Northern District of Georgia

A former school teacher was sentenced today to life in prison for sexually abusing elementary school students on a U.S. military installation in Germany.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Stefan Zappey sexually abused four of his former elementary school students between 2006 and 2010. At the time, Zappey was a teacher for first through third grade students at an elementary school in Germany. The school is part of the Department of Defense Education Activity, which serves dependents of U.S. military service members stationed overseas.

“The successful prosecution of Stefan Zappey demonstrates the Justice Department’s commitment to prosecuting U.S. citizens who prey on young and vulnerable children regardless of where and when the crimes occurred,” said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Zappey’s offenses are especially egregious because he was entrusted with teaching the children of our brave service members overseas. The courage of the victims and the perseverance of investigators and prosecutors ensured that Zappey’s offenses were exposed and will prevent him from abusing even more children.”

“Zappey abused a position of trust as an elementary school teacher and sexually abused multiple students,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan for the Northern District of Georgia. “His crimes were horrific, and the community is safer now that he no longer has access to children.”

In 2020, one of Zappey’s former students notified Army criminal investigators that Zappey touched her under her clothing when she was a student at the school in 2009 and 2010. Further investigation revealed that Zappey sexually abused four of his former students by placing his hand inside their underwear and directly touching them on multiple occasions. The victims were between six and eight-years-old at the time of the sexual abuse. Other students and faculty members reported that Zappey frequently hugged students, had them sit on his lap, and touched their backs and stomachs under their clothes.

On Jan. 18, a jury convicted Zappey of four counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child and four counts of abusive sexual contact.

“Cases like these demonstrate the FBI’s dedication to protecting children from those who seek to exploit their innocence,” said Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. “The FBI and our partners remain committed to pursuing justice for our most innocent victims and those who are unable to defend themselves.”

“Victimizing and preying on Department of Defense dependents is unacceptable,” said Special Agent in Charge Ryan Hall of the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division’s (Army CID) Europe Field Office. “Army CID will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to investigate these crimes and bring the perpetrators to justice.”

The FBI and Army CID investigated the case.

Trial Attorney Eduardo Palomo of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Leanne M. Marek for the Northern District of Georgia prosecuted the case.

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

ATLANTA - Feliks Medvedev has been indicted on one count of operating an unlicensed money transmitting business and 39 counts of money laundering.

“Medvedev allegedly used the American banking system to illegally transmit more than $150 million,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “These types of criminal actions pose a serious danger to the integrity of our financial system.”

“Money laundering is not a victimless crime.” said FBI special agent in charge Keri Farley, “The FBI is committed to the fight against money laundering and to find those who are trying to hide right in our own backyard and illegally send cash overseas.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Feliks Medvedev allegedly registered eight companies in Georgia that were used to transmit over $150 million in a series of 1,300 transactions. The companies were purportedly headquartered in Buford, Georgia, and Dacula, Georgia. But the companies did not generate typical business expenses or maintain employees. The money was used, in part, to purchase more than $65 million in overseas gold bullion. Medvedev, a Russian citizen who resides in North Georgia, allegedly transferred millions overseas from multiple bank accounts in Georgia.

Feliks Medvedev, 41, of Buford, Georgia, was indicted by a federal grand jury for these offenses on April 11, 2023.  Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher J. Huber and Radka T. Nations are prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Mihail Ilie has been sentenced for violations of the federal Assimilative Crimes Act for possession of burglary tools and attempted car burglary in the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area.

“National Parks and Recreational Areas serve as refuges for people to relax and enjoy the outdoors without fear of being targeted by criminals like Ilie,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “This case is an example of the importance of citizens reporting property crimes. Without the reports from other visitors to the park who were victims of car burglaries, Rangers would not have identified and arrested Ilie in the act of committing another offense.”

“Parks are places where people tend to let their guard down. Their minds enter a safe mode and they become less vigilant when they start their hike or bike ride,” said Jeston Fisher, Chief Ranger, Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area.  “Law Enforcement at Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area and around the Metro Atlanta area work very hard to deter crime and more importantly, educate the visitors. Please help by remembering to leave your valuables at home or take them with you when you recreate.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: In August and September 2022, Park Rangers at the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area began investigating a rash of car burglaries. The burglaries fit a pattern. The passenger door lock of the car would be forced with a special tool, and any credit and debit cards left in the car would be stolen. The cards would then be used almost immediately at local malls to make high dollar amount purchases, such as jewelry and Apple products. 

Hikers returning to their cars sometimes did not immediately recognize they had been victimized because many drivers unlocked their cars with key fobs and approached from their driver’s side door. Using trail cameras and other investigative techniques, Rangers identified two vehicles frequently present when burglaries were reported.

On September 10, 2022, a Law Enforcement Park Ranger saw Ilie crouched between one of these suspicious vehicles and another car he appeared to be tampering with, and arrested him in the act of breaking into the other car.  Ilie was using a young girl, then just 12 years old, as a lookout. A search of Ilie’s car revealed receipts for jewelry and Apple products, including some out of state purchases, and burglary tools.

After an initial appearance on September 12, 2022, Ilie was detained pending trial as a flight risk. On October 4, 2022, a grand jury indicted Ilie with two felony violations of the federal Assimilative Crimes Act for possession of burglary tools and attempted car burglary. Ilie was convicted of these charges on December 12, 2022, after he pleaded guilty.

Mihail Ilie, 24, of Lawrenceville, Georgia, was sentenced on April 25, 2023, to one year and a day in prison to be followed by one year of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $802. 

This case was investigated by the National Park Service.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Alana R. Black prosecuted the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Jeremiah Carbon has been indicted on federal bank fraud and aggravated identity theft charges, arising from a scheme to defraud banks by depositing hundreds of fraudulent money orders into multiple bank accounts to enrich himself and his co-conspirators by more than $1.5 million. He also has been charged with possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.

“Carbon allegedly engaged in a scheme in 2019 through 2022 to defraud multiple banks by copying hundreds of blank money orders that he used to pay himself and his co-conspirators,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “He also allegedly stole and used the identities of others to perpetrate and conceal the scheme.” 

“The Secret Service is committed to defending our nation’s financial security and pursuing those who aim to exploit it,” said Steven R. Baisel, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service’s Atlanta Field Office. “We appreciate our partnership with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and will continue to work alongside each other to ensure that individuals who engage in fraudulent activities are held accountable.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Carbon allegedly used multiple fake driver’s licenses, and stolen driver’s license numbers belonging to several individuals, to purchase hundreds of blank money orders from dozens of different locations of a popular retail store in the Atlanta area.  He and his co-conspirators then made copies of the blank money orders and deposited them into multiple bank accounts, often listing a fictitious purchaser’s name.

After depositing funds from the fraudulent money orders into bank accounts opened in his and his co-conspirators’ names, Carbon returned the original money orders to the retail store locations for a full refund.  Between 2019 and 2022, Carbon allegedly purchased, copied, and returned more than 1,500 money orders, resulting in stolen funds of over $1.5 million.

Jeremiah Carbon, 34, of Atlanta, Georgia, was indicted on April 18, 2023, in an 11-count indictment alleging charges of conspiracy to commit, and commission of, bank fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1344 and 1349; aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A; and possession of a firearm while being a convicted felon, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(g)(1).  Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges.  The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

This case is being investigated by the U.S. Secret Service.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Bethany Rupert is prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

The former executive vice president of PRAD Group Inc. pleaded guilty to paying bribes to two City of Atlanta officials in exchange for steering city business worth millions of dollars to his company, to paying bribes to a former DeKalb County, Georgia, official in an attempt to obtain county contracts, and to evading over $1.5 million in taxes. 

According to court documents, Lohrasb “Jeff” Jafari, 72, of Alpharetta, Georgia, oversaw PRAD Group’s finances. From 1984 to 2018, PRAD Group was an architectural, design, and construction management firm headquartered in Atlanta that performed services for the City of Atlanta and DeKalb County.

From January 2003 to February 2017, Adam Smith was the Chief Procurement Officer (CPO) for the City of Atlanta and supervised the city’s purchasing activities and its expenditure of billions of dollars of public money. From April 2011 to May 2016, Jo Ann Macrina served as the City of Atlanta’s Commissioner of the Department of Watershed Management, a cabinet-level position from which she managed the city’s drinking water and wastewater systems and was responsible for an annual budget exceeding $500 million.

Jafari gave Smith and Macrina cash and other items of value to obtain business with the City of Atlanta. In exchange for those payments, Smith and Macrina conspired with Jafari to ensure that PRAD Group received city business worth millions of dollars, including by agreeing to replace two evaluators on the selection team for the city’s architectural and engineering contract and to re-score an evaluation so that Jafari’s company would be awarded a contract.

During Smith’s tenure as the CPO, the City of Atlanta awarded contracts worth millions of dollars to PRAD Group and joint venture projects of which PRAD Group was a partner. For years, Jafari met privately with Smith on multiple occasions, frequently at local restaurants. During these meetings, Jafari and Smith discussed City of Atlanta procurement projects, bids, and solicitations, often while Jafari was actively seeking additional work and/or assistance with ongoing city projects. After most of the meetings, Jafari paid Smith $1,000 in cash in the bathroom of the restaurant. In return for these bribe payments, Jafari expected Smith to use his position and power to assist Jafari with contracting and procurement with the City of Atlanta. From at least 2014 to January 2017, Jafari paid Smith more than $40,000 in cash with the intent to influence Smith in his role as the city’s CPO.

In February 2017, Jafari became aware of the federal investigation into his bribe payments to Smith. In response, Jafari confronted Smith at City Hall to convince Smith to lie to the FBI by instructing Smith to deny taking bribe money from him. 

From at least 2013 through May 2016, Macrina met with Jafari to discuss City of Atlanta procurement projects, bids, and solicitations, often while Jafari was actively seeking contracts, projects, and work with the City of Atlanta. To obtain city work, Jafari promised Macrina a lucrative job with PRAD Group and, directly or through a PRAD Group employee, gave Macrina $10,000 in cash, jewelry, a room at a luxury hotel and luxury shopping trip in Dubai, and landscaping work at her home. Shortly after the City of Atlanta fired her, Macrina began working for Jafari and PRAD Group. Between June and September 2016, Jafari and/or PRAD Group paid Macrina $30,000 in four separate payments.

On April 8 and Aug. 21, 2014, the FBI conducted two undercover operations using a confidential source (who at the time was a high-ranking DeKalb County official). During the surreptitiously recorded meetings, the confidential source met with Jafari at local restaurants, where Jafari sought assistance from the confidential source to obtain work in DeKalb County. After the meetings, Jafari directed the confidential source to the bathroom of the restaurants where Jafari paid the confidential source between $1,000 and $1,500 in cash.

From 2014 to 2016, Jafari neither filed personal tax returns, nor paid any income taxes to the IRS. During those years, Jafari withdrew large amounts of cash from corporate bank accounts and took money from the PRAD Group’s corporate accounts to pay for various personal expenses, including several luxury vehicles. Jafari evaded the payment of at least $1.5 million in taxes.

Jafari pleaded guilty to one count each of conspiratorial bribery, substantive bribery, and tax evasion. He is scheduled to be sentenced on July 19 and faces a statutory maximum of five years in prison for conspiracy to commit bribery, 10 years for substantive bribery, and five years for tax evasion. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

In January 2018, Smith was sentenced to two years and three months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiratorial bribery. In February 2023, Macrina was sentenced to four years and six months in prison after being convicted at trial of conspiratorial and substantive bribery.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan for the Northern District of Georgia, Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, and Special Agent in Charge James E. Dorsey of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Atlanta Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI Atlanta Field Office and IRS-CI are investigating the case.

Trial Attorney Jolee Porter of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section, Trial Attorney Todd Ellinwood of the Tax Division, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffrey W. Davis and Nathan P. Kitchens for the Northern District of Georgia are prosecuting the case.

ATLANTA - Lohrasb “Jeff” Jafari, the former Executive Vice President of PRAD Group, Inc., has pleaded guilty to paying bribe money to two City of Atlanta officials in exchange for steering city business worth millions of dollars to his company, to paying bribes to a former Dekalb County official in an attempt to obtain county contracts, and to evading more than $1.5 million in taxes. 

“Contractors and the public deserve a fair and impartial government procurement process,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “For years, Jeff Jafari corrupted, and attempted to corrupt, those processes in the City of Atlanta and DeKalb County by paying tens of thousands of dollars in bribe payments to several high-ranking government officials. Not surprisingly, after illegally obtaining city contracts he never paid a dime of personal income tax on millions of dollars he earned.”

“Jafari tried to buy his way around a process that is meant to be fair to all contract applicants, and in doing so contributed to the public’s distrust in government,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Today's plea is the direct result of the FBI and our partners continuous hard work and commitment to end public corruption in the city of Atlanta”

“Jafari bribed city government officials to avoid fair competition in bidding for government contracts,” said James E. Dorsey, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Atlanta Field Office. “Greed consumed Mr. Jafari, after being awarded the government contracts, he willfully failed to file tax returns reporting the income and pay the appropriate taxes undermining the American tax system.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court:  From 1984 to 2018, PRAD Group was an architectural, design, and construction management firm headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, that performed services for the City of Atlanta and DeKalb County, Georgia. Jafari served as PRAD Group’s Executive Vice President and oversaw PRAD Group’s finances.

From January 2003 to February 2017, Adam Smith served as the Chief Procurement Officer for the City of Atlanta. From that position, Smith supervised the City of Atlanta’s purchasing activities and its expenditure of billions of dollars of public money.  From April 2011 to May 2016, Jo Ann Macrina served as the City of Atlanta’s Commissioner of the Department of Watershed Management. As Watershed’s Commissioner, Macrina held a cabinet-level position from which she managed the City’s drinking water and wastewater systems and was responsible for an annual budget exceeding $500 million.

Jafari gave Smith and Macrina cash and other items of value to obtain business with the City of Atlanta.  In exchange for those payments, Smith and Macrina conspired with Jafari to ensure that PRAD Group received City business worth millions of dollars, including conspiring to replace two evaluators on the selection team for the City’s Architectural and Engineering contract and to re-score an evaluation so that Jafari’s company would be awarded a contract.

During Smith’s tenure as the Chief Procurement Officer, the City of Atlanta awarded contracts worth millions of dollars to PRAD Group and joint venture projects of which PRAD Group was a partner. For years, Jafari met privately with Smith on multiple occasions, frequently at local restaurants. During these meetings, Jafari and Smith discussed City of Atlanta procurement projects, bids, and solicitations. Often at the time of these meetings, Jafari was actively seeking additional work and/or assistance with ongoing City projects. Jafari paid Smith $1,000 in cash in the bathroom of the restaurant after most of the meetings. In return for these bribe payments, Jafari expected Smith to use his position and power to assist Jafari with contracting/procurement with the City of Atlanta.  From at least 2014 to January 2017, Jafari paid Smith more than $40,000 in cash with the intent to influence Smith in his role as the City of Atlanta’s Chief Procurement Officer.

In February 2017, Jafari became aware of the federal investigation into his bribe payments to Smith and confronted Smith at City Hall. Jafari insisted that Smith lie to the FBI by denying that Smith took bribe money from him. 

From at least 2013 through May 2016, Macrina met with Jafari to discuss City of Atlanta procurement projects, bids, and solicitations. Often at the time of these meetings, Jafari was actively seeking contracts, projects, and work with the City of Atlanta. To obtain city work, Jafari promised Macrina a lucrative job with PRAD Group and, directly or through a PRAD Group employee, gave Macrina $10,000 in cash, jewelry, a room at a luxury hotel in Dubai, a luxury shopping trip in Dubai, and landscaping work at her home. Shortly after the City of Atlanta fired her, Macrina began working for Jafari and PRAD Group. Between June and September 2016, Jafari and/or PRAD Group paid Macrina $30,000 in four separate payments.

On April 8 and August 21, 2014, the FBI conducted undercover operations using a confidential source (who at the time was a high-ranking DeKalb County official).  During two surreptitiously recorded meetings, the confidential source met with Jafari at local restaurants, where Jafari sought assistance from the confidential source to obtain work in DeKalb County. After the meetings, Jafari directed the confidential source to the bathroom of the restaurants where Jafari paid the confidential source between $1,000 and $1,500 in cash.

From 2014 to 2016, Jafari neither filed personal tax returns, nor paid any income taxes to the IRS. During those years, Jafari withdrew large amounts of cash from corporate bank accounts and used money from the PRAD Group’s accounts to pay for various personal expenses, including several luxury vehicles. Jafari evaded the payment of at least $1.5 million in taxes.

Lohrasb “Jeff” Jafari, 72, of Alpharetta, Georgia, pleaded guilty to one count each of conspiratorial bribery, substantive bribery, and tax evasion. Sentencing is scheduled for July 19, 2023, at 11:00 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffrey W. Davis and Nathan P. Kitchens, Trial Attorney Jolee Porter of the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section, and Trial Attorney Todd Ellinwood of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, are prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Theresa Pickering has been sentenced to federal prison for committing health care fraud by posing as a licensed physician’s assistant, which resulted in approximately $147,000 in attempted losses to insurers.

“Pickering previously served prison time for similar conduct,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “Then in blatant disregard for the law and safety, she knowingly placed patients at significant risk by again posing as a licensed medical provider.”

“Pickering did not learn from her previous fraud conviction. Instead, she chose to continue to endanger patient lives through theft and lies,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “This sentence will serve as a reminder to others that the FBI will not tolerate healthcare providers who engage in schemes that defraud the industry and put innocent patients at risk.”

"This individual egregiously lied about her qualifications to obtain access to patient information, which she then used to steal from federal health care programs," said Tamala Miles, Special Agent in Charge with the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). "HHS-OIG is proud to work alongside our law enforcement partners to hold accountable those who put patients at risk and undermine the integrity of federal health care programs."

“At OPM OIG, our number one priority is protecting patients from harm,” said Conrad J. Quarles, Deputy Assistant Inspector General for Investigations, OPM OIG. “This sentencing demonstrates our commitment to working with our Federal partners to hold accountable those that would seek to put the safety of Federal health care enrollees at risk.” 

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges, and other information presented in court:  On or about September 24, 2019, Pickering was hired as a licensed physician’s assistant at a family practice in Norcross, Georgia. But Pickering was not a licensed physician’s assistant in Georgia at that time, nor had she been a licensed physician’s assistant in any state since March 2014.  After Pickering served a prison sentence for a 2015 fraud and narcotics case related to her illegal practice as a physician’s assistant in the State of Mississippi, Pickering relocated to Georgia and again obtained employment as a licensed physician’s assistant at the Norcross-based family practice. 

