Northern District of Georgia

ATLANTA - Julius C. Appling, Taj J. Tillison, Tal V. Tillison, Aryonne Johnson, and Andrew Smith, a/k/a Dru, have been sentenced to federal prison for conspiracy to commit bank fraud in connection with their scheme to deposit fraudulent checks at Wells Fargo and SunTrust banks in the metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia area.

“The defendants were able to commit this fraud because they duped unwitting people into allowing them access to their personal bank accounts,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “Alarm bells should go off if anyone offers you money in return for depositing their check into your bank account so that they can immediately get the cash from the check.  Days later when that person is long gone and you learn that the check bounced, you will be held financially responsible.”

“These five individuals found out the hard way that bank fraud is a serious federal crime involving federal prison time.  The FBI treats these types of financial crimes targeting the banking industry very seriously and cautions anyone considering this type of criminal activity to reconsider,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court:  The defendants paid individuals for access to their bank accounts at Wells Fargo and SunTrust banks.  In connection with this access, the defendants would gain use of the individuals’ ATM and debit cards, including the PIN to allow their use.  They would then deposit fraudulent checks into these third party accounts.  The checks were drawn on accounts that had long been closed or the checks were completely fake.  The individuals who gave the Defendants access to their accounts were not aware that the Defendants intended to deposit fraudulent checks into the accounts.  Once the checks had bounced, those individuals were held responsible for the losses by the banks. 

Both Wells Fargo and SunTrust make funds available from deposited checks the same day as the deposit, so after depositing fraudulent checks, the Defendants would either withdraw cash directly from the accounts through ATMs or would make purchases using debit cards and request cash back at the point of sale transaction.  Each defendant was captured in multiple photos taken by ATM cameras for many of the deposits and withdrawals.  Ultimately, the five defendants gained access to more than 200 bank accounts.  The defendants deposited over $880,000 worth of fraudulent checks and withdrew over $360,000. 

A federal Grand Jury indicted the defendants on October 28, 2014, and all five defendants pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud.  U.S. District Judge Thrash sentenced all five defendants to prison:

• On October 20, 2015, Taj J. Tillison, 24, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to four years, three months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release.She was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $88,933.67.
• On September 3, 2015, Julius C. Appling, 25, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to four years, nine months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release.He was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $364,250.43.
• On June 24, 2015, Tal V. Tillison, 25, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to four years, nine months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release.He was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $300,807.34.
• On June 23, 2015, Andrew Smith, a/k/a Dru, 34, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to two years, nine months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.He was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $92,415.08.
• On May 28, 2015, Aryonne Johnson, 25, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to two years, nine months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.She was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $162,734.65.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

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

Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. Attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Since fiscal year 2009, the Justice Department has filed over 18,000 financial fraud cases against more than 25,000 defendants.  For more information on the task force, please visit www.StopFraud.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 – Anthony Lepore, John Rife, and Brian Domalik, all former employees of a janitorial services company, have been indicted on charges that they conspired to bribe Patrick Jackson, a public official employed by DeKalb County and the Georgia World Congress Center, in exchange for favorable treatment by Jackson on contracts between their company and the two government entities.

“These defendants are charged with circumventing the government contracting process by bribing a corrupt public official who was willing to put his own interests above those of the taxpayers he served,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “This indictment reaches to the very top suites of the company, charging complicity in the bribery at the highest levels.”

“These three defendants found out the hard way that those who bribe or otherwise entice public officials to engage in criminal acts of public corruption can themselves become subjects of federal criminal investigations.  Because public corruption investigations are the FBI’s number one criminal program priority, the FBI continues to provide significant resources in ensuring that those engaged in this type of activity will be held accountable,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

“This indictment illustrates that alleged corruption involving public officials will not be tolerated in the state of Georgia.  It is essential that violators of these types of crimes be held accountable.  The GBI is fully committed to working with the FBI’s Public Corruption Task Force to investigate public corruption cases,” said Vernon Keenan, Director, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: Anthony Lepore was the President and CEO of Rite Way Services, Inc., an Alabama based company that sought to do business with both the DeKalb County Government and the Georgia World Congress Center (GWCC). Rife was the Regional Vice President, and Domalik, who came to work for the company in 2010, was the Division Manager, both working out of the Norcross, Georgia, facility. The indictment alleges that the three defendants, through Rite Way, conspired to bribe Patrick Jackson by facilitating payments to provide Jackson a furnished luxury apartment in Atlanta, Georgia.

Patrick Jackson was simultaneously employed by both DeKalb County and the GWCC as the manager of janitorial services from approximately 2006-2012. Jackson did not disclose to either employer that Rite Way, which obtained contracts with both DeKalb County and GWCC during his employment, was paying for an apartment where he resided. In exchange for the apartment, Jackson used his position as a public official to help the company secure contracts with DeKalb and GWCC and to benefit the interests of the company throughout the course of those contracts with DeKalb County and the GWCC. 

Both Patrick Jackson, 55, of Loganville, Georgia, and another former employee of Rite Way, Cecil K. Clark, 55, of Jonesboro, Georgia, who participated in the scheme have previously pleaded guilty and been sentenced:

• Jackson was sentenced on August 12, 2015, by U.S. District Judge William S. Duffey Jr. to four years, three months in federal prison, and ordered to pay restitution to both DeKalb County and GWCC.

• Clark was sentenced on September 30, 2015, by U.S. District Judge William S. Duffey Jr., to one year, five months in federal prison, ordered to pay restitution to DeKalb County and GWCC, and fined $20,000.  

Lepore, 63, of Birmingham, Alabama; Rife, 65, of Cumming, Georgia; and Domalik, 47, of Kennesaw, Georgia were named in a ten-count indictment charging them with conspiracy to commit honest services mail fraud.  They were arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Linda T. Walker.  John Rife will be arraigned at a later date.    

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

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jamie L. Mickelson and Kamal Ghali 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia has reached a settlement agreement with Floyd Medical Center (Floyd), a system of health care providers located in Rome, Georgia, to resolve an investigation into allegations that it violated Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by failing to ensure effective communication with individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing.

“When a deaf patient or caregiver is unable to understand what is happening during a medical visit or procedure, it can be a terrifying experience and adversely affect the quality of care,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “Deaf or hard of hearing citizens deserve the same opportunities to participate in medical decisions as every other citizen.”         

The U.S. Attorney’s Office initiated an investigation after receiving three complaints alleging that Floyd failed to provide appropriate auxiliary aids and services when necessary to ensure effective communication. The complainants, who are deaf or hard of hearing and rely on American Sign Language as their primary means of communication, were either patients or the primary caregivers of patients at Floyd.  One claimant alleged that she endured a complicated labor and delivery by C-section without any effective communication before or during this procedure.  Another complainant, who was the primary caregiver for her elderly father, alleged that she was denied effective communication and therefore unable to fully participate in or understand the medical decision-making regarding his terminal illness or discharge to home hospice care.

Under the settlement agreement, Floyd agreed to ensure effective communication to patients who are deaf and hard of hearing. In the future, Floyd agreed to give primary consideration to the expressed preference for a particular auxiliary aid or service by an individual who is deaf or hard of hearing.  Among other things, Floyd has agreed to provide mandatory in-service training to all its personnel and provide reports to the U.S. Attorney’s Office regarding its compliance with the settlement agreement. The training will address the needs of deaf and hard-of-hearing patients and companions.  Floyd also agreed to pay $75,000 to the complainants.

The ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities by health care professionals.  Under the ADA, health care providers are required to provide effective communication to individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing.  When complex, lengthy communication is involved, the ADA generally requires health care professionals to provide qualified sign language interpreters for the person who is deaf or hard of hearing.

This agreement is part of the Department of Justice’s Barrier-Free Health Care Initiative, which is a partnership of the Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorneys’ offices across the nation, to target enforcement efforts on a critical area for individuals with disabilities.  The initiative, launched on the 22nd anniversary of the ADA in July 2012, includes the participation of more than 40 U.S. Attorneys’ offices, including the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia.  Information about the initiative can be found at www.ada.gov/usao-agreements.htm.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Aileen Bell-Hughes and Emily Shingler are representing the United States in this matter.

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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - James Thomas has been arraigned on federal charges of wire fraud and money laundering arising from an alleged advance fee fraud scheme involving $1.7 million.  Thomas was indicted by a federal grand jury on September 15, 2015.

“This defendant is charged with operating a sophisticated advance fee scheme that took advantage of individuals and businesses who had limited options for financing real estate deals after the recession of 2008,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “This case shows that consumers and small businesses must be careful about those with whom they enter business relationships, and should research beyond the information on websites.”

“It is our sincere hope that today's federal grand jury indictment will give the many victims involved in this matter assurance that their case will be heard.  The FBI will continue to provide significant resources toward investigating and presenting for prosecution those individuals engaged in such wide spread fraud as is alleged in this case,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: Between 2008 and 2011, Thomas portrayed his firm, Trilateral Capital and Development LLC (“Trilateral”), as a reputable and well established private equity company that had successfully loaned millions of dollars for real estate development projects. Trilateral’s website and marketing materials contained fraudulent misrepresentations about the firm’s past real estate deals.  Thomas also misrepresented Trilateral’s finances and on least one occasion e-mailed a fraudulent bank statement purporting to show that Trilateral had over $1.6 million in one account.  

Through this scheme, more than 20 individuals and companies from across the country and overseas provided Thomas with more than $1.7 million in advance fees for real estate loans that Thomas never provided. The indictment alleges that Thomas used the advance fees to pay himself and employees, take vacations, fund other business ventures and make charitable contributions. 

James Thomas, 44, of Villa Rica, Ga., was arraigned before United States Magistrate Judge Linda T. Walker.

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 United States Attorney Jeffrey Brown 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 - Kenneth Horner and Kimberly Horner have each been sentenced to one year, six months in federal prison following a jury’s guilty verdict in February 2015, on tax fraud charges stemming from the defendants skimming money from their towing business.

“Small business owners should take note of this case,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “Skimming cash from your business account and intentionally failing to report that money to the IRS, as a federal jury concluded these defendants did, is illegal.  Community services and all other benefits of government depend upon citizens paying their fair share of taxes.”

“Businesses are required to honestly report and pay taxes due, and should expect the same of their competitors,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo.  “Those business owners who evade these obligations not only steal from the U.S. Treasury, but gain an unfair competitive advantage, and the department is committed to holding them accountable.”

“IRS Criminal Investigation is sworn to protect the tax system and bring to justice those who steal from the Treasury,” stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge. “In today’s economic environment, it’s more important than ever that the American people feel confident that everyone is paying their fair share. Today’s sentence demonstrates that our largest enforcement program is directed at the portion of American taxpayers, who willfully and intentionally violate their known legal duty of filing and paying their fair share of taxes.”

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: Kenneth and Kimberly Horner owned Topcat Towing and Recovery, Inc. (“Topcat Towing”), a towing business in Lithonia, Georgia.  Between 2005 and 2008, Topcat Towing had an exclusive contract with DeKalb County, Georgia, for all county car tows needed from the south precinct of the county. 

Between 2005 and 2008, the defendants skimmed more than $1.5 million in cash receipts from their towing business and deposited those cash receipts into their personal bank account without disclosing the income to their tax return preparer or on corporate and personal tax returns filed with the IRS. The defendants tried to conceal their cash deposits from the government by “structuring” their deposits, which is the act of splitting up cash deposits so that none of them exceed $10,000, for the purpose of evading a Currency Transaction Report from being filed.

Most financial institutions, including banks, are generally required to file Currency Transaction Reports (CTRs) for cash transactions that exceed $10,000.  CTRs are submitted to the U.S. Department of Treasury.  In 2007 and 2008, the defendants used their unreported cash, in part, to build a custom home in Conyers that was appraised at more than $900,000. 

Kenneth Horner, 59, and Kimberly Horner, 54, both of Milledgville, Georgia, have each been sentenced to one year, six months in federal prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $144,455 to the IRS.  The Horners were found guilty by a jury on February 20, 2015.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.

DOJ Criminal Tax Division Trial Attorney Christopher J. Maietta and Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven D. Grimberg 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 – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia announced that Guardian Hospice of Georgia, LLC, Guardian Home Care Holdings, Inc., and AccentCare, Inc., (collectively Guardian) agreed to pay $3 million to resolve allegations that Guardian knowingly submitted false claims to the Medicare program for hospice patients who were not terminally ill. Guardian is a for-profit hospice that provides hospice services in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.

“Medicare payments to hospices are increasing every year,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “In order to preserve Medicare funds for services patients truly need, we will continue to pursue hospice providers who abuse the Medicare hospice benefit by billing Medicare for the care of patients who are not terminally ill.”

““The Medicare hospice benefit is intended to provide comfort and care to patients nearing the end of life,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division.  “We will continue to aggressively pursue companies that abuse the Medicare hospice benefit to improperly inflate their profits.”

J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “The FBI is proud of the role that it played in bringing forward today’s settlement in this matter.  The FBI will continue to provide significant investigative resources toward combating Medicare fraud in order to not only protect the limited federal funds dedicated to that program but also to protect the end users that rely and depend on the services that it provides.”

“Hospice care is only medically appropriate – and reimbursed by Medicare – for terminally ill patients who are in the last months of their lives,” said Special Agent in Charge Derrick L. Jackson of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General.  “We will continue to vigorously investigate health care companies that put their own profits above their duty to give appropriate medical care to their patients and bill Medicare only for legitimate health care services.”

The Medicare hospice benefit is available for patients who elect palliative treatment (medical care focused on providing patients with relief from pain, symptoms, or stress) for a terminal illness and who have a life expectancy of six months or less if their illness runs its normal course. Before billing Medicare, a hospice provider is obligated to comply with Medicare requirements and ensure that patients who are foregoing curative care are in need of end of life care.

The government alleges that Guardian submitted or caused the submission of false claims for hospice care for patients who Guardian knew were not terminally ill. These claims were submitted for services provided between December 1, 2009 and March 31, 2012. Specifically, the United States contends that Guardian’s business practices contributed to its submission of claims for patients who did not have a terminal prognosis of six months or less, including failing to properly train its staff and medical directors on the hospice eligibility criteria, setting aggressive targets to recruit and enroll patients, and failing to properly oversee the Atlanta hospice. 

The settlement resolves allegations filed by Rose Betts and Jennifer Williams, former employees of Guardian, under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, which authorize private parties to sue for false claims on behalf of the United States and share in the recovery. Ms. Betts and Ms. Williams will receive approximately $510,000. The lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of Georgia and is captioned U.S. ex rel. Betts v. Texas Home Health of America, L.P., No. 12-cv-0412.

This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $25.14 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $16.1 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.

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

This case was investigated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Office of Inspector General.

The civil settlement was reached by Assistant United States Attorney Lena Amanti.

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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.

Savannah, Ga. – Former ATF Task Force Officer Daryle McCormick pleaded guilty to fraudulently claiming that he worked approximately 800 hours of overtime resulting in more than $19,500 in additional wages.

“McCormick’s lies about the overtime he worked cost the taxpayers almost $20,000,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “In committing this crime, McCormick violated both the law and the public’s trust.”

“Today’s guilty plea demonstrates that federally deputized task force officers will be held to the same standards as other federal law enforcement officers,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Bourbon of the U.S. Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General’s Miami Field Office.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: From approximately November 25, 1996, to May 7, 2015, Daryle McCormick served as a police officer with Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department headquartered in Savannah, Georgia.  From that position, McCormick became a federally‑deputized Task Force Officer with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (“ATF”).  McCormick served as an ATF Task Force Officer from approximately September 6, 2005, to June 17, 2014.

As an ATF Task Force Officer, McCormick was eligible to receive overtime pay for working more than eight hours per day. To be paid, McCormick was required to submit an overtime pay request to the ATF, listing the dates worked, the number of hours worked, and the general subject matter of the work. When submitting requests to be paid for overtime hours purportedly worked, McCormick made the following certification: “I certify that the above time was duly earned. I understand that my misstatement concerning the aforementioned time may be cause for dismissal.” Ultimately, when approved, payments for McCormick’s fraudulently claimed overtime came from the U.S. Department of Justice.  

From October 2010 to September 2013, McCormick engaged in a scheme to unlawfully commit overtime fraud by repeatedly submitting overtime payment requests to the ATF for hours that he never worked.  For example, (1) McCormick claimed to work overtime on days when he had worked a full day with the ATF and had also worked up to an additional four hours at a second job for a local church; (2) McCormick claimed to have worked overtime conducting surveillance or undercover operations, even though no ATF operations occurred on those dates; and (3) McCormick claimed to have worked overtime conducting surveillance or undercover operations; however, McCormick never drafted reports summarizing the alleged ATF operations.

From approximately October 18, 2010, to September 28, 2013, McCormick falsely claimed to have worked almost 800 hours in overtime when in fact, he had not worked those overtime hours.  Based on those false overtime requests, the Department of Justice paid McCormick more than $19,500 for overtime hours that McCormick never worked.

On August 31, 2015, Daryle McCormick, 47, of Pooler, Georgia, was charged via criminal information with theft of government money. He pleaded guilty to that charge.  McCormick was terminated from the Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department in May, 2015.

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

Special Assistant U.S Attorney Jeffrey W. Davis 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 – Edgar Valdez-Villarreal, a.k.a. “La Barbie,” and Carlos Montemayor Gonzalez, who are charged in the Northern District of Georgia with importing drugs and money laundering, are among 13 defendants extradited from Mexico this afternoon to face pending charges in the United States.  Valdez and Montemayor are alleged to be high-level members of Mexico’s Beltran-Leyva Cartel and were arrested in Mexico on the Atlanta, Georgia, charges in 2010.

“Valdez and Montemayor are charged with leading the efforts for a top Mexican cocaine cartel with sending drugs into the United States while funneling millions of dollars in cash back into Mexico,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “Given Atlanta’s status as a distribution hub for the Mexican cartels, this case demonstrates our commitment to work internationally and include the cartels’ leadership in our cases.”

Daniel R. Salter, the Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration in Atlanta commented, “Today’s extraditions are a great outcome for cooperative law enforcement.  DEA, the United States Attorney’s Office (Northern District of Georgia) and our federal, state, local, and foreign partners remain committed to ensuring the safety and security of the United States.  Citizens can rest assured that DEA will continue to target these drug trafficking organization’s intent of making a living on the backs of addiction.”

Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Assistant Attorney General Leslie Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Administrator Chuck Rosenberg of the Drug Enforcement Administration, FBI Director James Comey and Acting Director David Harlow of the U.S. Marshals Service announced the extraditions today in Washington.

The extraditions are a result of ongoing, high-level discussions among law enforcement officials from the start of the tenures of Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch of the United States and Attorney General Arely Gómez González of Mexico. In their first meeting on June 16, 2015, the attorneys general agreed to begin a new push for collaboration between the two nations and committed to working closely to fight international organized crime.

“Today’s extraditions would not have been possible without the close collaboration and productive relationship the Department of Justice enjoys with officials at the highest levels of law enforcement in Mexico,” said Attorney General Lynch.  “I am grateful to our Mexican counterparts not only for their assistance with this important matter, but also for their extraordinary efforts and unwavering partnership in our ongoing fight against international organized crime.  I look forward to all that we will continue to accomplish in the service of that mission as we build on these achievements together in the days and months ahead.”

Valdez and Montemayor are accused of supplying tractor trailer trucks full of cocaine from Mexico to the Eastern United States on behalf of the Sinaloa and Beltran-Leyva cartels. They were indicted in the Northern District of Georgia on June 11, 2010, with conspiring to import and distribute cocaine, as well as conspiring to launder money by transporting drug money from the United States into Mexico. Valdez Villarreal is also indicted in the Eastern District of Louisiana on narcotics-related charges.

http://www.dea.gov/divisions/atl/2010/atlanta061110p.html

Valdez, Montemayor, and the other 11 defendants were extradited from Mexico this afternoon and were placed in the custody of U.S. Marshals. They will proceed to make initial appearances in federal district court in the coming days.

