Western District of Louisiana

LAKE CHARLES, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Mississippi man pleaded guilty Tuesday to possessing child pornography.

 

Jesse Easterling, 41, of Hattisburg, Miss., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay to one count of possession of child pornography. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell. According to the guilty plea, law enforcement agents identified the defendant as having child pornography in April of 2016 while he was staying at an RV park in Lake Charles. Law enforcement agents searched his property and found 72 videos of child pornography on his computer. Some of the videos were sexually explicit images of children under the age of 12. He also admitted during an interview that he had downloaded child pornography over the internet.

 

Easterling faces up to 20 years in prison, five years to life of supervised release, mandatory registration as a sex offender and up to a $250,000 fine. The court set the sentencing date for August 18, 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.

 

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 and Louisiana State Police conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dominic Rossetti is prosecuting the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Leesville woman pleaded guilty to falsifying records and otherwise concealing that more than $1 million had been stolen from a local bank.

 

Amanda Pollock, 46, of Leesville, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Jay C. Zainey to one count of concealing a document in a federal investigation. According to the guilty plea, Pollock stole 10 weeks of vault logs on May 10, 2014 while working as a teller at the Fort Polk branch of a local bank. She also entered false transactions into the bank’s records to cover up $1,179,091 that was missing. She took these actions to conceal the missing money and to otherwise obstruct any subsequent federal investigation into the missing funds.

 

Pollock faces up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, restitution and a $2,358,182 fine. The court set a sentencing date of August 2, 2017.

 

The FBI and FDIC-Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney David C. Joseph is prosecuting the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Lake Charles man pleaded guilty to distributing cocaine and possessing firearms.

 

Kevin Ardoin, 36, of Lake Charles, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Jay C. Zainey to one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. According to the 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.

 

Ardoin faces up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine for the drug count, and he faces not less than five years in prison consecutive to any other prison term and a $250,000 fine for the firearms count. He also faces three years of supervised release. The court set a sentencing date of August 2, 2017.

 

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

LAFAYETTE, La. – U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter of the Western District of Louisiana yesterday issued prison sentences for three former officials of the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office (IPSO), including a former Lieutenant Colonel, for abuses of inmates, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Tom Wheeler of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander Van Hook of the Western District of Louisiana and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey S. Sallet of the FBI’s New Orleans Division. Former Lt. Col. Gerald Savoy was sentenced to serve 87 months in prison; Wesley Hayes, the former Warden of the Iberia Parish Jail, was sentenced to serve 34 months; and Hayes’ brother Jesse, a former Assistant Warden at the jail, was sentenced to serve 24 months.

 

The convictions of these three defendants and seven others who were sentenced in February stemmed from several incidents of abuse at the Iberia Parish Jail (IPJ) in 2011. During the course of an expansive investigation, 10 former IPSO officials pleaded guilty to federal criminal civil rights violations. During their guilty plea hearings, the officials admitted to various incidents in which deputies willfully assaulted inmates, without legal justification for doing so. One of those incidents, including the incident to which Savoy and the Hayes brothers pled guilty, involved the abuse of a pretrial detainee in September 2011.

 

A second incident to which numerous deputies pled guilty occurred at the IPJ on April 29, 2011, when five pretrial detainees were taken into a chapel at the jail and were beaten by sheriff’s deputies.

 

The seven other defendants, who were sentenced previously for their roles in these civil rights offenses, are former Lt. Bret Broussard of the Narcotics Unit, who was sentenced to 54 months in prison; former narcotics agent Wade Bergeron, who was sentenced to 48 months in prison; former narcotics agent Jason Comeaux, who was sentenced to 40 months in prison; former narcotics agent David Hines, who was sentenced to 40 months in prison; former narcotics agent Byron Benjamin Lassalle, who was sentenced to 54 months in prison; and former K-9 handlers Robert Burns and Jeremy Hatley, who were sentenced to six months in prison and 36 months in prison respectively. An additional deputy, former Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office Capt. Mark Frederick has been indicted and is pending trial at a later date. An indictment is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Sheriff Louis Ackal, who was also charged in connection with the cases, was acquitted at a trial in November 2016.

 

“Former Lt. Col. Savoy and the other defendants sanctioned a culture of inmate abuse and flagrant disregard for the laws they swore an oath to uphold,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Wheeler. “The convictions in this case demonstrate that the Justice Department is firmly committed to prosecuting law enforcement misconduct, which erodes public trust and threatens the reputation of the honorable men and women who wear the badge.”

 

“The FBI is committed to aggressively investigating allegations of excessive force used by law enforcement officers,” said Special Agent in Charge Sallet. “The civil rights of all persons must be protected as they are the bedrock of our society. The vast majority of law enforcement officers perform their duties with professionalism and valor, often at great personal risk. However, those few officers who abuse their authority and tarnish their badge, undermine the faith and trust placed in the criminal justice system by the American people. The FBI will continue to devote all necessary resources to these very important investigations.”

 

The case was investigated by the FBI’s Lafayette Resident Agency. The case is being prosecuted by Special Legal Counsel Mark Blumberg and Trial Attorney Tona Boyd of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary J. Mudrick of the Western District of Louisiana.

U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter of the Western District of Louisiana yesterday issued prison sentences for three former officials of the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office (IPSO), including a former Lieutenant Colonel, for abuses of inmates, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Tom Wheeler of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Acting United States Attorney Alexander Van Hook of the Western District of Louisiana and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey S. Sallet of the FBI’s New Orleans Division. Former Lt. Col. Gerald Savoy was sentenced to serve 87 months in prison; Wesley Hayes, the former Warden of the Iberia Parish Jail, was sentenced to serve 34 months; and Hayes’ brother Jesse, a former Assistant Warden at the jail, was sentenced to serve 24 months.

The convictions of these three defendants and seven others who were sentenced in February stemmed from several incidents of abuse at the Iberia Parish Jail (IPJ) in 2011. During the course of an expansive investigation, 10 former IPSO officials pleaded guilty to federal criminal civil rights violations.  During their guilty plea hearings, the officials admitted to various incidents in which deputies willfully assaulted inmates, without legal justification for doing so.  One of those incidents, including the incident to which Savoy and the Hayes brothers pled guilty, involved the abuse of a pretrial detainee in September 2011.

A second incident to which numerous deputies pled guilty occurred at the IPJ on April 29, 2011, when five pretrial detainees were taken into a chapel at the jail and were beaten by sheriff’s deputies. 

