marigola was sentenced to pay an overall criminal penalty of $2.75M by the Honorable Virginia M. Hernandez Covington for knowingly falsifying the vessel’s oil record book in violation of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS), announced the Department of Justice Environment and Natural Resources Division and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.

Out of the $2.75M criminal penalty, $600,000.00 will be paid to the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation for the benefit of Florida’s only national marine sanctuary: the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.  The funds are to be used to support the protection and preservation of natural resources located in and adjacent to the sanctuary, including the cleanup and remediation of pollution in the sanctuary; restoration of injured resources, particularly coral reefs and seagrass beds and species dependent on those habitats.  The funds will also support scientific research in, and public education about, the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

During 2013 and 2014, on numerous international voyages, senior members of the crew of the M/T Marigola directed the installation and use of a so-called “magic hose” to dispose of sludge, waste oil and oil-contaminated bilge water directly into the sea bypassing required pollution prevention equipment.  On April 16, 2014, the vessel called upon the Port of Tampa to load anhydrous ammonia.  Coast Guard inspectors boarded the vessel and were approached by two junior engineering crew members who showed the inspectors a video of the “magic pipe” hooked up between piping leading to the bilge tank and the vessel’s boiler blow down valve.  The boiler blow down valve is a discharge point for the boiler to release hot water and steam.  The inspectors had the valve removed and an oily black substance was discovered.  Oil samples taken from the “magic hose”, the bilge piping and the boiler blow down valve matched.  The Chief Engineer, Carmelo Giano, and the Second Engineer, Alessandro Messore, had previously pleaded guilty and were sentenced for their role in ordering the use of the “magic hose” to illegally discharge oily waste into the sea.

"We are extremely grateful to the U.S. Department of Justice in supporting the work of the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation on behalf of the nation's marine sanctuaries, including here at the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary," said Jason Patlis, President and CEO of the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation.  "These funds will go to critical education, research and restoration activities, including deployment of mooring buoys, coral reef restoration, and study and mitigation of invasive species impacts."

"Marine environmental protection is one of the Coast Guard's primary missions," said Capt. Gregory Case, Captain of the Port at Sector St. Petersburg. "The Coast Guard takes marine pollution seriously and works cohesively with our partner agencies to hold those who violate international law accountable for their actions. We anticipate the results of this case will deter future illegal oil discharges into the sea."

Consistent with requirements in the APPS regulations, a vessel like the M/T Marigola, must maintain a record known as an oil record book in which transfer and disposal of all oil-contaminated waste and the discharge overboard and disposal otherwise of such waste, must be fully and accurately recorded by the person or persons in charge of the operations. Oil-contaminated bilge waste can be discharged overboard if it is processed through on-board pollution prevention equipment known as the oily water separator (OWS).  Waste oil and sludge can only be disposed of using an on-board incinerator or by discharging the waste to a shore-side facility, barge or tanker truck.  Giano and Messore falsified the oil record book by not recording that oily waste was being disposed of through the boiler blow down valve.

During the course of the investigation, it was revealed that the oil record book for the M/T Marigola was falsified since at least June 16, 2013.  The investigation also revealed that illegal oily waste discharges had occurred from two other vessels owned and operated by Carbofin, the M/T’s Marola and Solaro.  On the M/T Marola, a “magic hose” was used between on or about December 2012 and April 2013 and on the M/T Solaro between on or about February to August 2013.

The case was investigated by U.S. Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg and the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service.  The case was prosecuted by Kenneth E. Nelson of the Environmental Crimes Section of the Department of Justice and Matthew Mueller of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Mark Daniel DeHaven (33, Winter Garden) has pleaded guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography. He faces a mandatory minimum of five, up to 20 years, in federal prison.  His sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 21, 2015. DeHaven was arrested and made his initial appearance in federal court on October 30, 2014.

According to the plea agreement, on April 8, 2014, the Winter Garden Police Department received a report from the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office about a cyber-crime tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The tip concerned child pornography that was being sent or attempting to be sent over the Internet. Further investigation traced the information to DeHaven’s residence. On June 10, 2014, law enforcement executed a search warrant at DeHaven’s residence and seized several computers and electronic media. Forensic analyses of the equipment revealed that DeHaven had received images depicting children engaging in sexually explicit conduct. During the change of plea hearing, DeHaven acknowledged that, prior to his arrest, he was leading worship for a church.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Winter Garden Police Department. 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.

