Western District of Missouri

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Springfield, Mo., man has been sentenced in federal court for possessing heroin to distribute.

Danny R. Jones, 37, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark on Friday, April 5, to 18 years in federal prison without parole.

On June 27, 2018, Jones pleaded guilty to possessing heroin with the intent to distribute. 

Law enforcement officers, prior to executing a search warrant, established surveillance of Jones’s residence on May 10, 2016. Officers saw Jones leave his residence, driving a Ford Taurus. An officer stopped the vehicle for an improper license plate and arrested Jones, who was driving while having a revoked driver’s license. The officer searched the vehicle and found a diaper bag on the passenger-side rear seat. Inside the diaper bag were several clear plastic bags that contained a total of 190 grams of heroin.

Jones is one of eight defendants charged in this case, all of whom have pleaded guilty, and is the final defendant to be sentenced.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nhan D. Nguyen. It was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Springfield, Mo., Police Department.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Springfield, Mo., man has pleaded guilty in federal court to his role in a conspiracy that distributed 45 kilograms of methamphetamine in southwest Missouri.

Kenneth R. Friend, 48, of Springfield, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool on Friday, April 5, to participating in the conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Greene, Polk, Christian, Jasper, Laclede, and Webster Counties from June 1, 2013, through Nov. 29, 2014. Friend also pleaded guilty to money laundering by engaging in monetary transactions to promote unlawful activity.

Beginning in 2012, the Drug Enforcement Administration, assisted by other agencies, investigated one of the largest methamphetamine distribution rings in southwest Missouri. The investigation resulted in the indictment of 29 defendants.

The conspiracy was responsible for the distribution of more than 45 kilograms of methamphetamine.

During the conspiracy, Friend obtained large amounts of methamphetamine from various sources. For example, Friend paid one source $20,000 in early November 2014 for two pounds of methamphetamine. Friend also intended to purchase a large amount of methamphetamine from one of his sources on Nov. 27, 2014. As part of the investigation, law enforcement officers arrested Friend, his then-girlfriend and one of his suppliers. During the execution of a federal search warrant at the supplier’s residence in Springfield, agents found approximately $20,000 and approximately five and a half pounds of methamphetamine. Friend admitted that he intended to purchase at least two of the five and a half pounds seized from this source of supply. Agents also seized $34,310 from Friend, which he had intended to use to purchase the two pounds of methamphetamine. Agents also seized Friend’s 1992 Harley Davidson motorcycle, which he used to distribute methamphetamine and which he purchased with proceeds from the sale of methamphetamine. Under the terms of the plea agreement, Friend must forfeit the cash and the motorcycle to the government.

Friend is among 29 defendants who have pleaded guilty in this case; 27 of those defendants have been sentenced.

Under federal statutes, Friend is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Randall D. Eggert, Nhan D. Nguyen and Cynthia J. Hyde. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, IRS-Criminal Investigation, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the Springfield, Mo., Police Department and Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Branson, Mo., sex offender has been sentenced in federal court for receiving and distributing child pornography.

Bill Lawrence, Jr., 57, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark on Friday, April 5, to 15 years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Lawrence to 15 years of supervised release following incarceration.

Lawrence, who pleaded guilty on Aug. 28, 2018, has prior convictions for possessing child pornography and promoting child pornography.

According to court documents, the investigation began with two CyberTips from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Lawrence had attached images of child pornography to at least two emails that were sent from his Google account. The images depicted prepubescent children being sexually abused or in sexual poses.

Law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Lawrence’s residence and seized his cell phone, which contained multiple images of child pornography. Lawrence admitted to officers that he used the Chat Hour application to both receive and distribute child pornography over the internet.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Kelleher. It was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force.

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

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An owner of a former Kansas City business, Barrett Prelogar, 48, was convicted by a federal trial jury today of corruptly endeavoring to impede the due administration of the internal revenue laws.

Prelogar was a founding partner of the now-defunct Winntech Digital Systems, Inc. The company primarily produced electronic displays used in stores or at trade shows.

Prelogar failed to pay over to the government the payroll taxes withheld from Winntech employees’ paychecks in 2002 and 2003. He then obstructed the TRS’s collection process of the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty, which had been assessed against him personally for the unpaid trust fund taxes of Winntech. He also obstructed the IRS’s collection of the income taxes he owed for 2008.

On Oct. 28, 2009, Prelogar filed his 2008 tax return. The return reported over $500,000 in gross income and a tax due and owing of $120,103. Prelogar did not submit any payments with the 2008 tax return. Yet, from November 2009 through April 2011, he paid a total of more than $362,000 towards a house at the Lake of the Ozarks, a house near the Plaza in Kansas City, Mo., a house in Leawood, Kan., a Porsche, a Jeep, and a boat. During that time, he made no payments on his 2008 tax debt.

Subsequently, Prelogar engaged in several strategies from May 2011 to March 28, 2016, to obstruct the collection of taxes and penalties he owed to the government. Prelogar used corporate funds to pay his personal expenses, structured cash withdrawals from Winntech’s bank account to avoid federal bank reporting requirements, and cashed his payroll checks from his wife’s company, Bare Skull Innovation, LLC, rather than placing the money into a personal bank account, all to avoid IRS collections.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., deliberated for approximately 3 1/2 hours before returning the guilty verdict to U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough, ending a trial that began Monday, April 1, 2019.

Under federal statutes, Prelogar is subject to a sentence of up to three years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul S. Becker and Trial Attorney David Zisserson of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Tax Division. It was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An Independence, Mo., man was convicted by a federal trial jury today of illegally possessing a firearm that he used to shoot his girlfriend.

William C. McGee, 43, was found guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm. He was charged as a career criminal due to his prior felony convictions.

Police officers were called to the Great Western Motel in Independence on June 13, 2018, in response to a report from a motel guest who heard gunshots. The caller also told police that the suspected shooter was in a green Toyota Camry, last seen traveling west on 24 Highway.

Officers located the green Toyota Camry in a nearby driveway. McGee was standing beside the vehicle. When he saw the police officers, McGee reached behind his back, pulled out a black Hi-Point 9mm handgun, and threw it over the vehicle. McGee, who had an active arrest warrant for domestic assault, was placed under arrest. The firearm was loaded with one round of 9mm ammunition.