While employed at the practice, Pickering treated patients, diagnosed illnesses, ordered diagnostic tests and lab work, and handled sick visits and prescribed drugs to patients – none of which was authorized by law based on her lack of licensure and exclusion from federal health care programs.  Pickering also issued prescriptions, including prescriptions for controlled substances, in the name of Doctor 1, a physician contracted by the practice, and without Doctor 1’s permission.  Pickering caused the practice to submit at least approximately $147,000 in fraudulent claims for reimbursement to Medicare and numerous private insurance companies.

Theresa Pickering, 55, of Norcross, Georgia, was sentenced on April 18, 2023, to two years, nine months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. She was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $48,742.30.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, and Office of Personnel Management, Office of the Inspector General.

Assistant U.S. Attorney David A. O'Neal prosecuted the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

A Georgia man was sentenced today to three years and 10 months in prison for his roles in two bribery conspiracies – one related to a U.S. military contracts fraud scheme and one related to a Department of State visa fraud scheme.

According to court documents, Orlando Clark, 57, of Smyrna, was a manager of projects who deployed to Afghanistan to evaluate bids for U.S.-funded reconstruction contracts awarded by the U.S. military in 2011 and 2012. At that time, Clark and co-conspirator Todd Coleman, an analyst at a different U.S. company who also deployed to Afghanistan, received approximately $400,000 in bribes from an Afghan company. The bribes were paid in return for Clark and Coleman assisting the company in obtaining millions of dollars through at least 10 contracts that involved the construction of an Afghan police station and a security checkpoint for U.S. forces.

To conceal their conduct, Clark and Coleman registered fictitious companies in Georgia and opened bank accounts to which bribes were sent via wire transfers from Afghanistan. Clark and Coleman also created false invoices to make it appear as though they were involved in a car-exporting business in the United Arab Emirates. In reality, Clark and Coleman used the bribe payments to purchase personal items, such as BMW cars. During the scheme, Coleman and Clark also travelled to the United Arab Emirates to receive cash bribes, which they smuggled into the United States without declaring the currency.

In addition, between 2015 and 2020, Clark also received bribes to sign false letters of recommendation for visas authorized for Afghan nationals who worked as translators with U.S. forces in Afghanistan. Clark signed over 10 letters in which he falsely claimed to have supervised the applicants and in which he stated, without any factual basis, that he had no reason to be believe that they posed a threat to U.S. national security. 

On Feb. 9, Coleman was sentenced to two years and nine months in prison for his role in the U.S. military contracts bribery scheme.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan for the Northern District of Georgia, Inspector General John F. Sopko of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), Inspector General Robert P. Storch of the Department of Defense, Special Agent in Charge Stanley A. Newell of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) Transnational Operations Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Greg Gross of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) Economic Crimes Field Office made the announcement.

The SIGAR, DCIS, and NCIS investigated the case.

Trial Attorney Matt Kahn of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell Phillips for the Northern District of Georgia prosecuted the case.

ATLANTA – Former Berkely Lake financial adviser Christopher Burns has been indicted for his role in an investment fraud scheme that defrauded dozens of investors of millions of dollars.

“Burns obtained then violated the trust of his clients to fund his lavish lifestyle,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “He betrayed investors and stole their savings with promises of safe investments that would yield high rates of return. Individuals who brazenly cheat their clients should expect to be held accountable. The authorities are continuing to search for Burns, and anyone with information about his whereabouts should contact the FBI.”

“Burns is charged for allegedly stealing millions of dollars from clients in an illegal investment fraud scheme. Financial crimes of this nature can cause significant disruptions to the lives of those who are victimized, and the FBI is dedicated to holding these criminals accountable,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta.  “The FBI is still seeking the public’s help in locating Burns and will continue to pursue him no matter how long he tries to evade the law.”  

“Ponzi schemes, such as the one Burns carried out, inflict emotional and financial damage on its victims,” said James E. Dorsey, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Atlanta Field Office. “IRS Criminal Investigation and our federal law enforcement partners are committed to removing unscrupulous financial advisors from our financial system and ensuring they are brought to justice.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Burns, an Atlanta financial adviser, conducted business through several entities, including Investus Advisers, LLC, Investus Financial, LLC, Dynamic Money, and Peer Connect, LLC. Investors were promised that their money would be loaned to businesses that needed financing and with little to no risk. In some cases, Burns falsely described the investments as secured by the protection of collateral and personal guarantees.  In other cases, he falsely claimed that he would pool investors’ money to lend it to startup businesses and charities. But in reality, he used investors’ money to repay prior investors and to fund his business and his lavish lifestyle. Burns is alleged to have defrauded dozens of victims of at least $10 million.

On April 11, 2023, a federal grand jury charged Christopher Burns, age 40, of Berkeley Lake, Georgia, with 10 counts of wire fraud, two counts of mail fraud, and four counts of money laundering. Burns was previously charged in a criminal complaint on October 23, 2020, with one count of mail fraud.

Burns has not been seen since he left his home on September 24, 2020, one day before he was scheduled to relinquish documents related to his businesses to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The vehicle he was driving was found abandoned in Dunwoody, Georgia. Inside the vehicle were copies of three cashier’s checks totaling more than $78,000. If you have any information about Burns’s location or if you think you were defrauded, please contact the FBI-Atlanta field office at 770-216-3000 or go to tips.fbi.gov

Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges.  The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Alison B. Prout is prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

NEWNAN, Ga. – Former Fulton County Sheriff’s Office deputy Katrina Lawson has been found guilty by a federal district court jury of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering in connection with a wide-ranging Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loan program small business loan scheme.

“The jury found Lawson guilty on all charges brought against her, adding to the previous convictions of 11 of her co-conspirators,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “In a time of crisis when the federal government sought to save small businesses from the significant, negative impacts of COVID-19, Katrina Lawson and her co-conspirators stole funds intended for these vulnerable businesses.” 

“The verdict clearly illustrates that individuals who engage in fraudulent activities will be held accountable for their actions,” said Tommy D. Coke, Inspector in Charge of the Atlanta Division.  “An extensive investigation by Postal Inspectors revealed the defendant and her co-conspirators took advantage of COVID-19 funds that were designated to assist small businesses for their own financial gain.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: On August 11, 2020, agents from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) conducted a search at Alicia Quarterman’s residence in Fayetteville, Georgia related to an ongoing narcotics trafficking investigation.  Inspectors seized Quarterman’s cell phone and a notebook during the search. 

In the phone and notebook, law enforcement discovered evidence of a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program scheme masterminded by Lawson (Quarterman’s distant relative and best friend).  Lawson’s cell phone was also seized later as a part of the investigation. 

The text messages found in Lawson’s and Quarterman’s cell phones revealed that Lawson had identified a vulnerability in the PPP and EIDL programs and exploited it.  Because of Congress’s goal of getting CARES Act funding into the hands of small businesses as quickly as possible, both programs relied heavily on the honesty of the applicants seeking funds.  As a result, Lawson and Quarterman recruited several other people, who did not actually own registered businesses, to provide them with their personal and banking information.  Once Lawson ultimately obtained that information, she completed fraudulent applications and submitted them to the Small Business Administration and banks for forgivable small business loans and grants.

Lawson was responsible for recruiting more than 200 individuals to participate in this PPP and EIDL fraud scheme.  Three of the individuals she recruited were active sheriff’s deputies and one was a former U.S. Army military policeman.  Lawson submitted PPP and EIDL applications seeking over $6 million in funds earmarked to save small businesses from the impacts of COVID-19.  She and her co-conspirators ultimately stole more than $3 million. Lawson used a portion of these funds to purchase a $74,492 Mercedes Benz, a $13,500 Kawasaki motorcycle, $9000 worth of liposuction, and several other expensive items. 

Several of Lawson’s co-defendants were previously convicted as a part of this case on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and theft of government funds, mail fraud, money laundering, or related offenses:

• Alicia Quarterman, 40, of Fayetteville, Georgia;
• Tranesha Quarterman, 35, of Atlanta, Georgia, a former U.S. Army military policeman;
• Nikia Wakefield, 44, of Rockville, Maryland;
• Darryl Washington, 68, of Atlanta, Georgia;
• Adarin Jones, a/k/a Adrian Jones, 44, of Atlanta, Georgia;
• Katie Quarterman, 30, of Atlanta, Georgia;
• Victor Montgomery, 45, of Washington, D.C.;
• India Middleton, 36, of Accokeek, Maryland, a former Arlington County Sheriff’s Office deputy;
• Jeffrey Moffett, 54, of Jonesboro, Georgia, a former Fulton County Sheriff’s Office deputy; and
• Stephanie R. Cooper, 50, of Decatur, Georgia, a current Fulton County Sheriff’s Office deputy.

Sentencing for Katrina Lawson, 43, of Houston, Texas, is scheduled for July 6, 2023, at 10:00 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr.  In determining the actual sentence, the Court will consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which are not binding but provide appropriate sentencing ranges for most offenders.

This case is being investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Miguel R. Acosta, Alex Sistla, Radka Nations, and Chris Huber are prosecuting the case.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Rowlando Hatter, Jr. has been sentenced for conspiring to submit false claims for COVID-related Unemployment Insurance benefits using the personal identifying information of more than 100 victims and causing state workforce agencies in five states to pay a combined $3,300,000 in fraudulently obtained benefits. 

“The CARES Act provided vital assistance to unemployed Americans at the height of the pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “Hatter diverted funds from this federal program and removed potential assistance crucial for citizens fighting to survive and to support their families.”

"Rowlando Hatter Jr. engaged in a scheme with his co-defendant, Clyde Parker Jr., to defraud multiple state workforce agencies, including the California Employment Development Department, by filing Unemployment Insurance (UI) claims in the names of unwitting individuals to fraudulently obtain UI benefits. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to safeguard the UI system from those who exploit these benefit programs,” said Mathew Broadhurst, Special Agent-in-Charge, Southeast Region, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General.

"It is disgraceful that unscrupulous individuals used a public health emergency and global pandemic for their own financial gain,” said HSI Atlanta Special Agent in Charge Katrina Berger. “HSI and our partners will continue to work diligently to prevent these crimes and hold the criminals accountable.”

“The defendant took advantage of a federal program designed to provide relief to those who were in need of economic assistance,” said Tommy D. Coke, Inspector in Charge of the Atlanta Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. “The sentencing demonstrates our commitment to investigate and bring to justice individuals that choose to defraud others for their own financial gain.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act was signed into law on March 27, 2020. The CARES Act was designed to mitigate the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in a variety of ways. One way was the inclusion of a provision that provided temporary benefits for individuals who had exhausted their entitlement to regular Unemployment Insurance (“UI”) benefits. The Act also aided those who were ineligible for regular UI payments and were self-employed or had limited recent work history. Individuals applied for regular and pandemic-related UI benefits by submitting an online application to their state workforce agency. 

Rowlando Hatter obtained the personal identifying information (“PII”) of unwitting victims. He used that information on applications that fraudulently requested COVID-related UI benefits. Hatter electronically submitted those applications to several states, including Georgia, California, Arizona, Maryland, and Michigan.

The state workforce agencies paid approved claims by issuing debit cards that were mailed to addresses in the metro-Atlanta area and in Michigan, and that were controlled by Hatter and co-conspirator Clyde Parker. Some of those addresses included UPS mailboxes opened by Hatter and Parker. Hatter and Parker used the debit cards at various ATMs to withdraw cash. Hatter kept the proceeds after paying Parker a fee.

As a result of the scheme, more than 200 claims were submitted to the various state workforce agencies between May 2020 and October 2020 using the PII of approximately 124 individuals who had no knowledge of the fraud. In total, the state workforce agencies paid approximately $3,300,000 on the bogus claims submitted in this fraud scheme.

Rowlando Hatter Jr., 32, of Smyrna, Georgia, has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones to five years, nine months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.  Judge Jones also ordered Hatter to pay restitution in the amount of $2,930,410.50.  Hatter was convicted of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft, after pleading guilty to those charges on December 13, 2022.

Clyde Parker, 32, of Troy, Michigan, was sentenced on January 20, 2023, to four years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $596,348.50.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General, Homeland Security Investigations, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Special assistance was provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation – Sacramento, California and the Georgia Department of Labor.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tracia M. King and Thomas J. Krepp prosecuted the case.

This case was sponsored by the Georgia Unemployment Insurance Task Force.  The Task Force is comprised of federal and state agencies throughout Georgia that are dedicated to combat COVID-related Unemployment Insurance Benefits Fraud.  

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

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Former mail carrier Robert Elliot Sheppard was sentenced to three years of prison for recruiting fellow mail carriers, and teaching them how to deliver packages of cocaine and marijuana while he was on disability leave.

“Sheppard accepted bribes from a drug trafficker to hand-deliver packages of narcotics on his mail route and even found carriers to replace him in his absence to ensure that he continued to profit from these crimes,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “His greed resulted in dangerous drugs going into our community and ensnared two of his coworkers in a scheme of drug trafficking and bribery.”

“Sheppard put not only his future at risk, but the safety of residents on his routes in danger by agreeing to work with drug dealers,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The vast majority of Postal workers are honest. The FBI wants to make it clear if anyone decides to violate the public trust, we will dedicate significant resources toward finding and prosecuting them for their crimes.”

“The vast majority of U.S. Postal Service employees would never violate the public trust in this manner. But for those who do, the USPS Office of Inspector General, along with our law enforcement partners, will aggressively investigate these federal crimes to protect the sanctity of the U.S. Mail,” said Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Ulrich. “This sentence is a testament to the dedication of the investigative and legal teams and should send a strong message to any employee who thinks of conspiring with drug traffickers.”

“Sheppard recklessly recruited two mail carriers to deliver packages of drugs and was paid for doing so. Through his actions, Sheppard endangered the communities he served and betrayed the trust bestowed upon him by the USPS,” said DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston.  “The DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office, with its law enforcement partners, will continue to seek out and prosecute those who use their official positions for personal gain.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: In 2015, Sheppard worked as a U.S Postal Service (USPS) mail carrier. In exchange for receiving bribes, Sheppard used his position to deliver five-pound packages of drugs through the U.S. mail to Dexter Frazier, a local drug trafficker who sold cocaine and marijuana.

In 2016, Frazier approached Sheppard about delivering additional drug packages. Sheppard was on disability leave from the USPS at that time and unable to intercept and deliver packages. But he offered to recruit other mail carriers to deliver drugs for Frazier in exchange for referral fees in the form of a mix of cash and marijuana. Frazier agreed to the arrangement.

Sheppard then contacted two coworkers, Tonie Harris and Clifton Lee. Sheppard explained to Harris and Lee that they could earn bribes for delivering packages of drugs along their mail routes, and taught them how to arrange the deliveries to avoid detection. Harris and Lee agreed to participate in the scheme, and Sheppard gave their phone numbers to Frazier. Frazier then coordinated the illegal deliveries with Harris and Lee. Harris and Lee each delivered three packages for Frazier believing they contained two kilograms of cocaine or 10 pounds of marijuana, per parcel.

U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones sentenced Robert Elliott Sheppard, 61, of East Point, Ga., to three years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay a fine in the amount of $30,000.  Sheppard pleaded guilty to the offenses of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and marijuana, and unlawfully using the mail to commit that crime, on August 3, 2022.

Other participants in the scheme previously pleaded guilty and received the following sentences imposed by Judge Jones:

• Dexter Bernard Frazier, a/k/a “Dec,” 60, of Fairburn, Georgia, was sentenced on June 13, 2018, to nine years in prison to be followed by 10 years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $10,700. Frazier pleaded guilty to the offense of attempt to distribute cocaine and marijuana on March 6, 2018.

• Clifton Curtis Lee, a/k/a “Cliff,” 46, of Lithonia, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the Sandy Springs Post Office, was sentenced on June 18, 2018, to three years, 10 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,800. Lee pleaded guilty to the offenses of attempt to distribute cocaine and bribery of public officials on February 28, 2018.

• Tonie Harris, 59, of Decatur, Georgia, a letter carrier assigned to the Sandy Springs Post Office, was sentenced on August 14, 2018, to three years, one month in prison to be followed by four years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,450. Harris pleaded guilty to the offenses of attempt to distribute cocaine and marijuana and bribery of public officials on March 20, 2018.

This was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, and the DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Garrett L. Bradford prosecuted the case.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: www.justthinktwice.gov.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Nagaindra Srivastav has been sentenced on conspiracy and kickback charges for his role in selling fraudulent doctors’ orders to his co-conspirators who used the orders to obtain more than $48 million in fraudulent payments from Medicare. 

“Srivastav knowingly sold fake doctors’ orders to conspirators around the United States,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “These orders were used to cause massive losses to the Medicare program and to taxpayers. Health care and telemedicine fraud is a high priority for the Department and this office, and we will vigorously pursue those who exploit our health care system for personal gain.”

“This defendant left a number of victims in his wake, including American taxpayers,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Health care costs are driven up when doctors and staff bill for unnecessary services and the FBI and our partners will continue to use every resource in our power to stop it.”

"This individual exploited the Medicare program for personal financial gain. Not only does this behavior undermine the integrity of federal health care programs; it also wastes valuable taxpayer dollars," said Tamala Miles, Special Agent in Charge with the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). "As this case demonstrates, HHS-OIG and our law enforcement partners will not tolerate attempts to steal from federal health care programs and defraud the American taxpayer."

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: Srivastav was the owner of B2B Apps Solutions (“B2B”), a Florida-based company. Through B2B, Srivastav and his co-conspirators created and operated an internet-based platform that individuals and businesses in the health care industry used for the purchase and sale of physician orders for Durable Medical Equipment (“DME”), such as ankle, back, knee, and leg braces.

Through B2B, Srivastav paid and received remuneration for the referral of federal health care business. To accomplish this scheme, Srivastav created a website, RepsHub, in which DME companies and others uploaded potential DME-patient information, called “leads,” which were generally obtained through telemarketing campaigns targeting beneficiaries for whom DME products could be billed. In addition, and in conjunction with his selling of physician orders, Srivastav also offered and sold leads, which he obtained through call centers controlled by himself and his co-conspirators.