The seven other defendants, who were sentenced previously for their roles in these civil rights offenses, are former Lt. Bret Broussard of the Narcotics Unit, who was sentenced to 54 months in prison; former narcotics agent Wade Bergeron, who was sentenced to 48 months in prison; former narcotics agent Jason Comeaux, who was sentenced to 40 months in prison; former narcotics agent David Hines, who was sentenced to 40 months in prison; former narcotics agent Byron Benjamin Lassalle, who was sentenced to 54 months in prison; and former K-9 handlers Robert Burns and Jeremy Hatley, who were sentenced to six months in prison and 36 months in prison respectively.  An additional deputy, former Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office Capt. Mark Frederick has been indicted and is pending trial at a later date.  An indictment is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.  Sheriff Louis Ackal, who was also charged in connection with the cases, was acquitted at a trial in November 2016.  

“Former Lt. Col. Savoy and the other defendants sanctioned a culture of inmate abuse and flagrant disregard for the laws they swore an oath to uphold,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Wheeler.  “The convictions in this case demonstrate that the Justice Department is firmly committed to prosecuting law enforcement misconduct, which erodes public trust and threatens the reputation of the honorable men and women who wear the badge.” 

“The FBI is committed to aggressively investigating allegations of excessive force used by law enforcement officers,” said Special Agent in Charge Sallet.  “The civil rights of all persons must be protected as they are the bedrock of our society. The vast majority of law enforcement officers perform their duties with professionalism and valor, often at great personal risk. However, those few officers who abuse their authority and tarnish their badge, undermine the faith and trust placed in the criminal justice system by the American people. The FBI will continue to devote all necessary resources to these very important investigations.” 

The case was investigated by the FBI’s Lafayette Resident Agency.  The case is being prosecuted by Special Legal Counsel Mark Blumberg and Trial Attorney Tona Boyd of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Senior Litigation Counsel Joseph G. Jarzabek of the Western District of Louisiana.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Mississippi woman was sentenced Monday to 94 months in prison for being part of a scheme to file fraudulent income tax returns using stolen identities and causing the refunds to be mailed to post office boxes in Louisiana.

 

Shannon A. Brumfield, 50, of Byram, Miss., was sentenced to more than 7.5 years in prison by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. on two counts of mail fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft. She was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $386,141 restitution. According to the January 11, 2017 guilty plea, Brumfield used her position as a lieutenant at Hinds County Detention Center to access the Hinds County Jail Management System and steal names and Social Security numbers of inmates and other individuals. Brumfield and other members of the conspiracy not named in the indictment used the stolen identities to file fictitious IRS tax returns from May 2011 until December 2012. Based on the fraudulent returns, the IRS issued tax refunds and mailed them to U.S. Post Office boxes in Tallulah, La.

 

“Ms. Brumfield shamelessly abused her position as a law enforcement officer by stealing the identities of individuals listed in a sheriff’s office computer system,” Van Hook stated. “Despite her vow to serve and protect, she used her position to line her own pockets. The 94-month sentence imposed and the recovery of the ill-gotten gains should send a strong message that this sort of crime does not pay.”

 

“This sentencing is a stern reminder that participation in refund fraud schemes does not pay and those who do so will be held accountable,” Special Agent in Charge of Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Jerome R. McDuffie stated. “Ms. Brumfield participated in a scheme in which stolen identities were used to file over 300 false tax returns. Refunds totaling over $1 million were requested by the scheme participants for personal gain. Identity theft is an ongoing problem and IRS-CI will continue to vigorously investigate and prosecute those engaged in these illegal activities. Our agency will continue to work with the United States Attorney’s Office and other federal agencies to aggressively protect innocent taxpayers and preserve the integrity of our tax system. ”

 

The IRS – Criminal Investigation Division conducted the investigation. Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Cytheria D. Jernigan prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that an assistant bank manager in Tallulah was sentenced to eight months in prison for stealing more than $24,000 from customer accounts.

 

Lois Love, 49, of Tallulah, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. on one count of theft or embezzlement by a bank employee or officer. She was also sentenced to five years of supervised release and ordered to pay $24,430.82 restitution. According to the December 20, 2016 guilty plea, Love worked as the assistant branch manager for a Tallulah bank from 1994 until 2014. Love was also the treasurer of the Madison Parish Economic and Development District (MPEDD). Love used her position as assistant branch manager to steal $24,430.82 from individual bank accounts and from the MPEDD from 2011 to 2014.

 

The FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike O’Mara prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT, LAFAYETTE, MONROE, ALEXANDRIA, LAKE CHARLES, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook urges the public to discard unused prescription drugs this weekend at area collection sites during Drug Take Back Day.

 

On October 22, 2016, the public turned in 731,269 pounds—almost 366 tons—of medication to DEA and more than 4,000 of its community partners at almost 5,200 collection sites nationwide. Over the life of the program, 7.1 million pounds (more than 3,500 tons) of prescription drugs have been removed from medicine cabinets, kitchen drawers and nightstands by citizens around the country.

Unused medicines in the home are a problem because the majority of the 6.4 million Americans who abused prescription drugs in 2015, including the almost 4 million who abused prescription painkillers, say they obtained those drugs from friends and family, including from a home medicine cabinet, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health released last month. Some painkiller abusers move on to heroin; four out of five new heroin users started with painkillers. Almost 30,000 people—78 a day—died from overdosing on these painkillers or heroin in 2014, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses because of these drugs. Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines—flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash—both pose potential safety and health hazards.

The DEA will have collection sites across the country on Saturday, April 29, for those who are interested in bringing their unused or expired prescription drugs for proper disposal. Only pills and other solids, like patches, can be brought to the collection sites – liquids and needles or other sharp objects will not be accepted. The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.

 

Prescription drugs can be dropped off from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., April 29, at:

 

Shreveport

• Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office, Sheriff’s Safety Town in the parking lot of Summer Grove Baptist Church, 8910 Jewella Ave.

 

Bossier City

• Bossier Parish Sheriff’s Office, Viking Drive Substation, 2510 Viking Drive

• Louisiana State Police Troop G office, 5300 Industrial Drive

 

Barksdale Air Force Base

• Barksdale Air Force Base Exchange, 455 Curtis Road

 

Monroe

• Louisiana State Police Troop F office, 1240 Highway 594

• Brookshire’s Food & Pharmacy, 1801 North 18th St.

• Brookshire’s Food & Pharmacy, 4070 Highway 165

• Super One, 2810 Louisville Ave.

 

West Monroe

• Brookshire’s Food & Pharmacy, 3426 Cypress St.

 

Alexandria

• Louisiana State Police Troop E office, 1710 Odom St.

• Alexandria Police Department, 1000 Bolton Ave.

 

Broussard

• Broussard Police Department at Walgreen’s parking lot, 105 St. Nazaire St.

 

Lake Charles

• Lake Charles Police Department at 900 Lake Short Drive (Civic Center)

 

Morgan City

• Walgreens, 815 Brashear Ave.