McGee’s girlfriend, who was standing beside him, told officers that McGee had shot her outside their camper home, which was parked at that location, and she had a gunshot wound to her buttocks. Located in the camper were multiple rounds of 9mm ammunition – the same brand of ammunition as found in the firearm.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. McGee has three prior felony convictions for delivery of a controlled substance and prior felony convictions for distributing a controlled substance, possessing a controlled substance, and carrying a concealed weapon.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., deliberated for approximately 30 minutes before returning the guilty verdict to U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips, ending a trial that began Wednesday, April 3, 2019.

Under federal statutes, McGee is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Q. McCarther and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean T. Foley. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Independence, Mo., Police Department.

Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program that identifies the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develops comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An Overland Park, Kan., man who was previously found guilty of a drug offense was convicted by a second federal trial jury today of illegally possessing a firearm, which was involved in a shooting during an altercation at a downtown Kansas City, Mo., bar.

Caesar V. Vaca, 42, was found guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

The investigation began when Kansas City police officers were dispatched to PR’s Place, a bar at West 18th Street and Washington Avenue in Kansas City, Mo., on Nov. 20, 2016. Witnesses told officers that Vaca and several other men were in an altercation inside the bar, which started again later outside the bar. Vaca pulled a handgun on another person and shot at the victim, according to witnesses, then left the scene, driving north.

Officers collected an expended 9mm shell casing at the scene of the shooting. Later the same day, a witness who was hiking along the Missouri river bank at Berkley Riverfront Park found a loaded Glock 9mm semi-automatic handgun that had been abandoned in the park and called the police. Officers recovered the firearm, which ballistics testing linked to the expended shell casing found at the scene.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Vaca has a prior federal felony conviction for conspiracy to distribute cocaine and prior state felony convictions for aggravated battery, aggravated escape from custody and distributing marijuana.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., deliberated for about an hour and 50 minutes before returning the guilty verdict to U.S. District Judge Greg Kays, ending a trial that began Monday, March 25, 2019.

Vaca was originally indicted on May 22, 2018, for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. When Vaca was arrested, he was in possession of approximately eight grams of powder cocaine (some of which was packaged in five separate baggies) and $1,874. When officers searched Vaca’s vehicle, they found a trace amount of cocaine and a razor blade. Vaca was then charged in a superseding indictment with an additional drug-trafficking count. The court ordered the two counts of the superseding indictment to be severed, which resulted in a separate trial for each charge.

On Dec. 13, 2018, another trial jury found Vaca guilty of possessing cocaine.

Under federal statutes, Vaca is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Trey Alford and Alison D. Dunning and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Smith. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.

Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A former Pineville, Mo., youth pastor was indicted by a federal grand jury today for producing child pornography.

Ryan Daniel Crawford, 32, currently a resident of Jacksonville, Ark., was charged with producing child pornography between Nov. 29 and Dec. 18, 2017.

Crawford was formerly the associate pastor at First Baptist Church in Pineville.

The charge contained in this indictment is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Harshad Miller. It was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crime Task Force, and the Pineville, Mo., Police Department.

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

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Purdy, Mo., man has been convicted by a federal trial jury of possessing methamphetamine to distribute and of illegally possessing a firearm.

Guadalupe Urbina-Rodriguez, 71, was found guilty on Tuesday, March 26, of possessing methamphetamine to distribute, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Evidence introduced during the trial indicated that a federal postal inspector seized a package on Aug. 31, 2018, that was addressed to Urbina-Rodriguez’s address. The package, which contained 448.8 grams of methamphetamine, was purportedly mailed from a nonexistent address in California.

The postal inspector delivered the package to Urbina-Rodriguez, who was sitting in a chair under a tree in the front yard. Urbina-Rodriguez had a loaded Marlin .22-caliber rifle sitting beside him. Law enforcements officers then executed a search warrant of the residence and seized the package.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Urbina-Rodriguez has four prior felony convictions related to drug trafficking or possessing a controlled substance and a prior felony conviction for maintaining a public nuisance.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Springfield, Mo., deliberated for about an hour and 15 minutes before returning the guilty verdicts to U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool, ending a trial that began Monday, March 25, 2019.

Under federal statutes, Urbina-Rodriguez is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica R. Keller and Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Randall D. Eggert. It was investigated by the Ozark Drug Enforcement Team, the Cassville, Mo., Police Department, the Barry County, Mo., Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man has been convicted by a federal trial jury of illegally possessing firearms in a case that began when police officers followed a trail of blood from a drive-by shooting.

Tyreese Thompson, 29, was found guilty on Tuesday, March 26, of two counts of being a felon in possession of firearms.

Kansas City, Mo., police officers responded to an apartment building in the 8600 block of Newton Avenue on Nov. 30, 2014, when neighbors reported hearing gunshots. Witnesses told the officers they heard a loud noise that could have been gunshots, then saw an individual, later identified as Thompson, firing gunshots as he stood by a red car in the middle of the street. Witnesses told the officers they saw Thompson and a woman, later identified as his girlfriend, go into the apartment building then leave in the red car.

Officers saw a trail of blood from the street to the building, then up the stairs of the building to the door of an apartment. Officers recovered 12 shell casings from the street; six were 9 millimeter and six were .45 caliber.

Officers then responded to Research Medical Center in response to a report that a shooting victim was in the emergency room with non-life-threatening gunshot wounds to his elbow, forearm and pelvis. The shooting victim was Thompson, who was accompanied by his girlfriend. They told officers that Thompson had been shot while in the driver’s seat of her car, by unknown assailants who drove past them in a gray car.

Police officers searched the apartment and found blood droplets throughout the apartment and a Sig Sauer 9mm semi-automatic pistol on top of a counter. Officers also searched the vehicle, which had six bullet holes in the exterior driver’s side door. An examination of the firearm later indicated that Thompson’s DNA was on the grip; his DNA was also in the blood swabbed from a handrail. Investigators also determined that the six 9mm shell casings found in the street were all fired from the Sig Sauer pistol.

On March 8, 2016, law enforcement officers were conducting surveillance on a residence on 72nd Street in Kansas City, Mo. When they entered the house, Thompson was inside. He was covered in dirt and spider webs. An officer noticed that a hatch to the attic, located inside a closet, had recently been opened. The officer opened the hatch, climbed into the attic, and found a Glock 9mm pistol, a Romarm “mini Draco” 7.62 x 39mm pistol, a CMMG .223-caliber rifle, and a Mossberg .22-caliber rifle.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Thompson has two prior felony convictions related to trafficking marijuana and prior felony convictions for possessing cocaine and for robbery.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., deliberated for about an hour and a half before returning the guilty verdicts to U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark, ending a trial that began Monday, March 25, 2019.

