District of Massachusetts

BOSTON – A Rhode Island woman has been sentenced in federal court in Boston for her leading role in laundering hundreds of thousands of dollars of her then-boyfriend’s fentanyl trafficking money.

Carolina Correa, 35, of Cranston, R.I., was sentenced on Feb. 4, 2026 by U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin to 42 months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Correa was also ordered to pay a $150,000 fine and forfeiture in the amount of $350,000. In July 2025, Correa pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering conspiracy.

Correa – an entrepreneur, real estate owner and fundraiser – was the leader of a sophisticated multi-state scheme to launder $450,000 in fentanyl trafficking proceeds derived by her then-boyfriend, Jasdrual Perez. In December 2024, Jasdrual Perez was sentenced to 22.5 years in prison for his role as the leader of a large-scale fentanyl trafficking conspiracy responsible for manufacturing and distributing millions of fentanyl pills made to look like oxycodone and Percocet.

In late 2021 to early 2022, Perez enlisted his financially savvy girlfriend Correa to assist him in concealing his drug proceeds. Correa contacted a friend who was opening a marijuana dispensary in Massachusetts and seeking investors. Correa agreed to seek out investors in the dispensary and in exchange, she would get an ownership stake and the title of CFO of the marijuana dispensary.

In January 2022, Correa indicated that she had found “investors” in the marijuana dispensary. Those “investors” included a real estate investor based in North Carolina with whom Correa had a long-time personal, not professional, relationship as well as his associate. Shortly thereafter, Correa enlisted a friend to drive $350,000 in Perez’s drug proceeds from Rhode Island to Correa’s “investors” in North Carolina. Financial records showed that the North Carolina “investors” then wired $350,000 in two transactions, from two separate business accounts, in the amount of $250,000 and $200,000, to a bank account for an attorney for the marijuana dispensary. Those funds were then transferred from the attorney’s account to the marijuana dispensary’s business account.

To further create an appearance of legitimacy for the concealed drug proceeds, Correa used her work email address to communicate with the North Carolina “investors.” She drafted sham loan paperwork and promissory notes for her, the CEO of the marijuana dispensary and the North Carolina “investors” to sign to conceal the true source of the funds. Correa and Perez also facilitated, and bank records confirmed, the laundering of an additional $100,000 of Perez’s drug proceeds into the marijuana dispensary’s bank account through the business bank account of a real estate investment company of one of Perez’s Rhode Island based friends.  

Correa used her professional reputation and public image to appear that she was legitimately securing “investors” in the marijuana dispensary while, simultaneously, in intercepted communications, she regularly described the hustle to “clean” Perez’s drug money for her own financial benefit through various financial and real estate transactions.

After the successful movement of $450,000 of Perez’s drug proceeds, the photograph below was posted on her social media account:
 

“Money launderers protect and strengthen an industry – the drug trafficking industry – that directly harms millions of people. By making drug profits usable, launderers allow drug trafficking organizations to operate like legitimate businesses. To say that money laundering is a victimless crime ignores the reality of the interconnected relationship between launderers and traffickers. As a fentanyl trafficker’s business expands, so too do the rates of drug use, addiction and overdose. Ms. Correa thought she could outsmart the system and law enforcement while she was laundering at least half a million dollars in drug proceeds,” said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. “This case should serve as a warning to others that our efforts to curb drug addiction doesn’t just involve prosecuting drug dealers, it also involves arresting their financial partners in the trafficking conspiracy.”

“This case shows that fentanyl trafficking is not limited to street-level dealers,” said Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget, New England Field Division. “Ms. Correa used her business and fundraising activities to disguise and move hundreds of thousands of dollars in drug proceeds, directly supporting a trafficking operation that fuels addiction and death in our communities. The DEA will hold accountable anyone who profits from this poison, no matter how they try to hide it.”

"The capability to launder illegal drug profits is as important and essential to drug traffickers as the very profit made from the distribution of their illegal drugs. Without these ill-gotten gains being ‘cleaned’, the traffickers cannot ‘legitimately’ finance their illicit business or spend the money,” said Thomas Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office. “As the role of IRS-CI in narcotics investigations is to follow the money, we are highly skilled at financially disrupting and dismantling drug trafficking organizations. We are proud to provide our financial expertise as we work alongside our law enforcement partners to bring criminals to justice."

U.S. Attorney Foley, DEA SAC Forget and IRS-CI SAC Demeo and made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigations; Rhode Island State Police; Massachusetts State Police; and the Cranston, Warwick and West Warwick, Rhode Island Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lindsey Weinstein and Kunal Pasricha of the Criminal Divisions prosecuted the case.

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Boston is comprised of agents and officers from HSI, FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS, IRS-CI, USPIS, DOL-OIG and DSS, as well as several state and local law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.

BOSTON – A federal prison inmate was sentenced today in federal court in Worcester for possessing a synthetic cannabinoid, also known as “K2,” in FMC Devens. 

Raymond Gaines, 46, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman to 18 months in prison, to be followed by one year of supervised release. In December 2025, Gaines pleaded guilty. Gaines was charged by complaint in March 2025, along with former state employee Tasha Hammock, who distributed the K2 to Gaines. Gaines was later indicted with possessing contraband, in the form of K2, as a prison inmate, and Tasha Hammock was charged and pleaded guilty.

On Jan. 25, 2022, Gaines was sentenced to more than seven years in prison after pleading guilty in federal court in Boston to possession with intent to distribute cocaine and possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. At the time he committed the offenses, he was on federal judicial supervised release after serving a prison sentence resulting from a 2017 conviction for distributing cocaine base within 1,000 feet of a school. According to court records, in both prior cases Gaines was alleged to be an associate of the Orchard Park Trailblazers, a street gang in Boston. On Jan. 17, 2025, Gaines received an Executive Grant of Clemency, reducing his federal sentence to five years in prison.  

On Aug. 18, 2024, Hammock, while visiting Gaines in prison, surreptitiously passed K2-laced papers to Gaines, which he pocketed. At the time, Hammock was employed with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. 

As described in court documents, K2 presents a health problem at FMC Devens, where inmates have become sick from smoking paper believed to contain K2, as well as prison staff who have been exposed to the secondary smoke.    

In January 2025, Hammock was sentenced to three years of probation. The government recommended a sentence of 12 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brendan O’Shea of the Worcester Branch Office prosecuted the case.   

BOSTON – A New Hampshire man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Worcester to obstruction and video voyeurism charges. 

Nicholas Testagrossa, 43, of Rindge, N.H., pleaded guilty to one count of obstruction and attempted obstruction of an official proceeding, and two counts of video voyeurism. U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman scheduled sentencing for May 12, 2026. Testagrossa was charged in December 2025.

In March 2025, Testagrossa – then a U.S. Postal Worker at the Westminster, Mass. – secretly placed a hidden camera inside the women’s restroom at the Westminster Post Office in an effort to record his female co-workers while they were undressed and using the bathroom. The device was discovered on March 28, 2025, after a postal employee noticed it concealed beneath a vent. A subsequent investigation revealed that the camera had been placed in the restroom on multiple occasions and had captured video recordings inside the women’s bathroom on several dates in February 2025 and March 2025, including recordings of two victims undressed without their knowledge or consent.

Investigators recovered video files showing Testagrossa personally installing the hidden camera in the restroom, positioning it to obtain a recording vantage point, and testing the device both inside the post office and at his home. The recordings clearly showed Testagrossa’s face and documented his repeated efforts to conceal and operate the camera. The evidence confirmed that the recordings were intentional and part of a pattern of conduct targeting female co-workers.

After the hidden camera was discovered and secured by the Postmaster, Testagrossa removed the device from the Postmaster’s desk without authorization and attempted to destroy evidence by damaging the camera’s memory card and USB ports. His efforts were unsuccessful because the memory card had already been removed and preserved.

The charge of obstruction and attempted obstruction of an official proceeding provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charges of video voyeurism provide for a sentence of up to one year in prison, up to one year of supervised release and a fine of up to $100,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Matthew Modafferi, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Postal Service, Office of the Inspector General, Northeast Area Field Office made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Danial E. Bennett of the Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case.

BOSTON – A Mexican national, currently serving a state prison sentence for rape, has been charged with illegally re-entering the United States after deportation.

Eugenio Isidro Victoriano, 54, is charged with one count of unlawful reentry of a deported alien. The defendant is currently serving a state prison sentence for rape, indecent assault and battery on a person over 14 years of age and larceny.

According to court documents, Isidro Victoriano was first encountered as being unlawfully present in the United States in April 2004, when he was arrested by U.S. Border Patrol near El Paso, Texas. He was subsequently removed from the United States to Mexico.

It is alleged that sometime thereafter, Isidro Victoriano unlawfully reentered the United States without inspection or authorization.

In February 2021, Isidro Victoriano was arrested in Great Barrington, Mass., for operating under the influence of alcohol. According to court documents, fingerprints taken during that arrest matched Victoriano’s prior immigration records. Isidro Victoriano was released from state custody before immigration authorities could take action.

It is alleged that, in December 2022, Isidro Victoriano was again arrested by local law enforcement in Great Barrington, Mass., for rape, indecent assault and battery on a person over 14 years of age and larceny under $1,200. Isidro Victoriano pleaded guilty to those charges in November 2025 and was sentenced to four to six years in prison, with credit for time served. Immigration authorities lodged a detainer following his arrest.

According to the charging documents, following his November 2025 state conviction, Isidro Victoriano admitted that he was not a U.S. citizen, that he paid a smuggler to enter the United States and that he had no legal authorization to do so.

The charge of unlawful reentry of a deported alien provides for a sentence of up to two years in prison, one year of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The defendant is subject to deportation upon completion of any sentence imposed. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Patricia H. Hyde, Field Office Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations in Boston made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil L. Desroches, Chief of the Springfield Branch Office, is prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

BOSTON – A Colombian woman, unlawfully residing in Boston, was convicted today following a five-day jury trial in federal court in Boston of identity theft offenses, including receiving rental assistance, Social Security and Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, as well as voter fraud under the stolen identity. The defendant also applied for a United States passport and obtained a Massachusetts Real ID and eight other state IDs.

Lina Maria Orovio-Hernandez, 59, was convicted of one count of false representation of a Social Security number; one count of making a false statement in an application for a United States passport; one count of aggravated identity theft; three counts of receiving stolen government money or property; and one count of fraudulent voting. Orovio-Hernandez was charged by superseding indictment in May 2025. She was previously charged in an indictment in February 2025 and has remained in federal custody since that time.

Orovio-Hernandez, a Colombian national without lawful status in the United States, has lived under a stolen identity for more than 20 years. Using the stolen identity, Orovio-Hernandez obtained nine state IDs, including a Massachusetts Real ID and applied for a U.S. passport.

