Southern District of Florida

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Donnell Young, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, announce the filing of charges against Frank Preve, 70, of Coral Springs, for conspiring to commit crimes associated with the operation of the former Fort Lauderdale law firm of Rothstein, Rosenfeldt and Adler, P.A. (RRA). In 2009, it was discovered that RRA was being utilized by its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Scott W. Rothstein, to commit a massive Ponzi scheme stemming from the sale of fictitious confidential settlements.

The information, which was filed earlier today, charges Preve with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. ' 371. If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum statutory sentence of up to five years in prison.

According to the information, Preve worked for a number of companies, referred to as “the Banyon Group,” which solicited lenders and investors into the confidential settlement business being offered by Rothstein. The information further charges that, from in or about July 2009 through October 2009, Preve defrauded investors by not disclosing that Rothstein had failed to make payments that were due to the Banyon Group, that Rothstein had frozen certain bank accounts that were holding investor funds, that certain paperwork was not being prepared, and that verification of the investments was not taking place, all in violation of a private placement memorandum which had been circulated to potential investors by the Banyon Group. The information further charges that, through these material misrepresentations and omissions, Preve caused more than $20 million to be paid by investors to the Banyon Group.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the IRS-CI and FBI. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lawrence D. LaVecchio, Paul F. Schwartz, and Jeffrey N. Kaplan.

An information is only an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), announce that Natalie Ladin, 62, and Jed Ladin, 66, both of Lauderdale by the Sea, and their company Natalie Jewelry, doing business as Golden Opportunities, located in Hallandale Beach, each pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1956(h). Sentencing is scheduled for October 31, 2014, at 1:00 p.m. before U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom. At sentencing, the defendants each face up to 20 years in prison.

According to court documents, the defendants committed money laundering by conducting wire transfers from Natalie Jewelry to third parties in Mexico. Operating an unlicensed money transmitter business is a specified unlawful activity for money laundering, and neither Natalie Jewelry nor any of its owners or employees had such a license from the State of Florida or the Department of the Treasury. From October 2013 through January 2014, the defendants exchanged coded text messages with two co-conspirators who would drop off bags of cash at different South Florida locations and provide the defendants with a list of people who should receive wire transfers from that money. In exchange for a commission, the defendants sent money via wire transfer to approximately 21 individuals in Mexico for a total of $2,023,950.00.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Thakur.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, John P. Carlin, Assistant Attorney General for National Security, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and the members of the South Florida Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), announce that Gufran Ahmed Kauser Mohammed, 31, a naturalized United States citizen and resident of Dammam, Saudi Arabia, pled guilty to one count of conspiring to provide material support to designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations al-Qa’ida, al-Qa’ida in Iraq/al-Nusrah Front (“AQI/al-Nusrah Front”), and al-Shabaab. Sentencing for Mohammed is scheduled for October 24, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Ursula Ungaro.

Mohammed was charged along with Mohamed Hussein Said in a fifteen-count indictment with conspiring to provide, and attempting to provide, material support to three separately designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations, al-Qa’ida, AQI/al-Nusrah Front, and al-Shabaab. Mohammed faces a possible statutory maximum sentence of up to 15 years in prison.

The indictment alleges that Mohammed and Said conspired to provide money and recruits to al-Qa’ida, AQI/al-Nusrah Front in Syria, and al-Shabaab in Somalia. The charges allege that Mohammed sent a series of wire transfers to Said for the purpose of supporting al-Shabaab, and to an individual whom he believed was a fundraiser, recruiter, and supplier for al-Qa’ida and AQI/al-Nusrah Front for the purpose of supporting al-Qa’ida and AQI/al-Nusrah Front. In addition, Mohammed and Said agreed to support al-Qa’ida and AQI/al-Nusrah Front by recruiting and moving experienced al-Shabaab fighters to the conflict in Syria.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI and the South Florida Joint Terrorism Task Force. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian Frazier and Ricardo Del Toro and Trial Attorney Jolie Zimmerman from the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Leslie R. Caldwell, Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, announce that Justin Lamar Sternad, 35, of Miami, was sentenced to seven months in prison by U.S. District Court Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga for violating the Federal Election Campaign Act (Election Act) in connection with the 2012 Democratic Party primary election for Florida’s 26th Congressional District.

Sternad previously pled guilty to all counts of a criminal information that charged him with one count of conspiracy to make false statements to the Federal Election Commission (FEC), one count of making false statements to the FEC and one count of accepting illegal campaign contributions.

Sternad was a candidate in the 2012 Democratic Party primary election for Florida’s 26th Congressional District. According to court documents, Sternad engaged in a conspiracy to accept illegal, direct and coordinated campaign contributions and file false statements with the FEC in order to conceal the true source, amount and nature of the funds used by his campaign.

Sternad admitted that his campaign accepted cash and checks in excess of Federal Election Campaign Act limits, and that he filed statements that intentionally misled the FEC about his campaign’s activities. During the campaign, illegal cash contributions from co-conspirators were used to pay for a rental car and the design, printing and distribution of campaign flyers.

According to court documents, Sternad reported to the FEC that he made loans to his campaign in the amount of $63,801, when he knew that he had actually loaned fewer than $300. In total, Sternad accepted over $70,000 in misreported campaign contributions.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel Thomas J. Mulvihill and Richard C. Pilger, Director of the Election Crimes Branch of the Public Integrity Section of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Four patient recruiters pleaded guilty in connection with a $20 million health care fraud scheme involving Trust Care Health Services Inc. (Trust Care), a defunct home health care company.

U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office and Acting Special Agent in Charge Ryan Lynch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Office of Investigations Miami office made the announcement.

At a hearing today before U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles of the Southern District of Florida, Estrella Perez, 57, and Solchys Perez, 34, both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and Abigail Aguila, 40, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States and receive health care kickbacks. Sentencing for all three defendants is set for Sept. 18, 2014 in front of Judge Gayles. On June 17, 2014, another co-defendant, Monica Macias, 52, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States and receive health care kickbacks before U.S. Magistrate Judge Chris M. McAliley of the Southern District of Florida. Sentencing for Macias is set for Sept. 10, 2014 before Judge Gayles.

According to court documents, the defendants worked as patient recruiters for the owners and operators of Trust Care, a Miami home health care agency that purported to provide home health and physical therapy services to Medicare beneficiaries. Trust Care was operated for the purpose of billing the Medicare Program for, among other things, expensive physical therapy and home health care services that were not medically necessary and/or were not provided.

The defendants recruited patients for Trust Care and solicited and received kickbacks and bribes from the owners and operators of Trust Care in return for allowing the agency to bill the Medicare program on behalf of the recruited Medicare patients. These Medicare beneficiaries were billed for home health care and therapy services that were not medically necessary and/or were not provided.

Estrella Perez and Solchys Perez also paid kickbacks and bribes to co-conspirators in doctors’ offices and clinics in exchange for providing home health and therapy prescriptions, plans of care, and medical certifications for their recruited patients. Co-conspirators at Trust Care then used these prescriptions, plans of care and medical certifications to fraudulently bill the Medicare program for home health care services.

From approximately March 2007 through at least January 2010, Trust Care submitted more than $20 million in claims for home health services. Medicare paid Trust Care more than $15 million for these fraudulent claims.

The case was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys A. Brendan Stewart and Anne P. McNamara of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged nearly 1,900 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $6 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Donnell Young, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announce that defendants Pamela Rhim-Grant, 40, and Eugene Moss, 33, both of Miami, were sentenced today before U.S. District Judge Joan A. Lenard. Rhim-Grant was sentenced to 81 months in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. Moss was sentenced to 70 months in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. Rhim-Grant and Moss were each also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $87,736.00.

Sentencing for co-defendant Nydia Nelson, 30, of Miami, is scheduled for July 25, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga. Each of the defendants previously pled guilty to one count of computer fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1030, and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A.

According to court documents, Rhim-Grant was a food service manager at Horace Mann Middle School and an employee of Miami-Dade Public Schools. In connection with her position, Rhim-Grant had network computer access to the Miami-Dade Public Schools’ Integrated Student Information System (ISIS) database through which Rhim-Grant could access information regarding current and former Miami-Dade County Public Schools students' personal identifying information (PII), including names, dates of birth, and social security numbers.

Court documents also state that from approximately October 2012 through January 21, 2014, Rhim-Grant and co-conspirators Moss and Nelson agreed and conspired to access the network computer, with the intent to commit stolen identity fraud, for the purpose of obtaining student PII in furtherance of that fraud. Moss and Nelson placed orders for student PII with Rhim-Grant. Once the order was received, Rhim-Grant accessed the network computer and printed student information sheets containing the PII from the ISIS database and delivered them to either Moss or Nelson at a prearranged location. Once in possession, Moss and Nelson used the student PII to file income tax returns seeking fraudulent refunds. The fraudulent refunds were directed either to prepaid debit cards or accounts controlled by Nelson.

According to court documents, Rhim-Grant was paid $10 per student’s PII in either cash or gift cards. According to Rhim-Grant, approximately 400 students’ PII were fraudulently accessed on the network computer and delivered to Moss or Nelson pursuant to the scheme.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI, IRS-CI, and the Miami-Dade Schools Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank R. Maderal.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Hugo Barrera, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), announce that Sergio Carvalho, 50, formerly of Boca Raton and Brazil, pled guilty today to charges of making false statements in a firearm sales record, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(a).

Sentencing is scheduled for September 18, 2014 before Chief U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore in Fort Pierce. At sentencing, Carvalho faces a possible maximum statutory sentence of up to five years in prison.

According to statements made in open court and documents filed in the case, Carvalho together with his colleague Moizes Maia Nogueira, 44, Pembroke Pines, visited a federally licensed firearms dealer named Vincent Olavarria, Jr., 48, Port St. Lucie, on March 30, 2001, in Port St. Lucie. The two men purchased twelve semiautomatic rifles from Olavarria, requesting that Olavarria conceal their names from the firearms sales records. Olavarria agreed to the request, and falsely placed the rifles in the names of other straw purchasers, when completing the sales paperwork required by federal law. Both Nogueira and Carvalho then resold and delivered rifles to Vicente de Paula Vieira, and his son Marcos Barbosa Vieira, two Brazilians who were exporting firearms illegally from the United States to Brazil. Olavarria recruited other straw purchasers to lend their names to false sales records concealing the actual destination of the rifles.

An ATF investigation into the sales records discrepancies led ATF Special Agents to question Carvalho in April 2011 about his purchase of rifles from Olavarria. Carvalho falsely denied knowledge of the rifles. Carvalho also did not volunteer the existence or involvement of Nogueira or the father and son team of the Vieiras, and their respective exports of firearms to Brazil. Following a federal Grand Jury indictment of the defendants in September 2012, all of the other charged defendants have pled guilty and been sentenced by Chief Judge Moore. In June 2013, Olavarria was sentenced to 34 months in prison, and Nogueira was sentenced to 30 months in prison. Straw buyer Darren Cuff, 26, Port St. Lucie, was sentenced in June 2013, to 21 months in prison, and in September 2013, straw buyer Anthony Olavarria, 49, Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico, was sentenced to five months in prison. Both Vicente de Paula Vieira and Marcos Barbosa Vieira have been arrested in Brazil by the Brazilian Federal Police and charged with crimes of firearms importation under Brazilian law.

Carvalho was found and arrested on April 30, 2014, in New Orleans, Louisiana, on the arrest warrant from his indictment in this case, and the U.S. Marshals Service returned him to Fort Pierce to face the pending charges.

This case is a result of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is a Department of Justice nationwide initiative that combines traditional law enforcement activities with community-based support and intervention programs. The two primary goals of the PSN initiative are to reduce and prevent violent crimes and to help past offenders adjust and re-enter the community.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ATF and the U.S. Marshals Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Theodore Cooperstein.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and David Pharo, Resident Agent in Charge, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS), Office of Law Enforcement, announce that Oscar H. Cordova-Cobian, 42, of Caracas, Venezuela, was arraigned today in Miami on charges he exported, and attempted to export, fish and wildlife, that is, specimens of regulated live corals, live rock, clams, and other marine invertebrates, knowing that said fish and wildlife were possessed, transported, and sold in violation of and in a manner unlawful under the laws, treaties, and regulations of the United States, all in violation of 16 U.S.C. '' 3372(a)(1), (a)(4), and 3373(d)(1)(A).

If convicted, Cordova-Cobian faces a possible sentence of up to five years in prison, a term of supervised release of up to three years, and a criminal fine of up to $250,000. He also faces forfeiture of the wildlife involved in the commission of the Lacey Act violations.

According to statements in the information and other court records, Cordova-Cobian is a resident of Caracas, Venezuela and operates and maintains a website through which he engages in the commercial sale of marine life, including ornamental fish and corals.

