Western District of Louisiana

ALEXANDRIA, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a federal jury found an Ethiopian national guilty Wednesday of refusing to leave the country twice after being ordered to depart.

Henok Dejene Retta, 30, of Ethiopia, was found guilty of two counts of failure to depart.  United States District Judge Dee D. Drell presided over the trial. The defendant’s trial started Tuesday and ended Wednesday with the jury returning the guilty verdict after deliberating for 45 minutes.  Evidence admitted at trial revealed that on two occasions U.S. Immigration Enforcement Agents attempted to remove Retta 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 agents on November 19, 2013. The defendant also hampered attempts to put him on a commercial flight at the airport on January 7, 2014, when he told those present that he had terrorist ties in Africa and would have the plane attacked should he be put on the plane. These incidents prevented him from boarding the flights because of airline and Transportation Security Administration safety policies.

Retta faces four years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine for each count.  Sentencing has been set for October 13, 2015.

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement - Enforcement and Removal Operations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert F. Moore and Howard C. Parker are prosecuting the case.

MONROE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Monroe woman was sentenced Monday to 12 months in prison for illegally taking more than $135,000 in Social Security payments that were for her mother who had died.

Rhonda Eiland, 51, of Monroe, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert G. James on one count of theft of government property. She was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release and pay $135,740 restitution. According to the March 5, 2015 guilty plea, Eiland started receiving Social Security Administration payments on her mother’s behalf in 1999. Eiland’s mother died in March of 2002, and Eiland failed to notify the Social Security Administration. The payments continued until April of 2014. Additionally, Eiland completed Social Security paperwork stating that her mother was alive in order to continue receiving payments. She received $135,740 that she was not entitled to.
 

The Social Security Administration investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney F. Michael O’Mara prosecuted the case.

MONROE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Honduran national was sentenced Monday to 30 months in prison for possessing cocaine with intent to distribute.

Gerson D. Guevara-Miranda, 35, of Honduras, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert G. James on one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine. According to evidence presented at the February 2, 2015 guilty plea, Louisiana State Police conducted a traffic stop on Guevara-Miranda’s vehicle on May 23, 2014 in Ouachita Parish. After a search of the vehicle, more than 1 kilogram of powdered cocaine and 23 kilograms of marijuana were found.

The DEA, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations, and the Louisiana State Police conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth D. Reeg prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley joined the FBI, Louisiana State Police, Lafayette Sheriff’s Office, the Lafayette Police Department, University of Louisiana at Lafayette Police Department and others to discuss civil rights Monday at the UL Lafayette LITE Center.

More than 100 members of the community attended the panel discussion which included Finley, FBI New Orleans Division Special Agent In Charge Michael J. Anderson, FBI Lafayette Field Office Special Agent In Charge Don Bostic, FBI Supervisory Special Agent Daren Ogletree, Louisiana State Police Criminal Investigations Major Layne Barnum, Lafayette Parish Sheriff Mike Neustrom, Lafayette Police Chief Jim Craft and University of Louisiana at Lafayette Police Chief Joey Sturm. Each speaker addressed various concerns and comments from the public concerning civil rights in the Acadiana area. All said they agreed that more dialogue was necessary between the public and law enforcement. The panelists urged those present to contact their agencies with questions or report problems. The panel ended with comments from Louisiana NAACP state president Dr. Ernest Johnson.

“I appreciate the opportunity to participate on this panel,” Finley stated. “The discussion highlighted areas where law enforcement can improve services to the community and educate the public on the legal process, the law and their rights. It is through events like this that a better understanding between laws enforcement and the public they serve can take place. I want to thank the FBI for organizing this event, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette for allowing the panel to use the LITE Center, the local civic leaders who attended and community members who expressed their opinions and asked questions.”

Finley spoke about the Western District of Louisiana and the challenges of prosecuting federal cases in such a large district. The Western District covers 42 of the state’s 64 parishes and encompasses the cities of Lafayette, Shreveport, Monroe, Alexandria and Lake Charles. She added that civil rights concerns are a priority focus in her District, and her office will continue to conduct outreach programs to the youth, schools, universities and community groups. Finley said that a factor in reducing civil rights violations is educating the community about their rights. She said her office continues to work with local law enforcement through training, discussions and programs to address the needs of the public. She encouraged the public to contact her if they have reports of civil rights violations or questions.

Finley is the first female U.S. Attorney to serve in Louisiana.  She was selected by President Barack Obama in January of 2010, after being recommended by U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu, and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in June of 2010.  United States Attorney Finley was sworn into office on June 2, 2010 to serve as the Western District of Louisiana’s chief law enforcement officer.  In addition to her duties as the U.S. Attorney, Finley is a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Air Force and currently serves as Co-Chair of the U.S. Attorney’s Office of Management and Budget Committee.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that Jose Gabriel Mendez was sentenced Monday to 120 months in prison for conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute more than $1.5 million worth of cocaine and $75,000 worth of methamphetamine.

Jose Gabriel Mendez, 35, a Guatemalan citizen living in Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter to a total of 120 months in prison for his conviction of one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, and one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.  He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release. A federal jury found the defendant guilty after a two-day trial that ended on March 11, 2015 with the jury returning the guilty verdict after deliberating for approximately two hours.  Evidence admitted at trial showed that law enforcement agents conducted a traffic stop on October 15, 2014, of a 1996 Dodge Dakota pickup truck Mendez was driving.  Further investigation by the Calcasieu Parish Combined Anti-Drug Task Force (CAT) revealed 516 grams of methamphetamine and 15 kilograms of cocaine hidden in the four door panels and tire jack compartment of the truck.

The DEA and Calcasieu Parish Combined Anti-Drug Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys David C. Joseph and Howard C. Parker prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Lafayette man pleaded guilty Wednesday to possessing a stolen handgun.

Cordera Dean Felix, 27, of Lafayette, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard T. Haik to one count of possession of a stolen firearm. According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, Lafayette Police arrested Felix on June 27, 2014, near the 900 block of East Simcoe Street on an active warrant. Officers recovered a Glock model 36, .45 caliber pistol from Felix.  He stated that he was approached by juveniles who showed him a bag containing approximately eight handguns. He purchased the .45 caliber pistol from them. The handgun was reported stolen from Dave’s Gun Shop in Lafayette.

Felix faces up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. A sentencing date was not set.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, which is a Department of Justice initiative designed to reduce firearm crimes by removing dangerous and persistent felons from the community and promote firearm safety.

The ATF and the Lafayette Police Department conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Dominic A. Rossetti is prosecuting the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a New Orleans man was sentenced to 18 months in prison for possessing counterfeit credit cards in order to make illegal purchases.

Izell Mayes, 24, of New Orleans, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Patricia Minaldi on one count of possession of 15 or more counterfeit or unauthorized access devices. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $1,591 restitution. According to the March 12, 2015 guilty plea, Mayes was riding in a car that was stopped for speeding on February 9, 2014 in Vinton, La. Upon further investigation, the car was searched and 50 counterfeit credit cards in Mayes’ name were found. Forty counterfeit cards under another name were also found in the car. Mayes later confessed to picking up the cards in Houston before traveling to Louisiana. He used the cards in department stores in Houston earlier that day. The last card used was in Baytown, Texas.

The U.S. Secret Service and the ATF investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Howard C. Parker prosecuted the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Lake Charles man and a Texas man pleaded guilty to their roles in a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy that stretched from Lake Charles to Houston.

Chumphai Bob Mireles, 52, of Lake Charles, and Michael Wayne Giese, 37, of Pearland, Texas, entered conditional guilty pleas to one count of conspiracy to distribute or possess with intent to distribute controlled dangerous substances before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter. According to evidence presented at the guilty pleas, law enforcement agents identified Mireles and Sandra Smith, 48, of Lake Charles, as traffickers of methamphetamine. Smith told a cooperating witness that Mireles was going to make a purchase in July of 2014 from their supplier. Law enforcement agents followed Mireles to Houston on July 3, 2014, where he bought methamphetamine from Giese. Agents arrested Mireles as he traveled back to Louisiana and located 86.53 grams of methamphetamine inside his vehicle.