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard has sentenced Richard Dale Brooks (55, Cocoa) to 7 years and 11 months in federal prison on five counts of receiving child pornography over the Internet, and one count of possessing child pornography. The Court also ordered him to forfeit a computer that he had used in the commission of the offenses.

A federal jury found Brooks guilty, after a three-day trial, on June 5, 2014.

At trial, the government presented evidence that law enforcement had identified Richard Dale Brooks while investigating individuals sharing child pornography via a peer-to-peer file-sharing program in May 2012. Law enforcement obtained a search warrant for Brooks’s Jacksonville residence and discovered several computers containing child pornography. Specifically, agents discovered that Brooks had received at least 49 still images and 78 video files of child pornography, including depictions of prepubescent minors and child pornography material portraying sadistic and masochistic conduct, and depictions of violence.

According to court documents, Brooks requested a sentence of 60 months’ imprisonment, the lowest available sentence under the law, in light of his 20-year military career and his lack of criminal history. 

The case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations and the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelly S. Karase.

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 Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Will Randy Rogers (64, St. Augustine) pleaded guilty yesterday to extortion. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

According to the plea agreement, in August 2013, a St. Johns County businessman notified the Federal Bureau of Investigation that Rogers, then a construction inspector employed by St. Johns County, had been extorting money from him in connection with Rogers’s inspections of his various businesses, which shipped products out of the State of Florida. According to the businessman, Rogers harassed him by threatening to report non-existent code violations that, if reported, would have had a negative financial impact on the businesses. Prior to reporting Rogers’s conduct, the businessman had already paid Rogers $1,500. Thereafter, he recorded several conversations with Rogers, and between July 2013 and April 2014, made payments to Rogers totaling $6,000. When meeting with the businessman, Rogers often drove his St. Johns County issued vehicle. 

On April 1, 2014, after Rogers took $2,000 from the businessman in order to not report alleged code violations, FBI agents stopped Rogers in his county vehicle and recovered the cash.  

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Julie Hackenberry.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton, Jr. has sentenced Jonathan S. Bergeron (30, Orlando) to 12 years in prison for attempting to persuade, induce, and entice two minors he believed to be 12 and 8 years of age to engage in illicit sexual conduct.  He pleaded guilty on October 13, 2014.

According to the plea agreement, on July 9, 2014, Bergeron contacted an undercover FBI agent online who was posing as the father of two minors.  Over the course of several days, Bergeron solicited sex with the children and said that he was using a website centered on incest to “navigate his way to more locals with young daughters.”  Bergeron indicated that he wanted to network with like-minded individuals, and make having sex with children a recurrent event in his life. 

On July 10, 2014, Bergeron traveled from Orlando to Lake Mary, where he intended to meet with the minors for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct. He was subsequently arrested.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United State 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 the 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, Florida – U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell yesterday sentenced Brian Robert Harling (58, Fort Myers) to 20 years in federal prison for possession of child pornography. The Court also ordered him to forfeit five thumb drives that he had used to store his collection of child pornography.

Harling was found guilty by a federal jury on December 3, 2014.

According to the testimony presented at trial, on July 4, 2013, a new tenant discovered three thumb drives belonging to Harling that had fallen from molding inside of a closet, at a condo where Harling previously had lived. Harling had moved from the condo on July 1, 2013. The tenant and her mother discovered child pornography on the thumb drives and contacted the police. On July 4, 2013, a Fort Myers Police officer met with the tenant to retrieve the located thumb drives, and located two additional thumb drives that had also been concealed on the ledge of the molding inside the closet. Ultimately, the police located approximately 3,000 images and approximately 35 videos depicting child pornography on these thumb drives.

"Unfortunately, every time a photo or a video of an innocent child being sexually exploited is viewed, that victim is violated again,” said Susan L. McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI Tampa. “We owe it to the children affected by these cases to work tirelessly to seek out these predators and ultimately bring them to justice.”

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Fort Myers Police Department, with assistance from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Cape Coral 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.justice.gov/psc.

Fort Myers, Florida – U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell has sentenced Armand J. Croteau (47, Punta Gorda) to 27 months in federal prison for filing false claims with the Internal Revenue Service and for corruptly obstructing or impeding the administration of the Internal Revenue Laws. Croteau pleaded guilty on July 2, 2014.