In order to protect certain species of fish and wildlife against over-exploitation, the United States is a party to an international treaty known as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, T.I.A.S. 8249, (hereinafter “CITES”). Species are listed by CITES in Appendices, each of which provides a different level of protection. CITES regulates trade in the listed species through a system of permits and certificates (CITES documents), in order to monitor the effects of trade to ensure trade is legal and not detrimental to the survival of the species. Appendix I includes species threatened with extinction that are or may be affected by trade and such trade may take place only in exceptional circumstances. Appendix II includes species that are not presently threatened with extinction, but may become so if their trade is not regulated. CITES, Art. II. Congress has implemented CITES in the United States through the Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. '' 1531-1544. The FWS as the CITES enforcement authority within the United States has published regulations to implement CITES. A list of all the species protected by CITES, the Endangered Species Act, and the FWS regulations is maintained by the CITES Secretariat. 50 C.F.R. § 23.7 and § 23.91.

The information alleges that in mid-May 2014, at Miami International Airport, Cordova-Cobian attempted to export, fish and wildlife, that is, approximately 136 specimens, including CITES App. II regulated live corals, CITES App. II regulated live rock (Scleractinia sp.), CITES App. II regulated clams (Tridacna sp.), and other marine invertebrates, in his checked baggage, for commercial sale to customers in Venezuela.

At no time did Cordova-Cobian apply for or obtain a CITES permit issued by the FWS for the export of CITES Appendix II wildlife from the United States or file a Declaration for the Importation or Exportation of Fish or Wildlife (Form 3-177) with FWS as required by law.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of FWS Office of Law Enforcement, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement, the Florida Keys National Wildlife Refuges and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Air Marine Branch. This matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Watts-FitzGerald and Antonia Barnes.

An information is only an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Ronald A. Cimino of the Justice Department's Tax Division, Donnell Young, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Paula Reid, Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service (USSS), Miami Field Office, announce that defendants Herve Wilmore Jr., 29, of Aventura, and Delvin Jean Baptiste, a/k/a “Doo Doo,” 29, of Miramar, were sentenced today before U.S. District Judge Robert N. Scola for their participation in a stolen identity tax refund scheme resulting in millions of dollars in fraudulent activity. Wilmore was sentenced to 240 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Baptiste was sentenced to 121 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.

On March 5, 2014, both defendants were convicted by a federal jury in Miami of one count of conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft, all in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, two counts of wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1343 and 2, and two counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1028A(a)(1) and 2.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, the defendants conspired to unjustly enrich themselves by recruiting knowing co-conspirators and unknowing victims to put businesses, bank accounts and Electronic Filing Identification Numbers (EFINs) in their names, through which fraudulent transactions would be conducted. To accomplish this, the defendants used the personal identification information of individuals, many deceased, to prepare and file false and fraudulent income tax returns with the IRS. The defendants would obtain possession of fraudulently obtained refunds in the form of United States Treasury and Refund Anticipation Loan checks diverted to addresses or into bank accounts that they caused to be created and controlled. The defendants would then negotiate the fraudulently obtained federal income tax refunds within each other’s businesses, and elsewhere, to avoid being detected.

According to evidence at trial and court documents, Wilmore, Baptiste and their co-conspirators caused the filing of approximately $35 million in fraudulent federal income tax returns of which the IRS paid out approximately $14 million. Wilmore was the president of Worldwide Income Tax Multiservices while Baptiste was the president of Royal Tax Multiservices, both tax preparation services located in Miami.

Each of the following co-defendants previously pled guilty to one count of conspiring to defraud the government, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1):

• Dukens Eleazard, a/k/a “DK,” 33, of Pembroke Pines, was sentenced on April 29, 2014 to 60 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $6,679,036.78 in restitution.
• Henry Dorvil, a/k/a “D,” 35, of Hollywood, was sentenced on April 17, 2014 to 54 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $2,537,417 in restitution.
• Corey Williams, 30, of Miami Gardens, was sentenced on May 21, 2014 to 40 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $2,089,411 in restitution.
• Ronald Gustave, 36, of Miami, was sentenced on April 17, 2014 to 36 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $544,054 in restitution.
• Luckner St Fleur, a/k/a “Nene,” 44, of Miami, was sentenced on May 9, 2014 to 30 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $1,376,472 in restitution.
• Brandon Johnson, 29, of Miami Gardens, was sentenced on April 22, 2014 to 30 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $74,050 in restitution.
• Marie Eleazard, a/k/a “Fanfan,” 32, of Miami, was sentenced on April 9, 2014 to 25 months in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $1,880,317.94 in restitution.
• Jesse Lamar Harrell, 26, of Miramar, was sentenced on May 9, 2014 to 15 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $589,675.93 in restitution.
• Ruth Cartwright, a/k/a “Princess,” 30, formerly of Plantation, is scheduled to be sentenced on September 26, 12014.

Co-defendant Marc Leroy Saint Juste, 47, of Tamarac, previously pled guilty to one count of conspiring to defraud the government, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371. He was sentenced to two months in prison, to be followed by one year of supervised release.

Co-defendant John Similien, 24, of Plantation, pled guilty on the third day of the eight day trial to making a false statement, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1001(a)(2), and was sentenced to time served.

The indictment was dismissed against Miguel Patterson, 35, of Miami.

Mr. Ferrer and Deputy Assistant Attorney General Cimino commended the investigative efforts of the IRS-CI, FBI, USSS, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI). The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil Karadbil and Tax Division Trial Attorney Greg Tortella.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Jason T. Moran, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Office of Inspector General, Atlanta Regional Office, announce the convictions of Domenico “Dom” Rabuffo, 77 of Miami, Mae Rabuffo, 75, of Fort Lauderdale, and Williston Park, New York, Raymond E. Olivier, 52, of Land O’ Lakes, and Curtis Allen Davis, 51, of Tampa. The defendants were convicted after an eleven day-jury trial before Chief United States District Judge Kevin Michael Moore. The jury found each defendant guilty of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud affecting a financial institution, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349. The jury also convicted Domenico Rabuffo, Olivier, and Davis of multiple counts of bank fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1344.

Domenico Rabuffo, Mae Rabuffo, Olivier, and Davis are scheduled to be sentenced by Chief Judge Moore on September 25, 2014. The defendants face a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison for each count of conviction.

According to the indictment and evidence at trial, from 2003 to 2008, the defendants conspired to perpetrate a complex $49.6 million mortgage fraud scheme against various FDIC-insured lenders, including Bank of America, Regions Bank, SunTrust Bank, and Wachovia Bank. Domenico Rabuffo and Mae Rabuffo used shell companies to acquire ownership and control of a purported residential property development known as Hampton Springs, located in Cashiers, North Carolina. Then, Domenico Rabuffo, Olivier, and Davis recruited numerous straw borrowers to purchase building lots in the development. Several of the straw borrowers testified at the trial. According to their testimony and other evidence, Domenico Rabuffo paid the borrowers to obtain lot purchase loans and construction loans for building lots in Hampton Springs. To obtain the loans, Domenico Rabuffo, Mae Rabuffo, Olivier, Davis, and other conspirators, submitted fraudulent loan applications and related documents to the lenders and the lenders’ closing agents.

Among other things, the loan applications and settlement statements for the lot loans contained fraudulent statements that the borrowers paid earnest money deposits and cash due at the closing. In fact, the deposits and cash-to-close were paid by Domenico Rabuffo and Mae Rabuffo using proceeds from the fraudulent scheme. Further, Domenico Rabuffo and Mae Rabuffo sent fraudulent correspondence to the closing agents, including letters bearing the forged signatures of borrowers, to create the false impression that the deposits and cash due at closing had been supplied by the borrowers from their own funds.

Olivier and Davis recruited straw borrowers for the fraud scheme and submitted fraudulent loan applications to the lenders. Further, Olivier and Davis caused their private companies to be disclosed as the employers of straw borrowers whose actual employment was inconsistent with the inflated income stated on their loan applications. Then, when they were contacted by the lenders, Olivier and Davis provided fraudulent verifications of employment for those borrowers.

Three other defendants, Diane M. Hayduk, 64, of Miami, Victor Miguel Vidal, 49, of Miami, and Lazaro Jesus Perez, 44, of Miami Springs, pled guilty to the charged conspiracy. Hayduk assisted Domenico Rabuffo and Mae Rabuffo with the misappropriation of loan proceeds and the transmission of fraudulent correspondence to the lenders and the closing agents. Vidal served as a loan officer at SunTrust Mortgage, where he sponsored fraudulent loan applications for lots in Hampton Springs, including fraudulent applications for $33 million in construction loans. Perez furnished fictitious accountant’s letters to Vidal, in support of fraudulent loan applications submitted to SunTrust Mortgage. Hayduk, Vidal, and Perez are awaiting sentencing by Chief Judge Moore.

Mr. Ferrer commends the investigative efforts of the FBI and FDIC, Office of Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dwayne E. Williams and Jerrob Duffy.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Dan Ashe, Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced that Gene Harris, 76, of Miami, pled guilty yesterday to the sale and purchase of, the offer of sale and purchase of, and the intent to sell and purchase horns of a black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis) with a market value in excess of $350.00, and to the transport, receipt, acquisition, and purchase of said wildlife, knowing that the wildlife was possessed, transported, and sold in violation of the Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. '' 1538(a)(1)(E) and (F), and 1540(b), all in violation of 16 U.S.C. '' 3372(a)(1) and 3373(d)(1)(B); and 18 U.S.C. ' 2.

Harris faces a possible sentence of up to five years in prison, a term of supervised release of up to three years, and a criminal fine of up to $250,000. U.S. District Judge Marcia G. Cooke who accepted Harris’s guilty plea, scheduled sentencing for September 24, 2014 at 10:30 a.m.

According to case records and a joint factual proffer submitted to the Court, at the relevant times, Harris was engaged in the retail sale of wildlife products, including taxidermy mounts from locations in Miami-Dade County and Laredo, Texas. Further, Harris engaged in the arrangement, brokerage, and purchase/sale of wildlife on a private basis, of various wildlife specimens, specifically including black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis) horns.

In the proffer, it was agreed that between June 2011 and July 2011, Harris engaged in a series of telephone conversations from Miami with a customer in California to discuss and arrange for the sale of black rhinoceros horns to the customer by a resident of Phoenix, Arizona. Harris reserved airline seats and a hotel room to facilitate his travel from Miami to Phoenix in July 2011. On July 23, 2011, Harris personally drove the customer, to the home of a Phoenix couple who were in possession of a full black rhinoceros shoulder mount, including the two horns of the taxidermied mount. At that meeting, the mount was purchased by the customer for approximately $60,000 in cash, and the rhinoceros horns pried from the head mount. To conceal the nature of the transaction and make it appear that the transaction was solely an intra-state deal, a false invoice was prepared, listing a third-party Arizona resident, also brought to the home by Harris, as the buyer. Harris was paid a “finder’s fee” by the California customer of approximately $10,000 for his services in locating the seller and arranging the deal.

Harris admitted to the Court that based on his prior familiarity with the California-based buyer, and his experience in the industry, he knew that the rhinoceros horns in question would be and in fact were, transported to California and thereafter exported from the United States without compliance with the laws and regulations governing such transactions.

Trade in rhinoceros horn has been regulated under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (“CITES”) since 1976. CITES is a treaty providing protection to fish, wildlife and plants that are or could become imperiled due to the demands of international markets. CITES has been signed by over 170 countries including the United States. CITES is implemented in the United States through the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”), 16 U.S.C. § 1538(c); 50 C.F.R. §§ 14 and 23. An animal species listed as protected under CITES cannot be exported from the United States without prior notification to, and approval from, FWS, pursuant to 50 C.F.R. §§ 20.13 and 20.20. Species protected under CITES are listed in a series of appendices (Appendices I, II and III) designating the level of protection afforded each species. Under Appendix II of CITES, a species can be exported from the United States to a foreign country only if, prior to exportation, the exporter possessed a valid CITES export permit issued by the United States. Under Appendix I of CITES, a species can only be exported from the United States if, prior to exportation, the exporter possesses a valid foreign import permit issued by the country of import and a valid export permit issued by the United States. All rhinoceros species are protected under either CITES Appendix I or II. The ESA also made it unlawful to export any endangered wildlife species pursuant to 16 USC ' 1538(a)(1)(A).

