District of Maryland

A federal jury convicted three men for conspiring to participate in La Mara Salvatrucha, a transnational criminal enterprise, commonly known as MS-13, through a pattern of racketeering activity, including murder, extortion, drug trafficking, money laundering, and witness tampering.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Luis Flores-Reyes, aka Maloso, aka Lobo, 41, of Arlington, Virginia; Jairo Jacome, aka Abuelo, 40, of Langley Park, Maryland; and Brayan Contreras-Avalos, aka Anonimo, aka Malia, aka Humilde, 27, of Langley Park, Maryland, ran a protection scheme with MS-13 in and around Langley Park, extorting local businesses by charging them “rent” for the privilege of operating in MS-13 “territory.”

MS-13 is organized into a series of sub-units or “cliques” that operate in specific geographic locations. Jacome was the highest-ranking member in a local clique called Langley Park Salvatrucha, or LPS. Flores-Reyes and Contreras-Avalos were leaders within the powerful Sailors Clique, which held territory in Maryland, Virginia, New York, New Jersey, Texas, and El Salvador.

“MS-13 terrorizes communities throughout the United States and abroad, using fear, violence, and intimidation,” said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “This conviction demonstrates the Department of Justice’s commitment to dismantling this violent criminal organization.”

Flores-Reyes, Jacome, and Contreras-Avalos also participated in at least six murders during the period of the conspiracy, mostly of victims who they believed to be gang rivals. In June 2016, members of MS-13, including Contreras-Avalos, stabbed to death two homeless individuals, who were believed to be members of the 18th Street gang, in Hyattsville, Maryland.

The gang also trafficked in illegal drugs, including marijuana, heroin, and cocaine. A large share of the proceeds of the gang’s illegal activities were sent to gang leadership in El Salvador to further promote the illicit activities of the gang, using structured transactions and intermediaries to avoid law enforcement scrutiny.

“These defendants wreaked havoc within our communities through drug trafficking, extortion, fear, and murder – now they will be held accountable,” said U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron for the District of Maryland. “We will relentlessly prosecute those who terrorize our communities with intimidation and violence.”

In March 2017, a member of the Sailors Clique, who was hiding from law enforcement in the Lynchburg, Virginia-area, had a dispute with a local high school student over marijuana. In response, Flores-Reyes commanded a squad of MS-13 members drive to Lynchburg and murder the high school student. The gang members kidnapped the student from his front lawn and cut his hand off before killing him. After the murder, Flores-Reyes helped to hide and protect the killers from law enforcement.

Among the most important rules of MS-13 is the prohibition against talking to law enforcement, embodied by the maxim ver, oir, y callar – see, hear, and say nothing. The gang enforced this rule by placing a “green light” – an order to kill – on any member of MS-13 who was thought to be informing on the gang. In December 2016, Jacome directed and participated in the murder of a 14-year-old member of MS-13 who was suspected of talking to the police. The boy’s remains were discovered 18 months later in the woods outside of Germantown, Maryland.

“Members of MS-13, including Flores-Reyes, Jacome, and Contreras-Avalos, sow fear and violence in local communities through murder, extortion, drug trafficking, and witness tampering,” said Assistant Director in Charge Steven M. D'Antuono of the FBI Washington Field Office. “Today's convictions represent some of the finest work the FBI and its partners undertake to hold violent gang members to account for the irreparable harm they have inflicted on humanity. The investigation and its results should also serve as yet another reminder of the consequences to be faced by those who traffic in violence. We and our partners remain committed to working together to aggressively pursue and dismantle these criminal enterprises who continue to threaten the residents of our communities.”

“Today’s conviction highlights HSI’s commitment to protecting public security and the keeping our communities safe,” said Acting Executive Associate Director Steve K. Francis of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). “We will continue working with our  local, state, and federal partners to disrupt and dismantle transnational criminal organizations such as MS-13.”

Flores-Reyes, Jacome, and Contreras-Avalos were each convicted of racketeering conspiracy. Flores-Reyes and Jacome were additionally convicted of murder in aid of racketeering and extortion conspiracy, and Flores-Reyes and Contreras-Avalos were convicted of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. No sentencing date has been set. Flores-Reyes and Jacome face a mandatory penalty of life in prison. Contreras-Avalos faces a maximum penalty of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The FBI Washington Field Office, HSI Baltimore, DEA New York Field Division, DEA Baltimore District Office, Prince George’s County Police Department, Montgomery County Police Department, Virginia State Police, Lynchburg Police Department, Prince William County Police Department, and Bedford County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. The Nassau County District Attorney’s Office also provided valuable assistance.

Trial Attorney Alexander Gottfried of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Timothy Hagan and Christopher Sarma for the District of Maryland are prosecuting the case.

UPDATE

All charges against the defendants in this case, Anna Gabrielian and Jamie Lee Henry, were dismissed with prejudice on May 22, 2024, following the Court’s granting of the defendants’ motion to dismiss on Speedy Trial Act grounds.

Baltimore, Maryland – A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging Anna Gabrielian, age 36, and her husband, Jamie Lee Henry, age 39, both of Rockville, Maryland, with conspiracy and for the disclosure of individually identifiable health information (“IIHI”), related to their efforts to assist Russia in connection with the conflict in Ukraine.  The indictment was returned on September 28, 2022 and unsealed today upon the arrest of the defendants. 

Gabrielian is scheduled to have initial appearance at 11:30 a.m. today, in U.S. District Court in Baltimore before U.S. Magistrate Judge Brendan A. Hurson.  Henry is also expected to have an initial appearance today, although a time has not yet been set.  

The indictment was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office.

As stated in the indictment, Gabrielian is an anesthesiologist and worked at Medical Institution 1, located in Baltimore, Maryland.  Henry, a Major in the United States Army, who held a Secret-level security clearance, is Gabrielian’s husband and a doctor.  During the time of the alleged conspiracy, Henry worked as a staff internist stationed at Fort Bragg, the home of the Army’s XVIII Airborne Corps, headquarters of the United States Army Special Operations Command, and the Womack Army Medical Center.

According to the eight-count indictment, Gabrielian and Henry conspired to cause harm to the United States by providing confidential health information of Americans associated with the United States government and military to Russia.  Specifically, the indictment alleges that beginning on August 17, 2022, Gabrielian and Henry conspired to provide IIHI related to patients at Medical Institution 1 and at Fort Bragg to an individual they believed to be working for the Russian government in order to demonstrate the level of Gabrielian’s and Henry’s access to IIHI of Americans; their willingness to provide IIHI to the Russian government; and the potential for the Russian government to gain insights into the medical conditions of individuals associated with the United States government and military in order to exploit this information.

Gabrielian and Henry met with an individual they believed to be associated with the Russian government, but who was, in fact, a Federal Bureau of Investigation Undercover Agent (“UC”), in order to convey to the UC their commitment to aid Russia, and to discuss ways in which they could help the Russian government.  Gabrielian told the UC that she had previously reached out to the Russian embassy by email and phone, offering Russia her and her husband’s assistance.  Gabrielian told the UC that, although Henry knew of Gabrielian’s interaction with the Russian Embassy, she never mentioned Henry’s name to the Russian Embassy.  Gabrielian wanted to make sure Henry could deny any knowledge of her actions.  On August 17, 2022, Gabrielian met with the UC at a hotel in Baltimore.  During that meeting, Gabrielian told the UC she was motivated by patriotism toward Russia to provide any assistance she could to Russia, even if it meant being fired or going to jail.  Gabrielian proposed potential cover stories for meeting the UC and stressed the need for “plausible deniability” in the event she was confronted by American authorities about meeting with the UC.  Gabrielian also told the UC that, as a military officer, Henry was currently a more important source for Russia than she was, because he had more helpful information, including how the United States military establishes an army hospital in war conditions and information about previous training provided by the United States military to Ukrainian military personnel.  Gabrielian arranged to meet with the UC and Henry later that evening.

At about 8:10 p.m. that evening, the indictment alleges that Gabrielian and Henry met with the UC in the UC’s hotel room.  During the meeting, Henry explained to the UC he was committed to assisting Russia and had looked into volunteering to join the Russian Army after the conflict in Ukraine began, but Russia wanted people with “combat experience” and he did not have any.  Henry further stated, “the way I am viewing what is going on in Ukraine now, is that the United States is using Ukrainians as a proxy for their own hatred toward Russia.”  Henry and Gabrielian allegedly offered to provide the UC with private medical records from the United States Army and Medical Institution 1 in order to help the Russian government.  During the same meeting, Gabrielian demanded that if she were put at significant risk of arrest, she wanted her and Henry’s children to, “have a nice flight to Turkey to go on vacation because I don’t want to end in jail here with my kids being hostages over my head.”  Henry also indicated that he was concerned about passing a background check for his security clearance, telling the UC, “I don’t want to know your name . . . because I want plausible deniability too.  In a security clearance situation they want to know names and people and all this stuff.”

As detailed in the indictment, a few days later Gabrielian and the UC again met at the hotel in Baltimore to discuss providing Army medical records to the UC.  Gabrielian told the UC that Henry was concerned about violating HIPAA, but Gabrielian had no such concerns.  Gabrielian stated that she would check with Henry about providing medical records from Fort Bragg patients and get back in touch.  The next day, Gabrielian sent a text to the UC, using coded language, to advise that Henry would provide Army medical records to the UC.  On August 31, 2022, Gabrielian and Henry allegedly met the UC at a hotel room in Gaithersburg, Maryland.  According to the indictment, Gabrielian provided the UC with IIHI related to two individuals, including the spouse of an employee of the Office of Naval Intelligence, whom Gabrielian pointed out had a medical condition Russia could “exploit.”  Henry also allegedly provided IIHI related to five individuals who were military veterans or related to military veterans.

If convicted, the defendants face a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison for the conspiracy, and a maximum of 10 years in federal prison for each count of disclosing IIHI.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties.  A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. 

An indictment is not a finding of guilt.  An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings. 

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI for its work in the investigation and thanked the U.S. Army Counterintelligence for its collaboration  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron S.J. Zelinsky, who is prosecuting the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, and its efforts to protect national security, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/anti-terrorism.

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Baltimore, Maryland – United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division announced today that Maryland-based developer Stavrou Associates, Inc. and related entities have agreed to pay $185,000 to settle claims that they violated the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by failing to build 11 multi-family housing complexes in Maryland with required accessible features for people with disabilities.  As part of the settlement, the defendants also agreed to make extensive retrofits to remove accessibility barriers at the complexes.

The government’s lawsuit, filed today, raises similar allegations against a second Maryland-based developer, Humphrey Stavrou Associates, Inc., and related entities, which were involved in building six other multi-family housing complexes in Maryland.  The lawsuit involving those properties is unaffected by today’s settlement.

“The requirement that housing complexes be built with accessible features for people with disabilities is not new,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron.  “Developers must include accessible features and we will hold accountable those who do not.”

“The Justice Department is committed to ensuring that multi-family housing properties are accessible to people with disabilities,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “When the retrofits required by our settlement are completed, people with disabilities will have equal access to more than 1,000 residential units in Maryland.”

The combined 17 properties at issue in the litigation were built with financial assistance from the federal government’s Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program and the HOME Investment Partnerships Program, and some of the properties are specifically marketed as housing for seniors.

The settlement, which must still be approved by the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, requires the defendants to pay all costs related to the retrofits, $175,000 into a settlement fund to compensate individuals harmed by the inaccessible housing, and civil penalties of $10,000 to the government.

Under the settlement, the defendants will, among other things, replace steeply-sloped walkways and install new walkways to help residents reach units, amenities, mailboxes and entrances to the properties, remove obstacles from pedestrian pathways, widen doorways, and modify bathrooms and kitchens so they are accessible for individuals who use wheelchairs. The settlement also requires the defendants to receive training about the FHA and the ADA, to ensure that their future multi-family housing construction complies with these laws and to provide periodic reports to the Justice Department.  The 11 complexes are:                         1.  Villages at Belle Hill, Elkton, Maryland
                        2.  Burgess Mill Station I, Ellicott City, Maryland
                        3.  Burgess Mill Station II, Ellicott City, Maryland
                        4.  River Point Apartments, Essex, Maryland
                        5.  Hammarlee House Apartments, Glen Burnie, Maryland
                        6.  Overland Gardens, Landover, Maryland
                        7.  Rainier Manor Phase II Apartments, Mount Rainier, Maryland
                        8.  Chapel Springs Senior Apartments, Perry Hall, Maryland
                        9.  Hampshire Village, Silver Spring, Maryland
                        10. Windsor Crossing Family Apartments, Suitland, Maryland
                        11. Windsor Crossing Senior Apartments, Suitland, Maryland

The six complexes built by Humphrey Stavrou Associates, Inc. that are the subject of the continuing lawsuit are:

                        1.  Pin Oak Village, Bowie, Maryland
                        2.  Woodland Creek Apartments (formerly “Henson Creek Manor I and II
                                    Apartments”), Fort Washington, Maryland
                        3.  Woodside Village Apartments, Fort Washington, Maryland
                        4.  Acclaim at Lake Largo (formerly “Largo Center Apartments”), Largo, Maryland
                        5.  Randolph Village Senior Apartments, Silver Spring, Maryland
                        6.  Vistas at Lake Largo, Upper Marlboro, Maryland

Individuals who believe they or someone they know may have had difficulties because of the inaccessible conditions at any of these properties should send an e-mail to the Justice Department at fairhousing@usdoj.gov or leave a message at 1-833-591-0291, selecting option 1 for English, selecting option 4 for housing accessibility for persons with disabilities, and selecting option 4 for Stavrou Associates Inc. 

The United States Attorney’s Office together with the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division enforce the FHA, which prohibits discrimination in housing based on disability, race, color, religion, national origin, sex, and familial status.  This law requires that multifamily housing buildings with four or more units constructed after March 13, 1991, have basic accessible features.  Enacted in 1990, the ADA requires that places of public accommodation, such as rental offices at multifamily housing complexes constructed after Jan. 26, 1993, be accessible to persons with disabilities. 

U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron and Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly S. Phillips of the District of Maryland and Trial Attorneys Beth Pepper and Jennifer McAllister of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, who are handling these cases.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-Maryland and https://www.justice.gov/usao-Maryland/civil-rights.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm sentenced Larry Clinton Proctor, age 33, of District Heights, Maryland, today to 87 months in federal prison, followed by four years of supervised release, for possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine and cocaine, and for illegal possession of a machinegun.  

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office's Criminal Division; Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department; and Chief Malik Aziz of the Prince George’s County Police Department.

According to Proctor’s guilty plea, between May 13, 2021 and June 24, 2021, law enforcement arranged four controlled purchases of a total of approximately 194 grams of crack cocaine from Proctor.  On each occasion, Proctor confirmed the amount of the purchase and the meeting time and location.  At the direction of law enforcement, the person conducting the buys would meet with Proctor, obtain the narcotics, pay Proctor, then leave the area.

As detailed in his plea agreement, after the controlled buy on June 24, 2021, law enforcement stopped Proctor’s vehicle and Proctor was arrested.  The serial numbers of the cash recovered from Proctor’s vehicle matched the serial numbers of the pre-recorded funds used by law enforcement in the drug transaction with Proctor. 

A search warrant was also executed at Proctor’s residence on June 24, 2021.  Law enforcement recovered 27 firearms from Proctor’s home, including a .357 caliber machinegun with an obliterated serial number and a 3D printed switch, which made the firearm fully automatic.  The other guns recovered included: two 12-gauge semi-automatic shotguns; a .357 caliber semi-automatic pistol; three .44 caliber revolvers; a 9mm semi-automatic pistol; five .45 caliber semi-automatic pistols—two with obliterated serial numbers; two 7.62x25 caliber semi-automatic pistols; a .45 caliber/.410 gauge caliber revolver; two .500 caliber revolver; three 7.62x39mm caliber semi-automatic pistols—one with an obliterated serial number; a.22LR caliber semi-automatic pistol; two .50 caliber semi-automatic pistols; a .308 caliber semi-automatic pistol with an obliterated serial number; and two firearms silencers.  In addition, law enforcement recovered approximately 1,358 rounds of ammunition; multiple high-capacity magazines; a tactical scope; speed loaders; two body armor vests; other firearms parts and accessories; and a digital scale with cocaine residue.

A gold Mercedes sedan was parked in front of Proctor’s home during the search.  A canine unit performed a scan of the Mercedes and provided a positive alert on the vehicle.  Law enforcement subsequently obtained and on June 30, 2021, executed, a search warrant on the Mercedes.  Approximately 351 grams of cocaine and approximately 75 grams of crack cocaine was found in the car.

Proctor admitted that he possessed the crack cocaine and cocaine with intent to distribute it and that he possessed the machinegun and other firearms to facilitate his drug distribution.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  PSN, an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime, is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  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.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI, the Montgomery County Police Department, and the Prince George’s County Police Department for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam K. Ake and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared Engelking, who prosecuted the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – Medard Ulysse, age 38, of Miami, Florida, pleaded guilty today to wire fraud and conspiracy to commit mail fraud in relation to multiple fraud schemes, including an elder “grandparent” scheme and a COVID-19 CARES Act Fraud scheme.

The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; and Acting Special Agent in Charge Troy W. Springer, of the Washington Regional Office, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General.

“Ulysee’s crimes are truly outrageous.  Not only did he facilitate the deception and financial destruction of caring elderly victims by taking advantage of their love for their grandchildren, but he also used the identities of multiple victims to live large on federal CARES Act funding intended to ease financial hardships during a national crisis,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, Erek L. Barron.  “I hope this conviction helps inform our elderly neighbors and their caretakers of the common grandparent scam.  Remember- don’t panic, take the time to verify.”

According to his guilty plea, from January 2018 to November 2019, Ulysse and others executed grandparent scams in which they persuaded elderly victims to send thousands of dollars in cash by posing as a police officer, lawyer, or other person in law enforcement and convincing victims that their grandchild needed money for bail or legal fees.  If the victims complied, conspiracy members asked for more cash claiming that additional funds were needed for legal expenses, fines, or damages.  Conspirators also pretended to be the troubled relative on these phone calls to convince the elderly victims to send cash.  Further, during the calls, conspirators directed the victims to send cash to particular addresses.  To conceal the scheme, the conspirators told the victims that a gag order had been placed on the case or that the situation was embarrassing for the grandchild, and that the victim should not share the information with others. 