Under federal statutes, Thompson is subject to a  mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Raskin and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Kate Butterfield. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program that identifies the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develops comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Belton, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to illegally possessing a firearm after leading police officers on a vehicle pursuit that ended when he drove through residential yards and disabled his vehicle after striking several trees.

Gregory P. Middaugh, 38, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Belton police officers responded to a call of a burglary in progress on Feb. 10, 2017. Middaugh was kicking at the front door of his estranged girlfriend’s residence, attempting to make entry into the residence. Middaugh fled from the scene in a black Mercedes Benz C280.

Belton police officers attempted to stop Middaugh as he fled from the residence. Middaugh refused to stop and fled from the officers at a high rate of speed. While fleeing, Middaugh hit several parked vehicles. He then left the roadway and continued to drive through yards, where he struck several trees. Middaugh’s vehicle was eventually disabled, and he was taken into custody.

Officers searched the vehicle after Middaugh’s arrest and found a loaded Smith and Wesson .45-caliber pistol with a laser sight attachment lying on the passenger floorboard of the vehicle. The firearm was reportedly stolen.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Middaugh has two prior felony convictions for burglary, two prior felony convictions for stealing, and prior felony convictions for domestic violence, robbery, armed criminal action and assault on a state Department of Corrections employee.

Under federal statutes, Middaugh is subject to a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole. If the court determines that Middaugh is an armed career criminal, he would be subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Moeder. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Belton, Mo., Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program that identifies the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develops comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for his role in an armed robbery that was part of a three-month-long spree of armed robberies at metropolitan area businesses.

Donald L. Boggess, also known as “Old School,” 57, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to 11 years and nine months in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Boggess to pay $19,796 in restitution, for which he is jointly and severally liable.

On Dec. 19, 2017, Boggess pleaded guilty to the Aug. 30, 2015, armed robbery of a 7-Eleven store at 1701 Independence Ave., Kansas City, Mo.

The crime spree, which lasted from July 25 to Oct. 20, 2015, involved 13 armed robberies of businesses in the metropolitan area in which $19,796 was stolen.

Boggess is the fourth and final defendant to be sentenced in this case. Isaac J. Williams, also known as “Dat Flyguy,” 26, of Kansas City, Mo., also pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 11 years in federal prison without parole. Rahnice J. Clay, 25, of Kansas City, Mo., also pleaded guilty and was sentenced to eight years in federal prison without parole. Deitra M. Turner, also known as “Detrix Mob Turner,” 26, of Kansas City, Mo., also pleaded guilty and was sentenced to eight years in federal prison without parole. 

During the armed robbery of the metroPCS store at 4513 Independence Ave., Kansa City, Mo., on Aug. 18, 2015, metroPCS robbery, Boggess was armed with a silver handgun while Williams stood by the door looking out. When Boggess demanded money, the sales clerk motioned to the cash register and Boggess opened the drawer, took approximately $2,627, and stuffed it into his hooded sweatshirt pocket. While taking the cash from the drawer, Boggess continued to point the handgun at the clerk and another employee. Williams and Boggess then fled the store and got into the getaway car with the Turner and Clay. All four divided and shared in the proceeds from the robbery.

During the armed robbery of the Phillips 66 gas station at 7531 Troost Ave., Kansas City, Mo., on Aug. 21, 2015, Williams and Turner entered the store, while Clay was at the gas pump as the lookout and Boggess remained in the car, as he was the getaway driver. The cashier was in the middle of a transaction with a customer who had just handed her a $100 bill when Williams pushed the customer out of the way and demanded the money in the register. He then pulled out a silver handgun that was wrapped in a t-shirt and pointed it at her. The cashier opened the cash register and took out all of the cash and placed it onto the counter. Williams grabbed the cash, then he and Turner (who was standing by the door as a lookout) left the store. They got into Boggess’s vehicle and Boggess drove away. The money from the robbery was split equally among the four of them.

Clay admitted that, in two robberies, she entered the store prior to the robbery then left the store when there were no other customers. A short time later, Williams and Turner entered the store. Williams, armed with a handgun, demanded money.

During the armed robbery of the metroPCS store at 723 Southwest Blvd., Kansas City, Mo., on Sept. 11, 2015, Turner grabbed a blue metroPCS bag from the store to put the money in to. The employee handed over approximately $312. Williams and Turner ordered her to the back to unlock the safe, but she was unable to unlock the safe.

During the armed robbery of the GameStop store at 906 Westport Rd., Kansas City, Mo., on Sept. 12, 2015, Turner took one of the employees to the back and collected game systems. The employee stated he handed over approximately $555 and games. Two witnesses outside the GameStop store saw Williams and Turner run to and get into Clay’s red Toyota; Clay, the getaway driver, was already in the car. Williams, Turner, and Clay split the money and video game systems.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney D. Michael Green. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department, the Grandview, Mo., Police Department, the Roeland Park, Kan., Police Department and the FBI.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man who rammed a police vehicle and crashed into two more cars while leading officers on a high-speed chase in a stolen vehicle was charged in federal court today with being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Chance Ayers, 24, was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo.

According to an affidavit filed in support of today’s federal criminal complaint, on March 3, 2019, a Kansas City police detective saw Ayers driving a maroon 2002 Mercury Sable, which had been reported stolen when the keys were taken during a burglary earlier that day. The detective followed Ayers to a gas station, where he pulled up next to the front of the building. A police captain, dressed in full police uniform and driving an unmarked police vehicle equipped with emergency lights and siren, arrived to conduct a car check. The captain activated his lights, got out of his vehicle, and made verbal contact with Ayers.

When Ayers saw the captain, the affidavit says, he immediately put his car in reverse and backed up until he struck the front of the captain’s police vehicle. Ayers continued to accelerate in reverse and the Mercury began pushing the parked police vehicle backward. The captain was dragged backwards through the parking lot as he struggled with Ayers through the driver’s window of the Mercury in an effort to get Ayers to stop. The captain was able to disengage from Ayers and the Mercury before it entered 11th Street. Ayers continued to push the police vehicle until it struck a wooden utility pole, which sheared off. Ayers then placed the Mercury in drive and fled westbound on 12th Street.

A civilian police department employee, who was seated in the front passenger seat of the police vehicle, was treated at a hospital for neck and back pain. The police vehicle was towed from the scene.