The remaining 11 defendants include:

•           Luis Umberto Hernandez Celis, aka Pack; Alberto Nunez-Payan, aka Fresa, Fresco and 97, and Ricardo Valles de la Rosa, aka Chino, are alleged members of the Barrio Azteca gang and were charged on March 9, 2011, in Western District of Texas with participating in the March 13, 2010, murders in Juarez, Mexico, of U.S. Consulate employee Leslie Ann Enriquez Catton, her husband Arthur Redelfs and Jorge Alberto Salcido Ceniceros, the husband of a U.S. Consulate employee.

•           Jorge Costilla-Sanchez, aka El Cos, is an alleged former leader of the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas, and was charged on April 10, 2002, in the Southern District of Texas with cocaine and marijuana importation and distribution, money laundering, and threatening federal law enforcement officers with assault, kidnapping or murder.  Costilla-Sanchez was among the FBI’s most wanted until his arrest by Mexican authorities on Sept. 12, 2012.

•           Jean Baptiste Kingery was charged on Nov. 20, 2013, in the Central District of California with arms trafficking related to the illegal exportation of defense article and munitions from the United States to Mexico.  Kingery is expected to make his initial appearance in the District of Arizona on Oct. 1, 2015.

•           Aureliano Montoya-Pena, aka La Changa, was among 20 defendants charged on Nov. 2, 2011, in the Northern District of Illinois with conspiracy to possess and distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine and various other offenses related to transporting millions of dollars in drug proceeds between Chicago and Mexico.

•           Julio Cesar Valenzuela-Elizalde, aka The Pilot, was among eight defendants charged on Dec. 19, 2002, in the District of Arizona with an international methamphetamine distribution conspiracy, conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and conspiracy to import a controlled substance.

•           Martin Daniel Castillo-Rascon was charged on June 12, 2013, in the Western District of Texas with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance, conspiracy to import a controlled substance, possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, importation of a controlled substance and aiding and abetting.

•           Antonio Reynoso-Gonzalez was charged in 1995 in the Southern District of California along with Joaquin Guzman-Loera, aka El Chapo, and 22 others with conspiracy to import and to possess cocaine with intent to distribute.

•           Antonio Gonzalez Platas was charged in the state of Arkansas with rape.

The charges and allegations in an indictment are merely accusations.  The defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

Today’s extraditions were coordinated by the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs, the FBI, the DEA and the U.S. Marshals Service.  The federal cases are being handled by prosecutors in the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section and Organized Crime and Gang Section and in the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the District of Columbia, Central District of California, Northern District of Georgia, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern District of Louisiana, Southern District of Texas and the Western District of Texas.  The state case is being handled by the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney for Arkansas.

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 Wooden and Hendrickx H. Toussaint, a now disbarred lawyer, have been sentenced to federal prison for operating a real estate-based Ponzi scheme that took in almost $5 million dollars from out-of-state and foreign investors.

“These defendants tricked investors into handing over millions of dollars by promising quick returns and an income stream,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “To make their scheme work, they preyed upon the common belief held by many investors that real estate is a safe investment.  Sadly, this case proves that criminals will say anything to persuade a person to part with their money, and that investors should always be skeptical of offers that sound too good to be true.”

“While so much of the financial harm in cases like this is unrecoverable, the FBI hopes that today’s sentencing provides some degree of relief to the many investors turned victims that now suffer from the greed fueled criminal conduct of these two defendants,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office. 

“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service has no shortage of Ponzi schemes to investigate and this is just another example of greed overcoming honest business practices,” said Thomas Noyes, Inspector in Charge, Charlotte Division.  He added, “Relying on a reputation or relationship is not enough, investors must still verify information, especially if there are claims of outperforming the market.”

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: In or about 2009, Charles Wooden, doing business as Aeon Capital Management, LLC, held himself out to the public as a real estate broker who could locate and oversee the purchase of residential properties and apartment buildings for or on behalf of real estate investors.  Wooden purported to find properties that could be flipped in a short period for a profit, and also properties that he would manage for the investors.  

Wooden’s property management services allegedly included renting the properties to tenants, collecting rent, and forwarding investors their share of the rental funds.  Wooden introduced and described Hendrickx Toussaint, who was an attorney at the time, to real estate investors as the attorney who would escrow investor funds and close real estate purchases for Wooden and the investors.  As the escrow agent, Toussaint agreed to hold funds from investors and disburse such funds to purchase real estate for the investors’ benefit.

Between 2009 and 2012, multiple out-of-state and foreign investors invested over $5 million with Wooden and Toussaint for the purchase of Atlanta, Georgia, area real estate.  Although Wooden purchased some properties for investors, Wooden and Toussaint did not use the vast majority of investors’ funds as they had promised and represented to the investors.  In addition to funding his personal lifestyle and business, Wooden used funds from investors to pay “profits” from short-term real estate “flips,” that in fact never occurred, and to pay rental income to investors from properties that in fact had not been purchased.  When one out-of-state investor sued Wooden, he used funds obtained from another victim to settle the out-of-state investor’s lawsuit.

Wooden, Toussaint, and others provided fake documents to the investors to conceal that their monies had not been used to purchase real estate.  These false documents included HUD-1 settlement statements, bogus real estate deeds, and in one instance, a fake bank account statement reflecting that the investor’s money was still being held in escrow.  Over time, investors asked more and more questions about why public records did not reflect that they owned properties that they had been told had been purchased for them.  Wooden blamed Toussaint and county recording systems, and attempted to deceive the victims further by introducing fictitious people and identities who he claimed would fix what he said were simply title recording problems. 

Charles Wooden, 48, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, has been sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mark H. Cohen to seven years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and to pay restitution of $2.4 million.

Hendrickx H. Toussaint, 44, of Decatur, Georgia, has also been sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mark H. Cohen to three years, ten months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and to pay restitution of $1.2 million.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and United States Postal Inspection Service. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas W. Gilfillan 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.

ATLANTA - Dimitry Belorossov, a/k/a Rainerfox, has been sentenced to four years, six months in prison following his guilty plea for conspiring to commit computer fraud.  Belorossov distributed and installed Citadel, a sophisticated malware that infected over 11 million computers worldwide, onto victim computers using a variety of infection methods.

“Global cyber-crime requires a global response, and this case is a perfect example,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “This defendant committed computer hacking offenses on victims in the United States from the relative safety of his home country of Russia, but he was arrested by our law enforcement partners in Spain. As malware and hacking toolkits continue to victimize computer users around the world, we will step up our efforts to focus internationally on the criminals who develop these programs.”

“The FBI, in working with its international partners, continues to demonstrate that international boundaries no longer provide a safe haven for cybercriminals targeting U.S. individuals or interests domestically.  Successful investigation and prosecution of cases such as this are directly attributable to the increased capabilities and determination of our cyber trained investigators and our foreign based legal attachés working collectively to not only disrupt and dismantle these foreign based hacking efforts, but also to bring those individuals responsible to justice,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court:  In late 2011, a malicious software toolkit named “Citadel” began appearing for sale on invite-only Internet website forums frequented by cybercriminals. Citadel was a sophisticated form of malware known as a “banking Trojan” designed to steal online banking credentials, credit card information, personally identifiable information, and, ultimately, funds through unauthorized electronic transfers.  Citadel electronically infected the computers of unsuspecting individuals and financial institutions, creating “bots,” which cybercriminals, such as Belorossov, then remotely accessed and controlled.

Cybercriminals, including Belorossov, distributed and installed Citadel onto victim computers through a variety of infection methods, including malicious attachments to spam emails and commercial Internet ads containing malware or links to malware.  Since 2011, multiple versions of Citadel have been distributed and operated throughout the world.  Citadel became one of the most advanced crimeware tools available in the underground market, as it had the capability, among other things, to block antivirus sites on infected computers. According to industry estimates, Citadel, and other botnets like it, infected approximately 11 million computers worldwide and are responsible for over $500 million in losses.

In 2012, Belorossov downloaded a version of Citadel, which he then used to operate a Citadel botnet primarily from Russia. Belorossov remotely controlled over 7,000 victim bots, including at least one infected computer system with an IP address resolving to the Northern District of Georgia. Belorossov’s Citadel botnet contained personal information from the infected victim computers, including online banking credentials for U.S.-based financial institutions with federally insured deposits, credit card information, and other personally identifying information.

In addition to operating a Citadel botnet, Belorossov also provided online assistance with the goal of developing suggested improvements to Citadel, including posting comments on criminal forums on the Internet and electronically communicating with other cybercriminals via email and instant messaging.

For example, in 2012 Belorossov made numerous postings to Citadelmovement.com, an online forum in which Belorossov discussed his Citadel botnet and recommended improvements to the Citadel malware.  In those postings, which were in Russian, Belorossov shared his concurrence with the improvements to Citadel recommended by others and commented on the efficacy of additional criminal functions other customers had recommended as enhancements to the Citadel malware.

Belorossov, 22, of St. Petersburg, Russia, has been sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Thomas W. Thrash Jr., to four years, six months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $322,409.09.  Belorossov was convicted on July 18, 2014, after he pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steven D. Grimberg and Scott Ferber 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 – German company Master-Equipment has been charged with manufacturing, selling, and smuggling realistic American federal law enforcement badges into the United States.  The charges arise out of an investigation of a phony DEA badge use by Daniel Harbison, a Georgia resident who was sentenced to federal prison after impersonating a DEA agent in June 2015.

“The production and sale of genuine-looking federal badges by Master-Equipment potentially places a badge in the hands of individuals, like Daniel Harbison, who are not law enforcement but use them for their own purposes,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “This type of product only serves to undermine the trust the public places in law enforcement.”

“The dismantling of a foreign based company’s ability to sell counterfeit U.S. law enforcement badges to a U.S. market is critical in the post 9/11 era,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.  “While this case was initiated by an unlawful traffic stop by an individual impersonating a federal law enforcement officer, those circumstances and consequences could have been much different and far more tragic.”

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the criminal complaint, and other information presented in court: Master-Equipment is a distributor and reseller of law enforcement equipment and accessories located in Kaarst, Germany. Master-Equipment uses the website www.badge-police.com to sell and advertise its products over the Internet. Master-Equipment’s website is entirely in English and it contains no German.

Master-Equipment claims that its products are made in America and its website contains an image of a bald eagle, the American flag, and the phrase “God Bless America.” Most of the equipment and accessories sold by Master-Equipment bear the name of American-based law enforcement agencies. The website also contains photographs of and testimonials from purported customers who claim to be former U.S. federal law enforcement officers.

Via its website, Master-Equipment sells a variety of realistic replicas of badges used by American federal law enforcement agencies. For example, Master-Equipment sells badges bearing the name of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (“ATF”), Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”), Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”), Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), and United States Marshals Service (“USMS”). Master-Equipment also sells a variety of badges bearing the name of the Central Intelligence Agency (“CIA”).

According to its website, Master-Equipment only sells its badges to “active [and] retired police officers, collectors, or for theatrical production.”  Through its website, Master-Equipment implies that it is lawful for a customer to purchase badges as collectable items, so long as the customer does not use the badges to impersonate a law enforcement officer. In fact, under U.S. federal law it is illegal to knowingly manufacture, sell, or possess badges or colorable imitations thereof, which are used by U.S. federal law enforcement departments or agencies, regardless of whether they are used by collectors, theatrical productions, or any other purpose.

In April 2015, an American citizen used a Master-Equipment badge to impersonate a U.S. federal law enforcement officer. Specifically, on April 3, 2015, in Doraville, Georgia, Daniel Harbison (a three-time convicted felon) conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle by engaging police-style green and white flashing lights. Unbeknownst to Harbison, the vehicle was being driven by an off-duty Corporal with the Doraville Police Department.  During the unauthorized traffic stop, Harbison wore a T-shirt printed with the letters “DEA,” carried a .45 caliber handgun in a thigh holster, and possessed an identification card purportedly issued by the DEA. The Doraville officer also saw that Harbison possessed a realistic gold and blue badge engraved with the letters “US.” Harbison told the Doraville officer that he was a federal officer. The Doraville officer then stated that other police officers were in route to check the authenticity of Harbison’s law enforcement credentials.  Harbison then returned to his car and fled the scene.

Later that day, police officers identified Harbison’s residence and ultimately, he was arrested. At Harbison’s residence, police officers recovered several items, including: (a) a Springfield .45 caliber handgun, (b) a DEA T-shirt, (c) green and white lights, (d) an identification card purportedly issued by the DEA, and (e) a gold and blue badge engraved with the letters “US” that is alleged to have been manufactured by Master-Equipment. 

In connection with its investigation, the FBI conducted two undercover operations.  In May 2015, a FBI undercover agent, posing as an ordinary U.S. civilian, ordered a FBI badge from Master-Equipment via its website.  In June 2015, Master-Equipment mailed the undercover agent a badge engraved with the words “Federal Bureau of Investigation – Department of Justice” and embossed with the letters “U.S.” The fake FBI badge sent by Master-Equipment was realistic and virtually identical to a genuine FBI badge (although it was slightly larger). In July 2015, a FBI undercover agent, posing as an ordinary U.S. citizen, ordered a FBI badge from Master-Equipment via its website.  In July 2015, Master-Equipment mailed the undercover agent a badge engraved with the words “Federal Bureau of Investigation – Department of Justice” and embossed with the letters “US” The second fake FBI badge sent by Master-Equipment is realistic and virtually identical to a genuine FBI badge.

On April 23, 2015, a grand jury charged Daniel Harbison, 40, of Dunwoody, Georgia, with being a felon in possession of a firearm. Harbison pleaded guilty to that charge on June 9, 2015.  On August 27, 2015, Harbison was sentenced to serve one year, nine months in prison.

On September 10, 2015, Master-Equipment was charged in a six-count criminal complaint with smuggling goods into the United States, trafficking in counterfeit goods, and manufacturing and selling fake federal law enforcement badges. In connection with the criminal complaint, the FBI seized the website (www.badge-police.com) that Master-Equipment used to sell its fake badges.

Members of the public are reminded that the criminal complaint 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. Attorney Jeffrey W. Davis, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Sanders, and Assistant U.S. Attorney G. Jeffrey Viscomi 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 – Denise M. Bailey, the former administrator of an assisted living facility, has been sentenced to federal prison for misappropriating over $300,000 in veterans benefits that belonged to one of the facility’s residents.

“While working as a nursing home administrator, the defendant stole disability benefits from a Vietnam veteran who lived in the nursing home,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “This disabled veteran was entitled to every penny of his disability award after honorably serving our country, and needed the money to live comfortably in assisted living – yet Bailey spent the money for her own personal expenses.”

Special Agent in Charge Monty Stokes, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General said, “today’s sentencing is the result of a joint effort to investigate and prosecute a VA fiduciary who embezzled funds from a veteran who was not capable of managing his financial affairs.  We will continue to vigorously investigate those whose actions corrupt the integrity of VA fiduciary programs intended to care for our nation’s venerable veterans.”

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court:  Bailey was the administrator at Azalea Gardens, an assisted living facility located in Conyers, Georgia.  One of the facility’s residents was a Vietnam veteran who needed long-term care after suffering a heart attack in 2006.  In December 2010, the Department of Veterans Affairs appointed Bailey to be the fiduciary for the veteran.  As his fiduciary, Bailey agreed to use any veterans benefits awarded to the veteran only for his benefit.

On July 7, 2011, the VA awarded the veteran retroactive disability benefits in the amount of $313,452.37, which was deposited in an account held in the name of the veteran with Bailey as administrator.  Bailey drained the account within four days.  After transferring the money from that account to the Azalea Gardens account, Bailey transferred the majority of it to herself, or accounts controlled by her, and used a portion to pay off family credit cards bills.  During the later VA investigation, Bailey submitted fraudulent bills in an attempt to justify the payments, falsely claiming that the veteran owed money to Azalea Gardens for extraordinary services.  Bailey had not informed the veteran or his family about the VA payment or the alleged bills for these services.

Bailey, 49, of Danielsville, Georgia, was sentenced by United States District Judge Thomas W. Thrash, Jr., to one year in prison and two years of supervised release.  A decision will be made at a later date regarding the restitution amount still owed to Henderson’s family.  On July 7, 2015, Bailey pleaded guilty to misappropriating veterans funds while acting as a fiduciary.

This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General.  Valuable assistance was also provided by the Conyers Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen H. McClain 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/gan/.

ROME, Ga. – James Earl Chapman, Jr., a doctor from Macon, Georgia, has been convicted after a two-week jury trial on 49 counts of drug trafficking for prescribing and dispensing controlled narcotics at a Cartersville, Georgia, “pill mill” pain clinic that served as a front for the mass distribution of addictive pain killers.

“A doctor’s first responsibility is to do no harm to others, but evidence at trial established that Dr. Chapman relentlessly and aggressively prescribed controlled pain killing medication to patients who were addicted to them,” said U.S. Attorney John A. Horn.  “Many of those patients sold the pills for financial gain, and to finance return trips to the clinic. A jury has guaranteed that Chapman is no longer in a position to do harm.”

Daniel R. Salter, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division said of the case, “Removing and ultimately eliminating healthcare providers who unlawfully dispense pharmaceutical products for non-medical reasons is an important part of DEA’s mission. This medical doctor distributed copious quantities of opiate-based pills to scores of drug-seeking patients. At one point, Dr. Chapman received the largest number of Oxycodone pills of all doctors in the state of Georgia. Dr. Chapman will no longer be able to commit such unlawful acts due to the hard work and dedication put forth by our federal, state and local law enforcement counterparts who made this investigation a success.” 

“This conviction demonstrates the great work of law enforcement at all levels to investigate and prosecute the illegal distribution of prescription narcotics affecting Georgia and our surrounding states.  The GBI remains committed to working with our local and federal partners in drug enforcement to address these types of crimes,” said Vernon Keenan, Director, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

“We are committed to ‘following the money trail’ to ensure that those who engage in these illegal activities are vigorously investigated and brought to justice,” stated IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge, Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot.  “This verdict is a vital element in maintaining public confidence that these individuals and others who commit similar crimes will be held accountable.”

“We were glad to see the results of good police work in this case. We believe that the verdict in this case will send a strong message to those who prey on individuals with addiction will not be tolerated. I am pleased with the hard work that went into this case from the investigation to the successful prosecution. It proves to our communities that when law enforcement agencies work together for a common goal good things happens as demonstrated in this guilty verdict.  From a local prospective we were grateful for all the assistance we received in investigating and prosecuting this case,” said Captain Mark Mayton, Commander, Bartow-Cartersville Drug Task Force.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the indictment, and evidence presented in court:  In May 2010, using information from the FBI/NW Georgia Criminal Enterprise Safe Streets Task Force, federal, state and local law enforcement agents joined together in investigation of Atlanta Medical Group, (“AMG”) after learning that the clinic, located in Cartersville, Georgia, was prescribing pain pills outside the bounds of legitimate medical practice.  The investigation revealed that James Earl Chapman, Jr., served as the clinic’s primary doctor. Jason Votrobek and Roland Castellanos, both of whom were found guilty in a previous trial, financed and operated the clinic, along with Jesse Violante.  Tara Atkins served as the office manager. Violante and Atkins previously pleaded guilty to charges related to their conduct at the clinic. 

Chapman, while serving in his role at AMG, failed to fulfill a doctor’s basic obligations to conduct physical examinations of patients and verify medical histories before prescribing astronomical quantities of controlled substances. Significantly, in the first year the clinic opened, Chapman received the highest number of oxycodone pills of any doctor in the State of Georgia.  Chapman continued to prescribe controlled substances in dangerous amounts and combinations even after he received notice that many pharmacies in the area were refusing to fill the prescriptions and that the medical board had subpoenaed his records to determine the propriety of his prescribing practices.  Those patient records revealed that Chapman knew that at least some of his patients were drug addicts: the records contained information (from a nurse or the “patients” themselves) that those patients had previously purchased the drugs illegally. 