Orovio-Hernandez also used the stolen identity to cast a fraudulent ballot in the November 2024 presidential election. In addition, Orovio-Hernandez improperly received approximately $400,000 in federal benefits: $259,589 in Section 8 rental assistance benefits from October 2011 through January 2025; $101,257 in Social Security disability benefits from July 2014 through January 2025; and $43,348 in SNAP benefits from April 2005 through January 2025.

“Ms. Orovio-Hernandez has lived in this country illegally for two decades, during which time she repeatedly made false statements, stole, committed fraud and even voted illegally,” said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. “Her repeated criminal acts are a slap in the face to all those who come into this country legally and abide by our laws. The air of entitlement is astounding. This case is yet another example of our commitment to rooting out those who violate our immigration laws and steal from United States Citizens.”

“This investigation highlights the critical role of DSS in protecting the American public from identity and document fraud,” said Special Agent in Charge Nathan Hebert of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) Boston Field Office. “This conviction reflects the tireless efforts of our special agents and the strength of our partnerships across agencies.”

“This verdict sends a clear message: identity theft and fraud against federal benefit programs will not go undetected or unpunished,” said Amy Connelly, Special Agent in Charge of the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General (SSA OIG), Boston–New York Field Division. “The jury confirmed that the defendant used a stolen identity to illegally collect Social Security benefits, commit voter fraud, and undermine public trust. SSA OIG is committed to investigating and holding accountable anyone—including illegal immigrants—who exploit Social Security programs.”

“Orovio-Hernandez’s calculated deception caused her to fraudulently receive over $400,000 in federal benefits including more than $250,000 in HUD rental assistance. These taxpayer funds were intended to provide housing assistance to our most at-risk populations—low income, disabled, and elderly United States citizens,” said Special Agent in Charge Shawn Rice with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General (OIG). “Her actions were not a onetime mistake or accident. She lived under a stolen identity for over two decades, taking numerous actions and steps to further defraud the United States Government. HUD OIG remains steadfast in its commitment to working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners to aggressively pursue those who engage in activities that threaten the integrity of HUD programs.”

The charge of false representation of a Social Security number provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of making a false statement in an application for a United States passport provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of aggravated identity theft provides for a mandatory two-year sentence to run consecutively to any other sentence imposed, one year of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charges of receiving stolen government or property provide for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. The charge of fraudulent voting provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The defendant is subject to deportation upon completion of any sentence imposed. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

U.S. Attorney Foley; DSS SAC Hebert; SSA OIG SAC Connelly; HUD OIG SAC Rice; and Charmeka Parker, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations – Northeast Region made the announcement. Valuable assistance in the investigation was provided by the United States Postal Inspection Service. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Nagelberg and Assistant U.S. Attorney Allegra Flamm of the Major Crimes Unit are prosecuting the case. 

BOSTON – A Brazilian national unlawfully living in Massachusetts and New Hampshire was sentenced yesterday for dealing firearms without a license.  

Riquelme Henrique De Aguiar Ferreira, a/k/a “Koringa,” 22, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William G. Young to two years in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. The defendant is subject to deportation proceedings upon completion of the imposed sentence. In September 2025, De Aguiar Ferreira pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to engage in the business of dealing firearms without a license and one count of engaging in the business of dealing firearms without a license.

Between May 2023 and August 2023, De Aguiar Ferreira coordinated the sale of two pistols (one with a large capacity magazine) to a cooperating witness without the required license in exchange for cash. The following year, De Aguiar Ferreira also offered the cooperating witness additional firearms for sale, but those transactions never occurred. De Aguiar Ferreira also conspired with others to deal firearms, traveling to South Carolina and connecting supply sources in South Carolina with individuals in Massachusetts. The picture below of the firearms obtained from South Carolina were found on De Aguiar Ferreira’s phone:

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Thomas Greco, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division; Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England; and Patricia H. Hyde, Field Office Director, Boston, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Framingham, Revere and Merrimac (N.H.) Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael J. Crowley and John Reynolds of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit prosecuted the case.

BOSTON – A Salvadoran national associated with the transnational criminal organization 18th Street Gang was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for selling 1,000 fentanyl pills in and around the North Shore area of Boston.

Orlando Mancia, a/k/a Intruso, 22, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Senior Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to 21 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. The defendant is subject to deportation upon completion of the imposed sentence. In August 2025, Mancia pleaded guilty to distributing and possessing with intent to distribute 40 grams and more of fentanyl.

On Oct. 15, 2024, in Everett, Mancia sold approximately 500 pressed fentanyl pills to a cooperating witness. Later, on Oct. 23, 2024, Mancia again sold another 500 pressed fentanyl pills along with cocaine to the cooperating witness.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Thomas Greco, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement & Removal Operations; Suffolk County and Middlesex County District Attorney’s Offices; and the Boston, Chelsea, Everett, Falmouth, Lynn, Medford, Nantucket and Revere Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Timothy Moran of the Criminal Division and Fred Wyshak of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit prosecuted case.

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Boston is comprised of agents and officers from HSI, FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS, IRS-CI, USPIS, DOL-OIG and DSS, as well as several state and local law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts. 

BOSTON – A New York man has been arrested and charged for allegedly conspiring to infiltrate email accounts of legitimate truck-load carriers, using the hacked accounts to book cargo with shippers and selling the items for illicit profit. The goods allegedly stolen include over 33,000 pounds of frozen snow crab, pallets of blueberries and more than $400,000 of designer cologne.

Romoy Forbes, 31, a Jamaican national living in Deer Park, N.Y., has been charged with interstate transportation of stolen goods, and conspiracy to commit that offense. Forbes was arrested today in Long Island, N.Y. and will make his initial appearance in the Eastern District of New York. He will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date.

According to the charging documents, on July 15, 2025, Forbes allegedly stole 33,750 pounds of frozen snow crabs worth $325,000 from a warehouse that held the goods in Worcester, Mass. Leading up to the theft, a co-conspirator allegedly hacked into the email account of a trucking carrier company (Carrier 1). The co-conspirator, pretending to work for Carrier 1, and using the email account of Carrier 1, allegedly contacted and contracted with Shipper 1, a transportation business, to ship the goods to a customer in Jacksonville, Fla. Forbes then allegedly arrived at the warehouse in Worcester pretending to work for Carrier 1, loaded the seafood into his truck and drove off.

Instead of delivering the seafood to the customer in Florida, Forbes allegedly transported it to the location of a grocery store business in Queens, N.Y., where Forbes took a picture of the pallets of packaged crabs with his cellphone.

Before the alleged seafood heist, Forbes, on June 25, 2025, allegedly stole a shipment of blueberries in Winslow Junction, N.J. A co-conspirator allegedly hacked into the email account of Carrier 2, a trucking carrier company, and, pretending to be Carrier 2, contacted and contracted with Shipper 2, a transportation business, to ship the goods to a customer in Illinois. Forbes then allegedly arrived at the warehouse that was holding the goods, and, pretending to work for Carrier 2, loaded the fruit into his truck and drove away.  

Instead of delivering the blueberries to the customer in Illinois, Forbes allegedly arranged to illicitly sell the fruit to his phone contact named, “My customer for everything.”

After the seafood and blueberry thefts, on July 25, 2025, Forbes allegedly conspired to steal approximately $433,830 worth of cologne in Ronkonkama, N.Y. Again, a co-conspirator allegedly hacked into the email account of Carrier 3, a trucking carrier company, and, pretending to be Carrier 3, contracted with Shipper 3, a transportation business, to ship the goods to a customer in Los Angeles, Calif. Forbes then allegedly arrived to the warehouse that was holding the goods, and, pretending to work for Carrier 3, loaded the items into his truck and drove away.    

Instead of delivering the fragrances to the customer in California, Forbes allegedly contacted his “customer for everything” offering to sell the cologne and sent the contact a video of the cologne, to which the contact replied, “Ok.”

The charge of interstate transportation of stolen goods provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of conspiracy to commit that offense carries a sentence of up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brendan O’Shea of the Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case.  

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.

The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.  

BOSTON – John Oliveira & Sons Stamp Concrete, Inc., a corporation doing business in East Freetown, Mass. pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston to willfully violating Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) safety standards in a 2023 incident that led to a worker’s death.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul G. Levenson scheduled sentencing for May 4, 2026.

According to court documents, the company utilized a large soil screener for purposes of processing and screening soil and similar substances. The soil screener was approximately 46 feet long and 13 feet high, and weighed approximately 35,880 lbs. The tail conveyor of the soil screener – which weighed approximately 1,500 pounds – could be placed in a vertical closed position or could be opened to an approximate 45° angle. At various occasions in 2022 or 2023, the tail conveyor of the soil screener closed unexpectedly, and the soil screener had suffered a ruptured hydraulic pressure line.  

On Sept. 6, 2023, a company employee was working alongside a co-owner on the tail conveyer of the soil screener, which was in the open position. At the time, there was no equipment in place to prevent the tail conveyer from closing. According to the charging documents, as the employee was seeking to remove a bolt, the tail conveyor closed unexpectedly. The employee held onto the upper frame of the soil screener as the tail conveyer closed into the vertical position, crushing the employee’s head. The employee suffered massive head trauma and was pronounced dead soon thereafter.

For willfully violating an OSHA safety standard, John Oliveira & Sons Stamp Concrete, Inc. faces a term of probation of up to five years, a fine of up to $500,000 and restitution payable to the estate of the deceased victim. Sentences are imposed by a federal judge based upon statutory factors.  

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Anthony D’Esposito, Inspector General of the Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General; Jeff Erskine, Regional Administrator of the Department of Labor OSHA Boston Region; and Maia Fisher, Regional Solicitor for Department of Labor Boston Region made the announcement. Assistance in the investigation was also provided by the OSHA Criminal Investigations Team, Boston Region. Assistant U.S. Attorney William F. Abely, Chief of the Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.

BOSTON – An Illinois man pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston to phishing the Snapchat access codes of nearly 600 women in an effort to hack their Snapchat accounts and steal nude photos, which he kept, sold, or traded on the internet.  

Kyle Svara, 27, of Oswego, Ill., pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft, wire fraud, computer fraud, conspiracy to commit computer fraud and false statements related to child pornography. U.S. District Court Judge Brian E. Murphy scheduled sentencing for May 18, 2026. Svara was charged in December 2025.

From at least May 2020 to February 2021, Svara used social engineering and other resources to collect victim emails, phone numbers and/or Snapchat usernames. He used those means of identification to access victim Snapchat accounts, which prompted Snap Inc. to send account security codes to victims. Using anonymized phone numbers, Svara posed as a representative of Snap Inc. and texted more than 4,500 victims requesting those Snapchat access codes. When approximately 570 women provided those codes, Svara accessed the Snapchat accounts of at least 59 women without permission and downloaded their nude or semi-nude images. Once he had the stolen images, Svara sold or traded them on internet forums or in transactions with others who had hired him to hack the Snapchat accounts. Svara advertised on internet forums like Reddit that he could “get into girls snap accounts” for others and provide content “for you or trade.”