Mireles and Giese face up to 10 years to life in prison, at least five years supervised release, and a $10 million fine. Smith pleaded guilty to the conspiracy count June 3, 2015. All three defendants are scheduled to be sentenced October 19, 2015.

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

MONROE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Downsville man was sentenced to 342 months in prison for producing child pornography.

Michael S. Golden, 53, of Downsville, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert G. James on one count of production of child pornography. He was also sentenced a lifetime of supervised release and ordered to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison. At Golden’s September 4, 2014 guilty plea, law enforcement agents detected Golden transmitting child pornography online. Agents found that on April 29, 2014, Golden took sexually explicit photographs of a minor in order to create child pornography. He then used an email account to transmit the child pornography.

“The nearly 30-year sentence given to Michael Golden today should send a strong message to others who sexually abuse children that they will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Finley stated. “Mr. Golden is a vile predator and the sentence imposed should protect others from his horrific conduct. The harm inflicted on minors through these acts cannot be measured. I want to thank the law enforcement agents and prosecutor for their work in brining Mr. Golden to justice.”

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice launched 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 (CEOS), 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. Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Investigations/Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) encourage 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 or through the Operation Predator smartphone app (http://www.ice.gov/predator/smartphone-app). Tips may be submitted anonymously.

This case was investigated by ICE Homeland Security Investigations and the Louisiana State Police.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert W. Gillespie Jr. prosecuted the case.

MONROE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Bastrop woman was sentenced to 21 months in prison for filing false tax returns.

Stella Marie Dunlap, 37, of Bastrop, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert G. James on one count of aiding and assisting in making and subscribing a false tax return. She was also sentenced to one year of supervised release and ordered to pay $104,410 restitution. According to evidence presented at the March 3, 2015 guilty plea, Dunlap filed fraudulent Forms 1040 during the 2010 and 2011 tax filing seasons while employed as a tax preparer at Faster Tax Services in Bastrop. The returns contained fraudulent W-2 income information from fictitious companies, and the information was used to file Earned Income Tax Credit withholdings. As a result of the fraud, the IRS issued $104,410 in refunds to which taxpayers where not entitled. Dunlap received kickbacks from some of the customers as part of the scheme.

Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth D. Reeg prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – A federal grand jury has returned a three-count indictment charging Det Stavangerske Dampskibsselskab AS (DSD Shipping) and four employees with violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS) and obstruction of justice in connection with the illegal discharge of contaminated waste-water directly into the sea, announced Assistant Attorney General John C. Cruden for the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley for the Western District of Louisiana.

DSD Shipping is a Norwegian-based shipping company that operates the oil tanker M/T Stavanger Blossom, a vessel engaged in the international transportation of crude oil.  Also indicted were four engineering officers employed by DSD Shipping to work aboard the vessel: Daniel Paul Dancu, 51, of Romania; Bo Gao, 49, of China; Xiaobing Chen, 34, of China; and Xin Zhong, 28, of China.

The operation of marine vessels, like the M/T Stavanger Blossom, generates large quantities of waste oil and oil-contaminated waste water.  International and U.S. law requires that these vessels use pollution prevention equipment to preclude the discharge of these materials.  Should any overboard discharges occur, they must be documented in an oil record book, a log that is regularly inspected by the U.S. Coast Guard.

“Companies operating vessels in navigable waterways have a responsibility to prevent oil spills and protect the public and the environment,” said U.S. Attorney Finley.  “One of our priorities is to help preserve the natural resources of this state.  Violators should be clear - charges will be filed against entities and persons who harm these resources and obstruct investigations.”

According to the indictment, in 2014, DSD Shipping and its employees discharged oil-contaminated waste water generated aboard the M/T Stavanger Blossom directly into the sea.  To hide the illegal discharges, DSD Shipping and its employees maintained a fictitious oil record book that failed to record the disposal, transfer, or overboard discharge of oil from the vessel.  The indictment further alleges that prior to an inspection by the U.S. Coast Guard, Chen ordered crewmembers to remove piping connected to the vessel’s overboard discharge valve, install new piping, and repaint the piping to hinder an inspection by the U.S. Coast Guard.

DSD Shipping and the engineering officers were charged with violating the APPS for failing to record overboard discharges in the vessel’s oil record book and with obstruction of justice for presenting false documents and deceiving the Coast Guard during an inspection in the Port of Lake Charles.  If convicted, DSD Shipping could be fined up to $500,000 per count, in addition to other possible penalties.  Dancu, Gao, Chen and Zhong face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for the obstruction of justice charges.

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This is the second indictment arising from a joint, multi-district investigation by the U.S. Coast Guard, Sector Mobile, U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Services and the Criminal Investigation Division for the Environmental Protection Agency.  DSD Shipping, Dancu, Gao, Chen and Zhong were previously indicted in the Southern District of Alabama with a seven-count indictment charging related conduct.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Howard C. Parker with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Louisiana, Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Anderson with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Alabama and Trial Attorney Shane N. Waller Environmental Crimes Section 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. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a prisoner at the U.S. Penitentiary in Pollock, La., was sentenced to 135 months in prison for his role in the strangling death of a fellow inmate.

Refugio Junior Sanchez, 36, of Belton, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of voluntary manslaughter. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to evidence presented at the February 26, 2015 guilty plea, Sanchez and fellow inmates, Benito Flores and the victim, were assigned to a Special Housing Unit (SHU) on March 12, 2008. Penitentiary guards found Sanchez and Flores with the victim who was lying unconscious on the floor of the SHU. The inmate was transported to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy found that the victim died of strangulation. In conjunction with physical and forensic evidence that was presented at the guilty plea hearing, Sanchez issued a written statement wherein he admitted to unlawfully killing the victim during a heated argument.

The FBI and the U.S. Bureau of Prisons conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Earl M. Campbell prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that an Alabama man was sentenced to 168 months in prison and a Caddo Parish woman was sentenced to 120 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

Mazda Rasasy, 37, of Daphne, Ala., and Angela Dawn Hardin, 46, of Shreveport, were sentenced by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. on one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.  They were also sentenced to four years of supervised release. According to evidence presented at the guilty pleas, Rasasy and Hardin conspired to possess with intent to distribute more than 50 grams or more of methamphetamine in August of 2013. Law enforcement agents seized 69.6 grams of methamphetamine on August 9, 2013 from Rasasy’s vehicle after he became a target in a local methamphetamine trafficking investigation.  Agents later searched Hardin’s residence, where another 141.9 grams of methamphetamine and 17 firearms were seized.  Agents learned during the investigation that Rasasy occasionally drove methamphetamine from Alabama to Shreveport, and Hardin allowed him to use her home as a base while he sold the methamphetamine in the area.  Rasasy has a prior federal conviction for distributing methamphetamine.

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

SHREVEPORT/LAFAYETTE/MONROE/LAKE CHARLES/ALEXANDRIA, La. – Summer camps are required to make reasonable accommodations to accept children with disabilities, U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today.

2015 Marks the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”). The ADA prohibits discrimination and ensures equal opportunity for persons with disabilities in employment, state and local government services, public accommodations, commercial facilities, and transportation.

Summer is here and the U.S. Attorney’s Office wants to ensure that children with disabilities have the opportunity to experience the fun of summer camps. The U.S. Attorney’s Office recently sent the attached flyer to hundreds of summer camps located within the Western District of Louisiana reminding them of their obligations under the ADA.