Rhinoceros are characterized by their enormous size, leathery skin and horns. Rhinoceros horn is a highly valued and sought after commodity despite the fact that international trade in it has been largely banned and otherwise highly regulated since 1976. Libation cups and other ornamental carvings are particularly sought after in China and other Asian countries as well as in the United States. The escalating value of these items has resulted in an increased demand for rhinoceros horn and helped to foster a thriving black market, including modern carvings being sold as antiques. Most species of rhinoceros are extinct or on the brink of extinction as a result of this thriving black market and export activity.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FWS Office of Law Enforcement who participated in the investigation dubbed “Operation Crash,” which is an ongoing multi-agency effort to detect, deter, and prosecute those engaged in the illegal killing of rhinoceros and the unlawful trafficking of rhinoceros horns. This matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Watts-FitzGerald.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Paula Reid, Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service (USSS), Miami Field Office, and Ronald J. Verrochio, Inspector in Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Miami Division, announce that Ajay Thuraisingham, 27, of Ontario, Canada, and co-defendant Christopher Duharte, 36, of Coconut Creek, were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kenneth Marra to 54 months in prison, and to 30 months in prison, respectively. Both defendants were also sentenced to three years of supervised release and payment of restitution in an amount to be determined. Both defendants previously pled guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, and mail fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1349 and 1341.

Eight of ten defendants charged in this case have pled guilty to the charges, which involved a scheme to bilk thousands of homeowners who were struggling to make their mortgage payments. Defendants Jason Vitulano and Jeffrey Taylor are currently set for trial starting on November 10, 2014.

According to the indictment and other documents filed in the case, between September 2008 and August 2009, the defendants operated boiler rooms that collected advance fees from distressed homeowners purportedly in exchange for obtaining loan modifications for the homeowners which were, with few exceptions, never provided.

The other defendants who have previously pled guilty include the following, with their respective scheduled sentencing dates:

Brian Fleuridor, 30, of Delray Beach, sentencing set for September 5, 2014 at 2:30 p.m.

Peter Brown, 27, of Sound Beach, NY, sentencing set for August 1, 2014 at 9:30 a.m.

Neil Sack, 40, of Ft. Lauderdale, sentencing set for August 8, 2014 at 2:00 p.m.

Gregory Small, 29, of Boca Raton, sentencing set for August 8, 2014 at 1:30 p.m.

Arthur Fogarty, 57, of Hollywood, sentencing set for August 15, 2014 at 11:30 a.m.

Robert Bacon, 35, West Newbury, MA, sentencing set for August 15, 2014 at 3:00 p.m.

The indictment alleges that Jason Vitulano was the organizer and operator of FHA All Day.com, Inc. and two other companies, Housing Assistance Law Center, Inc. and Safety Financial Corp., which operated the boiler rooms in Boca Raton and later in Deerfield Beach. According to the indictment and the factual proffers submitted in support of the guilty pleas, Robert Bacon was an operations manager who wrote and edited sales scripts, while the other eight defendants served as team managers of four to eight telemarketers who made thousands of phone calls to homeowners behind on their mortgage payments.

As alleged in the indictment, the defendants made false statements to the homeowners including telling homeowners they had already been approved or pre-approved for a loan modification that would save the homeowner a specific amount off their mortgage payment, reducing the interest rate and often the principal balance on the mortgage loan. The defendants, according to the indictment, routinely told customers that they had been approved by an “underwriter” and that they had a team of “expert attorneys” who would finalize the loan modifications.

The indictment further alleges that the defendants targeted homeowners across the country who were facing foreclosure, falsely telling them that the company would stop the foreclosure process and that homeowners could stop making mortgage payments while they waited for the company to finalize their loan modifications. FHA All Day, as alleged in the indictment, moved its offices and changed the corporate name several times to avoid law enforcement scrutiny and to hamper consumer complaints. Through the use of these and other false representations, the defendants, according to the indictment, induced over 2,000 distressed homeowners to pay up front fees totaling more than seven million dollars to the defendants.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of USSS and USPIS. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Jorgensen in the West Palm Beach Office.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), and Rear Admiral John H. Korn, Commander, 7th Coast Guard District (USCG), announce that Antonio Comin, 56, of Miami-Dade County, was sentenced to 20 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez for one count of conspiracy, 50 counts of encouraging and inducing aliens to enter the United States, 47 counts of alien smuggling for private financial gain, and one count of bringing an aggravated felon into the United States.

The evidence at trial revealed that Comin was the mastermind of an extensive organization that conspired to smuggle Cuban nationals into the United States for profit. In January 2012, the organization successfully landed 29 Cuban nationals on Big Munson Island in the Florida Keys following a high speed chase with the United States Coast Guard, and a conscious decision by the smugglers to run their vessel aground instead of being captured at sea. Of the 29 Cuban nationals landed that day, one, Rogelio Martin-Hernandez, had been previously deported back to Cuba after serving 264 months for cocaine trafficking. In September 2012, another smuggling venture was attempted; however, the vessel used ran out of gas near Cay Sal Bank, Bahamas. An attempt by Comin and his organization to save that trip was thwarted when a second vessel, carrying additional gas, broke down less than two miles from the smuggling vessel. The occupants of both vessels, including four co-defendants of Comin and 21 Cuban nationals, were rescued by the United States Coast Guard Cutter Oak.

Seven co-defendants in the instant case, all from Miami-Dade County, have thus far been sentenced for their participation in these events:

Daniel Rochela, 42, was sentenced to 100 months in prison;

Arial Arias, 43, and Oylver Aguilar, 40, were sentenced to 60 months in prison;

Severo Tapanes, 42, was sentenced to 40 months in prison;

Rogelio Martin-Hernandez, 73, and Alexander Aznay-Gonzalez, 23, were sentenced to 24 months in prison;

Oreste Chavez Torres, 23, was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

An eighth co-defendant, Jose Valdes Diaz, 37, will be sentenced on July 17th in Miami.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI and the USCG. This case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly Blackburn and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jaime Raich.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

“The bravery of the victims in this case is commendable. Their testimony demonstrated that despite the terrible abuse that they suffered from this defendant they are truly survivors. We can never forget that human trafficking is a heinous crime that exploits people; it simply cannot be tolerated. This case was the result of the hard work and coordination of the South Florida Human Trafficking Task Force in Miami, including our federal prosecutors, as well as that of law enforcement officers and non-governmental organizations in Australia and the Dubai Police Department. It is also the first time we have used the recently enacted extraterritorial jurisdiction provision of our anti-trafficking laws to charge someone for sex trafficking that occurred in another country. Working with our dedicated law enforcement partners here and abroad we have ensured that Baston will be unable to continue to exploit more women.”

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Tracey Dunn, Acting Special Agent in Charge, NOAA Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement, and Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), announce that Eric Burman, 60, of Boca Raton, was arraigned Friday in Key West for conspiring with others to transport, sell, receive, acquire, and purchase Florida spiny lobster (Panulirus argus) with a fair market value in excess of $350.00, knowing that said Florida spiny lobster was taken, possessed, transported, and sold in foreign commerce, in violation of the laws and regulations of the State of Florida, in violation of Title 16, United States Code, Sections 3372(a)(2)(A) and 3373(d)(1).

Burman faces a possible sentence of up to five years in prison, a term of supervised release of up to three years, and a criminal fine of up to $250,000.

According to the allegations of the information filed against him, at the relevant times, Burman was President and the sole Director of a Florida corporation with its principal place of business in Pompano Beach. Burman, through the business entity, was engaged in the wholesale commercial seafood industry, including the export of live Florida spiny lobster to the seafood market in China.

The information further alleges that during August and September 2010, Burman and others, purchased spiny lobster from harvesters in Monroe County without creating and providing to the harvesters and the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission, trip tickets reflecting the transaction. Thereafter, a co-conspirator of Burman’s caused the lobster to be transported to the corporate business premises in Pompano Beach for packing and shipping in foreign commerce. Burman agreed to permit a co-conspirator to package, mark, and ship spiny lobster under the corporate business entity’s name and through the corporation’s shipping agent. The lobster would ultimately be transported from the business premises in Pompano Beach to a commercial airfreight carrier located at Miami International Airport for export from the United States to Hong Kong, China.

The information, in a series of “overt acts”, describes multiple instances when specific shipments of spiny lobster were made to China by air freight, and the unlicensed and undocumented purchase of spiny lobsters in the Florida Keys.

Mr. Ferrer commended the joint investigative efforts of the NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement and ICE-HSI. This matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Watts-FitzGerald and Antonia Barnes.

An information is only an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, Donnell Young, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Ronald J. Verrochio, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Miami Division, announce that Victor Martinez Pantoja, 23, of Naples, was sentenced before U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez in Key West to 34 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.

Pantoja previously pled guilty to one count of theft of government money, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 64l, and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1028A(a)(1) and 2.

According to court documents, on November 21, 2013, Pantoja met with two individuals and negotiated a deal to cash fraudulently obtained U.S. Treasury income tax refund checks. During the meeting, Pantoja gave the individuals three Treasury checks totaling $27,263 to be cashed, provided a copy of a counterfeited Florida driver’s license and social security card for each corresponding Treasury check, and forged the names of the individuals to endorse the back of each check. Pantoja obtained these U.S. Treasury checks by filing fraudulent tax returns using the identities of individuals who died in the previous tax year. He obtained the deceased individuals’ identities from the internet.

Court documents also state that the individuals agreed to cash the Treasury checks within three business days and to return $20,500 to Pantoja. On November 26, 2013, the individuals gave Pantoja $20,500 as payment for the previous three Treasury checks. During this meeting, Pantoja provided the individuals with six Treasury checks totaling $35,547, which were to be cashed by the individuals.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of FBI, IRS-CI, and the USPIS. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gera R. Peoples.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, announce that Terrance Brown, 41, formerly of Miami-Dade County, was sentenced to 35 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Robin S. Rosenbaum for Hobbs Act robbery, two counts of attempted Hobbs Act robbery, and three counts of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.

The evidence at trial revealed that Brown was the mastermind of a seven-man robbery crew that conspired in 2010 to rob armored Brinks trucks. In July 2010, the crew planned to rob a Brinks truck at a Bank of America in Lighthouse Point. However, that robbery did not occur because the Brinks truck did not arrive at the bank at the time that the crew planned to rob it. In September 2010, the crew attempted to rob another Brinks truck at a Bank of America in Miramar. That robbery also did not occur because a police vehicle drove through the bank parking lot just prior to the planned robbery causing members of the crew to run from the scene. Finally, in October 2010, the crew returned to the same Bank of America in Miramar to once again rob the Brinks guard as he was delivering currency to the bank. During that robbery, the gunman fatally shot the guard in the head while Brown and his accomplices acted as lookouts. The gunman was arrested at the scene, and one year later, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI’s Violent Crime Task Force, the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, the Miramar Police Department, the Lighthouse Point Police Department and the Coconut Creek Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark Dispoto, Marc Anton and Michael Gilfarb.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

First time recently enacted extraterritorial jurisdiction provision of our anti-trafficking laws is used to charge sex trafficking occurring in another country

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), Miami Field Office, and Wendy A. Bashnan, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS), Miami Field Office, announce the conviction of Damion St. Patrick Baston, 37, of Jamaica. Baston was convicted after a ten day jury trial of the twenty-one counts with which he was charged.

Specifically, Baston was convicted of three counts of sex trafficking a victim by means of force, fraud, and coercion, both in the Southern District of Florida and in multiple countries around the world, including Australia, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1591(a)(1) and 1596. Title 18, United States Code, Section 1596 provides for extraterritorial jurisdiction in human trafficking cases; one count of forcible sex trafficking of a victim in the Southern District of Florida; five counts of transporting multiple individuals for prostitution, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2421; one count of importation of an alien for prostitution, in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1328; one count of use of a passport secured by false statement, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1542; one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A; and nine counts of money laundering, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1956. Baston, who is a Jamaican national, was also convicted of illegal reentry of an alien previously ordered removed, in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1326.

Baston is scheduled to be sentenced on September 5, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga, who presided over the trial. Baston faces a mandatory minimum penalty of fifteen years in prison and a maximum penalty of life in prison.

According to the indictment, other documents filed in federal court and statements made, Baston victimized seven women in the Middle East, Australia, and the United States. Six victims bravely testified at trial that they had been trafficked for sex beginning in 2011 in various cities including Miami. Baston had been ordered removed from the United States in the late 1990s but stole the identity of an American citizen, which he used to obtain a Florida ID card and U.S. passport in that person’s name. Baston used this false identity for international travel as he continued to recruit and victimize women.

U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer stated, “The bravery of the victims in this case is commendable. Their testimony demonstrated that despite the terrible abuse that they suffered from this defendant they are truly survivors. We can never forget that human trafficking is a heinous crime that exploits people; it simply cannot be tolerated. This case was the result of the hard work and coordination of the South Florida Human Trafficking Task Force in Miami, including our federal prosecutors, as well as that of law enforcement officers and non-governmental organizations in Australia and the Dubai Police Department. It is also the first time we have used the recently enacted extraterritorial jurisdiction provision of our anti-trafficking laws to charge someone for sex trafficking that occurred in another country. Working with our dedicated law enforcement partners here and abroad we have ensured that Baston will be unable to continue to exploit more women.”

