Western District of Louisiana

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a man living in Oregon was sentenced Thursday to 300 months in prison for sexually assaulting and torturing a woman who he had a child with and who engaged in prostitution.

 

Gammion McCloud, 37, originally from Washington, D.C., but who was living in Oregon at the time of his arrest, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote to one count of travel to engage in criminal sexual activity and one count of interstate domestic violence. He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release and ordered to pay $73,550 restitution. While on supervised release, he must obtain sex offender specific treatment. According to the March 2, 2017 guilty plea, McCloud acted as the “pimp” for the victim who he convinced to engage in prostitution. They were together from 2008 until 2014. He had a child with the victim and thereafter became progressively more abusive to her. He raped and tortured her repeatedly in the presence of her young child. He locked her in a small cage, forcing her to engage in acts of prostitution. She and her child were able to escape while in Louisiana after McCloud doused her in gasoline and set her on fire. During all of these acts, the defendant was in possession of a firearm.

 

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney John Luke Walker prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a man from Youngsville was sentenced to 96 months in prison for receiving sexually explicit material from a minor and then asking her travel to Louisiana.

 

Gary Joseph Vincent, 26, of Youngsville, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. on one count of receiving child pornography. He was also sentenced to 20 years of supervised release and is required to register as sex offender. According to the April 13, 2017 guilty plea, Vincent admitted that he received a sexually explicit image via the internet of a minor female who lived in another state on December 17, 2015. Vincent also asked the minor to travel to Louisiana, but law enforcement agents intercepted the minor before she could make the trip.

 

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood combines federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

 

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) also encourage the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at (866) 347-2423. Investigators are available at all hours to answer hotline calls. Tips or other information can also be submitted to ICE online by visiting their website at www.ice.gov/exec/forms/hsi-tips/tips.asp or through the Operation Predator smartphone application www.ice.gov/predator/smartphone-app. Tips may be submitted anonymously.

 

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Louisiana State Police and Chatham Police Department in Illinois conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Luke Walker and Dominic Rossetti prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a man from Rayne was sentenced to 17 and a half years in prison for taking video and photographs of a juvenile girl and sending them to his laptop.

 

Raylin Richard, 37, of Rayne, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote on one count of transportation of child pornography using any means or facility in interstate commerce. The court also sentenced him to 15 years of supervised release, fined him $20,000 and requires him to register as sex offender. According to the March 7, 2017 guilty plea, the mother of a juvenile found sexually explicit videos and images of her daughter on Richard’s cell phone on May 16, 2015. Acadia Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies took possession of the phone and found that Richard had taken the video and images while he lived in Crowley, La. After further investigation, Richard’s MacBookAir was searched and the same videos and images were found there as well. Richard later admitted that he knowingly transported the video and images from his phone on April 2, 2015 to his computer.

 

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood combines federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

 

Those concerned may also leave tips with the FBI at tips.fbi.gov. Tips may be submitted anonymously. The Lafayette FBI office number is (337) 233-2164.

 

The FBI and the Acadia Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert C. Abendroth and John Luke Walker prosecuted the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Lake Charles man was sentenced Wednesday to 130 months in prison for distributing cocaine and possessing firearms.

 

Kevin Ardoin, 36, of Lake Charles, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jay C. Zainey on one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release. According to the May 3, 2017 guilty plea, law enforcement agents recorded Ardoin selling cocaine on June 22, 2016 in Lake Charles. Agents searched his home and found 1.9 ounces of crack cocaine, .5 ounces of powder cocaine, 13 Xanax pills, 14 grams of marijuana and $2,265. The next day, agents learned there were more drugs in Ardoin’s home than was previously found. They searched his home again and found $87,070, 432 grams of cocaine, and four firearms, which included a loaded Taurus .410 caliber pistol, a Masterpiece Arms .45 caliber pistol, a Taurus .40 caliber pistol, and a Smith and Wesson .38 caliber revolver.

 

The FBI and Calcasieu Parish Combined Anti-Drug Taskforce conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney David C. Joseph prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a federal jury found a Krotz Springs man guilty Wednesday of possessing firearms and ammunition after being convicted of a felony.

 

Paul Joseph Viola, 46, of Krotz Springs, La., was found guilty of two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and two counts of possession of ammunition by a convicted felon. United States District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. presided over the trial, which started Monday and ended Wednesday. The jury returned a guilty verdict after deliberating for approximately two hours.

 

Testimony and evidence at trial revealed that an anonymous caller reported in October of 2015 that Viola was a felon in possession of firearms. In an undercover operation conducted between October 31, 2015 and November 13, 2015, law enforcement agents obtained photographs of a Remington 1100 12 gauge shotgun, a .22 caliber Remington Speedmaster Model 552 semi-automatic rifle, and a .22 caliber Ruger model 10/22 semi-automatic rifle that were in his trailer in Krotz Springs. While the investigation was still ongoing, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries agents found Viola on November 28, 2015 at the Sherburne Wildlife Management area in St. Martin Parish in possession of a loaded .35 caliber Whelen single shot rifle and a rifle sling containing five rounds of ammunition. ATF agents also searched his trailer in Krotz Springs on December 7, 2015, where they found and seized 13,428 rounds of ammunition. During his arrest on January 21, 2016 in Krotz Springs, law enforcement agents searched Viola’s pickup. At that time, agents found 10 .22 caliber rounds of ammunition in a Ruger 10/22 rotary magazine for a Ruger 10/22 rifle, one round of Hornady .444 Marlin ammunition, three rounds of .243 Winchester ammunition and two rounds of .308 Winchester ammunition.

 

Viola faces up to 10 years in prison for each count, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine for each count. The court also ordered the forfeiture of any right or interest that Viola had in the forfeiture of the firearms and ammunition. The court did not set a sentencing date.

 

The ATF and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph T. Mickel prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a federal jury found a Baldwin man guilty Wednesday for his role in a cocaine distribution conspiracy operated in the St. Mary Parish area.

 

Barry Druilhet, 43, of Baldwin, La., was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and one count of use of a communication facility in causing or facilitating a drug trafficking crime. United States District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote presided over the three-day trial. The jury returned a guilty verdict after deliberating for approximately 45 minutes.

 

Evidence admitted at trial revealed that Druilhet was a member of a conspiracy to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine in the St. Mary Parish, Ascension Parish and Baton Rouge areas from January 2000 to June 2015. Omar Mascorro, 41, of Houston, Texas, was the source of the cocaine and provided it to Artey D. Foulcard, 38, of Franklin, La., who provided it to Druilhet and others to distribute. Agents recorded the defendants using their cellular phones to facilitate sale of the drugs.

 

Druilhet faces up to 20 years in prison for the conspiracy count and up to four years in prison for the communication count. He also faces three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine for both counts. Sentencing has been set for December 7, 2017. Mascorro pleaded guilty to the conspiracy count on June 21, 2017. The other defendants in the indictment pleaded guilty to the conspiracy count. They are: Michael McDaniel, 44, of Missouri City, Texas, who pleaded guilty on April 25, 2017; Cordell Johnson, 40, of Jeanerette, La., who pleaded guilty on June 26, 2017; Duanyell Williams, 42, of Franklin, La., who pleaded guilty on June 19, 2017; and Calvin Burrell, 50, of Franklin, who pleaded guilty on April 25, 2017. D’Arnold T. Deville, 49, of Bourg, La., was transferred to the Eastern District of Louisiana in New Orleans on July 12, 2017 where he pleaded guilty to the conspiracy count and additional charges. Williams, Mascorro, McDaniel, Johnson and Burrell are scheduled to be sentenced on October 19, 2017. Foulcard was an unindicted coconspirator who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute a Schedule II controlled dangerous substance in a bill of information in January 2016 in the Western District of Louisiana. The case was transferred to the Middle District of Louisiana in Baton Rouge in February 2016, and he was sentenced on March 2, 2017 to 85 months in prison and five years of supervised release.

