Eastern District of Missouri

ST. LOUIS – A former deputy sheriff from Phelps County was indicted Wednesday on charges that accuse him of soliciting and possessing child pornography and is expected to appear in U.S. District Court in St. Louis Friday.

Justin Bradley Durham, 42, was indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of sexual exploitation of children, two counts of possession of child pornography and two counts of altering or destroying records. The indictment says that between roughly December 2013 and December 2014, Durham induced and enticed an underage girl to engage in sexually explicit conduct and record it. Durham possessed explicit images of the girl during those same dates, the indictment says, as well as a second girl between about Dec. 9, 2017, and July 2, 2018. The final charges relate to the accusation that Durham deleted files in his Dropbox account and destroyed his iPhone to impede an FBI investigation.

A motion seeking to have Durham held in jail until trial says he offered the first victim money for explicit pictures and later paid her $200 to come to his house, where they engaged in sexual activity. Durham met the second victim when he responded to a call for police assistance, the motion says.

During the investigation, additional women have come forward with allegations about Durham, including allegations involving his demands for sex or sexually explicit images after making traffic stops. Anyone with information about Dunham should call the FBI at 314-589-2500.

“If a victim of police misconduct does not want to report the alleged abuse to the department where the officer works, the victim should contact the FBI directly,” said Special Agent in Charge Jay Greenberg of the FBI St. Louis Division. “Sworn officers who taint the badge are the exception and not the rule. One of the FBI’s priorities is to root out the few to protect victims and the public’s trust in law enforcement.” 

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The sexual exploitation of children charge carries a penalty of at least 15 years in prison. The child pornography charges each carry a penalty of between 5 and 20 years in prison, and the altering or destroying records charges each carry a penalty of up to 20 years in prison.

The case was investigated by the FBI and the Missouri State Highway Patrol.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Bateman is prosecuting the case. 

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

ST. LOUIS – Three men were indicted in U.S. District Court in St. Louis Wednesday and accused of involvement in the shooting death of a woman in St. Louis in July.

Andrew C. Hubbard, 37, of Maryland Heights, Justin R. Lee, 37, of Northwoods, and Eric Washington, 45, of Jennings, were each indicted on one count of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire and one count of murder-for-hire in connection with the death of Andreaia Worthem. 

The indictment says the men received money and other items of value in exchange for their agreement to kill Worthem.

St. Louis police officers found Worthem, 53, early on the morning of July 7, 2023 in an alley in the 4400 block of Kennerly Avenue.

Each of the charges is punishable by a life sentence in prison or the death penalty. 

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

This case was investigated by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ashley Walker and Matthew Martin are prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – More than two dozen people were arrested this week in connection with charges including drug trafficking and financial crimes, U.S. Attorney Sayler A. Fleming said Thursday. 

The arrests by the U.S. Marshals, federal agents and local police follow a series of grand jury indictments. Thirty-four people have been charged in connection with the investigation, most in the past few weeks. During the arrests and associated court-approved searches, officers and agents recovered a large quantity of fentanyl, pounds of methamphetamine, firearms and cash.

In detention hearings Thursday, prosecutors described the arrestees as members or associates of the Black Mafia Family.

A motion seeking to have one of the defendants jailed until trial says the BMF holds itself out as a drug trafficking and money laundering organization distributing large quantities of narcotics in the St. Louis area and elsewhere. One of the defendants, Chad Brown, calls himself the “Junior Boss” of the BMF, another detention motion says, and has discussed drug trafficking by the BMF in multiple videos posted on various social media platforms.

“These indictments and arrests targeted an organization that did not just limit their crimes to drug trafficking,” said U.S. Attorney Sayler A. Fleming. “Others have been accused of laundering money for the organization or taking advantage of the coronavirus pandemic to fraudulently obtain thousands of dollars in loans that were intended for struggling businesses and employees.”

Those indicted include:

• Chad E. “JBo” Brown, 51, indicted on one count of bank fraud and one count of using a false writing or document. He is accused of submitting a fraudulent IRS Schedule C form to obtain a PPP loan.
• Robert L. Lewis, 45, was indicted on four counts of fentanyl distribution and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
• Robert “Honest” Sims, 40, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture containing methamphetamine.
• Samir Simpson-Bey, 37, was indicted on one count of distribution of 40 grams or more of fentanyl.
• Jeremy “Welo” Steele, 44, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl and 500 grams or more of a mixture containing methamphetamine.
• Carl Von Garrett, 53, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and two counts of money laundering in an indictment which alleges that nearly $1,000,000 of drug proceeds were laundered between March and May 2021.
• Tiffany J. “Tiff BMF” Nelson, 42, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and four counts of money laundering. She is accused of laundering the proceeds of illegal activity.

"Anytime we are able to dismantle an organization involved in selling the big four – fentanyl, methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine – it’s a big deal," said Special Agent in Charge Michael A. Davis, head of the Drug Enforcement Administration division that leads DEA investigations in Missouri, Kansas, and Southern Illinois. "The scale of this Midwest criminal operation is uncommon, so it’s no wonder that it took the combined resources of federal, state and local law enforcement to bring the operation to an end. Protecting our citizens is DEA’s primary goal and the reward is worth the effort.”

“This week’s take-down demolished multiple drug trafficking organizations which were the main suppliers of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine into the St. Louis region,” said Special Agent in Charge Jay Greenberg of the FBI St. Louis Division. “Today’s arrests of more than two dozen suspects by the St. Louis Gateway Strike Force is a culmination of a 4-year investigation into a world of violence frequently associated with drug trafficking. The St. Louis Gateway Strike Force is a collaboration of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to combat violent gang crimes and drug trafficking throughout the bi-state region.”

“The goal of every criminal organization is to make money.  The special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) are the best in the business at following money trails leading to a criminal’s door,” said Special Agent in Charge Thomas F. Murdock. “If we can track where money is coming from and where it’s going, we can disrupt the financial structures that support criminal networks.”

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The investigation was conducted by the St. Louis Gateway Strike Force, which is part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force and includes members of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. The OCDETF strike forces are permanent, multi-agency, prosecutor-led teams that conduct intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations against priority targets and their affiliate illicit financial networks. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the FBI, IRS Criminal Investigations, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the St. Louis County Police Department and other members of the St. Louis Gateway Strike Force.

CAPE GIRARDEAU – U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh, Jr. on Thursday sentenced a man from Stoddard County, Missouri to 21 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy to sell devices that convert AR-style rifles into fully-automatic weapons.

Edward Hardin supplied his co-defendant Sidney Brianne Scowden, also of Stoddard County, with the devices, also known as “lightning links.”

Scowden sent a Snapchat message to a confidential informant for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives on Aug. 3, 2022 offering to sell a lightning link. Eight days later, she sold three of the devices for $1,500 to the informant, saying her source bought a link for $10,000 and made copies. Scowden sold three more devices on Sept. 19, 2022 and another on Oct. 19, 2022. 

Hardin, 41, pleaded guilty in April to a charge of conspiracy to distribute machine guns. Scowden, 28, pleaded guilty in February to conspiracy and three counts of transferring a machine gun. She was sentenced in May to 18 months in prison..

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Willis prosecuted the case.

ST. LOUIS – A bookkeeper from Shrewsbury, Missouri who embezzled $849,000 from a client and blamed one of her employees was sentenced Wednesday to a year and a day in federal prison.

U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey also ordered Cora G. Willard, 47, to repay the money. She repaid $100,000 Wednesday.

Willard ran a bookkeeping, payroll, and money-management assistance company called Red Hen Business Services. She admitted in a guilty plea in April that from at least Nov. 29, 2019 through June 10, 2022, she stole $849,000 from a man who operated a money management business and had provided her with access to his account and financial records. Willard made nearly 100 unauthorized wire transfers to herself from the victim’s bank account, even after he’d asked her to close the account. She also sent the tax and bill payments that she was supposed to be making for her client into bank accounts that she controlled. She sent false balance sheets to her client to cover up her theft.

After the client discovered that he was missing large amounts of money, Willard blamed one of her employees, her guilty plea says. 

Willard pleaded guilty to one felony count of wire fraud.

The case was investigated by the FBI.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Derek Wiseman is prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Sarah E. Pitlyk on Wednesday sentenced a man who recorded his rape of a young girl and an infant to 80 years in prison. 

Mark Anthony Davis, 36, of Clark County, Missouri, pleaded guilty in May to two counts of production of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. He admitted recording his rape of the girl when she was under 10 years of age and an 11-month-old boy. Davis also admitted possessing videos containing child pornography, including the rape and torture of children. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Drake, in court, said prosecutors and investigators have never seen a worse case. Davis possessed images of children being tortured and then repeatedly inflicted “hideous torture” on his own children. Davis’ behavior, Drake said, “deserves the most serious sentence possible.”

The sentence of 30 years each on the production of child pornography charges and 20 years on the possession charge, run consecutively, was the maximum possible prison sentence.

This case was investigated by the Clark County Sheriff’s Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the Kirksville Police Department, the Henry County (Iowa) Sheriff’s Office, the FBI and Donya Jackson, an investigator with the U.S. Attorney’s office at the time. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matt Drake and Robert Livergood prosecuted the case. 

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

On Oct. 17, pursuant to a court order issued in the Eastern District of Missouri, the United States seized 17 website domains used by Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) information technology (IT) workers in a scheme to defraud U.S. and foreign businesses, evade sanctions and fund the development of the DPRK government’s weapons program. These seizures follow the previously sealed October 2022 and January 2023 court-authorized seizures of approximately $1.5 million of the revenue that the same group of IT workers collected from unwitting victims as a result of their scheme, as well as the development of public-private information-sharing partnerships that denied the IT workers access to their preferred online freelance work and payment service providers.

“The seizures announced today protect U.S. companies from being infiltrated with North Korean computer code and help ensure that American businesses are not used to finance that regime’s weapons program,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “The Department of Justice is committed to working with private sector partners to protect U.S. business from this kind of fraud, to enhance our collective cybersecurity and to disrupt the funds fueling North Korean missiles.”