In fact, more than 98% of the patients traveled to AMG from surrounding states in order to receive prescriptions for controlled substances.  Furthermore, the evidence showed that Chapman was a drug user himself, and that he asked clinic employees to assist him in illegally obtaining narcotics for his own use.  For example, on one day in particular, Chapman had another clinic employee fill out narcotics prescriptions for him to sign, as he was too intoxicated to do so himself.  Still, his own drug use did not stop him from seeing “patients.”

James Earl Chapman, Jr., 64, of Macon, Georgia, will be sentenced on November 13, 2015, before the U.S. District Judge Harold L. Murphy.

Jason Cole Votrobek, 31, of Vero Beach Florida, and Roland Rafael Castellanos, 34, of Hollywood, Florida, the financiers and operators of AMG were previously convicted by a jury on March 26, 2014.  They were both sentenced to 15 years in federal prison. 

A third financier and operator, Jesse Violante, 35, of Vero Beach, Florida, and AMG’s office manager, Tara Atkins, 36, of Cartersville, Georgia, each previously pleaded guilty to charges related to their conduct at the clinic.  Violante was sentenced to four years, four months in federal prison.  Atkins was sentenced to two years in federal prison.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Bartow County Sheriff's Office, and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation. This case was initiated by the FBI/ Northwest Georgia Criminal Enterprise Safe Streets Task Force.

Assistant United States Attorneys G. Scott Hulsey, Cassandra J. Schansman, and Laurel R. Boatright 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.

ATLANTA - The United States Attorney’s Office announced that L-3 Communications Corporation, Vertex Aerospace LLC and L-3 Communications Integrated Systems LP (collectively L-3) have agreed to pay $4.63 million to resolve allegations that they inflated labor hours for time spent by independent contractors at the military’s Continental U.S. Replacement Centers (CRC) in Fort Benning, Georgia, and Fort Bliss, Texas, preparing to deploy to overseas posts to support U.S. military operations abroad.  The CRCs prepare individuals for deployment by providing orientation briefings, training, health screenings, payroll processing and addressing other administrative matters.       

“Contractors owe a duty to the taxpayers to accurately bill the United States for the actual work performed,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “This settlement demonstrates our commitment to hold contractors accountable for false billing and restore wrongfully taken funds to the military.”

“The Justice Department is committed to vigorously pursuing all those who knowingly submit false claims under government contracts,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division.  “Contractors that seek taxpayer funds must be scrupulous in their billing, and invoice only for work and amounts permitted by their contracts.” 

L-3 performed rotary aviation maintenance and support services for the U.S. Army in Afghanistan, Iraq, Egypt and Kuwait under contracts with the U.S. Air Force.  The United States alleges that from 2006 through November 2011, L-3 knowingly overcharged the government for time their independent contractors spent at the CRCs by billing for each individual not based on the actual time that individual spent at the CRC, but based instead on the earliest arrival or latest departure time of any other individual who also processed through the center that same day.  

“This collaborative investigative effort reflects the Defense Criminal Investigative Service’s commitment to protecting American taxpayers’ interests by ensuring integrity and accountability throughout the Defense contracting system,” said John F. Khin, Special Agent in Charge, DCIS-Southeast Field Office.

“This settlement is a testament to the hard work of our special agents and also highlights the importance of the whistleblower provision of the False Claims Act,” said Director Frank Robey of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit.  “In this particular case, a concerned citizen wasn’t afraid to speak up, alerted the proper authorities, and helped save the U.S. government millions of dollars.”

The allegations settled arose from a lawsuit filed by a whistleblower, Robert A. Martin, a former L-3 independent contractor, under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act.  Under the act, private citizens can bring suit on behalf of the government for false claims and share in any recovery.  Mr. Martin will receive $798,675 from the recovery announced.

This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and U.S. Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit, with assistance from the Defense Contract Audit Agency. The civil settlement was reached by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher J. Huber and Trial Attorneys from the Department of Justice Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch.

The lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. Martin v. L-3 Communications Corp., et al., 1:10-CV-1622-CAP (N.D. Ga.). The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.

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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.

ATLANTA – Dr. Debra Johnson-Jordan, a physician in East Point, Georgia, has been arraigned on federal charges of tax evasion and failing to file a federal income tax return.

“The indictment alleges that, despite earning significant income, this doctor failed to file tax returns for several years in a row, and then claimed that she was exempt from paying taxes,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.      

“IRS Criminal Investigation is sworn to protect the tax system and bring to justice those who steal from the Treasury,” stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge.   “Dr. Jordan stole from the American people by failing to file tax returns and pay the taxes that she owed for numerous years.” 

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Johnson-Jordan, who practices medicine in East Point, Georgia, is charged with two counts of tax evasion for filing false W-4 forms with her employer claiming that she was exempt from paying federal income taxes for tax years 2011 and 2012. Johnson-Jordan claimed she was exempt from paying federal income taxes despite earning at least $363,376.  Johnson-Jordan is also charged with one count of failing to file a federal income tax return for 2010, despite earning at least $175,943.  The indictment also alleges that Johnson-Jordan failed to file federal income tax returns for tax years 1997-2007 and 2010-2012.  

Debra Johnson-Jordan, 58, of Winder, Georgia, was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Janet F. King.  She was indicted by a federal grand jury on August 26, 2015.

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 Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Brown 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 – Two former Georgia Department of Corrections (GDOC) employees, four current Georgia state inmates, three recently paroled inmates, and three others have been charged federally with drug trafficking, extortion, wire fraud conspiracies, wire fraud, and identity theft offenses, as detailed in two indictments unsealed today.  Much of the criminal conduct allegedly was committed inside Georgia state prisons.

“Prisons serve to punish and rehabilitate convicted offenders and deter crime—not enable it,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “These indictments allege that, after being placed in prison to protect society from their criminal behavior, these inmates capitalized on their ready access to cell phones and other contraband to further victimize citizens outside the prisons.  Prisons should be a place where we have confidence that inmates are not operating identity theft schemes and drug distribution rings.”

“The federal indictments and arrests of these individuals represent not only the larger problems posed by contraband such as cell phones in prisons, but also the joint law enforcement effort to address it,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.   “The FBI will continue to work with its state partners, to include the Georgia Department of Corrections, in addressing the many unique challenges facing correctional facilities and those that work within them”.

“Criminals who are able to operate inside correctional facilities and conduct this level of criminal activity are a direct threat to the safety of the public.  The GBI is fully committed to working with the Georgia Department of Corrections and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to address this type of crime,” said Vernon Keenan, Director, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court:  As alleged in the indictments, the wide-ranging conspiracy involved GDOC employees at Phillips and Valdosta State Prisons who helped smuggle cell phones and other contraband to inmates in exchange for bribe payments.  These cell phones were often equipped with touch screens and internet access that enabled the prisoners to coordinate drug transactions, commit identity theft and credit card fraud, and even post on social media and buy products online. 

According to the indictment, the charged GDOC employees allegedly helped smuggle methamphetamine, prescription pain medication, marijuana, liquor, tobacco, and take-out food into the prisons.  At times, the inmates even bragged about watching streaming movies while in solitary confinement.  In one instance, an inmate allegedly used his contraband cell phone to arrange a “hit” on another inmate whom he suspected of cooperating with law enforcement. 

The following individuals were arrested today, and most of the defendants made their initial appearances before United States Magistrate Judge Janet F. King:

Former GDOC employees who were charged are:

• Anekra Artina Williams, 20, of Nashville, Georgia, was a GDOC guard at Valdosta State Prison, in Valdosta, Georgia.  Williams has been charged with one count of conspiring to distribute at least 50 grams of methamphetamine; one count of distributing methamphetamine; and one count of conspiring to interfere with commerce by extortion. 
• Charonda Edwards, a/k/a “John,” 29, of Decatur, Georgia, was a kitchen worker at Phillips State Prison, in Buford, Georgia.  Edwards has been charged with one count of conspiring to distribute methamphetamine and marijuana; and one count of interfering with commerce by extortion. 

The current GDOC inmates who were charged are:

• Donald Howard Hinley, 51, was an inmate at Valdosta State Prison prior to his arrest, has been charged with one count of conspiring to distribute at least 50 grams of methamphetamine; one count of distributing at least 50 grams of methamphetamine; and three counts of distributing methamphetamine. 
• Mims Morris, 24, who was an inmate at Phillips State Prison prior to his arrest, has been charged with one count of conspiring to distribute methamphetamine and marijuana; two counts of conspiring to commit wire fraud; two counts of committing wire fraud; and two counts of aggravated identity theft. 
• Johnathan Silvers, a/k/a “Turtle,” 28, who was an inmate at Phillips State Prison prior to his arrest, has been charged with one count of conspiring to distribute methamphetamine and marijuana. 
• Adam Smith, 30, who was an inmate at Phillips State Prison prior to his arrest, has been charged with one count of conspiring to distribute methamphetamine and marijuana. 

The paroled GDOC inmates who were charged are:

• Ruben Ruiz, a/k/a “Flaco” and “Scrappy,” 34, of Gainesville, Georgia, has been charged with one count of conspiring to distribute at least 50 grams of methamphetamine.  Ruiz was paroled in March 2014 from GDOC custody after serving a 10-year sentence. 
• William A. Matthews, a/k/a “Two Young,” 30, of Union City, Georgia, has been charged with one count of conspiring to distribute at least 50 grams of methamphetamine; and one count of distributing methamphetamine.  Matthews was paroled in August 2014 from GDOC custody after serving a 10-year sentence.
• Kansas Bertollini, a/k/a “Guido,” 35, of Kathleen, Georgia, has been charged with one count of conspiring to distribute at least 50 grams of methamphetamine; and one count of distributing at least 50 grams methamphetamine.  Bertollini was paroled in June 2014 from GDOC custody after serving an 11-year sentence.

The other individuals who were charged are:

• Tiffany Allen, 27, of Cleveland, Georgia, has been charged with two counts of conspiring to commit wire fraud; and two counts of aggravated identity theft. 
• Monique Kinney, a/k/a Monique Reed, 26, of Augusta, Georgia.  Kinney was charged with one count of conspiring to commit wire fraud; and one count of aggravated identity theft. 
• Opal Marie Hayden, 58, of Acworth, Georgia, has been charged with one count of conspiring to distribute at least 50 grams of methamphetamine; and three counts of distributing methamphetamine.

Valdosta State Prison

The GDOC is an agency of the State of Georgia and responsible for overseeing the operations of state prisons.  Over 55,000 inmates are incarcerated in Georgia state prisons.  According to the indictment, GDOC inmates increasingly obtain and use cellular telephones to further their criminal activities while incarcerated.  Among other things, cellular telephones are used to traffic drugs, commit fraud schemes, and organize criminal activity both inside and outside of prison.  Inmates regularly buy and sell cellular telephones inside of prison, many of which are the latest models.

The first of two indictments focuses on Valdosta State Prison (VSP), which is located in Valdosta, Georgia, and houses adult male inmates.  Donald Hinley was an inmate at VSP. 

The Smuggling Scheme

The indictment alleges that inmates typically relied on prison employees to smuggle cellular telephones and other contraband into VSP.  In 2014 and 2015, Hinley routinely arranged to have telephones, cigarettes, liquor, prescription pain medication, and illegal drugs smuggled into the prison by prison employees.  Anekra Williams was a GDOC corrections officer who allegedly smuggled contraband into VSP in exchange for bribe payments.  The indictment alleges that Williams smuggled drugs, tobacco and other items requested by inmates into VSP.  On one such occasion, Williams allegedly smuggled methamphetamine and prescription pain medication into the prison for Hinley in exchange for $500.  In order to assist with the smuggling scheme, Hinley allegedly arranged to have the contraband packaged in a manner to avoid detection by other prison security officers. 

Drug Trafficking from Inside Prison

The indictment alleges that while an inmate at VSP, Hinley coordinated a network of illegal drug suppliers and couriers, from August 2014 through April 2015 that included, among others, Opal Marie Hayden, Ruben Ruiz, William Matthews, Kansas Bertollini, and Williams.  With their assistance, Hinley allegedly brokered a number of significant drug transactions in Atlanta and in other areas of Georgia.  On multiple occasions, Hinley coordinated the purchase and sale of illegal narcotics by cell phone.  In recorded telephone calls, Hinley allegedly bragged “We have good prices and good product.”

The indictment also alleges that in one encounter, Hinley used his contraband cell telephone to call an inmate he knew at Telfair State Prison (TSP) and instructed his associate to kill another TSP prisoner after Hinley confirmed that the inmate was “a snitch” and was likely a prosecution witness against Hinley’s girlfriend.  At the time, Hinley’s girlfriend worked as a drug courier in Hinley’s drug organization and was a defendant in a state narcotics case.  Hinley allegedly ordered his associate to “shoot every one” of the witness’ family members. Immediately after law enforcement learned of Hinley’s plan, the cooperating inmate was placed in protective custody.

    Phillips State Prison

The second indictment focuses on Phillips State Prison (PSP), which is located in Buford, Georgia, and houses adult male inmates.  Mims Morris (Morris), Johnathan Silvers (Silvers), and Adam Smith (Smith) were inmates at PSP and were members of the Ghostface Gang.  The indictment alleges that while they were inmates at PSP, both Morris and Silvers allegedly obtained cellular telephones and used them to traffic drugs and commit fraud.  Morris and Silvers even obtained cellular telephones while they were in segregated custody, charging the devices using the light fixtures in their cells.  Silvers allegedly bragged that his cellmate was watching a movie on his cellular telephone while they were in the “hole” together.  In a recorded telephone call, Morris talked about posting on Facebook and buying shoes on the Internet.  Morris boasted that the guards all knew he had a cellular telephone in segregated confinement.

The indictment also alleges that Tiffany Allen (Allen) and Monique Kinney (Kinney) assisted Morris by using stolen identities to commit fraud.  Allen and Kinney communicated with Morris by cellular telephone while he was an inmate at PSP.

The Smuggling Scheme

The indictment alleges that, like VSP, inmates relied on prison employees to bring in cellular telephones and other contraband to PSP.  Charonda Edwards (Edwards) was a GDOC contract employee who worked in the kitchen at the prison.  Edwards allegedly obtained drugs, tobacco, and other items requested by Silvers in exchange for payment.  Edwards then smuggled the items into prison and hid them so the inmates could pick up the contraband.  Edwards also allegedly provided valuable information to Silvers in the process such as when the prison would be “locked down.”

Morris, Silvers, and Edwards allegedly relied on prison orderlies and other inmates inside PSP to move drugs, cellular telephones and other items throughout the prison.  Morris and Silvers sold the smuggled drugs and contraband to other inmates.  In one recorded call, Silvers said that, even though they were in the “hole,” he had food, cigarettes and marijuana, and even expected to get methamphetamine in the near future.  Silvers paid Edwards using reloadable prepaid credit cards.

Fraud and Theft from Inside Prison

The indictment alleges that from June 2014 to September 2014, Morris allegedly used his contraband cellular telephone to perpetuate various fraud schemes from inside prison with the assistance of associates on the outside, including Kinney and Allen.  The targeted victims were credit card companies and their customers, and job-seekers responding to online advertisements for work.

The Credit Card Scheme

The indictment alleges that on August 26, 2014, Morris called victim “B.T.,” pretending to be a Discover Card representative, working in the “Fraudulent Specialist Department.”  He informed B.T. that there were fraudulent charges on her credit card and he needed her credit card number to verify her identity.  At his urging, B.T. eventually provided her credit card number to Morris. 

While pretending to be B.T., Morris allegedly called a Discover Card representative and was able to access her Discover card account.  During the call, Morris used B.T.’s Social Security number and credit card number to authorize a $2,200 transfer to another credit card Morris controlled.  Later, Morris allegedly pretended he was B.T. and asked the representative to change the telephone number on the account because he was going to be out of town for several weeks.  The Discover representative changed the telephone number to Morris’s prison cell phone.  On September 3, 2014, Morris allegedly used B.T.’s information to apply for additional credit cards.  With the help of Kinney, Morris was approved for a Capital One Platinum Card using B.T.’s personal information.

The Fake Employment Scheme

On August 31, 2014, Morris texted Allen, telling her he wanted to act as though he was hiring people.  Morris allegedly explained that he would obtain personal information from people seeking work and then would order debit cards in their names, using their personal information.  Morris commented to Allen that it was “easy as pie” to get someone’s personal information.

The indictment alleges Morris directed Allen to post a fraudulent advertisement on Craigslist.com for job applicants for non-existent construction and roofing jobs.  Morris provided a fake company name and an address in Sacramento, California, and even provided his cellular telephone in prison as the telephone number for the fake company so the victims would call him directly and provide their personal information.  Allen allegedly attempted to post this information on Craigslist for Morris.

Prison Investigation Also Uncovers Illegal Machinegun Sales

During the federal investigation, FBI agents learned that a woman, later identified as Tiffany Goodson, 34, of Toccoa, Georgia, telephoned an inmate at Jenkins Correctional Center, a privately owned state prison in Millen, Georgia.  The inmate received Goodson’s telephone call on a contraband prison cell phone.  During that call, Goodson, a convicted felon, allegedly informed the inmate that she knew a man who was willing to build and sell fully automatic machineguns.  This inmate later cooperated with federal authorities.

When that information reached the FBI, federal agents identified Goodson and used an undercover agent to purchase two machineguns from her.  The agents also identified Goodson’s gun supplier as Robert Burns, 30, of Wahalla, South Carolina.   On February 15, 2015, during an undercover operation arranged by the FBI, Mr. Burns drove from South Carolina to Stephens County, Georgia, where he sold Goodson a fully automatic rifle with an obliterated serial number for $2,500.

On July 7, 2015, Goodson and Burns were indicted by a federal grand jury for their roles in a conspiracy to sell illegal machineguns.  Earlier today, Mr. Burns pleaded guilty before Senior U.S. District Court Judge Orinda D. Evans.   During his plea hearing, Mr. Burns admitted to making and supplying machineguns and to possessing an illegal machinegun with an obliterated serial number.  Ms. Goodson’s charges are pending.

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

These cases are being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and the Georgia Department of Corrections Office of Professional Standards.

First Assistant United States Attorney Kurt R. Erskine, Assistant United States Attorneys Brent Alan Gray and John S. Ghose, and Special Assistant United States Attorneys Erin E. Sanders and Trevor Wilmot are prosecuting these cases.

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 - Michael C. Sibley, who placed a backpack containing two pipe bombs at Vickery Creek Park in the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, has pleaded guilty to a charge of conveying false and misleading information about a crime.

“In addition to breaking the law, threatening an act of terrorism is a serious matter that diverts scarce law enforcement resources away from legitimate threats and unnecessarily causes alarm,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “Sibley’s crime is even more troubling because he attempted to exploit stereotypical fears and prejudices.”

“The guilty plea of Mr. Sibley concludes an investigation that triggered a significant law enforcement response, to include that of numerous bomb technicians, to address the backpack that Mr. Sibley had left at a Roswell, Georgia park on November 4, 2014.  This also resulted in a significant investigative effort to identify and locate the person later determined to be Mr. Sibley,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.  “The FBI takes these types of call outs seriously and individuals that engage in this type of criminal conduct will be investigated and presented for federal prosecution.  The FBI would like to thank the swift response and continued assistance of the Roswell Police Department and the Cobb County Police Department’s Bomb Squad in addressing this matter.”

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court:  On November 4, 2014, visitors at Vickery Creek Park, which is a part of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area in Roswell, Georgia, discovered an abandoned backpack and contacted local law enforcement.  An inspection of the bag revealed what appeared to be two completely constructed pipe bombs.  Nails and screws were taped to the outside of the tubing consistent with construction designed for maximum fragmentation upon explosion.  The pipe bombs also appeared to be ready for remote detonation. The devices, however, did not have a power source, which was required to remotely cause the explosion.