 

The defendants were arrested as part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Operation named “Hater Hurterz.” The FBI and the Texas Department of Public Safety conducted the investigation. The OCDETF program is a joint federal, state and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking and is the nation’s primary tool for disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations, targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations, and coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources to disrupt or dismantle the targeted criminal organization and seize their assets.

 

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert F. Moore and Kelly P. Uebinger are prosecuting the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Lafayette tax preparation business owner was sentenced last week to 36 months in prison for filing a false tax return and not paying more than $350,000 in taxes owed.

 

Kevin Dalcourt, 49, of Lafayette, was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of making and subscribing a false tax return. He was also sentenced to one year of supervised release, and he was ordered to pay $397,989.78 restitution and an $89,927 fine. According to the April 19, 2017 guilty plea, Kevin Dalcourt was a tax preparer who owned and managed Kevin’s Tax Service in Lafayette. He was incarcerated in 2010 on non-tax related state charges but continued to manage his tax preparation business. He trained his staff and managed his business prior to his incarceration to use false information in customer tax returns to increase the amount of the customers’ returns. The defendant’s wife, Tamiko Dalcourt, assisted in running the company from 2010 to 2013, while her husband was in prison. Tamiko Dalcourt pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of failing to file the couple’s 2012 joint tax return. Kevin’s Tax Service was highly profitable, but Kevin Dalcourt did not report his income to avoid paying taxes for tax years 2009 to 2011. In that time he avoided paying an estimated total of $356,426.78 in taxes for those three years.

 

Tamiko Dalcourt pleaded guilty on March 23, 2017 to one count of willful failure to file a return, supply information or pay tax. She faces one year in prison, one year of supervised release and a $100,000 fine.

 

The IRS conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Myers P. Namie prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that an Indian national was sentenced Tuesday to 30 months in prison for illegally selling silencers and planning to smuggle more.

 

Mohit Chauhan, 31, of Pitampura, New Delhi, India, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote to one count of dealing firearms without a license. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the April 20, 2017 guilty plea, Chauhan was contacted by someone wishing to buy silencers. Chauhan discussed by email and phone calls manufacturing silencers for the potential client, and importing more silencers and parts by labeling them as “auto parts” to evade U.S. Customs. They set up a meeting, Chauhan arrived in Shreveport on December 1, 2016 to meet the buyer and brought silencer parts with him. He traveled to a Bossier City, La., restaurant to discuss the sale details with the buyer. Agents recorded the meeting. Chauhan did not have a license to deal or conduct a business involving silencers and parts as required by law, and the silencers and parts had traveled in foreign commerce.

 

The ATF conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney James G. Cowles Jr. prosecuted the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Eunice man was sentenced last week to nine months in prison for entering a Eunice bank and taking more than $5,000 from two teller stations.

 

Randall Scott Courville, 42, of Eunice, La., was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of bank theft. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $5,290 restitution. According to the April 19, 2017 guilty plea, Courville entered a bank on North Second Street in Eunice on January 20, 2017 wearing a surgical mask, hooded sweatshirt and gloves. He walked up to a teller’s station, reached across the counter into the teller’s drawer and removed money. He then moved to another teller’s station and removed money from that teller’s drawer as well. He left the bank with $5,290.

 

The FBI and Eunice Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph T. Mickel prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Shreveport man pleaded guilty to driving while intoxicated on Barksdale Air Force Base.

 

Jesus J. Maldonado, 30, of Shreveport, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote to one count of driving while intoxicated, fifth offense. According to the guilty plea, a Barksdale security officer pulled over Maldonado’s vehicle on April 13, 2017 after it was seen driving erratically and bearing signs of being in a wreck. He was found to have been driving under the influence of alcohol. He was also found to have been convicted on four previous occasions of driving while under the influence on October 20, 2007 in Bossier City, La.; on June 21, 2009 in Los Angeles, Calif.; on March 8, 2013 in Shreveport; and on May 16, 2013 in Shreveport.

 

Maldonado faces up to 30 years in prison and a $5,000 fine. The court set a sentencing date of November 3, 2017.

 

The FBI and U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tennille M. Gilreath and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Col. John Odom, U.S. Air Force-retired, are prosecuting the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a citizen of El Salvador was sentenced last week to 11 months in prison for reentering the United States illegally.

 

Jose Edmundo Martinez-Ortiz, 24, of San Salvador, El Salvador, was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of illegal reentry of a removed alien. According to the April 17, 2017 guilty plea, Lake Charles police conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle containing illegal aliens on November 15, 2016. Martinez-Ortiz admitted to being in the United States illegally. Upon further investigation, law enforcement agents found that the defendant had been found guilty of armed robbery in Maryland on September 11, 2014 and had been removed from the United States in 2016.

 

United States Immigrations and Customs Enforcement and the Lake Charles Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert F. Moore prosecuted the case.

MONROE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a federal jury found a Bastrop farmer guilty last week of creating shell farms so he could receive more than $1.6 million in subsidy payments to which he was not entitled.

 

Brad A. McIntyre, 33, of Bastrop, La., was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, five counts of mail fraud and four counts of money laundering related to engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity. United States District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. presided over the trial, which started July 10 and ended Friday, July 21. The jury returned a guilty verdict after deliberating for approximately five hours.

 

Evidence admitted at trial revealed that McIntyre, a fourth generation farmer and the owner of Delta Agriculture and Company, sought to avoid the Farm Service Agency direct program payment limitation of $40,000 per year per farm entity member. From August 2009 until February 2013, McIntyre conspired to create fictitious farm operations. When applying for FSA’s direct program payments, McIntyre listed the names of his relatives and employees as the owners of these entities when in fact he controlled and managed all of these farming entities. FSA’s Supplemental Revenue Assistant (SURE) and Crop Assistance Program (CAP) payments were each limited to $100,000 per person who experienced a qualifying crop loss because of disaster. These fake farms also fraudulently received disaster program payments from FSA.

 

When the Farm Service Agency mailed agricultural subsidy checks to the entities, they went to Post Office boxes in Mer Rouge established and controlled by McIntyre. He unlawfully received more than $1.3 million during the course of the scheme.

 

“I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s office, OIG special agents and our investigative partners for their hard work on this investigation,” USDA-Office of Inspector General ASAC Dax Roberson stated. “When the integrity of USDA’s farming programs is violated by criminal conduct, the Office of Inspector General will pursue justice to the fullest extent of the law.

 

“Crimes involving the laundering of monies fraudulently obtained remain a priority for the special agents of IRS–Criminal Investigation,” IRS Special Agent in Charge Jerome R. McDuffie stated. “It is imperative to the achievement of the IRS mission that these cases are investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. I want the law abiding taxpayers to know that we are working diligently to ensure that these individuals are held accountable for their misdeeds with regards to violating the laws enforced by the criminal division of the IRS.”