“Today's seizures exemplify our commitment to working with our federal and international partners to recognize and disrupt the threat from illicit actors working on behalf of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” said Assistant Director Bryan Vorndran of the FBI's Cyber Division. “These takedowns also serve as reminders to ensure that our private sector partners are equipped and prepared with due diligence measures to prevent the inadvertent hiring of these bad actors across American businesses. The FBI encourages U.S. companies to report suspicious activities, including any suspected DPRK IT worker activities, to your local FBI field office.”

“Employers need to be cautious about who they are hiring and who they are allowing to access their IT systems,” said U.S. Attorney Sayler A. Fleming for the Eastern District of Missouri. “You may be helping to fund North Korea’s weapons program or allowing hackers to steal your data or extort you down the line.”

“The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has flooded the global marketplace with ill-intentioned information technology workers to indirectly fund its ballistic missile program. The seizing of these fraudulent domains helps protect companies from unknowingly hiring these bad actors and potentially damaging their business,” said Special Agent in Charge Jay Greenberg of the FBI St. Louis Division. “This scheme is so prevalent that companies must be vigilant to verify whom they're hiring. At a minimum, the FBI recommends that employers take additional proactive steps with remote IT workers to make it harder for bad actors to hide their identities. Without due diligence, companies risk losing money or being compromised by insider threats they unknowingly invited inside their systems.”

As alleged in court documents, the Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) dispatched thousands of skilled IT workers to live abroad, primarily in China and Russia, with the aim of deceiving U.S. and other businesses worldwide into hiring them as freelance IT workers, in order to generate revenue for its weapons of mass destruction (WMD) programs. Through this scheme, which involves the use of pseudonymous email, social media, payment platform and online job site accounts, as well as false websites, proxy computers located in the United States and elsewhere, and witting and unwitting third parties, the IT workers generated millions of dollars a year on behalf of designated entities, such as the North Korean Ministry of Defense and others, directly involved in the DPRK’s UN-prohibited WMD programs.

In some instances, the IT workers also infiltrated the computer networks of unwitting employers to steal information and maintain access for future hacking and extortion schemes. The U.S. government described this scheme in a May 2022 advisory. An update to that advisory, issued today, is available here.

Certain DPRK IT workers designed the 17 website domains seized yesterday to appear as domains of legitimate, U.S.-based IT services companies, thereby helping the IT workers to hide their true identities and location when applying online to do remote work for U.S. and other businesses worldwide. In reality, this specific group of DPRK IT workers, who work for the PRC-based Yanbian Silverstar Network Technology Co. Ltd. and the Russia-based Volasys Silver Star, had previously been sanctioned in 2018 by the Department of the Treasury. These IT workers funneled income from their fraudulent IT work back to the DPRK through the use of online payment services and Chinese bank accounts. 

The efforts to disrupt the DPRK IT worker threat are not limited to those of the U.S. government. Since 2022, the United States has partnered with the Republic of Korea (ROK) to provide threat information about fraudulent DPRK IT worker activity, primarily consisting of thousands of indicators (e.g., email addresses), to multiple U.S.-based online freelance work and payment service platforms used by the IT workers. These information-sharing efforts include a May 2023 symposium, jointly hosted by the U.S. Department of State and the ROK, where representatives from the United States and ROK, and the providers, jointly discussed efforts to enhance public-private partnerships to counter the DPRK IT worker threat. These private companies later informed the U.S. government that, armed with that threat information, they conducted independent investigations, improved their fraud detection mechanisms and, according to at least some of the providers, shut down thousands of additional, previously unidentified fraudulent accounts used by the same DPRK IT workers. 

The National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri are investigating this case. The FBI’s St. Louis Field Office conducted the investigation, with the assistance of the FBI Cyber Division.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Ronnie L. White on Tuesday sentenced a man who provided the fentanyl that killed a Florissant, Missouri woman in 2020 to 13 ½ years in prison.

Jerome Middleton, 46, of Calverton Park, pleaded guilty in June to a felony charge of knowingly distributing fentanyl, resulting in death. He admitted supplying the fentanyl that killed the Florissant woman on Nov. 27, 2020. Middleton, a “runner,” would collect money from people, buy drugs and keep some of the drugs for himself for making the trip. Middleton bought six capsules containing fentanyl in St. Louis and kept three for himself, his plea says. Middleton also admitted going to the victim’s home on the four days preceding her death to provide her with narcotics. 

Florissant police found the victim dead after family friends became concerned about her. She left behind a 4-year-old daughter and a 20-month-old son. “No child should have to face the death of their mother at such a young age,” the victim’s mother said in court Tuesday.

“DEA takes deaths by illegal drugs very seriously," said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Colin Dickey, lead of Drug Enforcement Administration investigations in Eastern Missouri. "We can't say it often enough: if you are a drug dealer and your poison kills someone, we will do everything to make sure you spend time in jail. This sentence is proof of that objective."

This case was investigated by the Florissant Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration.

CAPE GIRARDEAU –  The United States Attorney's Office announced that Joseph A. Morgan, 48, of Fredericktown, Missouri, has been sentenced to serve 87 months in federal prison for the offense of Possession of Child Pornography. Morgan appeared for his sentencing hearing Tuesday before U.S. District Judge Sarah A. Pitlyk at the federal courthouse in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.

According to court documents, law enforcement officials executed a search warrant at a residence in Madison County in March 2021 after developing probable cause that an individual was obtaining videos containing child pornography over the internet. Morgan was found on the property, and investigators seized his tablet and a thumb drive. Over 60 child pornography videos were discovered on the devices. At his guilty plea hearing earlier this year, Morgan admitted that he used the internet to acquire the material. After serving his 87-month sentence, 

Morgan will be placed on lifetime supervised release. He will also be required to register as a sex offender.

This case was investigated by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. Assistant United States Attorney Jack Koester handled the prosecution for the Government.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig on Friday sentenced the armed robber of five Florissant, Missouri businesses to 135 months in prison. 

Judge Fleissig also ordered Kevin E. West Jr., 23, of Florissant, to pay $7,022 in restitution.

West admitted stealing the cash from two registers and a safe at a Dollar Tree store at 700 North Lindbergh Boulevard on May 26, 2021. On Dec. 1, 2021, West robbed a different Dollar Tree at 14020 New Halls Ferry Road by demanding cash from a register and the safe at gunpoint. On Jan. 2, 2022, West robbed cash from the register at the Subway at 2544 North Lindbergh Boulevard and three days later he robbed a GameStop at 14031 New Halls Ferry Road. On Jan. 28, 2022, he robbed a different Subway, at 8444 North Lindbergh Boulevard, and threatened to shoot the clerk if she didn’t hurry up and hand over money from the cash register, his plea agreement says. 

West pleaded guilty in June to five counts of robbery and one count of possession and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.

This case was investigated by the Florissant Police Department and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Linda Lane prosecuted the case.

ST. LOUIS – Two St. Louis area men have been indicted and accused of committing multiple carjackings and other crimes.

An indictment accuses Labron Collins, 19, and Bobby Lee Jones, 24, of carjacking two vehicles and trying to take a third on Jan. 25, 2023. They men tried to steal a 2022 Dodge Charger and successfully carjacked a 2012 Honda Civic and a 2011 Infiniti G37, the indictment says.

Collins also carjacked a 2013 Volkswagen Jetta on February 11 and, the next day, a 2013 Acura TL and a 2014 Honda Civic, the indictment says.

Jones was also accused in the indictment of supplying fentanyl on Jan. 15, 2023, that killed the user. 

Both were indicted in U.S. District Court in St. Louis September 20. Jones was arrested September 22 and Collins was arrested October 4. Collins appeared in court Tuesday for a detention hearing. 

Jones, of Richmond Heights, was indicted on one count of distribution of fentanyl resulting in death, three counts of carjacking, two counts of possession or brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence and one count of being a felon in possession of ammunition. 

Collins, of St. Louis, was indicted on six carjacking charges and four charges of possession or brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.

The fentanyl charge carries a penalty of at least 20 years in prison. The carjacking charges are punishable by up to 15 years in prison. Brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence carries a penalty of seven years to life in prison. A felon in possession of ammunition who has three or more prior convictions for crimes of violence faces at least 15 years in prison. 

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The case was investigated by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Szczucinski is prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey on Tuesday sentenced a tax preparer from Jennings, Missouri to 51 months in prison for preparing at least 23 fraudulent tax returns.

Judge Autrey also ordered Darius D. Cobb to pay restitution of $85,584.

Cobb, 52, prepared at least 200 tax returns for the tax years 2017 and 2018. In at least 23 of those, Cobb included false information. He included fake W-2 forms with false wages and withholdings, false Schedule C forms reporting profit or loss from a business even if the taxpayer was not a business owner, false claims for the American Opportunity Credit for educational expenses and false information about dependents. 

“Mr. Cobb admitted that he knowingly prepared false returns for others in order to illegally obtain inflated refunds for his clients,” said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Bill Steenson, IRS Criminal Investigation, St. Louis Field Office. “We work alongside our partners in the U.S. Attorney’s Office throughout the year to investigate and prosecute dishonest tax return preparers. Let this be a warning to others who may be thinking about engaging in this type of illicit activity.” 

Cobb pleaded guilty in April to two felony counts of aiding in the preparation of a false and fraudulent tax return.

The case was investigated by IRS Criminal Investigations.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Roy prosecuted the case.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Catherine D. Perry on Friday sentenced a man from Wildwood, Missouri to 60 months in prison for possessing and transporting child pornography.

Matthew Ryan O’Connell, 31, was also ordered to pay $10,000 restitution to one of the victims who appeared in the child sexual abuse material he collected.

A St. Louis County Police Department sergeant was investigating the use of online and cell phone apps to distribute child pornography in 2020 when someone contacted his undercover profile on “Grindr.” O’Connell told the sergeant that he was into young boys and said he had a collection of child sexual abuse material. He later sent images containing child sexual abuse material via the Kik and Wickr apps. 