For example, in March 2019, a conspiracy member (co-conspirator 1) called Victim 1, an 83-year-old Saint Charles, Illinois woman and posed as her grandson.  During the call, co-conspirator 1 convinced the victim that he had been in an accident and was in jail.  Co-conspirator 1 then stated that Victim 1 needed to send money to an address in Lancaster, Pennsylvania to pay for purported damages.  Out of concern, Victim 1 sent a package containing $20,000 in cash to the Lancaster address as instructed.

Ulysse admitted that he distributed and directed co-conspirators to distribute cash payments to other members for their participation in the scheme.  As a result of the execution of the elder fraud scheme, Ulysse and his co-conspirators convinced at least 83 different victims to send a total of at least $2,420,280.  Ulysse’s criminal actions resulted in the substantial financial hardship to at least five of the victims.

From April 2020 to November 2020, Ulysse conducted a separate unemployment benefit scheme to fraudulently obtain unemployment funds, including Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation and Pandemic Unemployment Assistance established under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”).  As part of the scheme to defraud, Ulysse and his conspirators used the identities of numerous victims to submit fraudulent unemployment claims to multiple state workforce agencies, including the Maryland Department of Labor and the California Employment Development Department.  Once conspiracy members obtained the funds on state issued debit cards, they used the funds for their personal benefit. 

As stated in his guilty plea, in November 2020, Ulysse was stopped in Valdosta, Georgia by Lowndes County Sheriff’s (“LCSO”).  LCSO sheriffs executed a search Ulysse’s vehicle and found debit cards in the names of three identity theft victims as well as 25 other debit cards in names other than Ulysse’s name.

In total, between April 2020 and November 2020, Ulysse and others submitted at least 143 fraudulent applications in the names of identity theft victims and obtained approximately $618,767 in fraudulent funds. 

Ulysse and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Ulysse will be sentenced to a minimum of 48 months in federal prison.  U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett has scheduled sentencing for December 19 2023 at 11 a.m. 

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.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI, DOL-OIG, for their work in the investigation and thanked the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Department for their assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sean R. Delaney and Christine Goo, who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/elder-justice-initiative.

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Baltimore, Maryland – Yesterday, U.S. District Judge George L. Russell sentenced Terrell Walton, age 36, of Delaware, to 13 years in federal prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and crack cocaine.  Walton and co-defendant, Che Jaron Durbin, age 43, of Aberdeen, Maryland were convicted by a federal jury of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and crack cocaine.  The jury also found Durbin guilty of two counts of possession with intent to distribute cocaine. 

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Harford County State’s Attorney Albert J. Peisinger, Jr.; Special Agent in Charge Jarod A. Forget of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Washington Office; Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler of the Harford County Sheriff’s Office; and the Harford County Drug Task Force, a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program, comprised of members of the Harford County Sheriff’s Office, the Aberdeen Police Department, the Bel Air Police Department, and the Havre de Grace Police Department.

According to evidence presented at Durbin’s eight-day trial, Durbin supplied Walton and co-conspirator Michael Ronnell Wells, age 37, of Forest Hill, Maryland with cocaine and crack for local distribution.  Several text messages between Walton and Wells referenced Durbin as “Big Bro” and the need to “holla” at him, which was code for a drug transaction.  The evidence at trial also showed that Walton obtained cocaine from Durbin, which Walton then sold to a network of individuals in Harford County.  Intercepted communications between Durbin and Walton included discussions regarding the amounts of drugs and the price, often using coded language. 

During Walton’s sentencing, the government produced evidence of Walton’s Crips gang membership as well as evidence that Walton assaulted a fellow inmate while incarcerated.  Specifically, in April 2020, Walton attacked Durbin, causing significant damage to one of Durbin’s eyes.  As a result of Walton’s attack, Durbin could possibly lose vision in the impacted.

Walton’s co-defendant, Durbin, is scheduled for sentencing on September 30, 2022, at 9:30 a.m. before U.S. District Judge George L. Russell.  Co-defendant Wells pled guilty to his participation in the conspiracy and was sentenced to 71 months in federal prison.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the Harford County State’s Attorney’s Office, the DEA, the Harford County Sheriff’s Office, and the Harford County Drug Task Force for their work in the investigation and thanked the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Maryland State Police for their assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant United States Attorney Kenneth Clark and Special Assistant United States Attorney Christopher J. Romano, who prosecuted the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – A criminal complaint has been filed charging Mikiyas Maryie Kefyalew, a/k/a “Mick”, age 24, of Silver Spring, Maryland, with distribution of fentanyl resulting in the death of a minor victim.  The criminal complaint was unsealed upon his arrest on September 16, 2022.  The defendant had his initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt on September 16, 2022 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ajmel A. Quereshi and was detained pending trial.

The criminal complaint was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Washington Division; Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department; and Chief T. N. Treschuk of the Rockville City Police Department.

As a result of the death of a Bethesda, Maryland minor victim in January 2022, law enforcement discovered a counterfeit pill that appeared to be 30mg of oxycodone and alleged texts between the victim and Kefyalew.  The pill was later tested by a forensic chemist and tested positive for fentanyl.  Additionally, the Maryland Office of the Chief Medical Examiner the victim’s cause of death to be a fentanyl overdose.  A forensic analysis of the victim’s cell phone revealed several alleged conversations between the victim and a contact saved as “Mick.” During the conversations, the victim and Kefyalew discussed meeting for a drug transaction.  

As stated in court documents, a witness advised law enforcement the victim purchased “percs” from an individual known as “Mick”.  The witness also described the “percs” to be small blue pills, which matched the pill found at the time of the victim’s death.

In August 2021, Kefyalew was issued a criminal citation for the possession of over 10 grams of marijuana.  In that case, law enforcement found a small blue pill stamped with the writing “M 30” within the baggie of marijuana located in a vehicle where Kefyalew was seated at the time of his arrest.  The pill was tested and was determined to be fentanyl, as well.

Further, as stated in the affidavit, in March 2022, law enforcement executed a search warrant on Kefyalew’s vehicle.  As a result of the search warrant, officers found two cell phones, one of which contained multiple messages indicative of drug trafficking, including an October 2021 conversation in which an individual told Kefyalew that people using “percs” should get Narcan to prevent overdoses.

If convicted, Kefyalew faces a maximum sentence of life in federal prison for distribution of fentanyl resulting in death or serious bodily injury.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties.  A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. 

A criminal complaint is not a finding of guilt.  An individual charged by criminal complaint is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings. 

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the DEA, the Montgomery County Police Department, and the Rockville Police Department for their work in the investigation and thanked the Metropolitan Police Department, the Prince George’s County Police Department, and the Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office for their assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Wright who is prosecuting the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow sentenced Robert Hopkins IV, age 37, of Baltimore, Maryland to 51 months in federal prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for wire fraud conspiracy and aggravated identity theft charges relating to multiple identity theft and fraud schemes, including the submission of fraudulent CARES Act loan applications.  Judge Chasanow also ordered Hopkins to pay $456,784.54 in restitution.   

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron Special Agent in Charge Bo Keane of the United States Secret Service - Baltimore Field Office and Chief Melissa R. Hyatt of the Baltimore County Police Department. 

According to his guilty plea, from May 2018 to June 2020, Hopkins and co-conspirator Keon Ball, age 46, of Baltimore, Maryland incurred charges of over $1,000,000 on fraudulently established credit lines, using the identities of multiple victims in connection with the schemes.  For example, on August 25, 2018, Ball submitted a false and fraudulent application for a credit line account from a financial institution using the name, birth date, and social security number of Victim 1.  After the credit application was approved, Hopkins and Ball incurred $105,442.59 in purchases from Company 1 (a home improvement store) under the identity of Victim 1.  The defendants then repeated the scheme multiple times, incurring charges of over $150,000 in connection with lines of credit opened using various other victims’ names.  The charges were never repaid.  The defendants also repeatedly passed fraudulent checks to Company 1 purporting to pay the balances they incurred.  Further, as part of their scheme to defraud, the defendants obtained two vehicles valued at over $60,000 and multiple pieces of heavy construction equipment valued at over $300,000 using the identity information of Victim 2.

Additionally, from June 2020 to August 2020, Hopkins applied for $664,450 in fraudulent CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program loan applications for four shell companies he created that did not exist in any legitimate capacity.  In connection to these applications, Hopkins submitted fraudulent tax documents which falsely indicated that the shell companies had paid wages to numerous W-2 employees and withheld hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal income tax.  In fact, the purported businesses had no employees.  The loans were never distributed to Hopkins.

In total, Hopkins and Ball caused more than $449,000 in actual losses and used the personal identity information of at least six victims in connection with their scheme.  Hopkins intended to cause a loss of more than $1,100,000 to victims.

Co-defendant Keon Ball was sentenced to 66 months in federal prison followed by 3 years of supervised release for wire fraud conspiracy and aggravated identity theft in relation to the multiple schemes in July 2022.  The Court also ordered Ball to pay $715,504 in restitution. 

The District of Maryland Strike Force is one of three strike forces established throughout the United States by the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute COVID-19 fraud, including fraud relating to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act.  The CARES Act was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The strike forces focus on large-scale, multi-state pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations and transnational actors.  The strike forces are interagency law enforcement efforts, using prosecutor-led and data analyst-driven teams designed to identify and bring to justice those who stole pandemic relief funds. 

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.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the USSS and the BCPD for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul A. Riley, who prosecuted the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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GOL Linhas Aéreas Inteligentes S.A. (GOL), an airline headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil, will pay more than $41 million to resolve parallel bribery investigations by criminal and civil authorities in the United States and Brazil. According to court documents, GOL entered into a three-year deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the Department of Justice in connection with a criminal information filed in the District of Maryland charging the company with conspiracy to violate the anti-bribery and books and records provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).

Pursuant to the DPA, GOL will pay a criminal penalty of $17 million. The department has agreed to credit up to $1.7 million of that criminal penalty against an approximately $3.4 million fine the company has agreed to pay to authorities in Brazil in connection with related proceedings to resolve an investigation by the Controladoria-Geral da União (CGU) and the Advocacia-Geral de União (Attorney General’s Office). In addition, GOL will give up approximately $24.5 million over two years as part of the resolution of a parallel investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).  

“GOL paid millions of dollars in bribes to foreign officials in Brazil in exchange for the passage of legislation that was beneficial to the airline,” said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The company entered into fraudulent contracts with third-party vendors for the purpose of generating and concealing the funds necessary to perpetrate this criminal conduct, and then falsely recorded the sham payments in their own books. Today’s resolution demonstrates the Department of Justice’s commitment to holding accountable companies that corrupt the functions of government for their own financial gain.”  

“Our office’s strong working relationship with the Department of Justice’s Fraud Section demonstrates our commitment to weed out corruption by companies that operate throughout Maryland,” said U.S. Attorney Erek Barron for the District of Maryland. “I am committed to ensuring that any company operating in this District does so lawfully and ethically without corrupt conduct.”

“Companies bribing their way to profits will ultimately pay the price for their crimes,” said Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. “GOL paid off foreign officials to pass favorable legislation and then tried to conceal its bribes as legitimate transactions. Today’s settlement is proof that the FBI and our law enforcement partners will work to eliminate corruption anywhere it occurs, whether at home or abroad.”

According to the company’s admissions and court documents, between 2012 and 2013, GOL conspired to offer and pay approximately $3.8 million in bribes to foreign officials in Brazil. Specifically, GOL caused multiple bribe payments to be made to various officials in Brazil to secure the passage of two pieces of legislation favorable to GOL. The legislation involved certain payroll tax and fuel tax reductions that financially benefitted GOL, along with other Brazilian airlines.

According to court documents, in order to effectuate the bribery scheme, a member of GOL’s Board of Directors caused GOL to enter into sham contracts with, and make payments to, various entities connected to the relevant Brazilian officials. GOL maintained books and records that falsely listed the corrupt payments as legitimate expenses, including as advertising expenses and other services.    

As part of the DPA, GOL has agreed to continue to cooperate with the department in any ongoing or future criminal investigations relating to this conduct. In addition, under the agreement, GOL agreed to continue to enhance its compliance program and provide reports to the department regarding remediation and the implementation of compliance measures for the term of the DPA.

The government reached this resolution with GOL based on a number of factors, including, among others, the nature, seriousness, and pervasiveness of the offense. GOL received full credit for its cooperation with the department’s investigation, which included, among other things, timely providing the facts obtained through the company’s internal investigation – which included reviewing voluminous documents, interviewing witnesses, conducting background checks, and testing over two thousand transactions. The company promptly engaged in remedial measures by, among other things, redesigning its entire anti-corruption program. Accordingly, the criminal penalty calculated under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines reflects a 25% reduction off the bottom of the applicable guidelines fine range.  Due to GOL’s financial condition and demonstrated inability to pay the penalty calculated under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, however, GOL and the department agreed, consistent with the department’s inability to pay guidance, that the appropriate criminal penalty is $17 million. 

The FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office is investigating the case. Assistant Chief Derek J. Ettinger and Trial Attorney Joseph McFarlane of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorney David I. Salem of the District of Maryland, are prosecuting the case. Authorities in Brazil provided assistance in this matter, as did the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs.

The Fraud Section is responsible for investigating and prosecuting FCPA matters. Additional information about the Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/foreign-corrupt-practices-act.

Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett sentenced Philip Abramowitz, age 50, of Pikesville, Maryland, Maryland to one year in federal prison and one year of home detention, followed by three years of supervised release, for a wire fraud conspiracy for fraudulently obtaining federally insured home loans.  Judge Bennett also ordered Abramowitz to pay $373,684 in restitution and forfeit $493,037.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Acting Special Agent in Charge Jerome A. Winkle of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General.

“Abramowitz blatantly lied to federal entities and abused a federal loan program intended to ease the financial stress of purchasing a home.  Our office will continue to prosecute those who abuse federal programs.” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, Erek L. Barron.

“Abramowitz’s conduct is unacceptable and undermines the goals of FHA loan program,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Jerome A. Winkle.  “HUD OIG is committed to working with our partners at the U.S. Attorney’s Office to hold individuals like Mr. Abramowitz accountable and recover funds fraudulently obtained from HUD programs.”

According to his guilty plea, from May 2016 to April 2017, Abramowitz and others conspired to defraud two financial institutions by fraudulently obtaining Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans and property under false pretenses.  The FHA is part of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and provides mortgage insurance on loans made by FHA-approved lenders.  To qualify for the FHA-insured loans, the buyer must use the residence as their primary residence, disclose any familial or business relationship between the seller and buyer, and disclose the source of the money the buyer intends to use for the down payment and closing costs.

Philip Abramowitz admitted that he used his company, 163 N. Potomac St., LLC, to facilitate the sales of his Potomac Street, Baltimore, Maryland properties using FHA-insured loans. For example, in May 2016, Abramowitz sold one of his Potomac Street properties (Property 1) to his brother, Calvin Abramowitz, and entered into an agreement with Calvin Abramowitz to purchase the property using an FHA-insured loan. 

According to court documents, Calvin Abramowitz applied for and received a $294,566 FHA-insured loan with a mortgage company (Mortgage Company 1) by falsely representing Philip Abramowitz’s bank account records as his own.  Calvin and Philip Abramowitz also: concealed their family relationship from Mortgage Company 1 by submitting false company filings during the loan application process; had Philip Abramowitz’s property manager (Property Manager 1) pose as the sole seller and manager of 163 N. Potomac St., LLC; and arranged for Property Manager 1 to sign the FHA-loan contact as the official seller of the property.  Philip Abramowitz’s ownership of 163 N, Potomac St., LLC or involvement in the sale was never disclosed. 

To meet the requirements of the loan procurement process, Philip Abramowitz gave Calvin Abramowitz $10,500 to pay for the closing costs for Property 1, as Calvin did not have the financial means to make the purchase.   Based on the fraudulent financial information presented during the loan application process, Mortgage Company 1 loaned Calvin Abramowitz $294,566 for the purchase of Property 1.  Most of the loan proceeds were subsequently deposited into Philip Abramowitz’s bank account.  Ultimately, Calvin Abramowitz never used Property 1 as a primary residence and rented the property to tenants for a year before ceasing mortgage payments and allowing the property to fall into foreclosure.

As detailed in his plea agreement, Philip Abramowitz arranged the sale of his second Potomac Street property (Property 2) in March 2017 to another family member (Relative 1) using an FHA-insured loan.  To facilitate the sale of Property 2, Relative 1 applied for an FHA-insured loan with another mortgage company (Mortgage Company 2).  Using the same manner to defraud Mortgage Company 1, Philip Abramowitz concealed his familial relation to Relative 1, falsely listed his property manager as the sole seller and owner of Property 2 and submitted multiple fraudulent documents to Mortgage Company 2, including an LLC affidavit of title asserting that no other person or entity had ownership in Property 2.

As he did in the sale of Property 1, Philip Abramowitz violated FHA-loan requirements by: providing Relative 1 $8,750 for the closing costs of the sale; misrepresenting his own bank account information as Relative 1’s in the FHA-loan procurement process; and having the majority of the loan proceeds deposited to his personal bank account.  Relative 1 never used Property 2 as a primary residence or paid monthly mortgage payments to Mortgage Company 2, which caused the property to fall into foreclosure.

Calvin Abramowitz, age 48, of Lakewood, New Jersey, previously pleaded guilty to bank fraud in connection with his role in the scheme and faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in federal prison.  Judge Bennett has scheduled sentencing for Calvin Abramowitz on December 6, 2022, at 2:30 p.m.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended HUD-OIG for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Martin J. Clarke, who prosecuted the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – Zeno Burnette, age 24, of Baltimore, Maryland, pleaded guilty yesterday to conspiracy to participate in a racketeering conspiracy, including attempted murder, in relation to his participation in the violent Baltimore street gang known as Cruddy Conniving Crutballs or “Triple C”.

The guilty plea was announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Toni M. Crosby of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF); Chief Melissa R. Hyatt of the Baltimore County Police Department; and Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department.

According to his guilty plea, Burnette admitted that he and other Triple C members engaged in a pattern of criminal racketeering activity between 2015 and 2020, including more than a dozen murders and numerous non-fatal shootings, robberies, and carjackings.  The violent criminal acts were committed in the effort to promote the reputation of Triple C and to instill fear in the neighborhood.  Other names for the enterprise are “SCL” and recently, “TRD”.

As detailed in his plea agreement, the enterprise financially benefited from, and affected interstate commerce by, selling narcotics, murdering drug dealers, taking contract killings, and engaging in street robberies.  Triple C members also robbed dice games for cash and occasionally carjacked vehicles.  Members divided the proceeds of the robberies and murders among members who participated, and often contacted each other to commit a robbery if that member needed money. 