 

McIntyre faces 20 years in prison for the conspiracy count, 20 years for the mail fraud counts and 10 years for the money laundering counts. He also faces five years of supervised release, forfeiture of more than $1 million in property and a $250,000 fine for each count. Sentencing has been set for October 4, 2017.

 

The USDA-OIG and IRS-Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation. Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Cytheria D. Jernigan and Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany E. Fields are prosecuting the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that the last defendant in a drug conspiracy was sentenced last week to more than five years in prison for his role in a methamphetamine distribution scheme that stretched from Mexico to Texas to southwest Louisiana.

 

Raul Perez-Mendoza, 26, a Dallas Texas resident, originally from San Luis Potosi, Mexico, was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of conspiracy to posses with intent to distribute methamphetamine. He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release. Perez-Mendoza and seven other defendants conspired to distribute methamphetamine in southwest Louisiana from January 2012 to July 2013.

 

In addition to Perez-Mendoza, seven other defendants were indicted. They are: Mario Barazza-Corral, 42, and Omar Ivan Barazza-Corral, 33, of Chihuahua, Mexico, who are brothers; Sergio Reyes Castillo, 51, of Mexico City, Mexico; Jessica Kristin Clark, 43, of Houston, Texas; Lazaro Perez Cribeiro, 53, of Cuba; Brian Keith Hebert, 55, of Ragley, La.; Billy Washington Hyatt, 47, of Singer, La.; and Jarrid James Hargrave, 35, of Abbeville, La. Omar Ivan Barazza-Corral was not arrested and is still being sought for prosecution. These rest of the defendants previously pleaded guilty and were sentenced as shown below:

Defendants Prison term Supervised release Counts* Date Mario Barazza-Corral 108 months — 1, 2-8, 10 Jan. 13, 2016 Omar Barazza-Corral — — — — Sergio Reyes Castillo 120 months 5 years 1 Dec. 10, 2015 Jessica Clark 60 months 5 years 1 Dec. 10, 2015 Lazaro Perez Cribeiro 70 months — 1, 3-8 Jan. 12, 2016 Bryan Hebert 87 months 5 years 1,9 Feb. 25, 2016 Billy Hyatt 120 months 5 years 1 Jan. 11, 2016 Jarrid Hargrave 57 months 5 years 1 July 16, 2015

*Count 1 is conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, counts 2-8, 10 and 11 are distribution of methamphetamine, and count 9 is possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

 

According to Perez-Mendoza’s March 9, 2017 guilty plea, Mario Barazza-Corral was the leader of the conspiracy and imported methamphetamine from Mexico. He would then transport the drugs to points in Texas and then either transport them himself or arrange for others to transport the drugs to Vinton, La. He would supply his brother Omar Ivan Barazza-Corral who lived in Vinton with drugs, and his brother would distribute them to others. Perez-Mendoza assisted the brothers with transporting and distributing 500 grams to 1.5 kilograms of a mixture or substance containing methamphetamine.

 

The defendants were arrested as part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Operation named “Havana Speed.” Homeland Security Investigations, DEA, Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office, Vinton Police Department and Allen Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. The OCDETF program is a joint federal, state and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking and is the nation’s primary tool for disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations, targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations, and coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources to disrupt or dismantle the targeted criminal organization and seize their assets.

 

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kelly P. Uebinger and Jamilla A. Bynog are prosecuting the case.

 

LAKE CHARLES, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that two men from El Salvador pleaded guilty Thursday to reentering the country after being deported.

 

Juan Carlos Yanes-Vasquez, 38, and Nelson Antonio Orellana, 29, both of El Salvador, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay to one count of illegal reentry following deportation. According to the guilty pleas, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents stopped a vehicle February 21, 2017 traveling east on Interstate 10. Agents found eight undocumented illegal aliens and one driver who had lawful status in the United States. Agents discovered Yanes-Vasquez and Orellana among the group. They also discovered the defendants illegally reentered the United States multiples times. Yanes-Vasquez’s most recent deportation took place December 22, 2016 in Laredo, Texas. The defendant admitted to reentering the country on February 17, 2017 after crossing the Rio Grande River into Texas. Orellana also was found to have been deported multiple times with the most recent deportation being March 4, 2016 from Alexandria, La. He reentered the country illegally on February 14, 2017 near Laredo, Texas.

 

Yanes-Vasquez faces up to two years in prison and one year of supervised release. Orellana faces up to 10 years in prison and one year of supervised release. They also face a $250,000 fine.

 

United States Customs and Border Patrol conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert C. Abendroth is prosecuting the cases.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a man from El Salvador pleaded guilty Thursday to reentering the United States after having been previously removed four times.

 

Aristides Arevalo-Rodriguez, 44, of El Salvador, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay to one count of illegal reentry following removal. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter. According to the guilty plea, Arevalo-Rodriguez was found in Calcasieu Parish on March 21, 2017. It was discovered that the defendant had been removed four times from the United States. The most recent removal was September 30, 2011 at or near Houston, Texas.

 

Arevalo-Rodriguez faces up to two years in prison, one year of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The court set sentencing for October 27, 2017.

 

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security – U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the Lake Charles Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney T. Forrest Phillips is prosecuting the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Houston man pleaded guilty Tuesday to possessing with intent to distribute cocaine after the drug was found in his car.

 

Isidro Badillo, 22, of Houston, Texas, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Jay C. Zainey to one count of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances. According to the guilty plea, Lake Charles police stopped Badillo’s vehicle August 8, 2016 on Interstate 10. Police searched the vehicle and found 5 kilograms of powder cocaine in the trunk. Badillo knew of the cocaine and said he was driving to an unspecified location outside of New Orleans for delivery and later distribution.

 

Badillo faces 10 years to life in prison, five years of supervised release and a $10 million fine. The court set sentencing for October 11, 2017.

 

Homeland Security Investigations and the Lake Charles Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dominic Rossetti is prosecuting the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Gueydan man was sentenced last week to 45 days in prison for shooting a whooping crane and ducks.

 

Lane Thomas Thibodeaux, 21, of Gueydan, La., pleaded guilty and was sentenced Friday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Carol Whitehurst to one count of taking a migratory bird for which there is no season, one count of taking migratory game birds during closed season, one count of taking migratory game birds from a motor vehicle, one count of wanton waste of migratory game birds, and one count of taking game birds without state hunting license. He was also ordered to pay a $2,500 fine. According to the guilty plea, Thibodeaux shot at a group of birds on November 2, 2014 near a crawfish pond in Vermilion Parish. The shot crippled a whooping crane, which is protected under the Endangered Species Act. Thibodeaux admitted to shooting and killing multiple ducks from the driver’s seat of a moving vehicle on a public road during the closed season on February 14, 2015. Thibodeaux did not retrieve the ducks carcasses from the field, and he did not possess a required Louisiana hunting license.

 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney T. Forrest Phillips is prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that nine members of the “Block Boyz” gang were indicted on RICO offenses, and drug and firearm conspiracies in Shreveport.

 

The nine Shreveport residents named in the 18-count indictment are:

DeMarcus D. Morris, 28;

Frank J. Morris, 24;

Jimmie R. Durden Jr., 28;

Lonnie D. Johnson, 23;

Gary J. McCain, 22;

Ravion M. Alford, 22;

Rodrick R. Hicks, 23;

Larshanda C. Davenport, 44; and

Golanda W. Atkins, 40.