• Walmart Neighborhood Market parking lot, 1002 La.-70

• Walmart Super Center, 973 Highway 90-East

 

The public can also find other nearby collection sites by visiting www.dea.gov, clicking on the Take Back Day icon, and following the links to a database where they enter their zip code or call 800-882-9539.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a South Carolina man was sentenced Tuesday to 480 months in prison for producing child pornography and traveling to Louisiana to have sex with a juvenile.

 

Frankie Maldonado, 51, of Reevesville, S.C., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on two counts of production of child pornography and one count of traveling in interstate commerce for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct with a minor. He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender. A federal jury found the defendant guilty on January 4, 2017 after the conclusion of the two-day trial.

 

According to the evidence presented at trial, Maldonado began communicating with a 15-year-old girl living in Louisiana. The defendant had known the victim since she was about 4 years old, as a result of his friendship with the victim’s father. Maldonado sent sexually explicit pictures of himself to the juvenile using text messaging in June of 2014. Thereafter he requested that she send sexually explicit pictures of herself. After receiving the images, the defendant convinced the victim to engage in sexually explicit conduct while he watched on Skype. Thereafter, he traveled to Louisiana on June 22, 2014 where he picked up the juvenile, brought her to a motel, and engaged in sexual acts with her while producing images of that sexually explicit conduct.

 

Homeland Security Investigations, Louisiana State Police, Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Office, Vernon Parish Sheriff’s Office and Natchitoches Parish Sheriff’s Office, high tech crimes unit investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Luke Walker and Jamilla A. Bynog prosecuted the case.

 

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.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Zwolle man was sentenced Monday to 228 months in prison for possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possessing multiple firearms.

 

Heath Meshell, 34, of Zwolle, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote to 168 months in prison on one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and 60 months in prison on 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 December 19, 2016 guilty plea, law enforcement agents searched Meshell’s home on April 12, 2016. The agents found more than 1,700 grams of methamphetamine, a small number of prescription pills, digital scales and $1,585. They also found a 9 mm rifle, 9 mm pistol, a 410 shotgun and assorted rounds of ammunition.

 

The ATF and the DEA conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon B. Brown prosecuted the case.

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

 

Roberto Calderon-Perez, 27, of Mexico, pleaded guilty Thursday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick Hanna to one count of false statement in application for passport. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. According to the guilty plea, Calderon-Perez submitted a passport application on June 20, 2016 to the Morgan City post office in the name of a Puerto Rican resident. He also submitted other false information such as a birth date and social security number. Law enforcement agents also found that the picture on his identification did not match older records of the individual with the same name in Puerto Rico.

 

Calderon-Perez faces 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The court set a sentencing date of August 2, 2017.

 

The State Department and the Louisiana State Police conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert F. Moore is prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Texas man and a Shreveport woman pleaded guilty to distributing methamphetamine.

 

Rogelio Lopez, 47, of Longview, Texas, and Guadaloupe Ponte, 27, of Shreveport, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. According to the guilty pleas, DEA drug task force agents learned that Ponte was distributing methamphetamine in Shreveport. They recorded her on January 12, 2017 setting up sales and then observed her traveling to meet Lopez. Agents arrested the defendants after they arrived at a hotel in separate vehicles. Agents found 82.9 grams of methamphetamine in Lopez’s car and 326.6 grams of methamphetamine when they later searched his Texas home. Lopez admitted to being Ponte’s supplier of methamphetamine.

 

The defendants face 10 years to life in prison, at least five years of supervised release and a $10 million fine. The court set a sentencing date of August 8, 2017.

 

The DEA investigated this case with assistance from Shreveport law enforcement. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney R. Paul Gillespie is prosecuting the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Lafayette tax preparation business owner pleaded guilty Wednesday to filing a false tax return and not paying more than $350,000 in taxes owed.

 

Kevin Dalcourt, 49, of Lafayette, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick Hanna to one count of making and subscribing a false tax return. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell. According to the 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 he 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.

 

Kevin Dalcourt faces three years in prison, one year of supervised release, restitution and a $250,000 fine. The court set a July 21, 2017 sentencing date. 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 court did not set a sentencing date for Tamiko Dalcourt.

 

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

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Shreveport man pleaded guilty Tuesday to receiving child pornography.

 

James Vail, 52, of Shreveport, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. to one count of receipt of child pornography. According to the guilty plea, Vail received images of pornography on his computer from October 3, 2015 to June 4, 2015 at his home in Shreveport via an internet enabled electronic device. A forensic examination of his computer revealed numerous images of child pornography.

 

Vail faces five to 20 years in prison, five years to life of supervised release, mandatory registration as a sex offender, forfeiture of property seized during the investigation and a $250,000 fine. The court set the sentencing date for July 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.

 

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 and Louisiana State Police conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Earl M. Campbell is prosecuting the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a citizen of El Salvador pleaded guilty Tuesday to reentering the United States illegally.

 

Jose Edmundo Martinez-Ortiz, 24, 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 Dee D. Drell. According to the 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.

 

Martinez-Ortiz faces 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.

 

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

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that two DeSoto Parish brothers were each sentenced Tuesday to 46 months in prison for selling crack and powder cocaine.

 

Tyquario Derell Adams, 26, and Johnny Leroy Adams Jr., 28, of Mansfield, La., were sentenced by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. on one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and one count of distribution of cocaine. They were also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the guilty pleas, between April 2015 and November 2015, Tyquario Adams and Johnny Adams conspired with brothers Antonio Tawarn Robertson, 36, Makeith Ladale Robertson, 33, and Terrance D. Woods, 43, as well as Ashton Bernard Shelton, 25; and Amanda Marie Garner, 33, all of Mansfield, La., to sell the drugs. They were recorded making plans to obtain and sell cocaine in the Mansfield area. Approximately 1.5 kilograms of cocaine were involved in the conspiracy.

 

See the list below for sentencing details:

  Defendants Prison term Probation Supervised release Count* Date M. Robertson 30 months — 3 years 1 Nov. 9, 2016 Shelton 46 months — 3 years 1 Nov. 9, 2016 Garner — 1 year — 3 Jan. 30, 2017 Woods 70 months — 3 years 1 March 7, 2017 A. Robertson 36 months — 3 years 1 March 27, 2017

*Count 1 is conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and Count 3 is distribution of cocaine.

 

The FBI Northwest Louisiana Violent Crimes Task Force and the DeSoto Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Allison D. Bushnell is prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Shreveport woman was sentenced Wednesday to 60 months in prison for her role in a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy.

 

United States District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. sentenced Haylee N. Haigler, 36, of Shreveport, on one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. She was also sentenced to four years of supervised release. According to the January 11, 2017 guilty plea, law enforcement agents arrested Haigler’s boyfriend, Lee Edward Watkins, 36, of Shreveport, on July 20, 2016 after observing him selling methamphetamine in the parking lot of Haigler’s apartment complex. Upon his arrest, Watkins admitted to selling the drugs and said there were more drugs and firearms in Haigler’s apartment. Agents found additional methamphetamine and three pistols there. Haigler later admitted that she assisted in the drug dealing and sometimes traveled with Watkins to Texas to obtain more drugs.