A Kansas City police officer soon located Ayers, who was traveling at a high rate of speed, near 12th Street and Chestnut. The officer activated his emergency lights and siren and attempted to stop the vehicle, the affidavit says, but Ayers refused to stop. Ayers allegedly ran multiple red traffic signals as he traveled at a high rate of speed. Ayers made a wide turn onto 71 Highway, almost driving off the road. Ayers continued to drive at a high rate of speed in rainy conditions on 71 Highway, the affidavit says, weaving in and out of all three lanes. When Ayers exited 71 Hwy at 39th Street, he caused an accident with another vehicle, but did not stop. The officer pursuing Ayers was unable to continue the pursuit and lost sight of Ayers after he exited at 39th Street.

Ayers eventually wrecked into a parked car on Wayne Avenue. A police sergeant saw Ayers run from the vehicle towards Highland Avenue. The sergeant located an open garage door of an abandoned residence at 4316 Highland Avenue and heard noises inside. A perimeter was set up and Ayers was eventually taken into custody inside the residence. Ayers had two 12-gauge shotgun shells in his right front pants pocket at the time of his arrest.

The Mercury had major damage, and was towed from the scene. Inside the vehicle, officers found a loaded New England 12-gauge sawed-off shotgun on the driver’s side floorboard. Two more shotgun shells were found on the floor next to the shotgun.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Ayers has prior felony convictions for burglary, theft and criminal damage. He was on state parole at the time of the alleged offense.

The charge contained in this complaint is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alison D. Dunning. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program that identifies the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develops comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Springfield, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for drug trafficking and illegally possessing firearms.

Steven S. Price, 31, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to 15 years in federal prison without parole. The court ordered this federal sentence to be served consecutively to an unrelated state conviction.

On Nov. 8, 2018, Price pleaded guilty to possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute and to possessing firearms in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime.

On Jan. 17, 2018, Springfield police officers executed a search warrant at Price’s residence after receiving information that he was distributing large quantities of methamphetamine. They found seven ounces (approximately 198 grams) of methamphetamine and $6,202 inside a backpack on the floor next to where Price was sitting. Price also had $910 in the pocket of the backpack. Officers also searched Price’s vehicle, a 2000 GMC Sierra, and found a Smith and Wesson .40-caliber pistol, a Beretta .380-caliber pistol, and 49 ounces (approximately 1.389 kilograms) of methamphetamine behind the driver’s door panel.

According to court documents, Price has accumulated over 20 criminal convictions since his involvement with the criminal justice system began in 2005. Price has been convicted several times for possessing controlled substances, as well as stealing, passing a bad check, possession of marijuana, possession of narcotic paraphernalia, and numerous traffic offenses. While on supervision for his various offenses, Price accumulated over 40 violations, including one for possession of contraband while incarcerated.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Byron H. Black. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Springfield, Mo., Police Department.

Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program that identifies the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develops comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Joplin, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for leading a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Jasper County, Mo.

 Donald B. Loomis, 36, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to 30 years in federal prison without parole.

On Nov. 7, 2018, Loomis was found guilty at trial of participating in a conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine in Jasper County from March 1, 2015, to Sept. 24, 2016.

Law enforcement officers began investigating methamphetamine trafficking in the Joplin area in April 2015, focusing on a violent gang that identified themselves as the Joplin Honkeys. Loomis, a member of the Joplin Honkeys, was the leader of a drug-trafficking organization and supplied multiple pounds of methamphetamine per week to distribute to others in the Joplin area.

Loomis is the final defendant to be sentenced in this case. Co-defendants Alisha D. Courtney, 48, and Terrance E. Romero, 43, both of Webb City, Mo., pleaded guilty and were each sentenced to 10 years in federal prison without parole. Co-defendants Kelly C. Walker, 47, of Joplin, and Lisa M. Allison, 41, of Neosho, Mo., pleaded guilty and were each sentenced to five years in federal prison without parole. 

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Abram McGull, II, and Josephine L. Stockard. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the FBI, the Ozarks Drug Enforcement Team, the Joplin, Mo., Police Department, the Webb City, Mo., Police Department, the Newton County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Jasper County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Jasper County, Mo., Prosecuting Attorney’s Office and the Newton County, Mo., Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Sacramento, Calif., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to the sex trafficking of six victims.

Ronald Ean Taylor, 45, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner to six counts of the sex trafficking of an adult.

By pleading guilty today, Taylor admitted that he used force, fraud or coercion to cause six victims to engage in prostitution, from which he benefitted financially. Taylor trafficked six separate victims at various times between Nov. 1, 2014, and May 31, 2017.

The investigation began in June 2016, when one of Taylor’s victims was contacted by Kansas City, Mo., police officers. She told officers that Taylor was a pimp who lived in California and sold drugs and prostitutes in the Kansas City area. She said Taylor verbally threatened to harm her, was mean, had anger issues, and was manipulative. He provided her with drugs and used her to meet other women with drug addictions. She told officers that one of Taylor’s victims, identified in court documents as “Victim 6,” used to “work” for Taylor and died in California from a drug overdose while she was with him.

The women had ads posted on Backpage and Taylor used hotels near Blue Ridge Cutoff near the sports stadiums to conduct his business. He would get the women to go to California and show them an extravagant lifestyle. He started them off dancing in strip clubs, then suggested they work as prostitutes. When the women agreed to prostitute, Taylor would fly them back to Kansas City to work. Taylor kept the money earned by the women from prostitution.

A second victim told investigators that Taylor was violent and on one occasion hit her over the head with liquor bottle. The second victim stated she felt like she would be hurt if she did not have sex with him. She said Taylor carried a firearm.

A third victim told federal agents that Taylor was physically violent towards her and would take all of the proceeds from the acts of prostitution. She said Taylor choked her to unconsciousness and forcibly raped her.

A fourth victim’s mother contacted law enforcement to report that her daughter was in Hollywood, Calif., with Taylor and was being held against her will. Taylor had brought the fourth victim to California on two occasions so that she could purportedly model. He provided her with illegal narcotics and kept her in a constant state of intoxication to a point where she became dependent. She told investigators that Taylor kept her from contacting her mother and became hostile; he used her drug dependency to motivate her to do things she would not normally do.

A fifth victim told investigators that she and a sixth victim (now deceased due to a drug overdose) were addicted to heroin. Taylor used heroin and a trip to California to entice them to work as prostitutes. He paid for both of their airfares to California and put them up in a motel somewhere in Los Angeles. Taylor continued to supply them with drugs and then flew them both back to Kansas City to work as prostitutes. On one occasion, she said, Taylor slapped her in the face and forcibly raped her. She and another victim told investigators that Taylor also was physically abusive to the sixth victim. A witness stated she saw Taylor throw her against the wall and choke her.