One of Svara’s co-conspirators, Steve Waithe, a former Track and Field Coach at Northeastern University hired and paid Svara to hack the Snapchat accounts of women Waithe coached or had other relationships with. In November 2023, Waithe was convicted in federal court in Boston of 12 counts of wire fraud; one count of cyberstalking; one count of conspiracy to commit computer fraud; and one count of computer fraud, aiding and abetting. In March 2024, Waithe was sentenced to five years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.

In addition to the women Waithe and others hired Svara to hack, Svara also targeted women who resided in or around the area of Plainfield, Ill. or who were students at Colby College in Waterville, Maine.

When Svara was interviewed by investigators, he falsely stated that he did not know anything about hacking Snapchat. Additionally, he falsely stated that had no interest in child pornography and had never actively sought out or accessed child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Contrary to these statements, the defendant collected, distributed and solicited CSAM.

Members of the public who believe they may be a victim of this case or have any relevant information related to this case are requested to please fill out the attached form to be contacted by a member of law enforcement: https://forms.fbi.gov/victims/snaphackvictims

The charge of aggravated identity theft provides for a sentence of at least two years in prison, one year of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of wire fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain/loss from the offense. The charges of computer fraud and conspiracy to commit computer fraud provide for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of false statements provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Boston made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Chicago and the Oswego Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan Cleary of the Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.

BOSTON – A Brazilian national unlawfully residing in Fall River, Mass. pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston to unlawfully reentering the United States after deportation and was sentenced.

Evaldo Ferreira Pinto, 51, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to time served and one year of supervised release. The defendant is now subject to deportation proceedings. Earlier in the hearing Pinto pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful reentry of a deported alien. According to court records, Pinto had been in custody since his arrest on Aug. 7, 2025. Pinto was indicted by a federal grand jury in September 2025.

According to the charging documents, Pinto was found in the United States on Aug. 7, 2025, after previously having been removed from the United States on or about May 31, 2019.  According to court documents, Pinto has previously been removed or self-deported on four occasions and has been previously convicted of unlawful reentry three times. Pinto is now subject to deportation.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Patricia H. Hyde, Acting Field Office Director, Boston, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elianna J. Nuzum of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case.

BOSTON – QP Holdings, LLC, an Arkansas company, and its affiliates, River Bend, Industries, LLC, Master Molded Products, LLC and 3D Plastics, LLC, have agreed to pay $3,295,129.76 to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by obtaining Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans for which they were not eligible.

Congress enacted the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) on March 29, 2020, to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who were suffering the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act authorized forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain approved expenses through the PPP, which the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) administered. The PPP provided for loans in two “draws”—first draw loans became available in March 2020, with a second draw announced in January 2021. Businesses were required to certify on their loan applications that they met certain size standards based on, for example, the number of employees they, and their affiliated entities, collectively employed.  

QP Holdings’ affiliates each received a second-draw PPP loan. As part of the settlement, QP Holdings and its affiliates acknowledge that they were ineligible for their PPP loans because they exceeded the applicable business size standards for second-draw loans. The affiliates sought and received forgiveness from SBA for the full amount of their second-draw loans.

The settlement credits the QP Holdings Entities for cooperation under the Department of Justice’s Guidelines for Taking Voluntary Disclosure, Cooperation, and Remediation into Account in False Claims Act Matters.  

The claims resolved in today’s settlement include claims that were brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act. Under the Act, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery. The qui tam case is captioned United States ex rel. Verity Investigations, LLC v. QP Holdings, LLC, et al., No. 24-cv-12001-NMG. As part of today’s resolution, the relator will receive 10% of the settlement amount.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and the U.S. Small Business Administration made the announcement today. Brian M. LaMacchia, Chief of the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit handled the matter.

BOSTON – A husband and wife from Worcester have been sentenced for sex trafficking a victim in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Rhode Island.

Kiersten Soto, 32, and Moises Soto, 33, were sentenced on Jan. 23, 2026 by U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman to 18 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. The defendants were also ordered to pay a $5,000 fine and pay mandatory restitution to the victim in the amount of $138,000. In September 2025, the defendants were convicted of one count each of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking and sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion. Kiersten Soto was also convicted of one count of traveling or using interstate facilities to promote unlawful activities. The defendants were arrested and charged in December 2022.

From February through May 2022, the Sotos used force, fraud and coercion to traffic the victim for commercial sex in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Rhode Island. A website was used to advertise the victim to sex buyers from all over New England. Kiersten Soto regularly threatened the victim with violence, abandonment and involuntary commitment to a facility. Moises Soto used extreme physical violence including beatings, assaults with wooden dowel rods and choking if the victim failed to make enough money. Videos from the defendants’ cell phones show the defendants cornering the victim in their home, threatening her, berating her, calling her a snitch, all while the victim suffered through agonizing drug withdrawals.
    
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England made the announcement. Special assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Marlborough and Worcester Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephen W. Hassink and Torey B. Cummings of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case.
 

BOSTON – A Wareham man pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston to possessing and receiving child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

Brandon Bendall, 50, pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child pornography and one count of receipt of child pornography. U.S. District Court Judge Myong J. Joun scheduled sentencing for May 7, 2026. He was arrested and charged by criminal complaint on May 2, 2025 and indicted by a federal grand jury in June 2025.

According to court documents, Bendall was a member of an online chat group in which members viewed and posted CSAM. While in the chat group Bendall posted at least 17 videos containing CSAM. During a search of Bendall’s residence and cell phone, approximately 9,400 images and videos of CSAM, including images of children as young as infants being sexually assaulted, were located.

The charges of receipt and possession of child pornography each provide for a sentence of at least five years and up to 20 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Wareham, Marion and East Bridgewater Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney David G. Tobin of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.

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

BOSTON – An Ohio man has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Massachusetts in connection with multiple sales of firearms transported from Ohio to Massachusetts.

Ruben Joel Sanchez Jr., 31, of Youngstown, Ohio, was indicted on one count of engaging in the business of dealing in firearms without a license and two counts of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition. Sanchez was arrested on Jan. 8, 2026, and remains in federal custody.

According to the charging documents, beginning at least as early as June 2025 through January 2026, Sanchez engaged in the business of unlawful trafficking in firearms. Specifically, in June 2025, Sanchez, who is not licensed to deal in firearms, allegedly sold three firearms to an individual in exchange for $4,000. It is further alleged that, on Jan. 8, 2026, Sanchez was recorded and observed selling four additional firearms to the same individual in return for $8,500. Sanchez was arrested at the scene where an AR-style pistol equipped with a loaded, 100-round drum; a rifle equipped with a loaded, 100-round drum; a loaded pistol equipped with an extended magazine; and an additional loaded pistol were allegedly recovered.

The charge of felon in possession of firearms and ammunition provides for a sentence of up to 15 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of unlawful trafficking in firearms provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Thomas Greco, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julissa Walsh of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

BOSTON – A Methuen, Mass. man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to sending a package containing drugs to a federal prison.

Tuere Barnes, 43, pleaded guilty to one count of providing contraband in prison. U.S. District Judge Allison D. Burroughs scheduled sentencing for May 11, 2026. Barnes was charged on Jan. 12, 2026.

On or about Jan. 23, 2023, Barnes caused a package containing 460 sublingual strips laced with narcotics to be shipped to an inmate at FCI Danbury – a federal correctional facility in Danbury, Conn. Lab testing showed a sample strip contained buprenorphine, a Schedule III substance. Under federal regulations, possession of narcotics is prohibited in federal correctional facilities. The defendant’s fingerprints were found on papers in the package.

The charge of providing contraband in prison provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John T. Mulcahy and Lauren Maynard of the Public Corruption & Special Prosecutions Unit are prosecuting the case.
 

BOSTON – A Duxbury man has been charged in a six-count indictment for allegedly distributing, and conspiring to distribute, fentanyl and cocaine in Duxbury, Kingston, Middleborough and Plymouth.

Justin Tatum, a/k/a “JD,” 40, was indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances (involving 400 grams or more of fentanyl, 100 grams or more of fentanyl analogue, 500 grams or more of cocaine and 50 grams or more of methamphetamine). Tatum was also indicted on two counts of distributing fentanyl (including fentanyl analogue) and on two counts of possessing narcotics with the intent to distribute. Tatum was arrested and charged by criminal complaint in July 2025. He is scheduled to be arraigned on Feb. 12, 2026 in federal court in Boston.

Tatum and a second individual, Trinity Norman, a/k/a “Trin,” 41, of Plymouth, were also indicted on one count of money laundering conspiracy. Norman was arrested on Feb. 2, 2026 and released on conditions following an initial appearance.

According to court records, in December 2024, several cooperating sources told investigators that Tatum sold fentanyl and cocaine in the greater Plymouth area. In response, a cooperating witness allegedly made controlled purchases of fentanyl and other drugs from Tatum. Between April 2025 and July 2025, Tatum was intercepted over court-authorized wiretaps allegedly discussing distribution of fentanyl and cocaine. On July 14, 2025, a search was executed at Tatum’s house and at a location in Middleborough where large amounts of fentanyl, cocaine and methamphetamine were seized.

In 2009, Tatum was convicted in Plymouth Superior Court of trafficking cocaine and sentenced to 15 years in state prison.  

The charge of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances (involving 400 grams or more of fentanyl and 100 grams or more of fentanyl analogue) provides for a sentence of at least 10 years and up to life in prison, a term of supervised release of at least five years and up to life and a fine of up to $10 million. The charge of money laundering conspiracy provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, a term of supervised release of up to three years, and a fine of $500,000 or twice the value of the property involved, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jared A. Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; and the Kingston, Plymouth, Duxbury and Rochester Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Samuel R. Feldman and Brian J. Sullivan of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit are prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
 

BOSTON – A Boston man has been sentenced for fraudulently depositing checks stolen from the mail, defrauding the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a COVID-related relief program, and defrauding the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program.

Tyrone Brimage, 28, was sentenced on Jan. 23, 2026 by Senior District Court Judge Patti B. Saris to one year and one day in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Brimage was also ordered to pay $67,022 in restitution. In January 2025, Brimage pleaded guilty to two counts of bank fraud and three counts of wire fraud.  

In July 2020, Brimage submitted two fraudulent unemployment claims, claiming that his employment was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time of these applications, Brimage was incarcerated at the Norfolk County Jail for an unrelated criminal case. The Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance paid Brimage $43,155 as a result of this fraudulent claim before realizing that Brimage had submitted multiple fraudulent claims using different social security numbers.