“This case brought us halfway around the world to ensure justice for the victims,” said Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge of HSI Miami. “HSI along with our federal and international law enforcement partners will continue to work diligently to ensure international boundaries do not hinder the enforcement of justice.”

Special Agent in Charge Wendy Bashnan of Diplomatic Security Service’s Miami Field Office noted that “The U.S. Department of State, Diplomatic Security Service is committed to advocating justice for the victims and survivors of human trafficking. This case, and its successful prosecution, points out all the more that the cooperative efforts of, and collaboration between, numerous law enforcement agencies, both internationally and domestically, are significant factors in the purpose of the South Florida Human Trafficking Task Force to dismantle criminal organizations involved in the victimization of individuals in both sexual and labor trafficking.”

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI and DS, as well as the Australian Federal Police. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Olivia S. Choe and Roy K. Altman.

Human trafficking must stop. To report suspected human trafficking occurring in South Florida, please call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Tracey Dunn, Acting Special Agent in Charge, NOAA Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement, and David Pharo, Resident Agent In Charge, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Miami Area Office of Law Enforcement, announce that Charles R. Jamison, 74, of Little Torch Key, was arraigned Friday in Key West for conspiring with others to transport, sell, receive, acquire, and purchase juvenile bonnethead sharks (Sphyrna tiburo), with a fair market value in excess of $350.00, and attempt to do the same, knowing that the bonnethead sharks were taken, possessed, transported, sold, and intended to be sold in violation of the laws and regulations of the State of Florida, in violation of Title 16, United States Code, Sections 3372(a)(2)(A), 3372(a)(4)and 3373(d)(1) and (2), all in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371.

Jamison faces a possible sentence of up to five years in prison, a term of supervised release of up to three years, and a criminal fine of up to $250,000. He also faces forfeiture of the vessel, engine, trailer, tackle, and gear used in the commission of the Lacey Act violations.

According to the allegations of the information filed against him, at the relevant times, Jamison was a resident of Monroe County and engaged in the harvest and sale of bonnethead sharks (Sphyrna tiburo). At no time did Jamison, directly or as a third party contractor, possess or hold any State of Florida special activities license to collect, harvest, or transport shark species, nor did he possess and hold a valid federal annual vessel permit for sharks issued pursuant to 50 C.F.R. 635.4 to harvest, collect, or take shark species as required by the laws of the State of Florida.

The information further alleges that between approximately June 2012 and October 2012, at Monroe County, Jamison and others, harvested bonnethead sharks from Florida state waters in the Florida Keys, thereafter negotiating the purchase, sale, transportation, and transfer of the bonnethead sharks in interstate commerce. The bonnethead sharks would then be shipped in interstate commerce by a variety of means, including rental truck and as commercial air cargo.

The information, in a series of “overt acts”, describes multiple instances when specific numbers of sharks were harvested, the transfer of sharks from Jamison to a commercial marine life facility on Big Pine Key, and specific payments received by Jamison for sharks sold in interstate commerce.

Mr. Ferrer commended the joint investigative efforts of the NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement and the Fish & Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement. Mr. Ferrer also noted the assistance of the Florida Keys National Wildlife Refuges and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Air Marine Branch. This matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Watts-FitzGerald and Antonia Barnes.

An information is only an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announce that Russell S. Adler, 52, of Ft. Lauderdale, was sentenced today by United States District Judge James I. Cohn to 30 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by 2 years’ supervised release in connection with his conviction for one count of conspiracy to violate the Federal Election Campaign Act and to defraud the United States, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371. The defendant was a shareholder of the former Ft. Lauderdale law firm of Rothstein, Rosenfeldt and Adler, P.A. (RRA).

During his April 4, 2014 guilty plea, the defendant admitted that, in order to circumvent campaign finance laws setting limitations on the amounts which donors can contribute, RRA Chairman and CEO Scott W. Rothstein enlisted some of the attorneys and administrative personnel of RRA, and other persons associated with RRA, including Adler, to make political contributions to various political campaigns which were unlawfully reimbursed to them by RRA.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI and IRS-CI. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lawrence D. LaVecchio, Paul F. Schwartz and Jeffrey N. Kaplan.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announce that defendant Stevens Nore, 33, of Port Saint Lucie, was convicted by a jury of thirty counts, including twenty-one counts of preparing false tax returns, in violation of Title 26, United States Code, Section 7206(2), four counts of filing false tax returns, in violation of Title 26, United States Code, Section 7206(1), three counts of theft of public money, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641, and two counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A.

The Court has reserved judgment as to four of the counts pending argument by the parties. Nore was immediately remanded to the custody of the United States Marshals Service. At sentencing, Nore faces a possible maximum statutory sentence of up to three years in prison for each count of preparing and filing false tax returns, up to 10 years in prison for each count of theft of public money, and a mandatory term of two years in prison, consecutive to any other term in prison, for each count of aggravated identity theft.

According to evidence presented at trial and court documents, from June 11, 2009 through April 2012, Nore owned and operated Fraternity Tax and Services, a tax return preparation business located in Fort Pierce, Florida. Nore prepared and submitted Individual Tax Returns (Forms 1040), with accompanying schedules, to the IRS on behalf of taxpayers claiming false deductions and credits for tax years 2009 to 2011. Nore also filed false tax returns for 2010 and 2011 by falsely stating the amount of gross receipts and sales on Schedule C forms. The defendant stole three tax refunds totaling $26,349.30 to which he was not entitled, and used the identity of two individuals without their permission.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shaniek Maynard and Russell R. Killinger.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Leslie R. Caldwell, Assistant Attorney General, Department of Justice (DOJ) Criminal Division, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Ryan Lynch, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Office of Investigations Miami office, announce today that Euridice Borroto, 45, of Miami, Florida, pled guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman to one count of conspiracy to solicit and receive health care kickbacks and to defraud the United States. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 25, 2014.

A patient recruiter for a Miami home health care agency, Borroto, pled guilty in connection with a health care fraud scheme involving defunct home health care company Nestor’s Health Services Inc. (Nestor HH). The owner and operator of Nestor HH pleaded guilty to charges related to the scheme earlier this month.

According to court documents, Borroto was paid bribes and kickbacks for recruiting patients on behalf of Nestor HH, a Miami home health care agency that purported to provide home health and physical therapy services to Medicare beneficiaries. The owner and operator of Nestor HH operated Nestor HH for the purpose of billing the Medicare Program for, among other things, expensive physical therapy and home health care services that were not medically necessary and/or were not provided.

According to court documents, Borroto solicited and received kickbacks and bribes from the owner and operator of Nestor HH in return for recruiting and providing patients to Nestor HH for home health care and therapy services that were medically unnecessary and, in many instances, were not provided. Nestor HH would then fraudulently bill the Medicare program for home health care services on behalf of the recruited patients, in violation of federal criminal laws. Borroto knew that in many instances the patients she recruited for Nestor HH did not qualify for the services billed to Medicare.

From approximately March 2009 through at least January 2014, Nestor HH submitted more than $6.5 million in claims for home health services. Medicare paid Nestor HH more than $6.1 million for these fraudulent claims before the fraud was exposed.

In documents filed with the court, Borroto also acknowledged her involvement in similar fraudulent schemes at other Miami health care agencies.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the DOJ Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, FBI and HHS-OIG and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force. This case is being prosecuted by DOJ Trial Attorneys Anne P. McNamara and A. Brendan Stewart of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged nearly 1,900 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $6 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, José A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Ronald J. Verrochio, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), announce that Crystal Booker, 31, Miami-Dade County pled guilty today to one count of filing a false claim with the IRS, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 287. Sentencing is scheduled for September 5, 2014. At sentencing, Booker faces a maximum term of five years in prison.

According to court documents, defendant Orlando Cairo, 32, Miami-Dade County, was involved in a stolen identity income tax refund fraud scheme where he obtained the names, social security numbers, and other personal identifying information of individuals and unlawfully used this information to file and cause to be filed fraudulent income tax returns with the IRS. The returns reported false withholdings and requested refunds based on fraudulent IRS Forms W2-G, purportedly issued by the Florida Lottery Commission when an individual has gambling income exceeding a certain threshold amount.

According to court records, Booker assisted Cairo in this scheme by opening approximately eighteen bank accounts at financial institutions located in Broward and Miami-Dade counties. The fraudulent refunds that the IRS paid out were deposited into these bank accounts. Cairo filed and caused to be filed 378 returns identifying one of Booker’s accounts as the account where the refund should be deposited. The returns requested $2,128,841 in fraudulent refunds. In furtherance of the scheme, Cairo, with Booker’s assistance, presented to the IRS a fraudulent tax return, which claimed an income tax refund of $7,064. The refund was paid into one of the bank accounts that Booker opened.

On May 14, 2014, Cairo was sentenced to 120 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $277,133.58 in restitution. He pled guilty to one count of wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343, and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI and USPIS. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bertha R. Mitrani.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Hugo Barrera, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and Ric Bradshaw, Sheriff, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office (PBSO), announce that Edlord Dieujuste, 30, of Lake Worth, a documented member of the criminal street gang “Top 6”, was sentenced yesterday by United States District Judge Kenneth L. Ryskamp to 180 months (15 years) in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release for being an armed career criminal in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

According to court documents, Dieujuste has multiple prior felony convictions for robbery with a deadly weapon, robbery, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, robbery by sudden snatching, and felon in possession of a firearm. On November 1, 2013, Dieujuste was arrested by the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Gang Unit on local charges after detectives recovered a loaded semi-automatic pistol and marijuana from his vehicle following a traffic stop.

A federal grand jury indicted Dieujuste on December 3, 2013, charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition and possession of marijuana. In February 2014, Dieujuste pled guilty to the indictment as charged.

Dieujuste was sentenced under the Armed Career Criminal Act, which provides a sentencing range of fifteen years to life for individuals who have been convicted of federal gun crimes and have at least three prior felony convictions for crimes of violence and/or serious drug offenses.

Mr. Ferrer commended the ATF, and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, for their work on this case. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John McMillan.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) which is the anti-gang, anti-gun violence initiative of the United States Department of Justice. This program emphasizes and facilitates cooperative federal, state and local prosecution of firearm crimes, violent criminals, repeat violent offenders and gang related criminal activity.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, Ronald J. Verrochio, Postal Inspector in Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Drew J. Breakspear, Commissioner, Florida Office of Financial Regulation, and Richard P. Foelber, Chief of Cooperative Enforcement, Commodity Futures Trading Commission announce the results of the sentencing hearing on June 26, 2014, of Arthur John Schlecht, 54, formerly of Miami-Dade County, for conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and for wire fraud. Schlecht was convicted on February 27, 2014, following a five-week jury trial in Miami.

United States Judge Richard W. Goldberg sentenced Schlecht to 120 months in prison. Just before Schlecht’s sentencing hearing, co-defendants Carlos Rodriguez, age 37, and Ricardo Padron, age 54, were both sentenced to 45 months in prison. Co-defendant Robert Roca, age 62, was sentenced to 36 months in prison. Co-defendants are formerly of Miami-Dade County.

The evidence at trial revealed that over 700 investor victims lost in excess of $25 million as a result of the scheme perpetrated by Schlecht and his co-defendants. Co-defendants Rodriguez, Padron and Roca pled guilty prior to trial.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI, USPIS, the Florida Office of Financial Regulation and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. This case was prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel Caroline Heck Miller and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael R. Sherwin.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and William H. Calvert, Law Enforcement Officer, United States Fish & Wildlife Service, West Palm Beach, announce that Kenneth Cornelius Coleman, 52, of Riviera Beach, was sentenced today to 24 months in prison by U.S. District Judge William Zloch after pleading guilty to one count of unlawfully transporting endangered sea turtle eggs in violation of the Lacey Act, Title 16 United States Code, Section 3372. The government requested the maximum penalty of five years in prison for Coleman. The judge ordered that this sentence run consecutively to the 12-month prison sentence Coleman was given after violating his supervised release on a prior turtle egg poaching case, Case No. 10-80124-CR-RYSKAMP. Coleman was also sentenced to three years of supervised release, the maximum under the statute.

According to the Information and other court documents, on July 3, 2013, sea turtle surveyors discovered disturbed sea turtle nests in the area of the beach crossover at 840 Ocean Drive in Juno Beach, Palm Beach County, Florida. Nearby, a trail of six sea turtle eggs were found in the sand. Probing marks were visible in the disturbed nests.