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children also notified the St. Louis County Police Department that someone had used Snapchat to send images containing child sexual abuse material. A detective traced the material to O’Connell and applied for a search warrant. A Homeland Security Investigations agent, who was also investigating O’Connell, joined the search. Investigators found child sexual abuse material on O’Connell’s two cell phones and the laptop he hid under a treadmill when officers arrived to perform the search.

O’Connell pleaded guilty in May to one felony count each of transportation of child pornography and possession of child pornography. The transportation charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison.

The St. Louis County Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carrie Costantin prosecuted the case. 

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

ST. LOUIS – A man from St. Louis, Missouri on Thursday admitted committing six armed robberies in a three-month period in 2021, including the robbery of two cell phone stores twice.

Bruce Franklin, 64, pleaded guilty to six counts of robbery, one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. He admitted robbing the Boost Mobile store at 3636 Page Boulevard on August 26 and September 10, the T-Mobile at 4167 Lindell Boulevard on September 4 and September 20, the MetroPCS at 3949 Lindell Boulevard on September 17, and the Family Dollar at 11123 Bellefontaine Road in St. Louis County on October 27. Franklin stole cash from registers, and in one case, a handgun belonging to an employee.

Franklin was accompanied by Kristie Meeks during the September 17 and September 20 robberies. Meeks, 47, of Kansas City, Missouri, pleaded guilty September 27 to two counts of robbery and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.

Both Franklin and Meeks are scheduled to be sentenced January 22. The robbery charges carry a penalty of up to 20 years in prison and the felon in possession charge carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison. The brandishing charge carries a mandatory minimum term of seven years in prison.

The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, the St. Louis County Police Department and the FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Dunkel is prosecuting the case.

CAPE GIRARDEAU – U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. on Thursday sentenced a man from Kennett, Missouri to 110 months in prison for his role in a methamphetamine conspiracy involving his twin brother and another man.

Jody Renfro, 35, is the third and final defendant in the case to be sentenced. He pleaded guilty in April to a charge of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

In April, Judge Limbaugh sentenced John Andrew Schoolcraft, 32, of Portageville, in New Madrid County, to 15 years in prison for the offenses of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

Jammie Renfro, 35, of Kennett, Missouri, was sentenced in August to 130 months in federal prison for the offenses of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and distribution of methamphetamine.

All three pleaded guilty and admitted distributing methamphetamine throughout Dunklin County from May of 2022 through June 23, 2022. The Missouri State Highway Patrol utilized confidential informants and audio and video recording devices to conduct a series of controlled methamphetamine purchases from the group. The case culminated in the execution of a search warrant at Schoolcraft’s residence in Kennett, where officers seized over four pounds of methamphetamine, a .45-caliber pistol and $2,785 in cash.

Jody and Jammie Renfro are twins.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol, assisted by the Southeast Missouri Drug Task Force, investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Hunter prosecuted the case.

ST. LOUIS – A former Missouri prison guard who assaulted an inmate and also possessed child pornography was sentenced to seven years in prison Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Ronnie L. White.  

On Oct. 28, 2021, after a verbal disagreement with an inmate about a poster that was damaged during a search of his cell, Carl Hart ordered the victim out of his office in the Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Bonne Terre. Later, when the victim did not immediately return to his cell during a lockdown, two other corrections officers pepper-sprayed the victim. The victim went to the shower to wash off the spray. Hart followed the victim into the shower, struck the victim there and again after the victim had left the shower and was on the ground, handcuffed and compliant. Hart was a sergeant and had worked for the Department of Corrections for 10 years at the time.

In a victim impact letter, the assault victim wrote that the attack had left him with scars in multiple places on his head, face and hand “that I have to look at everyday for the rest of my life,” as well as “the permanent blurry vision in my eye, for the separated and infected ribs I had for 10 months. For the mental trauma I still suffer from – from being beaten by those who were supposed to protect me.”

In a separate investigation, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received a tip about suspected child pornography in Hart’s Dropbox account. The Missouri Highway Patrol Digital Forensics Unit found child pornography in Dropbox and on one of Hart’s phones.

One of the victims depicted in the child sexual abuse material found in Hart’s possession wrote, “Knowing that some sick person is looking at me on a computer everyday in a way that no one should look at a kid makes me feel violated, it gives me the jeebers, and it makes me want to throw up.”

In court Wednesday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Krug said, “The defendant did not protect the children being sexually abused in the photos and videos he collected and viewed, he perpetuated their victimization.” She added that Hart also “did not protect a prisoner he was charged with keeping safe.”

Hart, 37, of Farmington, pleaded guilty in May to one count of deprivation of rights under color of law and two counts of possession of child pornography and admitted the above conduct.

The case was investigated by the FBI and the Missouri Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Krug prosecuted the case.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Ronnie L. White on Tuesday sentenced a man from St. Louis, Missouri to 27 months in prison on a firearm charge.

Allen L. Robinson, 28, pleaded guilty in May to a felony charge of possession of a firearm while under an order of protection. He admitted that at about 3 a.m. on March 19, 2022, St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department officers responding to a call about shots fired in downtown St. Louis encountered Robinson, who matched the description of the shooter. As the police vehicle drove toward Robinson, he stepped out into the street in front of the vehicle and displayed a gun to the officers inside, Robinson’s plea says. The officer drove forward to get away from the threat and then turned around to face Robinson. Robinson ran and was arrested by other officers nearby. He had a loaded Taurus 9mm pistol in his waistband.

Robinson was under an order of protection at the time, prohibiting him from harassing, stalking or threatening a romantic partner. The order also prohibited Robinson from possessing a firearm. 

At Tuesday’s hearing, a detective testified that about 30 minutes before Robinson encountered police, a man matching Robinson’s description shot at a van driving by Kiener Plaza, then pointed a gun at someone waiting on the street for a friend. The gunman fired a shot into the air and headed south, where “numerous” 911 calls reported shots being fired. 

The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Donald Boyce prosecuted the case.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge John A. Ross on Tuesday sentenced a man from Chesterfield, Missouri who was caught with more than 2,000 capsules containing fentanyl and two stolen guns to 72 months in prison.

Travionne D. Shelton, now 30, pleaded guilty in June to two felony charges: possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl and possession with the intent to distribute an analogue of fentanyl. Shelton admitted selling methamphetamine and fentanyl for $300 on Oct. 27, 2022, to someone working with law enforcement. Officers tried to stop Shelton’s car after the drug sale, but he fled and eventually abandoned his car in a residential neighborhood. He was arrested in someone’s driveway.

Shelton told authorities that he kept drugs in his apartment and gave them consent to search it. They found nearly 700 grams of methamphetamine, almost 2,000 capsules containing fentanyl or an analog of fentanyl, 11 capsules containing a mix of methamphetamine, fentanyl and tramadol, 12 bags containing fentanyl and other drugs, $20,300 in cash, two stolen firearms and a Glock pistol with a fully loaded drum magazine, his plea says.

The Drug Enforcement Administration and the St. Charles Regional Drug Task Force investigated the case.

ST. LOUIS – A former police officer from Venice, Ill. appeared in court Monday to answer a federal civil rights charge accusing him of assaulting a handcuffed man.

Justin Gaither, 33, was indicted September 27 on one count of deprivation of rights under color of law, namely the right to be free from the use of unreasonable force. The indictment accuses Gaither of assaulting someone on Nov. 20, 2022. The victim was handcuffed and was not posing a threat to anyone, the indictment says. 

Gaither pleaded not guilty Monday in U.S. District Court in St. Louis.

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Krug is prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – A man from East St. Louis, Illinois was convicted Friday by a jury in U.S. District Court of 11 felony charges linked to fentanyl trafficking, firearm sales and the shooting death of a man in University City in 2019.

Deoman Reeves, 31, was found guilty of all of the charges he faced: one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute in excess of 40 grams of fentanyl, four counts of possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl, three counts of possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, resulting in death.

The investigation began with a September 2019 shooting. The University City Police Department requested the assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Reeves and his co-defendants later sold fentanyl and firearms to those who were working on behalf of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and undercover ATF agents.

The death resulting charge stems from the Oct. 21, 2019 fatal shooting of David Anderson in the 1100 block of Kingsland Avenue. Evidence and testimony presented at trial showed that Reeves and others fired multiple shots at Anderson in retaliation for a shooting in St. Louis County the day before. 

Reeves and two others were indicted on Jan. 6, 2020 and arrested eight days later. A fourth person was later added to the indictment. The three others have all pleaded guilty and two await sentencing.

Reeves is scheduled to be sentenced December 28 and faces a life sentence in prison.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the University City Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul D’Agrosa and Erin Granger are prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – A bounty hunter from Louisiana was convicted of kidnapping and conspiracy charges Thursday for forcibly removing a woman from a St. Peters, Missouri home and taking her across state lines.

Jurors in U.S. District Court in St. Louis took less than two hours to convict Wayne D. Lozier Jr., now 44, of the New Orleans area, of the two felony counts. 

Testimony and evidence presented at trial, including from Lozier’s body camera, showed that the victim had an arrest warrant from the 22nd Judicial District Court in St. Tammany Parish for two misdemeanor offenses. Lozier and his partner, Jody L. Sullivan, had been hired by A Affordable Bail Bonds as surety recovery agents to locate and retrieve the victim.

Sullivan rented an SUV and the pair traveled to St. Charles County. On May 9, 2019, both were armed with firearms and Tasers. Neither was licensed by Missouri’s Department of Commerce and Insurance to operate as surety recovery agents within Missouri. Without notifying local law enforcement, the pair went to the St. Peters home. Lozier told the homeowner he didn’t need her permission to enter the house. They went into the basement, where the Louisiana woman was staying. They handcuffed her and transported her without her consent in their SUV, heading for Louisiana, the trial showed. 

At a gas station in Sullivan, Missouri the victim pleaded with employees to notify the police after learning that Lozier and Sullivan were not police officers. Lozier shocked the victim multiple times with a Taser and he and Sullivan dragged the victim out of the store by the chain that connected her handcuffs and leg shackles. Lozier told local police that he was a surety recovery agent and was licensed by the state of Louisiana.