The name written on the abandoned backpack appeared to be a Middle Eastern name.  The backpack also contained two books: “The Rape of Kuwait” and “The Holy Qur’an.” 

On March 20, 2015, Mr. Sibley voluntarily contacted the FBI and asked to meet with the agents.  During this meeting, he confessed to making the devices and to placing them in Vickery Creek Park. Mr. Sibley stated that he placed the bag with these devices, the books and other items in the park to “wake-up” people in the United States.  He related that he believes the Mexican border is poorly defended and that many people are entering this country illegally.  He also said that he made the explosive devices and placed them in the park to make people realize that if this can happen in Roswell, Georgia, it can happen anywhere.   

The sentencing for Michael C. Sibley, 67, of Marietta, Georgia, is scheduled for January 21, 2016.

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

Assistant United States Attorney Tracia M. King 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 - Raytosha Elliott, a former contracting official with the Georgia National Guard, and the owners of two vendor companies have been sentenced to federal prison for a corruption scheme wherein Elliott awarded contracts to the vendors in exchange for illegal kickbacks. 

“Elliott took advantage of her position with the Georgia National Guard, and awarded no-bid contracts to her friends in exchange for illegal kickbacks,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “She and two of her friends stole over $150,000 in funds that were intended to maintain defense facilities and instead spent the money on themselves.”

“The sentencing of these individuals to federal prison will not only hold them accountable for their greed based criminal conduct, but will also send a clear message to others that might consider a similar scheme.  The FBI will continue to work with its various law enforcement partners to ensure that those individuals engaged in these types of activities are identified, investigated and presented for federal prosecution,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

“Corruption at any level diminishes the hard work and dedication of the thousands of government employees who are dedicated to providing honest services to the American public,” stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Acting Special Agent in Charge. “IRS Criminal Investigation stands committed to weed out individuals who misuse their job as a path to financial success by using greed and corruption.”

“This is a prime example of our determination, along with our fellow law enforcement agencies, to investigate allegations of criminal activity and corruption involving the National Guard and other DOD entities,” said Frank Robey, Director of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit.   “Regardless of the 'scope and size' of the allegations, our CID Special Agents are committed to working side-by-side with other agencies to help eradicate this type of activity.”

“The Defense Criminal Investigative Service is committed to protecting the integrity of the DOD contracting process, including the GA National Guard,” said John F. Khin, Special Agent in Charge, Southeast Field Office, Defense Criminal Investigative Service. “This sentencing sends a message to individuals who fail to follow the rules that along with our other law enforcement partners, violators will be brought to justice.”

“Accountability of violators is paramount when dealing with public corruption.  GBI’s partnership with the FBI in the Public Corruption Task Force is essential for continued public trust in Georgia.  When those who violate the law and violate public trust are held accountable, and go to jail – if this occurs, it sends a clear message that public corruption is not acceptable in this state,” said Vernon Keenan, Director, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

“We hope these sentences serve as a deterrent to those who desire to pilfer the state and federal governments' coffers. We also believe this case exemplifies how multiple agencies can work together to achieve a common goal: to serve the public who depends on us to defend the integrity of government programs. As in this case, our office will remain dedicated to protecting taxpayers' money by continuously pursuing fraud, waste, abuse and corruption within the executive branch of state government,” said Deb Wallace, State Inspector General, Georgia Office of the Inspector General.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court:  From May 2007 through April 2012, Elliott worked for the Georgia Department of Defense, the state agency charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the Georgia National Guard.  Elliott worked as an Engineering Operations Manager at the Clay National Guard Center, located at Dobbins Air Reserve Base, in Marietta, Georgia. 

In that position, Elliott worked with engineering firms to develop bid-ready construction projects, prepared bid documents, and oversaw no-bid purchase orders.  Under the rules governing the contracting process that Elliott oversaw, projects that cost less than $5,000 did not need to go through a competitive bidding process, allowing Elliott to award the contracts.  She certified that the work had been completed for those projects, and facilitated payment to the vendors who allegedly completed such projects.

Elliott awarded numerous contracts under $5,000 to vendor companies created by her friends and associates, including co-defendants Lakeysha Ellis and Angela Thicklin (f/k/a Angela Stanback Kinlaw).  In return, Ellis and Thicklin paid Elliott kickbacks, equal to 50% of the value of the contracts, for steering contracts to Ellis’ vendor company, Total Source Solution, LLC, and to Thicklin’s vendor company, 3M Construction LLC. 

Elliott awarded Total Source Solution 17 contracts with a total value of approximately $75,000.  Elliott awarded 3M Construction 18 contracts with a total value of approximately $78,000.  The contracts were for a variety of services supposedly to be performed by the two companies, including electrical work, landscaping, and HVAC work.  But the work was never done.  Instead, the defendants split the money awarded under the contracts and spent it on personal items, including travel, meals, and merchandise.  As part of the scheme, Elliott owned a company named Tech Group Investments, LLC.  Ellis and Thicklin took money they received from the Georgia National Guard contracts, and paid kickbacks to Elliott through that company.  Elliott falsely certified that the work had been completed to facilitate payment by the Georgia National Guard.

Elliott and Ellis engaged in a similar fraud scheme from January 2009, through May 2011, when Ellis was an accountant at Baumueller-Nuermont Corporation, an industrial equipment company with offices in Atlanta.  Her job responsibilities included payroll and paying vendors.

While employed as Baumueller-Nuermont’s accountant, Ellis fraudulently funneled money to the defendants’ two sham companies, Total Source Solution and Tech Group Investments.  Ellis wrote corporate checks to Total Source Solution, signed her name on the checks, and forged the signature of the Vice President on the checks, to ensure that the checks could be negotiated.  Ellis recorded these payments in the check registry to reflect falsely that the checks had been issued to true vendors (such as American Express) when in fact they went to Ellis’ company.

As part of the scheme, Ellis also falsified employee records in the corporation’s payroll system to disguise payments to the defendants’ two companies.  Ellis created phantom employees by altering the names of real employees (by switching their first and last names) and slightly changing their Social Security numbers.  She then caused the payroll system to make fraudulent salary payments to Total Source Solution and Tech Group Investments for these new, non-existent employees.

Baumueller-Nuermont lost about $85,000 from this scheme.

Raytosha Elliott, 35, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced yesterday to two years, ten months in prison and three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $115,902 in restitution to the Georgia National Guard and $26,500 in restitution to Baumueller-Nuermont Corporation by U.S. District Judge Amy Totenberg.  Elliott was also ordered to pay $20,000 in restitution to WebBank based on a fraudulent loan application she submitted to the bank in September 2013.  In that application, Elliott falsely inflated Tech Group Investments’ sales and gross receipts, and provided a fraudulent federal tax return in support of those figures, to obtain the loan. She was also ordered to perform 60 hours community service.       

Lakeysha Ellis, 37, of Decatur, Georgia, was sentenced to nine months in prison and three years of supervised release, and three months of home confinement.  She was also ordered to pay $74,902 in restitution to the Georgia National Guard and $81,487.88 in restitution to Baumueller-Nuermont Corporation.  Both defendants previously pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy. 

Today, Angela Thicklin, 45, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to one year, nine months in prison and three years of supervised release including ordered to pay $78,640 in restitution to the Georgia National Guard by Judge Totenberg.  Thicklin previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Georgia Bureau of Investigation; the U.S. Department of Defense, Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service; Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation; the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command; and Deputy Inspectors General of the State of Georgia Office of the Inspector General. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen H. McClain 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/gan/.

GAINESVILLE, Ga. - David M. Treadwell and Austin Herring have been sentenced in separate cases arising from their former employment with the Hall County, Georgia, Sheriff's Office. Treadwell is a former deputy sheriff who accepted a bribe to tip off a person he believed was a drug dealer if the person came under investigation by Hall County law enforcement. Herring, a former jailer at the Hall County Detention Center, smuggled what he believed to be cocaine into the jail and delivered it to an inmate.

“These men committed serious breaches of public trust,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “Herring and Treadwell placed self-interest above their sworn duty to serve and protect the citizens of Hall County.   For just a few dollars they were willing to trade in their freedom and their careers in law enforcement.”

“Both of these cases illustrate a disheartening departure from integrity and dedication to service that is expected of our law enforcement officers.  Today’s sentencing in federal court illustrates the painful but necessary consequences for that departure,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.     

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: In late 2014, while Treadwell was employed as a deputy sheriff with the Hall County Sheriff's Office, he accepted $200 or $300 on five occasions from a person he believed was a drug dealer.  In exchange for the money, Treadwell agreed to alert the drug dealer if it was learned that the drug dealer was under investigation in Hall County.

In February 2015, while Herring was employed as a jailer with the Hall County Sheriff's Office, he was paid $500 on two occasions to take packages he was told contained cocaine to an inmate inside the jail. On each occasion, Herring took the package to the inmate who was cooperating with the investigation. The inmate then turned the package over to investigators. Herring did not open or tamper with either package, but on each occasion he was specifically told by the person who gave it to him that the package contained cocaine from Mexico. In actuality, neither package contained a controlled substance.

Treadwell and Herring were fired by the Hall County Sheriff's Office immediately upon their respective arrests.

David M. Treadwell, 33, of Gainesville, Georgia, was sentenced to one year, one day in prison to be followed by two years of supervised release, and a $1,000 fine.  Treadwell was convicted on these charges on May 12, 2015, after he pleaded guilty.

Austin Herring, 19, of Murrayville, Georgia, was sentenced to six months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.  As a special condition of supervised release, he must serve the first six months on home confinement with electronic monitoring.  Herring was convicted on these charges on May 12, 2015, after he pleaded guilty.

Both cases were investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the North Georgia Major Offenders Task Force, which includes deputy sheriffs from the Hall County Sheriff's Office.

Assistant U.S. Attorney William L. McKinnon, Jr. prosecuted both cases.

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.

Savannah, Ga. – Former ATF Task Force Officer Daryle McCormick has been arraigned on a charge that he fraudulently claimed to have worked approximately 800 hours of overtime resulting in more than $19,500 in additional wages.

“As a federal officer, McCormick was expected – at the very least – to obey the laws that he swore to enforce,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “The indictment alleges McCormick violated the law and the trust placed in him by bilking the government out of almost $20,000 in overtime for hours he never worked.”

“The integrity of law enforcement is just as much, if not more, at the heart of these allegations as the monetary loss amounts are. The allegations contained in these charges are serious and the government’s response to those allegations reflects it,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

“The DOJ OIG appreciates the efforts of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI to protect taxpayer funds and ensure that federal task force officers are held to the same high standards as any federal employee,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Bourbon of the DOJ OIG’s Miami Field Office. 

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: From approximately November 25, 1996, to May 7, 2015, Daryle McCormick served as a police officer with Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department headquartered in Savannah, Georgia.  From that position, McCormick became a federally‑deputized Task Force Officer with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (“ATF”).  McCormick served as a Task Force Officer with the ATF from approximately September 6, 2005 to June 17, 2014.

As an ATF Task Force Officer, McCormick was eligible to receive overtime pay for working more than eight hours per day. To be paid, McCormick was required to submit an overtime pay request to the ATF, listing the dates worked, the number of hours worked, and the general subject matter of the work. When submitting requests to be paid for overtime hours purportedly worked, McCormick made the following certification: “I certify that the above time was duly earned. I understand that my misstatement concerning the aforementioned time may be cause for dismissal.” Ultimately, when approved, payments for McCormick’s fraudulently claimed overtime came from the U.S. Department of Justice.  

From October 2010 to September 2013, McCormick allegedly engaged in a scheme to unlawfully commit overtime fraud by repeatedly submitting overtime payment requests to the ATF for hours that he never worked.  For example: the indictment alleges that: (1) McCormick claimed to work overtime on days when he had worked a full day with the ATF and had also worked up to an additional four hours at a second job for a local church; (2) McCormick claimed to have worked overtime conducting surveillance or undercover operations, even though no ATF operations occurred on those dates; and (3) McCormick claimed to have worked overtime conducting surveillance or undercover operations; however, McCormick never drafted reports summarizing the alleged ATF operations.

According to the indictment, from approximately October 18, 2010 to September 28, 2013, McCormick falsely claimed to have worked almost 800 hours in overtime when in fact, he had not worked those overtime hours.  Based on those false overtime requests, the Department of Justice paid McCormick more than $19,500 for overtime hours that McCormick never worked.

On August 31, 2015, Daryle McCormick, 47, of Pooler, Georgia, was charged via criminal information with Theft of Government Money.

Members of the public are reminded that the information 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 Justice Office of the Inspector General.

Special Assistant U.S Attorney Jeffrey W. Davis 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 - Stafford S. Maxwell, the former owner and Chief Executive Officer of Millennium Capital Exchange, Inc., was sentenced to three years, nine months years in prison for orchestrating a multi-million dollar foreign exchange market Ponzi scheme.  

“With false promises of trading success, Maxwell defrauded investors across the country out of more than $2 million,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “To those tempted by investment schemes that seem too good to be true – be cautious – because promises of high rates of return are often red flags for fraud.”

“The FBI continues to see such investment based fraud cases that offer their investors high rates of returns with minimum or no risk.  While many of the victim investors are still trying to recover financially, it is hoped that they find some solace in today’s sentencing of Mr. Maxwell to federal prison,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: In March 2007, Maxwell incorporated and owned Millennium Capital Exchange, Inc. (“Millennium”), which purported to be a foreign exchange market trading firm. The foreign exchange market (or forex market) is the global market in which participants buy, sell, exchange, and speculate on currencies. The forex trading market consists of banks, commercial companies, central banks, investment management firms, hedge funds, retail forex brokers, and individual investors. Forex trading involves the trading of currencies from different countries against each other. An example of a forex trade is buying Japanese yen while simultaneously selling United States dollars. Trading in foreign exchange markets frequently exceeds $5 trillion per day.

From about 2008 to January 2012, Maxwell solicited investments from individuals across the United States with promises of high fixed rates of return to be generated from successful foreign currency trading. In particular, to obtain money from investors, Maxwell falsely stated that: (a) he possessed excellent forex trading skills; (b) he had a long history of forex trading success; (c) investors would earn an annualized rate of return on their investments from approximately 48% to 72%; (d) he used “stops” and “floors” on currency trades to insure that the gains would be large, but that the losses would be small; (e) investors had realized significant gains based on his trading; and (f) he had reserve funds that enabled him to cover any trading losses.

In fact and in truth, Maxwell: (a) had little success executing forex trades; (b) lost almost all the money that he traded in forex markets; (c) was unable to pay investors the promised investment dividends; and (d) possessed no reserve fund to cover forex trading losses.

According to Millennium’s business model, Maxwell was supposed to use the invested funds to make forex trades through accounts at a financial firm in Geneva, Switzerland. Based on his false representations, investors wired Maxwell over $2 million, expecting that the funds would be traded in the Swiss accounts. After receiving money from investors, however, Maxwell diverted approximately half of the money for other illegal purposes. First, in an effort to perpetuate the scheme and make it appear that he was a successful forex trader, Maxwell used the money received from new investors (that was supposed to be traded on the forex market) to pay “dividends” to older investors. Second, Maxwell used the money received from investors to pay his own personal living expenses. In the end, Maxwell spent or lost almost every dollar invested with him.

On March 17, 2015, Stafford S. Maxwell, 46, of Mableton, Georgia, was indicted on 10 counts of conspiratorial and substantive wire fraud.  Maxwell pleaded guilty to all the charges on June 29, 2015.  Maxwell was sentenced to three years, nine months in prison and was ordered to pay approximately $1,434,628 in restitution to his victims.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey W. Davis 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/gan/.

ROME, Ga. - Brian Cannon, Terry Peace and Cory Williamson have been sentenced for conspiring to use weapons of mass destruction in attacks against federal government agencies.  The defendants planned to attack critical infrastructure while motivating militia groups in other states to rise up and join them in removing government officials who they believed had exceeded their Constitutional power.

“In this case, anti-government ideology and rhetoric morphed into dangerous extremism and led these defendants to arm themselves and travel to a meeting to pick up pipe bombs and other explosives intended for attacks,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “The attacks planned by the defendants, while rare, posed a serious threat to not only the safety of our public servants, but also all other members of the community.”

“This case illustrates the FBI’s commitment in preventing attacks instead of responding to their aftermath.  The convictions and now federal sentencing of these individuals on conspiracy charges again represents that the juries and courts understand this shift in the law enforcement mindset in dealing with individuals or groups that wish to bring harm to the public or those who serve the public,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court:  In January and February 2014, Cannon, Peace and Williamson participated in Internet chat rooms frequented by militia members and others with a shared anti-government ideology.  During the chat room conversations, Cannon, Peace and Williamson discussed starting a revolution against the federal government by conducting an attack aimed at the infrastructure supporting the Transportation Security Administration, the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Administration.

According to their conversations, their goals included forcibly removing government officials who the defendants believed acted beyond the scope of the U.S. Constitution.  During one of the online conversations, Peace said that they would launch the attack between February 1, and February 15, 2014.  He encouraged the militia members to review guerilla warfare tactics, accumulate supplies and prepare their families.  By February 1, 2014, Cannon and Williamson had moved to Georgia and were living with Peace at his Rome, Georgia residence.

Cannon, Peace and Williamson targeted the infrastructure supporting their federal agency targets because they believed this would reduce the amount of unnecessary casualties and make it difficult for the government to respond to their attack.  The men decided to launch the first attack in Georgia to prompt militia members in other states to begin attacks in their respective states. 

Unbeknownst to the defendants, another participant in the chat rooms became alarmed at their plans, informed the FBI of the attack against the government, and agreed to assist in this investigation.

On February 8, 2014, Peace asked the cooperating witness to provide twelve pipe bombs and two thermite devices for use in their attack.  Peace said he wanted the pipe bombs designed for “maximum fragmentation” and thermite devices capable of penetrating the engine block of a military-grade armored vehicle.  Peace, Cannon and Williamson then made plans to meet with the cooperating witness after the pipe bombs and thermite devices were constructed. 

On February 15, 2014, the defendants, armed with numerous firearms, drove from Peace’s residence to meet with the cooperating witness at a location in Cartersville, Georgia, to pick up the pipe bombs and thermite devices.  Prior to their arrival, the cooperating witness was provided with twelve inert pipe bombs and two inert thermite devices.  The three defendants were arrested as they were taking possession of the items.  While their online conversations reflected attacks on federal targets, the defendants planned to use the thermite device at a local police department.

Cannon, 37, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release, and perform 100 hours of community service.  

Peace, 47, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release, and perform 100 hours of community service. 

Williamson, 29, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release, and perform 100 hours of community service.   

Cannon, Peace and Williamson were convicted of the charges on May 26, 2015 after pleading guilty.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant United States Attorneys Tracia M. King and Ryan K. Buchanan 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.

Brian Cannon, 37, Terry Peace, 47, and Cory Williamson, 29, have been sentenced for conspiring to use weapons of mass destruction in attacks against federal government agencies.  The defendants planned to attack critical infrastructure while motivating militia groups in other states to rise up and join them in removing government officials who they believed had exceeded their Constitutional power.

“In this case, anti-government ideology and rhetoric morphed into dangerous extremism and led these defendants to arm themselves and travel to a meeting to pick up pipe bombs and other explosives intended for attacks,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn of the Northern District of Georgia.  “The attacks planned by the defendants, while rare, posed a serious threat to not only the safety of our public servants, but also all other members of the community.”

“This case illustrates the FBI’s commitment in preventing attacks instead of responding to their aftermath,” said Special Agent in Charge J. Britt Johnson for the FBI’s Atlanta Field Office.  “The convictions and now federal sentencing of these individuals on conspiracy charges again represents that the juries and courts understand this shift in the law enforcement mindset in dealing with individuals or groups that wish to bring harm to the public or those who serve the public.”

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court:  In January and February 2014, Cannon, Peace and Williamson participated in Internet chat rooms frequented by militia members and others with a shared anti-government ideology.  During the chat room conversations, Cannon, Peace and Williamson discussed starting a revolution against the federal government by conducting an attack aimed at the infrastructure supporting the Transportation Security Administration, the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Administration.