Juno Beach Police officers responded. At the beach crossover near 840 Ocean Drive, officers found a wooden stick that appeared to have been used to probe the turtle nests, as well as three canvas bags. A blue bag was discovered and found to contain 213 sea turtle eggs. DNA analysis of this bag later concluded that the DNA profile previously obtained from Kenneth C. Coleman matched the DNA on the bag.

A biologist and sea turtle expert found that one of the nests disturbed on July 3, 2013, was a Green Sea Turtle nest (endangered species), and the other three were Loggerhead Sea Turtle nests (threatened species), both species of which are protected under Federal Law. The 216 sea turtle eggs were reburied in an attempt to allow them to continue to mature and to hatch.

On July 4, 2013, additional sea turtle nests were found to have been disturbed and to be missing turtle eggs, including Loggerhead and Green Sea Turtle eggs. These were in the area of the beach crossover near 70 Celestial Way in Juno Beach, not far from the disturbed nests from the day before. Also near that location, Juno Beach police officers discovered a backpack which contained 97 sea turtle eggs. These eggs were reburied as well. Defendant Coleman was later contacted on the beach near where these nests were disturbed. Officers detained him on suspicion of sea turtle egg poaching but did not advise him about the charges at that point. Coleman spontaneously stated, “I don’t know nothing about no turtle eggs.”

The eggs were examined by a biologist and confirmed that all of the eggs found were in fact sea turtle eggs. Because sea turtle eggs are illegal contraband, it is very difficult to establish a precise market value for the eggs, but the retail black market value is estimated by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service to be between $3.00 and $5.00 per egg, for a total value between $948 and $1,580.

Coleman was previously charged and pled guilty to violating the Lacey Act by transporting endangered sea turtle eggs in 2010 in Case No. 10-80124-CR-RYSKAMP. He was sentenced to 30 months in prison by Judge Kenneth Ryskamp in that case.

The U. S. Attorney commended the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the Juno Beach Police Department and the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission for their work in the case. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lauren Jorgensen in the West Palm Beach U. S. Attorney?s Office.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announce that Jeffrey Emil Groover, 53, formerly of Delray Beach, was convicted by a jury of all six counts with which he was charged. Specifically, Groover was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349, three counts of bank fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1344, and two counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A.

Sentencing is scheduled for September 3, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Dimitrouleas. At sentencing, Groover faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit bank fraud, 20 years in prison for each count of bank fraud, and a mandatory term of two years in prison, consecutive to any other term in prison, for the aggravated identity theft charges.

According to evidence presented at trial and court documents, Groover used the personal identifying information (PII) of an individual without her knowledge or consent to open a checking account and obtain a debit/VISA card at TD Bank. The defendant forged the name on the signature card for the account and, when asked for identification, produced a fraudulent, photo-switched Florida Driver's License with the individual’s correct information, but the defendant's photograph. Approximately one week after opening the account at TD Bank, the defendant again used the individual’s PII to open a checking account at PNC Bank. When asked to provide two forms of identification for the account, the defendant used the fraudulent debit/VISA card obtained from TD Bank, and the fraudulent, photo-switched Florida Driver's License. Groover directed the PNC banker to set up overdraft protection for the fraudulent checking account using the individual’s existing home equity line of credit. Between September 27, 2013 and September 30, 2013, the defendant and his co-conspirators withdrew and attempted to withdraw approximately $170,000 from the individual’s home equity line of credit by cashing a $20,000 check drawn directly on the line of credit.

In a separate case involving an identity theft tax refund fraud scheme, Groover was sentenced on April 18, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Robin Rosenbaum to 60 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $350,373.86 in restitution. Groover previously pled guilty to the indictment in this case, which charged him with making and presenting false claims to the Internal Revenue Service, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 287.

In sentencing the defendant to a sentence significantly above the sentencing guideline range in this previous case, the judge noted the defendant’s extensive criminal history, his arrest for a new identity theft crime while on bond awaiting sentencing, and the large number of victims who suffered, some for years, as a result of his repeated commission of identity theft crimes. The judge also noted that while serving a 46 month sentence for identity theft in 2004, the defendant provided testimony to the Senate Special Committee on Aging, in which he explained how easy it was to commit identity theft using the internet and how his 46 month sentence would cause him to never commit such crimes again. Since the 46 month sentence had not deterred Groover from committing new crimes, the judge imposed a 60 month sentence.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adrienne Rabinowitz and Alexandra Hui.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, José A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Steve Steinberg, Chief, Aventura Police Department, announce that Tekia Jones, 37, of Hallandale, and Ivory Covington, 29, of Miami, were sentenced before U.S. District Court Judge William P. Dimitrouleas for their roles in an identity theft tax fraud scheme. Jones was sentenced to 42 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Covington was sentenced to 36 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.

Each defendant previously pled guilty to one count of access device fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(3), and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1).

According to court documents, Jones was an employee of a national fast food restaurant chain and had access to employees’ names, social security numbers and dates of birth, but did not have permission to possess the employees’ information outside of her employment. On March 10, 2013, during an inventory search of a car driven by Covington, but shared and controlled by Covington and Jones, 118 names, social security numbers and dates of birth were found that belonged to former and current employees of this national fast food restaurant chain, along with two GreenDot Visa prepaid debit cards with the names of two former national fast food restaurant employees whose PII were found in the car.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI and the Aventura Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gera R. Peoples.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Thomas Caul, Special Agent in Charge, Social Security Administration (SSA), Office of Inspector General, announce that Diana Cunningham, 56, of Pembroke Pines, pled guilty to two counts of theft of government funds, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641. The defendant faces up to ten years in prison, three years of supervised release, a $250,000 fine, and restitution as to each count. The defendant’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for September 2, 2014 at 1:30 p.m. in front of U.S. District Judge William P. Dimitrouleas.

According to information presented in court, from approximately May 2003 to August 2013, the defendant falsely represented to the Social Security Administration that she was caring for and providing housing for a disabled child in Florida. The defendant falsified numerous forms and attestations to the SSA regarding the child’s whereabouts and welfare. An investigation by the SSA’s Office of Inspector General revealed that the child was living in Massachusetts and not being cared for by the defendant. Further investigation revealed that the defendant did not provide any financial support for the disabled child. Over the years, the defendant received over approximately $80,000 in payments from the SSA.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of SSA’s Office of Inspector General. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy Katz.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

The owner and operator of Nestor’s Health Services, Inc. (Nestor HH), a now-defunct Miami home health care agency, pleaded guilty today in connection with a $6.5 million health care fraud scheme.

U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida, Acting Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Brian Martens of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Office of Investigations Miami office made the announcement.

Cruz Sonia Collado, 64, of Homestead, Florida, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert N. Scola in the Southern District of Florida to one count of conspiracy to offer and pay health care kickbacks and to defraud the United States, and to one count of offering and paying health care kickbacks.

Collado was an owner and operator of Nestor HH, a Miami home health care agency that purported to provide home health and physical therapy services to Medicare beneficiaries.

According to court documents, Collado and her co-conspirators operated Nestor HH for the purpose of billing Medicare for, among other things, expensive physical therapy and home health care services that were not medically necessary and/or were not provided. As the owner and operator of Nestor HH, Collado paid kickbacks and bribes to patient recruiters, in return for those recruiters providing patients to Nestor HH for home health care and therapy services that were not medically necessary, and in many instances, were not provided. Collado would then fraudulently bill the Medicare program for home health care services on behalf of these recruited patients, which Collado knew was in violation of federal criminal laws.

From approximately March 2009 through at least January 2014, Nestor HH submitted more than $6.5 million in claims for home health services, and fraudulently obtained more than $6.1 million before the fraud was exposed.

The case was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Anne P. McNamara and A. Brendan Stewart of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged nearly 1,900 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $6 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, has removed over 17,000 providers from the Medicare program since 2011.

To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Maureen O’Mara, Special Agent in Charge, United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Criminal Investigation Division, Atlanta Area Office, and Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), announce that eAir, LLC (eAir), a Florida corporation with its headquarters in Miami, was convicted and sentenced in federal court in Miami in connection with the illegal sale and distribution of refrigeration equipment that contained restricted ozone depleting substances, in violation of the federal Clean Air Act, Title 42, United States Code, Sections 7413(c) and 7671.

eAir pled guilty to a one count information filed against it before U.S. District Court Judge Cecilia Altonaga, for knowingly violating a requirement and rule relating to stratospheric ozone protection through the sale and distribution in interstate commerce of a product manufactured on or after January 1, 2010 containing the refrigerant gas, hydrochlorofluorocarbon-22 (HCFC-22). HCFC-22 is a widely used refrigerant for residential heat pump and air-conditioning systems.

Immediately following the guilty plea, eAir was sentenced to five years of probation and ordered to pay a $200,000.00 criminal fine. In addition, as a special condition of probation, eAir was ordered to implement and enforce a comprehensive Environmental Compliance Plan, to pay community service in the amount of $75,000.00, and to reimburse the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for costs incurred in storing illegal merchandise.

Federal law prohibits the sale and distribution of refrigeration components manufactured after January 1, 2010 that contain or are “pre-charged” with HCFC-22. The federal Clean Air Act regulates air pollutants including ozone depleting substances such as HCFC-22. The Clean Air Act and its implementing regulations established a schedule to phase out the production and importation, as well as establish limitations on the sale and distribution of equipment containing Class II ozone depleting substances not otherwise subject to the bulk importation allowance system.

According to court records, eAir is in the business of importing and distributing merchandise, including air conditioning equipment, condensers, and mini-split air conditioning units. CBP records revealed thirty-four consumption entries filed on behalf of eAir for equipment that contained prohibited HCFC-22. eAir, with knowledge of the January 1, 2010 ban against the sale and distribution of such equipment, had the merchandise manufactured by an affiliated company in China between approximately February and July 2010. eAir subsequently executed more than 100 separate invoices for the sale of approximately 5,033 units or components containing HCFC-22 in direct violation of the Clean Air Act.

This matter and others involving the smuggling and distribution of ozone-depleting substances are being investigated through a multi-agency initiative known as Operation Catch-22. Operation Catch-22 has, to date, included the successful conviction of nearly a dozen individuals and corporations at every level of the refrigerant gas smuggling and distribution chain.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the EPA, ICE-HSI, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Criminal Investigation Bureau, and the Miami-Dade Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jodi A. Mazer and Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Watts-FitzGerald.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), and Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announce that Fred Davis Clark, Jr., a/k/a Dave Clark, 56, and Cristal R. Clark, a/k/a Cristal R. Coleman, 41, were charged with obstruction of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Fred Davis Clark and Cristal Clark, both United States citizens and former residents of Monroe County, were apprehended with the assistance of foreign law enforcement earlier this week. Fred Davis Clark was apprehended while transiting from Honduras to Panama, and Cristal Clark was apprehended in Honduras. Both were returned to the United States with the assistance of the U.S. Marshal’s Service (USMS). Fred Davis Clark made his initial appearance in Key West before U.S. Magistrate Judge Lurana Snow.

According to the indictment, Fred Davis Clark and Cristal Clark were former executives of Cay Clubs Resorts and Marinas (Cay Clubs), which raised more than $300 million from approximately 1,400 investors through the sale of vacation rental units in Florida and elsewhere. Fred Davis Clark and Cristal Clark operated the company from an office in Key Largo. After the collapse of Cay Clubs, the SEC began an investigation into allegations of fraud at Cay Clubs. According to the indictment, Fred Davis Clark and Cristal Clark engaged in conduct aimed at concealing the location of assets under their control, and Fred Davis Clark gave false and misleading testimony to the SEC in connection with its investigation.

Furthermore, after the collapse of Cay Clubs, Fred Davis Clark and Cristal Clark initiated another venture to operate pawn shops in the Caribbean. According to the indictment, using the same bank accounts and shell companies based in Key Largo that they controlled during their Cay Clubs activities, Fred Davis Clark and Cristal Clark engaged in fraud and theft of funds from CMZ Group, LTD, a Cayman Islands company that operated pawn shops in the Caribbean. According to the indictment, Fred Davis Clark and Cristal Clark obtained money and property from CMZ Group, LTD, by siphoning off funds from the business operations of CMZ Group, so that the defendants could lead a lavish lifestyle.

Furthermore, in or around January 2013, shortly before an action was brought by the SEC alleging that they committed securities fraud, the indictment alleges, Fred Davis Clark and Cristal Clark caused the transfer of nearly $2 million to a bank account they controlled in Honduras for the purpose of preventing the SEC from learning the source, nature, location and control of these monies.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI and IRS-CI, and the assistance of the SEC Miami Regional Office and the USMS in this matter. The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jerrob Duffy.

An indictment is only an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Attachment:

Fred Davis Clark - Indictment (PDF)

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Thomas Caul, Special Agent in Charge, Social Security Administration (SSA), Office of Inspector General, announce the conviction of Kevin Cimeus, 21, of Miami, after a four day jury trial in Fort Lauderdale for his roles in identity theft tax fraud and social security schemes.