Srivastav purchased the physicians’ orders that he sold to his customers from purported telemedicine companies based in the Philippines and Pakistan. These orders lacked medical necessity, and Srivastav was notified on numerous occasions that the purported authorizing physician had not actually spoken with the patient, signed the order, or prescribed the braces. The physicians’ orders that Srivastav sold were used to obtain more than $48 million in fraudulently obtained payments from Medicare.

Nagaindra Srivastav, 58, of Tampa, Florida, has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones to nine years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $48,150,692.49.  On October 19, 2022, Srivastav was convicted of conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks, in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Section 371, and solicitation and receipt of kickbacks, in violation of Title 42, United States Code, Section 1320a-7b, after he pleaded guilty.

Judge Jones also sentenced Brian Tisdale, 46, of Amory, Mississippi. Tisdale was one of Srivastav’s customers who operated two DME companies in Mississippi and Georgia. Tisdale received a sentence of three years and six months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.  Tisdale was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $4,675,093.80.  On December 16, 2022, Tisdale was convicted of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and to pay kickbacks, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, after he pleaded guilty.   

This case was investigated by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney David A. O'Neal prosecuted the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - John J. Woods, the former President of Southport Capital and manager of Horizon Private Equity, III, LLC, has pleaded guilty to operating a Ponzi scheme that defrauded hundreds of investors out of more than $25 million.

“Woods promised investors low-risk investments, profitable returns, and a diversified portfolio, all while secretly using money raised from new investors to primarily pay earlier investors,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “Investors should respond with caution to financial offers that sound too good to be true and are cloaked in the promise of low risk and high rates of return.”

“It is the FBI’s hope that today’s guilty plea will provide some sense of relief to those victims that have suffered so much by Mr. Woods greed- fueled conduct,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “This case serves as another reminder that investors need to be careful, and do their research, when deciding who to trust with their hard-earned money.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: Woods operated a Ponzi scheme until being shut down by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2021. Woods solicited investors to invest in a fund called, “Horizon Private Equity.” Woods, and other investment adviser representatives acting under his direction, promised potential Horizon investors rates of return of six to seven percent on their investment and that Horizon would earn a return by investing their money in, for example, government bonds, stocks, or small real estate projects. Woods and his confederates also assured investors that Horizon investments carried minimal risk and were safe because Horizon had a diverse portfolio.

Contrary to these representations, the money received from new investors was not invested in a diverse portfolio; and money collected from new investors was used largely to pay returns to previous investors. In fact, Horizon was able to pay guaranteed returns to investors only by raising and using new investor money. As a part of the scheme, Woods caused Horizon to issue monthly statements to investors that fraudulently misled investors by failing to disclose that the Horizon investments had not generated a positive percentage of return sufficient to cover the interest. 

As of the end of July 2021, Horizon investors were owed more than $110,000,000 in principal investment amounts. And over 400 investors, residing in at least 20 different states, held investments in Horizon. Losses are still being calculated, but investors have lost more than $25 million because of Woods’s scheme to defraud.

Sentencing for John J. Woods, 58, of Marietta, Georgia, has not yet been scheduled. He pleaded guilty to a criminal information charging a single offense of wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, U.S. Code, Section 1343.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The SEC provided valuable assistance.  The SEC’s separate civil case is SEC v. Woods et al., No. 1:21-CV-03413-SDG (N.D. Ga.).

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Angela Adams and Stephen H. McClain are prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Christian Akhatsegbe has been sentenced for wire and computer fraud conspiracy, access device fraud, and aggravated identity theft related to a multi-million-dollar cyber-fraud scheme perpetrated through email phishing, credential harvesting, and invoice fraud.  His brother, Emmanuel Aiye Akhatsegbe, who is believed to be residing in Nigeria, was also charged in the scheme and remains a fugitive.

“The far-reaching scope of this defendant’s criminal conduct is astonishing,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “Hiding behind several aliases, Christian Akhatsegbe and his conspirators stole employee credentials, unlawfully accessed computers, and attempted to scam companies out of more than 12 million dollars.  And not content to limiting his criminal conduct to these schemes, Akhatsegbe also engaged in hundreds of thousands of dollars of COVID-19-related loan fraud.  The relentless efforts of determined corporate-law enforcement partnerships, in conjunction with excellent investigative work across the globe, exposed Akhatsegbe’s crimes and he will now serve a sentence in federal prison as well as pay restitution to his victims.”  

“Operation Dark Nimbus is a perfect example of how the FBI won’t let geographic boundaries stop us from pursuing and prosecuting anyone who inflicts tremendous financial pain to U.S. citizens,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “These criminals felt like they were safe hiding behind their computers and aliases. Hopefully this sentence and the ultimate capture of Emmanuel sends a message to anyone who thinks they can prey on our citizens and get away with it.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court:  Between approximately August 2019 through November 2020, Christian Akhatsegbe, together with his brother, Emmanuel Aiye Akhatsegbe, and others, engaged in spear phishing, credential harvesting, and business email compromise schemes, which involved sending phishing emails to employees of companies and agencies in the United States and the United Kingdom using stolen SendGrid email marketing accounts, stealing and harvesting the employee access credentials on computer servers, using the stolen credentials to access the victims’ computers, and then sending fraudulent invoices to victims requesting payment of funds to bank accounts in Hong Kong.  

In November 2019, for example, an employee of a company in the United Kingdom received a phishing email, which resulted in their credentials being logged, stolen, and later stored on a computer server that was accessed and maintained by Christian Akhatsegbe and his conspirators.  Using the stolen credentials, the conspirators sent an email to another employee of the company that appeared to originate from one of the company’s vendors. The email attached a fraudulent invoice in the amount of $434,383.45 with wiring instructions to a bank in Hong Kong.  The victim company later paid the fraudulent invoice and wired the funds to Hong Kong.

Similarly, in December 2019, using credentials stolen from a Massachusetts victim company employee, Christian Akhatsegbe and his conspirators sent an email to another employee of the company that appeared to originate from one of the company’s vendors. The email attached a fraudulent invoice in the amount of $498,000 and requested that the victim send payment to a bank in Hong Kong.  The victim paid the invoice, together with a second invoice in the same amount, wiring a total of $996,000 to a bank account in Hong Kong.  

In January and April 2020, Christian Akhatsegbe and his conspirators perpetrated a similar scheme against two other United Kingdom-based companies, sending fraudulent invoices in the amount of $498,000 and $980,000, respectively.  But these victim companies recognized the invoices as fraudulent and did not remit payment.  In total, the conspirators sent victim companies fraudulent invoices in the amount of $12,861,290.59.  Of this amount, victims paid invoices in the total amount of $2,268,329.69.

The investigation further revealed that Christian Akhatsegbe utilized stolen identities to submit 40 fraudulent applications for COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster loans in the amount of $2,905,100 during the time period of July 2020 to September 2020.   The U.S. Small Business Administration in turn approved loans in the amount of $220,700.    

Christian Akhatsegbe, 36, of Atlanta, Georgia, has been sentenced to seven years, three months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $2,001,083.45.  Akhatsegbe was convicted on these charges on April 12, 2022, after he pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Valuable assistance has also been provided by Microsoft Corporation’s Digital Crimes Unit and the City of London Police in the United Kingdom.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Herskowitz and Natalie Tecimer, Trial Attorney of the Department of Justice, Criminal Division, Computer Crime & Intellectual Property Section, prosecuted the case. 

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.

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

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Larry Edward Foxworth has been sentenced to federal prison for shooting into Clayton County, Georgia, convenience stores to kill those inside based upon their race and ethnicity.

“Foxworth used a firearm to commit a brazen and heinous hate crime,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “He fired repeatedly into convenience stores in his effort to kill those inside based solely on the color of their skin.  This abhorrent act of violence and intimidation left the victims, their families, and the community traumatized, and merits the prison sentence Foxworth received. The Department of Justice and our federal law enforcement partners will continue to vigorously prosecute hate crimes.” 

“The defendant fired a gun into a store wanting to kill people who he thought were Black or Arab,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Hate-fueled violence not only traumatizes the victims, but it threatens and intimidates an entire community. This sentence demonstrates the importance of holding accountable those who commit racially-motivated violence. The Justice Department is committed to aggressively prosecuting those individuals who carry out hate crimes in our country.”   

“Hopefully this lengthy sentence proves that the FBI will not tolerate intimidation and violence against anyone because of their race or ethnicity,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI’s Civil Rights Program will continue to use every resource available to ensure criminals, like Foxworth, that commit bias-motivated violent crimes are held accountable and removed from our streets.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: At approximately 2:35 a.m. on July 30, 2021, Foxworth fired numerous rounds from a Glock pistol through a window and a door of a gas station convenience store located in Jonesboro, Georgia.  Just minutes later, at approximately 2:57 a.m., he again fired multiple rounds from the same handgun through the windows and door of a different convenience store located nearby.  Both stores were open and occupied when Foxworth fired the shots, but no one was hit by the gunfire. 

Clayton County Police Department officers arrested Foxworth shortly after the second attack. After his arrest, Foxworth told officers that he had targeted the stores because he wanted to kill Arab and Black people, and he believed that there were people inside the stores who belonged to those groups. Foxworth expressed hope that he had killed his targets, and professed belief in white supremacist ideology.

Larry Edward Foxworth, 48, of Jonesboro, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Mark H. Cohen to 20 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release.  He was also ordered to pay restitution of $1,000.  On December 16, 2022, Foxworth pleaded guilty to the offense of hate crime based on actual or perceived race or color, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 249(a), and the offense of discharging a firearm during the commission of that crime of violence, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(c)(1)(A)(iii).

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Alan Gray and Trial Attorney Alec C. Ward of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division prosecuted the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

A federal judge in Atlanta today sentenced Larry Edward Foxworth, 48, of Jonesboro, Georgia, to 240 months in prison for shooting into two convenience stores attempting to kill those inside because he believed they were Black or Arab. 

According to court records, at approximately 2:35 a.m. on July 30, 2021, Foxworth fired numerous rounds from a Glock pistol through a window and door of a gas station convenience store located in Jonesboro, Georgia. Just minutes later, at approximately 2:57 a.m., he again fired multiple rounds from the same handgun through the windows and door of a different gas station convenience store located nearby. Both stores were open and occupied when Foxworth shot into the businesses. No one was injured during either shooting.

Clayton County Police Department officers arrested Foxworth shortly after the second attack. After his arrest, Foxworth told officers that he had targeted the stores because he wanted to kill Arab and Black people, and he believed that there were people inside the stores who belonged to those groups. Foxworth expressed hope that he had killed his targets, and professed belief in white supremacist ideology.

“The defendant fired a gun into a store wanting to kill people who he thought were Black or Arab,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Hate-fueled violence not only traumatizes the victims, but it threatens and intimidates an entire community. This sentence demonstrates the importance of holding accountable those who commit racially-motivated violence. The Justice Department is committed to aggressively prosecuting those individuals who carry out hate crimes in our country.”  

“Foxworth used a firearm to commit a brazen and heinous hate crime,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan for the Northern District of Georgia. “He fired repeatedly into convenience stores in his effort to kill those inside based solely on the color of their skin.  This abhorrent act of violence and intimidation left the victims, their families, and the community traumatized, and merits the prison sentence Foxworth received. The Department of Justice and our federal law enforcement partners will continue to vigorously prosecute hate crimes.” 

“Hopefully this lengthy sentence proves that the FBI will not tolerate intimidation and violence against anyone because of their race or ethnicity,” said Special Agent in Charge Keri Farley of FBI Atlanta Field Office. “The FBI’s Civil Rights Program will continue to use every resource available to ensure criminals, like Foxworth, that commit bias-motivated violent crimes are held accountable and removed from our streets.”

The FBI Atlanta Field Office and the Clayton County Police Department investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Alan Gray for the Northern District of Georgia and Trial Attorney Alec Ward of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section prosecuted the case.

For more information and resources on the department’s efforts to combat hate crimes, visit justice.gov/hatecrimes.

ATLANTA - Geno Demons, Jr., and Raymond Dexter Hicks, have been sentenced for conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute more than 400 grams of fentanyl.

“Demons and Hicks were involved in the distribution of large quantities of fentanyl, a drug that is steadily funneling poison into our communities,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “These sentences reflect the societal danger posed by this illicit drug and the seriousness with which the courts treat those who traffic it.”

“These two defendants directly contributed to the nation’s ongoing opioid epidemic by pushing the dangerous drug fentanyl,” said Robert J. Murphy, the Special Agent in Charge of the Atlanta Field Division. “They’ve now been brought to justice and will face significant time behind bars.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: In January 2021, the DEA, using an undercover agent, met with Demons and Hicks, who were attempting to sell two kilograms of fentanyl.  Special agents arrested the men following the meeting.  The investigators recovered loaded pistols from both men during their arrests, as well as two kilograms of fentanyl in Hicks’ car. The investigation revealed that Demons was working for a Mexico-based source of supply and distributing kilogram quantities of fentanyl with Hicks. Both men admitted to conducting multiple additional drug transactions as part of the charged conspiracy.

Geno Demons, Jr., 38, of Stockbridge, Georgia, was sentenced on March 9, 2023, by U.S. District Judge Mark H. Cohen, to 12 years, seven months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. Demons pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846, on November 14, 2022.

Raymond Dexter Hicks, 59, of Stockbridge, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Thomas W. Thrash, Jr., on January 17, 2023, to six years, six months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release.  Hicks also pleaded guilty to the offense of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846, on July 23, 2021.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Cal Leipold prosecuted the case.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: www.justthinktwice.gov.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Former Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill has been sentenced for violating the civil rights of six pre-trial detainees at the Clayton County, Georgia, Jail by ordering the detainees strapped into restraint chairs for hours without legal justification.

“This district is fortunate to be served by thousands of law enforcement officers who bravely perform their duties with great honor, but former Sheriff Victor Hill is not one of them,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “Former Sheriff Victor Hill chose to disregard the welfare of some within his control.  The evidence was clear in this case, there was absolutely no justification for Hill to order pretrial detainees to be strapped into restraint chairs for hours on end.  These men suffered painful injuries. Without question, his actions not only hurt the victims but eroded the public’s trust in law enforcement.  Hill brazenly abused his power and has been held accountable by a jury and a judge and will go to federal prison.  Hill rejected one of the most basic tenets of law enforcement: that the U.S. Constitution forbids an officer – even a sheriff – from using unreasonable force.”    

“All of our communities pay a significant price when law enforcement officials abuse their power.  We hope this sentence brings some closure to the victims of civil rights violations,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta.  “This sentencing should send a strong message to any law enforcement officer who wants to follow their own version of the law.  Badges and guns don’t come with the authority to ignore the Constitution.  They come with the responsibility to protect it.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: At the time Hill committed these crimes, his Sheriff’s Office “Inmate Restraint Chair Policy” stated that, “a restraint chair may be used by security staff to provide safe containment of an inmate exhibiting violent or uncontrollable behavior and to prevent self-injury, injury to others or property damage when control techniques are not effective.”  Consistent with the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause, the policy emphasized that use of a restraint chair would “never be authorized as a form of punishment.”  Hill flagrantly disregarded these policies, and a jury convicted him of violating the constitutional rights of the following victims:

Victim R.P.

On December 8, 2019, Clayton County Police Department (CCPD) responded to a robbery in progress.  An officer saw R.P. standing with a firearm at the driver’s window of a car occupied by two men.  R.P. ran into his apartment when he saw the officer.  Officers used a patrol car’s public address system to convince R.P to exit his apartment.  R.P. eventually complied with the commands and was taken into custody without further incident.  R.P. told officers that he believed the men in the car had come there to rob him.  R.P. was charged with aggravated assault and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

A CCPD officer transported R.P. to the Clayton County Jail.  According to the officer, R.P. offered no resistance and caused no trouble after he was arrested.

According to R.P. and other trial witnesses, when R.P. arrived at the jail, he was immediately taken to a holding cell with about 15 other inmates.  R.P. heard people yelling, “Sheriff on deck.”  Hill, escorted by the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) Scorpion Response Team (SRT) arrived at the cell.  Hill questioned R.P. about the incident which led to his arrest.  When R.P. attempted to explain, Hill ordered the SRT to strap R.P. into a restraint chair which was then wheeled into the jail’s medical unit.  While R.P. was strapped in the chair, R.P. could feel his blood pressure rising and his hands swelling.  R.P. yelled for help and urinated on himself.  R.P. spent at least four hours in the chair and the restraints cut and scarred one of his wrists. 

Victim D.B.

On February 2, 2020, deputies of the CCSO’s vice operations obtained a search warrant for D.B.’s home in Hampton, Georgia, based on incriminating evidence found in trash outside the residence.  While CCSO was waiting to execute the search warrant, D.B. left his home and drove away at a high rate of speed.  Deputies stopped D.B. and detained him after finding a small amount of marijuana in his car.  During the search of D.B.’s home, deputies allegedly found several stolen firearms.  D.B. sat in the back of a patrol car for several hours while deputies searched his home.  D.B. caused no trouble for the deputies during his detention at the scene or during the drive to the jail. 

According to D.B. and other witnesses, when D.B. arrived at the jail, he was put in a holding cell.  Within minutes, Hill and several members of the SRT arrived.  Hill asked D.B. questions about his alleged offenses until D.B. stated he no longer wanted to answer Hill’s questions.  At that point, Hill ordered D.B. to be strapped into a restraint chair.  D.B. was handcuffed behind his back and strapped in the chair for approximately seven hours.  The restraints were so tight that D.B. suffered cuts to both wrists which caused him to bleed.  The scars on D.B.’s wrists remain visible more than three years later.

Victim J.A.

In February 25, 2020, a man identified as J.A. was accused of assaulting two women during a dispute at a Clayton County grocery store several weeks earlier.  He was arrested by Forest Park, Georgia, Police Department officers and CCSO deputies without incident.  According to Clayton County records, J.A. was unarmed, not under the influence of drugs, and offered no resistance.  A short time later, J.A. was booked into the Clayton County jail as a pretrial detainee.  During the booking process, J.A. was escorted by a group of officers and SRT members to the fingerprinting area where Hill confronted J.A.  A deputy recorded the interaction with a cell phone.