In October 2020, Brimage attempted to deposit a payroll check that appeared to be issued by the City of Boston for $16,427 into his personal checking account. The clerk for the City of Boston confirmed that the check was fraudulent and that Brimage was never a city employee.

In May 2021, Brimage submitted a fraudulent PPP application for a barber shop that he never owned. In June 2021, he obtained a $20,832 loan for “payroll costs, rent interest, and utilities,” for this fake barber shop.

In July 2023, Brimage fraudulently deposited a $3,032 check stolen from the mail into a bank account that he controlled. The check issuer confirmed that the check was stolen from the mail. One day after the fraudulent deposit, Brimage withdrew cash obtained from the deposit.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Thomas A. Greco, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Boston Field Division; Nicholas Bucciarelli, Acting Inspector in Charge for the Boston Office of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and Russell W. Cunningham Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General Mid-Atlantic Region made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Boston and Wellesley Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lucy Sun and Philip C. Cheng of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case.

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Boston is comprised of agents and officers from HSI, FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS, IRS-CI, USPIS, DOL-OIG and DSS, as well as several state and local law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.
 

BOSTON – Three individuals have been arrested, and another individual has been charged, with an alleged fraud scheme that used the stolen identities of more than 100 individuals to obtain $440,000 in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits from Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The defendants are also alleged to have fraudulently obtained over $700,000 in Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) benefits from Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio Washington and Nevada.

The following defendants have been charged by criminal complaint with Conspiracy to Use, Transfer, Acquire and Possess SNAP benefits and will appear in federal court in Worcester at 12:30 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. this afternoon:

1. Joel Vicioso Fernandez, 42, of Fitchburg, Mass.;
2. Roman Vequiz Fernandez, 32, a Venezuelan national living in Leominster, Mass.; and
3. Coralba Albarracin Siniva, 24, a Venezuelan national living in Leominster, Mass.

Raul Fernandez Vicioso, 37, of Fitchburg, Mass., has been charged with Conspiracy to Commit SNAP Fraud, Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, SNAP benefit Fraud, Aiding and Abetting and Money Laundering. He will appear in federal court in Worcester at a later date.

According to the charging documents, the defendants and their co-conspirators purchased and used the stolen personal information of over 100 real people from multiple states to fraudulently obtain SNAP benefits. The stolen identities were used to create 24 “households” in SNAP applications. All of these applications, submitted in the names of over 100 people, were listed as living in two single-family apartments in Providence, R.I.

A number of the stolen identities from Connecticut, Florida, Kentucky, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Puerto Rico were used to fraudulently obtain SNAP benefits in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

It is further alleged that Raul Fernandez Vicioso and Joel Vicioso Fernandez used their own personal information to create fraudulent SNAP benefit accounts that were found commingled among the victim identities in the applications. In support of the fraudulently submitted SNAP applications, the defendants and their co-conspirators allegedly provided images of counterfeit passports and passport cards, with metadata that indicated the images were taken inside or within the immediate vicinity of El Primo Restaurant – a restaurant operated by Raul Fernandez Vicioso in Leominster, Mass.

The defendants and their co-conspirators allegedly used the fraudulent SNAP benefits cards to purchase large quantities of expensive bulk food items (such as multiple-pound packages of chicken, beef and pork) at various local wholesalers and food markets to stock El Primo Restaurant at no expense. With their supplies obtained for free through fraudulent SNAP benefits, they prepared and then sold menu items at El Primo Restaurant at a complete profit, later wiring the fraud proceeds, among other places, to individuals living in Venezuela and the Dominican Republic.

According to the charging documents, between April 2020 and December 2021, the defendants and their co-conspirators further enriched themselves by over $700,000 by submitting fraudulent applications and supporting documents for PUA in Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Nevada. The fraudulent PUA benefits were issued in the names of Raul Fernandez Vicioso, Joel Vicioso Fernandez and in the names of suspected identity theft victims, including identities common to the related the SNAP benefit fraud. At least 29 different identities were allegedly used in PUA applications in six different states – all of which listed the address for El Primo Restaurant as the residential address. Bank records obtained during the investigation detail approximately $276,021 in fraudulent PUA benefits deposited into bank accounts held in the names of the El Primo Restaurant, Raul Fernandez Vicioso, Joel Vicioso Fernandez and other co-conspirators. Other fraudulent PUA benefits were allegedly issued to prepaid cards in the identities of the various individuals which were applied for using known addresses and telephone numbers of the subjects.

During searches of Raul Fernandez Vicioso’s residence and the El Primo Restaurant fraudulently obtained Massachusetts and Rhode Island EBT cards, fraudulent documents bearing a Providence address involved in the alleged scheme, printed ledgers and handwritten lists of more than 100 identities and SNAP-related mailings were recovered.

Fraud, waste or abuse can be reported to the Council of the Inspectors General for Integrity and Efficiency: https://www.oversight.gov/where-report-fraud-waste-abuse-or-retaliation

The charge of Conspiracy to Commit SNAP Fraud provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 The charge of illegal acquisition or use of SNAP benefits provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of money laundering provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $500,000 or twice the amount involved in the transaction, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Charmeka Parker, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Agriculture - Office of Inspector General, Northeast Region; Anthony P. D’Esposito, Inspector General, Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General; Thomas Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office; and Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Social Security Administration - Office of Inspector General; U.S. Department of Homeland Security - Office of Inspector General; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; U.S. Department of State - Diplomatic Security Service; Rhode Island Office of Internal Audit - Fraud Detection & Prevention Unit; Massachusetts State Police; the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island; and the Fitchburg and Leominster Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Danial Bennett of the Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case. 

The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.  

BOSTON – A Webster man has been charged by criminal complaint for unlicensed dealing in firearms.

Anthony Pietrowski, 24, a.ka. AJ, was charged with one count of dealing in firearms without a license. Pietrowski made an initial appearance in federal court in Worcester on Jan. 30, 2026.

According to the charging documents, in the summer of 2025, an investigation began into Pietrowski. It is alleged that Pietrowski sold numerous firearms, including a machinegun conversion device, on four occasions in Webster, Mass. to an undercover agent.

The charge of unlicensed dealing in firearms provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Thomas Greco, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by United States Postal Inspection Service, Warwick (RI) Police Department, Webster Police Department, Massachusetts State Police and the Worcester Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary Stendig of the Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case.

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Boston is comprised of agents and officers from HSI, FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS, IRS-CI, USPIS, DOL-OIG and DSS, as well as several state and local law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.

The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.  
 

BOSTON – A former police officer with the Gloucester Police Department has been sentenced for possessing child sexual abuse material (CSAM).  

Alexander Aiello, 34, of Gloucester, was sentenced on Jan. 23, 2026 by U.S. Senior District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV four years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. In October 2025, Aiello pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child pornography.  

On several occasions in 2024 and 2025, Aiello accessed a website on the dark web that was dedicated to downloading, viewing, advertising and distributing CSAM. Searches of Aiello’s person and residence on April 28, 2025 resulted in the seizure of the defendant’s cell phone and laptop as well as a USB thumb drive, which was found in Aiello’s nightstand in his bedroom.

An examination of the devices revealed that a TOR Browser – an application that provides anonymous web access and access to dark web hidden services – was installed and actively running on Aiello’s laptop with evidence of downloaded files consistent with recent use. The USB drive was thoroughly encrypted and Aiello contained more than 200 files consistent with CSAM.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Gloucester Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Luke A. Goldworm, Project Safe Childhood Coordinator and a member of the Major Crimes Unit prosecuted the case.

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

BOSTON – A Webster man pleaded guilty on Jan. 23, 2026 in federal court in Worcester in connection with his role in distributing crystal methamphetamine.

Giang Tran, 36, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances (involving 50 grams or more of methamphetamine) and distribution of methamphetamine. U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman scheduled sentencing for May 6, 2026. Tran was indicted on June 10, 2025.

According to court records, in December 2024, a cooperating witness told law enforcement that Tran was a supplier of pounds of crystal methamphetamine. Undercover law enforcement contacted Tran, posing as the cooperating witness. Through these communications, Tran agreed three times to deliver crystal methamphetamine to undercover law enforcement. On Jan. 2, 2025, Tran personally delivered the drugs at a commercial plaza in Everett. On Jan. 8, 2025, and again on Jan. 21, 2025, Tran sent an associate to deliver the drugs in Worcester. In total, Tran delivered or arranged the delivery of approximately 1 kilogram of methamphetamine.    

The charge of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances (involving 50 grams or more of methamphetamine) provides for a sentence of at least 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years of supervised release and up to life and a fine of up to $10 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jarod A. Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division; made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by Riverside (Calif.) DEA Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Samuel R. Feldman of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting the case.

BOSTON – A Peabody man has been arrested and charged with fraudulently obtaining over $100,000 in coronavirus relief funds.

Jonathan Carpenter, 41, was indicted on one count of theft of government money. Carpenter was arrested yesterday and released on conditions following an initial appearance in federal court in Boston.

According to the charging documents, Carpenter defrauded the United States Small Business Administration (SBA) in 2020 by applying for and obtaining an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL). The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act authorized SBA to provide EIDLs to eligible small business experiencing financial disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

It is alleged that Carpenter fraudulently obtained $125,000 in EIDL funds for Homeland Electric, an electrical contractor that had not existed for approximately five years at the time of his application. It is further alleged that Carpenter falsely claimed that Homeland Electric was established on March 1, 2011; had gross receipts of $250,000; and had eight employees as of Jan. 21, 2020. Carpenter also allegedly failed to indicate that he had a criminal record.

The charge of theft of government money provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by Peabody Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy E. Moran of the Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit is prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.  
 

BOSTON – A married couple was charged today for their alleged involvement in a scheme to defraud individuals seeking insurance coverage through the couple’s business, BL Insurance Brokerage, LLC.

Brendan Lawler, 58, and Lisa Lawler, 45, of New Bedford, Mass., were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Both defendants will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date. The Lawlers were charged by criminal complaint in August 2025.

According to the charging documents, from March 2023 through March 2024, the Lawlers allegedly solicited and collected insurance payments from BL Insurance’s clients, which should have been paid to the clients’ insurance providers. But instead of paying the insurance companies, the Lawlers allegedly pocketed their clients’ payments and used the money for their own purposes. To conceal this theft of client funds and to keep their BL Insurance afloat to perpetuate the scheme, the Lawlers allegedly used incoming client funds to pay outstanding balances due to other clients’ insurers. The Lawlers also allegedly created and distributed certain insurance documents to clients that falsely suggested that the clients were insured. In total, through this scheme, the Lawlers allegedly defrauded at least 50 individuals or insurance providers and stole more than $750,000 from insurance providers, premium finance companies and hard money lenders.

Members of the public who believe they may be a victim of this case or have any relevant information related to this case are requested to please fill out the attached form to be contacted by a member of law enforcement: https://forms.fbi.gov/victims/BLInsuranceVictims/view. 

The charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the loss to the victim. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts Division of Insurance and Insurance Fraud Bureau. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan Cleary of the Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
 

BOSTON – A Springfield, Mass. man was sentenced yesterday to a decade in federal prison for conspiring to possess more than 400 grams of fentanyl with intent to distribute.  

Abraham Heredia, 25, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni to 10 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. In October 2025, Heredia pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute more than 400 grams of fentanyl.

From at least November 2022 to June 2023, Heredia conspired with others to distribute larges amounts of fentanyl throughout Western Massachusetts. On one occasion in June of 2023, Heredia conspired to distribute nearly one and a half kilograms of fentanyl, which was intercepted by law enforcement. The investigation revealed a number of other occasions during which Heredia supplied mid-level drug dealers with large amounts of fentanyl.    

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division; Massachusetts State Police; the Berkshire, Hampden and Franklin County Sherriff’s Offices; and the Holyoke, Springfield, Chicopee, West Springfield and Easthampton Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil L. Desroches, Chief of the Springfield Branch Unit prosecuted the case.  

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Boston is comprised of agents and officers from HSI, FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS, IRS-CI, USPIS, DOL-OIG and DSS, as well as several state and local law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.

BOSTON – Former Massachusetts State Senator Dean Tran was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for attempting to cover up a fraudulent job offer and job offer letter from his sister’s company.

Tran, 50, of Fitchburg, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to one year in prison, 11 months to run concurrent with his current sentence and one month to run consecutive, to be followed by 18 months of supervised release to run concurrent with his current sentence. In December 2025, Tran pleaded guilty to one count of obstruction of justice and one count of making a false statement. Tran was indicted by a federal grand jury in June 2024 along with his sister, Tuyet T. Martin.

Tran was convicted by a federal jury in September 2024 for fraudulent collection of Pandemic Unemployment Assistance benefits and his willful omission of consulting and rental income from his tax returns in 2020, 2021 and 2022. He is currently serving an 18-month sentence in federal prison for those convictions.  

“This case is clear and simple. It is about entitlement. Entitlement to benefits Mr. Tran was not owed, entitlement to lie when confronted and entitlement to blame everyone but himself. Dean Tran did not only commit fraud; he lied, obstructed justice and tried to derail a federal investigation to protect himself. Even after being convicted, Dean Tran continued to deny responsibility for his actions,” said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. “Today’s sentence makes one thing clear: if you think you can lie to federal agents, manipulate the system and obstruct justice – you are sorely mistaken. As we have said over and over, no one is above the law. Justice is blind to power, wealth and status.”

“This investigation underscores our continued commitment to protecting the integrity of the unemployment insurance system,” said Anthony P. D’Esposito, Inspector General, Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General. “Mr. Tran’s fraudulent receipt of pandemic unemployment benefits was compounded by false statements made to federal law enforcement during the execution of a lawful search warrant. Individuals who exploit critical benefit programs and attempt to obstruct investigations will be held accountable.”

“Today’s sentencing of Dean Tran demonstrates that lying to federal law enforcement officers is a serious offense,” said Thomas Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office. “Obstruction of justice, at a minimum, prolongs an investigation and costs the American taxpayers thousands of additional dollars. In these situations, obstruction can lead to the destruction or loss of evidence, allowing guilty parties to evade justice and deprive their victims of a fair and just outcome.”

“Anyone who obstructs a federal investigation is attempting to subvert the course of justice, and when a former Massachusetts State Senator does it, that’s even more egregious,” said Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division. “The FBI and our partners will always seek to hold those foolish enough to try to interfere with our cases accountable because it is a direct threat to our entire system of justice.”  

As part of an ongoing investigation into unemployment benefits and tax fraud schemes, federal law enforcement interviewed Tran at his residence while executing a federal search warrant. During the interview, Tran was asked about a letter he provided to unemployment agency officials when his benefits were briefly suspended, and he was attempting to have benefits reinstated. Tran made material misrepresentations to the federal law enforcement agents about the letter, including that his sister and co-defendant, Tuyet Martin, had authored the letter when she was not the sole author of the letter and Tran had revised it before the letter was finalized and submitted to unemployment officials. Tran also told federal law enforcement agents that his sister’s signature appeared on the letter when in fact Tran had signed the letter, not his sister.

In January 2026, Martin pleaded guilty to one count of obstruction of justice. She is scheduled to be sentenced on May 13, 2026.

U.S. Attorney Foley; DOL IG D’Esposito; IRS-CI SAC Demeo; and FBI SAC Docks made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John T. Mulcahy, Lauren Maynard and Dustin Chao of the Public Corruption & Special Prosecutions Unit prosecuted the case.
 

BOSTON – A Florida man has been sentenced in federal court in Boston for drug possession and distribution charges.

Wuesley Pelaez Vela, 34, of Tallahassee, Fla., was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Court Judge William G. Young to nine years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. In May 2025, Pelaez Vela pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to launder money and one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl.  The defendant was indicted by a federal grand jury in July 2022 along with five alleged co-conspirators.

In 2019, an investigation began into a Colombia-based money laundering organization that was laundering drug proceeds on behalf of multiple drug trafficking organizations. Between 2020 and 2022, Pelaez Vela coordinated with an undercover agent to conduct multiple pick-ups of drug proceeds to be paid out to drug suppliers in Mexico for the purpose of laundering the cash. In total, Pelaez Vela organized 13 money pickups totaling $1,127,573 in drug proceeds.

Additionally, in October 2021, Pelaez Vela instructed an undercover agent to purchase fentanyl, provided the undercover agent with photos of the pills and a code phrase to order the pills containing fentanyl. Two packages sent as part of this transaction, which contained over 600 grams of fentanyl, were subsequently seized.  

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jarod A. Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian J. Sullivan of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit prosecuted the case.  

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Boston is comprised of agents and officers from HSI, FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS, IRS-CI, USPIS, DOL-OIG and DSS, as well as several state and local law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.

BOSTON – A Florida man pleaded guilty yesterday to conspiring to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute.

Deane Gilmore, 35, of Brandon, Fla., pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks before U.S. District Court Judge Brian E. Murphy, who scheduled sentencing for May 12, 2026. Gilmore was charged in December 2025.

From March 2020 through approximately April 2022, Gilmore owned and managed two durable medical equipment companies, Jupiter Medical Associates Inc. and Granite Medical Associates Inc. Gilmore, through these companies, illegally paid telemarketers or call centers who obtained medical information from Medicare beneficiaries to prepare orders for durable medical equipment—such as back, knee, wrist, or ankle braces. The documentation made it appear that medical practitioners were legitimately prescribing the DME to these beneficiaries, when, in fact, these orders were frequently medically unnecessary and based on false documentation. By paying these telemarketers on a per-order basis, Gilmore violated the Anti-Kickback Statute.  

Over the course of his scheme, Gilmore submitted or caused to be submitted a total of approximately $6.5 million in kickback-tainted claims to Medicare. Medicare ultimately paid out approximately $2.3 million for these kickback-tainted claims.

The charge of conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Roberto Coviello, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services’ Office of the Inspector General; Nicholas Bucciarelli, Acting Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher R. Looney of the National Security Unit is prosecuting the case. 

BOSTON – A Queens, N.Y. man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for a scheme to steal over $3 million in COVID relief tax credits using the stolen identity of a corporate executive in New Jersey.

Linval Jackson, 34, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Denise J. Casper to four years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. In October 2025, Jackson pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud; one count of bank fraud; and one count of aggravated identity theft. Jackson was arrested and charged in July 2024.

Jackson and his co-conspirator Isaiah Aaron Tenryk used a fraudulent driver’s license, as well as the name and Social Security number of a corporate executive in New Jersey, to open a bank account in Boston. Tenryk then deposited an approximately $3 million Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC) check payable to the executive’s company into the fraudulent account. ERTC is a refundable tax credit for certain eligible businesses that had employees and were adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

After the check was deposited, Jackson attempted to link the fraudulent account to other bank accounts he controlled to transfer the stolen money.

Tenryk pleaded guilty to bank fraud and identity theft in September 2024 and was sentenced to three years in prison in December 2024.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Thomas Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office; and Nicholas Bucciarelli, Acting Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Boston Division made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elianna Nuzum of the Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit prosecuted the case.
 

BOSTON – A Norfolk man has been arrested and charged with allegedly sexually exploiting a two-year-old minor victim from Massachusetts.

Ethan Irving, 36, was charged by criminal complaint with one count of sexual exploitation of children. Irving was arrested this morning in Norfolk and will make an initial appearance in federal court in Boston at 3:15 p.m. today.

In June 2025, Irving was identified as an online user who uploaded three files of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) to Kik Messenger. A July 2025 forensic analysis of two cell phones sized from Irving’s residence located multiple media files depicting CSAM. As a result of the findings, Irving was arrested and charged in Wrentham District Court in July 2025. He subsequently pleaded guilty to Dissemination of Obscene Matter and Possession of Child Pornography on Dec. 3, 2025, for which he was sentenced to two years of probation with conditions that prohibit his contact with children.

According to the charging documents, on Dec. 15, 2025, while reviewing evidence related to Irving’s state prosecution, additional CSAM was allegedly located on Irving’s devices that had not previously been seen by investigators. Specifically, the images allegedly appeared to be a continuous series, sequential in time, depicting Irving sexually abusing a two-year-old female toddler who was known to him. It is alleged that the images appeared to have been taken inside a bedroom at Irving’s residence, with the bedding depicted in the images matching sheets observed and photographed by law enforcement during a search of the home in July 2025.

The charge of sexual exploitation of minors (and attempt and conspiracy) provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years and up to 30 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; Michael Jenkins, Chief of East Bridgewater Police Department; and James Floyd, Chief of the Plainville Police Department made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Norfolk Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Luke A. Goldworm, Project Safe Childhood Coordinator and a member of the Major Crimes Unit, is prosecuting the case.

The case is brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov

The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.  

BOSTON – A former Brookline, Mass. physician was convicted following a 10-day jury trial in federal court in Boston of health care fraud, money laundering, tax evasion and conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  

Dr. Pankaj Merchia, 52, of Brookline, Mass. and Boca Raton, Fla., was convicted on Jan. 27, 2026 of one count of health care fraud, three counts of money laundering, two counts of tax evasion and one count of conspiracy to defraud the IRS. U.S. Senior District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton scheduled sentencing for April 28, 2026. Merchia was indicted for money laundering and health care fraud in December 2022 and later charged for tax offenses in a superseding indictment along with alleged co-conspirator Dr. Shona Pendse in February 2023. 

Merchia perpetrated two distinct health care fraud schemes. First, Merchia billed former patients’ insurance companies for monthly rentals of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) and Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure (BiPap) machines from 2017 to 2019, despite not having treated the patients since at least 2011. In some cases, the patients had returned the devices to him. Merchia used the proceeds of this fraud to purchase an expensive home in Brookline.