While they were still in Missouri, a St. Peters Police Department officer told Lozier on a phone call that he was committing crimes and should return the victim to St. Peters or drop her off at the nearest law enforcement agency, according to testimony and evidence. Lozier refused, instead dropping her off at a Mississippi detention facility before returning home and collecting $500 plus expenses. The victim remained at the detention facility for about a week before she was released.

Sullivan, 56, of the New Orleans area, pleaded guilty Sept. 18, 2023, to the conspiracy and kidnapping charges and admitted unlawfully seizing the woman and transporting her across state lines.

Sullivan is scheduled to be sentenced December 20. Lozier is scheduled to be sentenced January 3. Both charges are punishable by up to life in prison.
 
The FBI and the St. Peters Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew Martin and Donald Boyce are prosecuting the case.

CAPE GIRARDEAU – U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. on Thursday sentenced a woman from Kennett, Missouri to 10 years in prison for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute and possession of a firearm by a felon.

Paula J. Laboone, 64, Laboone has previous felony convictions for possession of controlled substances in Dunklin County and is therefore prohibited from possessing firearms.

According to court documents, on January 30, 2023, a search warrant was executed at Laboone's residence.  Numerous bags and baggies containing over two pounds of methamphetamine packaged for sale were seized from the living room and bedroom of the residence.  Additionally, a Taurus semi-automatic pistol was seized from the bedroom. Laboone was later interviewed and admitted to buying and selling methamphetamine for several months. She further admitted that the firearm was hers and she was aware she could not possess it.

This case was investigated by the Southeast Missouri Drug Task Force.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Hunter handled the prosecution for the government.

ST. LOUIS – A former officer with the North County Police Cooperative was accused in an indictment Wednesday of sexually assaulting men that he’d detained or arrested.

Marcellis Blackwell, 34, of St. Louis, was indicted on 21 felony counts: 16 counts of deprivation of rights under color of law, namely the right to bodily integrity, and five counts of altering records in a federal investigation. The indictment says that between Nov. 8, 2022 and June 5, 2023, Blackwell fondled the genitals of eight men who he had detained or handcuffed, committing abusive sexual contact. Blackwell also is accused in the indictment of sodomizing one of the men with his finger, an act of aggravated sexual abuse. The indictment also says Blackwell kidnapped the men and turned off his body camera prior to some of the incidents.

A motion seeking to have Blackwell, formerly known as Willis Green Overstreet III, held in jail until trial said Blackwell “victimized people he thought would be less likely to report his behavior.” Following media coverage of one victim’s report, seven more victims came forward, the motion says. The motion also says Blackwell’s phone contains videos of as-yet unidentified victims.

“The conduct alleged in the indictment is unacceptable for anyone, but infinitely more so for a police officer and when it involves handcuffed, helpless victims,” said U.S. Attorney Sayler A. Fleming. “We still have not identified all of the men who appear in recordings on the defendant’s phone and I’d like to encourage any potential victims to contact the FBI in St. Louis or the U.S. Attorney’s Office.”

“We are not investigating the violation Blackwell cited to detain his victims,” said Special Agent in Charge Jay Greenberg of the FBI St Louis Division. “Our focus is on Blackwell’s alleged abuse of power to sexually assault his victims. Our goal is to bring justice to victims and to provide victim services.”
 
FBI St. Louis has established a hotline for potential victims of Marcellis Blackwell. Please call (314) 589-2682.

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The FBI investigated the case, following an initial investigation conducted by the North County Police Cooperative. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Krug is prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – A man from St. Louis County, Missouri appeared in court this week to answer charges accusing him of coercing children overseas into engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

Sanel Smajlovic was indicted Sept. 13 on four counts of attempted production of child pornography. The indictment accuses of Smajlovic of coercing a total of six minors on four occasions in 2018 and 2019 into engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

A motion seeking to have Smajlovic held in jail until trial says Homeland Security Investigations identified traffickers in the Philippines who were providing access to pre-produced child sexual abuse material as well as live-streaming the sexual abuse of children to paying customers worldwide. Smajlovic directed the sexual abuse of children and then paid the adults who provided the children, the motion says. The motion calls it part of a growing transnational child-sexual-abuse industry and says the Smajlovic case is part of a larger investigation.

Smajlovic was arrested at St. Louis Lambert International Airport Sunday upon his arrival on an international flight. He pleaded not guilty to the charges at an appearance in U.S. District Court in St. Louis Monday.

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case, with the assistance of forensic specialists from the Justice Department Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and the Missouri State Technical Assistance Team. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan Chapman is prosecuting the case.

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

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey on Friday sentenced a chiropractor from Jefferson County, Missouri to four years in prison and ordered him to repay $4.3 million lost to a disability and health care fraud scheme that involved 17 other defendants. 

Beginning in 2011, Thomas G. Hobbs, now 66, fraudulently assisted patients in receiving disability benefit payments through the Social Security Administration’s Disability Trust Fund and through private disability benefit insurance providers. He also falsely claimed to have a medical license. 

“This sentence is a long-awaited milestone in a complex disability fraud scheme involving facilitators and co-conspirators that our investigators worked diligently to dismantle,” said Gail S. Ennis, Inspector General for the Social Security Administration. “Dr. Thomas Hobbs was the lead facilitator, and this sentence now holds him accountable for criminal acts that undermined the integrity of the Social Security disability insurance program. I am extremely appreciative of the tremendous work that our investigators and law enforcement partners contributed to the success of this investigation and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in holding Dr. Hobbs and his fellow conspirators accountable for facilitating this fraud.”

Hobbs charged patients between $2,000 and $8,600 to prepare disability forms and coach them on how to lie to the Social Security Administration and insurers about their ability to perform basic daily tasks such as lifting, standing, walking, sitting, remembering and taking care of their personal needs. Hobbs submitted fraudulent medical reports, submitted fraudulent claims for reimbursement to health care benefit programs for services that were either not provided, medically unnecessary or provided by unqualified persons and used a fictitious medical license number to buttress his medical determinations and further support patients’ disability claims.

Hobbs, is co-owner of Power-Med Inc., a chiropractic clinic in Arnold, Missouri. He also admitted in his plea agreement that while falsely claiming to have a medical license, between 2011 and 2019, he purchased and dispensed prescription medications, administered injections and dispensed medications intravenously to patients. Hobbs knew he was not permitted to administer injections because the Missouri Board of Chiropractic Examiners placed him on probation for five years for fraudulently billing insurance companies for unlawfully administering injections.

Hobbs pleaded guilty in January in U.S. District Court to a conspiracy charge. Four of his co-defendants, including his wife and fellow chiropractor, Vivian Carbone-Hobbs, went to trial and were found guilty. Carbone-Hobbs is scheduled to be sentenced next month. All of the patients involved in the scheme were ordered to repay the money that they’d fraudulently obtained.

The cases were investigated by the Social Security Administration – Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tracy Berry, Dorothy McMurtry Diane Klocke and Gwendolyn Carroll are prosecuting the case.

Anyone who suspects fraud involving the Disability Insurance Benefit Program is asked to contact the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General Hotline at: 1-800-269-0271 or https://oig.ssa.gov/report/.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge John A. Ross on Thursday sentenced a man to 15 years in prison for selling the fake prescription pain pills containing fentanyl that killed a St. Charles County man last year.

Andrew Kendall Edwards, 27, of St. Louis County, pleaded guilty in May to one count of distribution of fentanyl and one count of possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl. He admitted selling the pills containing fentanyl that killed the victim on Aug. 28, 2022.

After the man was discovered dead, investigators from the St. Charles County Police Department and the St. Charles County Regional Drug Task Force found four tablets in his bedroom. Two were imitation oxycodone tablets that contained fentanyl. Investigators also found text messages between the victim and Edwards. They then used the victim’s phone, posing as the victim, to arrange the purchase of more drugs from Edwards. 

On Aug. 30, 2022, Edwards was arrested at the planned meeting spot with the tablets that he’d agreed to sell. He also had a Glock .40 caliber pistol and two more tablets in a bag inside the nearby building where he worked. Some of the tablets seized at Edwards’ arrest were imitation oxycodone tablets that contained fentanyl.

Edwards then admitted in an interview with St. Charles County Regional Drug Task Force and Drug Enforcement Administration investigators that he’d sold purported prescription tablets to the victim, who was also his friend and coworker, at least ten times, including the day before his death.

In a letter to Judge Ross, the victim’s mother wrote that her son had just started a new job and was on the road to recovery. His “life was changing, he just needed more time,” she wrote. She said her son knew the risks of fentanyl, and knew it could kill him, but was reassured by Edwards in a text message that the pills were real. The victim left behind a son, who was almost two years old at the time of the victim’s death.

"The callous disregard drug traffickers have for human life is obvious when you hear about cases like this one," said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Colin Dickey, lead of Drug Enforcement Administration investigations in Eastern Missouri. "For a few dollars, this man's action took a life, someone who mattered to his family and friends. DEA’s efforts on overdose death investigations with partner agencies like the St. Charles County Regional Drug Task Force reminds drug dealers that their conduct has penalties, which include plenty of time in prison to think about the impact of their actions.”

The case was investigated by St. Charles County Regional Drug Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Samantha Reitz prosecuted the case. 

ST. LOUIS – Thirteen people accused of involvement in a conspiracy to sell drugs including fentanyl and methamphetamine in the St. Louis area were arrested this week.

The final defendant was arrested Thursday in Miami. The final St. Louis defendants pleaded not guilty to their charges Wednesday in U.S. District Court in St. Louis. Others were arrested in Texas and California.

Stanley Harris, 49; Christopher Sosa, 31, of Los Angeles; Victor Medina, 41, of Los Angeles; Alvieno Johnson, 40; and Versail Freeman, 39; were indicted August 30 on one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 50 grams of more of methamphetamine and 400 grams or more of fentanyl.

Sosa; Neil Phifer, 38; Latasha Spellman, 34; Robert Smith, 64; Gary Pulcher, 71; Demetrius Gilmore, 37; Portia Everett, 35; and Michael Williams, 28; were indicted on one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl. Williams also faces a methamphetamine and fentanyl possession charge and Medina faces a fentanyl distribution charge. Everett is accused in the indictment of conspiracy to maintain drug-involved premises, namely a home in the 900 block of Rutger Street in St. Louis and a house in the 1100 block of Carraway Court in Collinsville.