According to their conversations, their goals included forcibly removing government officials who the defendants believed acted beyond the scope of the U.S. Constitution.  During one of the online conversations, Peace said that they would launch the attack between February 1, and Feb. 15, 2014.  He encouraged the militia members to review guerilla warfare tactics, accumulate supplies and prepare their families.  By Feb. 1, 2014, Cannon and Williamson had moved to Georgia and were living with Peace at his Rome, Georgia residence.

Cannon, Peace and Williamson targeted the infrastructure supporting their federal agency targets because they believed this would reduce the amount of unnecessary casualties and make it difficult for the government to respond to their attack.  The men decided to launch the first attack in Georgia to prompt militia members in other states to begin attacks in their respective states. 

Unbeknownst to the defendants, another participant in the chat rooms became alarmed at their plans, informed the FBI of the attack against the government, and agreed to assist in this investigation.

On Feb. 8, 2014, Peace asked the cooperating witness to provide twelve pipe bombs and two thermite devices for use in their attack.  Peace said he wanted the pipe bombs designed for “maximum fragmentation” and thermite devices capable of penetrating the engine block of a military-grade armored vehicle.  Peace, Cannon and Williamson then made plans to meet with the cooperating witness after the pipe bombs and thermite devices were constructed. 

On Feb. 15, 2014, the defendants, armed with numerous firearms, drove from Peace’s residence to meet with the cooperating witness at a location in Cartersville, Georgia, to pick up the pipe bombs and thermite devices.  Prior to their arrival, the cooperating witness was provided with 12 inert pipe bombs and two inert thermite devices.  The three defendants were arrested as they were taking possession of the items.  While their online conversations reflected attacks on federal targets, the defendants planned to use the thermite device at a local police department.

Cannon has been sentenced to 12 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release and perform 100 hours of community service. 

Peace has been sentenced to 12 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release and perform 100 hours of community service. 

Williamson has been sentenced to 12 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release and perform 100 hours of community service.  

Cannon, Peace and Williamson were convicted of the charges on May 26, 2015 after pleading guilty.

This case was investigated by the FBI.  Assistant United States Attorneys Tracia M. King and Ryan K. Buchanan 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 - Daniel M. Harbison has been sentenced to one year, nine months in federal prison for impersonating an armed DEA agent, after having previously been convicted of a felony.

“The impersonation of a federal agent undercuts the validity of a genuine law enforcement officer’s mission to protect the public,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “Thankfully, Harbison made the mistake of pulling over a Doraville police officer who questioned Harbison’s authority and took quick action that resulted in Harbison being arrested that day, and today being sentenced for his crime.”

“Through the cooperation of multiple agencies, Dunwoody Police, FBI, DEA and The Department of Justice, Harbison will be getting the just sentence he deserves.  He only serves as a reminder to the community that they should always be aware of what is going on around them. I am thankful that our officer was alert and took the appropriate steps to ensure this successful, peaceful conclusion,” said Chief John King, Doraville Police Department.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: In the spring of 2015, Harbison began impersonating a Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) agent. Specifically, on April 3, 2015, in Doraville, Georgia, Harbison conducted a traffic stop of a Chevrolet Suburban by engaging green and white flashing light-emitting diode (“LED”) lights. Unbeknownst to Harbison, the vehicle was being driven by an off-duty Corporal with the Doraville Police Department. During the unauthorized traffic stop, Harbison wore a T-shirt printed with the letters “DEA,” carried a .45 caliber handgun in a thigh holster, and possessed an identification card purportedly issued by the DEA. The Doraville Corporal also saw that Harbison possessed a realistic gold and blue badge engraved with the letters “US.”

The Corporal told Harbison that he was a Doraville Police Officer and asked Harbison why his LED lights were green and white (as opposed to the blue and white lights used by genuine police officers). In response to the question, Harbison replied that his LED lights were green and white because he was a federal agent. The Doraville Corporal then stated that other police officers were in route to check the validity of Harbison’s law enforcement credentials. At that point, Harbison returned to his car and fled from the scene.

Doraville and Dunwoody Police Officers then went to Harbison’s residence and arrested Harbison. From Harbison’s residence, police officers recovered several items, including: (a) a Springfield .45 caliber handgun, (b) a DEA T-shirt, (c) LED lights, (d) an identification card purportedly issued by the DEA, and (e) a gold and blue badge engraved with the letters “US.” Harbison has previously been convicted of at least two felonies, and as a result, could not legally possess the gun. Harbison had been impersonating a federal agent for several weeks before he was caught.

On April 23, 2015, a grand jury charged Harbison, 40, of Dunwoody, Georgia, with being a felon in possession of a firearm. Harbison pleaded guilty to that charge on June 9, 2015. He was sentenced to one year, nine months in federal prison and ordered to serve three years of supervised release and pay a special assessment of $100.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Doraville Police Department, and Drug Enforcement Administration.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey W. Davis and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin E. Sanders 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 – Samuel Perez, a New Jersey businessman, has been sentenced to three years, ten months in federal prison for falsifying over $6 million in accounts receivables and invoices that he sold to an Atlanta, Georgia, financing company.

“This defendant swindled a financing company to obtain money to run his own company and finance his personal lifestyle,” said U.S. Attorney John A. Horn.  “His fraud put the victim into bankruptcy and cost people at that company their jobs.” 

“As Mr. Perez serves his prison sentence, he will have plenty of time to reflect on his greed based criminal conduct that not only negatively affected the victim company but also many of its employees,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: Samuel Perez owned and operated Comp Care Partners, LLC, a New Jersey company that was located and operated in New Jersey.  Comp Care was in the business of managing occupational medical testing programs for other companies.  

Beginning in about December 2009, Perez began “factoring,” or selling Comp Care’s accounts receivables to a financing company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.  Perez falsified and caused to be falsified many, if not most, of the accounts receivables that he sold to the Atlanta finance company.  To support the false accounts receivables, Perez created false invoices purporting to reflect work that Comp Care had done for its customers.  When purchasing accounts receivables, the financing company attempted to contact Comp Care’s customers to verify that the accounts receivables and invoices were valid obligations of the customers.  Perez created fictitious identities and used those identities to pose as employees of Comp Care’s customers and verify the fraudulent invoices that he was selling to the financing company.  Perez created and used internet domain names, telephone numbers, and email addresses to pose as these fictitious employees of Comp Care’s customers.

To further conceal that he was selling false accounts receivables, Perez paid off false receivables by selling the financing company even more false accounts receivables.  Over time, the amount of false and fraudulent accounts receivables steadily increased, which ensured that Perez had enough funds to pay the financing company for previous fraudulent accounts receivables that he had sold it.  Perez also used the money that he obtained from the financing company to operate and fund Comp Care and his personal lifestyle. In 2013, before the financing company uncovered his fraud, Perez sold over $6 million in fraudulent accounts receivables.

Samuel Perez, 38, of Manahawkin, New, Jersey, has been sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Steve C. Jones to three years, ten months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas W. Gilfillan 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.

GAINESVILLE, Ga. - Lanier Treatment Center, Inc., a narcotic treatment program, located in Gainesville, Ga., has agreed to pay a civil settlement of $20,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the recordkeeping requirements of the Controlled Substances Act. Lanier Treatment Center, Inc., also has agreed to additional oversight from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

“The Controlled Substances Act requires treatment centers like Lanier Treatment Center to keep an accurate inventory of its controlled substances to prevent them from falling into the hands of dealers and addicts,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn. “The diversion of prescription narcotics and painkillers feeds the market for abuse and addiction, and Georgia is experiencing an epidemic of prescription drug abuse. We are committed to preventing the diversion of controlled substances by enforcing the recordkeeping requirements.”

Daniel R. Salter, the Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division commented on the case, “DEA Diversion Investigators will continue to conduct accountability audits to make sure that Narcotics Treatment Programs are abiding by specific rules and regulations. This civil fine shows that DEA and the entire law enforcement community are committed to making sure that such companies are abiding by its mandates.”

The government alleges that Lanier Treatment Center, Inc., failed to maintain a current, complete, and accurate record of all controlled substances received, sold, delivered, or otherwise disposed of. Accountability audits conducted by the DEA revealed overages and shortages of methadone in 2010 and 2013. The government also alleges that Lanier Treatment Center, Inc., failed to conduct a biennial inventory in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations and failed to comply with all applicable laws and regulations regarding written orders for controlled substances. The claims settled are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

The Controlled Substances Act was enacted to ensure that controlled substances are properly regulated and to help prevent drug diversion. Thus, narcotic treatment programs that receive and dispense controlled substances are required to maintain complete and accurate inventories and records of all controlled substances that they purchase, receive, dispense, or destroy. In order to enforce the recordkeeping requirements of the Controlled Substances Act, the Act imposes civil penalties for refusing or negligently failing to maintain the records required by the Act.

This case was investigated by Diversion Investigators from the Drug Enforcement Agency.

The civil settlement was reached by Assistant United States Attorney Lena Amanti.

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 - Jessica L. Hills, the former owner of Direct Tax, has pleaded guilty for her role in a tax fraud scheme by using her business to file thousands of fraudulent returns.  Direct Tax was a tax preparation business with three locations in the Atlanta - College Park, Georgia, area.  

“The defendant’s conduct cost the U.S. Treasury millions of dollars,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “Hills’ actions demonstrated a flagrant disrespect for the law, and compromised the personal information of hundreds of victims.”

“Hills’ actions caused considerable financial damage and personal inconvenience to thousands of taxpayers” stated IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge, Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot.  “We will continue to pursue individuals like Hills, who abuse positions of trust to commit crimes and victimize members of our community and innocent taxpayers for their own personal gain.”

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: During tax years 2012, 2013, and 2014, Direct Tax filed over 2,000 federal income tax returns, seeking millions of dollars in refunds.  These returns included either fraudulent information designed to increase the refund amount, or were filed using stolen identities.  Hills continued to file fraudulent tax returns even after police in College Park, Georgia, executed a search warrant at her business based on complaints from honest taxpayers, and after the IRS cancelled her electronic filing identification number.  In total, Hills filed tax returns claiming over $4 million in tax refunds.

Sentencing for Jessica L. Hills, 30, of Atlanta, Georgia, is scheduled for November 9, 2015, at 10:30 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones.

This case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, FBI, Social Security Administration, U.S. Secret Service, and the Georgia Department of Revenue.

Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane C. Schulman and Assistant U.S. Attorney Samir Kaushal 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 Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - John Paul Kill, the former operator of Appeal Insurance Agency, LLC, has been sentenced to four years in federal prison for insurance fraud. Kill illegally collected over $3.7 million from nearly 800 trucking companies nationwide for selling/brokering fictitious cargo insurance policies.

“The defendant held himself out as an honest broker to hundreds of trucking companies, but he simply pocketed their premium payments instead of securing legitimate insurance coverage,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “His scam tricked clients into believing they had proper insurance coverage and endangered small businesses operating in more than 20 states.”

“I’m thankful for the diligence of the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” said Insurance Commissioner Ralph Hudgens, whose office referred the case. “This investigation proves that when agencies like the Department of Insurance and the U.S. Attorney’s Office work together, bad actors will be stopped.” 

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: John Kill operated an insurance brokerage firm, Appeal Insurance Agency, LLC, in Norcross, Georgia.  He began offering cargo insurance policies to trucking companies in 2013. Kill issued policy binders to clients falsely representing that Lloyd’s of London would provide insurance coverage. In reality, Kill never brokered any agreement with Lloyd’s to provide coverage and instead pocketed the premium payments. Most of the victims received no insurance policies at all, and Kill instead attempted to pay claims for losses out of the premium payments he collected from new victims.

In total, nearly 800 trucking companies located in Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Virginia paid approximately $3.75 million in premiums for these fraudulent insurance policies from 2013 through mid-2014.

John Kill, 63, of Norcross, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Eleanor L. Ross to four years in federal prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and he was ordered to pay approximately $1.23 million in restitution to victims. Kill was convicted on this charge on May 6, 2015, after he pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Georgia Office of Commissioner of Insurance.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan P. Kitchens 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.

ATLANTA - Ricky Nuckles has been sentenced to 17 years, 7 months in federal prison for trafficking 22 kilograms of cocaine and for possessing a firearm in furtherance of that offense.  Nuckles was found guilty by a jury on May 13, 2015.

“One of our most solemn responsibilities is to protect the public from the blight of illegal narcotics,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “Thanks to a vigilant off-duty DEA agent, 22 kilograms of cocaine is off the streets, and Nuckles' drug-trafficking days are finished.” 

“We have removed another cocaine trafficker off of the streets, thanks to the quick thinking and fine police work performed by one of our own Special Agents,” said Daniel R. Salter, the Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division.  “This criminal can no longer pose a danger to the community.”

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: On the morning of December 23, 2013, Ricky Nuckles parked his car beside a pump at a gas station on Cheshire Bridge Road in Atlanta, Georgia, and entered the station’s convenience store.  As he entered, Nuckles placed a call on his cell phone.  Moments later, a second car entered the gas station and parked beside the defendant’s car.  The driver of the second car then carried a large suitcase over to Nuckles' car, placed it inside, and quickly returned to his car and drove away.  The defendant watched the delivery through the store’s window and remotely locked his car the moment the suitcase was placed inside. 

Unbeknownst to Nuckles, an off-duty DEA agent was also at the gas station that morning, and watched the delivery happen while waiting in line for an emissions inspection.  The agent confronted Nuckles as he attempted to return to his car and leave the station.  The agent identified himself, and after explaining what he saw, Nuckles fled back inside the convenience store and immediately discarded the cell phone he used to arrange the drug delivery. 

When Nuckles exited the store the second time, the agent was still waiting by Nuckles’ car.  After learning that the defendants had a loaded firearm next to his driver’s seat, the agent placed himself between Nuckles and the car and dialed 911.  Minutes later, additional DEA agents and uniformed Atlanta Police Department officers arrived at the gas station.  Nuckles consented to a search of the suitcase, inside which agents found 22 kilograms of cocaine with a wholesale value of approximately $750,000.  Agents also found an FN model 57 handgun and two 25-round extended magazines next to the driver’s seat of the car, within easy reach. 

Ricky Nuckles, 41, of Johns Creek, Georgia, has been sentenced by Senior U.S. District Court Judge Orinda D. Evans to 17 years, 7 months in prison to be followed by 5 years of supervised release. 

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Cassandra Schansman and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Trevor C. Wilmot 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.com.

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 - Jalita Jenera Johnson has pleaded guilty to lying during the purchase of a gun and magazine, saying it was for her, when in fact she purchased the gun for her convicted felon boyfriend, Marcus Wheeler.  Wheeler later used the gun to kill an Omaha, Nebraska, police officer who was attempting to serve a warrant for his arrest.

“Laws which prevent convicted felons from buying guns are designed to protect the public,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “This defendant helped a convicted felon circumvent those laws.  The tragic consequences and loss of life in this case reinforces the reason we have such strict laws in place.”   

“The plea today is another reminder that ATF will hold individuals accountable for any criminal behavior, especially that which threatens the safety of innocent civilians,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Carl Walker.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: In April 2015, Jalita Jenera Johnson bought a Glock semiautomatic firearm, a 50‑round drum magazine, and ammunition from a pawnshop in Jonesboro, Georgia. When Johnson bought the firearm, she was required to fill out a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Form 4473. That form requires the purchaser of the firearm to disclose who the true buyer or transferee of the firearm is. The defendant stated on the form that she was the true buyer. However, Johnson was, in fact, buying the firearm for her boyfriend, Marcus Wheeler, a convicted felon who could not buy the gun for himself.

Wheeler provided Johnson with the money to buy the gun and magazine and directed the defendant on which gun and magazine to buy. In May 2015, using the gun and magazine that Johnson bought for him, Wheeler got into an armed confrontation with the City of Omaha Police Department in Omaha, Nebraska, that resulted in the officer’s death. Wheeler was also killed during the shootout.

Sentencing for Jalita Jenera Johnson, 26, of Jonesboro, Georgia, is scheduled for November 2, 2015, at 2:00 p.m., before United States District Judge Eleanor L. Ross.

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

Assistant United States Attorney Mary L. Webb 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 – John Boyer, the husband of former DeKalb County, Georgia, Commissioner Elaine Boyer, has been sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison for conspiring to steal county money.  His plea and corruption charges stem from Elaine Boyer’s conviction on similar charges in September 2014.

“John Boyer used his wife’s position as a DeKalb County Commissioner to steal thousands of dollars in taxpayer funds. The Boyers’ scheme put county money in their pockets and ultimately left the citizens of DeKalb County holding the tab,” said U.S. Attorney John A. Horn.  “In a county that has recently seen its share of corruption cases, this is a particularly sad chapter.”

“The sentencing of Mr. Boyer further illustrates that there are consequences for those who assist or entice public officials with regard to criminal corrupt activities.  The FBI continues to make public corruption investigations its number one criminal program priority and asks that anyone with information regarding such activity to notify their nearest FBI field office,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office. 

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: In DeKalb County, Georgia, the Board of Commissioners serves as the legislative branch of the DeKalb County Government. The Board of Commissioners is comprised of seven part-time commissioners, who are elected to serve four-year terms. Each of the seven Commissioners is responsible for the management of their respective offices, which includes controlling the offices’ budget and hiring staff members, contractors, and consultants. In recent years, the operating budget for a Commissioner’s office has been approximately $250,000 per year. The Commissioners may use their budget only for county-related business. 

In 1992, Elaine Boyer began serving as the Commissioner of District 1, which serves citizens in north DeKalb County, including Brookhaven, Dunwoody, Tucker, and Smoke Rise, Georgia. In August 2014, Elaine Boyer resigned mid-term as the Commissioner of District 1.

In 2009, Elaine and John Boyer experienced financial difficulties. As a result, an unlawful kickback scheme was devised to obtain money from DeKalb County. In particular, in or about September 2009, Elaine Boyer, as the Commissioner of District 1, hired a family-friend Marion Rooks Boynton (who has been separately charged) as a political advisor allegedly to assist her with government consulting.

As part of the scheme, false invoices were submitted to Elaine Boyer’s office for services supposedly rendered by Boynton. In fact, Boynton performed no services for DeKalb County government, Elaine Boyer’s Office, or the citizens of DeKalb County.

Elaine Boyer used the false invoices as a basis to authorize payments to Boynton. From September 2009 to November 2011, based on requisition requests from Elaine Boyer’s Office, DeKalb County issued approximately 35 checks to Boynton for consulting services that were never performed. In total, DeKalb County paid Boynton more than $85,000.

John Boyer then instructed Boynton to deposit the money that Boynton received from DeKalb County into a bank account used by Elaine and John Boyer. Consequently, after being paid by DeKalb County, Boynton funneled approximately $60,000 received from DeKalb County into a personal bank account used by the Boyers. In turn, the Boyers used the money deposited into the account to pay personal living expenses.

In August 2014, Elaine Boyer, 59, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, resigned mid-term as the Commissioner of District 1. The day after resigning, Boyer was charged with conspiring to commit wire and mail fraud.  On March 20, 2015, Boyer was sentenced to one year, two months in prison and ordered to pay approximately $87,000 in restitution.

On February 24, 2015, John Boyer, 63, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit mail fraud. Boyer was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay approximately $87,000 in restitution.

On August 11, 2015, the Grand Jury returned an indictment against Marion Rooks Boynton, 73, of Saint Simons Island, Georgia, on charges of conspiracy and substantive federal program theft.

This case is being investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey W. Davis 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/gan/.

ATLANTA – A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging former U.S. State Department employee Michael C. Ford has been engaging in a hacking and cyberstalking scheme in which, using stolen passwords, he obtained sexually explicit photographs and other personal information from victims’ email and social media accounts, and threatened to share the photographs and personal information unless the victims provided him with additional explicit photos and videos.