Summer camps, both private and those run by municipalities, must make reasonable modifications to enable campers with disabilities to participate fully in all camp programs and activities.  This generally means that children with disabilities are entitled to attend any camp or activity that non-disabled children attend, that camps must evaluate each child on an individual basis, and that camps must train their staff in the requirements of the ADA.  Camps are obligated to pay for the cost of any reasonable modifications necessary for disabled children to participate in camp activities, and parents should not be charged any additional fee beyond standard camp enrollment costs.

“Summer is always a special time for children,” Finley said. “Summer camps foster an environment where they can learn to work together, think creatively, and to be independent. Disabled children, whose needs can be reasonably accommodated, must be given the same opportunity as other children.”    

Additional information about the ADA is available at www.ada.gov, or through the U.S. Attorney’s Office at (337) 262-6618.

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that private investigator Robert Williamson pleaded guilty to charges related to his role in a pay-for-plea scheme that garnered favorable treatment for defendants charged with various state crimes.

Prior to the start of trial that was scheduled to begin today, Williamson, 64, of Lafayette, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote to one count of conspiracy, one count of bribery, and one count of Social Security fraud.

According to the guilty plea, Williamson, who is not licensed to practice law, was part of a conspiracy from March 2008 to February 2012 to solicit thousands of dollars from individuals with pending criminal charges in the 15th Judicial District. Williamson promised favorable resolutions to pending felony and misdemeanor cases, the majority of which were OWI cases. Williamson paid bribes in cash and other things of value to former personnel within the District Attorney=s Office for the 15th Judicial District and employees with other organizations associated with the OWI program, including Acadiana Outreach. Williamson also obtained false and fraudulent certifications from Acadiana Outreach, which certified that his clients completed court-ordered community service, when in fact the individuals had not. Williamson would obtain fraudulent driver safety training certificates showing that Williamson=s Aclients@ completed court-mandated driver improvement programs when they had not.  Some of those monies were for fines, penalties and other expenses. The total fraudulent amount will be determined at sentencing. During this time, Robert Williamson also received approximately $77,677.20 from the Social Security Administration that he was not entitled to receive.

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“Today marks a successful conclusion of the corruption case involving this defendant and former employees of the Lafayette District Attorney’s Office,” said U.S. Attorney Stephanie Finley. “This is a win for the people of our community who no longer have to be concerned about drunk drivers subverting the criminal justice system.  Mr. Williamson will now be held accountable for his role in this bribery scheme and for defrauding the Social Security Administration. I want to personally thank the investigators and prosecutors who worked so diligently on this case.”

Williamson faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison for the conspiracy count, 10 years in prison for the bribery count, and five years in prison for the Social Security fraud count. He also faces a $250,000 fine or both with up to three years of supervised release for each count. A sentencing date of September 25, 2015 was set.

The FBI and the Social Security Administration – Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Luke Walker and Robert C. Abendroth are prosecuting the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that an Opelousas woman pleaded guilty to stealing a woman’s identity so she could cash a tax refund check worth more than $6,000.

Hailey Guidry, 33, of Opelousas, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard T. Haik to one count of identity theft.  According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, Guidry worked intermittently for her sister’s businesses, which are Guidry’s Tax Service and Dee’s Tax Service. Part of Guidry’s duties involved handling refund checks customers elected to have sent to her sister’s businesses. On May 8, 2013, a refund for a customer of Dee’s Tax Service was received, and Guidry later took possession of the check. Guidry then obtained a false identification card in the name of the customer on May 14, 2013 and cashed the $6,638.05 check the next day using the false identification card.

Guidry faces up to 15 years in prison, two years supervised release, a $250,000 fine and forfeiture of the items seized during the investigation. A sentencing date was not set.

The IRS conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney David C. Joseph and Myers P. Namie are prosecuting the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a man from Alabama pleaded guilty to transporting sexually explicit pictures of a minor.

Mario Duran, 49, of Jemison, Ala., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard T. Haik to one count of transporting child pornography.  According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, Acadia Parish Sheriff’s Deputies, while investigating another case, made contact with Duran in April of 2014 while he was parked in his truck in the Crowley, La., Wal-Mart parking lot. Present with Duran were two minor females. The minors said they did not know Duran, and that he had picked them up in Alabama and was transporting them to Texas to meet their father. The vehicle was searched, and three cell phones were found. Upon further investigation, law enforcement agents found sexually explicit pictures of a minor on one of the phones. The images on the phone were not of the minors Duran was transporting.

Duran faces five to 20 years in prison, five years to life of supervised release, a $250,000 fine and registration as a sex offender. A sentencing date was not set.

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice launched 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 (CEOS), 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. Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Investigations/Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) encourage 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 or through the Operation Predator smartphone app (http://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 Jamilla A. Bynog and Myers P. Namie are prosecuting the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Lake Charles woman pleaded guilty Tuesday to her role in a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy.

Sandra Lynette Smith, 48, of Lake Charles, entered a conditional guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to distribute or possess with intent to distribute controlled dangerous substances before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Patricia Minaldi. According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, law enforcement agents identified Smith and Chumphai Bob Mireles as traffickers of methamphetamine. Smith told a cooperating witness that Mireles was going to make a purchase in July of 2014. Law enforcement agents followed Mireles to Houston where he bought methamphetamine from Michael Wayne Giese. Agents arrested Mireles as he traveled back to Louisiana. Smith was questioned and said that Mireles would meet Giese once or twice a week to make purchases, and they would sell the drugs after he returned.

Smith face up to 20 years in prison, three years supervised release, and a $1 million fine.  A sentencing date of October 19, 2015 was set. The trial for Mireles and Giese is set to start June 15, 2015.

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

            MONROE, La. – The Justice Department has announced that the U.S. District Court of the Western District of Louisiana yesterday approved a court-ordered agreement with the Lincoln Parish School Board to desegregate classrooms at four elementary schools serving students in grades kindergarten through fifth in Ruston, La.  The department and the board jointly filed the consent order, after an investigation by the United States found significant racial isolation in the elementary school classrooms (called homerooms) within the Ruston attendance zone.

          Under the consent order, the board will implement the following changes at the four elementary schools in Ruston:

• assign students to homerooms so that the percentage of black and white students in each homeroom reflects the percentage of black and white students in each grade level at each school;
• refrain from grouping students into homerooms based on students’ perceived abilities and ensure that students of all academic levels are assigned to each homeroom;
• ensure that no homeroom class has more than forty percent special education inclusion students; and
• if the board chooses to continue operating the Advanced Learning Academy (“ALA”) program, it will transform the ALA program into a school-wide, racially diverse enrichment program designed to develop the gifts and talents of all students.

            The consent order is part of a longstanding desegregation case monitored and enforced by the United States.  In reviewing the board’s compliance with previous orders on student assignment, the department concluded that the board was engaged in a variety of practices that contributed to the racial isolation in the elementary school homerooms.  These practices include the board’s use of ability grouping and the manner in which the board implemented its special education inclusion and ALA programs.

            “We commend the Lincoln Parish School Board’s commitment to resolve this case by addressing the racial isolation in its elementary school homerooms in Ruston,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division.  “This consent order reinforces the Civil Rights Division’s steadfast commitment to ensuring that all students have access to equal educational opportunities, regardless of race or color.”

            “This order is a significant step for the Lincoln Parish School Board toward achieving the goals of desegregation and equal access to education for all students,” said U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley of the Western District of Louisiana.  “We look forward to continuing to work with the Board to ensure that these changes are successfully implemented.”

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            Upon full implementation of the consent order, the board may seek court approval to dismiss the desegregation case in the area of student assignment in December 2016.

           Promoting school desegregation and enforcing Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a top priority of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.  Additional information about the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt.

MONROE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a federal grand jury indicted a Mississippi woman 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, 48, of Byram, Miss., was indicted on one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, 11 counts of mail fraud and 10 counts of aggravated identity theft. According to the indictment, 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.