 

Judge Hicks sentenced Watkins on January 30, 2017 to 120 months in prison and five years of supervised release for the conspiracy count and for one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

 

The DEA 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 today that a Pollock prisoner was sentenced to 77 months in prison for assaulting another inmate.

 

John Garza, 34, a prisoner at the U.S. Penitentiary in Pollock, La., who is from Gonzales, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of assault resulting in serious bodily injury. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the January 11, 2017 guilty plea, Garza assaulted a fellow inmate on July 31, 2016 by stabbing him in the neck and back area. Video cameras showed Garza attacking a fellow inmate pushing him to the ground. He then stabbed and tramped on the inmate. The inmate was later brought to a local hospital where he was treated for severe injuries.

 

The FBI and U.S. Bureau of Prisons investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tennille M. Gilreath prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Logansport man pleaded guilty Thursday to distributing methamphetamine in Many, La., and kidnapping a victim in east Texas.

 

Christopher L. Douglas, 36, of Logansport, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote to one count of distribution of methamphetamine and one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping. According to the guilty pleas, law enforcement agents recorded Douglas selling 2 ounces of methamphetamine on April 26, 2016 for $2,000 in Many. In addition, he pleaded guilty to a kidnapping conspiracy charge from the Eastern District of Texas, in which he participated with others to kidnap the victim, demand ransom, and ultimately attempted to kill the victim, all arising out of related drug trafficking.

 

Douglas faces five to 40 years in prison for the drug charge and up to life in prison for the kidnapping charge. He also faces not less than four years of supervised release and up to a $5 million fine. The court set a sentencing date of August 25, 2017.

 

The FBI, ATF-Tyler Texas, Sabine Parish Sheriff’s Office, DeSoto Parish Sheriff’s Office, Carthage Police Department and Longview Police Department conducted the investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney James G. Cowles Jr. is prosecuting the case for the Western District of Louisiana, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Hable is prosecuting the case for the Eastern District of Texas.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Lake Charles woman was sentenced Thursday to a year and a day in prison for buying stolen equipment from Texas.

 

Katherine P. LaRocca, 53, of Lake Charles, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on three counts of sale and receipt of a stolen vehicle. The court also sentenced her to two years of supervised release and ordered her to pay a $20,000 fine. According to the January 25, 2017 guilty plea, two men stole three pieces of equipment in Texas between December 2010 and October 2011. They transported the equipment to LaRocca in Calcasieu Parish, and she bought them knowing they were stolen. The stolen equipment was a John Deer mower, a CASE Skidster front-end loader and a Kubota KX 61 Mini-Excavator with a value of between $95,000 and $150,000.

 

The Louisiana State Police conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly P. Uebinger prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a man from Youngsville pleaded guilty Wednesday to receiving sexually explicit material from a minor and then asking her travel to Louisiana.

 

Gary Joseph Vincent, 25, of Youngsville, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick Hanna to one count of receiving child pornography. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. According to the 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.

 

Vincent faces five to 20 years in prison, five years to life of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.

 

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 are prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Vivian resident pleaded guilty to failing to update his sex offender registration after moving from Colorado to Louisiana last year.

 

Graham Cooper Gyde, 25, of Vivian, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. to one count of failure to update sex offender registration. According to the guilty plea, Gyde pleaded guilty to sexual assault on state charges in Golden, Colo., in October 2012. He registered as a sex offender in February 2013 and then again in April 2016, stating that he lived in Colorado. At some point after completing the last registration, he traveled to Louisiana and lived in Vivian for three and a half months. Vivian police arrested him in November 2016 for charges related to not updating his sex offender registration, which include reporting his new address.

 

Gyde faces up to 10 years in prison, five years to life of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The court set a sentencing date of August 17, 2017.

 

The U.S. Marshals Service and the Vivian Police Department conducted the investigation. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney R. Paul Gillespie is prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Lake Charles man pleaded guilty to transporting explosives.

 

Cory Duane Smith, 47, of Lake Charles, La., but who previously lived in Bossier City, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter to one count of transportation of explosives. According to the guilty plea, Smith transported two spools of detonating cord, one box of boosters and two boxes of detonators from Shreveport to Bossier City between mid-April 2014 and May 31, 2014. Smith’s former roommate discovered the explosives in his garage at his Bossier City home more than a year after the explosives had been transported there. The roommate notified law enforcement agents of the presence of the explosives in his garage. Law enforcement subsequently interviewed Smith, who admitted to transporting the explosives from a residence in Shreveport to the roommate’s residence in Bossier City.

 

Smith faces up to 10 years in prison, one to three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. A sentencing date of July 14, 2017 was set.

 

The ATF and the Bossier City Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan S. Drucker is prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Shreveport woman was sentenced Monday to 46 months in prison for her role in a cocaine and methamphetamine distribution operation in Caddo, Bossier, DeSoto and Red River parishes.

 

Linda G. Brown, 61, of Shreveport, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. on one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine. She was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the guilty plea, the defendant along with co-defendants Shawn F. Swift, 36; Ricky R. Swift, 64; and Jarvis Randle, 29, all of Shreveport, conspired to distribute cocaine, methamphetamine and cocaine base from January of 2013 to October of 2014 in Caddo, Bossier, DeSoto and Red River parishes. Agents conducted controlled buys and monitored communications between the defendants as they planned and sold illegal drugs. Shawn Swift operated the drug sales with the other defendants out of the family home in Shreveport, and they distributed them to the surrounding areas.

 

They also forfeited 39 weapons seized during the investigation of this case and more than $360,000. Of that total, $89,700 was seized during a traffic stop on September 21, 2014; $237,753 was seized from the home of Ricky Swift and Linda Brown on October 21, 2014; and $40,457 was seized from the home of Shawn Swift on October 21, 2014.

 

Randle, pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge on April 27, 2015; Ricky Swift pleaded guilty on June 1, 2015 to one count of laundering monetary instruments; and Shawn Swift, pleaded guilty on June 2, 2015 to the conspiracy charge and one count of possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking.

Randle was sentenced on September 8, 2015 to 57 months in prison and three years of supervised release; Shawn Swift was sentenced on March 17, 2016 to 180 months and 10 years of supervised release; Rickey Swift was sentenced on April 6, 2016 to 13 months in prison and two years of supervised release.