According to court documents, Croteau filed numerous false claims for tax years 2005 through 2009, seeking refunds totaling $1,918,118.88. He utilized the “1099-OID” (Original Issue Discount) anti-tax scheme to present fraudulent Forms 1040 and 1040X to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), reporting excess withholding that was fabricated by him. He also made false reports on Forms 1099-OID and on the tax returns.

After being notified by the IRS that his income tax returns were frivolous, Croteau continued to file fraudulent income tax returns, and in order to obstruct or impede the administration of the internal revenue laws, he filed false liens against IRS personnel, recorded false documents with the Charlotte County Clerk of Courts, and submitted fraudulent instruments to the Department of the Treasury in an attempt to discharge his tax liabilities.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey F. Michelland.

Fort Myers, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the return of an indictment charging Naples residents Sydney Jackson Williams, Jr. (66) and his wife, Lorie Ann Williams (48), with conspiracy to evade transaction reporting requirements and structuring cash withdrawals.  Additionally, the indictment charges Sydney Williams with concealing property belonging to his bankruptcy estate and making a false declaration in relation to his bankruptcy proceedings.  If convicted on all counts, Sydney Williams faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison, and Lorie Williams faces a maximum of 10 years’ imprisonment. The indictment also notifies the couple that the United States intends to forfeit $332,500, which is alleged to be traceable to proceeds of the offenses.

According to the indictment, from March 3, 2010, through April 22, 2010, Sydney and Lorie Williams conspired with each other to knowingly structure, assist in structuring, and attempt to structure withdrawals from a bank. The purpose of the structuring was to evade bank reporting requirements for currency transactions in excess of $10,000. As part of the conspiracy, Lorie Williams opened a checking account at a bank and wrote checks made payable to cash, each in the amount of $9,500. The couple then made 35 withdrawals by cashing the $9,500 checks, totaling $332,500.

The indictment also alleges that on September 30, 2010, Sydney Williams filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition with the United States Bankruptcy Court in the Middle District of Florida. On October 27, 2010, he signed, under penalty of perjury, and filed his Schedules and Statement of Financial Affairs in connection with his bankruptcy petition.  In his bankruptcy proceedings, Sydney Williams concealed from the Chapter 11 Trustee and the creditors, property belonging to his estate, specifically, a safe deposit box held at a bank.    

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 and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Yolande G. Viacava and Charles D. Schmitz.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the unsealing of an indictment charging John Francis Songer (44, DeBary) with eight felony counts of theft from an employee benefit plan.  If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison on each count.

According to the indictment, Songer was the Apprenticeship Administrator and Coordinator of the Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee and Trust Fund for the Sheet Metal Workers’ Local Union No. 15.  Over an almost six-year period, Songer used a credit card belonging to the Fund to make more than $50,000 in unauthorized charges. The credit card bill was paid by checks written on the Fund’s bank account.  Songer’s unauthorized charges included personal expenditures for adult entertainment, restaurants, and gambling.  He also incurred charges for travel-related items that the Fund was not obligated to pay.

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 the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), with assistance from the United States Marshals Service.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States District Judge Timothy J. Corrigan today sentenced Christopher Richard Cloonan (45, Jacksonville) to life in federal prison for using a minor child to produce images depicting child pornography.  The Court also ordered Cloonan to serve a life term of supervised release and to forfeit his electronic media.  Cloonan is a registered child sex offender, having been previously convicted of attempted sexual battery on a 6-year old child on November 18, 1991, in Charlotte County, Florida. He was arrested on March 12, 2014, and has remained in custody since that time.

According to court documents, in March 2014, an undercover officer in Washington, D.C. (the “UC”) posted an advertisement on an online website frequented by individuals who have a sexual interest in children.  Cloonan responded to the ad and expressed interest and experience in sexual activity with a child.  On March 11, 2014, while discussing sexual activity with children, Cloonan sent an email to the UC that read, “Yes…. It would be awesome to share together with like minded man, would be more awesome to see and share in person but there is WAY WAY to much hatred against too risk it.  I am legit but cautious….”

On March 11, 2014, at 6:57 p.m., Cloonan sent the UC an email that indicated that he was alone with an infant child.  Attached to the email were two images.  Both images were produced by Cloonan and depicted an infant engaged in sexually explicit conduct.  At 7:07 p.m., Cloonan sent the UC an email containing two additional images that depicted the same infant.  Within hours, the FBI was able to identify the Internet protocol (IP) address used to send the images, and traced the Internet account to Cloonan.