Hill asked J.A. what he had been doing in Clayton County on the day of the alleged assault.  J.A. replied, “It’s a democracy, sir.  It’s the United States.”  Hill snapped back, “No, it’s not.  Not in my county.”  When J.A. asked whether he was entitled to a fair and speedy trial, Hill replied, “Roll that chair around here.  You stay out of Clayton County, you understand me?  You sound like a dummy.”  When J.A. asked again whether he was entitled to a fair and speedy trial, Hill replied, “You entitled to sit in this chair, and you’re entitled to get the hell out of my county and don’t come back.  That’s what you’re entitled to.  You sound like a damn jackass.  Don’t you ever put your hand on a woman like that again.  You’re fortunate that wasn’t my mother or grandmama or you wouldn’t be standing there.  Now, sit there and see if you can get some damn sense in your head.”

During J.A.’s interaction with Hill, J.A. was surrounded by law enforcement personnel, was handcuffed most of the time, and never posed a threat to anyone.  Despite those facts, J.A. was strapped into a restraint chair and left there for hours per Hill’s orders.

Victim C.H.

On April 26, 2020, C.H., who had just turned 17 years old, allegedly vandalized his family home during an argument with his mother.  Shortly thereafter, a CCSO deputy apprehended C.H. near his home without incident and turned C.H. over to the custody of the CCPD.  Clayton County records indicate C.H. was unarmed, not under the influence of drugs, and offered no resistance.

The deputy, a CCSO supervisor, then spoke with Hill on the phone, texted Hill a photograph of C.H. handcuffed and seated in a CCPD vehicle, and had the following text exchange with Hill:

Hill:             “How old is he?”

Deputy:        “17”

Hill:             “Chair”

A few hours later, early on April 27, 2020, C.H. was booked into the Clayton County jail as a pretrial detainee pending trial on charges stemming from the incident at his home.  Although C.H. had been compliant with law enforcement during and after his arrest and never posed a threat to anyone, he was strapped into a restraint chair and left there for hours per Hill’s orders.

Victim G.H.

In April 2020, G.H. and a CCSO deputy had a payment dispute over some landscaping work G.H. did for the deputy in Butts County, Georgia.  The work and dispute were unrelated to the deputy’s employment with CCSO.  After learning about the dispute, Hill called G.H. on April 23, 2020.  During the call, Hill identified himself as the Clayton County Sheriff and asked G.H. why he was harassing his deputy.  G.H. replied that Hill should tell his deputy to pay his bill and added, “you can go f--- yourself.”  Unsure whether the caller had actually been the Clayton County Sheriff, G.H. used FaceTime to call back several times until Hill answered and removed a face mask he was wearing.  After the FaceTime calls, Hill texted G.H., warning him not to call or text anymore.  G.H. responded via text, “So this is Victor Hill correct[?]”  Hill responded with a second text warning for G.H. not to call or text him anymore.  Although G.H. did not call or text again, Hill instructed a CCSO deputy to swear out an arrest warrant against G.H. for harassing communications.

The next day, April 24, 2020, Hill texted G.H., “[T]his is Sheriff Victor Hill.  We have a warrant for your arrest.  Would you like to turn yourself in, or have my Deputies find you?”  G.H. did not respond.  The next morning, April 25, 2020, Hill again texted G.H., “My Deputies are actively looking for you.  We have not and will not agree for you to turn yourself in when you want to.  Turn yourself in today.”  Meanwhile, Hill had sent a fugitive squad armed with handguns and AR-15 rifles to Butts County to arrest G.H. on the misdemeanor arrest warrant.

After retaining a lawyer, G.H. turned himself in at the CCSO during the evening of April 27, 2020.  Clayton County records indicate that G.H. was unarmed, not under the influence of drugs, and offered no resistance.  Shortly thereafter, G.H. was booked into the Clayton County jail as a pretrial detainee pending trial on the harassing communications charges.  Surveillance footage from the jail shows G.H. interacting with jail personnel for more than half an hour, during which time he appeared cooperative and compliant before Hill arrived and confronted him.  Immediately upon Hill’s arrival, although G.H. was surrounded by law enforcement personnel, remained compliant, and never posed a threat to anyone, G.H. was strapped into a restraint chair and left there for at least four hours per Hill’s orders.

Victim W.T.

On May 11, 2020, a Georgia State Patrol (GSP) trooper observed W.T. driving at 85 miles per hour on 1-75 in Clayton County.  The trooper initiated a traffic stop and W.T. immediately pulled his vehicle over to the shoulder.  W.T. presented a suspended Florida driver’s license.  The trooper took W.T. into custody and drove W.T. to the Clayton County Jail without incident.

According to W.T. and other witnesses, when W.T. arrived at the jail, he was instructed by officers to face the wall.  In response, W.T. turned and rested his head on the wall.  Hill saw this and it angered him.  Hill ordered that W.T., who was restrained in handcuffs, be strapped into a restraint chair.  Members of the SRT assisted deputies to strap W.T. into the chair where he remained for approximately five hours and suffered significant pain.  W.T. urinated three times while confined to the chair.

Victor Hill, 58, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Eleanor L. Ross to 18 months in federal prison.  After Hill serves his prison sentence, he will be on supervised release for six years, during which time he cannot have any role in law enforcement.  Hill was found guilty by a jury on October 26, 2022.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brent Alan Gray and Bret R. Hobson prosecuted the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Aquil Muhammad, who sold fraudulently issued Delta Air Lines tickets, has pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

“Muhammad exploited his position of trust at Delta to enrich himself by selling fraudulent tickets,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “He was even bold enough to use his personal email address as the contact person for some of the illegal transactions.”    

“With this guilty plea, Muhammad acknowledges his criminal wrongdoing and can now be held accountable for his selfish actions,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI will always strive to expose corrupt employees that take advantage of their trusted positions of employment.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court:  Aquil Muhammad worked as a Delta Air Lines ticketing specialist in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In 2016, he began issuing no-fare tickets to various individuals, including family members and other acquaintances. 

Muhammad issued non-revenue tickets without a corresponding Non-Cash Incentive Certificate.  That is, he issued free tickets, without compensation to Delta.  These non-revenue tickets generated tax liability to Delta even though they had no associated cost.  Muhammad also created fraudulent Transportation Credit Vouchers and Delta Travel Vouchers to cover the required taxes. 

Muhammad issued these non-revenue tickets from late 2016 through December 2017.  He ultimately issued more than 230 tickets, with a lost revenue total of approximately $447,000.  Each of the tickets were issued using Muhammad’s unique agent security identifier.  In addition, many of the tickets included Muhammad’s personal email address as the contact for the passenger.  He would sell these free tickets, often being paid through Square.

Sentencing for Aquil Muhammad, 36, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, is scheduled for June 7, 2023, at 1:30 p.m., before U.S. District Judge Victoria M. Calvert.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

 Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Huber is prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Cyber-enabled crimes cost Georgia residents almost $144 million in 2021, with losses attributed to business email compromise schemes, investment scams, and confidence or romance scams topping the list of frauds.  Nationally, these losses are in the billions.  The Georgia Cyber Fraud Task Force, which investigates and prosecutes these cases, comprises local, state, and federal agencies throughout Georgia, committed to sustained community outreach, as well as training for law enforcement and prosecutors to better respond to cyber-enabled crime. 

Cyber-fraudsters perpetrate these scams by utilizing a network of participants who each play an integral part in the success of the scam. One critical actor in these schemes is the “money mule”: the party responsible for opening a U.S. bank account, usually a business account, and accepting proceeds from a variety of frauds and forwarding the funds as directed, often to accounts overseas. The mission of the Georgia Cyber Fraud Task Force (CFTF) is to identify quality leads for investigation of suspected money mules in the Atlanta area and reduce the amount of time and resources necessary to impact those mules through judicial intervention. 

Money mules act as a sort of contractor in the economy of cyber-enabled fraud, rather than the perpetrator interacting with a victim. The money flowing into money mule accounts represents proceeds from a variety of fraud types and numerous victims, and the money may flow out to second-tier recipients who remain unaware of one another. The anonymity with which these fraud schemes operate works to the advantage of the perpetrators.  The sheer volume of victims who funnel money into a mule’s account – who may operate more than a dozen bank accounts – poses a daunting obstacle for law enforcement. 

Untangling the web of bank accounts associated with a single mule, and the victims who deposited money into those accounts, may require more than a year of law enforcement time and resources.  But focusing investigative efforts on identifying and removing money mules from fraud operations makes it harder for fraudsters to direct victim funds into U.S. bank accounts.  Impacting the ability of fraudsters to move stolen funds reduces the success of these fraud schemes. 

Most law enforcement activity is initially victim-centric; a victim contacts their local law enforcement agency to report that they have been defrauded.  But in cyber-enabled fraud schemes the money and the person who received it are rarely in the same location, or the same state, as the victim who reports the crime.  Typically, law enforcement traces the funds to an out-of-state account and then must pass the lead off to law enforcement in that jurisdiction and hope that the investigation continues.  The CFTF is addressing this investigative challenge in two ways: first, by proactively dealing with money mules in our area of responsibility, and second, by taking referrals from law enforcement across the country who have identified funds from their local victims that have landed in bank accounts in our area. 

During the past year, the CFTF has continued to refer leads to local and state law enforcement for investigation of money mules.  These leads originate from victim complaints made to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, known as “IC3,” as well as law enforcement leads from around the country through the StopTheMuleGa initiative. 

• Bernard Kaba, 62, of Morrow, Georgia, was sentenced on August 30, 2022, to 10 years of probation and ordered to pay $50,000 in restitution to victims after pleading guilty to theft by taking in connection to his receipt of business email compromise (BEC) fraud proceeds.

• Borin Khoun, 45, of Lawrenceville, Georgia, was sentenced on July 27, 2022, after pleading guilty to two indictments charging him with theft in connection with his receipt of fraud proceeds from romance and inheritance scams.  Khoun was sentenced to 15 years, with the first 90 days to be served in custody followed by nine months of work release, and the remainder on probation.  Khoun was also fined $1,500 and ordered to pay $234,479.58 in restitution to victims.

• Olayemi Fadipe, 41, of Snellville, Georgia, was charged by accusation for theft by receiving in connection with his participation in a romance/confidence fraud scheme. 

• Stella Mae Zebic, 43, of Brookhaven, Georgia, was indicted in DeKalb County, Georgia, on January 17, 2023, on charges of theft by taking, computer crimes, and identity fraud in connection with her participation in a BEC scheme.

• Jaysen Robinson, 24, of Dunwoody, Georgia, was indicted in Fulton County, Georgia, on December 6, 2022, on charges of theft by taking and money laundering in connection with his participation in a BEC scheme that targeted a law firm. 

• Augustus Edmund, 62, of Conyers, Georgia, was indicted in Hall County, Georgia, on February 15, 2023, on two counts of theft by taking for his role in a BEC scheme.  The indictment alleges that he took over $200,000 from a non-profit organization in August 2021. 

• Ugochinyere Anazodo, 44, of Suwannee, Georgia, was indicted in Gwinnett County, Georgia, on February 15, 2023, on charges of racketeering, theft, and money laundering in connection with his participation in several cyber-enabled fraud schemes, including romance and confidence frauds and a BEC fraud that resulted in a loss to the Georgia Department of Transportation.

• Chigbogwu Nnamani, 53, of Marietta, Georgia, was indicted in Gwinnett County on February 8, 2023, for theft by taking in connection with his participation in a BEC scheme. 

Members of the public should keep in mind that indictments contain only allegations against the individual against whom the indictment is obtained. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty, and it will be the government’s burden at trial to prove the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the allegations contained in the indictment.

If you have been the victim of a cyber-enabled fraud scheme such as a business email compromise or a confidence fraud, report the fraud to your bank, your local law enforcement agency, and the Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.IC3.gov. 

Business email compromise schemes rely on victims trusting their email communications are secure.  If you are sending or receiving large sums of money, confirm the transaction instructions in person or in a phone call that you initiate.  If you are engaged in online relationships, beware of individuals who make excuses not to meet in person and any requests for money. 

You can find more information about online scams and how to protect yourself by visiting  www.ic3.gov or the Georgia Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division www.consumer.georgia.gov.

To help small businesses, non-profits, and places of worship safeguard their data and devices, the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division created Cybersecurity in Georgia. This comprehensive guide includes critical tips and information on the different types of cyber threats, protecting your data and network, training employees about cybersecurity, planning for and responding to a security breach, cyber insurance, and more. Download your free copy here.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Justin Levi Marino has been sentenced for the possession and distribution of child pornography and for violating the conditions of his supervised release for a prior child exploitation federal conviction.

“Child pornography is an especially heinous crime involving those who exploit and abuse children and infants to produce these disturbing and horrific images, and the individuals who create the demand for this vile material by possessing and distributing it,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “The collaborative efforts of the FBI, U.S. Probation Office, and the U.S. Marshals Service made it possible to stop this predator from continuing to victimize more children and their families.”

“Each time Marino viewed or distributed the unconscionable images of innocent young children, they were re-victimized,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The fact he is a repeat sex offender only underscores why we strive every day to protect our children and will continue to use every law enforcement resource available to identify and prosecute individuals who exploit them in such a manner.”

“Due to the hard work of multiple components of the Department of Justice, Justin Levi Marino is no longer able to menace society and will never again victimize children with his deviant behavior. Child predators are a scourge on our community, and the U.S. Marshals Services considers it amongst our highest priorities to remove these offenders from our communities,” said Thomas E. Brown, U.S. Marshal for the Northern District of Georgia.

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: In 2007, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia sentenced Justin Levi Marino to 12 years and six months for using a computer to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity. 

A little more than one year after completing this sentence, in June 2020, during the initial lockdown stages of the global COVID-19 pandemic, a concerned citizen contacted the Atlanta Police Department on the suspicion that a 16-year-old child, who had been reported missing in another state, was living with Marino in his apartment in the Atlanta area.  The U.S. Probation Office for the Northern District of Georgia was notified and immediately obtained an arrest warrant based on Marino’s suspected violation of his supervised release condition prohibiting contact with a child under the age of 18 years old.  The U.S. Probation Office and the U.S. Marshals Service for the Northern District of Georgia recovered the minor and arrested Marino at his apartment. 

Following Marino’s arrest, the FBI recovered hundreds of images of child pornography and chats on various social media applications from his cell phone. Investigators also established that Marino distributed images of child pornography to other users. 

Justin Levi Marino, 45, of Poland, Ohio, was sentenced to 22 years in prison to be followed by a lifetime term of supervised release.  Marino pleaded guilty to the charges of possession and distribution of child pornography on August 26, 2022.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the U.S. Marshals Service.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sekret T. Sneed prosecuted the case.

This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, the Attorney General launched Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices around the country, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - - Ilirjan Shema has been sentenced for the violent assault of his spouse, a U.S. diplomat serving overseas in the U.S. embassy housing in Moldova.

“Domestic violence is physical abuse with the potential for generational harm,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “There is never an excuse for this behavior.  Holding these perpetrators accountable is an important function of the justice system and one that this office takes seriously.”

“As the lead agency in this investigation, the Diplomatic Security Service demonstrated its strong commitment to making sure those who commit domestic violence against diplomatic personnel face consequences,” said Andrew Wroblewski, Assistant Director for Domestic Operations, U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS). “Our strong relationship with our law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office continues to be essential in the pursuit of justice for all victims.”

According to the charges and information presented in court:  Ilirjan Shema accompanied his family to Chisinau, Moldova, where his spouse, an employee of the U.S. Department of State, was assigned to work as a Foreign Service Officer at the U.S. Embassy. While in Moldova, Shema obtained a family member position to work at the Embassy.

On April 10, 2021, while inside their official residence provided by the embassy, Shema attacked his wife, striking her, throwing her to the ground, and strangling her in the presence of the couple’s two children. The attack resulted in physical injuries. Shema was subsequently arrested in Aug. 5, 2021, when he traveled from Albania to Atlanta, Georgia.

Ilirjan Shema, also known as “Lily,” age 46, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen Grimberg to one year, six months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay restitution to the victim and to participate in a program for domestic violence upon release from prison.  Shema was convicted of the charge of assault, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2261(a)(1), on November 8, 2023, after he pleaded guilty. 

This case was investigated the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) Office of Special Investigations.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie Gabay-Smith and Trial Attorney Brian Morgan of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section prosecuted the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Charles Johnson, Sr., has pleaded guilty for not paying $1.4 million in payroll taxes and for failure to pay employment taxes.

“Payroll taxes critically fund social insurance programs, including Social Security and Medicare,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “Johnson refused to pay payroll taxes while withholding those funds from his employee’s paychecks for years.”

“Johnson’s failure to pay over employment tax withheld from his employees is unlawful and ultimately impacts his employees future Social Security benefits,” said James E. Dorsey, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Atlanta Field Office. “Johnson pleading guilty today is evidence of IRS Criminal Investigation and its partners working hard to hold employers accountable when they steal from their employees and other honest tax paying citizens.”

“The U.S. Department of Labor will use all resources available to hold fiduciaries who fail to work in the interest of plans and participants accountable,” said Mark Seidel, Acting Regional Director of EBSA’s Atlanta Regional Office in Atlanta, Georgia. “Getting retirees and workers their contributions in a timely manner is vital to their livelihood. We will remain steadfast in continued work with our federal and state partners to ensure fiduciaries follow the laws or face consequences, including when necessary, debarment from serving as a fiduciary or trustees of any retirement plan.  Fiduciaries who need assistance on proper management of employee benefit plans may contact the Employee Benefits Security Administration for compliance assistance.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: Charles Johnson, Sr., was the President and CEO of Williams-Russell and Johnson, Inc., an engineering firm headquartered in Atlanta.  While running the firm, Johnson failed to pay significant amounts of withheld income and employment taxes to the Internal Revenue Service; pension (401(k)) payments to the firm’s retirement plan; and health insurance premiums to the health insurer.  These funds were collected and withheld from employee paychecks for multiple years, stretching from at least 2015 to 2019. 

As president and CEO of the firm, Johnson held a fiduciary responsibility to withhold the required income and employment taxes and pay that amount to the IRS.  He was also a plan fiduciary for the retirement and health plans, required to pay the withheld amounts. 

As a result, Charles Johnson, Sr., 82, of Atlanta, Georgia, was charged via a two-count Criminal Information alleging failure to account for and pay employment taxes and theft from an employee benefit plan.  The Information charges that Johnson failed to pay $1.4 million in employment taxes and failed to pay more than $480,000 to the firm’s 401(k) plan and its health insurer for premium payments. He has pleaded guilty to the offense of failure to pay taxes and agreed to pay $1.4 million in restitution to the United States and an additional $210,000 to the employees who participated in the employee benefit plans.