“Ford is alleged to have hacked into hundreds of email accounts and tormented women across the country, by threatening to humiliate them unless they provided him with sexually explicit photos and videos,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “This sadistic conduct is all the more disturbing as Ford is alleged to have used the U.S. Embassy in London as a base for his cyberstalking campaign.”

“According to the indictment, Ford hacked into email accounts and extorted sexually explicit images from scores of victims,” said Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.  “As these allegations highlight, predators use the Internet to target innocent victims.  With the help of victims and our law enforcement partners, we will find those predators and hold them accountable.”

“The Diplomatic Security Service is firmly committed to working with the Department of Justice and our other law enforcement partners to investigate allegations of crime and to bring those who commit these crimes to justice,” said Director Bill A. Miller of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security.  “When a public servant in a position of trust is alleged to have committed a federal felony such as cybercrime, we vigorously investigate such claims.”

“While the allegations in this case are disturbing, it does illustrate the willingness and commitment of the FBI and its federal partners to aggressively follow those allegations wherever they take us,” said Special Agent in Charge J. Britt Johnson of the FBI’s Atlanta Division.  “The FBI will continue to provide significant resources and assets as we address complex cyber-based investigations as seen here.” 

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: From January 2013 through May 2015, Ford, using various aliases that included “David Anderson” and “John Parsons,” engaged in a computer hacking and “sextortion” campaign to force numerous women to provide him with personal information and sexually explicit photographs and videos.  To do so, Ford allegedly posed as a member of the fictitious “account deletion team” for a well-known email service provider and sent notices to thousands of potential victims, including members of college sororities, warning them that their accounts would be deleted if they did not provide their passwords. 

Using the passwords collected from this phishing scheme, Ford allegedly hacked into hundreds of email and social media accounts, stole sexually explicit photographs and personal identifying information (PII), and saved both the photographs and PII to his personal repository.

Ford then allegedly emailed the victims and threatened to release the photographs, which were attached to the emails, unless they obtained videos of “sexy girls” undressing in changing rooms at pools, gyms and clothing stores, and then sent the videos to him.

The indictment alleges that, when the victims either refused to comply or begged Ford to leave them alone, Ford responded with additional threats, including by reminding the victims that he knew where they lived.  On several occasions, Ford allegedly followed through with his threats by sending sexually explicit photographs to victims’ family members and friends.    

During the pendency of the alleged scheme, Ford was a civilian employee at the U.S. Embassy in London, England.  He allegedly used his government-issued computer at the U.S. Embassy to conduct the phishing, hacking and cyberstalking activities. 

Michael C. Ford, 37, of Atlanta, Georgia, was indicted by a grand jury on August 18, 2015, charging him with nine counts of cyberstalking, seven counts of computer hacking to extort, and one count of wire fraud. The names of the victims are being withheld from the public in order to protect their privacy. 

The charges and allegations contained in an indictment are merely accusations.  The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The case is being investigated by the U.S. Department of State, Diplomatic Security Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kamal Ghali of the Northern District of Georgia, Senior Trial Attorney Mona Sedky of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, and Trial Attorney Jamie Perry of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section. Assistance was provided by the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Embassy in London.

Anyone who believes that they are the victim of hacking, cyberstalking, or “sextortion” should contact law enforcement.  Resources regarding hacking and other cybercrimes can be found at: https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/investigate/cyber. 

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 - George H. Bell, a former employee of the Georgia Department of Transportation, has been arraigned on federal charges of conspiracy and accepting bribes.  Bell was indicted by a federal grand jury on August 11, 2015.

“This defendant is charged with using his position with the Georgia Department of Transportation to benefit himself at the expense of the environment,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “His alleged conduct resulted in enormous clean-up costs to the Georgia Department of Transportation as well as environmental damage.”

“The FBI places a high priority on public corruption based investigations because they often ignore due process put in place to protect others.  This case involves allegations of a State of Georgia official accepting bribes as he ignored environment laws put in place to protect so many,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

“Corruption in state government will not be tolerated.  This case is an excellent example of state and federal law enforcement working together to insure government employees who are corrupt are held accountable,” said Vernon Keenan, Director, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

“We are appalled by the corrupt actions of these lone individuals that in no way reflect the hard work and commitment displayed by more than 4,100 GDOT employees. We will exercise all legal actions to recover the costs associated with cleaning up these sites and ensure that every effort is made to correct the damage to the impacted sites once the investigation is closed,” said Commissioner Russell McMurry, Georgia Department of Transportation.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: Bell was a supervisor with the Georgia Department of Transportation. In 2014, he began soliciting and accepting cash payments in exchange for allowing various individuals to dump unsuitable dirt in several GDOT locations. Unsuitable dirt is dirt that is removed during construction or landscaping projects, and cannot be used for other projects, usually because it contains organic material that would decompose and create problems for building on top of it. Bell is alleged to have allowed the unauthorized dumping to occur on at least four different GDOT sites.

George H. Bell, 49, of Lithonia, Ga., was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alan J. Baverman.

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 Public Corruption Task Force, including the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Georgia Department of Transportation Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie L. Mickelson 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 - Marion Rooks Boynton has been arraigned after being indicted by a federal grand jury for conspiring with former DeKalb County Commissioner Elaine Boyer and her husband John Boyer to steal over $85,000 from DeKalb County.

“Boynton allegedly conspired with Elaine and John Boyer to steal taxpayer money from DeKalb County,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “The trio diverted thousands of dollars in county funds to their own personal bank accounts by exploiting former DeKalb County Commissioner Boyer’s position.”

“Elected officials who violate the public trust remain a priority investigative matter for the FBI but those who entice or assist those public officials as they engage in their corrupt criminal conduct are equally subject to federal investigation and prosecution.  The FBI asks that anyone with information regarding such activities to contact their nearest FBI field office,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: In DeKalb County, Georgia, the Board of Commissioners serves as the legislative branch of the DeKalb County Government. The Board of Commissioners is comprised of seven part-time commissioners, who are elected to serve four-year terms. Each of the seven Commissioners is responsible for the management of their respective offices, which includes controlling the offices’ budget and hiring staff members, contractors, and consultants. In recent years, the operating budget for a Commissioner’s office has been approximately $250,000 per year. The Commissioners may use their budget only for county-related business.

In 1992, Elaine Boyer began serving as the Commissioner of District 1, which served citizens in north DeKalb County, including in Brookhaven, Dunwoody, Tucker, and Smoke Rise, Georgia.

In 2009, Elaine Boyer and her husband John Boyer began experiencing financial difficulties. As a result, they became involved in an unlawful kickback scheme to obtain money from the DeKalb County government. In particular, in or about September 2009, Elaine Boyer, as the Commissioner of District 1, hired long-time, family friend Rooks Boynton as a purported political advisor, allegedly to assist her with government consulting.

As part of the scheme, false invoices were submitted to Elaine Boyer’s office for services supposedly rendered by Boynton. In fact, Boynton performed no services for DeKalb County government, Elaine Boyer’s Office, or the citizens of DeKalb County.

Elaine Boyer used the false invoices as a basis to authorize payments to Boynton. From September 2009 to November 2011, based on requisition requests from Elaine Boyer’s Office, DeKalb County issued approximately 35 checks to Boynton for consulting services that were never performed. In total, DeKalb County paid Boynton more than $85,000.

Boynton then deposited a portion of the money that he received from DeKalb County into a bank account used by the Boyers. Specifically, after being paid by DeKalb County, Boynton funneled approximately $60,000 of funds from DeKalb County into a personal bank account used by the Boyers.  Boynton kept and spent the rest of the approximately $25,000 that he received from DeKalb County – despite not performing any services for DeKalb County.

In August 2014, Elaine Boyer, 59, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, resigned mid-term as the Commissioner of District 1. The day after resigning, Boyer was charged with conspiring to commit wire and mail fraud.  On March 20, 2015, Boyer was sentenced to 14 months in prison and ordered to pay approximately $87,000 in restitution after pleading guilty.

On February 24, 2015, John Boyer, 63, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit mail fraud. Boyer is scheduled to be sentenced on August 19, 2015.

On August 11, 2015, the Grand Jury returned an Indictment against Marion Rooks Boynton, 73, of Saint Simons Island, Georgia, on charges of conspiracy and substantive federal program theft.

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 United States Attorney Jeffrey W.  Davis 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 – Kevin M. Sullivan, a professor in Emory University’s Epidemiology Department, has been arraigned on federal charges of receiving and possessing child pornography.

“Sullivan is charged with downloading images that record the sexual abuse of children,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “We remain committed to the primary goal of Project Safe Childhood, which is to protect children by finding and prosecuting those who exploit children through child pornography.”

“HSI special agents are dedicated to tracking down the consumers of child pornography wherever they might be in an effort to stop the senseless rape of children that supplies this perverse demand,” said Special Agent in Charge Nick S. Annan, head of ICE Homeland Security Investigations in Atlanta. “Child predators come from all walks of life, as the accused in this case clearly demonstrates. This investigation is a credit to the close working relationships HSI has built with law enforcement agencies around the world, including the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Swiss Fedpol in this case, to protect innocent children.”

“This case demonstrates the need for law enforcement to remain vigilant in the pursuit of people who exploit children.   Dr. Sullivan’s life took a turn from helping people through his work in Epidemiology to exploiting children, utilizing the Wi-Fi at Emory University.  The GBI’s top priority continues to be working crimes against children, regardless of who the offenders are,” said Vernon Keenan, Director, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: In October 2014, Swiss law enforcement seized a server that was hosting child pornography. Login information from the server showed that someone at Emory University Rollins School of Public Health was using Emory’s Wi-Fi to access child pornography. With cooperation from Emory University’s Information Technology Department, agents were able to determine that Dr. Kevin Sullivan, a professor in Emory University’s Epidemiology department, was the person accessing child pornography from a Swiss website.

Based on this information, agents obtained and then executed a search warrant on June 15, 2015, at the defendant’s office.  Sullivan was present when the agents arrived, but left before agents found child pornography on his personal laptop and external hard drive. When agents went to Sullivan’s house later the same day to arrest him, they found him attempting to erase the hard drive from his home desktop computer.

Kevin M. Sullivan, 60, of Atlanta, Georgia, was indicted by a federal grand jury on August 5, 2015.  Today he was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alan J. Baverman on those charges.

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 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul R. Jones and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin E. Sanders are prosecuting 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 - Cesar Arbelaez Tabares and Juan Carlos Bazantes have been arraigned after being indicted on federal charges of defrauding the IRS and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) by intentionally misrepresenting the employment status of construction workers on a federal contract.

“Employers are required to truthfully account for their employees and withhold federal employment taxes on their behalf,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “These defendants allegedly committed fraud in connection with a construction project for the CDC by maintaining a double payroll system that concealed the true employment status of their workers and denied the IRS its collection of employment taxes in the process.”

“Business owners have an inescapable obligation to withhold income taxes for employees and remit those taxes to the Internal Revenue Service,” stated Special Agent in Charge Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot. “Corporate officers, who neglect to withhold payroll taxes and remit them to the IRS in order to gain a competitive advantage, will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

“Providing false information to a CDC contract administrator in order to stay in compliance with federal contracting guidelines will not be tolerated,” said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General in Atlanta.  “The integrity of federal projects requires that contractors adhere to a strict code of conduct.” 

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: Cesar Arbelaez Tabares was the Chief Executive Officer and Juan Carlos Bazantes was the Secretary and Chief Financial Officer of IWES Contractors, Inc. (“IWES”), a Norcross-based business that supplied drywall laborers to contractors and subcontractors for construction projects. Beginning in 2012, IWES supplied drywall laborers for a construction project with the CDC.

Under the direction of Tabares and Bazantes, IWES allegedly maintained a double payroll system for its workers on the CDC project, which internally classified those workers as either “W2.REAL” or “W2.F.2CHK”. Those workers who were classified as “W2.REAL” received one paycheck each pay period with employment taxes withheld, received an IRS Form W-2 at the end of the calendar year, and were reported on quarterly employment taxes filed by IWES with the IRS.

Those workers who were classified as “W2.F.2CHK” received two paychecks simultaneously each pay period. The first paycheck totaled the worker’s net pay (gross wages minus employment taxes withheld), while the second paycheck received by the worker totaled the employment taxes withheld from the first paycheck so that the worker, in reality, was receiving his or her gross wages with no tax withholdings. Workers classified as “W2.F.2CHK” performed many of the same job duties as those who were classified as “W2.REAL” and should have been likewise treated as employees, but they allegedly did not receive an IRS Form W-2 at the end of the calendar year and were not reported on quarterly employment taxes filed by IWES with the IRS.

In connection with its subcontracting work on the federal project with the CDC, Tabares and Bazantes allegedly caused IWES to submit fraudulent certified payroll forms, signed under penalty of perjury by Tabares, which falsely represented that employment taxes had been withheld for all of the IWES workers on the CDC project, including those whom IWES had internally classified as “W2.F.2CHK” and whose employment tax withholdings were being returned to the employee in the form of a simultaneous second paycheck. Between approximately January 2012 and April 2013, Tabares and Bazantes allegedly caused IWES to fail to report over $800,000 in wages to the IRS.

Cesar Arbelaez Tabares, 35, of Pembroke Pines, Florida, and Juan Carlos Bazantes, 43, of Miami, Florida, were arraigned today before United States Magistrate Judge Alan J. Baverman.  They were indicted by a federal grand jury on July 28, 2015.

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

Anyone who has information concerning the allegations described in the indictment is encouraged to contact IRS-Criminal Investigation at 404-338-7543.

This case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, the Department of Labor-Office of Inspector General and the Department of Health and Human Services.

Assistant United States Attorney Steven D. Grimberg 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 - The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia has reached a settlement agreement with DeKalb Regional Crisis Center (DeKalb Regional), a mental health and addiction facility, to resolve an investigation into allegations that it violated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by failing to ensure effective communication with individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing.

“A person who is deaf or hard-of-hearing should be able to participate fully in his or her health care decisions,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “When a deaf patient is unable to understand what is happening during a medical visit or procedure, it can be a terrifying experience and adversely affect the quality of care.  Access to medical care is a fundamental part of our society, and we will continue to devote resources to eradicate barriers to health care for persons with disabilities.”        

An investigation was initiated by a complaint filed with the U.S. Attorney’s Office alleging that, during a 13-day admission, DeKalb Regional failed to provide appropriate auxiliary aids and services when necessary to ensure effective communication for the complainant.  The complainant is deaf and uses American Sign Language as her primary means of communication. The complainant was admitted to DeKalb Regional for mental health treatment.  On numerous occasions during her stay, the complainant alleged that DeKalb Regional failed to provide a qualified sign language interpreter when necessary to ensure effective communication.

Under the settlement agreement, DeKalb Regional agreed to ensure effective communication to patients who are deaf and hard of hearing. In the future, DeKalb Regional agreed to give primary consideration to the expressed preference for a particular auxiliary aid or service by an individual who is deaf or hard of hearing.  Among other things, DeKalb Regional has agreed to provide mandatory in-service training to all its personnel and provide reports to the United States Attorney’s Office regarding its compliance with the settlement agreement. The training will address the needs of deaf and hard-of-hearing patients and companions.  DeKalb Regional also agreed to pay $60,000 to the complainant.

The ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities by health care professionals.  Under the ADA, health care providers are required to provide effective communication to individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing.  When complex, lengthy communication is involved, the ADA generally requires health care professionals to provide qualified sign language interpreters for the person who is deaf or hard of hearing.

This agreement is part of the Department of Justice’s Barrier-Free Health Care Initiative, which is a partnership of the Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorneys’ offices across the nation, to target enforcement efforts on a critical area for individuals with disabilities.  The initiative, launched on the 22nd anniversary of the ADA in July 2012, includes the participation of more than 40 U.S. Attorneys’ offices, including the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia.  Information about the initiative can be found at www.ada.gov/usao-agreements.htm.

Assistant United States Attorney Aileen Bell Hughes and Assistant United States Attorney Emily Shingler are representing the United States in this matter.

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 - Jeff Clouse has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for producing and distributing child pornography via the Internet.  Clouse possessed and actively traded child pornography on the Internet.

“Clouse created a series of vile videos depicting a mother sexually abusing her own young children,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “He further exploited these children by trading the videos for more child pornography.  This is simply one of those cases that defies any explanation, and it is difficult to quantify the pain and suffering his conduct caused.  But it reinforces our commitment to bring justice those who victimize children by producing child pornography.”

“This case exemplifies the international nature of the modern child pornography trade,” said Special Agent in Charge Nick S. Annan, head of ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Atlanta. “The defendant sexually exploited a mother and her young daughters in the Philippines via a webcam. He then traded recordings of that abuse with others for additional child pornography on a Russian file sharing site. As we learn more and more in these investigations, the fight against child pornography is clearly global in nature, and HSI is well positioned to follow the threads of these international networks and hold child predators accountable for their crimes against the innocent.”

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court:  In January 2012, agents with the Department of Homeland Security in Phoenix, Arizona, initiated an investigation into an individual using a Russian file sharing website to trade child pornography.  During a forensic review of the individual’s computer, Phoenix agents found that their target was exchanging child pornography with an email address in Atlanta, Georgia.  A subsequent investigation revealed that this email address was associated with Jeff Clouse in Conyers, Georgia.

On February 15, 2013, agents went to Clouse’s home and explained that child pornography had been sent to an email address associated with him.  Clouse admitted that he possessed thousands of images of child pornography and actively traded child pornography on the Internet.  Clouse then directed the agents to the areas on his computer where he kept the images.

As agents reviewed Clouse’s email accounts, they found hundreds of images and videos containing child pornography, including videos that appeared to have been made with a web camera and “streamed” over the Internet.  In the videos, a woman performed sexual acts on her minor daughters while Clouse directed her on a live video link.  From chat logs found on Clouse’s computer, it appears that this woman lived in the Philippines and that the small children were her daughters.

After these videos were identified, Clouse agreed to speak with agents about the items found on his computer.  In that interview, Clouse admitted he met the woman in the videos online in a chat room and that she created the child pornography at his direction using a web camera on her computer.  The videos were made in the Philippines and transmitted over the Internet to Clouse in the United States, who then saved them on his computer so that he could view and trade the images at a later time.  Clouse said that the two girls who were sexually abused in the videos were the woman’s minor daughters who were 6 and 8 years old.

A forensic review of his computer showed that Clouse subsequently distributed these videos to other individuals who were seeking child pornography.  For Clouse, the videos became a kind of currency by which he could obtain more child pornography from other pedophiles.  The forensic review also revealed that Clouse had been grooming at least one other minor during this same time.    

On Tuesday, August 4, 2015,  the Court sentenced Jeff Clouse, 47, of Conyers, Georgia, to 20 years in prison to be followed by 50 years of supervised release, and ordered him to pay restitution in the amount of $16,000.  Clouse was convicted on these charges on June 12, 2014, after he pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.

Assistant United States Attorney Kurt R. Erskine 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 – The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced that Pediatric Services of America Healthcare, Pediatric Services of America, Inc., Pediatric Healthcare, Inc., Pediatric Home Nursing Services (collectively, “PSA”), and Portfolio Logic, LLC agreed to pay $6.88 million ($6,882,387) to resolve allegations that PSA, a provider of home nursing services to medically fragile children, knowingly (1) failed to disclose and return overpayments that it received from federal health care programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, (2) submitted claims under the Georgia Pediatric Program for home nursing care without documenting the requisite monthly supervisory visits by a registered nurse, and (3) submitted claims to federal health care programs that overstated the length of time their staff had provided services, which resulted in PSA being overpaid.

“Participants in federal health care programs are required to actively investigate whether they have received overpayments and, if so, promptly return the overpayments,” said Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia John Horn. “This settlement is the first of its kind and reflects the serious obligations of health care providers to be responsible stewards of public health funds.”