 

The defendants were arrested as part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Operation named “Not So Swift.” The FBI, ATF, DEA, Louisiana State Police, Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office, Bossier Parish Sheriff’s Office, DeSoto Parish Sheriff’s Office and Red River 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 James G. Cowles Jr. and Allison D. Bushnell prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a citizen of Mexico was sentenced Monday to six months in prison for re-entering the United States illegally.

 

Juan De Dios Trejos-Sanchez, 37, of Mexico, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter on one count of illegal re-entry of a removed alien. According to the January 12, 2017 guilty plea, Trejos-Sanchez was arrested in Calcasieu Parish on October 6, 2016, on domestic battery charges and was then turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Trejos-Sanchez was previously removed from the United States in January of 2012 near Brownsville, Texas.

 

United States Immigrations and Customs Enforcement conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly P. Uebinger prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that the last defendant was sentenced Monday in an Acadiana methamphetamine conspiracy.

 

Elton J. Scoggin, 36, of Breaux Bridge, La., and 10 other defendants conspired to distribute methamphetamine in Lafayette and the surrounding areas from April 2015 until December 2015. Co-defendants Jeremy David Hamlett, 38, of Arnaudville, La., and Lovelace Louis Comeaux, 54, of Carencro, La., were the primary suppliers of the methamphetamine. Scoggin, the remaining defendant, was sentenced on Monday by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter, to 33 months in prison and three years of supervised release for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

 

In addition to Scoggin, Hamlett and Lovelace Comeaux, eight other defendants were indicted. They are: Darrell James Serrette II, 34, Jade Dupuis, 30, Jared J. Dupuis, 39, John S. Stutes, 45, and Travis Joseph Thibodeaux, 35, all of Breaux Bridge; Kevin Comeaux, 55, of Milton, La.; Matthew James Hebert, 43, of New Iberia, La.; and Ronnie J. Touchet, 36, of Carencro. These defendants previously pleaded guilty and were sentenced as shown below:

Defendants Prison term Probation Supervised release Counts* Date Lovelace Comeaux 120 months   5 years 1, 6 June 9, 2016 Touchet 60 months   3 years 1 Oct. 20, 2016 Hamlett 120 months   5 years 1 Oct. 21, 2016 Kevin Comeaux 63 months   3 years 1 Oct. 21, 2016 Serrette 36 months   3 years 1 Jan. 12, 2017 Jared Dupuis 30 months   3 years 1 Jan. 12, 2017 Stutes 24 months   3 years 1 Jan. 12, 2017 Hebert 37 months   3 years 1 Jan. 12, 2017 Jade Dupuis 12 months   3 years 2 Feb. 13, 2017 Thibodeaux   5 years   1 Feb. 13, 2017

*Count 1 is conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, Count 2 is distribution of methamphetamine, and Count 6 is use of a communication facility in causing or facilitating a drug trafficking crime.

 

According to Scoggin’s August, 24, 2016 guilty plea, he was recorded, along with Hamlett and the other co-conspirators, planning the distribution of methamphetamine and receipt of funds made from the sale of the drugs. Scoggin and others admitted that the methamphetamine received from Hamlett was of high quality and purity. Scoggin conspired with the other defendants to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine during the course of the conspiracy. The overall conspiracy involved the distribution of more than 15 kilograms of methamphetamine to the Acadiana area of Louisiana, which the group received and transported from Texas.

 

The DEA (Lafayette Task Force), Louisiana State Police and Lafayette Metro Narcotics (LMN) conducted the investigation. ATF, FBI, DEA Task Force, St. Martin Parish Sherriff’s Office, and LMN assisted in the apprehension of the individuals named in the indictment. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Myers P. Namie and Daniel J. McCoy prosecuted the case.

 

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Duson business owner was sentenced Monday to 12 months and one day in prison for evading taxes for three years.

 

Larry J. Thibodeaux, 66, of Duson, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter on one count of attempting to evade and defeat payment of tax. He was also sentenced to one year of supervised release. The judge also ordered Thibodeaux to pay $248,777 in restitution and a $50,000 fine. According to the November 16, 2016 guilty plea, Thibodeaux, who at the time of the offense was the president and sole shareholder of Thib’s Trailers in Duson, underreported taxes on IRS forms from 2012 to 2014. The corporate tax loss for the three years was $110,970, and the individual tax loss was $137,807 for a total loss to the U.S. Treasury of $248,777.

 

Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel J. McCoy prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that an Opelousas mail carrier pleaded guilty to stealing cell phones from mail.

 

Tremayne Cluse, 24, of Arnaudville, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Carol Whitehurst to one count of theft of mail by a postal service employee. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter. According to the guilty plea, the Opelousas postmaster reported to law enforcement agents that there was information linking Cluse to missing packages. Agents conducted an investigation, and they found packages in Cluse’s post office locker that had been opened and not delivered. Agents interviewed Cluse on December 24, 2015. He initially lied about taking the packages, but later admitted that he had started opening packages in November of 2015. Cluse stole four cell phones and one cell phone case from mail.

 

Cluse faces up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, restitution and a $250,000 fine. A sentencing date of July 17, 2017 was set.

 

The U.S. Postal Service-Office of Inspector General 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 today that a Lafayette man was sentenced to 41 months in prison for possessing a pistol and ammunition after being convicted of a felony.

 

Damion Hamilton, 32, of Lafayette, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter on one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. Hamilton was found guilty after a three-day trial that ended on October 13, 2016. Evidence admitted at trial showed that on January 19, 2016 a traffic stop was conducted on the vehicle Hamilton was driving. A search of the vehicle was conducted, and a gun safe was found on the back seat. The safe contained an FNS-40 .40 caliber pistol and ammunition. Hamilton’s DNA and fingerprints were found on the loaded magazine.

 

This investigation and prosecution is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a Department of Justice initiative 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 and to promote firearm safety.

 

The ATF and Lafayette Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jamilla A. Bynog and Kelly P. Uebinger prosecuted the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Eunice man was sentenced to 15 years in prison for convincing a minor girl to send him sexually explicit pictures.

 

Adam Shilow, 36, of Eunice, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of receiving material involving the sexual exploitation of a minor. He was also sentenced to 25 years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender. According to the July 12, 2016 guilty plea, starting in October of 2013, Shilow contacted a 12-year-old female using an internet-based communication application. He portrayed his identity as a juvenile male with his same name. They exchanged sexually explicit pictures of each other in November of 2013. The juvenile’s mother notified law enforcement of Shilow’s activities after noticing an inappropriate message on her daughter’s phone on November 15, 2013.

 

Homeland Security Investigations, the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office and the Nassau County of New York Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Myers P. Namie prosecuted the case.

 

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, visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

 

The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Investigations/Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at (866) DHS-2ICE. Investigators are available at all hours to answer hotline calls. Tips or other information can also be submitted to ICE online at www.ice.gov/exec/forms/hsi-tips/tips.asp. Tips may be submitted anonymously.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Shreveport man was sentenced to 57 months in prison for illegally possessing two pistols after being convicted of a felony.