 

According to the indictment, beginning in 2012, the defendants took part in a criminal organization known as the “Block Boyz” and the “Get Money Boyz” or “GMB.” The organization distributed controlled substances, murdered, robbed, possessed firearms illegally and conducted other crimes primarily within the Queensborough and Ingleside neighborhoods of Shreveport. The indictment lists 66 acts that members of the organization committed to further the RICO conspiracy. The acts include threats, sale of drugs and shootings. The organization sold crack cocaine, powder cocaine, roxicodone, marijuana, ecstasy and alprazolam. Eight of the defendants were named as part of a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations or RICO conspiracy in the indictment, which is Count 1 of the indictment.

 

The indictment alleges that in order to generate income, gang members sold illegal drugs and committed armed robberies. They maintained and circulated a collection of firearms for use in their criminal activity and used cell phones to operate their criminal enterprise. Members of the organization bragged about their illegal activity, such as their possession of firearms, and took pictures of themselves with firearms and money to intimidate others and increase their position in the community.

 

All defendants have been arrested. In addition to the RICO count, charges include: Count 2 – conspiracy to distribute controlled substances; Count 3 – conspiracy to possess firearms; Counts 4 and 6 – violent crime in aid of racketeering; Counts 5 and 7 – using and carrying of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence; Counts 8, 12 and 15 – possessing a firearm by a convicted felon; Counts 9, 10 and 11 – distributing crack cocaine; Count 13 – conspiracy to commit a violent crime in aid of racketeering; Count 14 – possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence; and Counts 16, 17 and 18 – distributing powder cocaine.

 

The defendants face various possible penalties depending on the drug quantity involved, their role in the conspiracy and their criminal history. On the drug conspiracy and distribution counts, some defendants face up to 20 years and one defendant faces up to 40 years in prison. The defendants also face up to life of supervised release. The penalties for illegal use of firearms are up to ten years in prison and up to three years of supervised release for each count. Additionally, the defendants face fines up to $5 million and forfeiture of property seized in the case.

 

Counts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Demarcus * * *     * *   * * * * * * *       FRANK MORRIS * * *                               DUREN * * *                   * * *       JOHNSON * * * * * * *                       MCCAIN * * *         *                     ALFORD * * *                   * * *       HICKS * * *                               DAVENPORT * * *                         * * * ATKINS     *                              

 

The FBI Northwest Louisiana Violent Crimes Task Force, Shreveport Police Department, Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office, ATF and the Gulf Coast High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) participated in the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Allison D. Bushnell, James G. Cowles Jr. and Tennille M. Gilreath are prosecuting the case.

 

An indictment is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a federal jury found a Sierra Leone national guilty Tuesday of refusing to leave the country twice after being ordered to depart.

 

Sheku Kumalah, 31, of Sierra Leone, was found guilty of two counts of failure to depart. United States District Judge Dee D. Drell presided over the trial, which started Monday and ended Tuesday. The jury returned a guilty verdict after deliberating for approximately an hour. Evidence admitted at trial revealed that on two occasions U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers attempted to remove Kumalah via an escorted commercial flight from the Alexandria International Airport. The defendant hampered officers’ efforts on July 12, 2016 and August 16, 2016 by verbally and physically resisting attempts to escort him onto the plane.

 

Kumalah faces four years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine for each count. Sentencing has been set for September 29, 2017.

 

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement - Enforcement and Removal Operations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys David J. Ayo and Joseph T. Mickel are prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a man from Dallas was sentenced Thursday to 95 months in prison for conspiring with two other Dallas residents to distribute methamphetamine in the Shreveport/Bossier City area.

 

Robert Marcus Montes, 38, of Dallas, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote on one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. He was also sentenced to four years of supervised release. According to the February 22, 2017 guilty plea, law enforcement agents identified co-defendants Humberto Vega, 37, and Dawn Nicole Martinez, 34, both of Dallas, planning to distribute methamphetamine in the Shreveport-Bossier City area. Agents observed the defendants visiting a Shreveport Casino on September 11, 2016 with Montes. They were later arrested, and Montes’ car was searched. Agents found approximately 331 grams of methamphetamine inside a shoe box in the car’s trunk.

 

Vega and Martinez were sentenced on the conspiracy charge on April 26, 2017 to 87 months and 70 months in prison respectively. They were also sentenced to three years of supervised release.

 

The DEA and the Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon B. Brown prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Shreveport man pleaded guilty Monday to possessing a pistol even though he was previously convicted of a felony.

 

Neikedrian Edwards, 27, of Shreveport, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark L. Hornsby to one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. According to the guilty plea, Edwards pawned a .45 caliber pistol on November 14, 2014 in Shreveport. He had a prior felony conviction and was not lawfully allowed to possess a firearm. Records showed that Edwards had filled out paperwork and used his identification card at the pawnshop.

 

Edwards faces up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.

 

This investigation and prosecution is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, which is a Department of Justice initiative to promote firearm safety and to reduce firearm crimes by preventing the possession and use of firearms by dangerous and persistent felons and others not authorized to possess a firearm.

 

The ATF and Shreveport Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany E. Fields is prosecuting the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Georgetown woman pleaded guilty last week to making fake U.S. $20 bills.

 

Gena Armstrong, 20, of Georgetown, La., pleaded guilty Friday before U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell to one count of manufacturing counterfeit U.S. securities. According to the guilty plea, Armstrong bought a copy machine and paper on March 29, 2016 from an Alexandria office supply business. She then entered a vehicle driven by a friend. While driving around the city, Armstrong copied a genuine $20 bill (Federal Reserve Note) and began printing counterfeit money. In total, she printed a two-sided cut $20 bill, 30 two-sided uncut $20 bills and nine one-sided uncut $20 bills. While driving through the city, the friend stopped at a convenience store. Armstrong gave the friend the counterfeit $20 bill to make his purchase while there.

 

Armstrong faces up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The court set the sentencing date for September 13, 2017.

 

The U.S. Secret Service and the Rapides Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Grady A. Crooks is prosecuting the case.

MONROE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Farmerville man pleaded guilty last week to possessing a sawed-off shotgun in his car.

 

Juama Tremel Palmer, 33, of Farmerville, La., pleaded guilty Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen L. Hayes to one count of possession of an unregistered shotgun with a barrel less than 18 inches. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell. According to the guilty plea, a Farmerville police officer conducted a traffic stop on Palmer’s vehicle on October 9, 2016 after receiving information that he was distributing narcotics. While searching the vehicle, the officer found a 12 gauge sawed-off shotgun and a loaded .22 caliber revolver with an obliterated serial number in the car. Additionally, the officer found $1,090, a pair of digital scales and a blue pill bottle containing several pills in Palmer’s pockets. Also found in the car were 13 grams of suspected marijuana and 11 small baggies containing more than 3 grams of crack cocaine.

 

Shotguns with an overall length of less than 26 inches or a barrel less than 18 inches in length must be registered with the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.

 

Anderson faces up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, forfeiture of the seized items and a $10,000 fine. The court set a sentencing date of September 27, 2017.

 

This investigation and prosecution is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, which is a Department of Justice initiative to promote firearm safety and to reduce firearm crimes by preventing the possession and use of firearms by dangerous and persistent felons and others not authorized to possess a firearm.