This case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Department of Labor-Employee Benefits Security Administration.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Huber is prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Ronald Bell, who conspired to extort money from Georgia Institute of Technology, has pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit extortion.

“The defendant tried to extort Georgia Tech and egregiously tarnish the reputation of the university’s coach with a false claim of sexual assault,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “By his guilty plea he acknowledged the lie and his criminal conduct, and will now face the consequences for his crime.”

“Bell sought to severely damage the reputation of the institution and their coach solely for his own financial gain,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI will not tolerate false allegations and will do everything in our power to seek the truth and hold individuals who commit these type of crimes accountable for their selfish actions.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: Ronald Bell pleaded guilty to conspiring with his co-defendant, Jennifer Pendley, and a security guard at Georgia Tech, to falsely accuse the coach of Georgia Tech men’s basketball team of sexual assault.  Bell admitted he recruited the security guard to falsely claim that the guard witnessed an assault.  Bell told the security guard that the false accusation of sexual assault could be worth $20 million and promised the guard a share of the money. 

Bell also communicated with representatives of Georgia Tech and demanded money in exchange for not reporting the claimed sexual assault.  For example, he texted a representative of Georgia Tech that: “This is going to get very ugly.  GT has made no effort . . . to amicably resolve this . . . I guess this has to get ugly.  I tried to resolve this without damaging GT’s reputation . . . .”

After Georgia Tech refused to pay the bribe, Pendley filed a lawsuit claiming sexual battery, sexual assault, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.  These claims falsely alleged that the guard witnessed the coach sexually assault Pendley.  Ultimately, the security guard admitted that his statements were false and that Bell asked him to lie to support the false sexual assault claim.

Pendley previously pled guilty to conspiracy to commit extortion on February 22, 2023.

Sentencing for Ronald Bell, 56, of Oro Valley, Arizona, is scheduled for June 8, 2023 at 11:00 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Thomas W. Thrash.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Huber is prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Former City of Atlanta Commissioner of Watershed Management Jo Ann Macrina has been sentenced to four years and six months in prison for accepting bribes from an Atlanta contractor in exchange for steering city business worth millions of dollars to the contractor’s company.

“Jo Ann Macrina was entrusted to safeguard the water supply for millions of Atlanta residents but instead resorted to corruption by steering work to a city contractor in exchange for cash, luxury items, and a lucrative job offer,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “We are committed to working closely with our partners to rid local government of those who allow personal greed to lead to the abuse of positions of trust.”

“Macrina exploited her position to feed her own greed,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “This case is especially disturbing because she was the head of a department. This conviction reflects our continuing commitment to root out corruption and bring to justice those who abuse positions of power.”

“By enriching herself through bribes, Jo Ann Macrina abused her public trust,” said James E. Dorsey, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Atlanta Field Office. “The sentence she received serves notice to public officials that they are not above the law and will be held accountable for using public funds for their own use.”   

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: Macrina served as the Commissioner of Atlanta’s Department of Watershed Management from 2011 through May 2016. During Macrina’s tenure, the City of Atlanta awarded millions of dollars in contracts to an architectural, design, and construction management and services firm based in Atlanta. Macrina took multiple steps to steer lucrative contracts toward the firm’s joint venture. Those actions included casting aside prior final scores ranking potential vendors where the joint venture ranked near the bottom, replacing two evaluators who previously represented the Department of Watershed Management with herself and Macrina’s employee, and scoring the joint venture higher than all other evaluators during a reevaluation.

In exchange for providing the firm’s executive vice president with access to confidential information and preferential treatment on City of Atlanta projects, Macrina was offered a job and accepted things of value. For instance, Macrina accepted $10,000 in cash, a diamond ring, a room at a luxury hotel in Dubai, and landscaping work at her home from the firm’s executive vice president either directly or through another employee of the firm. Shortly after Macrina’s employment with the City of Atlanta ended, she began working for the firm. Between June 2016 and September 2016, the firm and its executive vice president paid Macrina $30,000 in four separate payments.

Jo Ann Macrina, 66, of Daytona Beach, Florida, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones to four years and six months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and $40,000 in restitution.  Macrina was convicted of conspiracy and federal program bribery on October 14, 2022, following a jury trial.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and IRS Criminal Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan P. Kitchens for the Northern District of Georgia and Trial Attorney Jolee Porter of the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section prosecuted the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

A former City of Atlanta Commissioner of Watershed Management was sentenced today to four and a half years in prison for accepting bribes from an Atlanta contractor in exchange for steering city business worth millions of dollars to the contractor’s company.

According to court documents, Jo Ann Macrina, 66, of Daytona Beach, Florida, served as the Commissioner of Atlanta’s Department of Watershed Management from 2011 through May 2016. During Macrina’s tenure, the City of Atlanta awarded millions of dollars in contracts to an architectural, design, and construction management and services firm based in Atlanta. Macrina took multiple steps to steer lucrative contracts toward the firm’s joint venture. Those actions included casting aside prior final scores ranking potential vendors where the joint venture ranked near the bottom, replacing two evaluators who previously represented the Department of Watershed Management with herself and Macrina’s employee, and scoring the joint venture higher than all other evaluators during a reevaluation.

In exchange for providing the firm’s executive vice president with access to confidential information and preferential treatment on City of Atlanta projects, Macrina was offered a job and accepted things of value. For instance, Macrina accepted $10,000 in cash, a diamond ring, a room at a luxury hotel in Dubai, and landscaping work at her home from the firm’s executive vice president either directly or through another employee of the firm. Shortly after Macrina’s employment with the City of Atlanta ended, she began working for the firm. Between June 2016 and September 2016, the firm and its executive vice president paid Macrina $30,000 in four separate payments.

In October 2022, Macrina was convicted at trial of conspiracy and federal program bribery.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan for the Northern District of Georgia, Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, Special Agent in Charge Keri Farley of the FBI Atlanta Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge James Dorsey of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Atlanta Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI Atlanta Field Office and IRS-CI investigated the case.

Trial Attorney Jolee Porter of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan P. Kitchens for the Northern District of Georgia prosecuted the case.

ATLANTA - Sandra D. Smith has been arraigned on federal charges of wire fraud and theft of government funds.  The indictment alleges that Smith stole more than $450,000 in Social Security Administration (SSA) retirement benefits and New York State Local and Retirement System (NYSLRS) benefits intended for M.S., who died in 2006 and was no longer eligible to receive those funds. 

“Smith allegedly stole money that taxpayers and government employees faithfully paid into these retirement systems and to which she was not entitled,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “This joint investigative effort is another excellent example of how collaboration between federal and state investigative partners help to uncover benefits fraud.”

“For nearly 15 years, the beneficiary’s death was allegedly concealed by Smith so that she could illegally obtain Social Security benefits, which is a federal crime. These charges exemplify that my office will continue to pursue those who defraud the Social Security Administration,” said Gail S. Ennis, Inspector General for the SSA. “I thank the New York Office of the State Comptroller for investigating with us.”

“The defendant callously took advantage of her mother-in-law’s death to profit at the expense of New York’s retirement system and the Social Security Administration,” said New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, who is trustee of the New York State Common Retirement Fund. “She has now been brought to justice and we will seek full restitution. I thank U.S. Attorney Buchanan and the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General for their partnership on this matter.” 

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges, and other information presented in court: In approximately September 2005, M.S., Smith’s former mother-in-law, began receiving SSA and NYSLRS benefits directly deposited into a bank account that was solely in M.S.’s name. At the time of M.S.’s death in September 2006, Smith served as her caretaker and handled her finances.  Smith had access to M.S.’s bank account as M.S.’s caretaker. 

After M.S. died, neither Smith nor anyone else notified SSA or NYSLRS of M.S.’s passing. Nor did Smith close M.S.’s bank account. Instead, Smith kept M.S.’s bank account open into which SSA and NYSLRS continued to deposit funds until early 2021.  Smith knew exactly when those monthly benefits were deposited, and each month she allegedly withdrew the funds from the account almost as soon as they were deposited. 

In total, SSA deposited $194,351.00 and NYSLRS deposited $264,699.53 into the account.  Smith, who was interviewed in connection with this investigation, admitted that she stole the money and that she knew that she was not entitled to the funds.

Sandra D. Smith, 49, of Morrow, Georgia, was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Justin S. Anand.  Smith was charged with 20 counts of wire fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343, and 10 counts of theft of government funds in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641.  Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges.  The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

This case is being investigated by the Social Security Administration - Office of the Inspector General and New York Office of the State Comptroller.

Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane C. Schulman is prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Richard Tyler Hunsinger has been sentenced for his role in an attack on the Atlanta Field Office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, involving improvised explosive devices, during a protest in the summer of 2020.

“The U.S. Attorney’s Office will always defend citizens’ rights to peacefully protest,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “But destruction of government property and throwing Molotov cocktails in buildings is unacceptable. Rather than catalyzing constructive dialogue, such dangerous actions foment violence, tear at the fabric of our community, and endanger lives. Prosecution and prison are the end result of engaging in this unlawful conduct.”

“The increase in assaults on federal law enforcement officers—and law enforcement in general and their property—is troubling and will not be tolerated,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Hopefully this sentencing sends the message that the FBI will continue to work with our partners to hold violent protesters accountable for their actions that damage our communities.”

“Stopping violent criminals, like Hunsinger, who target law enforcement officers is one of the most important things we can do to protect our communities,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama. “We are thankful for the hard work done in this case and hope that this sentence serves as a warning to anyone else thinking of committing such heinous acts.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: On July 23, 2020, Richard Tyler Hunsinger promoted a protest entitled, “Rally Against Fascism.” The event was to occur at the Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Field Office located in Atlanta, Georgia (the “DHS Building”).

On July 25, 2020, at approximately 11:30 P.M., a crowd of protesters gathered at the DHS building.  Hunsinger and others, wearing dark clothing, gloves, and face coverings, breached the fences of the building and began vandalizing the structure.  Hunsinger smashed at least four windows of the front entry of the DHS building using a hammer.  He later lit and threw a Molotov Cocktail into the facility.  At the same time, other individuals used rocks, cinder blocks, fireworks, and other materials to cause extensive damage to the building. 

Law enforcement later recovered a broken bottle used to make a Molotov Cocktail which contained Hunsinger’s DNA on it, and an additional Molotov Cocktail and a modified firework covered in nails from inside the facility.  Damage to the building and clean-up costs totaled more than $78,000.00.

Richard Tyler Hunsinger, 29, of Fairfax, Virginia, who was a resident of Atlanta, Georgia at the time of the offense, was sentenced to two years, eight months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, including eight months of home confinement.  Hunsinger will also be required to pay restitution in an amount to be determined by the Court at a later date.  Hunsinger was convicted on October 25, 2022, after he pleaded guilty to the offenses of assault on a federal officer in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 111(a)(1) and (b), and destruction of government property in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1361.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in conjunction with the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Federal Protective Service.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Jamaul Raheem Boyce, a multi-convicted felon with a history of committing domestic violence offenses, has been sentenced to prison after being convicted at trial for firearm and drug trafficking offenses.  Boyce ran a drug trafficking operation from his Clayton County, Georgia, apartment that he shared with his girlfriend and her three young children. 

“Boyce is a violent felon and domestic abuser,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “His prior convictions for aggravated assault, aggravated stalking, aggravated battery, family violence battery, and obstruction of a law enforcement officer speak to his disregard for others and the law.”

“This investigation and sentence are another example of ATF remaining on the frontline of preventing violent crime through excellent cooperation with our law enforcement partners,” said ATF Assistant Special Agent in Charge Beau Kolodka. “Through this cooperative effort we were able to apprehend and successfully prosecute a violent and dangerous individual which posed a significant threat to the public.”

“DCS provides individuals under our supervision the resources and support they need to succeed. It is unfortunate that certain individuals chose to not take advantage of these opportunities and instead impose havoc within our communities. We are appreciative of our partners in law enforcement who helped in this effort and remain committed to protecting the citizens of Georgia,” said Brian Tukes, Deputy Director of External Affairs, Georgia Department of Community Supervision.

“The collaborative efforts of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Georgia Department of Community Supervision, and our agency reflects the vision that the Clayton County Police Department will establish safer communities through partnership and collaborations. The arrest of Jamaul Raheem Boyce is the result of effective law enforcement teamwork at the state, federal, and local level. We will continue similar operations to apprehend dangerous criminals who operate in Clayton County,” said Chief Kevin Roberts, Clayton County Police Department.

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: On June 21, 2019, a U.S. Marshals task force served a parole violation arrest warrant for Jamaul Boyce at his apartment in Clayton County. The arrest warrant was issued following Boyce’s previous arrest for aggravated assault against his girlfriend, which violated the terms of his parole. Boyce was on parole at the time for a separate domestic violence conviction against a different woman.

When deputies knocked on the door and announced their presence, Boyce’s girlfriend and her three young children complied with law enforcement’s instructions to exit the apartment. After Boyce ignored this order, deputies entered the residence and found Boyce hiding in a bedroom closet with multiple loaded firearms and bulletproof vests lying near him. The officers also saw suspected illicit drugs. 

The deputies reported their findings to Clayton County police, who obtained a search warrant for the apartment. During a search that followed, Clayton County police recovered distribution quantities of methamphetamine, powder cocaine, crack cocaine, suspected heroin, and assorted pills, as well as drug distribution paraphernalia such as pill presses. Officers also discovered a loaded AR-15 style rifle with an extended magazine, two loaded handguns, two bulletproof vests, and a smoke bomb. These loaded firearms were all readily accessible to the three young children at the residence.

Jamaul Raheem Boyce, 40, of East Point, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S District Judge J.P. Boulee to 30 years in prison to be followed by a life term of supervised release. On September 19, 2022, a jury found Boyce guilty of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a firearm by a person convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and cocaine, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Georgia Department of Community Supervision, and the Clayton County Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Annalise K. Peters and Erin N. Spritzer prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

NEWNAN, Ga. – Former U.S. Navy sailor William Vincent has been sentenced to federal prison for distributing child pornography and a video of himself engaging in a sex act with a dog.

“In addition to collecting and trafficking horrific images of child rape, Vincent sexually abused an animal,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “With Vincent now unable to exploit the most vulnerable amongst us, our community is safer.”

“This case is particularly disturbing because of the age of the victims and large number of abhorrent videos that were filmed and distributed. Predators like Vincent are appalling and have no place in civilized society,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI is thankful for our law enforcement partnerships that make it possible to put sexual predators, like Vincent, behind bars for significant periods of time where they cannot victimize any more innocent children, or animals.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: Starting in August 2020 and continuing for several months thereafter, William Vincent used a cloud-based instant messaging service to unlawfully distribute child pornography and bestiality videos.  Vincent was unaware that the recipient of the videos was an undercover employee of the FBI.  Vincent initially sent a video depicting himself engaging in sexual acts with a dog. He then sent the undercover employee a video of an adult man sexually abusing an infant child.

FBI agents executed a federal search at Vincent’s home once they were able to pinpoint his address.  The agents’ search uncovered numerous digital storage devices, including a memory card containing more than 970 videos of child sexual abuse and dozens of bestiality videos.  Agents also recovered the dog depicted in the video that Vincent sent the undercover employee.

William Vincent, 31, of Peachtree City, Georgia, was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr. to 10 years in prison with credit for one year, nine months served to be followed by 15 years of supervised release.  Vincent was convicted of one count of distributing child pornography and one count of distributing an animal crush video, after he entered a guilty plea on September 13, 2022.  Under federal law, the definition of “animal crush video” includes the obscene depiction of actual sexual abuse of a live non-human mammal, bird, reptile, or amphibian.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  The Peachtree City Police Department provided assistance.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Theodore S. Hertzberg and Leanne Marek prosecuted the case.

This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, the Attorney General launched Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices around the country, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Following a nine-day trial, Ahamefule Aso Odus has been convicted by a federal jury on 12 counts of money laundering stemming from his role in a massive money laundering operation. Odus fled after testifying during his trial and is currently a fugitive. 

“Odus and his co-conspirators laundered millions of dollars stolen from companies and individuals throughout the United States and abroad,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “Although Odus is on the run, he cannot and will not evade justice for his crimes.  We will continue to devote our office’s time and resources to uncovering these kinds of complex schemes and holding accountable those individuals who perpetrate them.”

“As the only defendant in “Operation Five Fingers” who refused to take a plea and elected to go to trial, this swift jury conviction proves the massive amount of evidence that law enforcement had of Odus and his coconspirators crimes,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “No matter how elaborate or complicated the fraud scheme, the FBI and our federal partners will continue to uncover and unravel them to protect American citizens and businesses.”

“Ahamefule Aso Odus Jr. facilitated the theft of retirement plan assets by knowingly receiving fraudulently obtained funds from an individual’s ERISA covered retirement account into his business bank account. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners and the U.S. Department of Labor’s, Employee Benefits Security Administration to protect the integrity of employee benefit plans,” said Mathew Broadhurst, Special Agent-in-Charge, Southeast Region, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General.

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court:  Ahamefule Aso Odus and his co-conspirators acted as money launderers for unknown fraudsters who scammed unsuspecting individuals and companies out of millions of dollars. Members of the conspiracy, including Odus, created sham companies and registered them with the Georgia Secretary of State. Those companies did not maintain a physical place to conduct business, did not earn legitimate income, and did not pay wages to employees. Instead, the conspirators used these sham companies to open bank accounts and then funnel fraud money through the accounts.

Upon receipt of the fraud proceeds, Odus and his co-conspirators quickly converted the money to their own use, and to the use of their criminal associates, through wire transfers, over-the-counter cash withdrawals, and the purchase of cashier’s checks. This conduct involved monetary transactions of more than $10,000 that were designed to conceal and disguise the nature, location, source, ownership, and control of these fraudulent proceeds.

Odus is one of 41 people originally charged in four related fraud and money laundering cases, known collectively as “Operation Five Fingers.” Together, members of this criminal organization laundered more than $30 million in fraud proceeds from victims of computer-enabled scams, including business email compromise schemes, romance fraud schemes, and retirement account takeover schemes.