On March 12, 2014, Cloonan and the UC continued their online communications.  In several different emails, Cloonan discussed his fantasies about sex with children.  He stated that “Society is coming down so hard on ‘child molesters’ etc now, we are in danger everyday as lovers of children are not seen as different from those who hurt and kill them.”

Later that day, FBI agents and detectives from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at Cloonan’s residence.  Cloonan exited the residence holding his smart phone, and was placed under arrest.

Subsequent forensic analyses of Cloonan’s phone revealed that it contained at least 85 images of child pornography, most depicting infants and toddlers.  Two of the images of the infant that were taken by Cloonan and sent to the UC were also present on the smart phone.  

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Jacksonville, Washington, D.C., and Quantico, Virginia, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and the District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Department.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

It is another 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 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 Susan C. Bucklew today sentenced Richard Mosquera Mosquera (44, Colombia, South America) to 11 years and 3 months in federal prison for conspiring with others to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, knowing and intending that it would be unlawfully imported into the United States. He pleaded guilty on November 25, 2014.

According to court documents, on multiple occasions between 2009 and 2012, Mosquera worked with his co-defendant, Anderson Bryan Lever, and others to smuggle cocaine. Lever dispatched cocaine-laden vessels from San Andres Island, Colombia and Mosquera received them in Honduras. On each occasion, Mosquera received the cocaine and provided bales of United States currency (containing as much as $500,000 each) to the mariners who had just smuggled the cocaine. The mariners then smuggled the money back to San Andres Island, and Mosquera transferred the cocaine to others for eventual unlawful importation into the United States.

Mosquera was arrested in Colombia and subsequently extradited to the United States.

This case was investigated by the Panama Express Strike Force, a standing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) comprised of agents and analysts from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the United States Coast Guard Investigative Service, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and 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 case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher F. Murray.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell today sentenced Carlos Sanchez (29, Lakeland) to 13 years and 4 months in federal prison for possessing with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, possessing a firearm and ammunition as a previously convicted felon, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  He pleaded guilty on December 1, 2014.

According to court documents, on March 9, 2014, officers from the Lakeland Police Department (LPD) were dispatched to the Best Motel in Lakeland, where Sanchez had reportedly pointed a firearm at someone. After making contact with Sanchez, an LPD canine alerted to an odor of narcotics on the exterior of his car. A subsequent search of the vehicle yielded a loaded Smith and Wesson .357 caliber revolver and more than 134 grams of crystal methamphetamine. Sanchez was previously convicted of multiple felonies in Polk County. As a convicted felon, he is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition under federal law. 

 This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Lakeland Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher F. Murray. It is another example of ATF’s Frontline strategy to reduce violent crimes in communities.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Cherica Daniels has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States and aggravated identity theft. She faces a maximum penalty of seven years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set. Daniels was indicted on September 10, 2014.

According to the plea agreement, Daniels participated in a scheme to prepare and file false and fraudulent tax returns, using the identities and social security numbers of others without their permission. Agents found Daniels in possession of personal identifying information of more than 200 individuals.        

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelly S. Karase.

Ocala, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Michael Paul Watkins (41, Citrus Springs) today pleaded guilty to possessing firearms and ammunition as a previously convicted felon. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison.  A sentencing hearing has not yet been set.

According to court documents, Watkins was previously convicted in state court for felony offenses, including the handling and fondling of a child under the age of 16 and two escapes. As a convicted felon, he is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition under federal law.

In October 2014, law enforcement officers received information that Watkins had been using a third party to illegally acquire firearms and ammunition. On October 21, 2014, agents executed search warrants at his home, business, and nearby property, recovering 140 firearms, including multiple AK-47 style rifles, and thousands of rounds of ammunition. Agents also located several fully assembled pipe bombs and the components to manufacture additional ones. 

This case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.

This is another case prosecuted as a part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy.  United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, along with Regina Lombardo, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, is coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials. It is also a part of ATF’s Frontline strategy to combat violent crime in our communities.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge James Moody today sentenced Aaron Edwin Remaley (39, Riverview) to 10 years and 1 month in federal prison for conspiring to distribute and possessing with intent to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana.  As part of his sentence, the Court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $284,250, representing part of the proceeds of the charged criminal conduct. Remaley pleaded guilty on August 26, 2014.