Specifically, Cimeus was convicted of ten counts in the superseding indictment, including one count of conspiracy to steal government property or money, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, three counts of theft of government money or property, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641, one count of access device theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(3), and five counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1). Sentencing is scheduled for September 4, 2014, before U.S. District Judge William J. Zloch. At sentencing, the defendant faces a maximum statutory sentence of up to five years in prison on the conspiracy count, ten years in prison on each of the theft of public money and access device theft counts, and a mandatory consecutive two years in prison on the aggravated identity theft counts.

On January 23, 2014, Cimeus pled guilty to one count of access device theft and one count of aggravated identity theft. At his sentencing hearing on April 22, 2014, the Court vacated this guilty plea based on statements made by the defendant during the hearing.

According to evidence presented at trial, during a search warrant of Cimeus’ residence, federal agents found over 2,400 social security numbers and names of real people stored on thumb drives, laptop computers, iPad, Cimeus’ email account and sheets of paper. The evidence at the trial also showed that Cimeus recruited Miami Dade College (MDC) students to allow the defendant to use their Higher One Bank accounts to receive fraudulently obtained tax refunds and that Cimeus used his own Higher One Bank and Chase accounts to receive fraudulently obtained tax refunds. Cimeus filed at least one thousand tax returns from two IP addresses. He also used the two IP addresses to access the Social Security Administration’s web site and create on line profiles for social security recipients in order to re-route the victims’ social security payments to other accounts.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of FBI. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gera R. Peoples.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

A former patient recruiter pleaded guilty today in Miami, Florida, for his role in a $205 million Medicare fraud scheme.

U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge George Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office and Acting Special Agent in Charge Ryan Lynch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Office of Investigations Miami office made the announcement.

Michael Mendoza, 45, of Miami, Florida, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman in the Southern District of Florida to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 28, 2014.

According to court documents, during the course of the conspiracy, Mendoza was the president of Network Resource Consultant Inc., a Florida corporation, and he served as a patient recruiter for American Therapeutic Corporation (ATC), a defunct partial hospitalization program located in Miami that purported to provide intensive psychiatric services. Mendoza made an agreement with Lawrence Duran, the owner of ATC, and others to refer residents living in assisted living facilities throughout the Southern District of Florida to ATC in exchange for illegal health care kickbacks. Mendoza’s referrals to ATC were for purported mental health services.

Throughout the course of the ATC conspiracy, millions of dollars in kickbacks were paid in exchange for Medicare beneficiaries, who did not qualify for PHP services, to attend treatment programs that were not legitimate PHP programs so that ATC and related companies could bill Medicare for more than $205 million in medically unnecessary services. ATC submitted approximately $436,450 in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare for Mendoza’s beneficiary referrals.

Duran pleaded guilty and was sentenced to serve 50 years in prison for his role in orchestrating the fraud scheme.

This case is being investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida. This case was prosecuted by Assistant Chief Robert Zink and Trial Attorney Allan J. Medina of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged nearly 1,900 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $6 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, is taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

An office worker pleaded guilty today in connection with a health care fraud scheme involving Anna Nursing Services Corp. (Anna Nursing), a defunct home health care company.

U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Brian Martens of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Office of Investigations Miami office made the announcement.

Lizette Garcia, 37, of Miami, Florida, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joan A. Lenard in the Southern District of Florida to one count of payment of health care kickbacks. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 27, 2014.

Garcia was an office worker at Anna Nursing, a Miami home health care agency that purported to provide home health and therapy services to Medicare beneficiaries. According to court documents, Anna Nursing was operated for the purpose of billing the Medicare Program for, among other things, expensive physical therapy and home health care services that were medically unnecessary and/or were not provided.

On behalf of the owners and operators of Anna Nursing, Garcia paid kickbacks and bribes to patient recruiters in return for the recruiters providing patients to Anna Nursing for home health care and therapy services that were medically unnecessary and/or were not provided. Anna Nursing then billed the Medicare program on behalf of the recruited patients, which Garcia knew was in violation of federal criminal laws.

From approximately October 2010 through approximately April 2013, Anna Nursing was paid by Medicare approximately $7 million for fraudulent claims for home health care services that were medically unnecessary and/or were not provided.

The case was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys A. Brendan Stewart and Anne McNamara of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged more than 1,900 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $6 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, has removed over 17,000 providers from the Medicare program since 2011.

To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Ric Bradshaw, Sheriff, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, announce that Kawana Brown, 35, of West Palm Beach, Elton Baker, 29, and Eltonya Wiley, 40, both of Center Hill, were sentenced before Judge Kenneth A. Marra for their participation in a wide-ranging identity theft scheme. Brown was sentenced to 102 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Baker was sentenced to 65 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Wiley was sentenced to 42 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Brown, Baker and Wiley were also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $122,075.21.

Each of the defendants previously pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349, and three counts of wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343. Brown also pled guilty to two counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A, and Baker and Wiley each pled guilty to one count of aggravated identity theft.

Ringleader and co-conspirator Jennifer Robinson, 36, of West Palm Beach, was sentenced on May 30, 2014, to 121 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. A restitution hearing is scheduled for July 25, 2014 at 11:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Kenneth A. Marra in West Palm Beach. Robinson previously pled guilty to all counts in a superseding indictment, which included one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349, twelve counts of wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343, eleven counts of stealing government monies, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641, twelve counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A, and one count of unauthorized access device fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(2).

The scheme involved, in part, stealing the identities of patients at a medical facility in central Florida. Those identities were then used to file fraudulent federal income tax returns in the patients’ names seeking fraudulent refunds, and obtaining fraudulent credit cards which were then used to make fraudulent purchases.

Co-defendants Antoinette Simmons, 40, of Ocoee, and Josh Brown, 25, of Riverdale, Georgia, were sentenced to probation for their roles in the thefts.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Carlton.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Ryan P. Lynch, Acting Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Mark R. Trouville, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration, Miami Field Division, announce that Christopher Gregory Wayne, 54, an osteopathic physician residing in Miami Beach, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Scola, Jr. to 70 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. In addition, Judge Scola entered a $1.6 million forfeiture money judgment against Wayne and ordered the forfeiture of his Miami Beach residence and a 2002 Mercedes Benz. Christopher Gregory Wayne was also ordered to pay restitution to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in the amount of $1,649,042, the amount of loss suffered by the Medicare program.

Wayne previously pled guilty to a criminal information that charges him with health care fraud and conspiracy to violate the narcotics laws of the United States. In his plea, Wayne admitted to executing a scheme to defraud the Medicare program and attempting to cause a loss in excess of $2,500,000 to Medicare. Wayne also admitted that he conspired with others to knowingly and intentionally prescribe Schedule II controlled substances, such as oxycodone, outside the scope of professional medical practice and not for a legitimate medical purpose, knowing that controlled substances would be distributed illegally.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of HHS-OIG, FBI and DEA. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Eric Morales, Brent Tantillo and Evelyn B. Sheehan.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announce that Alvaro López Tardón, 39, of Miami Beach and Madrid, Spain, was convicted on 14 counts of conspiracy to launder narcotics proceeds and money laundering, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1956 and 1957. Sentencing is scheduled for August 19, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Joan A. Lenard. At sentencing, Tardón faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on the conspiracy to commit money laundering count and ten years in prison on each substantive money laundering count, followed by three years of supervised release.

Tardón was the head of an international narcotics trafficking and money laundering syndicate which distributed over 7,500 kilograms of South American cocaine in Madrid and laundered over $15,000,000 in narcotics proceeds in Miami by buying high-end real estate, luxury, exotic automobiles and other high-end items. The proceeds were smuggled into Miami by couriers through Miami International Airport, wire transferred to South Florida by co-conspirators via MoneyGram and Western Union, wire transferred to third parties internationally on behalf of Tardón, and wire transferred directly to Tardón and his co-conspirators in Miami through Tardón’s exotic car dealership and other companies controlled by him located in Madrid, Spain.

Following the guilty verdicts, the jury found that a significant portion of the defendant’s assets should be forfeited. Those assets involved real estate and cars. The real estate purchased by Tardón included condominium units in Miami Beach and Coconut Grove areas of Miami. The exotic automobiles included a Bugatti Veyron and Ferrari Enzo, each worth over $1 million, a Mercedes-Benz Maybach 57S, two Mercedes-Benz G55, a Rolls Royce Ghost, and a Land Rover Range Rover. The government also seized three bank accounts.

The seven-week trial included the introduction of over 36,000 pages of financial and corporate documents from Spain and the United States. The trial also included testimony from six members of the Spanish National Police, a member of the Spanish national wiretapping agency (SITEL), and the Spanish taxing authority (Agencia Estatal de la Administración Tributaria).

The investigation and prosecution of Tardón was the result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to identify, investigate and prosecute high level narcotics traffickers and money launderers.

U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer stated, “This case demonstrates that we will work vigorously with our local, federal, and international partners to bring to justice those who traffic in narcotics as well as those who launder drug proceeds. Our efforts transcend international borders and we are grateful for the cooperation of our domestic and foreign partners who worked together to ensure the success of this case.”

“In the world of drug trafficking, Alvaro Lopez Tardon is a bona fide kingpin,” said George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge FBI Miami. “His multi-million dollar cocaine enterprise spanned the globe from South America to Spain to Miami. Thus bringing him to justice required immense cooperation. As such, the FBI praises the assistance and investigative efforts of the Spanish National Police and our partners in the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force.”

Jose A. Gonzalez, IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge stated, “Today’s guilty verdict against the head of a major international narcotics trafficking and money laundering organization represents an important victory for all of us. By following the money trail, we were able to disrupt and dismantle Tardon’s drug trafficking organization and elaborate money laundering scheme and seize a significant portion of his ill-gotten gains. IRS-CI is proud to work alongside its law enforcement partners to bring criminals to justice.”

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI, IRS-CI and members of the South Florida High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force (HIDTA) for their extraordinary work in this multi-agency multi-jurisdictional investigation. Mr. Ferrer also thanked Customs and Boarder Protection, Tactical Analytical Unit, Drug Enforcement Administration, Miami Police Department and Monroe County Sherriff’s Office. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tony Gonzalez, Cristina Maxwell, Daren Grove and Evelyn B. Sheehan.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Manuel Orosa, Chief, City of Miami Police Department (MPD), announce that former City of Miami Police Sergeant Raul Iglesias, 41, Miami, pled guilty to one count of criminal contempt for violating a United States District Court protective order in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 401(3).

In 2010, the FBI and City of Miami Police Department Internal Affairs Unit initiated an investigation of Iglesias after receiving an anonymous letter that indicated Iglesias was stealing money and drugs from his arrests. At the time, Iglesias was assigned to the Crime Suppression Unit (CSU) which targeted neighborhoods plagued with narcotics trafficking and violent crime. It was later discovered that CSU detectives in Iglesias’ unit wrote the anonymous letter.

On July 19, 2012, a federal grand jury returned a nine-count indictment against Iglesias, charging him with conspiracy, violation of civil rights, possession with intent to distribute cocaine, obstruction of justice, and making false statements. As part of the discovery in that case, the government turned over to the defense a number of consensual recordings made by cooperating CSU detectives with Iglesias. In order to protect the cooperating CSU detectives and other witnesses from intimidation and harassment, the government moved for a protective order to prevent the dissemination of the discovery materials outside of the defense team which was later granted by the Court.

Following trial, a federal jury found Iglesias guilty on eight of the nine counts in the indictment. Iglesias was later sentenced to 48 months in prison, and was ordered to surrender to the Federal Bureau of Prison on April 26, 2013, to commence serving his sentence. However, on April 24, 2013, less than two days before he was required to surrender to begin serving his sentence, Iglesias posted protected audio recordings of the undercover conversations made by cooperating CSU detectives on YouTube and LEOAFFAIRS, an internet message board which catered to law enforcement. Both the YouTube and LEOAFFAIRS postings were titled “Miami Mice” and were posted by Iglesias using the screen name of “Chivas Regal.” After the protected undercover recordings became public, various unknown individuals using fictitious screen names posted threatening or derogatory comments against the cooperating CSU detectives on the LEOAFFAIRS message board. The CSU detectives also found derogatory notes on their vehicles and in their mail boxes at work, and officers stopped responding to their calls to provide backup.

Sentencing is scheduled for September 5, 2014, at 10:30 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Ursula Ungaro. At sentencing, Iglesias faces life in prison and fines of up to $250,000.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI, MPD and the Miami Area Corruption Task Force. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly Selmore.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

A grand jury in Miami, Florida, indicted two individuals and two corporations for allegedly operating call centers in Peru that lied to and threatened Spanish-speaking victims into paying fraudulent settlements.