Under the terms of today’s plea agreement, Taylor will be sentenced to 18 years in federal prison without parole and must pay restitution to his victims. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Teresa A. Moore. It was investigated by the FBI, the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department, the Los Angeles, Calif., Police Department and the Sacramento, Calif., Police Department in conjunction with the Human Trafficking Rescue Project.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Springfield, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for enticing a person whom he believed to be a minor (but who was actually an undercover law enforcement officer) to engage in illicit sex.

Daniel Rowland, 55, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to 10 years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Rowland to 15 years of supervised release following incarceration.

Rowland, who pleaded guilty on May 21, 2018, admitted that he posted a Craigslist advertisement seeking a “younger babygirl.” A detective with the Greene County Sheriff’s Department, operating in an undercover capacity, sent an email to Rowland. The detective portrayed a 14-year-old female. During the course of multiple email exchanges, Rowland made clear that he wanted to establish a “boyfriend/girlfriend” relationship, which would have to remain secret. 

As the email exchanges continued, Rowland’s messages became more sexual in nature. Rowland sent sexually explicit videos along with messages explaining that he wanted to engage in those sexual acts with her. They arranged a meeting, and when Rowland arrived at the location, he was arrested.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Kelleher. It was investigated by the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force, Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Greene County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department.

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

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for attempting to distribute child pornography over the internet.

Donnie Brett Butcher, 56, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Greg Kays to 10 years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Butcher to 10 years of supervised release following incarceration.

Butcher pleaded guilty on Aug. 17, 2018. The investigation began when a federal undercover agent was contacted online by Butcher, who shared the password to two online folders that contained images and videos of child pornography. FBI agents executed a search warrant at Butcher’s residence on March 6, 2017, and seized various electronics media, including a MacBook computer and an external hard drive.

Although Butcher admitted to agents that he downloaded and exchanged child pornography with his MacBook computer, which contained full-disk encryption, he refused to provide a password so that investigators could examine the computer. Investigators found approximately 11,000 images and videos of child pornography on external storage devices, including videos depicting bondage, bestiality and sexually explicit activity with toddlers.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine A. Connelly. It was investigated by the FBI.

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

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Three men have been sentenced in federal court this week for their roles in a drug-trafficking conspiracy that led to the kidnapping and torture of an Independence, Mo., man.

Randal G. Holmes, also known as “Peckerwood” or “Wood,” 54, of Kansas City, Mo., and Michael C. Borrusch, also known as “Birdie,” 43, of Lakewood, Colo., were sentenced today in separate appearances before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays. Holmes was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison without parole. Borrusch was sentenced to 3 years and 10 months in federal prison without parole.

Jeremy R. Bond, 40, of Independence, was sentenced on Wednesday, March 13, 2019, to two years and six months in federal prison without parole.

On July 10, 2018, Holmes pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, one count of kidnapping, one count of conspiracy to distribute 50 kilograms or more of marijuana and one count of brandishing firearms in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime. Borrusch and Bond pleaded guilty to their roles in the drug-trafficking conspiracy.

Holmes’s son and co-defendant Gerald L. Holmes, also known as “Jerry” or “Joker,” 27, and co-defendant Richard M. Phoenix, also known as “Snake,” 77, both of Kansas City, Mo., have also pleaded guilty and await sentencing.

During the conspiracy, which lasted from May 1 to Sept. 13, 2016, Bond invested $10,000 into the marijuana operation. In return, he received $1,000 a week as interest and free marijuana until the entire principal investment was repaid in full. This investment allowed Gerald Holmes and a co-conspirator, identified in court documents as “C.H.” (who had made four trips to Colorado with Gerald Holmes), to purchase greater quantities of marijuana per trip. Once it reached the greater Kansas City metropolitan area, the marijuana was then resold by Gerald Holmes and C.H.

Conspirators purchased at least 120 pounds of marijuana from Borrusch, for which they made more than a dozen trips between Colorado and Kansas City. Gerald Holmes paid Borrusch between $1,600 to $2,400 per pound, depending on the type and quality of marijuana available. Randal Holmes received $100 for every pound of marijuana brought back to Kansas City because of his prior connection to Borrusch, who was previously his supplier.

On Sept. 12, 2016, Randal and Gerald Holmes agreed to kidnap C.H. because he stole money that was intended for the purchase of marijuana.

They arrived at the Independence, Mo., residence of the victim’s father, identified as “W.H.,” on Sept. 12, 2016. During their conversation, Gerald Holmes removed a firearm from his waistband and placed it on a table in front of W.H. They told W.H. to call C.H. and tell him he was being held at gunpoint and that C.H. needed to come to the residence right away. When C.H. arrived at the residence, Randal Holmes pointed a firearm at him and told him to get into his vehicle. While in the vehicle, Gerald Holmes struck, punched and choked C.H. as Randal Holmes drove away.

They took C.H. to Randal Holmes’s residence, where they were met by Phoenix. C.H. was taken to the basement, where he was assaulted with fists, a hammer and tin snips/clippers. During the assault, Holmes repeatedly demanded that C.H. disclose where the duffle bag containing the money was located. Randal and Gerald Holmes left to retrieve the duffle bag while Phoenix held C.H. at gunpoint.

Randal Holmes later drove C.H. to a rural residence near Edwards, Mo. As Randal Holmes drove them to the residence, Gerald Holmes continued to strike C.H. with fists and the butt of a firearm. When they arrived at the residence, C.H. was told to call his father and to tell him that he was okay, that he had taken a beating, that he would be home in a couple of days and that he deserved what had happened. 

Law enforcement officers were able to trace the telephone call and on Sept. 13, 2016, officers were able to locate C.H. and arrest the conspirators. Officers observed that C.H. had suffered multiple, visible injuries to his face, head, hands and feet. Officers noted that C.H. had trouble walking, that his face was black and blue, as well as swollen with traces of dried blood. Upon receiving medical treatment, it was determined that C.H. had also suffered a fracture in his left hand.

Officers found a Jimenez Arms 9mm pistol in Randal Holmes’s vehicle and a Hi-Point 9mm pistol in the residence where C.H. had been held. Officers also found an FN Herstal .40-caliber pistol, a Remington .270-caliber rifle, an RG .22-caliber revolver, a Ruger .22-caliber rifle, a Mossberg .20-gauge shotgun, 36.4 grams of marijuana and drug paraphernalia in another residence.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brad K. Kavanaugh. It was investigated by the Independence, Mo., Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Benton County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the FBI.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Joplin, Mo., woman was sentenced in federal court today for illegally possessing a firearm.