 

Terrell Kellum, 29, of Shreveport, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote on one count of felon in possession of a firearm. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the October 4, 2016 guilty plea, a member of the public informed law enforcement on November 6, 2015 that an individual was carrying two pistols near the intersection of Linwood and 70th Street in Shreveport. A Shreveport police officer conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle, searched it and found two .380 caliber Lorcin Model L380 pistols. Kellum had been previously convicted of a felony and was not allowed to possess a firearm.

 

This investigation and prosecution is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a Department of Justice initiative to promote firearm safety and 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 Jonathan S. Drucker prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Ringgold man was sentenced to 63 months in prison for possessing 11 firearms and ammunition after being convicted of a felony.

 

Brady D. Alsup, 44, of Ringgold, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote on one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and must pay a $10,000 fine. According to the October 11, 2016 guilty plea, after receiving information that firearms were present on Alsup’s property, law enforcement agents conducted a search of his residence on October 14, 2015 and found six rifles, four shotguns, a revolver and assorted ammunition. The defendant was previously convicted in 2007 of a felony and is not allowed to possess a firearm.

 

This investigation and prosecution is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, 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 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 the sentencing of a Pineville man last week to 60 months in prison for possession of child pornography.

 

George Jeffus, 73, of Pineville, La., was sentenced Thursday by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of possession of child pornography. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender. According to the December 5, 2016 guilty plea, Pineville authorities received a report concerning Jeffus possessing and viewing possible child pornography on his personal computer. A search of Jeffus’ home revealed 136 images and five video files of child pornography on electronic storage devices.

 

Homeland Security Investigations, Rapides Parish Sheriff’s Office and Pineville Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamilla A. Bynog is prosecuting the case.

 

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.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Broussard man pleaded guilty to planning to sell drugs in the Acadiana area.

 

Kyle Gabriel Roy, 23, of Broussard, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Carol Whitehurst to one count of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter. According to the guilty plea, Franklin police arrested Roy on April 2, 2015 after the car he was riding in was searched and marijuana was found. During a later interview, Roy admitted to having drugs and a firearm in a safe at a friend’s residence in Lafayette. Agents searched the safe and found a stolen firearm, 49 grams of marijuana and 4.1 grams of methamphetamine. The methamphetamine was divided into smaller packages for sale and a digital scale was also found. The defendant admitted that he possessed the drugs to distribute them.

 

Roy faces five years in prison, two to three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The court set a July 17, 2017 sentencing date.

 

This investigation and prosecution is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a Department of Justice initiative to promote firearm safety and 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 Chitimacha Tribal Police, Franklin Police Department and ATF investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dominic Rossetti is prosecuting the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Ball man was sentenced Thursday to 21 months in prison for stealing more than $100,000 in Veterans Affairs benefits from a deceased woman’s bank account.

 

Tracy Marler, 51, of Ball, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell for one count of theft of government property. He was also sentenced to two years of supervised release and ordered to pay $101,250.10 restitution. The defendant was found guilty on December 13, 2016 after a two-day trial. Evidence admitted at trial revealed that from February 25, 2008 until April 30, 2014, Marler withdrew $101,250.10 from a deceased woman’s account. The woman was receiving the benefits on behalf of her deceased husband who had served in the U.S. armed forces. Marler had a joint bank account with the woman. After she died in February of 2008, he continued to receive her Veterans Affairs benefit payments to which he was not entitled.

 

The Veterans Affairs-Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon B. Brown prosecuted the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a Lafayette man was sentenced to 60 months in prison for possessing a revolver while trafficking marijuana.

 

Anthony Von Fisher Jr., 31, of Lafayette, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the November 29, 2016 guilty plea, police investigated a parked vehicle because of suspicious drug activity around 1 a.m. on March 6, 2016, at the 200 block of West Grant Street in Lafayette. When police spoke to Fisher, he admitted to possessing marijuana. Twenty-seven grams of marijuana were found in nine small clear plastic bags in his front right pocket, and 34 grams were found in a bag in his front left pocket. Police also found and seized a loaded .25 caliber handgun in Fisher’s pant leg. Fisher admitted the marijuana was pre-packaged for distribution.

 

This investigation and prosecution is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a Department of Justice initiative to promote firearm safety and 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 the Lafayette Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Myers P. Namie prosecuted the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that an Angolan national was sentenced to six months in prison for refusing to leave the country twice after being ordered to depart.

 

Faustino Ngay, 46, of Cazengo, Angola, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on two counts of failure to depart. The defendant was found guilty after a one-day trial that ended on November 29, 2016. Evidence admitted at the trial revealed that on two occasions U.S. Immigration Enforcement Agents attempted to remove Ngay from the country via the Alexandria International Airport by putting him on a commercial flight. The defendant hampered agents’ ability to remove him by verbally and physically resisting on November 17, 2015. The defendant also hampered attempts to put him on a commercial flight at the Alexandria airport on December 14, 2015. His outbursts prevented him from boarding the flights because of airline and Transportation Security Administration safety policies.

 

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement - Enforcement and Removal Operations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dominic Rossetti prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced today that a man from New Iberia pleaded guilty to transporting obscene material.

 

Lance Robert LeMaire, 36, of New Iberia, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Carol B. Whitehurst to one count of transporting obscene material. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Robert G. James. According to the guilty plea, law enforcement agents identified LeMaire as possibly possessing obscene material. An agent obtained LeMaire’s tablet computer on May 5, 2015, and a forensic examination found 161 images involving sexual exploitation of a minor on the device.

 

LeMaire faces five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. The court set a sentencing date of July 10, 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 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 conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert C. Abendroth and John Luke Walker are prosecuting the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a New Iberia man pleaded guilty Tuesday to sending threatening letters to government agencies across South Louisiana, including the governor’s office.

 

Kyle Dore, 33, of New Iberia, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick Hanna to five counts of mailing threatening communications and four counts of false information and hoaxes. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter. 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.

 

Dore faces five years in prison, three years supervised release and a $250,000 fine for each count. The court set a June 9, 2017 sentencing date.

 

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

SHREVEPORT, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a man from Homer pleaded guilty last week to possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine after a bag containing the drug was found in a relative’s dryer.

 

Vincent McDaniel, 44, of Homer, La., pleaded guilty Thursday before U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. to one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. According to the guilty plea, a relative of the defendant contacted law enforcement on November 12, 2015 to report that she had found something suspicious in a bag, which was left in a dryer at her home in Homer. After examining and testing the contents of the bag, law enforcement determined it was 526.7 grams of methamphetamine. McDaniel had asked for access to the home while the relative was away, and after his arrest, had asked other relatives to retrieve the bag for him before law enforcement could obtain it.