According to court documents, Remaley conspired with a group of associates to ship thousands of pounds of marijuana via UPS from the Texas border to Sarasota, Hillsborough, and Polk Counties. Evidence presented at his sentencing hearing revealed that in 2014, he had arranged for the shipment of at least 1,860 pounds of marijuana and funneled at least $927,000 of related drug proceeds back to his suppliers in Texas.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, and the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick Scruggs.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the arrest and charge by a federal complaint of Dontreaun Alexander (24, Sanford) with interference of interstate commerce by robbery. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison.

According to the complaint, on December 28, 2014, Alexander and Brandon Maurice Long committed an armed robbery of the Circle K store located at 7530 Forest City Road in Orlando. Long was apprehended on the night of the robbery. He was indicted on February 4, 2015. Alexander fled the scene and was later arrested on February 23, 2015.

A complaint 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 Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Orange County Sherriff’s Office. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Vincent Chiu and Kara M. Wick.

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis today sentenced John Dewey Todd (61, Fernandina Beach) to 19 years and 7 months in federal prison for producing and receiving child pornography over the Internet. The Court also ordered him to serve a 10-year term of supervision upon his release from prison and to register as a sex offender.  Todd pleaded guilty to the offenses on September 25, 2014.

According to court documents, law enforcement agents executed a federal search warrant at Todd’s residence in Fernandina Beach on November 15, 2013, during which they recovered several electronic devices. In an interview with agents, Todd admitted to having “child pornography” on his computers. He further admitted to collecting child pornography for a “couple of years.” At sentencing, evidence was presented showing that Todd had been collecting child pornography for 15 years.

Fifty-one media discs were found hidden in Todd’s attic containing at least 12,000 files of child pornography, including 550 videos and 11,500 still images. An additional 4,000 files of child pornography were found on other media. Todd’s collection included videos depicting thousands of instances of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, depictions of bondage, sadistic and masochistic conduct, and other portrayals of violence. Police also found five thumb drives in a jacket pocket hanging in Todd’s closet.  Upon examination of the thumb drives, agents discovered four self-produced videos made by Todd, in which he secretly recorded the genitalia of prepubescent girls using the bathroom in his home.

"This sentencing underscores the severity of crimes against our children," said Susan L. McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI Tampa. "HSI will continue to direct our vast resources toward protecting the most vulnerable in our society."

This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations and the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, with assistance from the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelly S. Karase.

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.  For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov and click on the tab "other resources."

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Enrique Hernandez (34, Miami) today pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank and mail fraud. He faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison. As part of the plea, Hernandez has agreed to make full restitution in the amount of $899,700, the approximate losses resulting from his role in the conspiracy.

According to the plea agreement and court proceedings, Hernandez participated in a mortgage fraud conspiracy in which some conspirators entered into agreements to purchase properties for amounts in excess of the original asking price. The conspirators then inserted false and fraudulent information about the various conspirator-purchasers on mortgage loan applications, or Fannie Mae Form 1003s, that were submitted in support of the loan requests. Upon closing each sale, the conspirators would use a portion of the inflated loan proceeds to pay the seller the original asking price for the property. The remaining excess funds, the amount between the original asking price and the inflated mortgage loan amount, were then shared amongst the conspirators. The purchased properties were subsequently allowed to fall into foreclosure.

Hernandez obtained $108,724 in proceeds for his participation in the scheme.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Office of Inspector General. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jay G. Trezevant and Special Assistant United States Attorney Chris Poor.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Fuada Delic (32, Jacksonville) today pleaded guilty to aiding and assisting in the filing of a false tax return. He faces a maximum penalty of three years in federal prison. As part of the plea, Delic has agreed to make full restitution to the Internal Revenue Service for the tax loss arising from the 43 counts charged against her in the original indictment.

Delic was indicted on December 19, 2013.

According to the plea agreement, Delic was the owner, operator, and sole tax preparer at Delica’s Tax Service, a company which offered tax return preparation services. On February 6, 2009, she prepared a Form 1040 on which she represented that the taxpayer had made charitable contributions in the total amount of $14,220. She also represented that the taxpayer had incurred $1,820 in education expenses for which he was entitled to an education credit of $1,510. When Delic prepared the return, she knew that the taxpayer had not made the claimed charitable contributions or incurred the claimed education expenses. Delic submitted the return to the IRS, which issued a refund in the amount of $3,323. Without the false statements, the taxpayer would have been entitled to a refund of $808. Delic was an experienced tax return preparer and knew that making such false statements on a return was against the law.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Arnold B. Corsmeier.