Tracy Arlene Smith, 48, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to 19 years and seven months in federal prison without parole.

On Sept. 25, 2018, Smith was found guilty at trial of one count of being a felon and an unlawful user of cocaine and methamphetamine in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

According to evidence introduced during the trial, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Smith’s residence located in Joplin, on June 22, 2017.  During the execution of the search warrant, members of the Ozark Drug Enforcement Team seized Smith’s purse, which contained a CDM Prod. Inc., .22-caliber pistol, loaded with six rounds of .22 caliber ammunition. Officers also seized drug paraphernalia.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who is an unlawful user of controlled substances, or who has been convicted of a felony, to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Smith, who was on parole at the time she committed the offense, has five prior felony convictions for forgery, four prior felony convictions for possession of a controlled substance, and prior felony convictions for sale of a controlled substance (on three separate occasions) and assault.

This case was prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Randall D. Eggert and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nhan D. Nguyen. It was investigated by the Ozark Drug Enforcement Team and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program that identifies the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develops comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A former Lebanon, Mo., teacher was sentenced in federal court today for receiving and distributing child pornography over the Internet.

Brandon Hileman, 26, of Lebanon, Mo., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to eight years in federal prison without parole.

Hileman, formerly a math teacher at Joel E. Barber Junior High School in Lebanon, pleaded guilty on Nov. 14, 2018. Hileman admitted that he received child pornography over the Internet between Jan. 1 and Sept. 29, 2017.

The investigation began when a Lebanon police detective was notified that Hileman had uploaded two videos of child pornography to his Google Drive account. Law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Hileman’s residence on Sept. 29, 2017, and seized computers, an iPad, cell phones and digital storage devices. Investigators examined the devices and found 886 images and 46 videos depicting child pornography, along with nearly 500 depictions of children engaged in the act of urination or defecation. Almost 600 images of a juvenile with whom Hileman was acquainted were also located, at least two of which were inappropriate (although not pornographic).

Hileman told investigators he began viewing child pornography as a teenager.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Kelleher. It was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Lebanon, Mo., Police Department.

Project Safe Childhood 

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

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Two Mexican nationals have pleaded guilty in federal court to illegally possessing firearms after police officers interrupted them shooting handguns in their backyard.

Juan Carlos Cuevas-Alvarez, 33, a citizen of Mexico unlawfully residing in Kansas City, Mo., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner on Monday, March 11, 2019, to being an illegal alien in possession of firearms and to possessing marijuana to distribute. Co-defendant Nestor K. Rodriguez, 27, also a citizen of Mexico unlawfully residing in Kansas City, Mo., pleaded guilty on Feb. 27, 2019, to being an illegal alien in possession of firearms.

Kansas City, Mo., police officers were dispatched in response to a report of gunshots to the residence shared by Cuevas-Alvarez, Rodriguez and a third person at about 4:24 a.m. on Aug. 5, 2018. When officers arrived at the residence, they heard gunshots coming from behind the residence. Cuevas-Alvarez admitted that he shot two to three full magazines worth of ammunition in the backyard of the residence. Rodriguez admitted that he shot a fully loaded magazine of ammunition at a beer bottle in the backyard of the residence.

When officers searched the residence, they found a Cobray 9mm pistol, a Walther .380-caliber handgun, and a Sig Saur 9mm pistol. Officers also found $35,289 in cash and approximately 26 pounds (11.79 kilograms) of marijuana, which was contained in several individually wrapped and heat-sealed plastic bags inside of two black trash bags.

Under federal statutes, Cuevas-Alvarez is subject to a sentence of up to 15 years in federal prison without parole. Rodriguez is subject to a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of these defendants will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing hearings will be scheduled after the completion of presentence investigations by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rudolph R. Rhodes IV. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A former Lee’s Summit, Mo., police officer who led officers on a 100-miles-per-hour vehicle pursuit pleaded guilty in federal court today to armed bank robbery.

Richard W. Hagerty, 35, of Independence, Mo., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to one count of armed bank robbery and one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.

Hagerty was a police officer with the Lee’s Summit Police Department from 2007 to 2016.

Hagerty entered Central Bank of the Midwest, located at 1305 N.W. Arborwalk Blvd. in Lee’s Summit, on Aug. 28, 2018. Hagerty, wearing a camouflage balaclava-style mask that covered part of his face and black gloves, pointed a Glock .40-caliber pistol at a customer and yelled, “Everybody get down on the floor, this is a robbery.” He demanded cash from two tellers, pointing the handgun at them while he was demanding money. Hagerty stole about $7,000 then fled from the bank on foot.

A Lee’s Summit police officer located Hagerty driving a dark gray Mazda on Hook Road and 139th Street shortly after the robbery. When the officer activated his emergency equipment, Hagerty accelerated and a vehicle pursuit ensued. The pursuit stretched from Lee’s Summit to Grandview, Mo., in the middle of the day, on busy thoroughfares. Hagerty drove erratically during the pursuit, according to court documents, by reaching speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour on those busy roads, passing through school zones, and crossing into oncoming traffic.

After the vehicle was finally stopped, the officer gave verbal instructions for the occupant of the Mazda to exit the vehicle. After a short delay, Hagerty exited through the driver's side door of the vehicle with his hands raised above his head. The officer immediately recognized Hagerty, who was arrested.

Inside the vehicle, officers saw a large amount of cash on the driver’s seat and the front driver’s and passenger’s floorboard. They also recovered the Glock handgun from the vehicle.

Under federal statutes, Hagerty is subject to a sentence of up to 25 years in federal prison without parole for armed bank robbery, plus a consecutive mandatory minimum sentence of seven years, up to life in federal prison, for brandishing the firearm. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashleigh Ragner. It was investigated by the Lee’s Summit, Mo., Police Department and the FBI.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A St. Louis, Mo., man traveling by bus from Los Angeles, Calif., was charged in federal court today with possessing methamphetamine to distribute after more than 31 pounds of methamphetamine was found in his luggage at a Kansas City, Mo., bus station.

Cregg L. Matthews, 52, was charged in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., with possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute. Matthews, who was arrested on Saturday, March 9, 2019, remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing on Thursday, March 14, 2019.

According to an affidavit filed in support of today’s federal criminal complaint, law enforcement officers were conducting drug interdiction activities at a local bus station at about 10:27 p.m. Saturday, March 9, 2019. A bus arrived from Los Angeles en route to St. Louis, and a Kansas City, Mo., police detective used a service canine to check the luggage under the bus in the luggage bins. When all the passengers were off the bus, they also checked the luggage in the passenger compartment.