 

The ATF and Farmerville Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys R. Paul Gillespie and Earl M. Campbell are prosecuting the case.

WASHINGTON, D.C., – Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Luke Walker and Robert C. Abendroth of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Louisiana were two of 179 members of the Department of Justice recognized by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys Director Monty Wilkinson at the 33rd Director’s Awards Ceremony last week in Washington, D.C.

 

The Western District of Louisiana was one of 35 districts represented at the ceremony, which was held Friday in the Great Hall at the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building.

 

“These 179 award recipients embody the best of the Department of Justice. Today’s honorees have earned the esteem of their colleagues,” Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein told the awardees in prepared remarks. “But most importantly, you have earned the gratitude of your fellow citizens — whose communities you have made safer, whose lives you have improved and whose trust you have rewarded.”

 

“I want to congratulate Luke and Robert for their efforts in ending an illegal pay-for-plea program that circumvented, undermined and damaged the justice system in Lafayette Parish,” Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander Van Hook stated. “It took years of work, collaboration with many agencies and great effort to bring this case to a conclusion.”

 

Walker and Abendroth were recognized for their prosecution of U.S. v. Robert Williams et al. Their efforts led to the conviction of six defendants who devised a scheme to enrich themselves by administering a court authorized Operating While Intoxicated program from March 2008 to February 2012 through the Lafayette District Attorney’s Office. In return for a fee, fake documentation would be submitted to the court showing they had completed the required programs when they had not. The fees would then be paid as kickbacks to those participating in the conspiracy. Local private investigator Robert Williamson, three Lafayette District Attorney’s Office employees and two community services program employees were convicted in the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a man from Mexico pleaded guilty Monday to lying on a passport application he submitted at the Morgan City post office.

 

Jose Luis Andrade Diaz, 32, of Mexico, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell to one count of false statement in application for passport. According to the guilty plea, Diaz submitted a fraudulent passport application on April 26, 2007 to the Morgan City post office using another person’s identity. He used the individual’s name, birthdate and Social Security number on the passport application.

 

Diaz faces up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The court set a sentencing date of October 23, 2017.

 

The State Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dominic Rossetti is prosecuting the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a New Iberia man was sentenced to 33 months in prison for sending threatening letters to government agencies across South Louisiana, including the governor’s office.

 

Kyle Dore, 33, of New Iberia, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter on five counts of mailing threatening communications and four counts of false information and hoaxes. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the guilty plea, Dore sent a series of letters in December 2015 and January 2016 threatening agencies and persons working at offices in local, state and federal government. In four of the nine letters, he sent a white powder with the implication that it was toxic. The substance was later tested and found not dangerous. He sent letters to the Louisiana State Capitol to the attention of Governor John Bel Edwards, the Vermilion Parish Courthouse, the Lafayette Parish Courthouse, and U.S. Post Offices in New Iberia, Delcambre, Abbeville and Lake Charles.

 

The FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Louisiana State Police investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dominic Rossetti prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a former Lafayette stockbroker and financial consultant was sentenced to 18 months in prison for operating a scheme to take money from the families of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees on the false promise that he would provide the ICE detainees assistance in their immigration proceedings.

 

Donald Domingue, 59, of Lafayette, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald Walter on one count of wire fraud. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $10,965 restitution and a $10,000 fine. According to the March 27, 2017 guilty plea, Domingue, who was a financial consultant and stockbroker in Lafayette, owned and operated a company headquartered in Lafayette that claimed to assist individuals being held in ICE detention centers. Through this company, American Immigration Consulting LLC, Domingue operated a scheme to defraud ICE detainees. He would make mass mailings to ICE detention centers around the country advertising his services in representing illegal aliens and assisting them with their immigration problems. Those detainees would then contact family members who would pay Domingue in exchange for promises that Domingue would represent the ICE detainees at deportation hearings, assist them in obtaining work permits, assist them in “bonding out” of detention facilities, and otherwise provide services in immigration-related matters. However, after receiving payments, Domingue would cease communication with the ICE detainees and their family members and fail to render the promised immigration services. The ICE detainees would then generally be deported. The scheme to defraud stared in April of 2014 and ended October 2014.

 

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office of Professional Responsibility and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys David C. Joseph and Robert C. Abendroth prosecuted the case.

MONROE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a West Monroe man pleaded guilty Thursday to receiving child pornography.

 

John D. Owen, 30, of West Monroe, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. to one count of receiving child pornography. According to the guilty plea, law enforcement agents identified the defendant as possessing child pornography. Agents conducted a search of his residence on September 22, 2016 and found five videos of child pornography on his cell phone and 38 images of child pornography on a computer.

 

Owen faces five to 20 years in prison, five years to life of supervised release, mandatory registration as a sex offender and a $250,000 fine. The court set the sentencing date for September 27, 2017.

 

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood combines federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

 

Those concerned may leave tips with the FBI at tips.fbi.gov. Tips may be submitted anonymously. The Monroe FBI office number is (318) 387-0773.

 

The FBI, Swiss Cybercrime Coordination Unit and the Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tennille M. Gilreath is prosecuting the case.

MONROE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Monroe woman was sentenced Thursday to 12 months and one day in prison for mail fraud for a scheme wherein she lied on U.S. Bankruptcy Court filings and insurance documents.

 

Lasandra Laverne Edwards, 54, of Monroe, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. on one count of mail fraud. She was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and must pay $9,126.70 in restitution. According to the February 13, 2017 guilty plea, Edwards filed for bankruptcy in October 2013 and valued her furniture and clothing at $1,000. In November of 2013, Edwards purchased a renters’ policy that valued her assets at $100,000. Edwards’ house caught fire and burned on December 1, 2013. The defendant attended a creditors’ hearing associated with her bankruptcy case on December 10, 2013. She reaffirmed the information in the previous filings that her furniture and clothing were valued at $1,000. However, the next day on December 11, 2013, Edwards filed a claim under her insurance policy with State Farm falsely stating that her personal property was valued at $116,063.

 

The U.S. Trustee’s Office – Region V, Louisiana State Police and Monroe Fire Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cytheria D. Jernigan and Tennille M. Gilreath prosecuted the case.

MONROE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Lake Providence woman pleaded guilty Thursday to stealing more than $5,000 from a housing development by falsifying receipts for work that was never performed.

 

Stephanie R. Threats, 46, of Lake Providence, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. to one count of conspiracy to commit federal program theft. According to the guilty plea, Threats worked for an Oak Grove, La., elderly housing apartment company, which received funds from the Office of Housing and Urban Development through Section 202 of the Federal Housing Program. From July 2009 until July 2012, Threats stole $5,000 from the program by creating false invoices for work performed for the benefit of the apartments and the HUD program recipients, when in reality no work had been performed.

 

Threats faces up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The court set the sentencing date for September 27, 2017.

 

The Office of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon B. Brown is prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Coushatta man was sentenced Wednesday to 83 months in prison for illegally possessing methamphetamine and firearms.