Also, Triple C members routinely used social media to identify and locate victims and to share information concerning possible retaliation for violent crimes committed by gang members.  Triple C members and associates used at least 14 firearms to commit crimes, often trading with each other or other groups to avoid detection through ballistic evidence.  They limited conversations about criminal plans to members of Triple C and critiqued each other after committing crimes regarding ways to improve their actions.

Burnette admitted that he participated in at least five attempted murders including the attempted murders of two rival gang members, and the December 2018 murder of Corey Moseley.  Burnette also admits that his co-conspirators committed other acts that he did not participate in which included sixteen murders, at least twenty attempted robberies, two robberies, and three carjackings.

Co-defendants Rashaud Nesmith, a/k/a Shaud, age 21, and Michael Chester, a/k/a Mikkie, age 23, both of Baltimore, pled guilty to their participation in a racketeering conspiracy in June 2022.  Chester, Nesmith and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts their pleas, Chester will be sentenced to 20 years in federal prison and Nesmith will be sentenced to 40 years in federal prison.  U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake has scheduled sentencing for Chester of October 7, 2022, at 10 a.m.  U.S. District Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher has scheduled sentencing for Nesmith on October 28, 2022, at 12 p.m.

Burnette and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Burnette will be sentenced to 20 years in federal prison.  U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett has scheduled sentencing for January 6, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. 

This case was made possible by investigative leads generated from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives’ (ATF) National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN).  NIBIN is the only national network that allows for the capture and comparison of ballistic evidence to aid in solving and preventing violent crimes involving firearms.  NIBIN is a proven investigative and intelligence tool that can link firearms from multiple crime scenes, allowing law enforcement to quickly disrupt shooting cycles.  For more information on NIBIN, visit https://www.atf.gov/firearms/national-integrated-ballistic-information-network-nibin.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the ATF, the Baltimore County Police Department, the Baltimore Police Department for their work in the investigation and thanked the FBI and the Office of the Baltimore City State’s Attorney for their assistance in the investigation and prosecution.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Patricia C. McLane, who is prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Today the Justice Department announced the establishment of three Strike Force teams created to enhance the Department’s existing efforts to combat and prevent COVID-19 related fraud.

“These Strike Force teams will build on the Department’s historic enforcement efforts to deter, detect, and disrupt pandemic fraud wherever it occurs,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Since the start of this pandemic, the Justice Department has seized over $1.2 billion in relief funds that criminals were attempting to steal and charged over 1,500 defendants with crimes in federal districts across the country, but our work is far from over. The Department will continue to work relentlessly to combat pandemic fraud and hold accountable those who perpetrate it.”

The Strike Force teams will operate out of U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the Southern District of Florida, the District of Maryland, and a joint effort between the Central and Eastern Districts of California.

“The Strike Force teams are the latest example of the Justice Department’s commitment to fight pandemic fraud,” said Associate Deputy Attorney General Kevin Chambers, who serves as the Department’s Director for COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement. “The work being done by our prosecutors, trial attorneys, agents and partners on our COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force has been extraordinary. We’re going a step further today with the announcement of Strike Force teams to support, enhance, and continue the great work being done across the Department.”

As Director for COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement, Chambers leads the Department’s criminal and civil enforcement efforts to combat COVID-19 related fraud. To date, those efforts have resulted in criminal charges against over 1,500 defendants with alleged losses exceeding $1.1 billion; the seizure of over $1.2 billion in relief funds; and civil investigations into more than 1,800 individuals and entities for alleged misconduct in connection with pandemic relief loans totaling more than $6 billion.

“I am excited to work alongside these dynamic interagency teams,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael C. Galdo, the Justice Department’s Deputy Director for COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement, who will lead the Strike Force teams. “Assembling the fraud, cybercrime, and money laundering expertise of all our agency partners in these prosecutor-driven Strike Force teams is the best way to bring these fraudsters to justice.”

The Strike Force teams are comprised of dedicated prosecutors and agents from the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, the Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General, the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, the FBI, the U.S. Secret Service, Homeland Security Investigations, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, with assistance from the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee and the Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery.

“Criminals took advantage of the worst pandemic in a century to line their pockets with public money intended for struggling businesses and workers forced to sit idle,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Stephanie S. Christensen of the Central District of California. “Our office’s participation in the COVID-19 Strike Force reflects our determination to maximize our resources to root out and punish wrongdoers who used a national emergency to steal from American taxpayers.”

“Cheaters have been living large on funds intended to keep families and local business afloat during a national crisis,” said U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron of the District of Maryland. “Our office is proud to participate in the COVID-19 Strike Force. We’ll continue prosecuting large-scale COVID-19 fraud while also integrating this priority into our violent crime strategy.”

“The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California is proud to be included as a part of the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Strike Force,” said U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert. “We have had early successes pursuing COVID-19 fraud both civilly and criminally. For example, our district obtained the first civil settlement in the nation for fraud related to the CARES Act’s Paycheck Protection Program, and we have brought a number of criminal prosecutions against defendants who obtained through fraud relief monies intended to help those in need. We remain committed to leading investigations and vigorously prosecuting those who commit COVID-19 fraud.”

“Over the years, the South Florida U.S. Attorney’s Office and its law enforcement partners have developed robust domestic and international fraud and money laundering practices,” said Juan Antonio Gonzalez, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. “Our experience with these data-driven financial prosecutions allowed us to launch an early and aggressive attack on COVID-19 relief fraud in our district, holding accountable those who tried to capitalize on an unprecedented crisis. We are proud to have been selected to lead one of three COVID-19 Fraud Strike Force teams and look forward to continuing to advance this important Department of Justice effort.”

Since the establishment of the COVID-19 Fraud Task Force by the Attorney General in May 2021, the Department has worked closely with our law enforcement partners to analyze the extraordinary amount of data from our state workforce agency partners and the Small Business Administration. That data is the key to identifying and prosecuting the organized criminal groups and networks of overseas fraudsters who stole pandemic relief funds. The Strike Force teams are designed to accelerate the process of turning data analytics into criminal investigations, which will enhance our prosecutions. This prosecutor-led approach has proven successful in other organized crime arenas; it will be key to dismantling the networks that stole pandemic relief funds.

In May 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.

The Justice Department’s efforts to combat COVID-19 related fraud schemes have proceeded on numerous fronts, including cases and investigations involving the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program, Unemployment Insurance (UI) programs, and COVID-19 health care fraud enforcement.

For further information on the Criminal Division’s enforcement efforts on PPP fraud, including court documents from significant cases, visit the following website: https://www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/ppp-fraud. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus. For further information on the Civil Division’s enforcement efforts, visit the following website: https://www.justice.gov/civil.

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.

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Baltimore, Maryland – Yesterday U.S. District Judge George L. Russell, III sentenced Travis Joseph Crawford, age 34, of Edgewood, Maryland, to 15 years in federal prison, followed by 25 years of supervised release, for sexual exploitation of a child to produce child pornography and for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.  Judge Russell also ordered that, upon his release from prison, Crawford will be required to register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). 

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; Special Agent in Charge Toni M. Crosby of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Baltimore Field Division; Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey R. Gahler; and Colonel Woodrow W. Jones III, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police.

According to Crawford’s plea agreement and other court documents, on November 30, 2020, Harford County Sheriff’s deputies went to Crawford’s residence, based on an arrest warrant issued for Crawford by Maryland State Police for firearms related offenses.  When the officers arrived, they heard Crawford call, “Where’s my gun?”  Crawford was arrested and law enforcement recovered a cell phone, a smart watch, and a fully-loaded .40-caliber semi-automatic pistol.  A search warrant subsequently executed on Crawford’s phone revealed three sexually explicit videos involving Jane Doe, all of which were recorded without her knowledge or permission.  Crawford was also previously a convicted felon and therefore was prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.  For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the “Resources” tab on the left of the page.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended HSI, ATF, the Maryland State Police, and the Harford County Sheriff’s Office for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul E. Budlow, who prosecuted the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-childhood and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett sentenced Linda Pylant, age 59, of Grasonville, Maryland, today to four years in federal prison, followed by one year of home detention as part of three years of supervised release, for wire fraud, social security fraud, tax evasion, and aggravated identity theft in connection with schemes to defraud her employer, fraudulently obtain disability insurance payments, and evade more than $225,000 in taxes, including by concealing income in connection with a bankruptcy petition.  As a result of these crimes, Pylant illegally obtained approximately $1.4 million.  Judge Bennett ordered that Pylant must pay restitution in the full amount the actual losses caused by her fraud schemes and forfeit assets directly traceable to the fraud offenses, substitute assets, and/or a money judgement equal to the value of the property derived from the offense, which is $950,000.    

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Darrell J. Waldon of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Michael McGill of the Social Security Administration - Office of Inspector General, Philadelphia Field Division.

Wire Fraud Scheme

According to her guilty plea, from 2012 to about July 2020, Pylant worked for a Washington, D.C. trade association as an office administrator.  Her responsibilities included bookkeeping and other accounting duties, making check deposits, handling accounts receivable, accounts payable, and other administrative duties.   

As detailed in her plea agreement, in October 2017, Pylant opened a bank account, purportedly for the trade association, for which she was the sole signatory and caused the bank statements to be mailed to her home.  From October 2017 until July 2020, Pylant deposited more than $700,000 in checks, primarily from the trade association’s members and from insurance companies, which were intended for the benefit of the trade association.  Pylant also transferred more than $70,000 of the trade association’s funds from a PayPal account to the account she opened in the name of the trade association.  In addition, Pylant admitted that she issued trade association checks made payable to herself and a contractor for the trade association, which she signed, forging the names of two trade association executives.  Pylant then deposited the forged checks into other accounts she controlled.

Pylant spent more than $175,000 of the stolen funds at a local bingo hall, used more than $100,000 for retail, restaurant, and grocery expenditures and withdrew more than $200,000 in cash.  As a result of the fraud scheme, Pylant obtained more than $900,000.

Social Security and Disability Fraud

On August 18, 2015, Pylant applied for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) payments, failing to disclose that she was working and earning income from the trade association.  SSDI payments are only made as long as the beneficiaries are unable to work and/or their income is under a certain amount.  From 2018 to July 2020, Pylant illegally received and spent more than $75,000 in SSDI payments to which she was not entitled.

In addition, from 2014 to about 2017, Pylant provided false information to a private insurance company in order to fraudulently collect disability insurance payments.  Pylant consistently failed to disclose her income from the trade association, as well as her SSDI payments.  As a result, Pylant fraudulently received more than $140,000 in disability insurance payments from the private insurance company.

Tax Evasion and Bankruptcy Fraud

From 2014 until July 2020, Pylant caused her salary payments from the trade association to be paid through a non-existent entity, LPSR, Inc., which Pylant created but did not register with the State of Maryland nor the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  Pylant also established LPSR as a vendor in the trade association’s computer system, with no federal tax identification number and no 1099 reporting status.  During the six years of the tax evasion scheme Pylant caused the trade association to pay LPSR more than $100,000.  During that time, Pylant also caused the trade association to not issue a 1099 IRS reporting form for LPSR.  Because Pylant also made false statements to the Social Security Administration, including failing to disclose that she was employed by the trade association, she avoided paying taxes that would have been due on her SSDI payments.

As detailed in her plea agreement, Pylant submitted false information in the course of three Maryland bankruptcy proceedings filed on February 3, 2016, in December 2020, and in January 2021.  Specifically, Pylant’s petitions failed to list her taxable income from the trade association that was paid through LPSR, falsely claimed that she had zero earned income and was not required to file any tax returns, failed to list any business names that she had used, including LPSR, and falsely stated that her employment status had not changed since February 2016.

Pylant admitted that her tax evasion offenses caused a tax loss to the United States of at least $233,547 and she will be required to pay restitution to the government in that amount.           

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI, IRS-CI and SSA OIG for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Harry M. Gruber, who is prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to report fraud, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/report-fraud. 

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Baltimore, Maryland – Yesterday U.S. District Judge George L. Russell sentenced Rico Dashiell, age 23, of Fort Washington, Maryland to 12 years in federal prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for the armed robbery of an Owing Mills phone store and for brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; and Chief Melissa R. Hyatt of the Baltimore County Police Department.

According to his guilty plea, in December 2020, Dashiell and two co-conspirators (Co-conspirator 1 and Co-conspirator 2) entered an Owings Mills, Maryland phone store.  Upon entry, Dashiell pretended to be a customer until his co-conspirators entered the store.  At that time, Dashiell brandished a firearm, pointed it at a victim, and said “[y]eah, you know what time it is . . . If you don’t want to die today, do what I say.”  Co-conspirator 1 and Co-conspirator 2 then pointed their firearms at victim employees and customers while yelling “get down.”

Dashiell ordered a victim employee to walk to the back of the store and open the store safe.  Once the safe was opened, conspiracy members stole 76 devices, including a GPS tracker within a cell phone box.  As they left the room containing the safe, Co-conspirator 1 sprayed pepper spray at the victims’ faces.  Dashiell and his co-conspirators then fled the store in a vehicle that Co-conspirator 1 had stolen earlier that day.

As stated in Dashiell’s plea agreement, law enforcement tracked the stolen vehicle to a single-family home in Catonsville, Maryland.  Aerial units filmed Dashiell and his co-conspirators unloading the stolen merchandise from the robbery and bringing it inside the residence.  After law enforcement evacuated two children from the residence, officers executed a search warrant and arrested the defendants.

During the search, law enforcement recovered the gloves, clothing, and headwear worn by the robbers, the 76 devices stolen from the cellular retail store, the canister of pepper spray that was used to assault victims, a victim’s wallet, and three loaded .9mm semi-automatic firearms.  Two of the firearms either did not possess a serial number or displayed an obliterated serial number. 

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI and the Baltimore County Police Department for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul A. Riley, who prosecuted the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – Yesterday U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake sentenced Ridgley Shipley, a/k/a “Crazy”, age 32, of Baltimore, Maryland to 184 months in federal prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release, for a racketeering conspiracy and for using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.  Shipley was a member of the Eight Tray Gangster (“ETG”) Crips gang in Baltimore.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; and Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department. 

The ETG Crips are a violent subset of the Crips gang that originated in California in the 1970s, eventually operating on the streets and in correctional facilities in Maryland beginning in the 2000s.  For many years, the ETG Crips controlled the drug trade in particular territories in Baltimore City, including the area near the intersection of West Baltimore Street and South Hilton Street in West Baltimore (the “Baltimore Hilton neighborhood”), the area near the intersection of West Lexington Street and North Fremont Avenue (the “Lexington Terrace neighborhood”), and the area near the intersection of Frankford Avenue and Sinclair Lane in North Baltimore (the “Frankford Sinclair neighborhood”).  The ETG Crips members from the Baltimore Hilton and Lexington Terrace neighborhoods referred to themselves as the Baccwest ETG Crips—modeling themselves after the Baccwest ETG Crips in Los Angeles—and ETG Crips members from the Frankford Sinclair neighborhood called themselves the Nutty North Side ETG Crips.  The two groups worked together for common criminal purposes.

According to his guilty plea, from 2008 to 2019, Shipley participated in the gang’s affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity which included drug dealing, robbery, witness retaliation, and other acts of violence.  For example, while incarcerated in 2017, Shipley physically assaulted a fellow ETG Crips gang member who violated gang code by disrespecting another Crip in front of members of a rival gang.  Shipley also discussed “weeding out” unofficial self-professed ETG Crips members, recruited new gang members in prison, and discussed murdering at least one victim who cooperated with law enforcement.

After Shipley was released from prison, Shipley and a co-conspirator robbed the employees of an Arnold, Maryland car repair shop in June 2019.  During the robbery, Shipley brandished a stolen, fully loaded, .45 caliber semi-automatic handgun.

Co-defendant Trayvon Hall, a/k/a Tru,” and “G Tru,” age 31, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty to racketeering and drug conspiracy charges on August 26, 2022.  If the Court accepts his plea, Hall will be sentenced to 40 years in federal prison.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

This case is also part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

This case was made possible by investigative leads generated from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives’ (ATF) National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN).  NIBIN is the only national network that allows for the capture and comparison of ballistic evidence to aid in solving and preventing violent crimes involving firearms.  NIBIN is a proven investigative and intelligence tool that can link firearms from multiple crime scenes, allowing law enforcement to quickly disrupt shooting cycles.  For more information on NIBIN, visit https://www.atf.gov/firearms/national-integrated-ballistic-information-network-nibin.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI and the Baltimore Police Department for their work in the investigation and thanked the Drug Enforcement Administration, ATF, the Maryland Attorney General’s Office, the Baltimore County Police Department, and the Anne Arundel County Police Department for their assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Peter J. Martinez and Kim Y. Oldham, who prosecuted the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – A criminal complaint has been filed charging Justin Kuchta, age 39, of Annapolis, Maryland, with a federal charge for sending messages over the Internet that threatened to injure a United States Member of Congress.  The complaint was filed on September 6, 2022 and unsealed today.  Kuchta is expected to have an initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Baltimore today at 2:30 p.m. before Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Beth P. Gesner.

The criminal complaint was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Chief J. Thomas Manger of the United States Capitol Police; and Colonel Woodrow W. Jones III, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police.

“You have the right to your own opinions, but not the right to threaten a federal official’s life,” said United States Attorney for the District of Maryland, Erek L. Barron.  “We’ll continue prosecuting these threats to the fullest extent of the law.” 

According to the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Kuchta made threats to murder a U.S. Member of Congress.  The affidavit alleges that a U.S. Member of Congress’ district office in Texas reported that on July 18, 2022, it received a threatening message via an event management website.  The message stated “Thank you for the address!!! I’m coming to murder all of you Satanist f*ckers!!! Especially the chuckle-f*ck Zodiak [sic] Killer [Member of Congress 1]!! That fat fake f*cker ass will be the first on the gallows!! SEE ALL OF YOU F*CKERS REALLY SOON!!! With my fresh militia and weapons!!! Thanks for the info f*ckers!!!”  According to the affidavit, the Member of Congress’ Washington office reported that a similar message was sent on July 22, 2022, using the same event management website.

As detailed in the affidavit, an investigation revealed that the IP address was registered to a private high-speed network operated by the State of Maryland.  Network records revealed that the IP address originated from a Virtual Private Network and computer assigned to Kuchta.  Kuchta was subsequently interviewed by Special Agents with the U.S. Capitol Police at his place of employment in Annapolis, Maryland. 