U.S. Attorney Wilfredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Attorney General Stuart F. Delery of the Justice Department’s Civil Division and U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Ronald Verrochio of the Miami Office made the announcement.

Maria Luzula, of Miami, and Juan Alejandro Rodriguez Cuya, of Lima, Peru, were charged with conspiracy, mail and wire fraud and extortion. Two Miami-based corporate entities – Angeluz Florida Corporation and Angeluz Miami, LLC – were charged with the same offenses.

“Consumer fraud that targets a specific population is shameful,” said U.S. Attorney Ferrer. “In this case, the defendants are alleged to have targeted Spanish-speaking consumers and falsely threatened them with arrest, deportation, forfeiture of property or harm to their credit scores when the consumers refused to settle claims for products that were not delivered or ordered. Such tactics are intolerable. The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed and stands united with the Department of Justice’s Civil Division, Consumer Protection Branch, to protect our consumers from fraud.”

“The Department of Justice is committed to fighting consumer fraud,” said Assistant Attorney General Delery. “Threats, misrepresentations and other predatory tactics used to rip off consumers will not be tolerated.”

“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service will continue to aggressively investigate and pursue those who threaten our citizens and defraud them of their hard earned money, no matter what country they are operating from,” said U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Verrochio.

According to allegations in the indictment, the defendants’ employees in Peru, using Internet-based telephone calls, lied to Spanish-speaking victims in the U.S. about fines they owed and lawsuits that would be brought against the victims. Peruvian callers threatened the victims and falsely told each victim that he or she had wrongfully failed to receive a delivery of products. The callers went on to claim, again falsely, that the victims owed thousands of dollars in fines. In reality, the victims had never ordered these products and no attempts to deliver products to the victims had been made.

The indictment alleges that Luzula’s and Rodriguez Cuya’s employees claimed that the consumers could resolve the fines if they immediately paid a “settlement fee.” Consumers who contested these settlement fees were told that failure to pay could lead to arrest, deportation, forfeiture of property or harm to their credit scores. Although consumers typically objected that they did not order or refuse delivery of any products, thousands still agreed to pay the fees due to these threats. The indictment alleges that a phone room in Miami collected the fees.

Luzula and Rodriguez Cuya originally were charged by criminal complaint and arrested on Jan. 10, 2013. They have remained incarcerated since their arrests.

The charges in the indictment are only allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Assistant Attorney General Delery commended the Postal Inspection Service for their investigative efforts and thanked the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida for their contributions to the case. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Phil Toomajian and Assistant Director Richard Goldberg with the Department of Justice’s Civil Division, Consumer Protection Branch.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, José A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Paula Reid, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Secret Service, Miami Field Office, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, announce that Regina James, 39, of Fort Lauderdale, was sentenced for her participation in a check cashing and stolen identity scheme. James was sentenced to 66 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay restitution of $650,617.00.

Regina James previously pled guilty in three cases. In one case, she pled guilty to one count of theft of public money, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641, and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1). In the second case, she pled guilty to conspiracy to steal, receive, and retain money and things of value of the United States and to forge endorsements on and cash treasury checks, receipt and retention of things of value of the United States, and aggravated identity theft. In the third case, she pled guilty to identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028(a)(7).

According to court documents, Wilson and Kate Lau owned a check cashing store called American Quick Cash (AQC). The Laus were cashing fraudulent tax refund checks arising out of fraudulent tax refund filings containing stolen identities. James was one of the seven “middle men” who brought the fraudulently obtained U.S. Treasury checks to AQC. James also brought fake Florida driver’s licenses in the names of the individuals on the checks that she cashed at AQC. James was charged 15% to cash the fraudulent checks, but Lau subsequently increased the fee to 50%. James received the stolen checks from another person and gave 40% of the amount of the check to that individual, and kept 10% for herself.

From January 2010 through June 2011, the total amount of U.S. Treasury checks cashed by James at AQC is approximately $650,617. The number of victims involved is greater than 50, but fewer than 250.

On July 20, 2012, Wilson Lau, 75, and his wife, Kate Yuee Lau, 54, formerly of Coral Springs, were sentenced before U.S. District Judge Robert Scola. Wilson Lau was sentenced to 84 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Kate Yuee Lau was sentenced to 24 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.

In a separate investigation, James and co-defendants, Ronald Walker, 36, of Fort Lauderdale, Aaron Taylor, 30, of Lauderhill, and James Burch, 36, of Coral Springs, sold $75,108.79 in fraudulently obtained tax refund checks and 609 people’s identifying information. On May 30, 2014, Walker was sentenced to 94 months in prison. On May 16, 2014, Taylor was sentenced to 54 months in prison and Burch was sentenced to 36 months in prison.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI, the Secret Service, and the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alicia E. Shick and Marc Osborne.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Edward Grace, Deputy Assistant Director, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement, and Tracy A. Dunn, Special Agent in Charge, SAC Southeast Regional Office, NOAA, announce that Jonathan M. Hale, 30, of Patchogue, New York, pled guilty and was sentenced for transporting, possessing, and selling live rock bearing specimens of Ricordea florida in interstate commerce, with a fair market value in excess of $350.00, knowing the marine life was taken, possessed, transported, sold, and intended to be sold in violation of the laws and regulations of the State of Florida, contrary to the federal Lacey Act, Title 16, United States Code, Sections 3372(a)(2)(A), (a)(4), 3373(d)(1)(B), and Title 18, United States Code, Section 2.

The defendant entered his guilty plea to the single charge before U.S. District Judge James Lawrence King, who after accepting the guilty plea imposed sentence on the defendant. Hale was sentenced to a term of probation of two years and a criminal fine of $10,000.

According to the indictment, joint factual statements submitted to the Court, and statements in court, at the relevant times, Hale was Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of Country Critters of Long Island, Inc., located in Patchogue, New York. Country Critters of Long Island, Inc. was a retail business engaged in the sale of various species of wildlife, including mammals, reptiles, and fish.

In September 2012, at Marathon Shores, Florida, the defendant met with a marine life supplier and discussed pricing of various marine life species, including Ricordea florida, tarpon, and sharks. The defendant then placed an order for 100 ricordea, on rock.

In early October 2012, in a telephone conversation from Marathon Shores to the defendant in Patchogue, New York, the supplier advised he had acquired the requested marine life near Key West, and secured defendant’s promise to keep the source of the ricordea secret because it was illegal to harvest them in that area.

Thereafter, a shipment including six live rocks (Scleractinia) bearing approximately 111 specimens of Ricordea florida was shipped in interstate commerce from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport to New York, consigned to “Country Critters-Jonathan Hale” and invoiced for wholesale in the amount of $444.00. Payment for the shipment was made by Jonathon Hale by credit card, to the marine life supplier. The retail fair market value of the ricordea exceeded $2,200.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement, and NOAA Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement who participated in the long-term investigation into the illegal harvesting and sale of marine life resources from the Florida Keys known as Operation Rock Bottom. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Watts-FitzGerald.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Ronald J. Verrochio, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Miami Division, announce that Steven Toussaint, 33, and Emmanuel Marvin Alphonse, 28, both of Miami, each pled guilty to one count of money laundering, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1956(a)(1)(B)(i). Sentencing is scheduled for August 14, 2014 at 2:30 p.m. At sentencing, the defendants each face up to 20 years in prison.

According to court documents, from January 1, 2011 through July 29, 2011, the defendants engaged in money laundering activities involving the cashing of money orders funded with fraudulent, stolen identity tax refunds. Both Toussaint and Alphonse had their own check cashing accounts at the Cash-A-Check check-cashing store. Steven Toussaint cashed 985 money orders, totaling $490,401, using his own Cash-A-Check account. Emmanuel Marvin Alphonse cashed 581 money orders, totaling $286,995, using his own Cash-A-Check account. The defendants knew that the money orders were funded by unlawful activity, and knowingly conducted the transactions on behalf of third-parties for the purpose of concealing and disguising the nature and source of the unlawful proceeds in exchange for a portion of the funds involved in each transaction.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI and USPIS. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank R. Maderal.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, José A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Paula Reid, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Secret Service, announce that Louis A. Francois, 44, of Margate, was sentenced today to five years in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. The defendant was also ordered to pay restitution of $355,000.

Louis A. Francois previously pled guilty to one count of wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343, and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1).

According to court documents, Francois owned and operated a tax preparation business called A&I Multi Services (A&I) located in Oakland Park. Francois stole personal identifying information (PII) of various individuals, including their names, dates of birth, social security numbers, and addresses, for the purpose of filing fraudulent U.S. income tax returns claiming tax refunds in those individuals’ names. Subsequently, Francois printed out the refund checks payable to the persons whose PII was used at A&I. The checks were in the amount of the fraudulently obtained tax refunds minus Francois’ “tax preparation” fees and other fees. The “tax preparation” fees were deposited into Francois’ bank account. Francois went to a check cashing store located next door to A&I with the fraudulently obtained tax refund checks and fraudulent Florida driver's licenses matching the stolen identities on the checks and cashed them.

From July 2010 through June 2011, the total amount of U.S. Treasury checks cashed by Francois and the total amount of fraudulent refunds requested by Francois is approximately $355,000. The number of victims involved is greater than ten, but fewer than fifty.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI and the Secret Service. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alicia E. Shick.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Miami Task Force Targets Cyber Fraud

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, announce the arrests of eight individuals charged in four separate cases for their alleged participation in various cyber fraud schemes.

The cases announced today are, in large part, the result of the Miami Cyber Task Force (MCTF) initiative launched by the FBI in January 2014. The MCTF initiative is designed to combat the growing cyber fraud threat in South Florida. The MCTF initiative brings together federal, state and local law enforcement to investigate and prosecute federally a myriad of cyber fraud offenders, including personal identity thieves, hackers, access device manufacturers, runners and others.

U.S. Attorney Ferrer, joined by members of the MCTF, announce the following cases:

1. United States v. Kenneth Key, et al., Case No. 14-60122-Cr-Zloch. United States v. Kaleb Trotman, et al., Case No. 14-60123-Cr-Hurley

On May 29, 2014, Kenneth Key, 32, of Pompano Beach, Jonathan Mackey, 23, of Fort Lauderdale, Quenikka Brown, 28, of Atlanta, Georgia, Kaleb Trotman, 25, of Pompano Beach, Tsafiq Samuels, 24, of Miramar, and Tanya Morgan, 27, of Miami Gardens, were charged by indictment in two related schemes to steal AT&T customer information for the purpose of committing cell phone insurance fraud.

According to the indictments, defendants Key, Mackey, Brown, Samuels, and Morgan were employed as customer service representatives at two private companies that operated call centers located in Broward County, on behalf of AT&T. As customer service representatives, the defendants used their access to corporate databases to steal AT&T customer personal identification and account information.

The defendants are charged with conspiring to sell the stolen AT&T customer information to co-conspirators, including Trotman, who used the information to impersonate AT&T customers and submit fraudulent cell phone insurance claims.

The indictments also charge the defendants with conspiracy to commit computer fraud and aggravated identity theft.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher B. Browne.

2. United States v. Richard Garcia Diaz, Case No. 14-2682-MJ-JG

On June 2, 2014, Richard Garcia Diaz, 50, of Hialeah, was charged by complaint for his involvement in a scheme to steal thousands of cable boxes and modems and to illegally modify these cable boxes and modems to receive free service.

According to the complaint, between April 2013 and July 2013, thousands of cable boxes and modems were ordered from Comcast with similar names and identity information for delivery to addresses in or around Coral Way in Miami. FBI surveillance revealed that co-conspirator J.L.B. (a UPS driver) took these Comcast packages loaded with cable boxes and/or modems to addresses on his delivery route and diverted them to co-conspirator J.R.P.’s residence in Miami. Post-arrest, J.R.P. advised that J.R.P. provided the cable boxes and modems to the defendant so that the modems could be provisioned to receive unlimited service.

The defendant was charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and unauthorized reception of cable service.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael N. Berger.

3. United States v. Ricardo Prieto, Case No. 14-20389-Cr-Moreno

On May 30, 2014, Ricardo Prieto, 49, of Miami, was charged by indictment with access device fraud and aggravated identity theft.

According to the indictment, Prieto trafficked in and used counterfeit credit cards on several dates from August 2011 through February 2012 and used the means of identification of a real person in connection with that activity.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Maderal.

If convicted, the defendants face the following possible maximum terms in prison: conspiracy to commit mail fraud: 20 years in prison; access device fraud: 10 or 20 years in prison; conspiracy to commit access device fraud: five years in prison; conspiracy to commit computer fraud: five years in prison; and aggravated identity theft: mandatory two years in prison consecutive to any sentence.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of all the federal, state and local agencies participating in the MCTF, including the FBI, the City of Miami Police Department, the Miami-Dade Police Department, the Hialeah Police Department, the Bal Barbour Police Department, the Davie Police Department, the Florida Division of Insurance Fraud, and the Palm Beach Sherriff’s Office.