Brumfield faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the conspiracy count and each mail fraud count. She faces a mandatory term of imprisonment of two years for the aggravated identity theft counts, which must run consecutive to any other term of imprisonment. She also faces up to three years of supervised release and possible forfeiture of property derived from the proceeds of the offenses.

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The IRS – Criminal Investigation Division conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth D. Reeg is prosecuting the case.

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

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Pennsylvania man was sentenced to 151 months in prison for using the internet to attempt to entice a child in Lake Charles, La., to engage in sexual activity and for possessing child pornography.

Timothy Lee Kelly, 41, of Jeannette, Penn., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard T. Haik on one count of using a facility in interstate commerce to attempt to cause a minor to engage in elicit sexual activity and on one count of possession of child pornography. He was also sentenced to a lifetime of supervised release and is required to register as a sex offender.

According to evidence presented at the guilty pleas, Kelly began communicating with a 13-year-old girl in Lake Charles in January of 2013. He discussed sexually explicit conduct, sent explicit images of himself to the girl and requested she send sexually explicit pictures of herself. He also requested that the girl have sex with him and discussed traveling to Louisiana for that purpose. In February of 2013, Kelly was arrested in Pennsylvania for his contact with the minor. While examining the computer and electronic storage devices Kelly owned, agents found child pornography that included adult males sexually assaulting prepubescent children.

“We will aggressively pursue those who sexually abuse minors and possess child pornography,” Finley stated. “Keeping children safe is one of our highest priorities in this District. I hope this serves as a deterrent to anyone seeking to acquire this type of material and a warning that child predators cannot hide.”

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice launched 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 (CEOS), 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. Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Investigations/Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) encourage 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 or through the Operation Predator smartphone app (http://www.ice.gov/predator/smartphone-app). Tips may be submitted anonymously.

Homeland Security Investigations, the Greenburg Pennsylvania Police Department and the Delaware County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Luke Walker and Jamilla A. Bynog prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Broussard man pleaded guilty to trying to illegally ship firearms, ammunition and other military grade items to Lebanon.

Joe Ali Youssef, 54, of Broussard, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard T. Haik to one count of delivery of firearms to common carrier for interstate and foreign shipment without notification.  According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers conducted a random examination of two containers on April 17, 2014. Upon further inspection, agents found four pistols, two rifles, a shotgun, more than 8,000 rounds of various caliber ammunition, body armor, military items and other firearms accessories hidden inside secret compartments within household furniture. Records showed that the containers were to be shipped to an address near Beirut, Lebanon. Youssef is a naturalized citizen of the United States, originally born in Beirut, Lebanon. Youssef had an airline ticket booked to travel around the time the shipment was scheduled to arrive in Lebanon. Youssef provided the shipping company with a detailed list of the contents of the containers to be shipped, but the list did not include the hidden firearms, ammo and military items.  The containers were set to export from the port in Houston, Texas, and the shipping company never received notification that the shipment contained firearms, ammunition and military items. Agents searched Youssef’s Broussard home and found more firearms and ammunition as well as records between himself and the shipping company.

Youssef faces up to five years in prison, three years supervised release, a $250,000 fine and forfeiture of the items seized during the investigation. A sentencing date was not set.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Homeland Security Investigations, FBI and ATF conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Myers P. Namie is prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Shreveport man was sentenced to 24 months in prison for failing to update his sex offender registration when he moved.

Justin Ray Merritt, 33, of Shreveport, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter on one count of failure to update his sex offender registration.  He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release. According to evidence presented at the February 26, 2015 guilty plea, Merritt reported his residence to be in Shreveport in December 17, 2013 as required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act. Merritt was discovered living in Texarkana, Texas, on August 14, 2014. He admitted to not updating his sex offender registration information when moving to Texarkana and to have been living there since November of 2013. He was convicted in 2004 of felony carnal knowledge of a juvenile in Caddo Parish, which requires 15 years of sex offender registration.

The U.S. Marshals Service and Louisiana Probation and Parole conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth D. Reeg prosecuted the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that an Opelousas man pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 15 months in prison for leaving a halfway house without permission.

Christopher James Courvelle, 45, of Opelousas, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Patricia Minaldi on one count of escape from custody. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the guilty plea, Courvelle left a federally-approved halfway house in Lake Charles on March 3, 2015 without notifying those in charge. The U.S. Marshals Service was notified and began an investigation. Courvelle was located at a bus depot near the Road King truck stop in Lake Charles and was arrested on March 4, 2015. He had been placed in the halfway house after being convicted in June of 2012 for failing to update his registration pursuant to the Sex Offender Registration Act. He had also previously been convicted of simple rape, which requires a lifetime of sex offender registration.
 

The U.S. Marshals Service and U.S. Bureau of Prisons investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jamilla A. Bynog and Howard C. Parker prosecuted the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Lake Charles resident was sentenced to 33 months in prison for not registering as a sex offender.

Michael Dewain Dugas Smith, 35, of Lake Charles, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Patricia Minaldi on one count of failure to register pursuant to the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act. He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release. According to evidence presented at the February 10, 2015 guilty plea, Smith was previously convicted in January 10, 2007 in the 18th Judicial District Court in Brevard County, Fla., of sexual battery with use of actual physical force. After he was released from prison in Florida in January of 2013, he moved to Louisiana but did not register as a sex offender as required by law. Smith was arrested in February of 2013 in Lake Charles for disturbing the peace. He later admitted to agents that he traveled to Louisiana where he has relatives and did not register as a sex offender.

The U.S. Marshals Service conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Howard C. Parker prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Last night, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana approved a comprehensive consent order filed by the Justice Department, the Avoyelles Parish School Board and private plaintiffs in United States v. Avoyelles Parish School Board.  The consent order requires the school district to implement remedies in student assignment and discipline to complete the desegregation of the Avoyelles Parish school system.

The Avoyelles Parish School Board serves 5,400 students and has been operating under a continuing duty to desegregate its schools since 1967.

The court retained jurisdiction over the case to ensure that the school board fully implements the relief required by the consent order and complies with applicable federal law.  The district may move for dismissal of the case if it successfully complies with the consent order for three years, during which time the school board must:

• Implement a new student assignment and transfer policy, including better address verification measures;
• Adopt a uniform admission process for the school system’s charter school along with a rigorous publicity and outreach program directed toward African-American students;
• Strengthen advertising and marketing of the New Tech magnet program, which is located at a majority African-American high school;
• Conduct a comprehensive study to determine whether a magnet program can be established at a racially identifiable African-American elementary school and take proactive steps to encourage white students to transfer to the school;
• Ensure classes within schools are desegregated;
• Revise discipline policies to reduce racial disparities in the use of exclusionary discipline and expand the school board’s positive behavior interventions and supports program; and
• Hire an experienced consultant to monitor and report annually on the school board’s efforts to comply with the consent order.

consent_order_ecf_330_05-21-15.pdf (2.63 MB)

“The Avoyelles Parish School Board’s unanimous vote to approve the consent order reflects our shared goal of securing equal educational opportunities for all students,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division.  “We are confident that this agreement will bring meaningful progress, and we look forward to working closely with the School Board over the next three years to bring this case to a successful close.”

“My office is committed to ensuring that this district’s schools provide all students with equal educational opportunities,” stated U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley of the Western District of Louisiana. “I applaud the Avoyelles Parish School Board for its efforts to eliminate the effects of state-mandated segregation. It is our goal to assist in any way possible so that the Consent Order will work to provide all students in Avoyelles Parish with a quality education, a safe and fruitful learning environment, and academic offerings to help them achieve their dreams.”

Promoting school desegregation and enforcing Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a top priority of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt.

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Shreveport man was sentenced Wednesday to 210 months in prison as an Armed Career Offender for possessing a firearm after being convicted of multiple felonies.