If convicted, Kuchta faces a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison for interstate communication containing a threat to injure.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties.  A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. 

A criminal complaint is not a finding of guilt.  An individual charged by criminal complaint is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings. 

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the United States Capitol Police and the Maryland State Police for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas M. Sullivan, who is prosecuting the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, and its efforts to protect national security, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/anti-terrorism.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – A website operating as a marketplace for over 5.85 million records of personally identifying information (PII) was seized today by Portuguese authorities and a federal criminal complaint charging the website’s alleged operator has been unsealed.  Law enforcement in the U.S. has also seized four domains used by the website:  “wt1shop.net,” “wt1store.cc,” “wt1store.com,” and “wt1store.net.”

The federal criminal complaint alleges that Nicolai Colesnicov, age 36, of the Republic of Moldova, operated WT1SHOP, an online market that allowed vendors to sell stolen login credentials and other PII, including approximately 25,000 scanned driver’s licenses/passports, 1.7 million login credentials for various online shops, 108,000 bank accounts, 21,800 credit cards.  Colesnicov is charged with conspiracy and with trafficking in unauthorized access devices.  The criminal complaint was filed on April 21, 2022, and unsealed today upon the seizure of the website and its domains.

The website seizure and criminal complaint were announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Special Agent in Charge Wayne Jacobs of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Washington Field Office, Criminal Division.

According to the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, WT1SHOP provided a forum and payment mechanism for the sale and purchase of stolen PII, using Bitcoin.  As detailed in the affidavit, in June 2020 Dutch law enforcement officials obtained an image of the WT1SHOP database that showed there were approximately 60,823 registered users on the site, including 91 sellers and two administrators.  As of June 2020, sellers on WT1SHOP had engaged in sales of approximately 2.4 million credentials for total proceeds of approximately $4 million.  The credentials sold consisted of login credentials for retailers and financial institutions, email accounts, PayPal accounts, and identification cards, as well as credentials to remotely access and operate computers, servers, and network devices without authorization.  Law enforcement’s review of WT1SHOP in December 2021 showed that the number of users and sellers on the website had increased to approximately 106,273 users and 94 sellers with a total of approximately 5.85 million credentials available for sale.

According to the affidavit, law enforcement was able to trace Bitcoin sales made on WT1SHOP, payments made to the webhost of WT1SHOP, email addresses related to WT1SHOP, and associated login information from these accounts to Colesnicov, including determining that Colesnicov was the operator of WT1SHOP based on his logins as the administrator on the WT1SHOP website.

If convicted, Colesnicov faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison for conspiracy and trafficking in unauthorized access devices.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. 

A criminal complaint is not a finding of guilt.  An individual charged by criminal complaint is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings. 

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI for its work in the investigation and thanked the U.S. Department of Justice Office of International Affairs and our law enforcement partners in Portugal, the Republic of Moldova, the Republic of Estonia, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands for their assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Rajeev R. Raghavan, who is prosecuting the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge George J. Hazel sentenced Rashaun Onley, age 23, of Washington, D.C., today to 14 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, on federal charges of committing an armed commercial robbery, carjacking, and using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.  Onley has been detained since his arrest.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Chief Robert J. Contee III of the Metropolitan Police Department; Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department; Chief Malik Aziz of the Prince George’s County Police Department; Chief Don Hayes of the City of Alexandria, Virginia Police Department; Chief Charles “Andy” Penn of the Arlington County, Virginia Police Department; and Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy; and Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy.

According to his guilty plea, in the early morning of February 5, 2021, Onley and a co-defendant entered a convenience store in Silver Spring, Maryland, selected some items from the shelves, and approached the counter.  Onley grabbed a convenience store employee, Victim 1, by the shirt, struck Victim 1 in the head, led Victim 1 behind the counter, and forced Victim 1 to his knees.  Onley then brandished a black semiautomatic handgun and ordered Victim 1 and Victim 2, another employee, to open the cash register.  Victim 2 opened the cash register and Onley and the co-defendant removed the cash from the register and fled.  Officers with the Montgomery County Police Department (“MCPD”) recovered video surveillance footage showed Onley and his co-defendant committing the robbery.

Also on February 5, 2021, at approximately 4:57 p.m., in Alexandria, Virginia, three men carjacked at gunpoint a dark gray Volkswagen Tiguan with Pennsylvania registration plates (“Volkswagen”).  Victim 3, the driver, reported that he had just parked his vehicle when one suspect told Victim 3 to get out of the vehicle, while a second suspect pointed a black handgun at Victim 3.  Victim 3 began to get out of the car but was grabbed by a suspect and pulled away from the vehicle.  All three suspects fled in the Volkswagen.  Victim 3 reported that his iPhone was still inside the vehicle.

As detailed in Onley’s plea agreement, a little more than one hour later, Onley, his co-defendant, and Co-Conspirator 1 carjacked at gunpoint Victim 4, who was driving a Lexus ES300 (“Lexus”) in Silver Spring.  Onley approached Victim 4 first with a gun in his hand and stated, “I’m gonna blow you up, give me your money and keys.”  Onley’s co-defendant, who also was armed with a gun, approached Victim 4 and demanded his car keys.  Co-Conspirator 1 was driving the Volkswagen.  Fearing for his life, Victim 4 handed over his property.  Onley’s co-defendant drove the Lexus away, while Onley got into the front passenger seat of the Volkswagen and fled the scene.  A short time later the Lexus was located abandoned nearby.

According to the plea agreement, approximately two minutes after the carjacking of the Lexus, Onley and the co-defendant approached Victim 5, who was sitting in a Mercedes ML350 sport utility vehicle (“Mercedes”).  Onley ordered Victim 5 to “get out” while he pointed a gun at her.  Victim 5 exited in fear for her life, while Onley and his co-defendant took Victim 5’s vehicle and fled the scene.  MCPD officers interviewed Victim 5 and obtained surveillance footage relating to the carjacking.

Less than 30 minutes later, Onley and his co-defendant were seen arriving in the Volkswagen on surveillance video capturing the outside of the co-defendant’s residence, an apartment building located in Washington, D.C.  They both were wearing the same clothing visible in the surveillance videos of the Silver Spring carjacking of the Mercedes and in the robbery of the convenience store.  A short time later, Onley exited the building and stood on the front porch, where he removed a mobile phone from his pocket, smashed the phone on the concrete porch, and threw the phone in the front dirt or lawn area of the building.  Law enforcement recovered the smashed phone two days later and confirmed that it was the iPhone belonging to Victim 3 that was left inside of the Volkswagen.

Later that evening, the carjacked Mercedes parked in front of the Volkswagen.  Onley and his co-defendant came out of the apartment building, went to the driver’s side of the Mercedes, and spoke with the three occupants of the vehicle.  After a few minutes, the three occupants exited the Mercedes, got into the Volkswagen, and drove away.  Onley and his co-defendant went back into the apartment building.

That same evening, officers with the Metropolitan Police Department (“MPD”) saw the carjacked Volkswagen traveling in Washington D.C.  After a pursuit, the occupants of the Volkswagen, including Co-Conspirator 1, bailed out of the vehicle.  MPD located and arrested Co-Conspirator 1.  The Maryland license plate from the carjacked Mercedes was also located a short distance away.

On February 17, 2021, the Mercedes was recovered from the street in front of the co-defendant’s apartment building.

Late in the evening of February 26, 2021, the co-defendant and Onley were ‘livestreaming’ and posting on social media about being at a hotel party in Arlington, Virginia.  Law enforcement established surveillance on Onley and his co-defendant at the hotel and continued to monitor the co-defendant’s social media account, where they were able to see semiautomatic handguns in the hotel room.  MCPD officers apprehended Onley and the co-defendant in the hotel room.  Prior to being apprehended, the co-defendant threw a bag from the hotel room window, which law enforcement promptly recovered.  The contents of the bag included two loaded firearms and 21 rounds of .40 caliber ammunition.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  PSN, an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime, is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  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.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI, the Metropolitan Police Department, the Montgomery County Police Department, the Prince George’s County Police Department, the City of Alexandria Police Department and the Arlington County, Virginia Police Department for their work in the investigation and thanked the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office and the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney’s Office for their assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy F. Hagan, who is prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging four defendants with conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, and aggravated identity theft.  Charged in the indictment are:

Raissa Kaossele, age 22, of Baltimore, Maryland;

Damilola Ojo, age 29, of Pikesville, Maryland;

Victor Ojo, age 28, of Edgewood, Maryland;

Jamelia Thompson, age 29, of Pikesville, Maryland.

The indictment was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Special Agent in Charge Andrew McKay of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (“TIGTA”).

According to the allegations in the eight-count indictment, from April 2016 to May 2019, the defendants allegedly executed a business email compromise scheme (“BEC scheme”).  The defendants compromised email accounts of individual and business victims, which they used to send fraudulent payment instructions to financial institutions or business associates to misappropriate funds.  The indictment alleges that the defendants used the stolen identifying information of individual victims to obtain Employer Identification Numbers and state business certificates in the name of shell businesses. 

As alleged in the indictment, the defendants also obtained legitimate checks written on the accounts of payor business victims and made payable to payee business victims.  The defendants allegedly altered the name of the payee on some checks and deposited the stolen checks into bank accounts they opened and controlled.  Further, the indictment alleges the defendants and other conspirators then withdrew the unlawfully deposited funds from the accounts.  As alleged in court documents, the defendants and other co-conspirators conducted over $4 million in fraudulent bank transactions.

If convicted, the defendants face a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison for conspiracy to commit bank fraud, a maximum of 30 years in prison for bank fraud, and a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in federal prison consecutive to any other sentenced imposed for aggravated identity theft.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties.  A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.  An indictment is not a finding of guilt.  An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings. 

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration for their work on the investigation and thanked the Baltimore City Police Department, Baltimore County Police Department, Harford County Sheriff’s Office, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection at Dulles International Airport for their assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mary Setzer and Paul A. Riley, who are prosecuting the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – MS-13 gang member, Jilmer Hernandez-Alvarado, a/k/a “Toro”, age 27, most recently of Hyattsville, Maryland, pleaded guilty yesterday to conspiracy to extort business owners.   

The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Wayne Jacobs of the Federal Bureau of Investigation - Washington Field Office Criminal Division; Chief Malik Aziz of the Prince George’s County Police Department; and Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department.

La Mara Salvatrucha, also known as the MS-13 gang (“MS-13”), is an international criminal enterprise that is active throughout the United States, including in Maryland.  MS-13 in Maryland is organized into “cliques,” smaller groups operating in a specific area.  Hernandez-Alvarado was a member of the Fulton clique of MS-13.

According to Hernandez-Alvarado’s guilty plea, MS-13 generated income from various sources, including extorting money from businesses, such as unlicensed businesses which operated in the territory of MS-13.  From at least February 2018 to December 2020, Hernandez-Alvarado and other MS-13 members conspired to extort money or “rent” payments from Langley Park, Maryland business owners through the threat of violence.  Each week, Hernandez-Alvarado and his co-conspirators demanded rent payments from business owners for operating in territory controlled by MS-13 and threatened to harm business owners if the rent was not paid.

Hernandez-Alvarado faces a maximum sentence of 20 years and in prison for the extortion conspiracy.  U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang has scheduled sentencing for December 5, 2022 at 2:00 p.m.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI, the Prince George’s County Police Department, and the Montgomery County Police Department, for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica C. Collins and Chris M. Sarma, who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – Justin Michael Peterson, age 27, of Westminster, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to production and distribution of child pornography.  At the time of these offenses, Peterson was on probation for a previous 2016 conviction in Carroll County, Maryland Circuit Court for distribution of child pornography.

The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; and Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office.

According to his guilty plea, in February 2020, law enforcement initiated an investigation of an individual using messaging applications and an email account to distribute child pornography on the internet and discovered that Peterson was the user of the online accounts.  On February 27, 2020, a search warrant was executed at Peterson’s residence and Peterson was arrested nearby.  Law enforcement seized his cellular phone during the search.  A subsequent forensic examination revealed that Peterson used social media, messaging applications and internet accounts to request, receive, and distribute child pornography.

As detailed in his plea agreement, between January 1 and January 16, 2020, Peterson also used social media and messaging accounts to produce sexually explicit videos and exchange approximately 1,244 messages with Victim 1, a 13-year-old boy.  Peterson knew that Victim 1 was 13 years old and made the sexually explicit videos anyway.  Peterson then offered the videos for distribution in online discussion groups and messaging platforms dedicated to the discussion, distribution, and production of child pornography, in which Peterson participated.

Peterson further admitted that he distributed videos of child pornography, including videos of Victim 1, to another minor male, Victim 2.  In some of his messages with Victim 2, Peterson also discussed traveling to Victim 1’s home to kidnap him.  In addition to the images and videos distributed to Victim 2, Peterson distributed other images and videos documenting the sexual abuse of children to users of a secure messaging application, including to an undercover law enforcement officer.  All of these images were found during the forensic examination of Peterson’s cellphone.  Peterson’s phone contained more than 600 images and videos depicting children engaged in sexually explicit conduct, including images and videos of adult males sexually abusing infants and toddlers.

Peterson and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Peterson will be sentenced to between 25 and 35 years in federal prison.  As stated in his plea agreement, upon his release from prison, Peterson must continue to register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”).  U.S. District Judge George L. Russell, III has scheduled sentencing for January 27, 2023 at 9:30 a.m. 

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.  For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the “Resources” tab on the left of the page.       

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron and Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. commended the FBI for its work in the investigation and thanked the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, the Carroll County State’s Attorney’s Office, and the Boone, North Carolina Police Department for their assistance.  Mr. Barron and Mr. Polite thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Duey and Trial Attorney Eduardo Palomo of the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-childhood and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland - Dennis James Harrison, age 40, of Rocky Ridge, Maryland, pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of a child to produce child pornography, related to the sexual exploitation of two minors who were between the ages of 10 and 12 at the time of the abuse.  The guilty plea was entered on Friday, August 26, 2022.

The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; Frederick County Sheriff Charles A. “Chuck” Jenkins; and Frederick County State’s Attorney J. Charles Smith III.

According to his guilty plea, between 2018 and 2021, Harrison sexually exploited two minor girls beginning when the one victim was twelve years old and when another victim was 10 to 11 years old, to produce child pornography.  Specifically, from at least September 2020 through August 2021, Harrison engaged in sexual activity with Jane Doe 1, a 12-year-old girl who resided in Pennsylvania.  Harrison picked-up Jane Doe 1 from her residence and drove her to various location in Maryland, including Harrison’s residence, where he engaged in illegal sexual activity with Jane Doe 1.  Harrison produced images and videos of his sexual abuse of Jane Doe 1 and enticed Jane Doe 1 to send him sexually explicit photographs of herself.

As detailed in his plea agreement, Harrison also used a hidden camera and a mobile phone in 2018 to produce a series of images depicting Jane Doe 2, a 10-to-11-year-old girl, nude and partially nude in a bedroom and bathroom in Pennsylvania and in a bathroom in Maryland.  The images were taken without the knowledge of Jane Doe 2. 

On August 12, 2021, investigators executed a search warrant at Harrison’s residence and recovered a cellphone used by Harrison to film his sexual abuse of Jane Doe 1, as well as several digital devices.  A forensic examination of all the devices located files depicting the sexual abuse of children on each one, including depictions of infants and toddlers.  In total, over 14,000 files of child pornography were found on Harrison’s devices.  On August 12, 2009, Harrison was convicted of possession of child pornography related to the sexual abuse of a minor and was a registered sex offender at the time of his arrest in the federal case.

As stated in his plea agreement, upon his release from prison, Harrison must continue to register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”). 

Harrison faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years in prison and a maximum of 50 years in prison.  Chief U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar has scheduled sentencing for January 23, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. 

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.  For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the “Resources” tab on the left of the page.         

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended HSI, the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office, and the Frederick County State’s Attorney’s Office their work in the investigation and prosecution.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul E. Budlow and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Joyce King, who are prosecuting the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-childhood and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – The leader of the Eight Tray Gangsta (ETG) Crips gang in Baltimore, Trayvon Hall, a/k/a “Tru,” and “G Tru,” age 31, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty today to racketeering and drug conspiracy charges.  

The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; and Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department.

The ETG Crips were a violent subset of the Crip gang that originated in California in the 1970s, eventually operating on the streets and in correctional facilities in Maryland beginning in the 2000s.  For many years, the ETG Crips controlled the drug trade in particular territories in Baltimore City, including the area around the intersection between West Baltimore Street and South Hilton Street in West Baltimore (the “Baltimore Hilton neighborhood”), the area around the intersection between West Lexington Street and North Fremont Avenue (the “Lexington Terrace neighborhood”), and the area around the intersection between Frankford Avenue and Sinclair Lane in North Baltimore (the “Frankford Sinclair neighborhood”).  The ETG Crips members from the Baltimore Hilton and Lexington Terrace neighborhoods referred to themselves as the Baccwest ETG Crips—modeling themselves after the Baccwest ETG Crips in Los Angeles—and ETG Crips members from the Frankford Sinclair neighborhood called themselves the Nutty North Side ETG Crips.  The two groups worked together for common criminal purposes.

According to his guilty plea, Trayvon Hall was the leader of the Baccwest ETG Crips in Baltimore, referred to as the “G” of the gang.  In about 2013, Hall flew to California to meet with West Coast leaders of the ETG Crips and gain their official approval for his Baccwest ETG Crips set in Baltimore.  The Baccwest ETG Crips operated street-level drug distribution “shops” primarily in the Baltimore Hilton neighborhood, the Lexington Terrace neighborhood and the Franklin Sinclair neighborhood, distributing heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine, and marijuana.  Non-members of the gang who attempted to sell drugs in the ETG Crips’ territories were targeted for violence by ETG Crips members.

The ETG Crips used social media websites to assert their claim to drug territories, intimidate rival gangs and witnesses against gang members, and to enhance the status of the ETG Crips and of individual members within the gang.  Members of the ETG Crips posted photos and rap videos to social media websites flaunting weapons and threatening to kill those who stood in the way of the gang.  By participating in criminal activities in furtherance of the gang, particularly violent acts directed by the ETG Crips leadership, ETG Crips members earned respect from fellow members and maintained or advanced their position within the gang.