 

Aaron Joseph Clark, 66, of Coushatta, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote on one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the February 2, 2017 guilty plea, law enforcement agents identified Clark as a suspect in a drug case and conducted a search of his temporary residence on January 26, 2016 in Ringgold, La. They found a gram of methamphetamine, two grams of marijuana and nine Xanax pills. They also found digital scales, baggies, syringes and pipes. Additionally, agents located ammunition and a number of loaded weapons including: three revolvers, two derringers, four pistols, four rifles, three shotguns and a weapon made from a shotgun with no serial number. Two of the shotguns were sawed off, and at least six silencers were also found among his possessions. Two days later, agents found 20 grams of methamphetamine hidden in an ammo bag.

 

This investigation and prosecution is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, which is a Department of Justice initiative to promote firearm safety and to reduce firearm crimes by preventing the possession and use of firearms by dangerous and persistent felons and others not authorized to possess a firearm.

 

The ATF, Bienville Parish Sheriff’s Office, Red River Parish Sheriff’s Office and Tri-Parish Drug Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary J. Mudrick prosecuted the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that three inmates at the U.S. Penitentiary in Pollock, La., were sentenced last week for the assault of another inmate that resulted in injuries requiring hospitalization and several surgeries.

 

Jason Dwight Mackenzie, 36, of Baltimore, Md., was sentenced Friday to 84 months in prison; Robert Shipp Jr., 32, of Tyler, Texas, was sentenced to 48 months in prison; and Calvin Skelton, 42, of Great Falls, Mont., was sentenced to 48 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of assault resulting in serious bodily injury. They were also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to evidence presented at the guilty pleas, the three inmates jumped a fourth inmate on October 21, 2015 while he was reading a newspaper in the common area of a cell block. The defendants punched and kicked him in the head, upper body and legs until they appeared winded and tired. Once a correctional officer approached, the defendants went back to their cells. The victim was taken to the prison infirmary then to a hospital where he underwent multiple surgeries to repair severe head injuries from the assault.

 

The FBI and the U.S. Bureau of Prisons investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike O’Mara prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that two Monroe women pleaded guilty last week to a scheme to issue new titles for stolen automobiles.

 

Felicia Simpson, 40, of Monroe, La., pleaded guilty on May 23 before U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. to one count of misprision of felony, and Ashley Owens, 30, of Monroe, La., pleaded guilty on May 24 to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud. According to the guilty pleas, from November 2014 to June 2015, the defendants illegally provided new titles to customers who possessed stolen or illegally obtained automobiles. Owens would receive the titles and then deliver them to Simpson who worked for a private title processing business in Monroe. Normally, it takes 10 to 14 days to process an automobile title application, which has to be sent to the Louisiana State Office of Motor Vehicles in Baton Rouge. Simpson, working as a title processor, could process an expedited title in 48 hours. They processed 104 titles during the course of the scheme.

 

Owens faces 20 years in prison and three years of supervised release, and Simpson faces three years in prison and one year of supervised release. They also face a $250,000 fine. The court set the sentencing date for August 30, 2017.

 

The FBI, Louisiana State Police, Miami Dade Police Department, Douglas County Sheriff’s Office in Georgia and the Monroe Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Earl M. Campbell and Grady A. Crooks are prosecuting the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a citizen of Mexico was sentenced last week to 14 months in prison for illegally reentering the United States after having been previously removed twice.

 

United States District Judge Dee D. Drell sentenced Bertolodo Labra-Martinez, 33, of Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico, Thursday to one count of illegal reentry of a removed alien. According to the January 26, 2017 guilty plea, the defendant was found in the United States on November 3, 2016, while incarcerated at the Calcasieu Parish Correctional Center. Records show that Labra-Martinez was previously removed from the United States in January of 2008 and March of 2015.

 

United States Customs and Border Protection conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel J. McCoy is prosecuting the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Mexican native and citizen pleaded guilty last week to reentering the United States without permission.

 

Oscar Hernandez-Hernandez, 39, pleaded guilty Thursday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay to one count of illegal reentry of a removed alien. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter. According to the guilty plea, Louisiana State Police conducted a traffic stop February 3, 2017on a vehicle that Hernandez was traveling in near Lafayette, La., on LA 12. Border Patrol agents were called in, and they learned that Hernandez was not allowed to reenter the United States as he was arrested for a number of offenses including felony possession of marijuana for sale, 4 pounds or more, which is a drug trafficking offense and qualifies him as an aggravated felon. Those designated as aggravated felons face heavier penalties under federal law.

 

Hernandez faces up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The court set a sentencing date of September 19, 2017.

 

United States Border Patrol and the Louisiana State Police conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert F. Moore is prosecuting the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Crowley man was sentenced Friday to 180 months in prison for using his cell phone to produce videos of sex acts with a minor.

 

Blake Damian Rodgers, 35, of Crowley, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter on one count of production of child pornography. He was also sentenced to 15 years of supervised release and ordered pay a $5,000 fine under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act. He is also required to register as a sex offender. According to the January 31, 2017 guilty plea, Rodgers was arrested and booked into the Acadia Parish jail February 24, 2016 on theft charges. While incarcerated, officers were notified that Rodgers was having sexually explicit conversations on the phone with a 14-year-old minor. Further investigation revealed that Rodgers had been involved in a sexual relationship with the minor and had taken videos of the acts on his cell phone. After recovering the cell phone, law enforcement agents located several sexually explicit videos of the minor.

 

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

 

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) also encourage the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at (866) 347-2423. Investigators are available at all hours to answer hotline calls. Tips or other information can also be submitted to ICE online by visiting their website at www.ice.gov/exec/forms/hsi-tips/tips.asp or through the Operation Predator smartphone application www.ice.gov/predator/smartphone-app. Tips may be submitted anonymously.

 

Homeland Security Investigations and the Acadia Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney David C. Joseph prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Cheneyville man pleaded guilty to stealing Social Security benefits.

 

Gary Blake Williamson, 71, of Cheneyville, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick Hanna to one count of theft of government property. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. According to the guilty plea, Williamson began receiving Social Security disability benefits in 2002. His filing indicated total disability and that he could not work. He began working for a private company in December of 2007 earning $2,500 to $3,000 a month but continued to improperly receive disability benefits until May of 2012.

 

Williamson faces 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The court did not set a sentencing date.

 

The Social Security Administration-Office of Inspector General investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert C. Abendroth is prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a former Shreveport chiropractor and his son were sentenced Wednesday for funneling money through an unlawful bitcoin financial scheme.

 

Randall Bryan Lord, 59, and his son, Michael Aaron Lord, 30, both of Shreveport, were sentenced to 46 months and 106 months in prison respectively by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. They were also sentenced to one year and three years of supervised release respectively. The defendants pleaded guilty April 13, 2016 to one count of conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money servicing business. In addition, Michael Lord pleaded guilty to one count of drug conspiracy for agreeing to distribute controlled dangerous substances to include alprazolam, a Schedule IV controlled substance. According to the guilty pleas, from at least 2013 to 2015, the defendants were accepting currency, money orders and money paks and exchanging those funds for bitcoin, a decentralized form of electronic or digital currency, existing entirely on the Internet and not in any physical form. Contrary to law, the Lords were not registered with FinCEN. The Lords also failed to report the receipt of more than $31,000 in U.S. currency. Also, beginning in March 2015, Michael Lord was involved in a drug conspiracy to distribute alprazolam, 5F-AB-Pinaca (a synthetic cannabinoid) and other controlled substances.