Ronnie Eugene Bishop, 39, of Shreveport, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote on two counts of possessing a firearm after being convicted of a felony. He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release. According to evidence presented at the December 9, 2014, guilty plea, Bishop pawned a 12-gauge shotgun on December 23, 2013, and a .270 caliber rifle on December 27, 2013, at the same pawn shop in Bossier City, La. Both firearms had been reported stolen by the owner. Prior to pawning the firearms, Bishop had multiple felony convictions and was sentenced as an Armed Career Offender. The mandatory minimum sentence for an Armed Career Offender is 15 years in prison.

To be found an Armed Career Offender under federal law, a defendant must have three previous convictions that are either a violent felony or a serious drug offense, or both, committed on occasions different from one another.A serious drug offense can be an offense under federal or state law if it involves the manufacturing, distributing or possessing with intent to manufacture or distribute a controlled substance for which a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years or more is prescribed by law.

“This defendant had multiple felony convictions and was prohibited by law from possessing a firearm; yet, he not only continued to possess them, but he was pawning stolen firearms,” Finley stated. “The safety and security of the community is our highest priority. This case is a result of a collaborative effort of federal and state agencies working together. I want to thank the ATF, Louisiana Department of Corrections, Probation and Parole Division, and the Assistant U.S. Attorney who worked on this case.”

The ATF and the Louisiana Department of Corrections Probation and Parole Division conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert W. Gillespie Jr. prosecuted the case as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods Program, which is a Department of Justice initiative with state and local authorities designed to reduce the possession of firearms by prohibited persons and the use of firearms to commit crimes.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that two Lake Charles retail store owners pleaded guilty to selling more than 800 counterfeit items.

Kayed Masoud, 31, and Ahmad Alnaasan, 42, both of Lake Charles, entered  conditional guilty pleas to one count of trademark infringement to U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay. The pleas will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Patricia Minaldi. According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, members of the Sulphur Police Department went to K&A Golden Fashions to recover stolen property and noticed a large number of counterfeit items such as brand name purses and shoes. After an investigation, Homeland Security Investigation agents executed a search warrant on September 26, 2013 and found 866 counterfeit items with branding such as “Nike,” “Coach” and “Polo.” The value of the items is estimated to be between $30,000 and $60,000.

The defendants face up to 10 years in prison, two to three years of supervised release, and a $2 million fine.  A sentencing date of August 27, 2015 was set.

Homeland Security Investigations and the Sulphur Police Department conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Howard C. Parker is prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Bossier City man pleaded guilty Wednesday to receiving child pornography.

Kenneth Ray Jurls, 40, of Bossier City, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote for one count of receiving child pornography. According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, law enforcement agents detected someone downloading child pornography using a peer-to-peer internet file sharing program. Law enforcement agents searched Jurls’ home on July 16, 2014 and seized his computer. A forensic examination of the computer revealed Jurls had been downloading child pornography for years. More than 1,000 images and videos of child pornography were found on his computer. The images included prepubescent children engaging in sexual and sadistic acts.

Because Jurls has two prior convictions for possession of child pornography in Bossier Parish, he faces 15 to 40 years in prison, not less than five years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. He is also required to register as a sex offender. A sentencing date of September 15, 2015 was set.

Homeland Security Investigations, Louisiana Attorney General’s Office and the Bossier City Marshal’s Office investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael O’Mara 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, 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) encourage 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 or through the Operation Predator smartphone app (http://www.ice.gov/predator/smartphone-app). Tips may be submitted anonymously.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Lake Charles man pleaded guilty Thursday to receiving child pornography on his home computer.

Ricky Joseph Guidry, 31, of Lake Charles, entered a conditional guilty plea for one count of receiving child pornography to U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Patricia Minaldi. According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, a witness told law enforcement agents there was child pornography on Guidry’s computer. After conducting an examination of the computer, it was determined that the defendant downloaded child pornography on October 2nd and 3rd of 2014. The child pornography included prepubescent child pornography that was sadistic in nature.

Guidry faces five to 20 years in prison, not less than five years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. He is also required to register as a sex offender. A sentencing date was not set.

Homeland Security Investigations and the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney John Luke Walker 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, 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) encourage 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 or through the Operation Predator smartphone app (http://www.ice.gov/predator/smartphone-app). Tips may be submitted anonymously.

WASHINGTON – A federal court has barred a New Iberia woman and her business from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.

The civil injunction order, to which Joyce Bougere-Keyes consented, was entered by U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick Hanna.  The government’s complaint alleged that Bougere-Keyes, and her business, Joyce Tax & Financial Service LLC of New Iberia, La., prepared federal income tax returns for customers that reported fabricated and/or inflated business income and expenses on Schedules C (Profit or Loss from Business) to fraudulently maximize the amount of the earned income tax credit for her customers.  As described in the complaint, many of the defendant’s customers reported that they were unaware their returns contained business income or expenses, or confirmed that the returns otherwise misrepresented these items.  The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) audited 71 federal income tax returns filed by the defendant’s customers for tax year 2010, which resulted in the disallowance of $210,571 in improperly claimed earned income tax credits on those returns alone, according to the suit.

“This office is committed to stopping tax return preparers who file false tax returns and take advantage of the system,” said U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley of the Western District of Louisiana. “We will continue to seek appropriate relief against tax preparers who file fraudulent tax returns in this district.”

The complaint further alleged that Bougere-Keyes improperly claimed education credits for taxpayers who were not entitled to them.

Bougere-Keyes has prepared more than 7,500 individual income tax returns since 2009, according to the suit.  Based on the number of years the defendant has been preparing tax returns and the types of fraudulent conduct alleged, the loss to the U.S. Treasury caused by the defendant’s conduct is likely more than $1 million, according to the complaint.

bougere-keys_consent_injunction.pdf (494.49 KB)

Return preparer fraud is one of the IRS’s Dirty Dozen Tax Scams for 2015.  The IRS has some tips on its website for choosing a tax preparer, and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers.  In the past decade, the Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers and tax scheme promoters.  Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website.  An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on here.  If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Bossier City woman was sentenced Monday to 20 months in prison for filing false tax returns.

Susan Santoro, 40, of Bossier City, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote on one count of making or subscribing a false tax return. She was also sentenced to one year of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution of $308,213 to Top Dollar Pawn in Bossier City, $88,347 to the Internal Revenue Service and $44,554.63 to the Louisiana Department of Revenue. According to evidence presented at the January 26, 2015 guilty plea, Santoro, who was the general manager of Top Dollar Pawn in Bossier City from 2009 to 2011, embezzled more than $300,000 from the company.  She embezzled the money by falsifying records, which she regularly reviewed and reconciled.  A review of her personal bank accounts revealed numerous large, unexplained cash deposits that far exceeded her income from Top Dollar Pawn.  The IRS considers the money, which Santoro did not report on her tax returns, as income.

“We are pleased with the sentencing of Ms. Santoro and will continue to work with our federal partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to vigorously pursue those who engage in financial crimes,” stated Special Agent in Charge of Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation – New Orleans Field Office, Jerome R. McDuffie. “Ms. Santoro used her place of employment to engage in illegal activity and our office will continue to investigate and prosecute those who engage in these actions.”

The FBI and IRS conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brandon B. Brown and Cytheria D. Jernigan prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT/LAFAYETTE/ALEXANDRIA/LAKECHARLES/MONROE, La. – Communities across the United States are coming together during National Police Week - May 10th through May 15th - to honor and remember those 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 time of remembrance of fallen officers who gave their lives to protect ours,” stated U.S. Attorney Stephanie Finley.  “Law enforcement officers risk their lives for all of us, and the men and women of the Western District salute and remember them.  In our communities, their contributions are felt and deeply appreciated.”