The police service canine alerted to Matthews’s suitcase, which was in the overhead bin above his seat on the bus. In the meantime, another detective had already stopped Matthews because he could smell marijuana on him. Matthews was carrying a black bag, the affidavit says, to which the police service canine also alerted. Matthews also had some methamphetamine and marijuana in his pants pocket.

When investigators searched the black bag Matthews was carrying, the affidavits says, they found 10 bundles of methamphetamine that weighed a total of 10 pounds and some marijuana. In the suitcase retrieved from the bus, investigators found 16 bundles of methamphetamine that weighed a total of 21.6 pounds.

The charge contained in this complaint is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bruce A. Rhoades and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean T. Foley. It was investigated by MoWIN (the Missouri Western Interdiction and Narcotics Task Force) and the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Kansas City Interdiction Task Force.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Romanian national was sentenced in federal court today for a scheme to covertly steal and utilize illicitly obtained debit card data by placing skimming devices on ATMs inside QuikTrip stores in Olathe, Kan., Kansas City, Kan., and Riverside, Mo.

David Velcu, also known as Luca Antoni, 24, a citizen and national of Romania who is illegally present in the United States, residing in Anaheim, Calif., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner to three years and 10 months in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Velcu to pay $5,904 in restitution.

On Sept. 13, 2018, Velcu pleaded guilty to possessing counterfeit unauthorized access devices. Velcu admitted that he possessed 78 re-encoded magnetic strip gift cards. Velcu engaged in a scheme using skimmers and pin cameras installed on ATMs in order to capture credit/debit card account numbers as well as the associated pin number. These account numbers were then transferred onto magnetic strip cards, using a computer and reader encoder, with the purpose of using the fraudulent access devices and associated PINs to withdraw money from the stolen accounts.

Between April 7 and 9, 2018, ATM skimming devices were located on three ATMs at Quick-Trip locations in Olathe, Kansas City, and Riverside. The investigation revealed that two juveniles who placed the skimming device on the ATM in Olathe on April 7, 2018, arrived at that location in a silver Audi A6 registered to Luca Antoni, an alias used by Velcu. That evening, Velcu entered the store and proceeded directly to the ATM, which by then had an “Out-of-Service” sign. After staring at the ATM, Velcu bought some food items and left the store, departing in a silver Audi A6.

Law enforcement investigators located Velcu’s vehicle on April 10, 2018, and Independence, Mo., police officers conducted a traffic stop. Velcu, the driver, presented a counterfeit Italian driver’s license bearing the name of Luca Antoni. When officers searched Velcu, they found a wallet with a Romanian identification card with his real name. Velcu’s wife, infant son, and 17-year-old brother-in-law were also in the vehicle. Velcu’s wife told officers that she and her brother had entered the United States illegally.

Officers searched Velcu’s vehicle and found three re-encoded magnetic strip cards with stickers on the front depicting four-digit codes, three tubes of Super Glue and two small crow bars. Upon deploying a card reader to ascertain the data on the magnetic strips, a federal agent was able to ascertain that each one of them contained a 16-digit account that was different than the 16 digit number embossed on the cards.

Investigators also searched Velcu’s hotel room, where he was staying with his family and the two juveniles, and found 78 re-encoded gift cards and three laptop computers that contained more than 1,000 compromised card numbers. They also found other equipment needed to install skimming devices and to re-encode the gift cards, including memory chips/cards, circuit boards, super glue, plastic fascia plates, lithium battery packs, cutting tools, and cables.

According to court documents, the fraudulent magnetic strip cards found in Velcu’s possession were analyzed by the U.S. Secret Service. Eighteen account holders were identified involving 17 different banks located in California.

This case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberlee L. Moore. It was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service, the Olathe, Kan., Police Department, the Riverside, Mo., Police Department, the Independence, Mo., Police Department, Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and ICE’s Enforcement Removal Operations.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A former Springfield, Mo., business owner was sentenced in federal court today for his role in leading a scheme with two Nixa, Mo., residents to market an all-natural male enhancement supplement that actually contained the same active ingredient found in Viagra.

“This criminal scheme involved thousands of individual acts of fraud over several years, and distributed misbranded and dangerous products throughout the United States,” said Tim Garrison, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri. “This placed the health of an untold number of individuals at risk, because the product actually contained dangerous levels of sildenafil – the active ingredient found in Viagra – more potent than what a person could obtain through a doctor’s prescription.”

“American consumers are put at risk when the true nature of ingredients for dietary supplements is hidden,” said Charles L. Grinstead, Special Agent in Charge, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations’ Kansas City Field Office. “We will continue to pursue and bring to justice those who jeopardize the public health.”

Michael S. Schindele, 44, of Jacksonville, Fla., was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to three years and one month in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Schindele to forfeit $47,930, which represents his profit from the scheme.

On Aug. 15, 2018, Schindele pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of delivering adulterated or misbranded food. Schindele, the owner and operator of Executive Image International, operated a website that sold dietary supplements and drugs to the general public. He worked through businesses owned and operated by co-defendants John G. Schindele, 42 (his brother), and Jennifer S. Travis, 46, both of Nixa, to sell dietary supplements, which they claimed contained only all-natural ingredients. John Schindele and Travis both pleaded guilty, in separate but related cases, and were each sentenced to five years of probation.

Among the many supplements sold by Michael Schindele was Silver Bullet, marketed as an “all-natural male performance enhancer,” an “Extreme Male Stimulant,” and a “dietary supplement.” In reality, Silver Bullet contained materially different ingredients than what was listed, including sildenafil, a synthetic pharmaceutical ingredient that was not disclosed to consumers purchasing the product.

Sildenafil is the active pharmaceutical that is commonly used in the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra. The labeling for Silver Bullet failed to provide adequate warnings about the use of a sildenafil-containing product, which is only legally available with a prescription from a doctor. Michael Schindele was not authorized or licensed to sell this pharmaceutical.

Michael Schindele’s misrepresentations resulted in him, Executive Image International, Schindele Enterprises, and Midwest Wholesale obtaining at least $150,000 from consumers.  Michael Schindele, personally, received at least $47,930, which must be forfeited to the government.