To date, 39 of the 41 “Operation Five Fingers” defendants have been convicted. Twenty-five of the defendants have been sentenced, with sentences ranging from six months to eight years of incarceration. Charges against one defendant were dismissed after he died while he was a fugitive, and one defendant is scheduled to enter a guilty plea on March 10, 2023.

On January 30, 2023, a jury convicted Odus on one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and three counts of concealment money laundering. The jury also convicted him of eight counts of transactional money laundering. In a bifurcated proceeding after the verdict, the jury forfeited $73,896 that had been seized from Odus.

Sentencing for Ahamefule Aso Odus, 30, of Atlanta, Georgia, is scheduled for May 9, 2023, at 9:30 a.m. before U.S. District Judge William M. Ray II.

This case was investigated by the Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Secret Service, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations under the auspices of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program—the keystone drug, money laundering, and transnational organized crime enforcement program of the Department of Justice. The investigating agencies received considerable assistance from numerous federal, state, and local law enforcement authorities throughout the investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kelly K. Connors and Russell Phillips are prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Four men have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in trafficking more than 160 firearms, some of which were smuggled out of the country and recovered from various crime scenes.

“Firearms trafficking is a serious crime that fuels violence,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “By placing firearms in the hands of convicted felons and other prohibited persons, straw purchasers of firearms, like the defendants in this case, play a key role in propagating violence in our community.  This case sends a clear message: straw purchases will lead to prosecution.”  

“This investigation and sentence is another example of ATF remaining on the frontline of preventing violent crime through excellent cooperation with our law enforcement partners.  Through this cooperative effort we were able to apprehend and successfully prosecute violent and dangerous individuals which posed a significant threat to the public,” said ATF Assistant Special Agent in Charge Beau Kolodka.

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: Between May 2021 and continuing through early March 2022, Romeo Swofford directed other individuals, including co-defendants Emmanuel Barden and Cemonte Wade, to obtain upwards of 160 handguns from federally licensed firearms dealers within the Atlanta area. Barden and Wade deceived the licensed dealers by falsely representing that they were buying guns for themselves. In truth, Swofford was the actual purchaser who paid for and took possession of the guns once the transactions were completed.

Swofford sought to acquire guns so he could profit from reselling them to convicted criminals and other people who would use, possess, or export them unlawfully. To facilitate these illegal gun sales, Swofford used hand tools to obliterate the serial numbers on dozens of the firearms. But nearly 20 of the guns Swofford sold were recovered from crime scenes in Canada where law enforcement authorities successfully restored the serial numbers Swofford attempted to remove.

On March 9, 2022, federal agents watched Swofford accompany Wade to two different Cobb County gun stores. Wade purchased three Glock semiautomatic pistols before relinquishing them to Swofford. Afterwards, Swofford and Wade met co-defendant Medford Layatte Daniels, Jr. outside a deli in the Edgewood neighborhood of Atlanta. Swofford then moved guns, drugs, and a scale into Daniels’s van. Both Swofford and Daniels were armed with loaded pistols. Daniels was on probation for unrelated gun and drug crimes at the time.

U.S. District Judge Jean-Paul “J.P.” Boulee sentenced the defendants as follows:

• Romeo Swofford, a/k/a “Lil Richie,” 21, of Lithonia, Georgia, was sentenced to 10 years, one month in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to conspiracy to make false statements to a federally licensed firearms dealer and aiding and abetting false statements to a federally licensed firearms dealer.

• Medford Layatte Daniels, Jr., a/k/a “NFNC Freak,” 26, of Conley, Georgia, was sentenced to nine years, three months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release after pleading guilty to receipt of a firearm by a person under indictment and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime.

• Emmanuel Marquis Barden, 23, of Decatur, Georgia, was sentenced to four years, nine months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to conspiracy to make false statements to a federally licensed firearms dealer.

• Cemonte Deshon Wade, 23, of Ellenwood, Georgia, was sentenced to three years, one month in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to conspiracy to make false statements to a federally licensed firearms dealer.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Theodore S. Hertzberg and Annalise K. Peters prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Travis Lee Harris has been arraigned on federal charges stemming from his fraudulent acquisition of a Paycheck Protection Program loan for small businesses. Harris was indicted by a federal grand jury on January 3, 2023.

“Congress established the Paycheck Protection Program to help small businesses, not to be easy money for anyone willing to lie on a loan application,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “We will continue to investigate and prosecute anyone who defrauded taxpayers out of the funds meant to sustain the economy during the COVID-19 crisis.”

“Providing false information to defraud SBA’s pandemic-related programs is a crime,” said U.S. Small Business Administration Office of the Inspector General’s Eastern Region Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall-Braithwaite. “OIG is committed to rooting out bad actors and protecting the integrity of SBA programs. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners for their dedication and pursuit of justice.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges, and other information presented in court: In June 2020, Travis Harris signed a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan application for his business, Atlanta Luxury Cars & Trucks LLC, in the amount of $968,405. Harris’ application was based on fraudulent information about the business’ number of employees, payroll, and revenue. Based on Harris’ fraudulent representations, the lender deposited the $968,405 into one of Harris’ bank accounts for Atlanta Luxury Cars & Trucks LLC. Harris soon began transferring the PPP loan funds into his personal bank accounts.

Travis Lee Harris, 41, of Atlanta, Georgia, was arraigned on an indictment charging the offense of wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343, on January 18, 2023, before U.S. Magistrate Judge John K. Larkins III.  Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges.  The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

This case is being investigated by the Small Business Administration's (SBA-OIG) Office of Inspector General.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Forsyth and Alison Prout are prosecuting the case.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus

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

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

A federal jury convicted a former elementary school teacher yesterday for sexually abusing four former students.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Stefan Zappey, 56, of Stuttgart, Germany, was employed by the Department of Defense Education Activity (DODEA) between 2001 and 2021 and taught first through third grade at Patch Elementary school, which is located on a U.S. military installation near Stuttgart. Army criminal investigators were notified in 2020 that one of Zappey’s former students reported that he touched her inappropriately under her clothing between 2009 and 2010. Investigators interviewed four of Zappey’s former students who reported that Zappey placed his hand inside their underwear and touched their genitals. Other students and faculty members of Patch Elementary reported that Zappey frequently hugged students, had them sit on his lap, and touched their backs and stomachs under their clothes. The victims were between six and eight years old at the time of the sexual abuse.

Zappey was convicted of four counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child and four counts of abusive sexual contact. He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 2 and faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 30 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan for the Northern District of Georgia, Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Lisa Yockel of the Department of Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID) Europe Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI and Army CID Europe Field Office investigated the case.

Trial Attorney Eduardo Palomo of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Leanne Marek of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia are prosecuting the case.

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

ATLANTA – Eleven men, eight from the metropolitan Atlanta-area, and three from South Carolina, have been sentenced for their roles in obtaining approximately $3 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans on behalf of ten businesses based on Georgia and South Carolina.

“The CARES Act and the PPP designated funds to aid struggling businesses during a pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan Buchanan. “American businesses needed these funds to keep their companies and employees afloat during a national emergency and world-wide pandemic.  These defendants took advantage of that program to obtain money to which they were not lawfully entitled.  We will continue investigating and prosecuting those who attempt to steal these critical funds.”

“The FBI and our partners will not tolerate anyone who misdirects federal emergency assistance intended for business who actually need it to stay operational," said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. "This sentence serves as a message that the FBI and our federal partners remain committed to making sure funds provided by programs like PPP are used as intended."

“Individuals that conspire to defraud SBA programs will be brought to justice,” said SBA OIG’s Eastern Region Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall-Braithwaite.  “These sentences demonstrate that those that defraud the nations vital economic programs will be held accountable. I want to thank the U.S. Department of Justice for its leadership and dedication to pursuing justice.”

“We will continue to aggressively pursue those who defrauded the Paycheck Protection Program which was funded by taxpayers and designed to assist businesses during the pandemic,” said J. Russell George, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.  “We appreciate the efforts by our federal partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to hold these individuals to account.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: Rodericque Thompson recruited Micah Baisden, Travis Crosby, Stanley Dorceus, Keith Maloney, Tabronx Smith, Mark Stewart, Timothy Williams, Thomas Wilson, and Kenneth L. Wright, Jr., to apply for fraudulent PPP loans on behalf of their respective businesses:

• PowerHouse Sports Academy, LLC;
• Faithful Transport Services, LLC;
• Elevate Yourself, LLC;
• KMJ Transport, LLC;
• Market Yourself, LLC;
• The Infinity Group of SC, LLC;
• Bamigi Brand;
• Rare Breed Nation, LLC;
• Lux Realty; and
• Lux Automotive.

In exchange for approximately 50 percent of the loan proceeds, Thompson helped each business owner obtain a $300,000 PPP loan by submitting fraudulent loan applications that contained numerous false and misleading statements about their businesses.

For example, each of the loan applications claimed that the relevant business employed 16 individuals and paid monthly wages of $120,000.  Additionally, identical fraudulent quarterly tax returns were submitted in connection with each loan application.  After they received the funds, the business owners wrote “payroll” checks to individuals who did not work for their businesses and then either kept the money for themselves or gave the money to Thompson.  They hoped to hide the fraud and expected to get the loans forgiven by writing “payroll” on the checks. 

Antonio Hosey, who was not a business owner, acted as a go-between with the business owners and Thompson by recruiting a group of check cashers who cashed the false “payroll” checks from the business owner defendants and then gave the cash to Hosey who, in turn, gave it to Thompson.

The group fraudulently obtained approximately $3 million in PPP loans. To date, authorities have recovered approximately $1,195,784.98 of the stolen money.  Ten of the defendants involved in this scheme pleaded guilty.  Travis Crosby, the sole defendant to go to trial, was convicted on September 22, 2022, after a two-day trial.  All of the defendants have received the following sentences:

• Kenneth L. Wright, Jr., 34, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison to be followed by three years supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $242,177.81 on January 8, 2021.  Wright was convicted on August 20, 2020, of conspiracy to defraud the United States and making false statements to a federal agency.  
• Thomas D. Wilson, 32, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to one year, nine months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $300,000, on October 24, 2022.  Wilson was convicted of bank fraud on April 14, 2021.
• Micah K. Baisden, 31, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to one year, six months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and order to pay restitution in the amount of $300,000, on November 8, 2022.  Baisden was convicted of bank fraud on May 20, 2021.
• Rodericque Jarmaine Thompson, 45, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to five years, ten months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $2,732,259.47, on November 9, 2022.  Thompson was convicted of conspiracy to commit bank fraud on May 20, 2021.
• Keith A. Maloney, 35, of Yemassee, South Carolina, was sentenced to one year, three months in prison to be followed by three years supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $114,828.19, on November 10, 2022.  Maloney was convicted of bank fraud on May 4, 2021.
• Antonio D. Hosey, 50, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison to be followed by three years supervised release, and order to pay restitution in the amount of $463,779.79, on November 16, 2022.  Hosey was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States on November 19, 2020.
• Stanley Dorceus, 36, of Marietta, Georgia, was sentenced to three months in prison to be followed by three years supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $207,829.85, on November 29, 2022.  Dorceus was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States and making false statements to a federal agency on August 26, 2020.
• Mark A. Stewart, 56, of Greenville, South Carolina, was sentenced to four months in prison to be followed by two years supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $300,000, on December 6, 2022.  Steward was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States and making false statements to a federal agency on September 25, 2020.
• Timothy Williams, 32, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to one year, three months in prison to be followed by three years supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $869,427.54, on December 8, 2022.  Williams was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States and making false statements to a federal agency on October 13, 2020.
• Tabronx W. Smith, 45, of Buford, Georgia, was sentenced to one year, five months in prison to be followed by two years supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $118,818.45, on December 20, 2022. Smith was convicted of bank fraud on June 8, 2021.
• Travis C. Crosby, 32, of Wellford, South Carolina, was sentenced to three years, ten months in prison to be followed by three years supervised release, and order to pay restitution in the amount of $897,172.61.  Crosby was convicted of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, false statement to a bank, and money laundering.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Small Business Administration – Office of Inspector General, and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane C. Schulman, Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Huber, and DOJ Trial Attorneys Michael McCarthy and Matthew Reilly prosecuted the case.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus

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

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA –Aarti D. Pandya, M.D. and Aarti D. Pandya, M.D. P.C. (“Pandya Practice Group”) have agreed to pay approximately $1,850,000 to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by, among other things, billing the government for cataract surgeries and diagnostic tests that were not medically necessary, tests that were incomplete or of worthless value, and office visits that did not provide the level of service claimed.

“Physicians who perform procedures and tests without a legitimate medical need place profits ahead of patients and subject those patients to unnecessary risk,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan “This settlement represents our office’s commitment to ensuring accountability for physicians who subject patients to unwarranted medical care and waste taxpayer funds.” 

"We must assure patients and taxpayers that healthcare is dictated by clinical needs, not fiscal greed,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “This settlement should serve as a reminder that the FBI will not tolerate healthcare providers who engage in schemes that defraud the industry and put innocent patients at risk.”

“Care coordination for beneficiaries should account, first and foremost, for the medical appropriateness of services that patients need to maintain their well-being,” stated Special Agent in Charge Tamala E. Miles with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “Subjecting individuals to extraneous procedures just to bilk the health care programs on which they rely is the antithesis of proper medical care. HHS-OIG and our law enforcement partners are dedicated to investigating providers who allegedly threaten the safety of patients and the integrity of the federal health care system.”

“We are committed to fully investigating providers who falsely bill the Department of Defense (DoD) health care system to enrich themselves using funds intended for military members and their families,” stated Special Agent in Charge Darrin K. Jones, DoD Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Southeast Field Office. “We thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our investigative partners for their dedication to protecting America’s warfighters.” 

This settlement resolves allegations that from January 1, 2011 to December 31, 2016, Pandya knowingly submitted false claims to federal healthcare programs for medically unnecessary cataract extraction surgeries and YAG laser capsulotomies.  The government alleged that Pandya performed these procedures on patients that did not qualify for the procedure under accepted standards of medical practice and, in some cases, caused injury to her patients.  Additionally, the government alleged that Pandya falsely diagnosed patients with glaucoma to justify unnecessary diagnostic testing and treatment that was billed to Medicare.  The government alleged that many of the diagnostic tests that Pandya ordered were not properly performed, were performed on a broken machine, or were not interpreted in the medical record, as required by Medicare.

This settlement resolves allegations in a lawsuit filed by Laura Dildine, a former Pandya Practice Group employee, under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act (FCA). The FCA authorizes private parties to sue for false claims on behalf of the United States and share in the recovery.  The lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of Georgia and is captioned United States ex rel. Dildine v. Aarti D. Pandya, M.D. et al., No. 1:13-CV-3336-LMM.  The United States intervened in this lawsuit in 2018. 

After the government intervened in the qui tam action, HHS imposed a payment suspension on the Pandya Practice Group that precluded it from receiving any reimbursement from Medicare for Part B claims.  The payment suspension was imposed on October 23, 2019.  Pandya and the Pandya Practice Group unsuccessfully challenged the payment suspension in district court.  As part of the settlement of the government’s claims in this case, the Pandya Practice Group agreed to forfeit the suspension amount to the government.  The payment suspension will also be lifted as part of the settlement.

To protect federal health care programs and beneficiaries going forward, Pandya and the Pandya Practice Group have entered into a detailed, multi-year Integrity Agreement and Conditional Exclusion Release (IA) with OIG that is more robust than OIG’s standard agreement.  The IA includes training and reporting requirements and enhanced material breach provisions.  The IA also requires that Pandya and the Pandya Practice Group hire an Independent Review Organization to conduct annual claims reviews to determine whether the items and services furnished were medically necessary and appropriately documented, and whether the claims were correctly coded, submitted, and reimbursed.  OIG did not release its permissive exclusion authority and will provide such a release only after Pandya and the Pandya Practice Group have satisfied their obligations under the IA.

The investigation of this matter and the litigation against Aarti D. Pandya, M.D., and the Pandya Practice Group were handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David A. O’Neal, Austin M. Hall, and Akash Desai.  The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability. 

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmail@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Scott Spilberg has been sentenced to prison for embezzling over $300,000 from his employer by using his company charge card for personal visits to adult entertainment clubs.

“Spilberg was trusted by his employer and betrayed that trust by shelling out more than $300,000 of company funds at adult entertainment clubs,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.

“This greedy defendant abused his position to fund his own lifestyle. Because of his actions, the restaurant, and people he was chosen to lead suffered the impacts,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “People who brazenly steal from their employers should expect to be held accountable.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: Spilberg was hired as the manager at Houck's Grille in August 2020.  Beginning in October 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Spilberg began using his company issued debit card to pay for his visits to two adult entertainment clubs.  Ultimately, he visited the clubs more than 50 times during an 11-month period, charging over $300,000 to the company debit card.  The loss of this money caused a significant hardship to the restaurant and threatened the livelihood of its 40 employees and forced it to borrow COVID-relief funds to stay in business.

Scott Spilberg, 56, of Canton, Georgia, was sentenced to two years, six months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $300,533.78.  Spilberg was convicted on September 19, 2022, after he pleaded guilty to the offense of wire fraud.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with the assistant of the Roswell Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Huber prosecuted the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

A Georgia man pleaded guilty today for his roles in two bribery conspiracies — one related to U.S. government reconstruction contracts in Afghanistan and one related to a U.S. Department of State visa fraud scheme. 

According to court documents, Orlando Clark, 57, of Smyrna, managed reconstruction projects in Afghanistan on behalf of a U.S. company. In 2011 and 2012, Clark conspired with an analyst at a different U.S. company, who evaluated bids for U.S.-funded reconstruction contracts that were awarded by the U.S. military, to receive approximately $400,000 in bribes from an Afghan company in return for assisting it in obtaining millions of dollars in contracts. To conceal his criminal conduct, Clark registered fictitious companies and bank accounts in Georgia – to which he sent bribe payments via wire transfers from Afghanistan – and created invoices to make it appear as though he was involved in a car-exporting business. In reality, Clark used the bribe payments funneled through these accounts to enrich himself and purchase personal items, including two BMWs.

In addition, between 2015 and 2020, Clark also received bribes to sign false letters of recommendation for visas authorized for Afghan nationals who worked as translators with U.S. forces in Afghanistan. Clark signed over 10 letters in which he falsely claimed to have supervised the applicants and in which he stated, without any factual basis, that he had no reason to believe that they posed a threat to U.S. national security.