This year, the names of 273 officers killed in the line of duty are being added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C., during the 27th Annual 2015 Candlelight Vigil on the evening of May 13.  These names include officers who were killed during 2014 and officers who died in previous years who have not been previously added to the Memorial.

The fallen officers of 2014 include two members of the law enforcement community in the Western District of Louisiana.  They are:

• Deputy Sheriff Carlos Papillion of the St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office, who died January 28, 2014.
• Deputy Sheriff Allen Bares Jr. of the Vermilion Parish Sheriff’s Office, who died June 23, 2014.

In order to assist local public safety officers in the work that they do, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Louisiana, offers safety and survival training throughout the year to increase awareness of the hazards they encounter on a daily basis.  The course curriculum and sessions are overseen by the Western District’s Law Enforcement Community Coordinator, Michael Campbell, a former Chief of Police for the City of Shreveport.  The Western District of Louisiana consists of 42 of Louisiana’s 64 parishes, and the courses are open to federal, state, local, military and tribal offices.

“We have and will continue to offer officer safety and survival training to increase awareness of the hazards our public safety officers face on a daily basis,” Finley stated. “Our goal is for all public safety officers to return home to their families at the end of their shifts each and every day.”

The Department of Justice also offers numerous grants to law enforcement agencies such as a new program to help equip officers with body cameras. The Department of Justice announced this month a $20 million Body-Worn Camera (BWC) Pilot Partnership Program to respond to the immediate needs of local and tribal law enforcement organizations. The investment includes $17 million in competitive grants for the purchase of body-worn cameras, $2 million for training and technical assistance and $1 million for the development of evaluation tools to study best practices.

“This new program will enhance the services and protections local law enforcement agencies provide in our communities,” Finley stated. “The program can also build trust and keep officers and the public safe. I urge law enforcement agencies and local governments to look into implementing this program and accessing available grants to reduce associated costs.”

Body-worn_camera_fact_sheet_.pdf (842.05 KB)

Administered by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) under the Justice Department’s Office of Justice Programs (OJP), the BWC pilot program will provide support to help law enforcement agencies develop, implement and evaluate body-worn camera programs across the United States. For additional information about the BWC Pilot Implementation Program, visit this website: http://go.usa.gov/3BtMW.

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that the owner and operator of a Shreveport intensive outpatient program company was sentenced Monday to 27 months in prison for charging Medicare for services never rendered.

Sharon Monroe, 43, of Shreveport, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. for one count of health care fraud and one count of wire fraud. She was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $992,479.08 restitution. According to evidence presented at the September 11, 2014 guilty plea, Monroe, owner of Monroe Medical Management LLC, submitted fraudulent claims to Medicare for Part B psychotherapy services from 2007 to 2011. As a result of the fraudulent claims, she improperly received payments from Medicare. Monroe filed claims for psychotherapy services that were never performed. She also used physicians’ Medicare provider numbers to submit claims without the physicians’ knowledge. In some cases, she claimed her employees rendered services in excess of 24 hours a day, that some of her employees were qualified to perform services when they were not, and that some of the services were performed at medical offices when they were not.

  The FBI and Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Earl M. Campbell prosecuted the case.

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a New Iberia man pleaded guilty to his role in a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy in the New Iberia and Lafayette areas.

Corey F. Freyou, 37, of New Iberia, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard T. Haik to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. According to the guilty plea, Freyou, along with codefendants Elliot Jolet, 35, and Anita Desormeaux, 43, both of New Iberia, conspired to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine in the New Iberia and Lafayette areas from October 2013 until September of 2014. Jolet and Desormeaux purchased methamphetamine in Texas and transported it to the south central Louisiana area. Freyou traveled with Jolet, Desormeaux and others, purchased methamphetamine in Texas, stored methamphetamine in his home, and sold the methamphetamine. Freyou was supplied with half an ounce of methamphetamine per week and admitted responsibility for at least 500 grams during the conspiracy.  Freyou also forfeited his F-250 truck, which was used in the conspiracy.

Freyou, Jolet and Desormeaux are three of 14 defendants charged in a 20-count indictment returned on November 12, 2014. The other defendants are: Gary Hunt, 59, of Spendora, Texas; Ko Chanhkongshinh, 38, of Youngsville, La.; Jenee Lynn Hargrave, 29, of Scott, La.; David Lowery, 33, of New Iberia; Everette Dupuis, 39, of New Iberia; Michael Guidry, 45, of Erath, La.; Tyrone Howard, 43, of Youngsville; Kevin Jefferson, 31, of New Iberia; Nared Souphannavong, 29, of New Iberia; Brandi Boullion, 28, of New Iberia; and Dewey Migues, 36, of New Iberia. The investigation also resulted in the seizure of crystal methamphetamine, more than $5,000 in cash, a vehicle, and several firearms.

Freyou faces up to 20 years in prison, up to a $1 million fine, and at least three years supervised release. A sentencing date was not set.

The defendants were arrested as part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Operation. The DEA, Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office, Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office, Vermilion Parish Sheriff’s Office and the Lafayette Police Department investigated the case.  The OCDETF program is a joint federal, state and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking and is the nation’s primary tool for targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations,  coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources, and disrupting and dismantling of major drug trafficking organizations.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Myers P. Namie, Daniel J. McCoy and Robert F. Moore are prosecuting the case.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that an Egyptian national was sentenced Monday to six months in prison for refusing to leave the country twice after being ordered to depart.

Mohamed Admed Hassan Abdallah Omran, 39, of Egypt, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on two counts of failure to depart for resisting removal after final deportation orders. He was also sentenced to one year of supervised release. Evidence admitted at the defendant’s trial, which started on February 4 and ended February 5, 2015, revealed that after an immigration judge issued a final order of removal from the country, U.S. Immigration Enforcement agents attempted to remove Omran from the country via the Alexandria International Airport using commercial flights on two separate occasions.  The defendant hampered agents’ ability to remove him by verbally and physically resisting agents on June 12, 2013, and a second time on July 24, 2013. The defendant’s actions prevented him from boarding the flights because of airline and Transportation Security Administration safety policies.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement - Enforcement and Removal Operations conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys F. Michael O’Mara and Cytheria D. Jernigan prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today that the Housing Authority of the city of Ruston, La., has agreed to pay $175,000 and adopt comprehensive new policies to settle a race discrimination lawsuit filed by the department.  The settlement must still be approved by U.S. District Judge Robert G. James of the Western District of Louisiana.

The department’s lawsuit, filed in September 2013, alleged that the Ruston Housing Authority (RHA) had long segregated the 300 apartments in its five public housing developments by assigning vacancies to applicants based on their race, rather than on their place on the waiting list.  Specifically, the department alleged that the RHA disproportionately assigned white applicants to its two developments that were located in the predominantly white neighborhoods of Ruston—Louise Homes and Maryland Plaza Homes.  At the same time, the department alleged, RHA primarily assigned African-American applicants to the complexes located in predominantly African-American neighborhoods—Eastwood Homes, Greenwood Homes and Truman Homes.  When it originally began developing housing in the 1950s and early 1960s, the RHA explicitly reserved Louise Homes and Maryland Plaza for “white” persons, while reserving Greenwood and Truman for what it termed “colored” persons.

Although the RHA no longer maintained this de jure system, the department alleged that it had continued to segregate its complexes in practice.  During the litigation, the former Ruston Housing Authority project manager from 2003 to 2013 admitted in her sworn deposition testimony that on numerous occasions she skipped over earlier applying African-American applicants in order to fill vacancies at Louise Drive Homes with later applying white applicants.  She also testified that on multiple occasions she did not offer eligible white applicants available apartments in the nearly all-black Eastwood Homes, Greenwood Homes and Truman Homes, but instead offered those units to later-applying African American applicants.