During the course of the investigation, a total of $111,685 in cash, seven handguns, and two vehicles were seized, the indictment says.

A motion seeking to have Phifer and Spellman held in jail until trial says more than 25 kilograms of methamphetamine and 15 kilograms of fentanyl are directly attributable to the overall drug trafficking organization. Phifer and Spellman partnered with each other to import drugs and distribute them to others in St. Louis, the motion says. Investigators conducted several controlled purchases of multiple ounces of fentanyl which involved both people, and repeatedly seized drugs from where Phifer and Spellman were operating, the motion says. Investigators intercepted one package that had been mailed containing 4.5 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine.

A detention motion for Sosa says investigators intercepted numerous drug parcels mailed by Sosa to distributors in St. Louis, and used an intermediary to buy about 15 pounds of crystal methamphetamine from Sosa.

Marco Chavira, 35, of El Paso, Texas, was indicted separately with two counts: distributing and attempting to distribute in excess of 50 grams of methamphetamine and 500 grams or more of cocaine. A detention motion says investigators bought a kilogram of cocaine and 1.4 kilograms of methamphetamine from Chavira.

Charges set forth in an indictment or a criminal complaint are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the FBI and the U.S. Marshals Service are investigating the case with assistance from officers with the North County Police Cooperative and police departments in St. Louis, St. Louis County, Shrewsbury, Ballwin and St. Charles City. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Casey is prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Matthew T. Schelp on Wednesday sentenced a woman who robbed a St. Louis County cell phone store in 2021 and then carjacked a Jeep in St. Louis to 15 years in prison.

Kadijah McFadden, 29, pointed a gun at an employee of the Boost Mobile store at 12135 Bellefontaine Road on Aug. 9, 2021 and said, “give me everything out the drawer right now.” She stole about $630 and multiple cell phones. 

On Sept. 5, 2021, at around 9 a.m., she approached a woman in the 3600 block of Bates Street who was unloading groceries from her 2017 Jeep Cherokee. McFadden pointed a handgun at the victim and demanded her purse. McFadden got the victim’s car keys and then walked to the opposite side of the Jeep, opened the passenger side door and again demanded the purse before firing four shots into the air and at the ground.

McFadden then stole the Jeep. The incident was captured on video.

McFadden was spotted about three hours later by St. Louis County police and then crashed after a pursuit. Her co-defendant, Damonta Jamall Bridges, was inside in the vehicle.

McFadden pleaded guilty in December to carjacking, discharge of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, robbery, brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence and being a felon in possession of a firearm. 

Bridges, 30, pleaded guilty to a robbery charge and a charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm in August. He admitted being present during the Boost robbery and possessing a 9mm handgun in the carjacked Jeep. 

As part of the plea, both prosecutors and Bridges’ lawyer will recommend a sentence of 137 months in prison at his sentencing hearing, scheduled for November 28.

The case was investigated by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, the St. Louis County Police Department and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley Walker is prosecuting the case. 

ST. LOUIS – A man from Slovakia who also lists an address in St. Louis, Missouri appeared in U.S. District Court in St. Louis on Wednesday to answer an indictment that accuses him of fraudulently obtaining $730,500 in pandemic loans.

Mark Ethan Jermain, 40, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to three felony counts of wire fraud.

An August 20 indictment accuses Jermain, aka Arsene Millogo, of submitting fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program loan applications from April 26, 2020 to July 16, 2021. The PPP loans were intended to save American businesses and jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic and the money was supposed to be spent on payroll and business expenses. 

Jermain submitted a fraudulent loan application for Crazyeats LLC and two applications for Unimentors LLC , falsely inflating the monthly payroll for both companies and submitting falsified documents, including a credit card statement, to support the loan, the indictment says.

Jermain received three loans totaling $730,550, transferred the money to a Slovakian bank account and spent the money for unauthorized purposes, including personal expenses, the indictment says.

A motion seeking to have Jermain held in jail until trial says Jermain has lived overseas since 2019. Jermain returned to the U.S. on August 17, 2023, and was scheduled to fly to Poland Sept. 21 but changed his flight to Sept. 7, the day he was arrested in New York. Jermain was in the Slovak Republic at the time of the alleged fraud, the motion says.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in St. Louis has prosecuted or is involved in the investigation of at least 60 individuals who exploited pandemic-era programs.

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gwen Carroll is prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig on Wednesday sentenced a man from Jefferson County, Missouri to seven years in prison on a child pornography charge and ordered him to pay $57,000 to victims.

Matthew Thilges, 60, pleaded guilty June 7, 2023, to one count of receipt of child pornography. He admitted possessing images containing child sexual abuse on his cell phone and computer.

The investigation began after Thilges made a series of threats to kill employees of tech companies, including YouTube, Google, Facebook and Twitter, his plea agreement says. In the beginning of October 2020, Thilges began threatening law enforcement and children. A court-authorized search of Thilges’ home near House Springs, Missouri later that month found electronic devices, a child-like sex doll, eight assault rifles, one handgun and ammunition. Investigators found over 10,000 images containing child pornography on Thilges’ cell phone and computer and concerning images he had taken of a minor child in his home.

Judge Fleissig on Wednesday overruled Thilges’ objections to paying restitution to the victims who have been identified in the images and videos that he possessed. Those victims were notified about Thilges’ possession of the images and his criminal charge, and 17 victims requested restitution to compensate them for mental health treatment and other medical services, as well as other expenses and losses.

The FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Colleen Lang prosecuted the case.

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

CAPE GIRARDEAU – United States District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. on Tuesday sentenced a man from Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri to nine years in prison on a charge of receiving child pornography.

Timothy Ray White, 61, appeared for sentencing at the federal courthouse in Cape Girardeau.

According to court documents, on Oct. 6, 2022, a search warrant was obtained and executed at White's residence where numerous electronic devices were seized. White was present during the execution of the warrant and admitted that he had "tons" of child pornography on his devices.  Further investigation revealed thousands of photos and videos depicting child pornography. White admitted to being addicted to child pornography.  After service of his 108-month sentence, White was ordered to be placed on supervised release for life.  He will also be required to register as a sex offender.

This case was investigated by the Missouri State Highway Patrol.  Assistant United States Attorney Julie Hunter handled the prosecution for the government.

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

ST. LOUIS – Federal and local authorities are asking the public to look out for rifles and shotguns that were stolen from a farm and home store in Washington County, Missouri in 2021. One was recently recovered in St. Louis County.

Gregory Snyder, 44, of Bismarck, in St. Francois County, was indicted in U.S. District Court in St. Louis on July 26 on two felony charges: theft of 13 firearms from a federally licensed firearms dealer and possession of body armor by a violent felon. The indictment accuses Snyder of stealing firearms from Dickey Bub Farm & Home on September 19 and 20 of 2021, and of possessing body armor on Sept. 20. 

A motion seeking to have Snyder held in jail until trial says he was captured on video hiding in the store until closing time, when he emerged and stole a variety of items, including shotguns and rifles. One of the stolen firearms was recovered in June 2023 in Caledonia, Missouri. Police recovered another shotgun in St. Louis County following a traffic stop.

“We’re alerting the public to the existence of these stolen guns because we want gun buyers to be cautious and protect themselves against buying a stolen firearm,” said Potosi Police Chief Michael Gum. “One of the stolen shotguns was recovered only after an unsuspecting buyer purchased it from a pawn shop. If you have purchased one of these firearms, or even want to check if a gun is stolen, please contact your local police or sheriff’s department,” Chief Gum said. 

The following firearms were stolen:

• American Tactical Omni Hybrid 5.56/.223 rifle, serial # NS308985
• Ruger American .243 Win. rifle, serial # 699-51880
• Savage Model 11 .243 Win. rifle, serial # K832564
• Smith & Wesson M&P 15 5.56 NATO rifle, serial # TS40690
• Smith & Wesson M&P 15 5.56 NATO rifle, serial # TS44864
• Smith & Wesson M&P 15 5.56 NATO rifle, serial # TT81658
• Springfield Armory Saint 5.56/.223 rifle, serial # ST461190
• Springfield Armory Saint 5.56/.223 rifle, serial # ST469640
• Francolin Boss-25 12-gauge shotgun, serial # 21-13942
• Francolin Warthog 12-gauge shotgun, serial # 21WH-1149
• Mossberg 510 Mini 20-gauge shotgun, serial # V1312970

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Potosi Police Department are investigating the case. Anyone with information is asked to contact the ATF at 314-768-3120 or online at www.atf.gov/contact/atf-tips or the Potosi Police at 573-438-5468.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nino Przulj is prosecuting the case.

Charges set forth in an indictment or a criminal complaint are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig on Monday sentenced a woman from St. Peters, Missouri to eight months in prison for defrauding a small business assistance program out of $204,095 during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Trashunda M. Harrison, 38, was also ordered to repay the money.

Harrison pleaded guilty June 6 to three counts of wire fraud and one count of bank fraud and admitted engaging in a scheme to defraud the Paycheck Protection Program from around June 2020 through April 2021. The PPP was intended to save both small businesses and jobs. Harris submitted a total of nine fraudulent applications for PPP loans in the names of three businesses: The Quiet Space LLC, Blow LLC and StrutN 80s LLC, as well as in her own name as a sole proprietor. Harrison lied on the applications about the payroll and income of the businesses and submitted fraudulent tax forms to support her false claims. On applications for additional loans, she falsely claimed to have used the first loan for payroll and other business expenses. 

At the time, Harrison had only one functional business, StrutN 80s, which made substantially less than what she claimed in her PPP applications. 

Harrison falsely claimed the businesses would use the money for allowed expenses such as payroll. She instead used the PPP money for unapproved purposes, including shopping, dining, rent, cash withdrawals and payments to individuals who had no affiliation with the companies, she admitted in her plea agreement. 