Additionally, Merchia defrauded another insurance company out of over $390,000 by submitting claims for a CPAP machine provided to his brother. After he was told that the insurance carrier would not pay for treatment rendered by a family member, Merchia created a new medical business and submitted new claims so that the company would pay. Merchia used the proceeds of this fraud to fund a wire transfer of $250,000 and to purchase at least $140,000 in securities.  

Finally, from 2009 to 2019 Merchia did not report, or pay taxes on, over $6.5 million in income he earned from his medical businesses by falsely claiming that those businesses were owned by his co-conspirator. To defraud the IRS, Merchia fabricated a sham transaction by which he claimed to have sold his medical businesses to his co-conspirator in 2008. To ensure that his co-conspirator did not owe taxes, they claimed large amortization deductions, spread across many years, for the fabricated sale.

The charges of money laundering and health care fraud provide for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charges of tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the IRS provide for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Thomas Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office; and Anthony M. DiPaolo, Executive Director of the Insurance Fraud Bureau of Massachusetts made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil J. Gallagher, Jr. of the Health Care Fraud Unit and Trial Attorney Ezra Spiro of the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Tax Section are prosecuting the case.  

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

BOSTON – The founder and former Chief Executive Officer of a Boston-based nonprofit was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for using thousands of dollars in donations to Violence in Boston (VIB) to pay for personal expenses; defrauding the City of Boston out of COVID-19 relief funds and rental assistance money; defrauding the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office out of Community Reinvestment Grant funds; filing false tax returns; and failing to file tax returns for two years.  

Monica Cannon-Grant, 44, of Taunton, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Angel Kelley to four years’ probation, with six months of home detention and 100 hours of community service. She was also ordered to pay restitution of $106,003 as well as forfeiture in an amount to be decided at a later date. The government recommended a sentence of 18 months in prison.

In September 2025, Cannon-Grant pleaded guilty to 18 counts: three counts of wire fraud conspiracy; 10 counts of wire fraud; one count of mail fraud; two counts of filing false tax returns; and two counts of failing to file tax returns. In March 2023, Cannon-Grant was charged along with her co-conspirator and late husband Clark Grant in a 27-count superseding indictment. Clark Grant’s charges were dismissed in May 2023 due to his death. Cannon-Grant and Clark Grant had previously been charged in an 18-count indictment in March 2022.

In 2020, Cannon-Grant was lauded as a Bostonian of the Year and social justice advocate, recognized for being a “voice for the community” and social justice advocate.

“Monica Cannon-Grant’s crimes were not a momentary lapse in judgment — they were a calculated pattern of deception that spanned years. She repeatedly lied to donors, government agencies, and the public, even after being caught — all while presenting herself as a champion for others. Fraud disguised as activism or charity is still fraud. You don’t get partial credit for stealing,” said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. “This case makes clear that exploiting public trust for personal enrichment is a serious federal crime, no matter how it is packaged.”

“Ms. Cannon-Grant’s actions were crimes of greed and opportunity but will not go unpunished thanks to the law enforcement community, who have dedicated their mission to uncovering and putting an end to such devious schemes. This case illustrates that anyone who defrauds state programs and exploits their position in the community, will be held accountable for their actions. Postal inspectors are ever vigilant in bringing to justice individuals who use the U.S. Mail to defraud and otherwise take advantage of the financial circumstances of innocent consumers,” said Nicolas Bucciarelli, Acting Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Boston Division.

“Monica Cannon-Grant illegally enriched herself through a scheme that fraudulently diverted critical taxpayer resources from individuals who depended on unemployment insurance benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic. This case reinforces our unwavering commitment to protecting the integrity of the unemployment insurance program,” said Anthony P. D’Esposito, Inspector General, Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General. “We will continue to work closely with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners to safeguard vital U.S. Department of Labor programs and to ensure accountability for those who seek to exploit them.”

“This case against Monica Cannon-Grant demonstrates IRS-CI’s commitment to protecting all American citizens, especially those who are in need of assistance, like those that Cannon-Grant claimed to care about,” said Thomas Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office. “Cannon-Grant not only stole from her own non-profit organization but did so at the expense of multiple public financial programs designed to help those truly in need. While Cannon-Grant personally profited from her own scheme, those in the communities seeking a lifeline from her organization had to go without.”

Cannon-Grant was the founder and CEO of VIB, an anti-violence nonprofit formally established in 2017, the stated purpose of which was to reduce violence, raise social awareness and aid community causes in Greater Boston, among other purposes.

From 2017 through at least 2020, Cannon-Grant represented herself as an uncompensated VIB director to donors and other charitable institutions when, in reality, she and her late husband agreed to utilize their control over VIB’s accounts and funds to pay for personal expenditures through cash withdrawals, cashed checks, wire transfers to personal bank accounts and debit purchases. Cannon-Grant also applied for, and certified the applications for, grants offered by public and private entities that included materially false representations. For example, Cannon-Grant conspired to use VIB to defraud the Boston Resiliency Fund (BRF), a charitable fund established by the City of Boston to provide aid to Boston residents during the COVID-19 pandemic. After receiving approximately $53,977 in pandemic relief funds, Cannon-Grant withdrew approximately $30,000 in cash from the VIB bank account, made deposits of $5,200 and $1,000 into her personal checking account, and made payments on her personal auto loan and car insurance policy. Cannon-Grant did not disclose any of these personal expenses to BRF and, instead, falsely reported to BRF that all of its grant funds had been appropriately expended.

Cannon-Grant also conspired to defraud Boston’s Office of Housing Stability by concealing thousands of dollars of household income in order to obtain $12,600 in rental assistance from the City of Boston. Instead of truthfully reporting accurate information about the family’s earnings and benefits, Cannon-Grant and her late husband misrepresented their actual household income to obtain rent relief funds that were intended to aid Boston residents who were facing housing insecurity.    

Cannon-Grant and her late husband also conspired to defraud the Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance by submitting fraudulent applications for pandemic unemployment assistance and certifying on a weekly basis that they were not working and did not receive over $89 in income during the prior week. In addition, Cannon-Grant filed false tax returns for 2017 and 2018 and failed to file tax returns for 2019 and 2020, omitting tens of thousands of dollars in income that Cannon-Grant received in salary from VIB and through work as a consultant.

U.S. Attorney Foley; USPIS Acting INC Bucciarelli; DOL Inspector General D’Esposito; IRS-CI SAC Demeo; Matthew M. Modafferi, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General; and Massachusetts Inspector General Jeffrey Shapiro made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dustin Chao, Chief of the Public Corruption Unit, prosecuted the case.

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

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

BOSTON – A former pediatric cardiac anesthesiology fellow at Boston Children’s Hospital was sentenced yesterday to nearly two decades in prison for producing, possessing and distributing child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Defendant was previously a fellow in pediatric anesthesiology at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore.

Christopher Sheerer, 37, of Boston, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Denise J. Casper to 22 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. Sheerer was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $65,722. An additional amount of restitution will be determined at a hearing scheduled for March 26, 2026. In September 2025, Sheerer pleaded guilty to one count of distribution of child pornography; one count of possession of child pornography; and one count of sexual exploitation of children. Sheerer was arrested and charged in July 2024 and has remained in federal custody since.

“Every time child sexual abuse material is created, shared, or viewed, children are revictimized again and again,” said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. “Each case serves as a difficult reminder that child predators are embedded in our communities. This defendant did not just possess this heinous material – he produced it himself and shared it with others. Moreover, his chosen employment increased his direct contact with children. Today’s sentence reflects the devastating harm these crimes inflict on real children and sends a clear message that those who fuel this abuse will face severe consequences. Our office will continue to work tirelessly to protect children, pursue justice for victims and hold offenders fully accountable.”

“Sheerer is among the worst kind of criminal we investigate. He held a position of trust in the community, but behind closed doors he was a predator of the highest order, not only participating in online groups dedicated to the sharing of photos depicting the sexual abuse of children but also acting as a hands-on offender. Now, he’s facing over two decades behind bars,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Krol of Homeland Security Investigations New England. “When our special agents go to work every day, they’re working toward making the world a safer place for children. We hope that today’s sentence does just that and brings a measure of security to the family of the child he victimized as they move forward and begin to heal.”

Sheerer was a fellow in pediatric cardiac anesthesiology at Boston Children’s Hospital at the time of his arrest and was previously a fellow in pediatric anesthesiology at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore.

In May 2024, an investigation began into a user of an online, encrypted chat application who belonged to a group dedicated to the sharing of CSAM. The target user was subsequently identified as Sheerer, with an IP address tracing him to Johns Hopkins University. Sheerer uploaded imagery of a child known to him to gain admission to that group.

Following a search of Sheerer’s residence in Boston, multiple chats were discovered on Sheerer’s phone, several of which contained pictures and videos appearing to be CSAM involving children as young as infants. Forensic analysis of devices seized pursuant to the warrant showed that Sheerer was involved in dozens of chats with users of the encrypted application, several of which included the exchange of CSAM, including imagery of a child known to him.

U.S. Attorney Foley and HSI SAC Krol made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the Districts of Maryland and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania; Homeland Security Investigations in Baltimore and Harrisburg; and the Boston Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica Soto and Anne Paruti of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case.

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

BOSTON – A Dominican national residing in Lawrence, Mass. has been indicted by a federal grand jury for unlawfully reentering the United States after deportation.

Jose Alberto Tejeda Turbi, 46, was indicted on one count of unlawful reentry of a deported alien. Tejeda Turbi will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date.

In July 2015, Tejeda Turbi was convicted in federal court in Boston of heroin distribution and conspiracy, for which he was sentenced to five years in prison and four years of supervised release. Tejeda Turbi was deported from the United States in March 2020 upon his completion of the sentence imposed.

According to the charging documents, sometime after his March 2020 removal, Tejeda Turbi illegally reentered the United States without permission.

In June 2024, Tejeda Turbi was sentenced in Lawrence District Court to two years in prison for assault and battery resulting in serious bodily injury and three years of probation for remaining charges.

The charge of unlawful reentry of a deported alien provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The defendant is subject to deportation upon completion of any sentence imposed. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Patricia H. Hyde, Field Office Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations in Boston made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brad A. Rocheville of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

A federal jury in Boston, Massachusetts, convicted a medical doctor Tuesday for health care fraud, money laundering, conspiracy to defraud the IRS, and tax evasion.

“Over ten years, the defendant hid millions in income from the IRS and defrauded insurers through his medical practice,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The defendant—a highly educated physician — put greed over his integrity, lining his own pockets through lies and deceit at the expense insurers and Americans who pay healthcare premiums, then doubling down on his lies and deceit and attempting to hide his ill-gotten gains from the IRS. The Criminal Division will prosecute doctors and other professionals like this defendant who abuse the system, and through their crimes, inflate insurance costs for all Americans and fail to pay their taxes due and owing.”