United States Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, Edward J. Tarver said, “The failure to report and return a known overpayment is a serious offense that ultimately drives up the costs of health care for all of us.  This U.S. Attorney’s Office and its federal and state law enforcement partners will continue to work together to ensure that health care providers, who receive millions of tax dollars every year, play by the rules and do not waste critical program funds.”

“The healthcare system is trust-based and providers who willfully ignore their fiscal responsibilities will be held accountable for their actions. This precedent-setting case should send the message that we will not tolerate any provider keeping American taxpayer dollars unjustly. Special thanks to the United States Attorney's Office for recognizing the importance of this case and partnering with us to pursue justice,” said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General in Atlanta.

John F. Khin, Special Agent in Charge, DCIS-Southeast Field Office, stated, “This collaborative investigative effort reflects the Defense Criminal Investigative Service’s ongoing commitment to ensuring accountability throughout the military health care system, protecting the integrity of Department of Defense programs, and preserving precious taxpayer dollars.”

This is the first settlement under the False Claims Act involving a health care provider’s failure to investigate credit balances on its books to determine whether they resulted from overpayments made by a federal health care program. Under section 6402 of the Affordable Care Act, health care providers must report and return any overpayments by the later of (i) 60 days after the overpayment was identified or (ii) the date any corresponding cost report is due (if applicable).

PSA had been maintaining numerous credit balances on its books that related to claims it had submitted to various federal health care programs, some of which had been on PSA’s books for several years. Additionally PSA wrote off and absorbed credit balances that had resulted from overpayments into their revenue because they had not investigated the reason for the credit balances before doing so. At the government’s request, PSA cooperated with a joint audit of the credit balances on its books in order to identify all outstanding overpayments.

As part of the settlement, PSA has agreed to enter into a corporate integrity agreement with the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), which will require PSA to put in place procedures and reviews to avoid and promptly detect conduct similar to that which gave rise to the settlement. 

The settlement resolves allegations filed by Yvette Odumosu and Sheila McCray, former employees of PSA, under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, which authorize private parties to sue for false claims on behalf of the United States and share in the recovery. Ms. Odumosu’s lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of Georgia and is captioned U.S. ex rel. Yvette Odumosu v. Pediatric Services of America Healthcare, No. 1:11-CV-1007-AT and Ms. McCray’s lawsuit subsequently was filed in the Southern District of Georgia and is captioned United States ex rel. Sheila McCray, et al. v. Pediatric Services of America, Inc., Pediatric Services of America, Pediatric Healthcare, Inc., Pediatric Home Nursing Services, collectively d/b/a PSA Healthcare; and Portfolio Logic, LLC, No. CV413-12. Ms. Odumosu and Ms. McCray will receive a share of the settlement payment that resolves the qui tam suits that they filed in the amount of $1.1 million ($1,121,729). The claims settled in the civil settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, U.S. Department of Defense, Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Georgia State Attorney General’s Office, and the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units, comprised, in part, of the 20 states that are parties to the settlement.

The civil settlement was reached by Assistant United States Attorneys Neeli Ben-David, Darcy Coty and Charles Mulaney.

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/gan/.

ATLANTA – Jose Delgado, a/k/a Fantasma, the last of twenty-two Mara Salvatrucha-13 (MS-13) gang members charged with murder, attempted murder and armed robbery, has been sentenced to 12 years in federal prison.  All defendants were members of the violent street gang which operated in Gwinnett County and DeKalb County, Georgia, and they will all be serving their sentences in federal prison.

“MS-13 is a ruthless street gang that used violence to spread fear through Gwinnett, DeKalb and Fulton Counties,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn. “The 8-year federal investigation identified and convicted the local leadership of the gang and dismantled the membership of a brutal and merciless criminal enterprise in the Atlanta region.  While the gang preyed mostly on other rival gang members, this case demonstrates the tragic violence that harmed innocent citizens when the gang’s activities spilled out into the community.”

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: MS-13 is an international criminal gang that was operating in the Atlanta area since at least 2005 and up until the grand jury issued its indictment in February 2010. Almost all of the members came from El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala. During that time, MS-13 staked out areas within Gwinnett and DeKalb Counties as its territory.

MS-13 gang members held meetings where they discussed attacking and killing gang members, collected dues, shared firearms, and disciplined members who broke gang rules. Dues money was used to buy additional weapons and to post bond for gang members in jail. Gang leaders would keep MS-13 leaders in their home countries informed of gang activity, and they would often send back a portion of dues as “rent.”

The following defendants were convicted by a jury on July 15, 2013:

• Miguel Alvarado-Linares, a/k/a Joker, 26, of Norcross, Georgia, was convicted of Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) conspiracy involving murder, two counts of Violent Crime in Aid of Racketeering (VICAR) involving murder, two counts of VICAR involving attempted murder, and four firearms offenses. He was sentenced on October 15, 2013, to three life sentences to be followed by 85 years.

• Ernesto Escobar, a/k/a Pink Panther, a/k/a Flaco, 32, of Norcross, Georgia, was convicted of one count of RICO conspiracy involving murder, one count of VICAR involving murder, and one firearms offense. He was sentenced on December 20, 2013, to two life sentences to be followed by 10 years.

• Dimas Alfaro-Granados, a/k/a Toro, 32, of Duluth, Georgia, was convicted of one count of RICO conspiracy involving murder, two counts of VICAR involving murder, and two firearms offenses. He was sentenced on October 30, 2013, to three life sentences to be followed by 35 years.

• Jairo Reyna-Ozuna, a/k/a Flaco, 30, of Norcross, Georgia, was convicted of one count of RICO conspiracy and one firearms offense. He was sentenced on January 31, 2014, to 13 years in prison.

The evidence at trial showed that Alvarado-Linares and Alfaro-Granados, along with another gang member, killed Lal Ko in October 2006.  Ko was a fellow MS-13 member, but Alvarado-Linares – one of the gang leaders – thought that Ko was cooperating with police and ordered his murder. Additionally, in December 2006, when another MS-13 gang member wanted to quit the gang, Alvarado-Linares and Alfaro-Granados ordered him to kill a rival gang member as a condition of leaving MS-13. On Christmas Eve 2006, that gang member, following orders, shot at a car on I-85 that he believed contained rival gang members. The passenger, Angel Gonzalez, was murdered.  He was 20 years old.

On New Year’s Eve 2006, Alvarado-Linares was at an apartment complex where he exchanged insults with two members of a rival gang.  Alvarado-Linares pulled out a gun and shot the men. On August 5, 2007, Escobar got into a scuffle with two teenagers at a Shell gas station in Gwinnett County.  Escobar reported the incident to Reyna-Ozuna, who was the gang leader at the time. Reyna-Ozuna gave Escobar a .45 caliber semi‑automatic handgun to retaliate. Escobar went back to the Shell station and shot one of the teenagers as he was painting lines in the parking lot.  The victim, David Hernandez, was only 16 years old.

A jury convicted the following defendants on November 21, 2013:

• William Espinoza, a/k/a Cheberria, a/k/a El Crazy, 33, of Norcross, Georgia, was convicted of one count of RICO conspiracy involving murder, one count of VICAR involving attempted murder, and one firearms offense. He was sentenced on April 15, 2014, to 20 years, eight months in prison.

• Remberto Argueta, a/k/a Pitufo, 26, of Lilburn, Georgia, was convicted of one count of RICO conspiracy involving murder, one count of VICAR involving murder, and one firearms offense. He was sentenced on October 29, 2014, to two life sentences to be followed by five years.

The evidence presented at their trial showed that on April 13, 2007, Argueta, along with other gang members, planned to rob Arpolonio Rios-Jarquin, a suspected drug dealer, at a hotel in DeKalb County. When Rios-Jarquin turned out to have his own gun, Argueta and his fellow MS-13 members engaged in a shootout that resulted in the murder of Rios-Jarquin. Six months later, on October 24, 2007, Argueta and several other MS-13 members were at an apartment complex in Gwinnett County when Argueta spotted suspected rival gang members. He approached them and asked them who they “claimed” – that is, what gang they belonged to. When one of them responded that he and his friend were members of a rival gang, Argueta pulled out a handgun and started chasing and shooting at them. He shot one in the back and the other in the hip and arm.

On July 20, 2008, Espinoza and other members of MS-13 were at a nightclub in DeKalb County when a fight broke out with suspected members of a rival gang. Espinoza went out to the parking lot and retrieved a .380 handgun from a car. He approached the club entrance and shot Jayro Arango-Sanchez in the stomach. Just two days later, Espinoza and four other MS-13 members drove to an apartment complex in Gwinnett County to look for pedestrians to rob. After spotting a victim, Espinoza and another gang member got out of their SUV and approached the victim, Aurelio Vasquez. Espinoza put his .380 handgun to Vasquez’s head while the other MS-13 member started to search Vasquez’s pockets for money. Vasquez resisted being robbed, so Espinoza shot him through the head. Espinoza and his fellow gang members wanted to rob Vasquez to get money for beer.

A jury convicted the following defendant on October 7, 2014:

• Elio Marroquin-Lopez, a/k/a Perico, 29, of Chamblee, Georgia, was convicted of one count of RICO conspiracy. He was sentenced on October 29, 2014, to seven years, two months in prison.

The evidence at his trial showed that on December 15, 2008, Marroquin-Lopez and two other gang members broke into an apartment to rob it. When the owner returned, one of the gang members shot at him. On March 13, 2009, Marroquin-Lopez got into a fight with two suspected rival gang members and shot at one of them. Marroquin-Lopez, who was one of the gang leaders, often gave out baggies of cocaine to fellow MS-13 members at meetings and instructed them to sell the cocaine at clubs.

The following defendants entered guilty pleas and have been sentenced:

• Jose Delgado, a/k/a Fantasma, 28, of Lawrenceville, Georgia, was sentenced on July 31, 2015, to 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy involving murder and two counts of VICAR involving murder.

• Alex Ferrufino, a/k/a Whiskey, 35, Tucker, Georgia, was sentenced on September 11, 2014, to 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to two counts of VICAR involving attempted murder and one firearms offense.

• Joseph Ivan Dias, a/k/a Travieso, 27, of Gainesville, Georgia, was sentenced on April 1, 2015, to 14 years in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy.

• Miguel Guevara, a/k/a Blacky, 31, of Fort Walton Beach, Fla., was sentenced on February 13, 2015, to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy involving murder and a firearms offense.

• Kenedis Bonilla, a/k/a Mago, 33, of Tucker, Georgia, was sentenced on June 13, 2015, to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy involving murder and a firearms offense.

• Salvador Franco, a/k/a Smiley, 30, of Norcross, Georgia, was sentenced on September 11, 2014, to 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy and a firearms offense.

• Edwin Menjivar, a/k/a Chilly Willy, a/k/a Vago, 33, of Norcross, Georgia, was sentenced on November 21, 2014, to 11 years in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy and VICAR involving attempted murder.

• Omar Cubillos, a/k/a Pancho, 30, of Gainesville, Georgia, was sentenced on June 15, 2015, to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy involving murder and a firearms offense.

• Carlos Mendoza, a/k/a Catracho, 30, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced on April 30, 2105, to 17 years, 6 months in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy involving murder and a firearms offense.

• Emmanual Hidalgo, a/k/a Scooby, 29, of Chamblee, Georgia, was sentenced on November 21, 2014, to 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy involving murder and a firearms offense.

• Christopher Castro Ramirez, a/k/a Demente, 26, of Norcross, Georgia, was sentenced on November 1, 2012, to two years, six months in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy.

• Enzo Baires, a/k/a Ghost, 25, of Norcross, Georgia, was sentenced on May 11, 2015, to 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy involving murder.

• Irvin Mejia-Cruz, a/k/a Lil Triste, a/k/a Triste, 25, of Duluth, Georgia, was sentenced on February 13, 2015, to nine years in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy.

• Walter Aldana, a/k/a Goofy, 25, of Norcross, Georgia, was sentenced on February 13, 2015, after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy.

• William Pineda, a/k/a Slayer, 32, of Lawrenceville, Georgia, was sentenced on December 11, 2104, to seven years in prison after pleading guilty to RICO conspiracy.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service, Gwinnett County Police Department, DeKalb County Police Department, Norcross Police Department, Chamblee Police Department, and the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Paul R. Jones and Kim S. Dammers and Department of Justice Organized Crime and Gang Section Trial Attorney Joseph Wheatley.

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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Mario Deandre Jackson and Leon Scott have been indicted by a federal grand jury for robbery, kidnaping and firearms crimes relating to a home invasion in the Buckhead community on May 25, 2015.

During the home invasion, a family was held at gunpoint and one victim was forcibly removed from the home and made to withdraw money from his bank account.

“These men are charged with terrorizing an Atlanta family, including their three minor children during a violent home invasion,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “They allegedly traveled to Georgia from outside the state for the purpose of robbing the family, and forcing them at gunpoint to remove money from an ATM and to turn over other valuables, including a wedding band.  The arrests in this case occurred through the collaborative efforts of federal, state, and local law enforcement officers determined to solve this particularly heinous crime.” 

“The identification, apprehension, and resulting federal grand jury indictments of Jackson and Scott regarding their alleged involvement in a violent Atlanta area home invasion was brought about by a collaborate law enforcement effort covering numerous jurisdictions and demonstrates the true value of such a combined investigative approach.  The FBI will continue to dedicate significant investigative assets and resources as we partner with area law enforcement in addressing violent crime in the region,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

“After many long hours of exhaustive work by Investigators of the Atlanta Police Department, who worked jointly with our federal partners, I am pleased that these individuals who targeted our neighborhoods are behind bars and no longer a threat.  The Atlanta Police Department will continue to work closely with the US Attorney’s Office and the FBI on these cases to ensure any other involved parties are identified and similarly charged,” said Atlanta Police Chief George N. Turner.

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Horn, the indictment, and other information presented in court: On May 25, 2015, a home invasion robbery was committed in the Atlanta, Georgia, Buckhead community by two armed assailants who entered a family’s home.  At the time of the robbery, the house was occupied by a husband and wife and their three minor children.  One of the robbers forced the husband at gunpoint to go with one of them to a Wells Fargo ATM machine and withdraw money, while the other robber held the remaining family members at gunpoint to ensure the husband’s cooperation.  Through a Crime Stoppers tip, police learned that the robbers traveled from Memphis, Tennessee, and returned there with the stolen goods.  Police then recovered one of the items taken during the robbery – a wedding band – at a Memphis pawn shop.

On July 9th, 2015, Georgia State Patrol officers stopped a car in which Jackson was a passenger and found him with two firearms, both of which had been stolen during other robberies in Atlanta and Memphis.  Scott was arrested separately in a motel in Birmingham, Alabama on July 24th, 2015.

Mario Deandre Jackson, 28, of Memphis, Tennessee, and Leon Scott, 25, of Memphis, Tennessee, will be arraigned at a later date.

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 Atlanta Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant United States Attorneys Ryan K. Buchanan and Kim S. Dammers 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Herschell Harvell, Jr., a former Special Agent in Charge with the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Housing and Urban Development, has been convicted of two counts of making false statements to First Tennessee National Bank, N.A., to obtain a loan, after a one week jury trial.

“Harvell, who was a federal law enforcement officer with supervisory responsibility for mortgage fraud investigations and other matters involving false statements, violated the law he was sworn to enforce by making false statements to obtain a loan to finance his own private business interests,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn.

“Mr. Harvell’s conviction demonstrates our commitment to bringing to justice all bad actors, even when that misconduct occurs within our very own organization. I am profoundly disappointed at the break down of trust and the violation of laws of this former employee. As this conviction shows, these ethical lapses are neither tolerated nor condoned,” said David A. Montoya, Inspector General of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.  

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: The Office of Inspector General (OIG) for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) investigates and prevents fraud and abuse in HUD programs.  Harvell began his career with HUD-OIG as a Special Agent and in 2003, was promoted to Assistant Special Agent in Charge for HUD-OIG’s Region 9, which is based in Los Angeles, California, and encompasses several western states.  Harvell was promoted in 2008 to Special Agent in Charge for the HUD-OIG region based in Fort Worth, Texas, and later served as the Special Agent in Charge of HUD-OIG’s Region 4, based in Atlanta, Georgia.  As a Supervisory Special Agent, Harvell oversaw and supervised mortgage fraud investigations, as well as other matters involving false statements affecting HUD programs.

In 2008, while stationed in Los Angeles, Harvell maintained a portfolio of six rental homes in the Atlanta area, all of which were mortgaged, with monthly payments in various amounts.  In addition, between January and March 2008, Harvell acquired and opened a Precision Tune automobile care franchise, also in the Atlanta area.  The start-up costs for the owner of a new franchise location, such as Harvell’s, ranged from $100,000 to over $200,000.  To fund the costs of his new business, in February 2008, Harvell cashed in a certificate of deposit that he held worth approximately $70,000.  Over the next five weeks, Harvell spent this amount and more on his Precision Tune business and other expenses, including payments on his rental homes.

On March 25, 2008, Harvell obtained additional cash by refinancing one of his rental homes.  Harvell attended closing and signed a loan application and other documents to obtain a refinance loan for $165,000 from First Tennesse Bank, N.A. Harvell received approximately $23,000 from this loan.  Although he had cashed in and spent the certificate of deposit and additional funds, Harvell’s loan application falsely stated that he still owned this certificate of deposit.  In addition, Harvell’s loan application falsely stated that he received a total of $6,180 per month in rental income from his portfolio of investment homes.  Although some of Harvell’s houses were rented, he was receiving roughly half that amount, or less, on a monthly basis when he closed the loan.  Harvell’s loan application also failed to disclose his Precision Tune business and associated costs and liabilities that he was incurring to open that business. 

In addition, Harvell’s loan application stated that his permanent residence was in Georgia.  During the course of approving the loan, First Tennessee Bank’s underwriter asked Harvell to explain a Los Angeles post office box that appeared on Harvell’s bank statements.  The underwriter posed this question to determine whether Harvell had living expenses in Los Angeles that were not disclosed on his loan application.  In response to the underwriter’s question, Harvell wrote a letter falsely stating that his employment required him to work in California during the weekdays and that he resided with relatives while on work assignments there.  In truth, Harvell lived in Los Angeles and paid rent there, which was not disclosed to the underwriter.

While in Atlanta to close the loan from First Tennessee Bank on March 25, 2008, Harvell applied to a different lending institution for a cash-out refinance loan on a different investment property.  When this second loan closed on April 14, 2008, Harvell received over $17,000.  Harvell’s loan application contained the same false statements and omissions as his March 25, 2008, loan application to First Tennessee Bank.

Sentencing for Harvell has been scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on October 1, 2015, before United States District Judge William S. Duffey, Jr.

This case is being investigated by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, Special Investigations Division, Washington, DC.

Assistant United States Attorney Douglas W. Gilfillan 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.

ATLANTA - Brenda Michael, a former Emory University administrative assistant, has been sentenced to one year, six months in federal prison for stealing more than $300,000 in student tuition payments from the university.

“Michael used her position at Emory to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars in just over a year and a half,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “Students trusted that this university employee was there to facilitate their enrollment. Had the defendant not been exposed by Emory, her deception could have caused even greater damage.”

“Those Emory University students had every right to trust in Ms. Michael, who was assigned by the University to assist those students.  Unfortunately, Ms. Michael chose to betray that trust and use her position for personal gain.  The FBI is pleased with its role in ensuring that  Ms. Michael be held fully accountable for her criminal conduct, which today’s sentencing certainly does,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

“Emory University is satisfied with the outcome of this case and with the excellent work of the United States Attorney’s Office in prosecuting Ms. Michael for her crime.  We take the security of our students’ financial information and thefts by employees very seriously and are pleased that we could work cooperatively with the United States Attorney’s Office in bringing the investigation to a successful conclusion,” said Nancy Seideman, Associate Vice President, Media Relations, Emory University.
 

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: Brenda Michael was employed as an administrative assistant with the Wound Ostomy Center, part of the School of Nursing at Emory University. As part of her job, the defendant assisted Emory students with enrolling in various programs and classes.