Harrison “exploited the COVID-19 pandemic for her personal gain, at the expense of those struggling due to the economic consequences of the pandemic,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Clow wrote in a sentencing memo. Clow also pointed out that Harrison used the identity of someone else in two of her loan applications, without that person’s knowledge.

The case was investigated by the FBI.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Clow is prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Clark on Thursday sentenced a Moberly, Missouri doctor to 22 months in prison for falsely using his father’s name to bill Medicare and Medicaid for medical services. 

Justin G. LaMonda was also ordered to repay $537,332.

LaMonda’s crimes originated after the Missouri Board of Registration for the Healing Arts suspended his medical license for 30 days in 2017 after he was accused of engaging in sexual activity with his office manager and prescribing her controlled substances “without sufficient examination and outside of the usual course of professional practice,” LaMonda’s plea agreement says.

On Dec. 20, 2018, a Medicare administrative contractor revoked LaMonda’s Medicare Part B privileges after determining that he submitted reimbursement claims for services performed when he was suspended. 

LaMonda and his father, who was also a doctor, agreed to bill Medicare for services performed by LaMonda as if they had been performed by his father. 

On Sept. 12, 2019, the Missouri Medicaid Audit and Compliance Unit terminated Dr. LaMonda’s provider number. LaMonda and his father then expanded their scheme to include Medicaid claims.

LaMonda instructed his billing personnel to use his father’s unique billing provider number on claims for payment, on referrals to other health care providers and on orders for durable medical equipment, falsely claiming that the father had performed the medical services or ordered additional equipment or treatment, his plea agreement says.

When LaMonda’s father received payments from Medicare and Medicaid for services purportedly performed by him, he would transfer the funds to his son. 

LaMonda admitted causing total losses of $537,322 to Medicare and Missouri Medicaid.

LaMonda “flagrantly violated” the revocation of his Medicare and Medicaid billing privileges by fraudulently billing those programs, Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Sestric wrote in a sentencing memorandum.

“Health care professionals who intentionally submit such blatant fraudulent information can adversely affect individuals who depend on Medicare and Medicaid for access to safe and effective health care services. The laws are meant to ensure both the integrity of program funds and the provision of appropriate, quality services to patients,” stated Special Agent in Charge Curt L. Muller with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. “Our agency collaborates frequently with our law enforcement partners to investigate providers who undermine our federal health care programs and the well-being of patients by submitting fraudulent claims.”

LaMonda, 42, pleaded guilty in March to two counts of making false statements related to health care matters. His medical license has been revoked. LaMonda’s father, Dr. Gary LaMonda, died in September 2021.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, the FBI and the Missouri Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Sestric prosecuted the case.

ST. LOUIS – A man from St. Louis, Missouri pleaded guilty Wednesday to four counts of carjacking, two counts of discharging a firearm in furtherance of carjacking, one count of discharging a firearm in furtherance of carjacking resulting in death and one count of escape.

Kurt Wallace, 30, appeared today before U.S. District Judge Ronnie L. White, who set Wallace’s sentencing for Dec. 12, 2023.
 
According to the plea agreement, on Sept. 16, 2017, Wallace carjacked the driver of a 2005 Chevrolet Monte Carlo in the 300 block of Walsh in the St. Louis. During the carjacking, Wallace shot the driver in the shoulder.
 
On Oct. 15, 2017, Wallace carjacked a Cadillac CTS in the 5800 block of Kennerly in St. Louis.  During the carjacking, Wallace shot the driver in the leg.
 
The next day, Wallace was involved in the armed carjacking of a Jeep Grand Cherokee being driven by Jaz Granderson, a football coach at De Smet Jesuit High School.  Wallace fatally shot Granderson during the carjacking.
 
Wallace was indicted by a federal grand jury in November 2017 and detained in jail pending trial.  While in custody, Wallace escaped from a jail on July 15, 2019.  After escaping, Wallace and fellow inmate James Flannel carjacked a vehicle and led police on a multi-jurisdiction pursuit until Wallace crashed and flipped the vehicle.
 
As part of the plea, both sides have agreed to recommend a sentence of 60 years in federal prison. 
 
Wednesday’s guilty pleas conclude a joint investigation by the Saint Louis Metropolitan Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives into a series of violent crimes committed by Wallace and others during the fall of 2017.  Wallace is the seventh individual convicted in connection with that investigation; the others include Floyd Barber, 28, Jherrica Dixon, 30, James Flannel, 43, Jerell Henderson, 33, Larenta Jones, 30, and Stephan Jones, 33.
 
Flannel was sentenced in November 2021 to life in prison for the fatal carjacking of Boris Iouioukine, a Laclede Cab Company driver on June 25, 2018. He awaits sentencing on the escape and carjacking.

Dixon pleaded guilty May 22, 2019 to eight felonies: four counts of carjacking, three counts of discharge and brandishing of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence and one count of discharge of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence resulting in death. She admitted setting up a series of meetings with men so that they could be carjacked by her then-boyfriend Wallace and others. On Aug. 14, 2017, Wallace and others carjacked a 2017 Dodge Charger in the 800 block of Gustav Avenue in St. Louis. Dixon also admitted setting up the Sept. 16 and Oct. 15 carjackings and the carjacking of Granderson.

Barber pleaded guilty June 4, 2019 to two counts of carjacking, one count of discharge and brandishing of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence and one count of discharge of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence resulting in death. He admitted the Sept. 9, 2017 carjacking of a Kia Optima in St. Louis and admitted participating in the carjacking of Granderson and the fatal drug robbery of Ladareace Pool, 26, in the 4700 block of Goodfellow Avenue on Oct. 3, 2017. 

The sentencing hearings for Dixon and Barber are pending. Dixon faces a mandatory minimum of 27 years in prison for just three of the charges. Both sides have agreed to recommend 30 years in prison for Barber.

U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey sentenced Henderson on Aug. 23, 2022 to 42 ½ years in prison for Pool’s robbery and murder. Larenta Jones was sentenced to 30 years in prison and Stephan Jones, the driver the day of Pool’s murder, was sentenced to five years in prison on a drug charge.

“ATF has no higher priority than working with our law enforcement partners to investigate and ultimately, bring to justice those who inflict violence on our communities and in our neighborhoods,” said Bernard Hansen, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Kansas City Field Division. “As this case so clearly demonstrates, we will continue to use our investigative expertise, and strong partnership with the men and women of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department to ensure that St. Louis is a safer place to live and work.”
  
The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are investigating this case with assistance provided by the U.S. Marshals Service, the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department, the Troy Police Department, the Saint Ann Police Department and the Saint Louis County Police Department.

ST. LOUIS – A man from Brookfield, in Linn County, Missouri, has been accused in an indictment in U.S. District Court in St. Louis of recording himself having sexual contact with a minor.

Russell Alan Pirkey, 52, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to a charge of sexual exploitation of a child and a charge of accessing with intent to view child pornography.

The indictment accuses Pirkey of coercing a minor into engaging in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of video recording it between April 1 and April 8 of 2023. It also says Pirkey accessed child pornography between Jan. 1, 2023 and April 8, 2023.

A motion seeking to have Pirkey held in jail until trial says he used his cell phone to record himself having sexual contact with a 10-year-old girl. Pirkey was being held in jail on pending charges in Linn County Circuit Court.

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The sexual exploitation of children charge carries a potential penalty of 15 to 30 years in prison, a $250,000 fine or both. The access with intent to view charge is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and the same fine.

The FBI, the Brookfield Police Department and the Linn County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan Chapman is prosecuting the case.

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

ST. LOUIS – A man from Canada has been indicted in U.S. District Court in St. Louis and accused of stealing more than $64,000 in cash from Walmart stores across the country using sleight-of-hand.

Mohsen Akbari, 37, was indicted August 16 on one count of wire fraud and one count of interstate transportation of stolen property. He was arrested on September 5 and pleaded not guilty to the charges Monday.

The indictment says Akbari entered the United States on March 1, 2023 from South Korea on a visitor visa. Akbari then traveled across the country, entered various retail stores and used sleight-of-hand to steal cash, the indictment says. After making a small purchase, Akbari would claim that he and his family collect Unites States currency, typically $100 bills, the indictment says. Akbari would ask the cashier to show him the bills in the cash register so he could examine them, and then surreptitiously place some of the bills into his sleeve or pocket, the indictment says.

The indictment accuses Akbari of stealing about $33,700 from 30 different Walmart stores in nine states from March 23 to June 8, 2023. The indictment says Akbari then stole a total of $2,420 from a Walmart in St. Peters, Missouri on June 12, 2023, $6,900 from a Granite City, Ill. store on June 13, $420 from an O’Fallon, Missouri store on June 14 and $900 from a store in Warrenton, Missouri the same day. He stole $580 from a Walmart in Eureka, Missouri and $5,100 from an Arnold, Missouri Walmart on June 15, the indictment says. From June 20 to July 18, Akbari stole $13,992 from seven different Walmart stores in Illinois, Indiana, Virginia and Maryland.

Akbari would deposit the money in a United States bank account he opened and then wire funds to his bank accounts in Canada, the indictment says.

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The wire fraud charge carries a potential penalty of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine or both. The interstate transportation of stolen property charge is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and the same fine.

Homeland Security Investigations, the Eureka Police Department and the Arnold Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Bateman is prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – The need for specialized legal services is both urgent and essential for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. These services provide interventions, such as securing restraining or protective orders, that are crucial for survivor safety. U.S. Attorney Sayler A. Fleming is proud to announce that the Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) awarded $869,540 to the Eastern District of Missouri to provide legal services and improve the effective coordination of justice systems impacting survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking. 

•    OVW awarded $719,540 under the Legal Assistance for Victims (LAV) Program to the Crime Victim Advocacy Center of St. Louis. The LAV Program addresses the legal needs of survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking. 
•    OVW awarded $150,000 under the Domestic Violence Mentor Court Technical Assistance Initiative to St. Louis County. The initiative recognizes well-established specialized courts and enables them to guide newly established specialized courts and court-based programs that wish to significantly improve their responses to domestic violence cases and ensure victim safety and offender accountability.
 