Hall admitted that he and his co-defendants sold drugs, including heroin and crack cocaine, and committed robberies to earn money for the enterprise.  From May 2016 through November 2016, Hall and other ETG Crips conspired to murder members of the Black Guerilla Family (BGF) gang who operated a rival drug shop in the Lexington Terrace neighborhood.  On June 23, 2016, ETG Crips members attempted to murder two BGF gang members, instead shooting two victims who were in the area at the time.  On July 18, 2016, Hall murdered BGF member Albert Pittman, shooting him to death in the 4800 block of Midline Road.  On November 11, 2016, in the 800 block of West Lexington Street, Hall opened fire on members of the rival BGF gang, killing BGF member Shyheim Brown and wounding two other victims.  Immediately afterward, Hall sent an unindicted co-conspirator a series of text messages about the shooting, saying he had “Jus bashed the monkeys” (a derogatory term for members of BGF), and they “Wasn’t exspecting [sic] me be out early lmGCao [laughing my Gangster Crip ass off].”

Further, from July 2017 through July 2019, Hall and other members of the ETG Crips conspired to murder members of the Abington Avenue drug trafficking organization, whose territory the ETG Crips had taken over.  Hall directed the ETG Crips to use violence to retaliate against anyone who refused to respect the boundaries of their newly claimed turf.  Hall admitted that on July 6, 2018, he opened fire on members of the Abington Avenue organization who were playing dice in the unit block of Abington Avenue, killing Steven McKnight and wounding an additional victim.  According to the plea agreement, Hall and other ETG members conspired to murder an individual who they believed had cooperated with law enforcement and threatened a witness who testified against a fellow gang member in a state murder trial.

Hall and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Hall will be sentenced to 40 years in federal prison.  U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake has not yet scheduled a sentencing date. 

This case was made possible by investigative leads generated from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives’ (ATF) National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN).  NIBIN is the only national network that allows for the capture and comparison of ballistic evidence to aid in solving and preventing violent crimes involving firearms.  NIBIN is a proven investigative and intelligence tool that can link firearms from multiple crime scenes, allowing law enforcement to quickly disrupt shooting cycles.  For more information on NIBIN, visit https://www.atf.gov/firearms/national-integrated-ballistic-information-network-nibin.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

This case is also part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI and the Baltimore Police Department for their work in the investigation and thanked the Drug Enforcement Administration, the ATF, the Maryland Attorney General’s Office, the Baltimore County Police Department, and the Anne Arundel County Police Department for their assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Peter J. Martinez and Kim Y. Oldham, who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – A federal criminal complaint has been filed charging Charles K. Egunjobi, age 48, of Waldorf, Maryland, with operating an unlicensed money service business relating to numerous online romance scams.  Egunjobi had his initial appearance today in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt before U.S. Magistrate Judge Gina L. Simms.  He was released under the supervision of the United States pre-trial services.

The criminal complaint was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Andrew Hartwell of the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the Inspector General Fraud Detection Office (DOJ-OIG); and Acting Postal Inspector in Charge Tira Hayward of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service - Washington Division (USPIS).

According to the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Egunjobi is a financial auditor for the District of Columbia Government where he supports criminal investigations.

As alleged in the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, between September 2019 and April 2020, Egunjobi facilitated the money laundering operations of a romance scheme involving co-defendant Isidore Iwuagwu, age 35, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland. 

The alleged romance scam co-conspirators contacted victims on social media platforms and dating sites, engaged in online relationships with the victims, then convinced victims to send large sums of money claiming the funds were needed for purported personal hardships.  Many victims reported sending funds at the request of individuals claiming to be deployed members of the United States Armed Forces who asked for money for various personal hardships.  The alleged scam involved more than 20 victims, many of whom are senior citizens. 

For example, as detailed in the affidavit, one victim reports that she sent thousands of dollars to various individuals in the United States, including to Egunjobi, based on the instructions given to her by an individual she met on a dating website, who claimed to be a U.S. soldier deployed in Iraq. 

As stated in the criminal complaint, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Egunjobi’s residence on August 10, 2022.  As a result of the executed search warrant, law enforcement found what appeared to be a ledger, listing Egunjobi’s name, bank account information, dates of transactions, and notations.  Some of the transaction dates recorded in the ledger matched the victim’s money order transfers.

The affidavit further alleges that law enforcement discovered messages on Egunjobi’s phone from individuals asking Egunjobi to transfer money or vehicles from the United States to Nigeria.  Messages between Egunjobi and Iwuagwu allegedly indicate that Egunjobi assisted Iwuagwu to obtain Nigerian currency in exchange for Egunjobi receiving U.S. currency.

If convicted, Egunjobi faces a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison for operating an unlicensed money service business.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties.  A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

A criminal complaint is not a finding of guilt.  An individual charged by criminal complaint is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings. 

The Department of Justice runs the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311), has an interactive tool for elders who have been financially exploited to help determine to which agency they should report their incident, and also a senior scam alert website.  Victims are encouraged to file a complaint online with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at this website or by calling 1-800-225-5324.  Elder fraud complaints may be filed with the FTC at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov or at 877-FTC-HELP.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the DOJ-OIG and USPIS for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rajeev R. Raghavan and Jennifer L. Wine, who are prosecuting the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett sentenced Kiara Haynes, age 37, of Baltimore, today to 25 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for two counts of aiding and abetting the use and discharge of a firearm in relation to a drug trafficking crime and crime of violence, causing the death of Jennifer Jeffrey and her seven-year-old child.  Haynes has been detained since her arrest in Texas on June 18, 2021, on a related federal criminal complaint. 

The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Toni M. Crosby of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Baltimore Field Division; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department; and Chief Mark K. Lewis of the Cambridge Police Department.

“The murders of Jennifer Jeffrey and her child were a senseless tragedy,” said U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron.  “Not only did Kiara Haynes have opportunities to prevent the murders of Jennifer Jeffrey and her child, she lied to investigators about what happened after the crimes were committed.  If you threaten or harm a witness, especially a child, the full weight of federal law enforcement will be harnessed to hold you accountable and bring you to justice, no matter how long it takes.”

“Kiara Haynes had every opportunity to try and stop her boyfriend from murdering a little boy and his mother, knowing that that was part of his robbery plan.  Instead, she supplied Andre Briscoe with the murder weapon, in complete disregard for human life,” said ATF Baltimore Field Division Special Agent in Charge Toni M. Crosby.  “Nothing can ever replace the loss of a loved one, but we hope that this sentencing today gives the family of Jennifer Jeffrey and her son a sense of justice.  ATF will continue in our mission to stop trigger-pullers, protect victims and witness, and help create safer communities in Baltimore.” 

According to Haynes’s plea agreement, Haynes helped her co-defendant, Andre Briscoe, with whom she was romantically involved, plan to steal heroin from Jennifer Jeffrey, a long-time friend of Haynes.  On May 26, 2015, Briscoe arrived at Haynes’s apartment from his home in Cambridge.  During the course of the evening, Briscoe explained that Jeffrey had heroin and he planned to rob and kill Jeffrey to get the heroin. Briscoe confirmed to Haynes his intention to kill not only Jeffrey, but her minor child if the child were present at the time of the robbery.  Haynes offered to help Briscoe get a gun.

Haynes subsequently contacted a relative whom she knew to have a gun.  In exchange for allowing Haynes to use the gun, Haynes promised to give the relative some of the stolen heroin and give his gun back. Haynes and Briscoe met with the relative’s brother, who gave Haynes a .45 caliber firearm.  Haynes and Briscoe returned to Haynes’s apartment with the gun.

Later that night, as detailed in the plea agreement, Briscoe left Haynes’s apartment to go hang out with Jeffrey at Jeffrey’s nearby home.  When Haynes woke up later and realized that Briscoe had not returned, Haynes got upset.  Between 4:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. Haynes walked over to Jeffrey’s home and began banging on the door and yelling for Briscoe to come out.  Jeffrey’s relative opened the door and told Haynes that children were in the house asleep and that Haynes should go home, which she eventually did.

According to Haynes’s plea agreement, at approximately 7:23 a.m., Briscoe walked back from Jeffrey’s residence to Haynes’s apartment.  Briscoe told Haynes that Jeffrey had shown him a large amount of heroin and that Jeffrey’s child did not feel well and had not gone to school that day.  At approximately 11:41 a.m. Haynes overheard Briscoe on the phone with Jeffrey, who was talking about making breakfast for Briscoe.  When Briscoe got off the phone, he retrieved the .45-caliber gun from Haynes’s bedroom and told Haynes that he was going to Jeffrey’s to get the drugs.

When Briscoe returned to Haynes’s apartment, Haynes asked him what had happened.  Briscoe told Haynes that Jeffrey and her child were dead and gave Haynes a bag of heroin as her “cut” of Jeffrey’s drugs. As detailed in the plea agreement, Haynes returned the gun, along with the heroin given to her by Briscoe, as payment for the use of the gun.  

On May 28, 2015, after a receiving a call for assistance, the Baltimore Police Department discovered Jeffrey and her child dead in their home.

In her plea agreement, Haynes further admitted that she lied to investigators and prosecutors about these events on five occasions between May 2015 and November 2020.

Andre Ricardo Briscoe, a/k/a “Poo”, age 38, of Baltimore and Cambridge, Maryland, was convicted by a federal jury on June 8, 2022, for federal drug distribution charges, use of a firearm to commit murder in relation to drug trafficking crime, killing a witness to prevent communication with law enforcement, and being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.  Briscoe faces a mandatory life sentence for killing a witness and for using a firearm in relation to a drug trafficking crime resulting in death, related to the murder of Jeffrey’s child.  Judge Bennett has scheduled Briscoe’s sentencing for September 20, 2022 at 11:00 a.m.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the ATF, the FBI, the Baltimore Police Department, and the Cambridge Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Budlow, who prosecuted the case, and thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael C. Hanlon and Abigail Ticse for their assistance.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge George L. Russell, III sentenced Scott Eli Harris, age 52, of Aubrey, Texas, yesterday to six months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for sending a threatening message to a Maryland medical doctor who publicly advocated for the COVID-19 vaccine. 

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division; and Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office.

“While we are all entitled to our own opinion, no one has the right to threaten the life of someone because of race, national origin, or because of holding different views,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, Erek L. Barron.  “Threats like these will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” 

“Threats of violence, especially those driven by racial animus and misguided beliefs concerning the COVID-19 pandemic will not be tolerated,” said Assistant Attorney General Clarke. “Members of our Asian American Pacific Islander communities should never have to live in fear of violence because of their race or national origin.”

“Today’s sentence should serve as a warning to those who threaten or take violent action based on belief or ideology and breaks the law, that the FBI will enforce the rule of law,” said Special Agent in Charge, Thomas J. Sobocinski.  

According to his plea agreement and statements made in connection with the sentencing hearing, Harris sent a threatening message from his cellular phone to a Maryland doctor who had been a vocal proponent of the COVID-19 vaccine.  Harris’ message included violent statements including “Never going to take your wonder drug. My 12 gauge promises I won’t .… I can’t wait for the shooting to start.”  The message also referenced the doctor’s Asian-American race and national origin.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron and Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke commended the FBI for their work in the investigation and thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney P. Michael Cunningham and Trial Attorney Katherine DeVar of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, who prosecuted the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/civil-rights and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – At a press conference earlier today, U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron, joined by federal, state, and local partners announced that his office is devoting more federal resources than ever before to fight violent crime in Maryland.  These resources have been made possible by an unprecedented level of state funding to support these efforts.  Partners at today’s announcement included:

            U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron;             Governor Larry Hogan;             Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh;             Mayor Brandon Scott;             Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Special Agent in Charge Toni Crosby;             Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget;             Federal Bureau of Investigation Assistant Special Agent in Charge Rob Turner;             Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge James Harris;             Secretary Robert Green of the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services;             Maryland State Police, Colonel Woodrow Jones;             Baltimore City Police Commissioner Michael Harrison; and
            Representatives from the Maryland Congressional delegation. 

As discussed at the press conference, the Maryland General Assembly passed Governor Larry Hogan’s allocation of $3.5 million to support 14 additional Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys, 10 additional investigators, five data analysts, and four legal support personnel, with the support of Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh.  The hiring process for those positions has already begun in the Attorney General’s Office and several Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys have already started to combat violent crime on behalf of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

U.S. Attorney Barron announced today that the newly established Violent and Organized Crime Section is being expanded by the 30 new state-funded positions.  In addition, U.S. Attorney Barron has encouraged prosecutors to use all available resources to investigate and prosecute repeat violent offenders—specifically to look at any wrongdoing that meets office priorities, including COVID-19 CARES Act fraud, in particular unemployment insurance fraud, Paycheck Protection Program fraud, Economic Injury Disaster Loan fraud, and utilizing a federal school zone statute that makes it a crime to possess a gun within 1000 feet of a school.

“The appalling multi-victim shooting at Park Heights Avenue today underscores the need for the steps announced and the renewed commitment from our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to reduce violent crime,” said U.S. Attorney Erek Barron.  “I have instructed my staff to provide whatever assistance we can to ensure that the shooters from the incident today are quickly arrested, taken off the street, and brought to justice.  We will continue to use every legal means necessary to fight violent crime in Baltimore and throughout Maryland.”

“For eight years our administration has been fighting to give law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and judges the tools they need to fight violent crime and to hold violent criminals accountable,” said Governor Larry Hogan.  “A critical piece of that has been active collaboration and coordination between all levels of government.  I want to thank U.S. Attorney Barron for continuing the long-standing partnership we have had with the federal prosecutor's office, and I want to commend him for building on our crime-fighting efforts with these new initiatives.”

“I am pleased to join local, state, and federal leaders to share this announcement and show that, together, we are dedicated to making the streets of Baltimore the safe spaces that we know they can be,” said Mayor Brandon Scott.  “I look forward to working with each and every agency that shares our commitment to reducing violence.”

“ATF is proud to work with all local, state, and federal partners in our collective efforts to reduce violence.  The core of ATF’s mission in Baltimore is to identify, investigate, and apprehend trigger-pullers and traffickers by using the crime gun intelligence model.  Firearms tracing, ballistic forensics from crime guns, and partnership are the cornerstones to this intelligence-led approach,” said ATF Baltimore Field Division Special Agent in Charge Toni M. Crosby.  “We have seen policemen shot. Coaches, college students, and even children murdered.  The street crews and gangs who commit shootings nearly every day do so without conscience, and we are relentless in our pursuit of them.  Since 2019, partnered ATF Special Agents and Baltimore Police Task Force Officers on our Crime Gun Enforcement Team have closed 50 homicide cases and 22 nonfatal shooting cases, with the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Maryland Attorney General’s Office.  With every closed case, we hope that the families of the victims feel some sense of justice.  By working collaboratively with our law enforcement partners, and with the community, we will continue to do everything in our power to take the most violent offenders off Baltimore streets.”

“The resources and programs we outlined today, along with the proactive work conducted with our community members and our partners, are going to make all the difference in reducing drug-related violent crime here in Baltimore,” said Jarod Forget, Special Agent in Charge of DEA Washington Division.  “Working proactively to truly address these issues and make sure all of our area families can live safely is our top priority”

“We cannot expect to make a difference in the lives of our citizens if we do not work together, which is why the continuation of the funded task forces is key to the violent crime fight,” said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Robert Turner.

“We would be naive to think that we have all the answers to the many factors that play a part in an individual committing senseless acts of violence,” said Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore. “However, we have some amazing tools at our disposal, and we have developed some strong partnerships. If we can continue to engage in the initiatives that decrease the number of gangs and violent criminals on our streets, the initiatives that disrupt the selling of deadly drugs, and the initiatives that diminish the possession and trafficking of illegal weapons, we will see a significant downward trajectory in the number of violent incidents. This is something we all want and deserve, and it is something that we know we can eventually achieve.”

“The Department has 249 Parole and Probation employees based in the City, as well as more than 40 sworn law enforcement officers and intelligence personnel,” says Robert Green, Secretary of the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services.  “These resources are embedded within, or in direct support of, the law enforcement agencies represented here today. The Governor’s commitment to this critical collaborative expansion will enable us to provide more resources to help our city, state, and federal partners in this vital crime-fighting initiative announced today.”

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – A federal grand jury returned an indictment on August 16, 2022, charging Matthew C. Browndorf, age 51, of Irvine, California, with four counts of wire fraud and four counts of money laundering arising from a scheme to defraud the clients and employees of a foreclosure law firm that he owned by stealing more than $3.9 million.  Browndorf is currently expected to have an initial appearance on September 2, 2022, in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt.

The indictment was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; and Acting Special Agent in Charge Kimberly Davis of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Office of Inspector General. 

According to the indictment, Browndorf, a licensed attorney, was a partner at a California law firm and the Chief Executive Officer of Plutos Sama, LLC, a limited liability company organized in Delaware, but principally located in California. 

As detailed in the indictment, Plutos Sama owned BP Fisher Law Group, LLP, a law firm located in Prince George’s County, Maryland, that represented lenders and mortgage loan servicers in foreclosure and default proceedings in Maryland and the District of Columbia.  BP Fisher acted as substitute trustee for lenders and mortgage loan servicers who had lawfully enacted foreclosure proceedings on properties in Maryland that were in default.  The proceeds of those foreclosures would be transferred into BP Fisher’s trust accounts. 

The indictment alleges that once the proceeds of the foreclosures were deposited into BP Fisher’s trust account, Browndorf transferred or directed the transfer of those funds out of the trust account and into other accounts that Browndorf controlled, when those funds should have been paid to BP Fisher’s clients.  The indictment further alleges that Browndorf similarly directed the transfer of funds out of BP Fisher’s operating accounts, which often caused BP Fisher to be unable to pay its ordinary business expenses, including employee payroll, employee health insurance benefits, and employee retirement benefits.  Browndorf allegedly used the stolen funds to pay for his personal expenses, the personal expenses of family members, or expenses incurred by Plutos Sama.  Finally, the indictment alleges that Browndorf stole more than $3.9 million. 

If convicted, Browndorf faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for each count of wire fraud and a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison for each count of money laundering.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties.  A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. 

An indictment is not a finding of guilt.  An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings. 

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI and FHFA OIG for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew P. Phelps and Stephanie Williamson, who are prosecuting the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – Ryan Odell Oliver, “Dre,” “Fame,” and “Foreign”, age 40, of Baltimore, Maryland pleaded guilty on August 16, 2022, to sex trafficking at least three victims.    

The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department; and Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby.  

“Oliver’s sex trafficking crimes were discovered because one of his victims reached out for help,” said Erek L. Barron, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland.  “As a result of this victim’s bravery, Oliver will now be brought to justice.  If you are a survivor of human trafficking, please reach out for help and report sex traffickers at 866-DHS-2ICE.”