Beginning in August 2012, while assisting students with their enrollment in Emory programs, Michael began directing the students to pay their tuition and fees via PayPal to an account that the students believed was an authorized Emory University account. In fact, it was Michael’s personal PayPal account. The defendant misdirected student payments for more than a year, diverting a total of more than $317,000 in payments due to Emory and spending them for her personal benefit.

Brenda Michael, 53, of Atlanta, Georgia, has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Willis B. Hunt to one year, six months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $317,923.33 to Emory University.  Michael was convicted on these charges on April 30, 2015, after she pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of Emory University.

Assistant United States Attorney Jamie L. Mickelson 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Nikki Autry, a former Habersham County deputy sheriff and special agent of the Mountain Judicial Circuit Criminal Investigation and Suppression Team (“NCIS”), has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of providing false information in a search warrant affidavit and providing the same false information to obtain an arrest warrant.  Providing false evidence to a judge to obtain a warrant is a federal civil rights violation.

“Our criminal justice system depends upon our police officers’ sworn duty to present facts truthfully and accurately – there is no arrest that is worth selling out the integrity of our law enforcement officers,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn. “In this case, Autry is charged with making false statements to a judge in order to obtain search and arrest warrants. Without her false statements, there was no probable cause to search the premises for drugs or to make the arrest. And in this case, the consequences of the unlawful search were tragic.”

“Integrity is an absolute cornerstone for those who serve in law enforcement and today’s federal indictment of former Deputy Sheriff Autry, sadly, clearly illustrates the results when there is a departure from that ever important core value.  The FBI will continue to provide investigative assets and resources toward investigating and presenting for prosecution allegations of law enforcement misconduct as seen here,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

“As a result of this investigation, the GBI has partnered with law enforcement and prosecution officials in Habersham County and northeast Georgia to revamp drug enforcement operations in order to prevent incidents such as this in the future.” said Vernon M. Keenan, Director, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Horn, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Autry worked for the Habersham County, Georgia, Sheriff’s Office from 2004 to 2014. On the night of May 27, 2014, Autry and other members of the NCIS team were attempting undercover narcotics buys from various subjects in Habersham County. 

Eventually, a brand new NCIS informant and two of his associates – his wife and a roommate – went to a residence located in Cornelia, Georgia. The informant’s roommate, who was not officially working with NCIS, approached the residence and allegedly purchased a small quantity of methamphetamine from an individual unknown to him who was standing outside the residence. There was no police surveillance to verify the purchase. Shortly afterwards, Autry presented an affidavit to a Habersham County magistrate judge falsely swearing that the NCIS informant made the purchase and that the NCIS informant was “a true and reliable informant who has provided information in the past that has led to criminal charges on individuals selling narcotics in Habersham County.”

The federal indictment alleges that Autry knew the NCIS informant had not purchased any methamphetamine from anyone at the residence and the NCIS informant had not proven himself to be reliable in the past. Additionally, the indictment alleges that Autry had not confirmed that there was heavy traffic in and out of the residence.  Based on this false information, the magistrate judge issued a “no-knock” search warrant for the residence and an arrest warrant for W. T., who allegedly sold the methamphetamine.  The warrant obtained by Autry was executed approximately two hours later, during the early morning hours of May 28, 2014.

During the execution of the search warrant, a Habersham County deputy sheriff tossed a “flash and noise distractionary device,” also known as a flash bang grenade, into a side door of the residence. The flash bang grenade was thrown directly into the room where an 18-month-old toddler was sleeping. The grenade landed inside the toddler’s playpen and critically injured him. The toddler and his family had been staying at the residence for approximately six weeks prior to the search. They are relatives of the lawful occupants of the residence. W. T. was arrested shortly after the flash bang incident at a nearby residence.

Nikki Autry, 29, of Clarkesville, Georgia, will be arraigned by a U.S. Magistrate Judge later this week.  The indictment charges Autry with four counts of civil rights violations for willfully depriving the occupants of the residence of their right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures by a police officer and for knowingly depriving W. T. of his right to be free from arrest without probable cause.

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, with assistance from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and the District Attorney’s Office of the Mountain Judicial Circuit.

Assistant United States Attorneys William McKinnon, Brent Alan Gray and Mary Webb 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – The U.S. Attorney’s Office hosted its 3rd Annual Youth Symposium on Thursday, July 16, 2015. The symposium included overviews of both federal criminal prosecutions and civil proceedings from various agencies including the Acting U.S. Attorney, with presentations from the FBI, DEA, U.S. Secret Service, the Social Security Administration – Office of the Inspector General, Federal Bureau of Prisons, and the Department of Homeland Security Investigations.

“This summit is an incredible opportunity to personally connect with so many talented young people and encourage them toward positive futures after high school and college,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn. “They are able to see so many possibilities for a career in law enforcement, and we hope this event strengthens their trust and understanding in the justice system as well.”

More than 125 students and guests were provided with a basic understanding of the criminal justice system, helping foster relationships between law enforcement and the communities they serve, and informing students of career opportunities in federal law enforcement.

“A career in law enforcement could be very rewarding,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney and Community Outreach Coordinator Loranzo Fleming. “Indeed, one can ‘do well’ and ‘do good’ at the same time; you do not have to choose one or the other.”

Special Agents from the participating agencies shared information about requirements for employment, training, job duties, and responsibilities. Each presenter encouraged students to strive for academic excellence and to consider a career in law enforcement. They also shared interesting, real-life stories.  For example, U.S. Bureau of Prison personnel explained that life behind bars is much different than seen on television.

After the presentations from federal law enforcement agencies, the students and guests visited the courtrooms of U.S. District Judge Richard W. Story, U.S. Magistrate Judge Justin S. Anand, and U.S. Magistrate Judge Russell G. Vineyard.  The judges provided information about the structure and function of the court system; layout and design of the courtroom; and shared information about their job duties and responsibilities. The judges also gave inspirational messages and encouraged students to consider legal and law enforcement careers.

The students and invited guests represented various organizations including the Cascade United Methodist Church Youth Ministry, Operation P.E.A.C.E. Inc., Russell Management Resident Services, Inc., DeKalb County Juvenile Court Journey & Youth Achievement Programs, Fulton County Junior D.A., Program, Urban League of Greater Atlanta – Urban Youth Empowerment Program & Neighborhood College Program, Fulton County Junior Deputy Clerk Program, and Atlanta Bar Association Summer Law Intern Program.

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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA - Rodney Byrd and Reginald Byrd have pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit food stamp fraud.  The defendants used a series of stores in the Atlanta area to unlawfully purchase over $5.7 million in vouchers of the Georgia Women, Infants and Children (“WIC”) program and debit cards of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (“SNAP”).

“These defendants stole from a program designed to provide nutritional items to needy members of our community,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn. “The scheme induced customers to forego infant formula and other necessary products in exchange for cash at less than face value of the vouchers.  They put their own financial profit above the physical needs of low-income mothers and children.”

“The individuals who choose to defraud taxpayers through trafficking schemes will continue to be aggressively investigated by USDA-OIG and its law enforcement partners. Greed and arrogance drives people like the Byrds’ to feel like they are undetectable ‎ in a system where thousands of stores participate in assistance programs like SNAP and WIC. Their guilty plea should be a warning to others that you will be caught, and you will be prosecuted,” stated Karen Citizen-Wilcox, Special Agent-in-Charge with USDA-OIG- Investigations.

“The integrity of the WIC and SNAP programs must be protected from fraud and abuse by the vendors who seek to illegally profit by violating the standards established for these programs,” stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, IRS Criminal Investigation, Special Agent in Charge. “This was a case of greed, deceit, manipulation and theft directed by the Byrd brothers in order to enrich themselves with ill-gotten gains. The North Georgia Financial Task Force are proud to contribute their financial expertise in unraveling financial transactions to ensure that those who engage in these illegal activities are vigorously investigated and brought to justice.”

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: Rodney Byrd owned and operated Atlanta metropolitan-area stores named “Tweet Baby Tweet,” “Chicos and Chicas Variety Store,” and “Tweets, Treats, and Nic Nacs.”  Reginald Byrd managed at least one of these stores. The defendants directed employees of the stores to make cash payments to customers in return for the customers’ WIC vouchers and for the use of the customers’ SNAP debit cards, in violation of the terms of the WIC program and SNAP.  The cash payments were at amounts of less than face value, allowing the defendants to generate substantial profits when exchanging the vouchers.

As a result, tens of thousands of WIC vouchers totaling millions of dollars were deposited into bank accounts under the control of Rodney Byrd.  A large number of these vouchers were for prescribed infant formula that is supposed to be given to malnourished infants or infants who cannot use traditional formula.  Instead of selling products such as this to needy recipients, the defendants and their co-conspirators unlawfully purchased the vouchers for cash.  All told, this scheme resulted in an estimated loss to the government of $5,747,817.18.

Sentencing for Rodney Byrd, 39, of Lawrenceville, Ga., and Reginald Byrd, 38, of College Park, Ga., is scheduled for October 13, 2015, at 2:00 p.m., before United States District Judge Leigh Martin May.

This case is being investigated by the United States Department of Agriculture, Office of the Inspector General, and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.

Assistant United States Attorneys Thomas J. Krepp and Jamie L. Mickelson 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Daynna Gregory, the last of three defendants charged with stealing state restitution funds, has pleaded guilty. Earlier this year, Tammi Stephens and Richard Cantrell also entered guilty pleas to theft of public funds and conspiracy stemming from a check fraud scheme to steal from a victims’ restitution fund controlled by the Georgia Department of Corrections where Stephens and Gregory formerly worked as an account paraprofessional and an accounting clerk, respectively.

“The State of Georgia created this fund for the honorable purpose of providing relief to victims of financial crime, and these defendants callously stole from this fund to enrich themselves,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “This conduct is all the more disturbing because as Georgia Department of Corrections employees Stephens and Gregory were responsible for issuing restitution checks to the people they preyed upon.”

“When those within the criminal justice system so deliberately choose to engage in such corrupt criminal activity as seen in this case, it is truly disheartening.  The FBI will continue to work with its various law enforcement partners, to include the Georgia Department of Corrections, to ensure that this type of criminal conduct is swiftly addressed,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

"The guilty plea by these former employees is a reflection of the professional and diligent work by our internal investigations team and their partnership with our colleagues at the FBI,” said Commissioner Homer Bryson.  "We remain committed to our zero-tolerance policy for this type of conduct by employees entrusted with public funds," continued Bryson.

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: From September 2013 to June 2014, Stephens and Gregory were employees in the Georgia Department of Corrections’ banking unit where they were responsible for issuing checks drawn on a restitution fund set up to compensate victims of other crimes.  The defendants formed and carried out a plan to steal victim restitution by having Stephens and Gregory use their access to the fund to issue fraudulent checks payable to a flower shop owned by Cantrell, who was not a Department employee.  The checks were purposely issued to Cantrell's flower shop to hide the defendants’ involvement in the theft. Cantrell agreed to use his business to launder the stolen money.

After printing the fraudulent checks, Stephens and Gregory altered the Department’s financial records to further disguise their theft.  Stephens and Gregory issued twenty-nine fraudulent checks to the flower shop, which were then delivered to Cantrell, who cashed them and split the proceeds with Stephens and Gregory.  In total, the defendants stole more than $232,000 in restitution funds, which they then spent on a variety of retail purchases.

Each of the defendants pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Steve C. Jones.  Richard Cantrell, 54, of Marietta, Georgia, was sentenced by Judge Jones on July 10, 2015, to two years in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Tammi Stephens, 37, of Forsyth, Georgia, will be sentenced on July 31, 2015, at 3:00 p.m.  Daynna Gregory, 41, of Lithonia, Georgia, will be sentenced on September 24, 2015 at 2:30 p.m.         

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Georgia Department of Corrections.

Assistant United States Attorney Kurt R. Erskine and Special Assistant United States Attorney Trevor C. Wilmot 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is  http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ROME, Ga. - Judy Elaine Henry has been sentenced to serve three years and one month in federal prison for committing wire fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud Bec-Don, Inc., a company that supplies concrete reinforcing steel and related products to the construction industry.

“This defendant abused her employer’s trust by stealing money from the company account for nearly eight years,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “Businesses have the right to expect honest services from their employees, but they should nonetheless be vigilant and adopt protocols to safeguard against internal fraud.”

“The sentencing of Ms. Henry in federal court holds her accountable for her eight years of theft from an employer who trusted her. The FBI, along with the Catoosa County Sheriff's Office, which assisted in the matter, fully understands how these types of thefts can adversely impact the bottom line of the victim company's financial stability,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: Henry was the manager of Bec-Don’s office in Ringgold, Georgia, and was authorized to sign checks on Bec-Don’s account. From approximately 2006 through 2014, Henry embezzled more than $500,000 in company funds by writing checks payable to herself from Bec-Don’s account, and by making false entries in Bec-Don’s checkbook and accounting records to make it appear that the checks had been issued to pay legitimate company expenses. Henry deposited some of the fraudulent checks into her personal account and then used her debit card to spend the stolen money.

Judy Elaine Henry, 50, of Lafayette, Georgia, was sentenced to three years, one month in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $565,005.05.  Henry was convicted on these charges on April 23, 2015, after she pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Catoosa County Sheriff’s Department.

Assistant United States Attorney J. Russell Phillips 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Rome Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ROME, Ga. – Former Murray County, Georgia, Chief Magistrate Judge Bryant L. Cochran has been sentenced to federal prison for orchestrating the false arrest of a woman who had been sexually propositioned by Cochran, for tampering with a witness, for sexually assaulting a county employee, and for illegally searching a county employee’s personal cell phone.

“Cochran completely abused the trust given to him by the good citizens of Murray County,” said Acting United States Attorney John A. Horn. “Cochran used the power of the bench to victimize a citizen seeking justice and to exploit his staff. There is no greater breakdown in the justice system than when the judge himself violates other citizens’ rights to simply advantage himself.”

“This sentencing concludes a lengthy investigation that not only ended the career of former Murray County Chief Magistrate Judge Cochran, but also the careers of two Murray County law enforcement officers,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.  “While the criminal actions of these individuals are disheartening, in the end, truth and justice prevailed.”

“Being in a position to uphold and enforce the law does not mean you are above the law,” said Vernon Keenan, Director, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.  “The GBI will continue to work with the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's office to investigate and hold accountable those who are involved in corruption, regardless of their position.”

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: From January 1, 2004, to August 15, 2012, Bryant Cochran served as the Chief Magistrate Judge in Murray County, Georgia.

In that position, on April 9, 2012, Cochran met with a female citizen regarding a routine legal matter.  During the meeting, Cochran made inappropriate sexual advances towards the citizen, including an offer to trade sex for a favorable legal ruling. By mid-July 2012, the allegations of Cochran’s sexual misconduct towards the citizen had become public and gained significant media coverage. In response, Cochran called at least six local and state police officers providing them with a so-called “tip” – that the citizen carried drugs in her vehicle. Cochran also encouraged several of the police officers to stop the citizen because pulling her over would assist Cochran and would dissipate the heat caused by her complaint.

In a further effort to discredit the citizen, Cochran conspired with Clifford J. Joyce (who was Cochran’s tenant) to have the citizen framed for drug possession. Specifically, on or about August 12, 2012, Joyce planted a metal tin containing five packets of methamphetamine under the fender of the citizen’s car.

Two days later, on August 14, 2012, Murray County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Joshua Greeson (who has since been convicted of witness tampering) conducted a traffic stop on a car occupied by the citizen. During the traffic stop, several officers and a police drug dog searched the car for approximately ten minutes – but did not find any drugs.  Thereafter, Captain Michael Henderson, who is Cochran’s cousin and who has also been convicted of witness tampering, had an approximately two-minute telephone conversation with Cochran. Following that call, Henderson told an officer at the scene that according to his information; the citizen hid her drugs in a magnetic box under the left, rear tire well. Upon receiving that information, Greeson found the metal box magnetically attached to the car in that precise location. Inside the box, Greeson recovered five small packets containing methamphetamine. Greeson then told the citizen that he had recovered drugs from her car. At that point, the citizen stated that she had been set up by Judge Cochran or Joyce. Despite this, Greeson arrested the citizen and transported her to jail.

On August 15, 2012, the day after the arrest, Cochran resigned his position as Murray County’s Chief Magistrate Judge.  On August 22, 2012, Joyce admitted to law enforcement officers that he planted drugs – after which the local District Attorney dismissed the charges against the woman.  Finally, in an apparent effort to cover up the framing of the woman, Cochran tried to persuade a witness to provide false information to law enforcement officers.

As the Chief Magistrate Judge, Cochran also sexually assaulted a Murray County court employee and unlawfully searched the personal cellular telephone of another Murray County employee.

On May 13, 2014, a federal grand jury indicted Cochran, 45, of Chatsworth, Georgia for: (1) conspiracy against rights; (2) deprivation of rights under color of law, (3) conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, and (4) tampering with a witness.  The trial of Cochran began on December 2, 2014, and on December 11, 2014, the jury returned guilty verdicts on all counts (after one day of deliberations).

Bryant L. Cochran was sentenced to five years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and 100 hours of community service.

This case also resulted in the following convictions:

• On December 13, 2013, Clifford J. Joyce, of Murray County, Ga., was sentenced to one year, six months in prison for conspiring to distribute a controlled substance.

• On October 30, 2013, Michael Henderson, of Murray County, Ga., was sentenced to one year and one day in prison for tampering with a witness.

• On September 25, 2013, Joshua Greeson, of Murray County, Ga., was sentenced to 10 months in prison for tampering with a witness.

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

Assistant United States Attorneys Jeffrey W. Davis and William L. McKinnon, Jr.  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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Rome Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

ATLANTA – Three members of a local fraud ring—Rodney Henry, Tony Lamar Watkins, and Phyllis Grant—have been sentenced to federal prison for conspiring to defraud the United States by filing bogus income tax returns using stolen identities. The trio stole more than $800,000, all in the form of fraudulent tax refunds.

“Phony refund schemes that use stolen identities hurt the people whose names and personal information were illegally used, and honest taxpayers throughout the country who foot the bill for the fraud,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “Identity theft remains a top priority of this office and will continue to be a priority until we end the victimization of our citizens through their stolen personal identities.”

“IRS Criminal Investigation will remain proactive in the investigation of individuals who engage in stealing the identities of innocent people,” said Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge.  “These sentences should serve as a strong message that there are consequences for stealing and using other individual’s personal identifying information.”

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: Rodney Henry, Tony Watkins, and Phyllis Grant worked together to use stolen identities to file federal income tax returns. Henry filed the tax-returns, which sought more than $1.9 million in refunds. Watkins assisted in the scheme by retrieving refund checks from mailboxes, forging signatures on the checks, withdrawing refunds from debit cards, and bringing checks to locations where they would be cashed. Grant opened two mailboxes for their scheme in Mableton, Georgia, and one in East Point, Georgia.  She also provided Henry with some of the identities he used on the returns.

All defendants were sentenced by U.S. District Judge William S. Duffey, Jr., as follows:

• Rodney Henry, 43, of Atlanta, Georgia, has been sentenced to seven years, ten months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $895,699.28.  Henry was convicted on this charge, as well as a charge of aggravated identity theft, on May 22, 2014, after he pleaded guilty.

• Tony Lamar Watkins, 49, of College Park, Georgia, has been sentenced to four years, seven months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $824,121.28. Watkins was convicted on this charge on May 23, 2014, after he pleaded guilty.

• Phyllis Grant, 52, of Decatur, Georgia, has been sentenced to one year, two months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, a special assessment of $100, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $770,231.00. Grant was convicted on this charge after a jury found her guilty on March 12, 2015.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.

Assistant United States Attorney Christopher C. Bly prosecuted the case.

This announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. Attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Since fiscal year 2009, the Justice Department has filed over 18,000 financial fraud cases against more than 25,000 defendants.  For more information on the task force, please visit www.StopFraud.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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.