“I’m very pleased that this money will be available for the vital work of supporting women who are the victims of domestic and other forms of violence, both in and out of the court system,” said U.S. Attorney Fleming. 

“The Legal Assistance for Victims Grant, in conjunction with the Justice for Families Program and the Domestic Violence Mentor Court Technical Assistance Initiative, serve as a powerful multi-pronged strategy to transform the justice system's approach to supporting families affected by violence," stated OVW Director Rosemarie Hidalgo. "These grants enhance court-related programs, trauma-informed training, and resources, while also providing victims with specialized legal support. This includes assistance with securing protective orders and navigating complex family law matters. Collectively, these grants advance a more comprehensive approach, aimed at ensuring that survivors and their families don't merely navigate our legal system, but genuinely find a path to justice and safety.” 
 

ST. LOUIS – A man from St. Louis County, Missouri on Thursday admitted buying thousands of dollars’ worth of stolen catalytic converters.

Asmir Jasarevic, 33, of Lakeshire, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of conspiracy to transport and sell stolen goods. He admitted posting a solicitation on Facebook on June 9, 2021 falsely claiming to be a licensed dealer who wanted to purchase catalytic converters. Jasarevic made a “significant” number of purchases when he had direct knowledge that the catalytic converters were stolen, he admitted in his plea. He had no place of business and bought converters at his apartment or public places such as parking lots or gas stations. He kept no records, offered no receipts and paid only in cash, offering well below market value. He conducted business at night and often conducted multiple transactions with individuals who obviously didn’t have the resources to own multiple vehicles, his plea says.

After purchasing the converters, Jasarevic took them to a recycling company in Illinois. He sold just under $50,000 worth of converters to the recycling company, $20,000 of which came from stolen property, Jasarevic admitted in his plea.

Catalytic converters contain trace amounts of precious metals and have been cut off vehicles around the country by thieves.

Jasarevic is scheduled to be sentenced December 6. The conspiracy charge carries a penalty of up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both.

Homeland Security Investigations and the Maryland Heights Police Department investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney John Ware is prosecuting the case. 

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Sarah E. Pitlyk this week sentenced two siblings to 15 months in prison each and ordered them to repay $448,536 in pandemic loans that they’d fraudulently obtained.

Irvin Coats, 44, of Florissant, was sentenced Thursday and Pamela S. Hubbard, 46, of St. Louis, was sentenced Tuesday

Coats pleaded guilty June 5 to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Hubbard pleaded guilty to the same charge May 31. Both admitted fraudulently applying for and receiving Paycheck Protection Program loans that were intended to help struggling small businesses and save jobs. The pair sought the money not for the intended purpose but to open a “Wing Strip” restaurant in Florissant. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Bateman said during Thursday’s hearings that the PPP loan program was intended to be a lifeline for millions of people who were affected by the pandemic. “While all those people were struggling, the defendant and his co-defendant found an opportunity,” he said, adding that loan money Coats and Hubbard received was not available to help others. 

On May 8, 2020, Coats applied for a $53,125 loan in the name of a defunct security company, Abounding Protection LLC, that had no revenue or employees. He falsely claimed to employ 12 people and claimed he would use the loan to help pay their total monthly salaries of $21,250. He also submitted a false IRS tax form W-3 to support his application. He was successful in fraudulently obtaining the loan. 

On March 5, 2021, Coats applied for and later received a second loan for $24,166. He again made false statements in the loan application and submitted a fraudulent IRS form. 

On June 11, 2020, Hubbard sought and later received a $371,245 loan for Star Shyne LLC, a cleaning service. She falsely inflated the number of employees and submitted fraudulent financial reports and IRS forms and an altered check in support of her loan.

Hubbard and Coats used the money to construct the Wing Strip and for improvements on their mother’s condominium in Florissant. That condo has been sold and the $82,351 in proceeds will go towards repaying the PPP loans.

The FBI investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Bateman prosecuted the case. 

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Ronnie L. White on Thursday sentenced one of the leaders of a murderous St. Louis drug trafficking organization to 20 years in prison.

Maurice Herbert Lee II, 35, obtained bulk fentanyl and crystal methamphetamine from Arizona and supplied it to his co-conspirators, who sold over 20,000 doses per week at the height of the conspiracy. Lee also offered cash bounties of between $5,000 and $15,000 for the murder of rival gang members or drug dealers. 

When he pleaded guilty in May to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and two counts of conspiracy to possess a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, Lee admitted to offering and paying the bounty for the killing of two different men.

Alexander Noodel was fatally shot on May 8, 2017 by Tremayne Silas, now 30, and Jerome Lamont Fisher Jr., 30, Lee’s plea agreement says. The men fired over 100 rounds.

Lee also paid a $10,000 bounty for the murder of Kevin Davis Jr., 24, on June 30, 2017 in the 1900 block of Belt Avenue in St. Louis. Lee paid Delvin Bost, who paid Michael “Beezy” Johnson, 30, plea agreements by Lee and Bost say.

Lee also admitted supplying methamphetamine to another person who then redistributed it. He admitted being responsible for between 4 and 12 kilograms of fentanyl and between 500 grams and 1.5 kilos of methamphetamine.

Fisher and Bost were among Lee’s “runners,” who dealt fentanyl for him. Christopher Jerrin Warlick Jr., 27, Norris Douglas Jr., 31, Mikell Rayford, 26, Sherod Jacolby Tucker, 34, Jerry O. Streeter Jr., 35, and Maricus Davon Futrell, 23, were others listed as runners in Lee’s plea agreement.

Bost, 28, pleaded guilty in May to conspiracy to possess a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.  Bost is serving a nine-year sentence. Judge White sentenced both Silas and Johnson to 18 years in prison. Fisher is scheduled to be sentenced September 19, with both sides recommending 17 years in prison.

All 17 defendants who were charged in the case pleaded guilty.

The case was investigated by the St. Louis County Police Department, the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul D’Agrosa and Mohsen Pasha are prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – The U.S. Attorney’s Office has successfully recovered more than $319,000 in disability payments that a Columbia, Illinois man illegally obtained via disability fraud, U.S. Attorney Sayler A. Fleming announced Wednesday.

Gregory Vieth pleaded guilty in 2019 to one felony count of conspiracy to defraud the United States.  He admitted paying a chiropractor to help him fraudulently qualify for monthly Social Security disability payments and a $100,000 long-term disability payment.  At the direction of the chiropractor, Vieth underwent medically unnecessary tests to bolster his application for disability benefits.  Vieth also falsely claimed on the application that he was unable to complete yardwork, lift, walk, reach, sit, bend and bathe without assistance, his plea agreement says.

On February 21, 2023, U.S. District Judge Ronnie L. White sentenced the 67-year-old to three years of probation and ordered him to pay $319,687 in restitution with required monthly installment payments of at least $500.  By mid-April, Vieth had only made the minimum restitution payments to his victims, so the Financial Litigation Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office began enforcing the judgment by garnishing Vieth’s retirement account held at Fidelity Investments, which contained approximately $450,000.  Vieth then attempted to block the collection action by arguing the minimum monthly payments precluded the government’s garnishment.  Vieth also argued the garnishment should be limited to only 25% of the funds in his retirement account, and the garnishment would cause him to incur a large income tax liability, thereby essentially wiping out his life savings.

Judge White disagreed with all of Vieth’s arguments, saying the court-ordered obligation to make minimum monthly installment payments did not bar the U.S. Attorney’s Office from initiating the garnishment, as the restitution was ordered due in full immediately at the time of sentencing.  Judge White also ruled the garnishment was not capped at 25% and potential tax liability was not a valid defense.  Judge White said Vieth had the assets to pay restitution, and “the public and private victims have a right to receive those funds now.”  The U.S. Attorney’s office recently collected the full amount of the outstanding restitution owed to the victims in this case.

“This case demonstrates that our Financial Litigation Unit will aggressively pursue and seize the assets of criminals to make their victims whole,” U.S. Attorney Fleming said. “In this case, Gregory Vieth falsely claimed he was unable to perform the basic functions of life in order to obtain disability payments that eventually totaled $319,687.  In reality, he was able to do all of those things, including travel internationally. After pleading guilty, he fought to hold on to hundreds of thousands of dollars in a retirement account instead of immediately paying the restitution he owed to his victims.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Debre prosecuted the financial recovery and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tracy Berry and Dorothy McMurtry prosecuted the criminal charges against Vieth, as well as the chiropractor and others linked to him. The Social Security Administration – Office of Inspector General and the FBI investigated the criminal case.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge John A. Ross on Tuesday found a man from Audrain County, Missouri guilty of one count of producing child pornography and two counts of receiving child pornography.

William Dahl, 39, faces at least 15 years in prison when he is sentenced in December.

Judge Ross’ findings of fact and conclusions of law says evidence and testimony at a bench trial in May showed that Dahl photographed himself having sex with a 14-year-old girl and then emailing images to others. Dahl also received a video of a 16-year-old and a pornographic image of a 7-year-old. 

Dahl met the first victim when she was 13 and he was nearly 23. Dahl took pictures of the girl in a Moberly cemetery in 2007 and sent images of his genitals to her, Judge Ross’ order says. He also sent images of her to others.

A second victim met Dahl when he was 36 and she was 16. He bought her a cell phone, alcohol and vaping pods and they exchanged nude pictures, the order says.

The third victim is a 7-year-old girl. Dahl’s co-defendant, Jennifer Huddleston, now 35, pleaded guilty in May to one count of production of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. She admitted taking photographs of herself sexually abusing the sleeping girl and sending them to Dahl. She also admitted possessing child sexual abuse material downloaded from the internet. Huddleston and Dahl were in an on-and-off relationship since 2008.

The investigation began in January of 2021, when the 16-year-old victim and her family reported the inappropriate relationship between the teen and Dahl. The girl said she met Dahl through the local Civil Air Patrol. A subsequent investigation by the Missouri State Technical Assistance Team uncovered more victims.

Dahl also has pending charges in Audrain County Circuit Court.

Huddleston is scheduled to be sentenced October 3. 