According to Oliver’s guilty plea, in December 2018 a female victim (Victim 1) texted a non-profit sex trafficking prevention agency that she was forced into prostitution and was being held against her will by Oliver.  An Alexandria Police Department undercover detective followed up on the report and made a commercial sex date with Victim 1 in order to find her.  Officers located Victim 1 at the location given for the sex date.  Oliver was also at the location, but fled before he could be arrested.  A second female (Victim 2) was also found at that location.

During the investigation, law enforcement spoke with three women whom Oliver was trafficking or attempting to traffic.  Victim 1 and Victim 2 told law enforcement that they were trying to leave but Oliver refused to let them go.  Oliver admitted that trafficked Victims 1 and 3 for his prostitution business and was attempting to sex traffic Victim 2.  Oliver physically and sexually assaulted Victim 1 and Victim 2.  Victim 1 and Victim 3 worked for Oliver in the Washington D.C. and Maryland area, including surrounding states.  Oliver advertised all three victims online for commercial sex dates and kept all of the money made by his victims on commercial sex dates.  Oliver also arranged for a tattoo artist to tattoo his nicknames “Fame” and “Foreign” on one of his victims.

As detailed in his guilty plea, Oliver gave Victim 1 daily quotas for commercial sex dates and refused to provide for Victim 1 if she did not meet the quotas.  Oliver also made Victim 1 take pictures of other sex trafficking victims to advertise them for commercial sex dates.  Oliver used violence against Victim 1 when she did something he thought was wrong and Oliver told Victim 1 that she was his property.  Victim 3 advised that Oliver provided her with drugs, including heroin.

According to Oliver’s plea agreement, after meeting Victim 2 on a social media platform in December 2018, Oliver paid for a car to drive Victim 2 from Pennsylvania to his Baltimore residence.  There, Oliver forced Victim 2 to have sex with him and choked Victim 2 because she would not comply with his sexual demands.  After the assault, Victim 2 met one of Oliver’s co-conspirators, now deceased, who took her to a hotel, forced her to watch another sex trafficking victim conduct a sex date, and warned Victim 2 not to try to escape because Oliver would find her and that Oliver had a gun. 

Oliver was arrested on January 11, 2019, in Baltimore.  A search warrant executed at his residence recovered three cell phones, a hand-held recorder, a laptop, a ledger, a plastic bag of a white powdery substance, a 9mm firearm, and ammunition.  Additionally, law enforcement discovered images of Victim 1 and Victim 3 on Oliver’s phone.

Oliver and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Oliver will be sentenced to 15 years in federal prison.  U.S. District Judge George L. Russell III has scheduled sentencing for November 28, 2022 at 9:30 a.m. 

This case was investigated by law enforcement agencies that are members of the Maryland Human Trafficking Task Force, formed in 2007 to discover and rescue victims of human trafficking while identifying and prosecuting offenders.  Members include federal, state, and local law enforcement, as well as victim service providers and local community members.  For more information about the Maryland Human Trafficking Task Force, please visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/md/priorities_human.html.

Report suspected instances of human trafficking to HSI's tip line at 866-DHS-2ICE (1-866-347-2423) or by completing its online tip form.  Both are staffed around the clock by investigators.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended HSI, the Baltimore Police Department, and the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Colleen E. McGuinn, who is prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang sentenced Marion Rose Payne, age 55, of Harwood, Maryland, on August 15, 2022, to 15 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to produce and transfer identification documents without lawful authority, specifically, Maryland driver’s licenses.  Judge Chuang also ordered Payne to forfeit $25,000, which constitutes the proceeds of Payne’s participation in the criminal conspiracy.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore.

According to her plea agreement, from at least July 2015 through March 2016, Payne and Co-Conspirator 2 were both employees of the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA) and worked in the Largo, Maryland MVA branch office.  Payne’s duties at the MVA included the issuance of Maryland driver’s licenses. 

As detailed in her plea agreement, Payne, co-Conspirator 2 and Warner Antonio Portillo conspired to produce and transfer Maryland driver’s licenses without lawful authority.  Specifically, Portillo and others met with prospective Maryland driver’s license applicants who were willing to pay money to obtain a driver’s license illegally, typically because the applicants were illegal aliens without lawful legal status in the United States or were otherwise unable to obtain a lawfully issued driver’s license.  The applicants paid Portillo and others between $800 and $5,000 in cash for each fraudulently issued Maryland driver’s license.

Portillo and others assisted the applicants to travel to the Largo branch of the MVA and directed the applicants to Payne’s or Co-Conspirator 2’s workstation, where applicants obtained Maryland driver’s licenses produced by Payne or Co-Conspirator 2 without lawful authority.  Payne knew that the documents used in support of the driver’s licenses were fraudulent.  In exchange for the improperly issued driver’s licenses, Portillo paid Payne at least $25,000 in cash and gifts.  The conspiracy resulted in the unlawful production and transfer of at least 276 Maryland driver’s licenses. 

Warner Antonio Portillo, age 37, of Manassas, Virginia, previously pleaded guilty to his role in the conspiracy and is awaiting sentencing.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended HSI for its work in the investigation and thanked the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration Investigation and Security Services for its assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly O. Hayes and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Mund, who prosecuted the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore. Maryland - U.S. District Judge George L. Russell, III today sentenced Luis Rivera, age 34, formerly of Elkton, Maryland, to 20 years in federal prison, followed by 20 years of supervised release, for production of child pornography.  Judge Russell ordered that the federal sentence be served consecutive to the 12-year state sentence Rivera is currently serving for a state drug conviction.  Judge Russell also ordered that, upon his release from prison, Rivera must continue to register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”). 

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Colonel Woodrow W. Jones III, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police; and Cecil County State’s Attorney James Dellmyer.

According to his guilty plea, Rivera was arrested on drug charges in Cecil County, Maryland on January 30, 2018.  At the time of his arrest, Rivera was found in bed with Jane Doe, who was 15 years old.  Rivera denied having a sexual relationship with Jane Doe and further stated that all of the illegal narcotics, later confirmed to be crack cocaine, powder cocaine, and heroin, located in his bedroom belonged to Jane Doe.

While at the hospital for a Sexual Assault Forensic Examination, Jane Doe told a social worker that she and Rivera were in a sexual relationship and evidence proving that would be present on their cell phones which were seized during the search warrant at Rivera’s house.  A search warrant was subsequently executed on the digital items seized, including the two cell phones.  The SD cards of the phones were forensically examined and found to contain 18 videos of Rivera and Jane Doe engaged in sexually explicit conduct, which were all taken by Rivera or by Jane Doe at Rivera’s direction. 

After his arrest and detention, Rivera admitted that he made over 700 calls to Jane Doe saying things like: She was the reason he was locked up; everyone knew that Rivera was arrested because Jane Doe lied and that everything was her fault.  Rivera also instructed Jane Doe to: recant her statement to the social worker; deny that it was her in the videos; and to lie at his trial on drug charges in Cecil County.  On January 22, 2019, several letters Rivera had written to Jane Doe from the detention center were recovered and reviewed by law enforcement.  One letter told Jane Doe to get her family to say that it was not Jane Doe in the videos.  Rivera stated, “You have to beg them to understand that it’s not fair that an innocent man is in jail because of your lies…”

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.  For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab on the left of the page.       

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI, Maryland State Police, and the Cecil County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Judson T. Mihok, who prosecuted the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-childhood and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge George J. Hazel sentenced Derrell Lamar Hooker Orange (“Orange”) age 37, of Brandywine, Maryland, today to 19 years in federal prison, followed by 12 years of supervised release, for enticement of a minor to produce child pornography and to possession of child pornography.  Judge Hazel also ordered Orange to pay $15,000 in restitution to the victims of the offense.  Orange has been detained since his guilty plea on May 13, 2022, after Judge Hazel determined that Orange was a danger to the community.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; Colonel Woodrow W. Jones III, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police and Sheriff Michelle Cook of the Clay County, Florida Sherriff’s Office.

“Parents should check their child’s smartphone and remind them that people may not be who they seem,” said U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron.  “This could save your child from becoming a victim.  Many criminals, like Orange, take advantage of the anonymity of the internet to present themselves as something they’re not and use online messaging services to abuse children.”

“Derrell Lamar Hooker Orange’s crimes are inexcusable,” said Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of HSI Baltimore.  “He deceived and victimized three minors, and the cruelty of his actions was reflected in the severity of his prison sentence.  Today he will begin to face the consequences of his crimes.  HSI Baltimore is proud to have worked with our local law enforcement partners to bring Mr. Orange to justice.  HSI Baltimore will continue to work to protect the law-abiding citizens of Maryland from notorious criminal elements like Mr. Orange.”

“The Clay County Sheriff’s Office is committed to doing everything in our power to combat child exploitation,” said Sheriff Michelle Cook.  “I am grateful to the dedicated professionals and our law enforcement partners across the country for their tireless work to investigate and prosecute the perpetrators of these horrible crimes.”

According to his plea agreement, from at least July 2020 through October 2020, Orange, posing as a 16-year-old boy named “Lamar Thompson,” communicated with Victim 1, a 12-year-old girl living in Florida.  Orange admitted that Victim 1 disclosed to him that she was in “junior high.”  During their communications, Orange, using the Thompson persona, sent text messages requesting sexually explicit videos from Victim 1, including on August 29, 2020 and October 11, 2020, which Victim 1 then sent to Orange.

On March 16, 2021, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Orange’s residence and seized his iPad and iPhone.  Forensic review of Orange’s devices revealed images and videos of child pornography, including sexually explicit videos of Victim 1.

As detailed in his plea agreement, Orange also communicated with three other minor victims, Victim 2, Victim 3, and Victim 4, through text messages and a secure communication application.  As he did with Victim 1, Orange posed as a 16-year-old boy and requested sexually explicit images and videos from Victim 2, Victim 3, and Victim 4, which the victims sent to him.  Based on the forensic analysis of his devices, Orange knew that Victims 3 and 4 were only 11 years old.  In addition, on February 16, 2021, Orange sent text messages to Victim 2, who resided in Florida, indicating that he had traveled to her residence.  The text messages included a screen shot of a Lyft route to the area of Victim 2’s residence, as well as a video of the apartment complex where Victim 2 lived at that time, with a text stating, “I’m outside.”  Victim 2 did not meet Orange.

According to his plea agreement, Orange also participated in numerous chats using a cross-platform messaging service with enhanced encryption to transmit and receive material depicting minors, including prepubescent minors, engaged in sexually explicit conduct.  For example, in a chat with another user of the messaging service in March 2021, the other user asked Orange to “Trade.”  In response, Orange sent approximately 74 videos depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct and received approximately 98 such videos.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.  For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab on the left of the page.         

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the HSI, the Maryland State Police, and the Clay County, Florida Sheriff’s Office for their work in the investigation and thanked the Prince George’s County Police Department for its assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Leah Grossi and Jessica C. Collins, who prosecuted the case.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – A federal jury convicted Mary Francis Biggs, age 65, of Lexington Park, Maryland, late on August 15, 2022, for conspiracy to commit theft of government property and for theft of government property in connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain additional military disability benefits for her husband from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).  As a result of the fraud scheme, from 2016 through 2019, Biggs and her husband received over $170,000 in disability benefits and early retirement pay to which they were not entitled.

The conviction was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Kim R. Lampkins, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Inspector General (OIG), Mid-Atlantic Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Michael McGill of the Social Security Administration - Office of Inspector General (SSA-OIG), Philadelphia Field Division.

According to the evidence presented at Biggs’ six-day trial, Biggs participated in a conspiracy organized by her daughter, Angela Farr, in which false and fraudulent documents were submitted to the VA in support of disability claims in the name of Individual 1, who was Biggs’ husband and Farr’s father.  The fraudulent documents stated that Individual 1 was homebound and required full-time assistance for basic tasks such as eating, bathing, and dressing.  In fact, Individual 1 lived an ordinary, active life.  For at least some of the time, Biggs and Farr concealed their fraud from Individual 1. 

According to trial evidence, Individual 1 was a member of the United States Navy from January 29, 1974 to January 31, 1997.  The evidence proved that Individual 1 received a 100% service-connected disability rating by the VA, and Special Monthly Compensation (SMC), based on fraudulent documentation submitted as part of the conspiracy.  On approximately July 5, 2017, the VA determined, based on fraudulent documentation, that Individual 1 was not capable of managing his finances because of his purported disabilities, and appointed Biggs as Individual 1’s fiduciary.  As such, Biggs was responsible for the receipt and expenditure of Individual 1’s fraudulently obtained VA benefits funds.  During this time, Individual 1 was employed as a civilian employee of the Navy, supervising a logistics unit of 25 people.

Specifically, Biggs and Farr conspired to exaggerate Individual 1’s claims, which involved the submission of fraudulent and fictitious medical documents.  Biggs and Farr also conspired to conceal from VA the fact that Individual 1 was working, and as part of a VA field interview on September 13, 2017, Biggs did not disclose the fact that Individual 1was employed and completed a form stating that Individual 1 had no employment income.  Biggs spent the fraudulently received disability compensation payments on daily living expenses, cruise vacations, and a kitchen renovation, even though she was aware that her husband was not entitled to the payments.  Biggs and her husband received more than $170,000 in VA benefits to which he was not entitled. 

Farr and her husband at the time, Michael Pace, fraudulently obtained disability benefits for themselves in the same way.  Pace received the highest amount of disability compensation and SMC paid by VA.  In addition, Pace received a Caregiver Assistance stipend of more than $2,500 per month, for purportedly serving as Farr’s caregiver, despite claiming to be completely disabled himself and unable to use his arms and legs.  Farr fraudulently obtained disability benefits from the VA and from the Social Security Administration.  In total, Farr received approximately $440,085 in VA benefits to which she was not entitled, and approximately $35,666 in Social Security benefit payments to which she was not entitled, resulting in a loss to the United States of $475,751 just on Farr’s claims alone.  Pace received $370,912 in VA benefits to which he was not entitled.  

Angela Marie Farr, age 36, and Farr’s ex-husband Michael Vincent Pace, age 42, both of Leonardtown, Maryland previously pleaded guilty to their roles in the conspiracy and are awaiting sentencing. 

Biggs faces a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison for the conspiracy and a maximum of 10 years in federal prison for theft of government property.  U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis has not yet scheduled sentencing.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the VA OIG and SSA OIG for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael F. Davio and Assistant U.S. Attorney Coreen Mao, who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources to report fraud, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/report-fraud.  

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Greenbelt, Maryland – Sirron Little, age 31, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty yesterday to sex trafficking of a minor female to engage in commercial sex acts.  Little recruited the victim, who was homeless and 15 years old at the time, to work for him as a prostitute. 

The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; and Chief Malik Aziz of the Prince George’s County Police Department.

According to his plea agreement, Little recruited Victim 1 to work for him as a sex worker in April 2018, when she was 15 years old and homeless.  Victim 1 worked for Little, engaging in sex acts for money, until December 4, 2018.  Little used his cell phone to communicate with Victim 1 regarding the prostitution business, to post scantily clad photos of Victim 1 on online dating services to solicit commercial sex clients and to advertise Victim 1 as a prostitute, and to arrange “dates” with commercial sex clients, in Washington D.C. and in Maryland.  Little initially had Victim 1 meet clients for “car dates” or had someone drive Victim 1 to a client’s residence.  Eventually, Little moved the sex trafficking operation to motels in Prince George’s County, Maryland.  In addition to meeting clients for car dates and at hotels, Little directed Victim 1 to walk along Allentown Road in Maryland and solicit clients directly on the street. 

As detailed in the plea agreement, Victim 1 would typically see multiple clients per day, generating as much as $1,500 in a day.  Little set the prices for the sex acts, set certain monetary goals for Victim 1, and required Victim 1 to give all the proceeds from the sex trafficking operation to Little.  Little threatened to stop providing the victim with food, transportation, and shelter if she did not meet the monetary goals.  Little admitted that he physically assaulted Victim 1 on multiple occasions, threatened Victim 1 with a firearm on at least one occasion, and engaged in sex acts with Victim 1. 

On December 4, 2018, Victim 1 called emergency services and reported that Little had threatened her with a firearm and had an open warrant.  When law enforcement responded to the hotel where Victim 1 and Little were staying, Victim 1 advised that she was having a fight with Little and that he was armed.  Little was arrested and a loaded .40-caliber handgun was seized from the room, along with a 20-round box of ammunition and two cellular phones. 

As part of his plea agreement, Little must register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).

Little and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Little will be sentenced to 10 years in federal prison.  U.S. District Judge Peter J. Messitte has scheduled sentencing for December 6, 2022 at 11:30 a.m. 

The case was investigated by the FBI-led Maryland Child Exploitation Task Force, created in 2010 to combat child prostitution, with members from10 state and federal law enforcement agencies.  The Task Force coordinates with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the Maryland State Police Child Recovery Unit to identify missing children being advertised online for prostitution.

MCETF partners with the Maryland Human Trafficking Task Force, formed in 2007 to discover and rescue victims of human trafficking while identifying and prosecuting offenders.  Members include federal, state, and local law enforcement, as well as victim service providers and local community members.  For more information about the Maryland Human Trafficking Task Force, please visit http://www.mdhumantrafficking.org/.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI and the Prince George’s County Police Department for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph R. Baldwin, who is prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/human-trafficking and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang sentenced a former Correctional Officer, an inmate, and an outside “facilitator” this week in connection with a federal racketeering conspiracy at the Jessup Correctional Institution (JCI), involving inmates and outside facilitators paying bribes to correctional officers to smuggle contraband, including narcotics, alcohol, tobacco, and cell phones into the prison.  With this week’s sentencings, all 15 defendants charged in this case have now been convicted and sentenced to up to more than five years in federal prison. 

On August 10, 2022, Judge Chuang sentenced former Correctional Officer Dominique Booker, a/k/a “Star,” age 45, of Baltimore, to 27 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release.  On August 11, 2022, Judge Chuang sentenced inmate William Cox, a/k/a Dollar, age 45, to 33 months in prison, consecutive to his state term of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release; and today Judge Chuang sentenced facilitator Laurice Norfleet, age 44, of Taneytown, Maryland, to time served, and six months of home detention as part of three years of supervised release.

The sentences were announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski, of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; and Secretary Robert Green, of the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services.

JCI is a maximum-security prison located in Jessup, Maryland.