 

McDaniel faces 10 years to life in prison, at least four years of supervised release and a $10 million fine. The court set a sentencing date of June 28, 2017.

 

The DEA and the Homer Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney James G. Cowles is prosecuting the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Stephanie A. Finley, United States Attorney for the Western District of Louisiana, announced today that she is retiring after 25 years of federal service.

 

Finley began her public service in the military in 1988 after she was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Air Force, competing nationally and being designated as a Distinguished Graduate of the Reserve Officer Training Corps. She served for four years on active duty at England Air Force Base, Louisiana and Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina, where she also served as a Special Assistant United States Attorney for both installations. Ms. Finley served as a member of the Judge Advocate Corps for 25 years and was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. She is a graduate of Squadron Officer School, Air Command and Staff College, and Air War College. Ms. Finley is the recipient of the Meritorious Service Medal, four Oak Leaf Clusters, the Air Force Commendation Medal, one Oak Leaf Cluster, the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Air Force Longevity Service, one Oak Leaf Cluster, the Armed Forces Reserve Medal, and the Air Force Training Ribbon. She retired in November of 2016.

 

During her Reserve career, she was assigned to Headquarters Air Force Global Strike Command, the 8th Air Force, and the 2nd Bomb Wing. As a JAG officer, she served as a hearing officer for criminal cases and administrative discharge boards, worked in the areas of contract and labor law and military justice, as well as providing legal assistance services for active duty, reservists and dependents of the military.

 

Ms. Finley began her career with the Department of Justice as an Assistant United States Attorney in October of 1995. Prior to her appointment as U.S. Attorney in June of 2010, Ms. Finley served as the District’s Senior Litigation Counsel and was responsible for the District’s training and mentoring programs. She also served as the Deputy Criminal Chief for the Lafayette Office. In her 21-plus years with the Department of Justice, she prosecuted cases involving white collar crimes, violent crimes, civil rights, environmental crimes, drug trafficking, public corruption and tax evasion.

 

Finley served on Attorney General Eric Holder’s Advisory Committee (AGAC) from 2011-2013. The Attorney General Advisory Committee was created to serve as the voice of the U.S. Attorneys and to advise the attorney general on policy, management and operational issues impacting the offices of the U.S. Attorneys. In addition, she also served as Co-Chair and Chair of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee’s Office of Management and Budget Committee, and on a number of subcommittees and working groups for the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee, to include the Civil Rights Subcommittee, Native American Issues Subcommittee, the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Working Group, Environmental Issues Working Group, Racial Disparities Working Group, and the Service Members and Veterans Rights Working Group. Finley also served as a board member of the Gulf Coast High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Board.

 

Under Ms. Finley’s leadership, transparency and outreach were District priorities. Her office initiated and conducted numerous outreach efforts designed to strengthen relationships between law enforcement partners, citizens, schools, and community groups. Ms. Finley also focused her attention on developing in-house programs designed to develop leadership among both attorneys and support staff. As the chief law enforcement officer of 42 of Louisiana’s 64 parishes, her emphasis was on civil and criminal cases with a strong federal nexus. Between 2010 and 2016, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, through its amped up Financial Litigation Unit, collected more than $101 million in civil and criminal actions.

 

Known for her commitment to the children of this District, Ms. Finley engaged the district’s clergy, civic, nonprofit, and business communities through community forums, roundtable discussions and a myriad of speaking engagements. She often on her own time and at her own expense visited the District’s youth at schools, community centers, and nonprofit organizations. Ms. Finley was also a frequent speaker at law enforcement events. She prioritized the District’s Law Enforcement Coordinating Committee (LECC) efforts to provide countless training sessions for federal, local and state law enforcement agencies designed to enhance their enforcement abilities to keep our communities safe.

 

Ms. Finley ensured that all five of the division offices were operational and the Lafayette and Shreveport offices were fully staffed, navigating through several financial challenges, including a hiring freeze, government shutdown and budget sequestration.

 

Ms. Finley is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Grambling State University where she received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science. She is a Cum Laude graduate of Southern University Law Center where she received her Juris Doctorate in 1991 and was the Editor in Chief of the Law Review.

 

Ms. Finley has been recognized for her longstanding dedication and commitment to the community. She previously served as the Criminal Bar Examiner and an Assistant Bar Examiner for the Louisiana Bar, is a frequent youth conference lecturer on the local and state level, and has been honored as a “Top 20 Under 40” recipient, one of Lafayette’s “Women Who Means Business,” a “Person of Excellence” recipient from the National Association of University Women, a Torchbearers’ Award recipient, a Southern University Law Center Hall of Fame inductee, a recipient of Grambling State University’s Beacon Award for Public Service, a Public Service Award recipient at Alpha Kappa Alpha’s Regional Conference, and various other Achievement Awards

 

“I have been truly blessed to serve my nation in the capacity of the United States Attorney, Assistant United States Attorney, Special Assistant United States Attorney, and Lt. Colonel in the United States Air Force. I am extremely proud of the District’s accomplishments over the last six and a half years; there are too many to mention. But, as I have said from day one, no one does this alone. Today, I would like to thank all of the unsung men and women of the Western District of Louisiana who are some of the finest public servants in our state and nation. They are the reasons why my service has been so gratifying and successful. I want to also thank the men and women who serve in our partner federal agencies and our tribal, state and local partners. The public will never know the magnitude of our ongoing collaboration to keep the citizens of our communities safe and to represent the United States. I also thank my family and friends who have been supportive throughout my career.

 

The work of the Department of Justice and the United States Attorney’s Office will continue. My service to our nation and state will also continue; it will now be in my private capacity. I am excited about what the future holds, and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to serve as the United States Attorney.”

 

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a federal jury found an Opelousas man guilty Tuesday of robbing three local businesses at gunpoint.

 

Carey Wardell Reed, 28, of Opelousas, La., was found guilty of three counts of interference with commerce by robbery; two counts of using, carrying and brandishing a firearm during a violent crime; and one count of using, carrying and discharging a firearm during a violent crime. After the conclusion of the trial, the jury deliberated for approximately two and a half hours before delivering the guilty verdict. United States District Judge Rebecca F. Doherty presided over the trial.

 

According to the evidence presented at trial, Reed robbed three commercial establishments in Opelousas in 2014. On May 2, 2014, Reed robbed the Tiger Stop #7 gas station. He fired a shot, and told everyone inside to “get down.” He then had the employees empty the cash register of $704 and fled the scene. One May 10, 2014, Reed robbed the Chicken King restaurant. He entered the restaurant with a gun, which he pointed at the cashier. He demanded money and threatened to harm those present. The cashier turned over $985, and Reed fled. On September 22, 2014, Reed robbed a Family Dollar store. He entered the store with a handgun and demanded money. Before leaving, he also threatened the employees’ lives and took $1,400. The defendant was arrested on September 30, 2014 after police conducted a traffic stop. Extensive ballistic and digital forensic evidence were key in proving Reed to be the perpetrator in all three robberies.