 

“This investigation represents cutting edge criminal activity,” Jerome R. McDuffie, Special Agent in Charge for the New Orleans Field Office of IRS – Criminal Investigation. “The ‘dark web’ was used to facilitate monetary transactions in a drug distribution network. Cybercrime is an emerging area of criminal activity, and we want the criminals who hide behind logon names and internet aliases to know that IRS Special Agents will follow the money in whatever form, whether it be digital or paper currency. We will follow the trail right back to their doorstep and will work diligently to hold the responsible individuals accountable.”

 

“HSI is committed to dismantling and disrupting the flow of illegal drugs and money into our country,” said Special Agent in Charge of HSI New Orleans Raymond R. Parmer Jr. “HSI-Shreveport will continue working with our local, state and federal partners to ensure we are making every effort to keep drugs off our streets.”

 

The IRS-Criminal Investigation, U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations, FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Springhill Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Cytheria D. Jernigan prosecuted the case.

MONROE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Bogalusa man was sentenced to 150 months in prison for possession with intent to distribute cocaine.

 

Craig Antwon Jefferson, 30, of Bogalusa, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert G. James on one count of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance. He was also sentenced to eight years of supervised release. According to the March 1, 2017 guilty plea, law enforcement officers pulled over Jefferson’s vehicle April 14, 2016 on Interstate 10 in Calcasieu Parish for a traffic violation. An officer searched the vehicle and found 6.5 pounds of cocaine and 6 grams of marijuana in a backpack. When officers attempted to arrest Jefferson, he fled on foot and was later apprehended.

 

Homeland Security Investigations and the Calcasieu Parish Combined Anti-Drug Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert F. Moore prosecuted the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a man from El Salvador pleaded guilty to reentering the United States without permission for the sixth time.

 

Daniel Ernesto Viscarra-Lopez, 26, of El Salvador, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay to one count of illegal reentry of a removed alien. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter. According to the guilty plea, Calcasieu Parish Sheriff deputies arrested the defendant on November 12, 2017. He later told U.S. Border Patrol agents that he was a citizen of El Salvador. After further investigation, agents learned that Viscarra-Lopez was previously removed from the United States in June 2006, July 2007, February 2009, June 2009 and December 2009. He entered the country illegally each time without first obtaining permission from the U.S. government.

 

Viscarra-Lopez faces up to two years in prison, one year of supervised release and up to a $250,000 fine.

 

United States Border Patrol and the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dominic Rossetti is prosecuting the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a civilian employee of Fort Polk pleaded guilty to demanding and receiving thousands of dollars from a contracting company performing work on Fort Polk Army installation.

 

Lucy Ransom, 52, of New Llano, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay to one count of bribery. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell. According to the guilty plea, Ransom was a technical representative at the Fort Polk’s department of public works. From November 2013 to September 2016, Ransom extorted a furniture installation company based in New Paris, Ohio, to pay her thousands of dollars in bribes to conduct business on the Fort Polk military installation. The first instance occurred when the company contacted Ransom about bringing dumpsters to the base to dispose of project-related waste. She told the company manger that he would have to pay her $600 and use government dumpsters. After the first payment, Ransom demanded more money from the manager in exchange for her cooperation.

 

Ransom would make threats if he did not pay. For instance, she threatened to: make the company’s crew stay late by failing to secure worksites upon completion of jobs; restrict access to government buildings in which the contracting company needed to work; call the company’s general contractors to tell them that the company was performing poorly; write reports documenting poor work performance; and take steps to have the company barred from Fort Polk. On several occasions, Ransom carried out her threats until such time as the company manager paid her bribe money.

 

Ransom faces up to 15 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The court set the sentencing date for September 12, 2017.

 

The U.S. Army Criminal Investigations Command conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney David C. Joseph is prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT/LAFAYETTE/ALEXANDRIA/LAKE CHARLES/MONROE, La.: Members of the public join with law enforcement across the country for National Police Week – May 13th through May 21st – to honor law enforcement officers who made the ultimate sacrifice, as well as the family members, friends and fellow officers they left behind.

 

“National Police Week is a way we can recognize the courage and dedication of law enforcement officers,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook. “We should never forget the sacrifices of law enforcement who risk their lives every day to keep us safe and bring violators of the law to justice. We especially remember those this week who lost their live in the line of duty in the Western District of Louisiana.”

 

This year, the names of officers killed the line of duty in 2016 and some prior years were added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C., during the 29th Annual 2017 Candlelight Vigil on the evening of May 13th. These names include officers who were killed during 2016 and officers who died in previous years who have not been previously added to the Memorial. The fallen officers of 2016 include three members of the law enforcement community in the Western District of Louisiana:

 

• Derrick Morial Mingo, Winnsboro Police Department, who died June 4, 2016;

• David Kyle Elahi, Sterlington Police Department, who died July 3, 2016; and

• Shannon Matthew Brown, Fenton Police Department, who died August 13, 2016.

 

To assist local public safety officers in the work that they do, the U.S. Attorney’s Office offers a number safety and survival training throughout the year. The Western District’s Law Enforcement Community Coordinator is Mike Campbell, a former Shreveport Police Chief, who oversees the course curricula and sessions. The courses are open to federal, state, local, military and tribal law enforcement officers.

 

National Police Week is a collaborative effort of many organizations dedicated to honoring America’s law enforcement community.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Shreveport man was sentenced Tuesday to 240 months in prison for distributing more than 15 kilograms of methamphetamine in the Shreveport area.

 

U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter sentenced Brett Luaces, 43, of Shreveport, on one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release. Law enforcement agents were searching for Luaces on a state arrest warrant for distribution of methamphetamine on August 30, 2016 and found him at a house in Shreveport. After arresting Luaces, agents searched the house and found 135.3 grams of methamphetamine that tested as 96 percent pure. Luaces told agents for approximately the last year, he bought 18 ounces per week of methamphetamine in Dallas and brought it back to Shreveport to sell on the street.

 

The DEA, Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office and Shreveport Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike O’Mara prosecuted the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that an Oakdale woman was sentenced last week to 12 months and one day in prison for receiving bribes for smuggling cell phones and tobacco into the Federal Correctional Institution at Oakdale.

 

Billie A. Holmes, 55, of Oakdale, La., was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter on one count of bribery of a public official. The defendant was also sentenced to two years of supervised release. According to the January 17, 2017 guilty plea, Holmes worked as an education contractor for FCI Oakdale. From September 2014 to May 2015, an inmate paid Holmes thousands of dollars to smuggle cell phones and tobacco into the prison. In January of 2015, another inmate informed law enforcement that he had been approached by an inmate who offered to sell him a cell phone for $1,600. Upon further investigation, it was learned that Holmes worked with that inmate to smuggle contraband into the prison. During the investigation, Holmes was recorded making plans to smuggle in a cell phone. Financial records also showed $4,200 in wire transfers to Holmes between November 2014 and December 2014.

 

The U.S. Department of Justice-Office of Inspector General investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert F. Moore prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Lafayette business owner was sentenced last week to 37 months in prison for mail fraud charge in a scheme where he double-billed the Calcasieu Parish school system for leased copiers.

 

Leonard Espree, 53, of Layette, was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter on one count of mail fraud. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $197,387.78 restitution. According to the January 12, 2017 guilty plea, Espree, who worked as a contractor providing and servicing copiers for the Calcasieu Parish School Board, sent a letter in November of 2011 to the school system announcing the refinancing of leases on equipment from the leasing company. He intentionally misidentified some of the office equipment in the new lease agreement. This created an effect where the same pieces of equipment were being leased twice to the school board. The result of the double billing during the overall scheme cost the school board and other customers $197,387.78. Espree received a portion of this money for his services, to which he was not entitled.