Clark pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery of a public official and conspiracy to commit visa fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced on April 12 and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison on each charge. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan for the Northern District of Georgia; Inspector General John F. Sopko of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR); Special Agent in Charge Peter Tolentino of the Economic Crimes Field Office of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS); Special Agent in Charge Stanley A. Newell of the Transnational Operations Field Office of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS); and Supervisory Special Agent Gregory Batman, Chief of the Criminal Investigations Division of the U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service (DOS-DSS) made the announcement.

SIGAR, NCIS, DCIS, and DOS-DSS are investigating the case.

Trial Attorney Matt Kahn of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell Phillips for the Northern District of Georgia are prosecuting the case.

ATLANTA - Larry Edward Foxworth has pleaded guilty in federal court to shooting into multiple Clayton County convenience stores to kill those inside based upon their race and ethnicity.

Foxworth used a firearm to commit a heinous hate crime that traumatized his victims as well as the communities who rely on these businesses,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “The vigorous prosecution of such abhorrent acts of violence and intimidation with the assistance of our federal partners is a top priority for this office.”

“No one should have to live in fear of being targeted for deadly violence because they are Black or Arab American,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This defendant, who professed support for a white supremacist organization, is being held accountable for an abhorrent act of violence motivated by race and national origin. This conviction should make clear that the Justice Department stands ready to prosecute any individual who carries out a violent hate-motivated crime in our country.”

“Hate-fueled violent crimes ripple through communities, making entire groups feel unsafe and unwelcome, spawning fear and anger”, said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Prosecuting hate crimes is a top priority of the FBI. We will not back down from obtaining justice for victims of hate-based violence.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: At approximately 2:35 a.m. on July 30, 2021, Foxworth fired numerous rounds from a Glock pistol through a window and door of a gas station convenience store located in Jonesboro, Georgia.  Just minutes later, at approximately 2:57 a.m., he again fired multiple rounds from the same handgun through the windows and door of a different gas station convenience store located nearby.  Both stores were open and occupied when Foxworth shot into the businesses.  Thankfully no one was injured during either shooting.

Clayton County Police Department officers arrested Foxworth shortly after the second attack.  Foxworth admitted that he intended to kill people inside and outside the stores. He also made multiple statements to law enforcement officers that he was targeting African American individuals and others whom he perceived to be Arab.  Foxworth expressed hope that he had killed his targets and professed beliefs in white supremacist ideology and an allegiance to a white supremacist organization.  

Sentencing for Larry Edward Foxworth, 48, of Jonesboro, Georgia, is scheduled for March 16, 2023, at 10:00 a.m.  Foxworth pleaded guilty to a federal hate crime and use of a firearm during the commission of that crime of violence before U.S. District Judge Mark H. Cohen on December 15, 2023.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Clayton County Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Alan Gray and Trial Attorney Alec C. Ward of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division are prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Gerald D. Harris, a former supervisor in DeKalb County’s Tax Commissioner’s Office, has been charged with wire fraud for falsely claiming that he could register a stolen vehicle by bribing an employee in the tax office.

“In 2020, Harris pleaded guilty to bribery and blackmail for accepting cash to unlawfully register vehicles and for extorting one of the individuals who had paid him bribe money,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “Based on the COVID-19 pandemic, the sentencing judge compassionately gave Harris almost six months to report to prison. Rather than use that time to arrange his affairs – in a brazen display of audacity, Harris allegedly executed a separate wire fraud scheme.”

“Harris clearly had no remorse after his bribery and blackmail conviction, as he didn’t skip a beat in allegedly implementing a separate wire fraud scheme immediately after he was sentenced,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Hopefully, this charge will send the message that the FBI takes fraud schemes very seriously and just because you have been convicted of one crime does not mean that you are immune from further charges.”

“Unfortunately, Harris did not learn from his previous bad conduct.  Instead of using the court's grace to better his situation, he brazenly used that time to steal money.  Hopefully, this indictment will send a clear message that this conduct will not be tolerated,” DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston.

“The Georgia Department of Revenue maintains a close working partnership with all the county Tax Commissioners offices as they serve as title and registration agents for the state. We find it unacceptable and unfortunate that any individual would violate the trust provided them to perform their official duties. The Agency is committed to assisting with any investigation into reported violations of this trust,” said Frank O'Connell, Commissioner, Georgia Department of Revenue.

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges, and other information presented in court: The DeKalb County Tax Commissioner’s Office (the “Tax Commissioner’s Office”) is responsible for the billing and collection of property taxes. The Motor Vehicle Division of the Tax Commissioner’s Office handles all aspects of motor vehicle registrations, including: (a) managing the collection of motor vehicle taxes; (b) issuing vehicle tags and titles; and (c) processing vehicle registration renewals for citizens and businesses located in the county.

From July 2017 to November 2019, Harris served as the Supervisor of Tax Tag Clerks for the Tax Commissioner’s Office. Harris unlawfully exploited his position by accepting more than $35,000 bribe payments from customers to unlawfully register vehicles or renew vehicle registrations.

After being fired from the Tax Commissioner’s Office, Harris also attempted to blackmail one of the individuals who had been paying him bribe money. In December 2019, Harris sent a series of text messages to the individual stating that he was under investigation by the FBI; that the FBI had a video of Harris with the individual; that “[a]ll of us can be in trouble”; that Harris needed to know “how much” money he would receive to not share this information to the FBI; and that Harris was “not going to prison empty handed. It’s that simple.” 

Based on this conduct, the U.S. Attorney charged Harris with bribery and blackmail via a criminal information.  Harris pleaded guilty to both charges and, on November 10, 2020, received a sentence of two years in prison.  The Court gave Harris approximately six months to report to prison in consideration of safety protocols resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

In early March 2021, while awaiting his report to federal prison, Harris met an individual (“Person 1”). Even though Harris had been terminated from his position with the Tax Commissioner’s Office, Harris claimed that he had the key to the office and that he ran the office. Harris also falsely claimed to Person 1 that in exchange for a payment of between $1,200 and $1,500 per vehicle Harris could obtain vehicle tags for stolen vehicles, and that for a payment of $4,000 Harris could obtain a Commercial Driver’s License for Person 1. 

On March 22, 2021, Person 1 asked Harris about obtaining a tag for a vehicle, even though Person 1 did not have the vehicle’s title or any other documentation required to register the vehicle. In response, Harris falsely stated that he knew a woman who could register the vehicle if Person 1 paid the woman a $1,000 bribe payment.

On March 23, 2021, Harris again falsely claimed to Person 1 that the woman wanted a $1,000 bribe payment to register the vehicle. As a result, Person 1 gave Harris $1,000 in cash. But Harris then kept the $1,000 in cash, stopped all communications with Person 1, and never obtained a vehicle tag for Person 1.

Based on this conduct, on December 13, 2022, a federal grand jury charged Harris, 54, of Union City, Georgia, with three counts of wire fraud.  Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges.  The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the United States’ burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office, and Georgia Department of Revenue are investigating this case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey W. Davis is prosecuting the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Hartigan previously prosecuted this case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ROME, Ga. - Mohammed Ajmal, a Cartersville businessman, has been sentenced for making and subscribing a false tax return.  Ajmal failed to report income from over two million dollars in “kickback” payments from the use of coin-operated amusement machines in his service stations and convenience stores.

“Ajmal exploited his relatives in his plan to cheat the IRS out of hundreds of thousands of dollars,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “Ajmal is now headed to federal prison and will be required to pay full restitution as part of his sentence.”

“Consumed by greed, Mohammed Ajmal utilized his family members to hide income generated from kickbacks and filed a false tax return because he failed to report the income,” said James E. Dorsey, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Atlanta Field Office. “IRS Criminal Investigation will continue to pursue anyone who commits tax fraud. Those harboring ideas on cheating the tax system, take note that prison time is a consequence for such actions.”

“The GBI Commercial Gambling Unit investigated this case along with federal and local partners. This defendant seeking to defraud the government by evading taxes is being held accountable,” said Michael J. Register, Director, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges, and other information presented in court:  Ajmal owned several gas stations and convenience stores in the Cartersville, Georgia, area through various corporations. Many of the stores contained coin-operated amusement machines, known as “COAMs.”  COAMs are regulated by the Georgia Lottery Corporation. 

Between 2013 and 2015, the Georgia Lottery Corporation issued administrative regulations under Georgia law, which resulted in Ajmal receiving less revenue from the COAMs.  In response, Ajmal contacted the company holding the master license for the COAMs and conveyed that the company must pay him additional money, or kickbacks, if the company wished to continue operating COAMs on Ajmal’s properties. 

To disguise the kickback payments, Ajmal told the company to write checks to his relatives.  Ajmal then used the monies for his own benefit, including to build a new home.  From 2015 through 2018, the amount of the kickbacks totaled $2,292,847.  Ajmal did not report any of this income on his tax returns for 2015 through 2017. So Ajmal paid less federal tax than he actually owed for those years.

Mohammed Ajmal, 49, of Cartersville, Georgia, has been sentenced to two years in prison to be followed by one year of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $734,232.05.  Ajmal was convicted of making and subscribing a false tax return on July 12, 2022, after he pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, with valuable assistance provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, Cartersville Police Department, Bartow County Sheriff’s Office, and the Georgia Lottery Corporation.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alana Black and Michael Herskowitz prosecuted the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Clarence Boone, the former Senior Economic Development Manager of Stonecrest, pleaded guilty to conspiring with his wife, Lania Boone, and the former Mayor of Stonecrest, Jason Lary, to steal pandemic relief funds intended to support small businesses in Stonecrest.

“Boone and the former Mayor conspired to fraudulently line each other’s pockets with relief funds that were desperately needed by struggling businesses in Stonecrest,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “We will continue to uncover and prosecute those who exploit government positions and COVID relief programs to fuel their own greed.”

“CARES Act funds were intended to help people and businesses harmed by the pandemic, not to line the pockets of public officials entrusted to lead a community”, said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI will continue to work with our local, state, and federal partners to ensure stolen relief funds are returned to the public, and individuals involved in this type of fraud are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

“Like the rest of the country, the residents and businesses of Stonecrest community looked to its government for vital assistance in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead of being a trustworthy steward of CARES Act funding, Clarence Boone and his co-conspirators schemed to misappropriate those funds to enrich themselves at the expense of those less fortunate. The DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office will continue to work with its law enforcement partners to bring these bad actors to justice,” said DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston.

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: In March 2020, the President signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act into law in response to the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the CARES Act, the federal government distributed COVID-19 relief funds to individual Americans, federal agencies, and state and local governments, including $125 million to DeKalb County. DeKalb County then disbursed $6.2 million of these relief funds to Stonecrest.

In September 2020, Jason Lary, the former Mayor of Stonecrest, allocated $5 million of the relief funds to a Small Business Program which would disburse relief funds based on applications submitted by local businesses. Lary placed the defendant, Clarence Boone, who was then Senior Economic Development Manager for Stonecrest, in charge of overseeing the Small Business Program. Lary also made the defendant’s wife, Lania Boone, the bookkeeper charged with distributing relief funds. The three conspired to steal and misappropriate relief funds intended for struggling businesses in Stonecrest.

On October 28, 2020, for example, Clarence Boone and Lary circumvented the application process and directed more than $50,000 to a business that they knew was not conducting any legitimate operations, and Lania Boone ultimately wrote the check to disburse the funds. Later, in March 2021, after learning of an investigation into the city’s handling of relief funds and knowing that the business had never filed paperwork to support the grant, Clarence Boone attempted to conceal the scheme by directing the business’s owner to submit an application that contained false statements, even though the Small Business Program had already ceased operations.

Later in December 2020 and January 2021, Clarence Boone coordinated with Lary and Lania Boone to use $108,155.52 of relief funds to pay off the mortgage on Lary’s lakefront home in Macon, Georgia, and used more than $7,600 of relief funds to pay college tuition, a meal plan, books, and rent for Clarence Boone’s son.

Clarence Boone, 60, of Decatur, Georgia, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit federal program theft and is scheduled to be sentenced on March 13, 2023. His coconspirators previously pleaded guilty and received the following sentences:

• Jason Lary received a sentence of four years and nine months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $119,607.69.  Lary pleaded guilty to wire fraud, federal program theft, and conspiracy on January 5, 2022.

• Lania Boone received a sentence of six months and one day in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $7,657.47. Lania Boone pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit federal program theft on February 11, 2022.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Garrett L. Bradford, Chief of Public Integrity and Civil Rights, is prosecuting the case. Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Trevor Wilmot previously prosecuted the case.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus

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

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Giovani Orozco Ramirez has been sentenced for drug trafficking activities that put large quantities of methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine, and firearms within reach of his young children.

“The defendant, besides dealing deadly illegal drugs, showed a reckless disregard for his children’s safety by keeping these drugs and loaded guns within their plain sight,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “This investigation successfully put an end to his dangerous crimes.”

“Drug distribution delivers misery to communities everywhere. DEA’s mission is about removing the supply before it gets to the consumer. This defendant will no longer be able to distribute the poison that destroys our communities,” said Robert J. Murphy, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Division.

“This is another example as to why partnerships with our federal law enforcement agencies are so vital toward the fight to eradicate illicit drugs from the Communities we serve. We are extremely grateful for the initial work by the DEA and the dedication of the U.S. Attorney’s Office to see this case through to a very successful prosecution. Stopping this criminal element and their nexus goes a long way to strengthening the Quality of Life for us all,” said Chief Mark Mitchell, Johns Creek Police Department.

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: On April 26, 2017, agents began surveillance at Orozco Ramirez’s home in Alpharetta, Georgia. Orozco Ramirez drove to a meeting in Johns Creek, Georgia to show a potential customer one kilogram of methamphetamine out of a larger quantity that Orozco Ramirez planned to sell. Orozco Ramirez asked for two hours to coordinate a 22-kilogram methamphetamine transaction. Orozco Ramirez left the meeting location and drove back to his home.

Later that day, agents executed a federal search warrant at Orozco Ramirez’s home. Orozco Ramirez’s four minor children were in the hallway of the home. As agents began the search, they realized that the home did not have any working electricity. Co-defendant Brayan Razo Bermudez was in the lower level of the home.

In various locations throughout the house, agents found a total of more than 22 kilograms of methamphetamine, 1.2 kilograms of heroin, and 1.8 kilograms of cocaine. The methamphetamine had a purity of 98 percent and, at an agreed price of $9,200 per kilogram, was worth more than $200,000. Next to the drugs were four fully loaded firearms, including an AR-15 rifle, a shotgun, a pistol, and a revolver. In the house, agents also found another pistol and $53,797 in cash. Neither Orozco Ramirez nor Razo Bermudez were lawfully present in the United States.

Additional investigation revealed that Razo Bermudez and another co-conspirator, Eduardo Reyes Gonzalez, were working together to launder drug proceeds by structuring deposits into bank accounts. Razo Bermudez would deposit funds into a series of bank accounts in the Atlanta area, while Reyes Gonzalez would make withdrawals in McAllen, Texas from those same accounts. The purpose of these transactions was to deliver drug proceeds while disguising the nature, source, and ownership of the money.

Giovani Orozco Ramirez, 31, of Guerrero, Mexico, has been sentenced to 25 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release.  On June 17, 2022, a jury convicted Orozco Ramirez of the offenses of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine; possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, and cocaine; possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine on premises where minors are present; possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense; and possession of a firearm by an illegal alien.

In addition to Orozco Ramirez, the following defendants pleaded guilty and have been sentenced:

• Bryan Razo Bermudez, 34, of Michoacan, Mexico, was sentenced to 17 years of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release. He pleaded guilty to the offenses of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine on premises where minors are present, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, and money laundering conspiracy on February 21, 2019.

• Eduardo Reyes Gonzalez, 28, of McAllen, Texas, was sentenced to one year, six months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release. He pleaded guilty to money laundering on June 5, 2018.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas N. Joy prosecuted the case.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: www.justthinktwice.gov.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - William Allen Liebisch has been charged with interfering with the duties of a flight crew after he brought a box cutter aboard a Fronter Airlines flight and told a fellow passenger that he wanted to stab someone, which required the pilot to make an emergency landing in Atlanta.

“People have the right to travel in peace and free from fear of their fellow passengers,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “Passengers who disrupt flights with threats of violence will quickly learn that they will be answering for their conduct in federal court.”

“The FBI is committed to doing its part to prevent violence, intimidation, and threats of violence that endanger passenger and flight crew safety on commercial flights”, said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta.  “Hopefully this indictment proves that the federal government takes all threats on aircrafts seriously and violators who disrupt travel will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

“Unruly passenger behavior is unsafe and disruptive to the traveling public, as well as the flight crew,” said Todd Damiani, Special Agent-In-Charge, U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, Southern Region. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to pursue and hold accountable those who choose to engage in such reckless activity while aboard commercial aircraft.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the indictment, and other information presented in court: On November 11, 2022, Liebisch was a passenger aboard a Frontier Airlines flight from Cincinnati, Ohio, to Tampa, Florida. He passed through the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) security checkpoint in the Cincinnati airport, where TSA officers found a box cutter in his possession but mistakenly believed that they had rendered it inoperable by removing its blade.

Once the flight had taken off, Liebisch inserted a spare blade that was stored in the handle of the box cutter. A passenger saw Liebisch use the box cutter to clean his nails. Another passenger reported to two flight attendants that Liebisch said that he was going to stab someone. Because there were no law enforcement officers on the flight, one attendant asked two male passengers to assist. One passenger stood in the back nearby while the other took the seat of the passenger who made the report to the flight attendants. Both men and a flight attendant tried to keep Liebisch calm and under control for the remainder of the flight.

While this was happening, the captain made an emergency landing at the nearest airport, which was Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Once the plane landed, the passengers were instructed to deplane immediately and to leave their belongings on the plane. Atlanta Police Department (APD) officers were at the gate but did not get on the plane to avoid antagonizing Liebisch, who was in the rear of the plane with the two male passengers. As the last passengers deplaned, Liebisch charged toward a flight attendant at the front of the plane while holding his box cutter. One of the passengers tackled him from behind, and APD officers rushed on the plane to subdue Liebisch. He stopped resisting as soon as they said they would use a taser on him if he did not comply. A subsequent search of his carry-on bag uncovered a second box cutter.

After Liebisch’s arrest, the plane was not able to continue its trip to Tampa until the following morning.