“People who seek public housing, like all other home seekers, have the right to access housing free from racial discrimination,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division.  “It is particularly distressing that, almost 50 years after the passage of the Fair Housing Act, this public housing authority was still filling vacancies based on the color of an applicant’s skin, rather than based on when he or she had applied.  We are pleased that the Ruston Housing Authority has agreed to dismantle this segregated system and compensate its victims.”

“We have zero tolerance for housing providers that discriminate against individuals based on race,” said U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley of the Western District of Louisiana.  “Today’s settlement is an example of our continuing effort to end discrimination in such a vital need, housing.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to addressing unlawful discriminatory practices and enforcing anti-discrimination laws that protect the rights of all people.”

“Assigning persons housing based on the color of their skin not only robs them of the basic dignity everyone seeking housing should be afforded, it violates the Fair Housing Act,” said Assistant Secretary Gustavo Velasquez of the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity Office.  “HUD is committed to working with the Justice Department to take action against housing providers whose policies and practices are discriminatory.”

Upon court approval, the settlement, which is in the form of a consent decree, will require the RHA to implement nondiscriminatory policies and procedures to ensure compliance with the Fair Housing Act and to ensure that RHA housing units are made available for rent based on an applicant’s position on its waiting list, irrespective of race.  The decree also requires that if RHA builds or acquires additional units, they are to be located in areas that do not further racial segregation.  In addition, RHA employees who are responsible for making housing decisions will receive training on the new nondiscriminatory policies and procedures, the consent decree and the Fair Housing Act.

Read the Ruston Housing Authority consent order here (4.87 MB)

In addition, the RHA will pay $175,000 to compensate 19 individuals who suffered damages as a result of the RHA passing them over for available housing units because of their race.  Additionally, for those 19 victims of the RHA’s discriminatory actions identified in the consent order, the RHA will allow those who are current tenants to request a transfer to another complex on a priority basis.  It will also permit those identified individuals who are prior applicants and former tenants to reapply and, upon approval of their applications, give them priority for a unit at a complex of their choice.

The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin and disability.  More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.usdoj.gov/crt.  Individuals who believe that they have been victims of housing discrimination can call the division’s Housing Discrimination Tip Line at 1-800-896-7743, e-mail the Justice Department at fairhousing@usdoj.gov or contact HUD at 1-800-669-9777.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a New Iberia man was sentenced Thursday to 108 months in prison on charges that he downloaded child pornography onto his computer.

Jason Daniel Scott, 32, of New Iberia, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Patricia Minaldi on one count of possession of child pornography. He was also sentenced to a lifetime of supervised release and must register as a sex offender. According to evidence presented at the January 29, 2015 guilty plea, agents detected child pornography being downloaded from an internet file sharing service in October of 2010 to a residence in Lafayette Parish, which is where Scott was living at the time. The home was searched on October 20, 2010, and a computer was seized. Once the computer’s hard drive was examined, agents found child pornography that was downloaded from the internet.

Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney John Luke Walker 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. Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Investigations/Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) encourage 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.

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Lafayette man pleaded guilty to possessing eight stolen firearms.

Rico D. King, 39, of Lafayette, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard T. Haik to one count of possession of stolen firearms. According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, during an investigation into Lafayette burglaries and after developing leads as to the location of the stolen firearms, agents executed a search warrant in September of 2014 at a residence in Lafayette where King was an occupant.  During the search, agents found King in possession of the stolen firearms including a .26-06 caliber rifle, two .25-06 caliber rifles, a .410 gauge shotgun, two .12 gauge shotguns, a .22 caliber semi-automatic rifle and a .270 caliber rifle. Victims of the burglaries reported all eight firearms as stolen.

King faces up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.  A sentencing date was not set.

Multiple agencies including the ATF, FBI, Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office and Lafayette Metro Narcotics Task Force conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert C. Abendroth and Kelly P. Uebinger are prosecuting the case as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods.  Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide program designed to reduce violence by aggressively enforcing existing federal firearms laws.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a man from Mississippi pleaded guilty to striking a man in the head with a baseball bat at the Fort Polk military base.

Justin Corey Thurston, 23, of McLain, Miss., entered a conditional guilty plea on Thursday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay, to one count of assault with a dangerous weapon. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Patricia Minaldi. According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, Thurston visited the home of his estranged wife on September 6, 2014, at the Fort Polk military base. While at his wife’s residence, Thurston and his wife were involved in a physical altercation after she refused to give him her cell phone. Thurston then exited the house and struck a man in the head with the baseball bat.

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

The U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command and the FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys David C. Joseph and Joseph T. Mickel are prosecuting the case.

LAKE CHARLES, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a DeQuincy man pleaded guilty to making $100 counterfeit bills at a casino hotel.

Deldrick Shykil Fowler, 22, of DeQuincy, La., entered a conditional guilty plea on Thursday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay, to one count of counterfeiting obligations to the United States. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge Patricia Minaldi. According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, surveillance equipment was used to observe Fowler on August 12, 2014, at the Isle of Capri Casino in Lake Charles producing counterfeit $100 bills in a hotel room. Law enforcement seized two counterfeit $100 bills, 16 uncut sheets of $100 bills, and 10 uncut sheets of $100 bills printed on only one side.

Fowler faces up to 20 years in prison, five years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. A sentencing date of August 6, 2015 was set.

The U.S. Secret Service conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert Abendroth and Howard Parker are prosecuting the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Minden man was sentenced to 188 months in prison for distributing child pornography.

Michael A. Webb, 26, of Minden, La., was sentenced on Wednesday by United States District Judge S. Maurice Hicks, Jr., on one count of distribution of child pornography. He was also sentenced to serve five years of supervised release. According to evidence presented at the January 21, 2015, guilty plea, Webb responded to a social network online profile for a 13-year-old girl. He sent the girl child pornography, sexually explicit images of himself and arranged to meet the girl in Springhill, La. The online profile for the girl was fake, and Webb actually was communicating with an undercover police officer. Webb was arrested on August 8, 2014 while at work.

The FBI, Webster Parish Sheriff’s Office and the Springhill Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Earl M. Campbell 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.

Those concerned may also leave tips with the FBI at tips.fbi.gov. Tips may be submitted anonymously.  The Shreveport FBI office number is (318) 861-1890.

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Texas man was sentenced to 240 months in prison for conspiring to sell methamphetamine in the Winn Parish area.

Alwyn Nord Stewart Jr., 35, of Houston, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter on one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release. According to evidence presented at the January 12, 2015, guilty plea, Alwyn Stewart, David Lamont Mangum, 38, and Altomio Kente Phillips, 29, both of Winnfield, and Demetrius Marie Jackson, 31, of Deridder, La., conspired to distribute methamphetamine transported from Houston to the Winnfield area from the beginning of 2011 until September 2012. Stewart was the supplier of methamphetamine to Mangum. Stewart and Mangum would arrange transport of the drugs to Louisiana, and other co-conspirators assisted with the delivery and distribution.

The other conspirators were sentenced on January 27, 2015. Mangum was sentenced to 204 months in prison for the conspiracy count and for one count of possession of a firearm in relation to drug trafficking. He was also sentenced to 10 years of supervised release. Phillips was sentenced to 90 months in prison and 5 years of supervised release for one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Jackson was sentenced to one day in prison and five years of supervised release for one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Stewart and the other conspirators forfeited the property seized during the case, which includes $29,067 in cash, two plots of land in Winnfield, seven vehicles, and other seized items.

The defendants were arrested as part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Operation named “Trend Setters.” The DEA 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 targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations and coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources to disrupt and dismantle these organizations and to seize their assets.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys James G. Cowles Jr., Brandon B. Brown and Joseph G. Jarzabek prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Webster Parish woman was sentenced to 60 months in prison for possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute at a Springhill retail store.