 

The FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamilla A. Bynog prosecuted the case.

TYLER, Texas – A 22-year-old Zwolle, LA man has been sentenced to federal prison for his part in a kidnapping conspiracy scheme targeting individuals in the Eastern District of Texas and surrounding area, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Brit Featherston today

 

     Gary Cutright pleaded guilty on Jan. 10, 2017, to conspiracy to commit kidnapping and was sentenced to 156 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Thad Heartfield.

 

     According to information presented in court, between July 2014 and January 2016, Cutright conspired with several individuals to commit kidnapping, robberies and assaults throughout the Eastern District of Texas and the Western District of Louisiana. Specifically, Cutright and his codefendants are responsible for a December 2015 incident in which an individual was kidnapped in Louisiana and brought to Carthage, Texas. Defendants were also responsible for a March 2016 incident in which an individual was kidnapped from Longview, Texas.

 

     Other defendants convicted in the conspiracy include:

 

     Cory Carnell Mitchell, 29, of Tenaha, Texas pleaded guilty on Jan. 9, 2017, to conspiracy to commit kidnapping and was sentenced to 262 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Ron Clark on April 5, 2017.

 

     Montonious Robinson, 22, of Shreveport, LA, pleaded guilty on Ja. 10, 2017, to conspiracy to commit kidnapping and was sentenced to 168 months in federal prison on May 4, 2017 by U.S. District Judge Thad Heartfield.

 

     Christopher Douglas, 33, of Logansport, LA, pleaded guilty on Apr. 6, 2017 in the Western District of Louisiana, to conspiracy to commit kidnapping and will be sentenced at a later date.

 

     Quannell Newton, 37, of Many, LA, pleaded guilty on Nov. 16, 2016, to conspiracy to commit kidnapping and was sentenced to 135 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Ron Clark on Feb. 21, 2017.

 

     The cases were investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, Explosives (ATF) and the Texas Department of Public Safety – Criminal Investigation Division – Tyler (DPS-CID). The United States Marshals Service (USMS), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Lufkin Police Department, Nacogdoches Police Department, Center Police Department, Carthage Police Department, DeSoto Parrish Sheriff’s Department, Sabine Parrish Sheriff’s Department and the Panola County Sheriff’s Department assisted in the execution of the arrest warrants. The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul A. Hable in the Eastern District of Texas and by Assistant U.S. Attorney James Cowles in the Western District of Louisiana.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Texas man was sentenced to 13 years and four months in prison for possession of more than 50 grams of methamphetamine in Calcasieu Parish.

 

United States District Judge Donald E. Walter sentenced Adam Micah Baltutis, 31, of Beaumont, Texas, on one count of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing methamphetamine. The judge also sentenced him to four years of supervised release. According to the January 24, 2017 guilty plea, a law enforcement officer conducted a traffic stop January 5, 2016 on a rental car Baltutis was a passenger in on Interstate 10 that was traveling continually in the passing lane. While looking for registration and insurance papers, the officer found a lockbox containing approximately 418 grams of methamphetamine and two cell phones belonging to the defendant. The defendant told law enforcement agents that since December of 2015 he had been obtaining methamphetamine in Houston and selling it in the areas of Orange, Texas, and Lake Charles.

 

Homeland Security Investigations and the Calcasieu Parish Combined Anti-Drug Team conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph T. Mickel prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Lafayette man was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison for operating a scheme to take money from the families of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees on the false promise that he would provide the ICE detainees assistance in their immigration proceedings.

 

Edwin Zavala Jr., 24, of Lafayette, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter on one count of wire fraud. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $23,050 restitution. According to the May 25, 2016 guilty plea, from November 2014 to February 2016, Zavala owned and operated a company headquartered in Lafayette that claimed to assist individuals being held in ICE detention centers. Through this company, United Immigration Consulting, later known as National Immigration Services, Zavala would make mass mailings to ICE detention centers around the country advertising his services in representing illegal aliens and assisting them with their immigration problems. Those detainees would then contact family members who would pay Zavala in exchange for promises that Zavala would represent the ICE detainees at deportation hearings, assist them in obtaining work permits, assist them in “bonding out” of detention facilities, and otherwise provide services in immigration-related matters. However, after receiving payments, Zavala would cease communication with the ICE detainees and their family members and fail to render the promised immigration services. The ICE detainees would then generally be deported.

 

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office of Professional Responsibility and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney David C. Joseph prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that five defendants were sentenced for their roles in a methamphetamine conspiracy.

 

United States District Judge Donald E. Walter sentenced Steven Paul Meaux, 32, of Lake Charles, La.; Arielle Marie Ardoin, 33, of Kinder, La.; Troy Lane Touchet, 42, of Jennings, La.; Jose Rosalio Mendez-Gonzalez, 41, of Garland, Texas; and Jorge Massu, 33, of Garland, Texas, on charges of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine in the Lake Charles area. Sentencing information is detailed below:

 

Defendants Prison term Supervised release Counts* Meaux 44 months 5 years 2 Ardoin 24 months 3 years 3 Touchet 84 months 5 years 3 Mendez-Gonzalez 24 months 5 years 4 Massu 120 months 5 years 4

* Counts 2 and 3 are possession of 50 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Count 4 is possession of 500 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing methamphetamine with intent to distribute.

 

According to the guilty pleas, the defendants conspired to obtain methamphetamine from sources in the Houston and Dallas areas between March 2014 through September 2014, which they distributed in the Calcasieu Parish area. Law enforcement agents recovered approximately 2 kilograms of methamphetamine in the Lake Charles area for distribution.

 

The Department of Homeland Security and the Calcasieu Anti-drug Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph T. Mickel prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a federal jury found a former bookkeeper for a Sulphur oil field company guilty of stealing more than $4 million while working there.

 

Elizabeth Istre, 51, of Sulphur, La., was found guilty of three counts of wire fraud. After the conclusion of the four-day trial, the jury deliberated for approximately one hour before delivering the guilty verdict before U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter who presided over the trial. According to the evidence presented, Istre worked as a bookkeeper for a family-owned petroleum company in Sulphur, La. From 2004 through January of 2014, Istre issued fraudulent checks payable to herself and her husband from the company’s corporate bank account. During that time, she issued more than 800 checks totaling more than $4 million and used the money for personal expenses.

 

Istre began writing fraudulent checks payable to herself not long after being hired in 2004. She started writing the checks in small amounts but then increased the amount. By 2011, she was writing fraudulent checks for half a million dollars a year. She was the only person to use the business’ software, and she provided the financial statements directly to the company’s accountant. Because of fluctuations in the oil and gas industry, Istre was able to conceal the stolen funds. She bought several vehicles, took numerous trips, paid bills, bought property, paid family members’ expenses, withdrew cash and made other transactions with the stolen funds.

 

Istre faces up to 20 years in prison, five years of supervised release, restitution and a $250,000 fine for each count. Istre was detained pending sentencing. The court did not set a sentencing date.

 

The U.S. Secret Service investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kelly P. Uebinger and Dominic A. Rossetti are prosecuting the case.