According to the defendants’ plea agreements, Booker, Cox, and Norfleet conspired with other COs, including CO Chanel Pierce, inmates, and outside facilitators to smuggle contraband into JCI, including narcotics, alcohol, tobacco, and cell phones.  According to their plea agreements and other court documents, COs accepted or agreed to accept payments from facilitators and/or inmates as consideration for smuggling contraband into JCI.  Inmates acted as both wholesalers and retailers of contraband, often obtaining profits that far exceeded the profits that could be made by selling similar drugs on the street. 

During the investigation, law enforcement intercepted phone calls and text messages in which the defendants discussed contraband to be smuggled into JCI, as well as the payment of bribes.  Several of the inmate defendants, including Cox, had contraband cell phones, which they used to facilitate their smuggling activities.  As detailed in her plea agreement, CO Booker conspired with inmate Cox, with whom she had a romantic relationship, and others, to smuggle contraband, including controlled dangerous substances, such as Suboxone, into JCI and then distribute the contraband to inmates.  In January 2019, a search of Booker and her vehicle as she entered JCI revealed contraband, including plastic baggies containing the synthetic cannabinoid K-2, which she intended to smuggle into the prison. 

As detailed in Norfleet’s plea agreement, she was the facilitator for her boyfriend and co-defendant, inmate Page Boyd.  Norfleet admitted that on several occasions she obtained contraband, including controlled substances such as Suboxone which she provided to a co-conspirator in Baltimore.  The co-conspirator then delivered the contraband to COs to smuggle into JCI for Boyd, on Norfleet’s behalf.  Boyd then redistributed most of that Suboxone to other inmates at a significant profit.  For example, during one jail call Boyd informed Norfleet that he was selling the Suboxone strips for $50 per strip inside JCI, far more than they sell for outside of prison.

Chanel Pierce, age 29, of Pikesville, Maryland, was previously sentenced to 21 months in federal prison for her role in the conspiracy and inmate Page Boyd, age 38, was sentenced to four years in federal prison, consecutive to his state term of imprisonment.

The U.S. Attorney expressed appreciation to the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, whose staff initiated the JCI investigation and have been full partners in this investigation. 

This case is also part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.    

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI and the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher M. Rigali, who is prosecuting this case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge George L. Russell, III today sentenced Rogelio Zamora, age 24, to two years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute cocaine.  On August 8, 2022, Judge Russell sentenced co-defendant Hugo Maldonado Ortiz, age 53, to five years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release on the same charge.  Judge Russell further ordered that Zamora and Ortiz must forfeit $2 million seized during the course of the investigation, as proceeds of drug trafficking.

The sentences were announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Washington Division; Colonel Kevin M. Anderson, Chief of the Maryland Transportation Authority Police; Colonel Woodrow W. Jones III, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police; Chief Malik Aziz of the Prince George’s County Police Department; Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department; Chief Robert J. Contee III of the Metropolitan Police Department; Colonel Melissa Zebley, Superintendent of the Delaware State Police; and Colonel Robert Evanchick, Commissioner of the Pennsylvania State Police.

According to their guilty pleas, between April 2020 and October 26, 2020, Zamora and Ortiz were part of a conspiracy to distribute drugs, specifically to possess with intent to distribute those drugs in Baltimore and elsewhere.  As their part of the conspiracy, Zamora and Ortiz obtained cash, packaged it, and delivered the currency to couriers for transportation.  Zamora and Ortiz admitted that they knew, or should have known, that the cash they transferred to and from members of the conspiracy was the proceeds from the sale of illegal drugs in Baltimore and elsewhere.  The defendants and their co-conspirators traveled to locations in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and elsewhere to receive large amounts of bulk currency, believed to be narcotics proceeds, and then transported or arranged the transport of the bulk cash to California on behalf of their drug trafficking organization.

During the investigation a total of more than $2 million was seized by or delivered to law enforcement.  Investigators know that this amount of drug proceeds represents revenue from the sale of approximately seventy-five kilograms of cocaine.  Accordingly, Zamora agreed that it was foreseeable to him that the conspirators would distribute between five and 15 kilograms of cocaine.  Ortiz agreed that it was foreseeable to him that the conspirators would distribute at least five kilograms of cocaine.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  PSN, an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime, is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  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.

This case is also part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.    

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the DEA, the Maryland Transportation Authority Police, the Maryland State Police, the Prince George’s County Police Department, the Montgomery County Police Department, the Metropolitan Police Department, the Delaware State Police and the Pennsylvania State Police for their work in the investigation and thanked the DEA in New York, New Jersey and Detroit for their assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Joan C. Mathias, who prosecuted the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – Raymond Martin Shamer, III, age 21, of Pasadena, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to possession of child pornography.  Shamer admitted that he also distributed child pornography.

The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore.

According to his guilty plea, from at least July 7, 2019 through June 24, 2020, Shamer used online accounts to communicate with others about child pornography, to distribute child pornography, and to collect child pornography.  Many of the files Shamer collected documented adults sexually abusing of infants and toddlers while they are bound and subjected to other violent conduct.

Shamer admitted that he used a secure communication application to upload images of children engaged in sexually explicit conduct, and that he shared links to those images with a group of users with whom he engaged in group chat conversations.

On June 24, 2020, a search warrant was executed at Shamer’s residence and investigators seized Shamer’s cell phones and computer.  A subsequent forensic examination of the devices revealed a total of more than 1,000 images of child pornography on Shamer’s devices.

As detailed in his plea agreement, upon his release from prison, Shamer will be required to register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”). 

Shamer and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Shamer will be sentenced to at least three years in federal prison, followed by at least 20 years of supervised release.  U.S. District Judge Ellen L. Hollander has scheduled sentencing for November 29, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. 

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.  For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab on the left of the page.       

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended HSI for its work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul E. Budlow, who is prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-childhood and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Ellen L. Hollander sentenced Luther Moody Trent, age 21, of Baltimore, Maryland to 12 years in federal prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for malicious destruction of property by fire.  The Court has also ordered Trent to pay $612,700.20 in restitution.

The sentence was announced by Erek L. Barron, United States Attorney for the District of Maryland; Special Agent in Charge Toni M. Crosby of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Baltimore Field Division; Maryland State Fire Marshal Brian S. Geraci; Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department; and Chief Niles R. Ford of the Baltimore City Fire Department.

“Justice has been served — our community and the victims here finally got some accountability” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, Erek L. Barron.

According to his guilty plea, on May 21, 2021, at approximately 1:30 a.m., Trent poured gasoline along the exterior of a Baltimore residence and then set the gasoline on fire while Victim 1, Victim 2, and Victim 3 were inside.  The fire caused significant damage to the residence and the adjoining property, however, all three victims were alerted and escaped without injury.  Firefighters were eventually able to extinguish the blaze.

Victim 1 was in a prior volatile relationship with Trent which resulted in the police being called on at least one occasion, as well as an order of protection being issued in favor of Victim 1.  Examination of Victim 1’s cell phone revealed that Trent had sent threatening text messages to Victim 1.

After further investigation, a Baltimore City police detective located a video of a prior incident with Trent and Victim 1 on March 23, 2021.  After reviewing the video, the BPD detective recognized Trent and recalled that he was at the scene of the arson.  At that time, Trent identified himself as “Trey Johnson” and claimed to be inquiring about his “cousin” that he said lived in the residence.  According to the detective, Trent seemed to be acting nervous and drove away from the scene in a black two-door sedan.  Victim 1 confirmed that Trent drove a black two-door sedan at the time.

As stated in his guilty plea, Trent was interviewed by a local news station about the arson in which he claimed to have set Victim 1’s residence on fire because he was upset that he could not see Victim 1.  Further, Trent compared his actions to Romeo and Juliet and stated that “if I can’t have her, nobody can, or at least no one in Baltimore.”

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the ATF, Maryland State Fire Marshals, the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office, the Baltimore Police Department, and the Baltimore City Fire Department for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Judson T. Mihok, who prosecuted the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – A federal criminal complaint has been filed charging Isidore Iwuagwu, age 35, of Upper Malboro, Maryland, with the federal charge of conspiring to commit money laundering related to numerous online romance scams. 

Iwuagwu will have his initial appearance today beginning at 2 p.m., in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt before U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy J. Sullivan.

The criminal complaint was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Andrew Hartwell of the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the Inspector General Fraud Detection Office (DOJ-OIG); and Acting Postal Inspector in Charge Tira Hayward of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service - Washington Division (USPIS).

“If you find yourself in an online relationship and you’re asked for a bunch of money, it’s probably fraud not love,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, Erek L. Barron.  “We’re prosecuting elder fraud, including romance scams, to the fullest extent of the law.”    

According to the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Iwuagwu is a Special Deputy United States Marshal and Department of Justice contractor providing security for critical Department of Justice facilities. 

According to the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, between October 2015 and July 2021, Iwuagwu participated in a romance scam in which individuals contacted victims on social media platforms and dating sites, engaged in online relationships with the victims, then convinced victims to send large sums of money claiming the funds were needed for purported personal hardships or shipping costs for various imports.  Many victims reported sending funds at the request of individuals claiming to be deployed members of the U.S. Armed Forces who asked for money for various personal hardships.  The alleged scam involved more than 20 victims, many of whom are senior citizens.  The victims linked to Iwuagwu reported losing a combined $1.9 million to the scheme. 

For example, the affidavit details an account of a victim who was approached on a social media platform by an individual who claimed to be a Major General in the U.S. Army.  Eventually, the self-proclaimed Major General asked Victim F to help him with financial expenses as he transitioned out of the military.  Victim F believed the individual was returning to the United States to be with her.  At the Major General’s request, Victim F sent more than $300,000 to Iwuagwu who Victim F was told was the Major General’s attorney.

In a different case, another victim was contacted by an individual claiming to be a Spanish doctor living in California and who was leaving on a ship to provide medical treatment to individuals in other countries.  The individual claimed to not have access to their bank account and asked the victim to send them $1,120, which the victim did.  Following this, the victim wired funds to bank accounts controlled by Iwuagwu and also sent money to Iwuagwu through the mail.  In total, the victim estimated sending $51,880 to Iwuagwu.  When the victim began to express doubts about the funds she was sending, the individual sent the victim a photograph of Iwuagwu’s Department of Justice contractor credentials to ease her concerns.

As stated in the criminal complaint, law enforcement reviewed 30 accounts controlled by Iwuagwu between 2013 and 2021.  During this time, Iwuagwu allegedly received approximately $1.65 million in wire transfers from 119 individuals and approximately $1.138 million in other deposits, including money orders, personal checks, cashier’s checks and cash.  Allegedly, Iwuagwu routinely withdrew the criminal proceeds through structured cash withdrawals or wire transfers to foreign banks.  Specifically, Iwuagwu is alleged to have wired more than $1.5 million from his accounts, including $200,000 to a Nigerian company, and withdrew approximately $511,900 through ATM and other cash withdrawals.

If convicted, Iwuagwu faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. 

A criminal complaint is not a finding of guilt.  An individual charged by criminal complaint is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings. 

The Department of Justice runs the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311), or here, for elders who have been financially exploited to report their incident, and be connected with additional resources and information.  Victims are encouraged to file a complaint online with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at this website or by calling 1-800-225-5324.  Elder fraud complaints may be filed with the FTC at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov or at 877-FTC-HELP.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the DOJ-OIG and USPIS for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rajeev R. Raghavan and Jennifer L. Wine, who are prosecuting the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – Njuh Valentine Fombe, a/k/a “Valentine”, age 36, formerly of Beltsville, Maryland, had an initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt on August 8, 2022, after being a fugitive for almost three years until his arrest on August 6, 2022.  A federal grand jury indicted Fombe on September 23, 2019, on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, aggravated identity theft.  At his initial appearance, U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy J. Sullivan ordered that Fombe remains detained pending trial.

The arrest and indictment were announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; Chief Melissa R. Hyatt of the Baltimore County Police Department; and Chief Russell E. Hamill III of the Laurel Police Department.

According to the three-count indictment, from at least September 2016 to August 2018, Fombe conspired with others to commit wire fraud by conducting business email compromise schemes (“BEC schemes”) in which the defendants gained unauthorized access to email accounts, personal identifying information, and bank accounts by sending false wiring instructions to the victims’ email accounts.  Fombe and his co-conspirators then allegedly used the illegally obtained personal information to obtain counterfeit checks in the name and information of the victims’ bank accounts.  Victims of the alleged BEC scheme span across five states including California, Tennessee, Michigan, Hawaii, and Illinois.  Fombe and his co-conspirators also allegedly registered fraudulent shell entities to facilitate the scheme.  The indictment further alleges that members of the conspiracy managed drop accounts held in fraudulent shell entities' names, as well as their names and aliases to direct and receive proceeds of the BEC and check schemes. 

If convicted, Fombe faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, 20 years in federal prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering, and a mandatory two years in federal prison consecutive to any other sentence imposed for aggravated identity theft.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties.  A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. 

An indictment is not a finding of guilt.  An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings. 

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended HSI, the Baltimore County Police Department and the Laurel Police Department for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kelly Hayes, and Christopher Sarma, who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – Chief U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar sentenced Khayr Basimibnbrown, a/k/a “Keith Brown,” and “Shitty,” age 42, of Annapolis, Maryland, yesterday to 10 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, after Basimibnbrown pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, heroin, PCP, and cocaine.

The guilty plea and sentence were announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Acting Special Agent in Charge Robert Turner of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Washington Division; Anne Arundel County Police Chief Amal E. Awad; Chief Edward Jackson of the Annapolis Police Department; and Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess.

According to Basimibnbrown’s guilty plea, law enforcement observed the defendants participate or conduct drug transactions on multiple instances.  For example, Basimibnbrown participated in the sale of 600.9 grams of a heroin and fentanyl mixture in an Annapolis, Maryland hotel parking lot.  After the transaction, law enforcement observed Basimibnbrown enter and exit several vehicles in an effort to avoid law enforcement detection. 

As stated in his guilty plea, on January 13, 2022, law enforcement executed search warrants at eight residences in Annapolis, Maryland, including Basimibnbrown’s residence, a home that belonged to his grandmother, where officers located 470 grams of PCP, 55.5 grams of crack cocaine, 6.2 grams of heroin, and 71 grams of cocaine.  At the home of Basimibnbrown’s cousin, which Basimibnbrown frequently visited, law enforcement seized 145.05 grams of cocaine, 67.19 grams of PCP, and 59.56 grams of a cutting agent, all found on the top shelf of a child’s bedroom closet.  From the eight residences searched, law enforcement seized a total of $32,695 in cash, constituting drug proceeds.

Basimibnbrown admitted that he conspired to distribute more than 400 grams of fentanyl, as well as heroin, PCP, cocaine, and crack cocaine.   Further, Basimibnbrown knew that he was on federal supervised release at the time he was committing these crimes.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended FBI, DEA, the Anne Arundel County Police Department, the Annapolis Police Department, and the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joan C. Mathias and LaRai Everett, who prosecuted the case.  Mr. Barron also thanked Paralegals Kristy Penny, Damon Gasque, and Alisha Swiger for their assistance.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge George J. Hazel sentenced Anthony Erik Hebron, a/k/a “Pain”, age 29, of Washington, D.C., to 14 years in federal prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release, for conspiracy to commit kidnapping. 

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Wayne Jacobs of the Federal Bureau of Investigation - Washington Field Office Criminal Division; and Acting Special Agent in Charge Robert Turner of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office.

According to his guilty plea, in February 2021, Hebron, and co-defendants Darius Young, a/k/a “Mup”, age 30, Christopher Young, age 27, Lamar Perkins, age 28, and Tray Sherman, age 27, all of D.C., worked together to kidnap a victim from a Maryland casino and hotel.

Hebron and Sherman met Victim A at the casino and hotel, where they made the false promise that they would get women for Victim A if Victim A accompanied them to Southeast Washington, D.C.  At approximately 7:30 a.m., Victim A agreed to travel to Southeast Washington, D.C. in Sherman’s car with Hebron.

At 8:13 a.m., Young called Mup to report that Hebron and Sherman had “snatched” Victim A.  Soon after Sherman, Hebron, and Victim A arrived in Southeast D.C., Mup and Young entered Sherman’s vehicle with Victim A inside.  Hebron then pointed a gun at Victim A while his co-conspirators took Victim A’s personal items including Victim A’s wallet, cell phone, hotel room key, and a watch valued at $500.

Hebron, Mup, Young, and Sherman then demanded the code to Victim A’s hotel safe.  When Victim A refused, Hebron struck Victim A in the forehead with the gun.  In response, Victim A told the co-conspirators the code to the hotel safe.  Victim A was then forced out of the car by Hebron.  Soon after, Mup and Young exited the vehicle with Victim A and forced the victim into a boiler room within a D.C. apartment building while Hebron and Sherman drove back to the hotel and casino to burglarize Victim A’s hotel room.

Inside the boiler room, Mup and Young repeatedly assaulted Victim A, threatened his life, demanded Victim A’s PIN number to his ATM card, and demanded information about the items located in his hotel room. 

Simultaneously, Hebron and Sherman accessed Victim A’s hotel room, where they stole Victim A’s property, including a gaming system, $1,500 in casino chips, and approximately $6,000 in cash. 

After Victim A was released by the conspiracy members, law enforcement saw Victim A near the apartment building.  Victim A sustained several injuries, including a bloody wound on his forehead, a broken nose, and cuts on his mouth and eye. 

Co-defendants Perkins, Young, Sherman, and Mup pleaded guilty to federal charges relating to the kidnapping earlier this year.  Mup was sentenced to 126 months in federal prison.  Young was sentenced to 126 months in federal prison.  Perkins was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison.  Sherman is scheduled to be sentenced in October 2022 to at least 96 months.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  PSN, an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime, is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  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.

This case is an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI Washington, and the FBI Baltimore Field Offices for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron also praised the Prince George’s County Police Department for their assistance in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey J. Izant and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared C. Engelking, who prosecuted the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – Melvin Gonzaga, M.D., his son Rommel Gonzaga, and their practice group Gonzaga Interventional Pain Management (“GIPM”) have agreed to pay the United States $980,000 to resolve allegations that they violated the federal False Claims Act by submitting false claims to the United States for urine drug tests (“UDT”) that were medically unnecessary.  

The civil settlement was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Maureen Dixon of the Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG); and Assistant Inspector General for Investigations Paul A. Palumbo, of the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board Office of Inspector General (RRB-OIG).

“We are committed to ensuring that patients depending on government-funded insurance are not misled by doctors seeking to line their own pockets by performing medically unnecessary tests or treatments,” said United States Attorney Erek L. Barron. 