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Dr. Pankaj Merchia, of Boca Raton, Florida and Brookline, Massachusetts, was a Harvard-educated sleep doctor who controlled several sleep medicine companies. From 2017 to 2019, the defendant fraudulently billed  insurance companies millions of dollars for sleep apnea machines that had not been used by his former patients for years. Merchia billed up to hundreds of thousands of dollars per patient for the medical devices, even when in some cases those patients had returned the devices to him. Merchia used the proceeds of the fraud to purchase a $2.1 million home in Brookline, Massachusetts.

Merchia also defrauded a health insurer out of over $390,000 by submitting fraudulent claims for treating his brother. After being told that he could not bill insurance for treating a family member, Merchia created a new medical business in the name of a nominee and submitted new claims so that the insurance company would continue paying the illicit reimbursement. 

In addition, from 2009 to 2019, Merchia did not report, or pay tax on, over $6.5 million [PC1] in income he earned from his medical businesses by falsely claiming that those businesses were owned by a co-conspirator. To defraud the IRS, Merchia fabricated a sham transaction, falsely claiming that he sold his medical businesses back in 2008. To ensure that his co-conspirator did not owe taxes, they claimed deductions, spread across many years, for the fabricated sale payment. 

Merchia was convicted of one count of health care fraud, three counts of money laundering, one count of conspiracy to defraud the IRS, and two counts of tax evasion. He is scheduled to be sentenced on April 28, 2026. Each count of healthcare fraud and money laundering carries a maximum penalty of ten years in prison. Tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the IRS each carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

IRS Criminal Investigation and the Insurance Fraud Bureau of Massachusetts are investigating the case.

Trial Attorney Ezra Spiro of the Criminal Division’s Tax Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil Gallagher of the District of Massachusetts are prosecuting the case.

BOSTON – A Tucson, Ariz., man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston in connection with his role in distributing, and laundering the proceeds of, truckloads of fentanyl and cocaine.

Reginel Cazares, a/k/a “Junior,” 37, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances (involving 400 grams or more of fentanyl and five kilograms or more of cocaine) and money laundering conspiracy. U.S. District Court Chief Judge Denise J. Casper scheduled sentencing for May 6, 2026. Cazares was indicted on June 13, 2024.

According to court filings, in August 2023, a cooperating witness told law enforcement about an individual he knew as “Junior” – later identified as Cazares – based in Tucson, Ariz., who organized multi-kilogram deliveries of fentanyl and cocaine from California to Massachusetts. The kilograms were driven by tractor trailer from the area of Ontario, Calif., to Massachusetts. In November 2023, and again in December 2023, Cazares directed the cooperating witness to pick up drug proceeds in Massachusetts from two co-defendants, with approximately $600,000 in drug proceeds picked up in Tewksbury, Mass., at Cazares’ direction. On Feb. 16, 2024, Cazares directed the cooperating witness to pick up four kilograms of fentanyl and nine kilograms of cocaine in Ontario, Calif., which were to be driven to Massachusetts and the Carolinas. The narcotics were intercepted by law enforcement.

In 2012, Cazares was convicted of cocaine conspiracy in the District of New Jersey and sentenced to 57 months in prison.

The charge of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances (involving 400 grams or more of fentanyl and five kilograms or more of cocaine) provides for a sentence of at least 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $10 million. The charge of money laundering conspiracy provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and fine of $500,000 or twice the value of the property involved, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jarod A. Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Riverside (Calif.), Bakersfield (Calif.) and Tucson (Ariz.) DEA Offices; San Bernadino County (Calif.) Sheriff’s Department; Inland Regional Narcotics Enforcement Team; the Methuen Police Department; and U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Samuel R. Feldman of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting the case.

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Boston is comprised of agents and officers from HSI, FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS, IRS-CI, USPIS, DOL-OIG and DSS, as well as several state and local law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

BOSTON – A Springfield, Mass. man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Springfield for drug trafficking.

Marcus Hicks, 46, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni to 18 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. In September 2025 was convicted of one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, one count of possession of cocaine base, also known as crack cocaine, and one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana. Hicks was indicted by a federal grand jury in September 2023.

On Nov. 21, 2022, Hicks possessed 97 grams of cocaine, 15 grams of crack cocaine and two and one-half pounds of marijuana intended for distribution.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Jarod A. Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration in New England; Holyoke Police Chief Brian Keenan; and Superintendent Lawrence Akers of the Springfield Police Department made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd E. Newhouse of the Springfield Branch Office prosecuted the case. 

BOSTON – A Nashua, N.H. man pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston to trafficking nine firearms, including two semiautomatic rifles, into Massachusetts in over a one-month period. 

Dennis T. Michaud, Jr., 23, pleaded guilty to one count of trafficking in firearms. U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns scheduled sentencing for April 28, 2026. Michaud was arrested and charged in March 2025. 

Beginning in or around February 2025, Michaud was identified as an illegal firearms dealer. From Feb. 7 through Feb. 11, 2025, undercover law enforcement contacted Michaud through Snapchat to arrange for the purchase of a semiautomatic rifle. During those communications, Michaud stated that he was located in New Hampshire and that he could bring the firearm to Massachusetts. On Feb. 11, 2025, in Pepperell, Mass., Michaud met with a confidential source operating at the direction of law enforcement to conduct the transaction. There, Michaud provided the confidential source with a Good Time Outdoors CXV Core 15 .223/5.56 caliber semiautomatic rifle and a 30-round .223/5.56 caliber magazine in exchange for $900.
 

On Feb. 18, 2025, Michaud agreed to sell three additional firearms. Later that day, Michaud met the source at an agreed upon location in Pepperell, Mass. where he provided the following three firearms as well as accompanying ammunition and accessories in exchange for $2,100: a Taurus Raging Hunter .454 Casull Revolver and approximately five rounds of .454 Casull ammunition; a Rossi Interarms M68 .38 Special Revolver and approximately five rounds of .38 Special ammunition; and a Walther PPS 9mm Pistol with approximately six Walther PPS 9mm magazines and various firearm parts and/or accessories.

In addition, on Feb. 27, 2025, Michaud agreed to sell two more firearms: a Radical Firearms RF-15 .223/5.56 caliber semiautomatic short-barreled rifle along with a 30-round .223/5.56 caliber magazine and a Sig Sauer P227 Equinox .45 caliber pistol along with a 10-round Sig Sauer P227 .45 caliber magazine. During the transaction Michaud provided the confidential source the two agreed-upon firearms and ammunition. Michaud also stated that possessing the semiautomatic short-barreled rifle would constitute “three felonies” due to the stock and 30-round magazine affixed to the firearm.

On March 20, 2025 Michaud sold three more firearms, two magazines and ammunition to the confidential source in exchange for $2,250: a Century Arms 7.62x39mm YSKA AK Rifle; a Smith & Wesson M&P 9mm Pistol; and a Taurus PT-22 .22 caliber Pistol. The defendant was immediately taken into custody following the transaction.

Michaud does not possess a federal firearms license.

The charge of trafficking in firearms without a license provides for a sentence of up to 15 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Thomas Greco, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police; and the Nashua (N.H.), Worcester and Pepperell Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sandra Gonzalez Sanchez of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.

BOSTON – A member of the violent Boston-based gang, H-Block, was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for drug conspiracy charges.

Trea Lankford, a/k/a “Montana,” a/k/a “Heffna Boss Don,” a/k/a “Tre Cain,” 34 of Boston, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin to eight years in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release. In October, 2025, Lankford pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances.

Lankford was one of 10 H-Block gang members and associates charged in August 2024 following a multi-year investigation of H Block beginning in 2021 in response to an uptick in gang-related drug trafficking, shootings and violence. According to court documents, over 500 grams of cocaine, cocaine base (crack cocaine) and fentanyl, as well as over 20,000 doses of drug-laced paper were seized during the investigation.

According to the charging documents, the H Block Street Gang is one of the most feared and influential city-wide gangs in Boston. Originally formed in the 1980s as the Humboldt Raiders in the Roxbury section of Boston, the gang re-emerged in the 2000s as H Block. Current members of H Block have a history of violent confrontation with law enforcement, including an incident in 2015 when a member shot a Boston Police officer at point blank range without warning or provocation.

From 2022 through 2023, Lankford, a long-time H Block gang member, participated in a conspiracy to distribute various controlled substances, including fentanyl, powdered cocaine and cocaine base (crack). On numerus occasions, Lankford conducted drug deals on various dates with an undercover officer, often accompanied by co-conspirators.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Jarod A. Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division; Randy Maloney, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service, Boston Field Office; Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; Jonathan Mellone, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Northeast Region; and Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox made the announcement today. The investigation was supported by the Massachusetts State Police; Massachusetts Department of Corrections; Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office; and the Braintree, Quincy, Randolph and Watertown Police Departments. Assistant United States Attorney John T. Dawley of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit prosecuted the case along with Jeremy Franker of the Justice Department’s Violent Crime & Racketeering Section.

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Boston is comprised of agents and officers from HSI, FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS, IRS-CI, USPIS, DOL-OIG and DSS, as well as several state and local law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

BOSTON – An Everett man was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for possessing, distributing and receipt of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). The defendant committed these offenses within months of being released from federal prison.

Robert Sokolowski, 52, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor to 15 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. In September 2025, Sokolowski pleaded guilty to one count each of possession of child pornography; distribution of child pornography; and receipt of child pornography.  

In September 2024, Sokolowski lost his cell phone on an MBTA Green Line trolley.  After the phone was turned in, an employee attempting to identify the owner of the lost phone discovered images of CSAM on the phone. The phone was found to contain hundreds of images and videos depicting CSAM, depicting children as young as toddlers.

This case is Sokolowski’s third federal conviction for CSAM offenses. In 2015, Sokolowski was convicted in U.S. District Court for possession of CSAM and was sentenced to 46 months in prison. In 2015, Sokolowski was convicted a second time in U.S. District Court for possession of CSAM and sentenced to 150 months in prison. He committed the offenses in this case seven months after being released from prison for the 2015 offense.  

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England made the announcement today. Special assistance was provided by the MBTA Transit Police. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lauren Maynard and Eric L. Hawkins of the Major Crimes Unit prosecuted the case.

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

BOSTON – A Boston man has pleaded guilty to threatening a federal law enforcement officer.

Kenneth Pacheco, 22, pleaded guilty on Jan. 23, 2026 to one count of threatening a federal law enforcement officer before U.S. District Court Judge Julia E. Kobick who scheduled sentencing for April 28, 2026. Pacheco was arrested and charged in October 2025. He remains in custody.  