Reiny L. Ratliff, 22, of Springhill, La., was sentenced on Wednesday by United States District Judge S. Maurice Hicks, Jr., on one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. She was also sentenced to five years of supervised release. According to evidence presented at the January 15, 2015, guilty plea, Springhill Police responded on March 12, 2014, to a complaint that someone was illegally parked in a handicapped spot at a local retail store. While questioning Ratliff, the officer saw drug paraphernalia in the car, arrested her, and impounded the vehicle. A search of her purse revealed 229.7 grams of methamphetamine, a pair of brass knuckles, and $5,347 in cash.

The DEA and Springhill Police Department conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney James G. Cowles, Jr. prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Ruston woman was sentenced to two years of probation and a $1,000 fine for cashing money orders without posting payments to the U.S. Treasury.

Amanda Murphy, 36, of Ruston, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter on one count of misappropriation of postal funds. According to evidence presented at the January 22, 2015, guilty plea, Murphy intentionally delayed reporting 37 money orders, which totaled $10,318.76 from December 13, 2013 to February 10, 2014, while serving as Postmaster for the Dubberly Post Office. When questioned by agents, Murphy admitted to cashing the money orders to herself and delaying payments. She also falsified U.S. Postal Service daily reports on money order transactions in order to accomplish the scheme. Agents also audited her cash drawer and found a $1,077.17 shortage.  Murphy has paid all restitution in full.

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

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Bossier City man was sentenced to 120 months in prison for possessing with intent to sell methamphetamine at his home.

John W. Davis II, 54, of Bossier City, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter on one count of possession with intent to distribute five grams or more of methamphetamine or 50 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine. He was also sentenced to eight years of supervised release. According to evidence presented at the January 13, 2015, guilty plea, Davis’ home was searched on October 2, 2014 based on information that he was distributing methamphetamine. Agents found seven bags containing methamphetamine in a shaving kit on his porch and under his bed. After an analysis of the methamphetamine, a total of 480.7 grams of pure methamphetamine were determined to have been found at Davis’ home.

The DEA, Louisiana State Police, and Bossier City Police Department conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael O’Mara prosecuted the case.

SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a federal grand jury indicted a Ferriday couple for hiding income in order to receive more than $197,000 in veterans benefits and a Bossier City woman for stealing veterans’ benefits and lying about the income during bankruptcy proceedings.

Alfred Lewis Jr., 67, and Rose M. Lewis, 63, of both of Ferriday, La., were charged by a federal grand jury with one count of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds and one count of theft of government funds. According to the indictment, from January 2004 until November 2013 the Lewis couple conspired to take approximately $197,784 in Veterans Affairs benefits. In July of 2003, the defendants submitted an application to the Department of Veterans Affairs for pension benefits without listing Rose Lewis’ income. The addition of Rose Lewis’ income, which was more than $54,000 in 2008 and 2009, would have made them ineligible to receive the Veterans Affairs benefits.

A federal grand jury also charged Gloria Lynn Perry, 65, of Bossier City, La., in a separate indictment with one count of theft of government funds and one count of false statement in a bankruptcy matter. According to the indictment, Perry illegally received Veterans Affairs benefits on behalf of her mother from April 1, 2008 through July 1, 2014. Her mother had died in February of 2008. Perry also filed for bankruptcy in 2014. On September 5, 2014, she falsely stated on bankruptcy documents that her income other than employment in the past two years was $7,950 in 2013 and $5,967 in 2014. The truth was she obtained at least $12,000 in 2013 and at least $7,000 in 2014 in Veterans Affairs benefits.

If convicted, all three defendants face up to 10 years in prison for the theft count.

The Lewises face up to five years in prison for the conspiracy count, and Perry faces up to five years in prison for the bankruptcy count. They also face three years of supervised release, restitution and a $250,000 fine.

The Veterans Affairs-Office of Inspector General investigated the cases.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Cytheria Jernigan is prosecuting the cases.

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

LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a California man pleaded guilty to communicating a hoax that a school shooting would occur in Church Point, La.

Randall Swanson, 54, of Sacramento, Calif., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard T. Haik to one count of false information or hoaxes. According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, during an online conversation on December 15, 2012, Swanson sent an online message to a person he believed to be from Church Point, that “the next school massacre happing in ur town.” Swanson followed the online message with photographs and other information about how the crime would occur.  Swanson sent the message the day after the Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting. Swanson also sent pictures from Church Point indicating he was present in Church Point. The victim who received the messages contacted local and state authorities.  Swanson later admitted he was in California when the messages were sent, and his intentions were to alarm the person he had been messaging online.

Swanson faces five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. A sentencing date was not set.

“The shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary was a tragedy that our state and nation mourned,” Finley stated. “This defendant used that tragedy to perpetuate a hoax and caused confusion wasting the time and resources of first responders in the region. Those who make such false threats will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

The FBI, Louisiana State Police and Church Point Police Department investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Myers P. Namie is prosecuting the case.

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today that it has opened pattern or practice investigations into the use of investigative holds by the Ville Platte Police Department (VPPD) and the Evangeline Parish Sheriff’s Office (EPSO).

The investigations will focus on allegations that VPPD and EPSO officers use “investigative holds” to detain individuals without proper cause, and on the adequacy of VPPD and EPSO’s training, supervision and accountability mechanisms to prevent unlawful seizures.  The Justice Department’s investigations will determine whether VPPD and EPSO officers engage in a pattern or practice of using investigative holds in violation of the Constitution and federal law.

“No individual should be detained without proper cause or arrested in violation of his or her civil rights,” said Attorney General Eric Holder.  “As these investigations move forward, the Department of Justice will work to ensure that the actions of the Ville Platte Police Department and the Evangeline Parish Sheriff’s Office are in service of our shared mission, consistent with our common values, and in accordance with the Constitution that we are sworn to uphold.”

The Justice Department has contacted officials at VPPD, EPSO, the city of Ville Platte and Evangeline Parish, and will continue to work closely with these law enforcement agencies and municipalities as the investigations progress.

“Police officers across the country are called upon regularly to use their law enforcement authority to protect and safeguard members of their communities by investigating criminal activity,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division.  “It is imperative that officers use their authority within the boundaries of the law and the Constitution.  We are eager to work together with the Ville Platte Police Department, Evangline Parish Sheriff’s Office and the local municipalities to help ensure that their officers are engaged in law enforcement practices that are consistent with the Constitution.”

“All of us who work in law enforcement should be focused on due process every day,” said U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley of the Western District of Louisiana.  “Each citizen deserves to be treated with respect and in accordance with the Constitution.  We will continue to work with all of our local partners to ensure that arrests and detentions are proper and legal, with the goal of having safeguards in place to make sure that similar violations do not occur in the future.”

The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 prohibits state and local governments from engaging in a pattern or practice of misconduct by law enforcement officers that deprives individuals of federally-protected rights.  The act also allows the Justice Department to remedy such misconduct through civil litigation.  The Justice Department has conducted similar investigations and has obtained important reforms in police departments and law enforcement agencies across the country.

The Special Litigation Section of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division in Washington, D.C., is conducting the investigations.  Individuals with relevant information are encouraged to contact the Justice Department by phone at 1-877-218-5228.

Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt.

Click here for the Special Litigation Section’s police accomplishments fact sheet

MONROE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Monroe woman was sentenced this week to 21 months in prison for receiving more than $119,000 in Social Security benefits intended for her father who had died years before.

Jessica Lewis, 43, of Monroe, was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge Robert G. James on one count of theft of government property. She was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $119,258 restitution. According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, between June 3, 1998 and January 3, 2014, Lewis cashed and used her deceased father’s Social Security benefit checks. She also did not inform the Social Security Administration that her father had died and told office representatives that he was alive in order to keep receiving the benefit checks. The total amount taken was $119,258.

The Social Security Administration-Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon B. Brown prosecuted the case.