A complaint or indictment is only an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announce that Nydia Nelson, 30, of Miami, pled guilty to one count of computer fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1030, and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A. Co-defendants Pamela Rhim-Grant, 40, and Eugene Moss, 33, both of Miami, pled guilty on April 29, 2014 to the same two charges. Sentencing for Rhim-Grant and Moss is scheduled for July 8, 2014. Sentencing for Nelson is scheduled for July 25, 2014. At sentencing, the defendants face a maximum of five years in prison for computer fraud, and a mandatory term of two years in prison for aggravated identity theft, to run consecutively to any other sentence.

According to court documents, Rhim-Grant was a food service manager at Horace Mann Middle School and an employee of Miami-Dade Public Schools. In connection with her position, Rhim-Grant had Network Computer access to the Miami-Dade Public Schools' Integrated Student Information System (ISIS) database through which Rhim-Grant could access information regarding current and former Miami-Dade County Public Schools students' personal identifying information (PII), including names, dates of birth, and social security numbers.

Court documents also state that from approximately October 2012 through January 21, 2014, Rhim-Grant and co-conspirators Eugene Moss and Nydia Nelson agreed and conspired to access the Network Computer, with the intent to commit stolen identity fraud, for the purpose of obtaining student PII in furtherance of that fraud. Eugene Moss and Nelson placed orders for student PII with Rhim-Grant. Once the order was received, Rhim-Grant accessed the Network Computer and printed student information sheets containing the PII from the ISIS database and delivered them to either Moss or Nelson at a prearranged location. Once in possession, Moss and Nelson used the student PII to file income tax returns seeking fraudulent refunds. The fraudulent refunds were directed either to prepaid debit cards or accounts controlled by Nelson.

According to court documents, Rhim-Grant was paid $10 per student PII in either cash or gift cards. According to Rhim-Grant, approximately 400 student's PII were fraudulently accessed on the Network Computer and delivered to Moss or Nelson pursuant to the scheme.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI, IRS-CI, and the Miami-Dade Schools Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank R. Maderal.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Ric Bradshaw, Sheriff, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, announce that Jennifer Robinson, 36, of West Palm Beach, was sentenced for her participation in a wide-ranging identity theft scheme. Robinson was sentenced to 121 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. A restitution hearing is scheduled for July 25, 2014 at 11:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Kenneth A. Marra in West Palm Beach.

Robinson previously pled guilty to all counts in a superseding indictment, which included one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349, twelve counts of wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343, eleven counts of stealing government monies, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641, twelve counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A, and one count of unauthorized access device fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(2).

The scheme involved, in part, stealing the identities of patients at a medical facility in central Florida. Those identities were then used to file fraudulent federal income tax returns in the patients’ names seeking fraudulent refunds, and obtaining fraudulent credit cards which were then used to make fraudulent purchases.

Co-conspirators Elton Baker, 29, Eltonya Wiley, 40, both of Center Hill, and Kawana Brown, 35, of West Palm Beach, previously pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and three counts of wire fraud. Elton Baker and Wiley also pled guilty to one count of aggravated identity theft, and Brown pled guilty to two counts of aggravated identity theft. Sentencing for all of the remaining defendants is scheduled for June 13, 2014.

Co-defendants Antoinette Simmons, 40, of Ocoee, and Josh Brown, 25 of Riverdale, Georgia, were sentenced to probation for their roles in the thefts.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Carlton.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Ric Bradshaw, Sheriff, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, announce that Jerrick David Bartee, 31, of West Palm Beach, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kenneth A. Marra to 168 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for his role in conspiring to distribute over five kilograms of cocaine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and 846. Jerrick David Bartee was the last defendant in this 30-defendant case to be sentenced.

In February 2013, following a two year investigation, agents arrested 30 defendants who were involved in this drug conspiracy. The evidence presented in court showed that this well organized conspiracy was responsible for transporting in excess of 12 kilograms of cocaine from Arizona to Florida via the U.S. Mail and other shipping companies. Once the cocaine arrived in South Florida, certain members of the organization converted the cocaine into crack cocaine and distributed the same in the streets of Lake Worth, Florida.

Twenty-nine of the 30 defendants entered pleas of guilty and were sentenced. One defendant, Frank Davis Moore, Jr., proceeded to trial and was convicted as charged. Jerrick David Bartee was sentenced as noted above. The remaining 29 defendants received the following sentences:

George Evans Bivins, Jr., 31, of West Palm Beach, was sentenced to 360 months in prison;

Antonio Markeith Beverly, 30, of West Palm Beach, was sentenced to 228 months in prison;

Daniel Emmanuel Torrez, 33, of Tucson, Arizona, was sentenced to 150 months in prison;

Lavaris Reshard Bivins, 23, of West Palm Beach, was sentenced to 188 months in prison;

William Alvarenga, 20, of Boynton Beach, was sentenced to 70 months in prison;

Jessica Marie Arvizu, 32, of Tucson, Arizona, was sentenced to 48 months in prison;

Michael Maxwell Barkley, 39, of Lake Worth, was sentenced to 240 months in prison;

Kirk Douglas Bivins, 39, of Riviera Beach, was sentenced to 120 months in prison;

Demetri Pernell Cobb, 25, of Lake Worth, was sentenced to 70 months in prison;

Darren Duane Donnally, 40, of Palm Springs, was sentenced to 262 months in prison;

Quatavious Carnell George, 27, of Riviera Beach, was sentenced to 120 months in prison;

Wellington Timothy Glinton, 21, of Lake Worth, was sentenced to 120 months in prison;

Javaris Reshad Bartelmy, 25, of Boynton Beach, was sentenced to 60 months in prison;

Ernest Andrew Holiday, 31, of Riviera Beach, was sentenced to 120 months in prison;

Jean Innocent, 22, of Lake Worth, was sentenced to 135 months in prison;

Demetrice Lemane Jones, 38, of Riviera Beach, was sentenced to 121 months in prison;

Dominic Perry Lamare, 36, of Port St. Lucie, was sentenced to 120 months in prison;

Patrick Jarrod Lowe, 26, of Lantana, was sentenced to 164 months in prison;

Richard John Mercy, 32, of North Palm Beach, was sentenced to 120 months in prison;

Frank Davis Moore, Jr., 34, of Royal Palm Beach, was sentenced to 180 months in prison;

Evens Pierre-Lewis, 28, of Palm Springs, was sentenced to 240 months in prison;

Theresa Lashai Razz, 29, of West Palm Beach, was sentenced to 48 months in prison;

Lori Beth Mae Saccoman, 51, of West Palm Beach, was sentenced to 37 months in prison;

Jeannot Saintelus, 24, of Lake Worth, was sentenced to 60 months in prison;

Calvin Leon Sirmans, 30, of Lake Worth, was sentenced to 120 months in prison;

Jamie Toby, 25, of Lake Worth, was sentenced to 200 months in prison;

Monica Deloris Toby, 48, of Lantana, was sentenced to 120 months in prison;

Eric Lanard Williams, 30, of Lantana, was sentenced to 120 months in prison; and

David Lendell White, 27, of Lake Worth, was sentenced to 120 months in prison.

This case is the result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The OCDETF mission is to identify, investigate, and prosecute high level members of drug trafficking enterprises, bringing together the combined expertise and unique abilities of federal, state and local law enforcement.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI and the Palm Beach County Sheriff?s Office. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Rinku Tribuiani and Robert Waters.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, José A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Paula Reid, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Secret Service, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, announce that Ronald Walker, 36, of Fort Lauderdale, was sentenced before U.S. District Judge James I. Cohn for his participation in a check cashing and stolen identity scheme. Walker was sentenced to 94 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Ronald Walker was also ordered to pay restitution of $1,094,185.20 to the IRS.

Ronald Walker previously pled guilty in two cases. In one case, he pled guilty to one count of theft of public money, a United States income tax refund check, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641, and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1). In the second case, he pled guilty to conspiracy to steal, receive, and retain money and things of value of the United States and to forge endorsements on and cash treasury checks, receipt and retention of things of value of the United States, and aggravated identity theft.

According to court documents, a confidential informant (CI) told federal agents that Walker routinely received stolen or fraudulently obtained U.S. Treasury checks and negotiated them at a check cashing store called American Quick Cash (AQC) located in Broward County, which was owned by Wilson and Kate Lau. The CI also stated that Walker forged the payees’ endorsements on the back of the checks and provided Wilson Lau with the payees’ social security numbers and copies of altered Florida driver’s licenses.

During an undercover operation, Walker was given three treasury tax refund checks that resulted from fraudulent tax returns being filed in the names and social security numbers of real people. Ronald Walker was also provided with driver’s license numbers, social security numbers, and dates of birth for all of the payees on the checks. Ronald Walker went to AQC, and then gave the CI and/or undercover agent their portion of the cashed checks. After clearing the banking system, the checks that were created for this investigation included endorsements on the back, but the payees were fictitious and could not have endorsed the checks.

From February 2010 through May 2011, the total amount of U.S. Treasury checks cashed by Walker at AQC is approximately $1,234,114. The number of victims involved is greater than 50, but fewer than 250.

In a separate investigation, Walker and co-defendants, Aaron Taylor, 30, Lauderhill, James Burch, 36, Coral Springs, and Regina James, 39, Ft. Lauderdale, sold $75,108.79 in fraudulently obtained tax refund checks and 609 people’s identifying information.

On July 20, 2012, Wilson Lau, 75, and his wife, Kate Yuee Lau, 54, formerly of Coral Springs, were sentenced before U.S. District Judge Robert Scola. Wilson Lau was sentenced to 84 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Kate Yuee Lau was sentenced to 24 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.

On May 16, 2014, Taylor was sentenced to 54 months in prison and Burch was sentenced to 36 months in prison. Aaron Taylor and Burch assisted Walker to sell the fraudulent tax refund checks and identifying information. Sentencing for James is scheduled for June 6, 2014 at 4:00 p.m. before U.S. District Judge Kenneth A. Marra.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI, the Secret Service, and the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alicia E. Shick and Marc Osborne.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Mark R. Trouville, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Miami Field Division, Amos Rojas, Jr., United States Marshal, U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), Noel Manheimer, Director of Marine Operations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Dan Alexander, Chief, Boca Raton Police Department, Bryan Kummerlen, Chief, West Palm Beach Police Department, Scott Israel, Sheriff, Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO), and Dave Aronberg, State Attorney, Office of the State Attorney for Palm Beach County, announce today that Osvaldo Domingo Ceballo, 44, of Hialeah, and Yumar Oliva, 43, of Miami, were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Daniel T.K. Hurley for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846, and possession with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841. Ceballo was sentenced to 216 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. Oliva was sentenced to 151 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. Both defendants were convicted by a jury on March 13, 2014, following a two week trial in West Palm Beach.

In October of 2010, DEA, the Boca Raton Police Department, and the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office began an investigation of co-defendant Taverne Pierre Louis’ drug distribution network operating in Haiti, the Bahamas, and in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties. During the course of this two year investigation, law enforcement conducted 14 wiretap investigations during which over 33,000 telephone calls and text messages were intercepted. In addition, law enforcement conducted surveillance operations, executed a number of search warrants, and seized 27 kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride and over 100 grams of cocaine base, commonly referred to as “crack” cocaine. Based upon the totality of the investigation, law enforcement learned that this large scale drug trafficking organization was responsible for the importation of hundreds of kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride from Haiti and the Bahamas for distribution in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties.

A total of fifteen defendants were charged in this indictment, two of which remain fugitives. Taverne Pierre Louis was sentenced to 188 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; Frantz Bernard was sentenced to 188 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; Joachim Pierre Louis was sentenced to 84 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release; James Francois was sentenced to 84 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; Jose Ignacio Sigler was sentenced to 72 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release; Beverly Sharon Miller was sentenced to 60 months in prison, followed by four years of supervised release; Tyrell Patrick Josey was sentenced to 30 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; Tremaine Shenard Jackson was sentenced to 120 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; Terrence Demetrius Nesbitt was sentenced to 188 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; Ronel M. Theodore was sentenced to 121 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release; and Kirk Irwin Pierce was sentenced to 84 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

This case is the result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The OCDETF mission is to identify, investigate, and prosecute high level members of drug trafficking enterprises, bringing together the combined expertise and unique abilities of federal, state and local law enforcement.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the DEA, CBP, Boca Raton Police Department, and Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office. Mr. Ferrer also thanked the USMS, BSO, and the West Palm Beach Police Department for their assistance in this matter. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer C. Nucci.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.