 

Reed faces up to 20 years in prison for each of the robbery counts, seven years in prison on each of the brandishing offenses, and 10 years in prison for the discharging offense. Because the defendant has been convicted of multiple firearms offenses, two of the firearms convictions are subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years of imprisonment for each count. Sentencing will be set at a later date.

 

The FBI and the Opelousas Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jamilla A. Bynog and Joseph T. Mickel prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – Two Louisiana attorneys pleaded guilty Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana to willfully failing to file federal tax returns, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley for the Western District of Louisiana.

 

According to documents filed with the court, James Lynden Burton, 48, and his ex-wife, Lucretia Pecantte-Burton, 50, of New Iberia, La., are licensed attorneys and were partners of the law firm of Pecantte-Burton & Burton. The law firm offered general legal services and representation and regularly received cash payments from clients for legal services rendered. They also had a partnership interest in a tax return preparation business. For tax years 2007, 2008 and 2009, Burton and Pecantte-Burton did not file individual income tax returns despite earning income from their law practice and the tax return preparation business. They filed delinquent returns after learning that they were under criminal investigation by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

 

Burton and Pecantte-Burton each face a statutory maximum sentence of 12 months in prison as well as a term of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.

 

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg and U.S. Attorney Finley thank special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Joseph and Trial Attorney Daniel McGraw, who are prosecuting the case.

 

Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.

Two Louisiana attorneys pleaded guilty today in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana to willfully failing to file federal tax returns, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley for the Western District of Louisiana.

 

According to documents filed with the court, James Lynden Burton, 48, and his ex-wife, Lucretia Pecantte-Burton, 50, of New Iberia, Louisiana, are licensed attorneys and were partners of the law firm of Pecantte-Burton & Burton (PB&B). PB&B offered general legal services and representation and regularly received cash payments from clients for legal services rendered. They also had a partnership interest in a tax return preparation business. For tax years 2007, 2008 and 2009, Burton and Pecantte-Burton did not file individual income tax returns despite earning income from their law practice and the tax return preparation business. They filed delinquent returns after learning that they were under criminal investigation by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

 

Burton and Pecantte-Burton each face a statutory maximum sentence of 12 months in prison as well as a term of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.

 

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg and U.S. Attorney Finley thanked special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Joseph and Trial Attorney Daniel McGraw, who are prosecuting the case.

 

Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.

SHREVEPORT – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Minden man was sentenced Thursday to 15 months in prison for selling his employer’s equipment and pocketing the money.

 

Brian C. Campbell, 41, of Minden, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote on one count of wire fraud. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $15,800 in restitution. According to the May 19, 2016 guilty plea, Campbell worked in the well tester division of a well construction and testing company’s sub-yard in Minden. From at least February 2015 through July 2015, Campbell sold company property to unsuspecting third parties, including trailers and a pickup truck, without the company’s permission. Campbell conspired with company personnel in Houston to send certificates of title and registration paperwork to his residence. The ownership documents were changed to show Campbell as the owner, and he would either sell the vehicles or keep them for personal use. He kept a portion of the sale proceeds for himself and sent kickbacks to the employee who aided him.

 

The FBI, Louisiana State Police and Texas Department of Public Safety-Texas Rangers Division conducted the investigation. Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Cytheria D. Jernigan prosecuted the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Bogalusa man pleaded guilty Wednesday to possession with intent to distribute cocaine.

 

Craig Antwon Jefferson, 30, of Bogalusa, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay to one count of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Patricia Minaldi. According to the 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.

 

Jefferson faces 10 years to life in prison, eight years of supervised release and a $8 million fine. The court set a sentencing date of May 22, 2017.

 

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

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Youngsville man was sentenced Thursday to more than 18 years in prison for distribution and possession of child pornography.

 

Thomas Hanes, 49, of Youngsville, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of distribution and one count of possession of child pornography. He was also sentenced to 10 years of supervised release. According to the November 7, 2016 guilty plea, Hanes was identified through an investigation as distributing thousands of files of child pornography using an online peer-to-peer network. Law enforcement agents searched his home in Youngsville on February 26, 2016 and found sexually explicit images of children as young as two and three years of age on electronic media.

 

Homeland Security Investigations, Louisiana State Police and the Youngsville Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamilla A. Bynog is prosecuting the case.

 

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.

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a man from Texas was sentenced Wednesday to 140 months in prison for conspiring to sell methamphetamine in the Shreveport area with another Texas man.

 

Tares Terrell Hearn, 37, of Carthage, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. on one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the September 19, 2016 guilty plea, law enforcement agents learned that Hearn had organized a transaction to sell methamphetamine on May 10, 2016 at a Greenwood, La., gas station. Co-defendant Delton Williams Jr., 29, of Deberry, Texas, arrived earlier in a Cadillac Escalade. Hearn was then seen entering the Escalade and exiting the vehicle with a package tucked under his arm. While Hearn was being arrested, Williams was followed to an adjacent business where he was also arrested. Hearn and Williams were found with large sums of money. Hearn was found with a large amount of methamphetamine not intended for personal use. It was later learned that Williams transported methamphetamine from Texas to Greenwood for Hearn who intended to distribute it.

 

Williams was sentenced on February 1, 2017 to 70 months in prison and three years of supervised release for the conspiracy count.

 

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

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Shreveport man was sentenced Thursday to 240 months in prison for possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute.

 

Dondell Pea, 30, of Shreveport, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote on one count of possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. He was also sentenced to 10 years of supervised release. According to the October 24, 2016 guilty plea, Pea was arrested on May 26, 2016 after returning home. He had made arrangements to sell methamphetamine with a buyer. Agents found him with 266.3 grams of methamphetamine in his vehicle and a .40 caliber handgun in his home.

 

The DEA and the Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tennille M. Gilreath and Allison D. Bushnell prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a man from Missouri was sentenced Thursday to 57 months in prison for possessing child pornography, including images of children under the age of 12.

 

Douglas Beer, 49, of Ballwin, Mo., but who previously lived in Lafayette Parish, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of possession of child pornography involving a minor who had not attained 12 years of age. He was also sentenced to 10 years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender. According to the July 25, 2016 guilty plea, law enforcement agents received information that a computer in Lafayette Parish was being used to download child pornography. Agents conducted a search of Beer’s residence in Lafayette Parish on March 9, 2016. Beer admitted to downloading child pornography, and agents found more than 600 images with some depicting children under the age of 12.

 

Homeland Security Investigations, Louisiana State Police and the Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel J. McCoy prosecuted the case.

 

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.