The cases were investigated by the Missouri State Technical Assistance Team and Donya Jackson, an investigator with the U.S. Attorney’s office at the time. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Colleen Lang and Amy Sestric are prosecuting the case.

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

ST. LOUIS – A man has been indicted for a downtown St. Louis carjacking in July.

Bradley C. McKinney, 34, appeared in U.S. District Court in St. Louis Wednesday and pleaded not guilty to four felonies: carjacking, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, being a felon in possession of a firearm as an armed career criminal and possession of a machine gun.

The indictment alleges that McKinney carjacked a 2015 Chevrolet Cruze on July 29 while armed and possessed a machine gun the next day. 

A motion seeking to have McKinney held in jail until trial says he and another man brandished handguns with large-capacity magazines and stole the Cruze, two wallets from the driver and passenger and a cell phone. A white GMC Terrain then drove up and both it and the Cruze drove into Illinois. St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department officers stopped the GMC the next day. McKinney was driving and officers found a Glock handgun with a large-capacity magazine, the motion says. The Glock had been illegally modified to become fully automatic with a “switch,” or auto sear, the motion says.

The carjacking charge carries a potential penalty of up to 15 years in prison. Possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence carries a penalty of seven years in prison, consecutive to any other charge. The felon in possession as an armed career criminal charge carries a potential prison sentence of at least 15 years, and the machine gun charge is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary Bluestone is prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey on Wednesday sentenced an Indiana man caught with dozens of fake and stolen IDs in Warren County, Missouri to four years in prison and ordered him to pay $9,825 in restitution to victims.

The prison sentence will run consecutive to any sentence Kevin Sparks, 41, of Indiana, receives for pending state charges in Texas and Indiana.

Sparks was in a 2012 GMC Acadia on Nov. 25, 2021 when the driver, Debra Blake, was pulled over by sheriff’s deputies in Warren County, Missouri. Sparks gave deputies a counterfeit driver’s license and a stolen Social Security card. Deputies then found 11 other counterfeit driver’s license with Sparks’ picture and other people’s names. They also found more than 43 genuine driver’s licenses, passports, Social Security cards and credit or debit cards that had been stolen from fitness centers and other locations in Colorado and Arizona, as well as notebooks listing personal identifying information belonging to other people.

Sparks and Blake used the stolen IDs and personal information to open new credit and debit accounts or take over existing accounts to get cash or buy merchandise.

Sparks used one of the stolen IDs to buy the GMC in Arizona. Police also found surveying equipment that had been stolen from a storage unit in Arizona and electronic equipment that had been used to produce the counterfeit driver’s licenses.

In a letter to Judge Autrey, one victim said his life was upended when Sparks took over his cell phone, bank accounts, email, and investment accounts and tried to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars. Another, a disabled U.S. Army veteran, someone spent years opening credit accounts after a home burglary.

“This sentence is a great example of what can be accomplished when federal and local law enforcement agencies collaborate,” said acting Special Agent in Charge Taekuk Cho for HSI Kansas City. “Coming together in these types of joint operations to arrest and disrupt illegal activities are for the betterment and safety of us all. I couldn’t be prouder of the strong relationships we have built with our law enforcement partners and applaud all of those involved for their efforts.”

Sparks pleaded guilty on May 31 to three felonies: interstate transportation of a stolen vehicle, interstate transportation of stolen property and possession of five or more identification documents.

Blake, 36, pleaded guilty July 19 to possession of five or more identification documents and interstate transportation of a stolen vehicle. She is scheduled to be sentenced October 18.

Homeland Security Investigations and the Warren County Sheriff’s Department investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracy Berry prosecuted the case.

ST. LOUIS – The final defendant of three indicted in July and accused of defrauding pandemic assistance programs appeared in court Thursday to plead not guilty to charges.

Shanay Bolden, 32, of Florissant, Shonta Woods, 38, of St. Louis County, and Ashley Luckett, 32, of St. Louis, were each indicted July 12 on one count of wire fraud conspiracy and two counts of wire fraud. Bolden faces an additional wire fraud count.

Woods appeared in U.S. District Court in St. Louis Thursday, where she pleaded not guilty. Bolden pleaded not guilty July 27 and Luckett pleaded not guilty July 14.

The indictment alleges two fraudulent schemes. In the first, Bolden submitted at least eight applications to Missouri’s State Assistance for Housing Relief Program, which was intended to aid renters and landlords during the COVID-19 pandemic, the indictment says. Bolden falsely claimed to be a landlord and paid Woods to electronically submit the applications, then paid kickbacks to Woods and her purported tenants, the indictment says. In addition to the kickbacks, Bolden spent part of the $126,500 she received in the scheme on personal items, including purchases that she made at Saks Fifth Avenue, the indictment says.

Woods submitted more than 12 fraudulent rental assistance applications on behalf of Bolden, Luckett and herself, the indictment says, receiving tens of thousands of dollars in return. At least two were submitted on behalf of Luckett, who received $20,400, the indictment says.

The second scheme alleged in the indictment involved the Paycheck Protection Program, which was aimed at helping small businesses and their employees. Bolden falsely claimed to own a lawn services company and Luckett falsely claimed to own a catering company, receiving PPP loans of $18,750 and $20,107 respectively, the indictment says.

Each charge is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both prison and a fine. 

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The U.S. Secret Service investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Derek Wiseman is prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – A man from St. Louis, Missouri on Friday admitted fatally shooting someone who was trying to collect a drug debt.

Terrell Donta McDaniel, 41, pleaded guilty in front of U.S. District Judge Sarah E. Pitlyk to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute fentanyl and one count of discharge of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime.

In the plea agreement and in court, McDaniel admitted agreeing to sell 10 grams of fentanyl to Andre Nash on Nov. 2, 2022 for $500. But McDaniel did not give Nash the full amount of fentanyl that he paid for, and Nash began looking for McDaniel to collect the debt.

When Nash learned McDaniel was staying at a vacant house in the 4100 block of Clara Place, he went there and entered the house. McDaniel shot Nash twice in the chest and once in the face, killing him.

McDaniel and several others wrapped Nash’s body in tarps and plastic and placed him in the trunk of a stolen car, dumping the body in the 5900 block of St. Louis Avenue after dark that day. The body was discovered the next morning. 

McDaniel is scheduled to be sentenced November 29.

The fentanyl conspiracy charge carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison, a $1 million fine, or both. The discharge of a firearm charge is punishable by a sentence of up to life in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both.

The case was investigated by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and the FBI.

ST. LOUIS – A St. Louis County, Missouri mother and her son were indicted this week in U.S. District Court in St. Louis and accused of defrauding the Supplemental Security Income Program with false claims of a mental disability.

Gino Rives, 35, of Edmundson, appeared in court Friday and pleaded not guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, five counts of wire fraud and five counts of theft of government funds. His mother, Zella Rives, 57, also of Edmundson, appeared in court Thursday and pleaded not guilty to the same charges, with the addition of one count of making a false statement.

The indictment alleges that from May 11, 2010 to August 30, 2023, the Rives defrauded the Social Security Administration’s Supplemental Security Income Program out of more than $88,000 by falsely claiming that Gino Rives had mental disabilities and had little or no income or resources. They claimed he had never worked, owned nothing, couldn’t drive and was unable to pay bills or use a bank account, the indictment says.

They concealed Gino Rives’ construction and tree trimming work, his mixed martial arts career, a 2009 conviction for financial exploitation of the elderly, his ownership of vehicles and homes and receipt of $721,000 worth of checks from an elderly individual, “A.B.,” before her death in April of 2023.

Gino Rives was charged in a separate indictment in April with one count each of access device fraud and fraudulently effecting transactions after being accused of fraudulently using A.B.’s credit card to purchase $4,788 in Southwest Airline tickets. He pleaded not guilty to those charges. 

The conspiracy and wire fraud charges each carry a potential penalty of up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both. The charge of making a false statement is punishable by up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both, and the theft of government funds charge is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and the same fine.

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Secret Service investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracy Berry is prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – A man accused of a July 2022 carjacking has been arrested and appeared in U.S. District Court in St. Louis Tuesday.

La’Vontray Hayes-Williams, 19, of Jennings, was indicted on Nov. 16, 2022 on one count of carjacking and one count of brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. He was arrested August 24, 2023 and pleaded not guilty Tuesday.

The indictment accuses Hayes-Williams of stealing a 2018 Nissan Sentra on July 7, 2022 in St. Louis County. A motion seeking to have Hayes-Williams held in jail until trial says the St. Louis County Police Department quickly spotted the car after the victim ran to a nearby gas station and called police. Hayes-Williams was caught after a chase that reached speeds of 112 mph and found with a .45-caliber Glock pistol in his satchel, the motion says.

The carjacking charge is punishable by up to 15 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both. The firearm brandishing charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years, consecutive to all other charges, and a maximum of life in prison.

Hayes-Williams also faces charges in St. Louis County Circuit Court. 

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and are not proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The St. Louis County Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nino Przulj is prosecuting the case.

ST. LOUIS – A woman from St. Louis County, Missouri on Tuesday admitted using others’ identities to buy two cars and lease a home.

Amia Hill, 26, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to two counts of wire fraud. She also helped someone else fraudulently obtain a $6,500 loan, causing total losses of between $40,000 and $95,000.

On Dec. 13, 2021, Hill used the name and personal information of someone identified in the plea agreement as “S.A.” to buy a Dodge Charger for $29,989. On March 18, 2022, she did the same thing, using a different person’s name and information, to buy a $35,800 Dodge Durango.

On March 7, 2022, Hill used S.A.’s information to lease a home in the 3500 block of Park Chateau Lane in Florissant. She lived there until July 1, 2022, costing the landlord $5,768.

Hill also helped a woman obtain a $6,500 loan from First Community Credit Union on March 19, 2022 using someone else’s personal information. That woman has been indicted separately and her case is pending.

Hill is scheduled to be sentenced November 29. Each wire fraud charge is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both.

Homeland Security Investigations, the Breckenridge Hills Police Department and the Ellisville Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Roy is prosecuting the case.