William Allen Liebisch, 42, of Cincinnati, Ohio, has been charged with interfering with the duties of a flight crew, and carrying a weapon aboard an airplane. The magistrate court ordered him to remain in custody pending trial.  Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges.  The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges, and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul R. Jones is prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Shelitha Robertson, who formerly served as an Assistant City Attorney and a police officer for the City of Atlanta, has been indicted for an alleged scheme to defraud the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a federal stimulus program authorized as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

“Robertson allegedly stole millions of dollars in taxpayer money intended to help small businesses stay afloat during the pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “CARES Act loans were designed to help sustain small businesses during the pandemic, not to serve as a source of personal enrichment.  We will continue to vigorously investigate and prosecute anyone who fraudulently obtains these critical funds.”

“This indictment charges the defendant with defrauding a government stimulus program designed to help those most in need during the pandemic,” said Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Inspector General Jay N. Lerner.  “We will continue to work with U.S. Attorneys and our law enforcement partners to hold accountable individuals that aim to undermine the integrity of the banking sector. Trusted members of our communities, such as former law enforcement officers and public officials, should be held to the highest standards.”

“The Paycheck Protection Program was intended to help businesses keep their workforce employed during the COVID-19 crisis, not to fund a personal lifestyle,” said U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General Eastern Region Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite. “OIG is committed to rooting out bad actors and protecting the integrity of SBA programs. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners for their dedication and pursuit of justice.”

“The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration aggressively pursues those who attempt to abuse the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act and its Paycheck Protection Program, which was created to assist legitimate business owners during the pandemic,” said J. Russell George, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.  “We appreciate the efforts of our law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to ensure individuals engaged in criminal activity are held to account.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges, and other information presented in court: Shelitha Robertson and other co-conspirators allegedly submitted fraudulent PPP loan applications on behalf of various companies they owned and controlled. The indictment alleges that Robertson fraudulently obtained over $7 million in PPP loan funds, which was not used for payroll or other permitted business expenses. Robertson allegedly used loan proceeds to purchase luxury items, including a Rolls-Royce, a motorcycle, and jewelry, and to transfer funds to family members and co-conspirators.

Shelitha Robertson, 60, of Atlanta, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering.  Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges.  The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General (FDIC-OIG), the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General (SBA-OIG), and Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA).

Assistant U.S. Attorney Bernita Malloy, and Trial Attorney Ariel Glasner of the DOJ Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, are prosecuting the case.

The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s prosecution of fraud schemes that exploit the PPP. Since the inception of the CARES Act, the Fraud Section has prosecuted over 192 defendants in more than 121 criminal cases and has seized over $78 million in cash proceeds derived from fraudulently obtained PPP funds, as well as numerous real estate properties and luxury items purchased with such proceeds. More information can be found at https://www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/ppp-fraud.

In May 2021 the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

A federal grand jury returned an indictment today charging a Georgia woman with a scheme to defraud the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a federal stimulus program authorized as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

According to court documents, Shelitha Robertson, 60, of Atlanta, and other co-conspirators allegedly submitted fraudulent PPP loan applications on behalf of various companies they owned and controlled. The indictment alleges that Robertson fraudulently obtained over $7 million in PPP loan funds, which was not used for payroll or other permitted business expenses. Robertson allegedly used loan proceeds to purchase luxury items, including a Rolls-Royce, a motorcycle, and jewelry, and to transfer funds to family members and co-conspirators.

Robertson, who formerly served as an Assistant City Attorney and a police officer in Atlanta, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each of the conspiracy and wire fraud charges, and a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on the money laundering charge.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan for the Northern District of Georgia, Inspector General Jay N. Lerner of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General (FDIC-OIG), Inspector General Hannibal “Mike” Ware of the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General (SBA-OIG), and Inspector General J. Russell George of the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) made the announcement.

The FDIC-OIG, SBA-OIG, and TIGTA are investigating the case.

Trial Attorney Ariel Glasner of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bernita Malloy for the Northern District of Georgia are prosecuting the case.

The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s prosecution of fraud schemes that exploit the PPP. Since the inception of the CARES Act, the Fraud Section has prosecuted over 192 defendants in more than 121 criminal cases and has seized over $78 million in cash proceeds derived from fraudulently obtained PPP funds, as well as numerous real estate properties and luxury items purchased with such proceeds. More information can be found at https://www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/ppp-fraud.

In May 2021 the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

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

ATLANTA - Peter Bilardello, a former Cobb County Deputy Sheriff assigned to the agency’s Sex Offender Unit, has been sentenced to federal prison for distributing child pornography online after entering a guilty plea to the charge in August 2022.

“Bilardello’s crimes constitute a horrific breach of the public’s trust,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “Law enforcement officers like Bilardello, who was responsible for protecting the community from sex offenders, bear a special obligation. It is an especially sad day when those who take an oath to enforce laws to protect potential victims actually break the law and victimize instead. The metro-Atlanta law enforcement community remains committed to working collaboratively and quickly to investigate such reprehensible conduct.”

“Every time pornographic images are distributed online, that child is continuously re-victimized,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI will not tolerate predators who prey on our children, especially ones like Bilardello, who were sworn law enforcement officers that took an oath to protect the citizens of our community.”

“The public places a great amount of trust in law enforcement officers,” said Cobb County Police Chief Stuart VanHoozer.  “When a law enforcement officer breaks that trust, it reflects on all officers across this profession. I stand with the honorable women and men of the Cobb County Police Department, with Sheriff Owens and those who serve under his command, and with the remainder of law enforcement professionals across this nation who find acts such as these by law enforcement officers abhorrent.  We greatly appreciate U.S. Attorney Buchanan and all our federal partners who allow stronger sentencing and help local agencies like Cobb Police make our community safer.  Finally, to the detectives who must work these types of cases routinely, thank you for doing things even most police officers don’t want to do and thank you for the objective and hard work on this case in particular.”

“Bilardello’s actions erode the trust the public places in law enforcement officers,” said Cobb County Sheriff Craig Owens. “I commend the Cobb County Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for their swift action in investigating these heinous crimes and stopping the spread of child pornography. Justice was served, and this sentence makes clear that no one is above the law, especially those sworn to protect and serve the public.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: In August 2021, Cobb County Police began investigating a report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) about suspected child pornography distribution online. The report, which was based on information submitted to NCMEC by the social media company MeWe, indicated that a MeWe account user who was located in Marietta, Georgia, had uploaded and shared approximately 12 images depicting young children engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Cobb County Police executed a search warrant on the social media account and learned that the account user was Peter Bilardello, who was an active Cobb County Deputy Sheriff. Bilardello had been employed by the Cobb County Sheriff’s office for approximately 17 years. During the time that he was distributing child pornography online he worked in the agency’s Sex Offender Unit where his job duties included maintaining, verifying, and updating the list of registered sex offenders residing in Cobb County.

After identifying Bilardello as the social media account owner, Cobb County Police promptly obtained and executed search warrants for Bilardello’s home and cell phone, and confirmed that Bilardello had uploaded and shared child pornography on MeWe.  Investigators also recovered more than 300 images and videos depicting young children engaged in sexually explicit conduct from his cell phone, as well as multiple chats online about his pedophilic desire for young children. Bilardello was immediately arrested and resigned from the Cobb County Sheriff’s Office.  

Peter Bilardello, 52, of Marietta, Georgia, was sentenced to five years, ten months in prison to be followed by ten years of supervised release. He was taken into federal custody immediately following sentencing and must register as a sex offender. Bilardello was convicted of one count of distributing child pornography on August 29, 2022, after he entered a guilty plea.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Cobb County Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Annalise K. Peters prosecuted the case.

This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, the Attorney General launched Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices around the country, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Former Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency counselor Karen C. Lyke (formerly known as Karen C. Gregory) has been sentenced to five years in prison for forging educational records and creating fake students with non-existent disabilities and illnesses in an elaborate, multi-year scheme to steal more than $1.3 million.  

“The State of Georgia trusted Lyke to serve some of its most vulnerable citizens – Georgians with significant disabilities and illnesses,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.  “Driven by greed more than integrity, Lyke betrayed that trust and masterminded a complex scheme to invent fake students with non-existent disabilities through forging medical, educational, and financial records. Based on her sophisticated conspiracy, Lyke cheated taxpayers out of more than $1.3 million.”

“Lyke abused her trusted counselor position to line her own pockets, and for that she will spend time in prison,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “This sentencing should serve as a message that the FBI and our partners will not tolerate anyone driven by personal greed to steal American tax payer money that should be going to those who need it.”

“This sentence provides accountability for an absolutely brazen crime that resulted in the largest criminal fraud OIG has ever investigated,” said State Inspector General Scott McAfee. “OIG will continue to uphold the integrity of state programs and ensure taxpayer dollars are used for their intended purpose.”

“This should serve as a reminder that fraud related to the services and resources the Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency provides to our clients will not be tolerated. We are committed to protecting the interests of Georgia taxpayers and our constituents,” says GVRA Executive Director Chris Wells.  “As soon as we suspected fraud in this matter, we notified the Georgia Office of the Inspector General. Additionally, we took immediate action to prevent such incidents of fraud even earlier to ensure both our clients and public funds are secure.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges, and other information presented in court: The State Vocational Rehabilitation Services Program is a federally funded program administered by the U.S. Department of Education that offers grant money to assist states to provide services to individuals with disabilities. To be eligible for the State Vocational Rehabilitation Services Program, individuals must have a physical or mental impairment that results in a substantial impediment to employment and require services to achieve employment and to maximize career goals. Across the country, state vocational rehabilitation agencies offer various services to individuals with disabilities, including tuition assistance for vocational training and college education.

The Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency (“GVRA”) operates Georgia’s vocational rehabilitation program. Between 2017 and 2020, the GVRA annually received at least $100,000,000 in federal funds. The GVRA’s Vocational Rehabilitation Program helped people with disabilities (known as “clients”) to find and maintain employment, including by providing funding and tuition assistance for college education.

During this time, the GVRA assigned counselors to assist its clients, including helping clients to obtain tuition assistance. To obtain tuition assistance, a client was required to provide the GVRA with documentation to support obtaining GVRA funds, including: (a) medical records demonstrating a disability related to employment, (b) a driver’s license, (c) proof of registration for classes, and (d) financial aid information.

After receiving the information, the client’s GVRA counselor reviewed the documentation and, if the counselor approved the request for tuition assistance, a check was mailed to the client for the requested educational expenses. From June 2015 to March 2019, Lyke served as a GVRA counselor in its Norcross, Georgia office.

From approximately May 2016 to November 2020, Lyke and her husband, Kevin M. Gregory (who has been separately charged) conspired to steal money from the GVRA by claiming educational expenses for approximately 13 fake students. Lyke and Gregory used the names of actual friends and relatives as the names of the fake disabled students seeking tuition assistance from the GVRA.

Lyke and Gregory used the names of friends and relatives to create fake medical records to make it appear that the approximately 13 fake students qualified for tuition assistance from the GVRA. They claimed that these fake students suffered from disabilities or illnesses like AIDS, cancer, psychosocial impairments, or muscular dystrophy.

As proof of identification, Lyke and Gregory provided the GVRA with manufactured images of fake driver’s licenses that listed the names of their friends and relatives. In one instance, Gregory created a fake driver’s license in his cousin’s name, by using a mug shot image of an unknown individual from the Internet as the driver’s license photograph.

Lyke and Gregory then used photo-editing software to alter authentic college transcripts, financial aid reports, and proofs of registration from actual GVRA clients to support claims that the fake students attended schools like the Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia State University, or the University of Georgia. Lyke then uploaded the sham driver’s licenses, transcripts, financial aid reports, and other documentation into the GVRA’s electronic database.

Based on false documentation, Lyke and Gregory caused more than 230 checks to be mailed to approximately 13 friends and relatives for bogus educational expenses. In fact, none of the 13 fake students attended any of the claimed colleges or universities.

The GVRA mailed the checks to post office boxes that Lyke and Gregory opened in their own names. After receiving the GVRA checks, Lyke and Gregory either: (a) deposited the GVRA checks into their own bank accounts, or (b) gave the GVRA checks to their friends and relatives to be deposited. The friends and relatives funneled most of the GVRA funds back to Lyke and Gregory after depositing the GVRA checks.

After Lyke left the GVRA in March 2019, Lyke and Gregory continued to submit forged paperwork to the GVRA for non-existent educational expenses. Based on the false submissions, the GVRA continued to issue checks to the fake students for bogus educational expenses. Lyke and Gregory used the stolen GVRA funds to pay for various personal expenses, including cars, jewelry, high-end guitars, and the down payment on a new home. In total, based on the false documentation they created, the GVRA mailed more than 230 checks to Lyke and Gregory resulting in the theft of approximately $1.3 million.

From approximately August 2016 to February 2019, Gregory and Lyke also conspired to steal several high-value computers from the GVRA. Using her position as a GVRA counselor, Lyke and Gregory stole multiple computers by submitting phony paperwork to the GVRA claiming that:

• Three genuine GVRA clients needed computers to further their educational goals when, in fact, the GVRA clients did not know that Lyke had ordered the computers under their names and never received the computers;
• Three fake students (that Gregory and Lyke created) needed the computers to further their educational goals; and
• Gregory was a GVRA client who needed a computer to further his educational goals.

Lyke arranged for at least six computers to be shipped to her attention at the GVRA office in Norcross. Upon delivery, Lyke stole the computers and computer accessories from the GVRA. Lyke and Gregory then sold at least five of the computers on eBay using Gregory’s account. Lyke and Gregory kept one computer for personal use. In total, Lyke and Gregory stole at least seven computers with various accessories worth approximately $32,000.

Based on the conduct above, on September 1, 2022, Karen C. Lyke, 37, of Toledo, Ohio, pleaded guilty to a criminal information charging her with conspiring to commit federal program theft. Lyke was sentenced to five years in prison followed by three years of supervised released and was ordered to pay $1,347,531.76 in restitution to the U.S. Department of Education and the GVRA.

On October 4, 2022, Kevin M. Gregory, 40, of Toledo, Ohio, pleaded guilty to a criminal information charging him with conspiring to commit federal program theft. Gregory is scheduled to be sentenced on January 11, 2023.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Georgia Office of Inspector General are investigating the case. The Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency also provided valuable investigative assistance.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffrey W. Davis and Jesika W. French are prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Kayricka Wortham and Demetrius Hines have pleaded guilty to defrauding Amazon.com, Inc., and stealing nearly $10 million from the company, while employed at the company in managerial and loss prevention roles. 

“The defendants abused their trusted positions to steal nearly $10 million from the company over the course of just a few months,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “This staggering fraud was fueled by pure greed, as evidenced by the high-end real estate, luxury cars, and expensive jewelry that the defendants quickly accumulated with their fraudulent proceeds.”

“These defendants attempted to hide their scheme in plain sight by using their unique roles within their company to conceal the actions from which they fraudulently benefitted,” said U.S. Secret Service Atlanta Special Agent in Charge Steven Baisel. “The defendants ultimately learned that the highly skilled investigators with the Secret Service are uniquely proficient in their work to uncover illicit financial schemes, regardless of attempts to evade law enforcement. I am proud of the investigative team responsible for bringing these defendants before our justice system.” 

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: Kayricka Wortham and Demetrius Hines used their positions at Amazon.com, Inc., to submit more than $10 million in fictitious invoices for fake vendors, causing Amazon to pay approximately $9.4 million to Wortham, Hines, and their co-conspirators.

From about August 2020 to March 2022, Wortham worked as an Operations Manager at Amazon. She was employed at the company’s warehouse in Smyrna, Georgia. In her position, Wortham supervised others and acted with authority to approve new vendors and the payment of vendor invoices.

Hines was a Loss Prevention Multi-Site Lead at Amazon. He also worked at the Smyrna warehouse and at other company sites. In his position, Hines was responsible for preventing loss, monitoring security risks, and protecting people, products, and information at Amazon.

Wortham, who was the leader of the scheme, provided fake vendor information to unknowing subordinates and asked them to input the information into Amazon’s vendor system. Once the information was entered, Wortham approved the fake vendors, thereby enabling those vendor accounts to submit invoices to Amazon. Wortham and her co-conspirators, including Hines, then submitted fictitious invoices for payment. These invoices falsely represented that the fake vendors had provided goods and services to Amazon. The payments for these invoices, typically approved by Wortham, went to bank accounts controlled by Wortham and her co-conspirators.

Wortham recruited other individuals to act as purported vendor contacts for the fake vendors entered into Amazon’s system. She recruited Hines into the scheme and asked him to supply individuals’ information that could be used as fake vendor contacts.

In total, Wortham and her co-conspirators received about $9.4 million from the scheme. They spent the fraudulent proceeds for personal benefit, including purchasing real estate, luxury cars, and expensive jewelry.

As part of her sentencing, Kayricka Wortham, a/k/a “Kayricka Dupree,” a/k/a “Kayricka Young,” 31, of Atlanta, Georgia, will forfeit more than $2.7 million in fraudulent proceeds seized from multiple bank accounts, a residence located in Smyrna, that was purchased with over $900,000 in fraudulent proceeds, and a 2019 Lamborghini Urus, a 2021 Dodge Durango, a 2022 Tesla Model X, a 2018 Porsche Panamera, and a Kawasaki ZX636 motorcycle, all of which were purchased with fraudulent proceeds.

Demetrius Hines, 35, of Smyrna, Georgia, will forfeit more than $600,000 in fraudulent proceeds seized from multiple bank accounts and a 2022 Suzuki GSX1300 Motorcycle, a 2013 Ford Shelby Mustang, a 2021 Ford F-150 Black Widow, a Rolex Day-Date watch, a diamond bracelet, and a diamond necklace, all of which were purchased with fraudulent proceeds.

Wortham and Hines pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Sentencing for Wortham is scheduled for March 8, 2023, at 10:30 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr. Sentencing for Hines is scheduled for March 8, 2023, at 11:00 a.m., before Judge Batten.

Brittany Hudson, 37, of Atlanta, Georgia, has also been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The Criminal Information alleges that Hudson was in a relationship with Wortham and owned a business, Legend Express LLC, which contracted with Amazon to deliver packages to customers. Hudson allegedly conspired with Wortham to submit fictitious invoices for fake vendors as part of the scheme. Her case is pending.

This case is being investigated by the U.S. Secret Service.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephen H. McClain and Norman L. Barnett are prosecuting the case.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.