“Providers who perform medically unnecessary procedures damage the trust of physician patient relationships and exploit taxpayer-funded programs,” stated Special Agent in Charge Maureen Dixon of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “Along with our law enforcement partners, HHS-OIG is committed to protecting the health of patients and the integrity of federal health care programs serving them.”

“We are committed to holding unscrupulous Railroad Medicare providers accountable and are proud to be part of this collaborative effort,” said Railroad Retirement Board Assistant Inspector General for Investigations Paul A. Palumbo (RRB-OIG). “We would like to thank our law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for their dedication and excellent work in this case.”

Dr. Gonzaga is a board-certified anesthesiologist and pain management specialist who owns and operates a pain management clinic, GIPM, located in LaVale, Maryland.  Rommel Gonzaga is the chief executive officer of GIPM.  From January 1, 2016 through March 31, 2019, GIPM billed the Medicare Program, the Medicaid Program, and the Railroad Retirement Board (“RRB”) for a large number of UDTs.  GIPM tested its patients using two types of UDTs: presumptive and definitive.  A presumptive UDT is an initial test to detect the presence or absence of a substance or class of substances in the body.  A definitive UDT is a more advanced test that can identify individual drugs, distinguish between structural isomers, and report the results of drugs present in concentrations of nanograms per milliliter. 

This settlement resolves allegations that the UDTs that GIPM billed to the government were not ordered based on an individualized determination of medical necessity for each patient.  Instead, GIPM used blanket orders that tested all patients for the same 22+ drug classes.  GIPM patients were required to provide a UDT sample upon entry into the clinic and before being seen by a provider and discussing the results from any prior UDT the patient received.  Often, UDTs showing unexpected positive or negative results were ignored, or not checked at all, while GIPM providers continued to prescribe the patients opioids and other controlled substances despite obvious warning signs that the patients were abusing drugs.    

The claims resolved by this settlement are allegations.  The settlement is not an admission of liability by Dr. Gonzaga, Rommel Gonzaga, or GIPM, nor a concession by the United States that its claims are not well founded.   

The case arose from an initiative launched by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland which involves the use of specialized resources and personnel to review Medicare billing data.  The review of that data has enabled the United States Attorney’s Office to identify areas of concern where it appears that billing irregularities may have taken place.  Partnering with the affected agencies, the United States Attorney’s Office has developed the ability to investigate these billing irregularities to determine whether the matter is appropriate for enforcement under the False Claims Act. 

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the HHS-OIG and the RRB-OIG for their work in this investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Tarra DeShields and former Assistant United States Attorney Vince Vaccarella, currently a Trial Attorney in the Justice Department’s Civil Frauds Section, who handled this case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to report fraud, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/report-fraud.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – Jordan Moreno, a/k/a “Joker”, age 23, a Honduran national recently of Washington, DC, pleaded guilty yesterday to federal kidnapping charges related to the death of Victim 1, a 19-year old woman.  Moreno had previously pleaded guilty in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County to First Degree Murder in Victim 1’s death.

The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Acting Special Agent in Charge Ryeshia Holley of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore Field Office; and Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD).

According to his guilty plea, beginning in October 2019, Moreno and other associates of the Tiny Locos Surenos (“TLS”) clique of the 18th Street gang conspired to kidnap and murder Victim 1 because Moreno and other co-conspirators believed she was associating with members of MS-13. MS-13 is a transnational gang composed primarily of immigrants or descendants from El Salvador.

In preparation for the murder, Moreno devised a plan to murder Victim 1, recruited other 18th Street gang members to assist, and selected a wooded area near Hyattstown in Montgomery County, Maryland in which to kill Victim 1. Additionally, Moreno contacted a TLS leader for authorization to kill Victim 1. Moreno and his co-conspirators planned and executed Victim 1’s murder to increase their status within the 18th Street gang.

To lure Victim 1 to her death, one of Moreno’s co-conspirators communicated with the woman on a social media platform in October and November 2019 under the pretext that he wanted to socialize with her. Eventually, Victim 1 and the co-conspirator arranged to meet on the evening of November 21, 2019.  Moreno and three co-conspirators then traveled together to pick up Victim 1 in Washington, D.C before traveling to Maryland. Once they arrived at the wooded area near Hyattstown, a juvenile co-conspirator and Moreno, in turn, used a single pistol to shoot Victim 1 in the face and head, killing her.  Following the murder, Moreno directed another co-conspirator to hide the firearm.

Moreno faces a maximum sentence of life in federal prison for conspiracy to kidnap.  U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm has scheduled sentencing for October 28, 2022 at 11:00 a.m.

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI, HSI, and MCPD for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron also thanked the Maryland State Police Department for their assistance in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam K. Ake and Trial Attorney Danbee C. Kim of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis sentenced Thomas Patrick Connally, Jr., age 57, most recently of Snowshoe, West Virginia to 37 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for making threats against a federal official, specifically for sending emails threatening harm to Dr. Anthony Fauci, the current Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).  Connally further admitted threatening Dr. Francis Collins, the former Director of the NIH, Dr. Rachel Levine, currently the Assistant Secretary for Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, as well as a Massachusetts public health official and a religious leader. 

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Christian J. Schrank, Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

“Everyone has the right to disagree, but you do not have the right to threaten a federal official’s life,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, Erek L. Barron.  “Threats like these will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” 

“Today’s sentencing shows that individuals threatening violence against federal officials and others will be held accountable for their crimes,” said Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Christian J. Schrank of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General.  “The public, including public servants, deserve the utmost safety and the assurance that they can perform their duties without interference.  Our agency, working closely with our law enforcement partners, will continue to bring those who threaten violence to justice.”

According to Connally’s plea agreement, from December 28, 2020, to July 25, 2021, Connally used an anonymous email account from a provider of secure, encrypted email services based in Switzerland, to send a series of emails to Dr. Anthony Fauci, the current Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (“NIAID”) and the Chief Medical Advisor to President of the United States, threatening to harm and/or kill Dr. Fauci and members of his family.  One of the emails threatened that Dr. Fauci and his family would be “dragged into the street, beaten to death, and set on fire.”  On April 24, 2021, alone, Connally sent seven threatening emails starting at 10:05 p.m.

As detailed in Connally’s plea agreement, also on April 24, 2021, beginning at 9:34 p.m., Connally sent Dr. Francis Collins, the then-Director of the NIH, a series of four emails threatening Dr. Collins and his family with physical assault and death if Dr. Collins did not stop speaking about the need for “mandatory” COVID-19 vaccinations.

As stated in his plea agreement, Connally admitted that he sent the threats to Drs. Fauci and Collins with the intent to intimidate or interfere with the performance of their official duties and with the intent to retaliate against Dr. Fauci and Dr. Collins for performing their official duties, including discussing COVID-19 and its testing and prevention.

Connally also admitted sending emails threatening harm to three other individuals.  Specifically, on November 24, 2020, Connally sent a series of six threatening emails to Dr. Rachel Levine, then Secretary of Health for the State of Pennsylvania, at Dr. Levine’s email account at the Pennsylvania Department of Health.  The subject lines and body of the emails threatened Dr. Levine with physical violence and death.  Similarly, on August 31, 2020, Connally sent an email threatening physical violence and death for a public health official in Massachusetts.  Finally, on April 21, 2021, Connally sent a series of four threatening emails to four individuals who work for a religious institution in Newark, New Jersey.  The four emails threatened physical violence and death to a religious leader at the institution.

Investigation revealed that the anonymous encrypted email account was associated with Connally.  On July 27, 2021, law enforcement arrested Connally in Snowshoe, West Virginia, and executed a search warrant at his residence as well as on his vehicle, seizing five laptops and two cellular telephones which belonged to Connally. 

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the HHS OIG for its work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rajeev R. Raghavan and Jessica C. Collins, who prosecuted the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake sentenced Donald Benson, age 42, of Nottingham, Maryland to 18 years in federal prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for production of child pornography.  Judge Blake also ordered that, upon his release from prison, Benson must register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”). 

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Acting Special Agent in Charge Ryeshia Holley of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; Baltimore County State’s Attorney Scott Shellenberger; and Chief Melissa R. Hyatt of the Baltimore County Police Department. 

According to his guilty plea, on September 18, 2016, while working at a Maryland hospital as a patient sitter, Benson sexually assaulted a 15-year-old female (Victim 1) while she was unconscious.  Additionally, Benson took 13 pictures of the sexual assault on Victim 1 and emailed those pictures to his personal email account.  Benson used Victim 1’s birthdate as the subject of the email which was also visible on Victim 1’s hospital band in the pictures that Benson produced.

As stated in is plea agreement, in December 2019, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a report regarding child pornography activity on Benson’s email account.  Between August 2015 to December 2019, Benson uploaded 337 files of possible child pornography.

During the investigation into Benson’s criminal conduct, investigators determined that several of the images Benson had emailed himself depicted images of minors being sexually assaulted including the images that Benson captured of Victim 1 while she as in an unconscious state. 

On February 6, 2020, investigators executed search warrants at Benson’s residence and on his electronic devices including two cell phones, a CD labeled “Donny An”, and his email accounts.  As a result of the executed search warrants, investigators located several images and files of child pornography and a CD that depicted a naked prepubescent female with her legs spread and genitals exposed.  This CD contained images of child pornography from 1999 to 2013.

In an interview with law enforcement, Benson informed investigators that he took pictures of Victim 1 while working in an official capacity and while Victim 1 was unconscious.  He also informed law enforcement that he took the exploitive pictures of Victim 1 when her father stepped out of the room to take a phone call.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.  For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab on the left of the page.    

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI, HSI, the Baltimore County Police Department, and the Baltimore County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mary W. Setzer and Paul Budlow, who prosecuted the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-childhood and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – James Albert Borum, age 19, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty on July 29, 2022, to federal charges of carjacking and to brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.  

The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department; Chief Malik Aziz of the Prince George’s County Police Department; Chief Robert J. Contee III of the Metropolitan Police Department; United States Attorney for the District of Columbia Matthew M. Graves; Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy; and Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy.

According to his guilty plea, in June 2021, Borum and his accomplices committed a series of carjackings in Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties.  At the time, Borum was on pre-trial supervision related to charges in Washington, D.C. and was wearing an ankle monitor.  According to the plea agreement, Borum and an accomplice participated in four carjackings and an attempted carjacking.  Borum admitted that a firearm was brandished in three of the carjackings.

As detailed in the plea agreement, on June 4, 2021, Victim A was beaten and carjacked by Borum and an accomplice, who also stole the victim’s cell phone.  Victim A’s wallet, which contained several items, including a bank card, was inside the vehicle at the time of the carjacking.  Law enforcement recovered Victim A’s bank card and a social security card in the name of Victim A’s spouse from Borum’s bedroom during a search on July 1, 2021. 

On June 10, 2021, Borum and his accomplice committed another carjacking in Silver Spring, Maryland.  After Victim B had parked his car, he began walking into a nearby apartment courtyard.  Borum and his accomplice followed Victim B and approached Victim B in the courtyard.  Borum and the accomplice pointed a handgun at Victim B’s forehead and stated, “I’ll kill you.  Give me the keys.”  Victim B gave Borum and the accomplice his keys and the carjackers drove away in Victim B’s car.  A global positioning device in Victim B’s vehicle placed it near Borum’s home most of the time when the vehicle was not in use following the carjacking.

According to the plea agreement, on June 18, 2021, Borum and an accomplice attempted to carjack Victim C in a parking garage in the 8700 block of Cameron Street in Silver Spring.  Borum and his accomplice demanded Victim C’s keys, but she refused to give them up.  Borum and the accomplice grabbed for Victim C’s purse and a struggle ensued.  Neither Borum nor his accomplice were able to obtain Victim C’s keys, and both men fled as another vehicle pulled into the parking garage.

Surveillance footage obtained from the Rhode Island Avenue, Silver Spring, and Wheaton Metro stations both before and after the attempted carjacking shows Borum and his accomplice wearing clothing that matched the clothing worn by the carjackers.  The footage also shows Borum wearing an ankle monitor and a distinctive white sweatshirt.  The sweatshirt was later recovered from Borum’s residence.

As detailed in the plea agreement, on June 18, 2021, Borum and his accomplice carjacked Victim D, who was sitting in his car in the parking lot in the 3500 block of East West Highway in Hyattsville, Maryland.  Victim D’s doors were unlocked and the windows were down.  Borum and the accomplice opened the driver’s side door, pointed a gun at Victim D’s head, and told him to get out of the car.  Borum and the accomplice pulled Victim D out of the vehicle, pushed him to the ground, then got into Victim D’s vehicle and drove away.  Law enforcement tracked and recovered the vehicle later that evening in the 1200 block of Douglas Street, N.E. in Washington, D.C.  The key to Victim D’s car was found in Borum’s residence.

Finally, on June 23, 2021, Victim E was carjacked by Borum and an accomplice carjacked Victim E as Victim E was entering his car in a parking garage in the 8700 block of Colesville Road in Silver Spring, Maryland.  Borum and his accomplice approached Victim E from behind, held a black handgun at the left side of Victim E’s head, and repeated, “Give me the keys!”  Victim E handed the carjackers his keys and wallet.  Borum and the accomplice then fled in Victim E’s vehicle.  Victim E’s vehicle was located by law enforcement five days later, parked on the same block as Borum’s residence.  Borum’s fingerprints were identified on the car.

Borum and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Borum will be sentenced to between 90 months and 169 months in federal prison.  U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang has scheduled sentencing for November 22, 2022 at 2:00 p.m. 

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  PSN, an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime, is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  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.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI, the Montgomery County Police Department, the Prince George’s County Police Department, the Metropolitan Police Department, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office and the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation and prosecution.  Mr. Barron thanked Special Assistant United States Attorney Jared C. Engelking and Assistant United States Attorney Dana J. Brusca, who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Baltimore, Maryland – Vashawn Watkins, age 21, of Baltimore, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to federal charges of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances and to possession of a firearm in a school zone.  

The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget of the Drug Enforcement Administration - Washington Division; Baltimore City Sheriff John W. Anderson; Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department; and Chief Melissa R. Hyatt of the Baltimore County Police Department.

According to his guilty plea, from October 2020 through March 1, 2021, Watkins was engaged in drug trafficking involving large amounts of fentanyl and other controlled substances.  Watkins and his associates operated a stash house in the unit block of Clovelly Street in Pikesville, Maryland, where they processed fentanyl and other drugs, mixed the drugs with cutting agents, and packaged the drugs for re-sale.  Watkins and his associates then drove the packaged drug products to drug shops operated by their drug trafficking organization, specifically drug shops along Stricker Street, School Street, and Gilmor Street in Baltimore.  Watkins further admitted that he sometimes oversaw the drug trafficking operations at the Stricker Street drug shop.

As detailed in his plea agreement, on February 11, 2021, while Watkins was overseeing operations at the Stricker Street drug shop, law enforcement officers saw Watkins place a firearm inside a vehicle parked in the 1500 block of North Stricker Street.  Law enforcement obtained a search warrant for the vehicle and recovered a .45-caliber firearm along with Watkins’ State-issued identification card.  Watkins admitted that he knowingly possessed this firearm within 1,000 feet of a public elementary school. 

On March 1, 2021, Watkins was seen leaving a residence in the 1500 block of Stricker Street and taking possession of approximately one kilogram of fentanyl from an associate who had brought the drugs from the Pikesville stash house.  Watkins took the fentanyl into the residence.  Law enforcement obtained and executed a search warrant for the residence, recovering the drugs, which were in close proximity to Watkins.  Law enforcement also recovered two 9mm handguns from the residence.  A search warrant was subsequently executed at the Pikesville stash house and law enforcement recovered 6.8 kilograms of fentanyl, along with cutting agents and other drug paraphernalia.

Watkins and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Watkins will be sentenced to between eight and ten years in federal prison.  U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake has scheduled sentencing for November 9, 2022 at 2:15 p.m. 

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  PSN, an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime, is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  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.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the DEA, the Baltimore City Sheriff’s Office, the Baltimore Police Department, and the Baltimore County Police Department for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason D. Medinger, who is prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging four defendants with theft of mail matter and the unlawful possession of postal service keys.  The indictment was returned on July 21, 2022 and unsealed today upon the defendant’s arrests.  Charged in the indictment are:

Eyalan Owona, age 21, of Upper Malboro, Maryland;

Ibrahim Kourouma, age 22, of Glenarden, Maryland

Ali Dickerson, age 20, of Hyattsville, Maryland; and

Benjamin Washington, age 22, of Owings Mills, Maryland

Owona, Dickerson, and Washington will have their appearances today beginning at 1:30 p.m., in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt before U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy J. Sullivan.  Co-defendant Kourouma remains a fugitive.

The indictment was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Acting Postal Inspector in Charge Tira Hayward of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service - Washington Division.

According to the two-count indictment, on May 25, 2022, the defendants allegedly unlawfully possessed proprietary United States Postal Service keys with the intent to use, sell, and dispose of the keys.   On the same day, the defendants allegedly stole mail matter from a United States Postal Service depository for mail located on Stanford Street in Bethesda, Maryland.  The mail that was stolen in the theft included the mail of Victim 1 who had a recipient address located in Silver Spring, Maryland.

As stated in the detention memo filed on behalf of the government, the defendants’ arrests occurred as part of a larger law enforcement investigation into a series of violent armed robberies of United States Postal Service (“USPS”) Letter Carriers.  During these robberies Letter Carriers appear to have been targeted for proprietary keys that are used to open USPS mail collection boxes.  According to the detention memo, at least 13 robberies involving USPS Letter Carriers have taken place in the greater Washington D.C. metropolitan area between May 23, 2022, and July 7, 2022. 

If convicted on the current charges, the defendants face a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison possession of United States Postal Service keys and 5 years in federal prison for the theft of mail matter.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties.  A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. 

An indictment is not a finding of guilt.  An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings. 

If you have any information regarding a United States Postal Service letter carrier robbery or would like to report mail theft or other crimes committed through or towards the United States Postal Service, please contact the United States Postal Inspection Service at 1-877-876-2455 or https://www.uspis.gov/report.  The United States Postal Inspection Service is offering a reward of up to $50,000 for information that leads to the identification, arrest and conviction of any other individuals involved in United States Postal Service letter carrier robberies.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the USPIS for their work in the investigation and thanked the Montgomery County Police Department and the United States Park Police for their assistance in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam K. Ake, and Darren Gardner, who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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