In May 2025, law enforcement received a tip from an anonymous complainant alleging that an individual using the online moniker “Amir Haqqani” was using a Facebook account to make threats against the complainant and other individuals. In response, Pacheco was interviewed by law enforcement. In July 2025, a relative of Pacheco expressed concerned that Pacheco may pose harm to himself and in response, law enforcement spoke with Pacheco again. On Oct. 7, 2025, Pacheco responded to these interventions by lashing out with threats aimed at friends, acquaintances and a federal agent.  Specifically, Pacheco threatened that people would “get hurt,” that he would “put people in the [] hospital” and that he would “blow” the agents “brains out.”  

The charge of threatening a federal law enforcement officer provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Looney of the National Security Unit is prosecuting the case. 

BOSTON – A manager of numerous sober homes in Massachusetts was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for his involvement in three different fraud schemes involving sober homes in the Greater Boston area, the Mass Save Program and a mortgage lender.

Nicholas Espinosa, 39, formerly of Randolph, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Court Judge William G. Young to 30 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. In October 2024, Espinosa pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud conspiracy; one count of conspiracy to make false statements to a mortgage lending business (mortgage fraud conspiracy); 15 counts of wire fraud; six counts of unlawful monetary transactions (money laundering); and one count of making false statements to a mortgage lending business. Espinosa was arrested and charged in March 2023 along with co-conspirator Daniel Cleggett.

Cleggett was the founder of the sober home business A Vision From God LLC (AVFG). Established in November 2016, AVFG owned and operated sober homes in Boston, Wakefield, Quincy and Weymouth under trade names including Brady’s Place, Lakeshore Retreat and Lambert House. Espinosa managed the day-to-day affairs of Cleggett’s sober home business.

Cleggett, Espinosa and a sober home client entered into a conspiracy to defraud a New York-based family trust that was paying for the client’s room and board at Brady’s Place, located in Quincy. Specifically, Cleggett and Espinosa overcharged the family trust for room and board by up to $12,500 per month by submitting false and fraudulent invoices to the family trust. Cleggett and Espinosa would then issue “refund” checks to the client in furtherance of the fraud scheme.

From approximately October 2019 to December 2021, Cleggett personally, and through straw purchasers including Espinosa, purchased three residential properties in Weymouth and Boston to use as sober homes. Cleggett, Espinosa and others submitted false information and fraudulent documentation including falsely representing that the three properties were intended to be purchased as primary residences when, in reality, each was intended to be a sober home.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Thomas Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office; and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Kingston, Randolph and Quincy Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys and John T. Mulcahy and Dustin Chao of the Public Corruption & Special Prosecutions Unit are prosecuting the case.

BOSTON – A New Hampshire woman has pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston to attempting to obstruct and interfere in a grand jury investigation involving her brother, former State Senator Dean Tran.

Tuyet T. Martin, 55, of Pelham, N.H., pleaded guilty on Jan. 21, 2026 to one count of obstruction of justice. U.S. Senior District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV scheduled sentencing for May 13, 2026. In June 2024, Martin was charged along with her brother, Dean Tran.

In November 2023, Tran was arrested and charged in 28-count federal indictment for his fraudulent collection of Pandemic Unemployment Assistance benefits and his willful omission of consulting and rental income from his tax returns in 2020, 2021 and 2022.

As part of the investigation into Tran’s unemployment benefits and tax fraud schemes, an investigation began into a job offer and job offer letter from Martin to Tran at the New Hampshire-based business where Martin was the owner and the CEO. During a July 2023 grand jury session, Martin provided false testimony regarding the employment offer letter. 

The charge of obstruction of justice provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

Tran pleaded guilty in December 2025 and it scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 30, 2026.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Jonathan Mellone, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Labor Racketeering and Fraud, Northeast Region; Thomas Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office; and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John T. Mulcahy and Lauren Maynard of the Public Corruption & Special Prosecutions Unit prosecuted the case.

BOSTON – A former Quincy man, currently residing in Las Vegas, Nev., was sentenced on Jan. 21, 2026 in federal court in Boston for distribution of methamphetamine.

Samuel Jean-Baptiste, a/k/a “Jett Black,” 39, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Court Judge William G. Young to 10 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. In September 2025, Jean-Baptiste pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances and one count of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. Jean-Baptiste was arrested in May 2024 and was subsequently indicted by a federal grand jury in July 2024.

In early July 2023, Jean-Baptiste was identified as a significant distributor of controlled substances in the Boston area. A confidential source made three controlled purchases totaling over 680 grams of fentanyl from Jean-Baptiste. In the subsequent months, Jean-Baptiste communicated with a second confidential source to set up a sale of approximately 10 pounds of methamphetamine. On May 29, 2024, Jean-Baptiste arrived at an agreed-upon location for the sale of methamphetamine and was subsequently arrested. At the time of his arrest Jean-Baptiste was carrying a backpack that contained approximately 10 pounds of suspected methamphetamine. 

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian J. Sullivan of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit prosecuted the case.

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Boston is comprised of agents and officers from HSI, FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS, IRS-CI, USPIS, DOL-OIG and DSS, as well as several state and local law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts. 

BOSTON – A Brazilian national, residing in Milford, was arrested and charged in federal court in Worcester for possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

Joao Carlos Tavares Da Silva, 21, was charged with possession of child pornography. The defendant was detained after making an initial appearance in federal court in Worcester.  

According to the charging documents, Tavares Da Silva is a Brazilian citizen with an outstanding warrant in Brazil for statutory rape; production, reproduction, direction, recording or filming of scenes of explicit sexual acts or pornography involving children or adolescents; and selling or offering for sale any photograph, video, or other recording that contains scenes of explicit sexual acts or pornography involving a child or adolescent. During a search of Tavares Da Silva’s home in Milford, multiple electronic devices were seized.  According to the criminal complaint affidavit, images containing CSAM were located on one of those devices. The images appeared to be of an alleged victim in Brazil.

The charge of possession of child pornography provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, supervised release for life and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by Milford Police Department and the Massachusetts State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristen M. Noto of the Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case.

The case is brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identity and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.

The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law. 
 

BOSTON – A member of the Annunciation Road/Mission Hill gang was sentenced yesterday in connection with crack cocaine and fentanyl possession with intent to distribute.

Shakeem Johnson, a/k/a “Sha-Money,” 35, was sentenced U.S. District Court Senior Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to five years in prison to be followed by four years of supervised release. On Oct. 14, 2025, Johnson pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute 28 grams or more of cocaine base (crack cocaine) and one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.

In early 2025, while on parole upon his release from state prison for a 2016 conviction for manslaughter in a gang-related shooting – for which he was sentenced to 12 to 14 years in state prison – Johnson was captured on recorded jail calls discussing his drug trafficking activity with another Annunciation Road/Mission Hill gang member who was incarcerated. Following these communications, the defendant was observed repeatedly traveling to the “Mass and Cass” area of Boston, a location known for drug use and drug distribution, and engaging in hand-to-hand drug transactions.

Search warrants executed in April 2025 resulted in the seizure of more than 45 grams of crack cocaine from Johnson and more than 24 grams of fentanyl from his Lynn residence. Other items indicative of street-level drug distribution were also seized.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; Lynn Police Chief Christopher P. Reddy; and Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Philip C. Cheng and John Dawley of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

BOSTON – The former office manager for a Franklin environmental services business was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for embezzling more than $400,000 from her employer.  

Marie Hobson, 55, of Attleboro, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Denise J. Casper to 18 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Hobson was also ordered to pay restitution of $511,119 and to forfeit $429,980. In October 2025, Hobson was charged with and pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud and one count of filing a false tax return.

Between December 2019 and March 2025, Hobson inflated her own payroll by adding approximately $268,046 in phony expense reimbursements, such as uniform costs even though Hobson did not wear a uniform in her position. To conceal the thefts, Hobson manipulated her employer’s accounting software to make it appear she was only receiving her weekly salary. Hobson also misused her company-issued credit card to pay for country club memberships, vacations, cruises, timeshares and personal residence costs totaling more than $105,000.

To further conceal her scheme, Hobson failed to report the funds that she embezzled on her federal income tax filings for tax years 2021 through 2024, resulting in a tax loss to the government of approximately $81,000.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Thomas E. Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston made the announcement today. The Franklin Police Department provided valuable assistance with the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth Kosto, Chief of the Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit, prosecuted the case.

BOSTON – Trang Pharmacy (Trang), a Worcester-based pharmacy, has agreed to pay $750,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by billing Medicare for dispensing medications for which it lacked inventory.  

As detailed in the settlement agreement, Trang admitted that between Jan. 1, 2016, and Jan. 13, 2023, it submitted claims to Medicare’s Part D program seeking reimbursement for dispensing certain medications for which they could not prove to have purchased. As such, the government alleges that Trang submitted false claims to Medicare for reimbursement for medications that it did not dispense to Medicare beneficiaries.  

The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts and the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section.  

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Sharobem of the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit handled the matter with assistance from the Civil Fraud Branch of the U.S. Department of Justice.  

BOSTON – A Leominster man pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Worcester to embezzling from a labor union.   
   
Joe Scott, Jr., 54, pleaded guilty to one count of embezzlement from a labor union. U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman scheduled sentencing for May 1, 2026. In August 2024, Scott was indicted by a federal grand jury.

Scott was the Treasurer of the International Union of Electrical Workers, Communication Workers of America, Local 81154 (IUE-CWA Local 81154), a labor union chapter based in Gardner, Mass., that represents union members from various employers in Massachusetts. Scott used his position as Treasurer to embezzle approximately $49,000 from IUE-CWA Local 81154, by making debit card expenditures, withdrawing funds and issuing checks from union bank accounts, all for Scott’s personal benefit. Scott used the money to pay for, among other things, storage costs, home internet, electrical and gas services and cell phone services, as well as personal expenses while on vacation.

Scott faces a sentence of up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $10,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.  

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jonathan Russo, District Director, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Labor-Management Standards made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brendan O’Shea of the Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case.   

BOSTON – A Springfield, Mass. man was sentenced yesterday for possessing more than 40 grams of fentanyl with intent to distribute and possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.  

Lamiek White, 31, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni to 147 months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. In September 2025, White pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense.

From November 2022 through June 2023, White conspired with others to distribute fentanyl. During a search of White’s Springfield residence in June 2023, approximately 200 grams of fentanyl was found along with a firearm with an obliterated serial number.  

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division; Massachusetts State Police; the Berkshire, Hampden and Franklin County Sherriff’s Offices; and the Holyoke, Springfield, Chicopee, West Springfield and Easthampton Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil L. Desroches, Chief of the Springfield Branch Unit prosecuted the case.  

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Boston is comprised of agents and officers from HSI, FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS, IRS-CI, USPIS, DOL-OIG and DSS, as well as several state and local law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.