Fort Myers, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the unsealing of an indictment charging Michael J. Ronga (43, Cape Coral) with deprivation of civil rights and obstruction of justice.  If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison for the civil rights charge and up to 20 years in federal prison for the obstruction of justice charge.

The indictment alleges that on May 5, 2013, while working as a deputy sheriff with the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, Ronga assaulted “R.L.C.” causing bodily injury, and also took money and a cellphone from “R.L.C.”  Ronga also allegedly lied to law enforcement about his interactions with “R.L.C.” on that day.

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 Lee County Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  It will be prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Amira D. Fox and Chief Assistant United States Attorney Jesus M. Casas.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton, Jr. today sentenced Jeffery Hall (48, Maitland) to two years in federal prison for mail fraud.  He was also sentenced to serve three years of supervised release, and will be ordered to pay restitution in an amount to be determined at a later proceeding. Hall pleaded guilty on November 25, 2014.

According to court documents, Hall worked at a local art gallery that also had locations outside of Florida.  Over a two-year period, he used his position at the gallery to embezzle more than $1 million. Hall did this by diverting proceeds from the sale of artwork to his own personal bank accounts, or to a business account that belonged to him. He also used the gallery’s artwork as loan collateral for himself and sold some of the artwork on eBay.

This case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. Chief District Judge Anne C. Conway yesterday sentenced Ruben Mangual-Aquino (33, Orlando) to 48 months in federal prison for conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit access devices (credit cards), possession of device-making equipment, producing and using counterfeit access devices, possession of 15 or more counterfeit access devices, and aggravated identity theft. Co-defendant Yahima Carballosa (33, Orlando) was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison for the same offenses. A third co-defendant, Bernard Cordero-Perez (27, Kissimmee), was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for participating in the conspiracy and for possession of device-making equipment.  The Court also ordered the defendants to forfeit computer equipment and cell phones that had been used to commit the offenses. In addition, they were ordered to pay $44,629.23 in restitution to the victims of the crimes.

Mangual-Aquino and Carballosa pleaded guilty on October 29, 2014, and Cordero-Perez pleaded guilty on October 15, 2014.

According to court documents, Cordero-Perez worked as a housekeeper at a hotel in Orlando, Florida. Mangual-Aquino gave Cordero a hand-held skimming device to steal hotel guests’ credit card account information. On several separate occasions while at work, Cordero-Perez took guests’ credit cards from purses, wallets and backpacks that he found in their rooms, and then ran those cards through the skimmer. After skimming the guests’ credit card account information, he gave the skimmer to Mangual-Aquino, who downloaded the credit card account information into a computer at his home. Mangual-Aquino and Carbalossa then encoded credit cards with the stolen credit card account information to create counterfeit cards. Mangual-Aquino and Carbalossa used the counterfeit cards to buy gift cards at local area retail stores, and then used the gift cards to purchase merchandise. Mangual-Aquino gave Cordero-Perez fraudulently purchased gift cards as his payment for his participation in the conspiracy.

This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bruce S. Ambrose.

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the arrest and charge by a federal complaint of Shawn Paul Hendricks (41, Dade City); Vladimir Castaneda (26) and Jose Edgar Gonzalez-Castaneda (45), both of Eustis, Florida, with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. If convicted, each faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years, up to life, in federal prison.

According to the complaint, Hendricks, who was known by law enforcement to be a large-scale methamphetamine trafficker, was arrested in Dade City on Thursday night for fleeing and alluding law enforcement after an attempted traffic stop. Agents subsequently seized marijuana, a gun, and over $50,000 in cash from a Dade City residence where Hendricks lived with his girlfriend. Hendricks admitted to having received 10 to 15 pounds of methamphetamine a week over the past year from a source in Atlanta, Georgia and stated that he was to receive such a shipment the following night. With Hendricks’s cooperation, last night agents arrested Castaneda and Gonzalez-Castaneda at their residences in Eustis, Florida, after they delivered nearly 9 pounds of methamphetamine to Hendricks. In one of the transport vehicles, agents found an additional 11 pounds of methamphetamine. Gonzales-Castaneda admitted that he and Castaneda had picked up the methamphetamine in Atlanta earlier that morning.

A complaint 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 U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office.  It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kathy J.M. Peluso.