Michael Schindele directed the purchase of sildenafil from a supplier in the People’s Republic of China. He directed hundreds, if not thousands, of mass mailings of misleading and fraudulent advertisements claiming the product was “all natural,” which included samples of the tainted products. He coordinated the sale of the tainted products through his brother, John Schindele, and Travis over several years. Michael Schindele also directed his brother to use the proceeds from these fraudulent sales to pay for his personal expenses and transfer the cash in order to conceal his involvement in the fraud. 

After he moved to Jacksonville, according to court documents, Michael Schindele started another business to perpetrate the same criminal fraud. He hired another person in the state of Georgia to handle the mailings and distribution of the illegal product. The new operation fraudulently sold dangerous misbranded food products that contained sildenafil and tadalafil at higher than normal levels that a reasonable physician would initially prescribe. In fact, there is not a combination pill currently approved by the FDA that contains both drugs, as they are created by different manufacturers.

During the time of the fraud scheme, which operated from Oct. 11, 2011, through Jan. 6, 2014, Michael Schindele also pleaded guilty in a separate and unrelated case to the misdemeanor offense of introducing an unapproved animal drug. Schindele admitted that he sold heartworm tablets that were produced in Australia and had not been approved for sale in the United States, and which required a veterinarian’s prescription. Federal agents seized 1,368 doses of the heartworm tablets from Michael Schindele’s EZBody store in Springfield. Michael Schindele was sentenced for that offense on July 17, 2012, to one year of unsupervised probation.

According to court documents, Michael Schindele recruited his brother and Travis to become the face of the operation after he became aware of the government’s investigation into this earlier criminal enterprise.

According to his plea agreement, John Schindele fraudulently received $210,000 for the misrepresented and mislabeled dietary supplements from April 16, 2012, to July 8, 2015. According to her plea agreement, Travis fraudulently received $152,862 for the misrepresented and mislabeled dietary supplements from June 2, 2014, through Jan. 31, 2017.

These cases were prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nhan D. Nguyen and Patrick Carney. They were investigated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations (OCI).

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for possessing carfentanil (a synthetic opioid) to distribute, after a teenager who ingested half of one of the pills without knowing what it contained suffered a nearly fatal overdose.

Gage S. Lankas, 21, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs to 15 years in federal prison without parole.

On Oct. 30, 2018, Lankas pleaded guilty to possessing carfentanil with the intent to distribute.

The investigation began on Aug. 2, 2017, when Grain Valley, Mo., police officers responded to a 17-year-old male having a drug overdose. He mistakenly thought he had ingested half an oxycodone pill, but it actually contained carfentanil. Carfentanil is a synthetic opioid that is 10,000 times more potent than morphine and 100 times more potent than fentanyl, which itself is 50 times more potent than heroin.  Carfentanil has been linked to a significant number of overdose deaths across the country. 

The teenager survived the incident and told officers he had snorted an oxycodone pill and blacked out. At his home, the officers located 375 pills stamped “XANAX” on one side and a sideways “2” on the other. They also found some other pills stamped “A215.” The teenage victim told officers he acquired the pills from Lankas, whom he met in the Westport area of Kansas City, Mo. When he returned home, he took a few of the Xanax pills and snorted one-half of what he thought was an oxycodone pill (stamped “A215”). He immediately blacked out and does not remember anything except waking up and passing out again in the ambulance. He told officers he had snorted oxycodone before and could not understand his reaction.

On Aug. 5, 2017, Kansas City, Mo., police officers responded to a report of a suicidal party. When the officers arrived at the apartment, they were met by a woman who told them she and Lankas, her boyfriend, had been arguing. She told him she wanted to break up and she wanted him to leave their apartment. She told the officers Lankas threatened to kill himself by jumping out the window and picked up a handful of pills and acted as if he was going to take them. She left and called 9-1-1. The officers placed Lankas under arrest.

Officers found a large stack of white pills sitting on the kitchen table in the apartment. There were 1,332 white pills, as well as 67 partial pills, stamped “XANAX” (later determined to contain alprazolam). There were also 3.25 blue pills stamped “A215” (later determined to contain carfentanil), $6,583 inside a safe in the bedroom, and drug paraphernalia. Lankas told officers that he purchased the pills from the dark web. Lankas admitted that he intended to distribute the pills.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Q. McCarther. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department and the Grain Valley, Mo., Police Department.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to possessing firearms stolen overnight from parked vehicles.

Jerel D. Jones, 26, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs to possessing at least seven stolen firearms.

Jones sold most of the stolen firearms to Blue Steel Guns & Ammo in Raytown, Mo. Jones sold two of the stolen firearms to Blue Steel Guns & Ammo on Sept. 22, 2015. One of the firearms was a Glock .40-caliber pistol that had been stolen overnight between Sept. 20 and 21, 2015, from a Chevrolet Tahoe in a parking lot in Olathe, Kan. The vehicle had the rear driver’s side window broken out. Also missing was $47,000 from the vehicle’s console. The second stolen firearm was a General George S. Patton Commemorative .45-caliber revolver that had been stolen overnight between Sept. 18 and 19, 2015. It was one of eight firearms taken from a parked Ford F150 in Olathe.

Jones also sold four more firearms that had been stolen from the Ford 150 to Blue Steel Guns & Ammo on other occasions, including a Remington 7mm rifle, a Ruger 10/22 Carbine .22-caliber rifle, and a Benelli 12-gauge shotgun sold on Sept. 19, 2015; and a Springfield 30-06 caliber rifle sold on Sept. 22, 2015.

On the same night the Glock .40-caliber pistol was stolen from the Chevrolet Tahoe between Sept. 20 and 21, a Ford Fusion was broken into in the same parking lot. The vehicle’s front passenger window had been broken out. Investigators recovered a palm print above the passenger door handle that was a match for Jones.

Jones also admitted that he traded a Glock 9mm pistol to Blue Steel Guns & Ammo for a different Glock (a .40-caliber pistol). In order to complete the trade, Jones had to fill out an ATF form that required him to answer 15 prohibiting questions, including, “Are you under indictment or information in any court for a felony, or any other crime for which the judge could imprison you for more than one year.” Jones answered “NO” to this question, although he had been charged with receiving stolen property and had been to court four times prior to filling out the form. Jones later pawned the Glock .40-caliber pistol at Smart Pawn in Kansas City, Mo., for $300.

Under federal statutes, Jones is subject to a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bruce A. Rhoades. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for drug-trafficking and illegally possessing a firearm.

Robert L. White, 47, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to 23 years in federal prison without parole. White was sentenced to 20 years for the federal convictions in this case, plus three consecutive years for violating the terms of his supervised release on a previous offense.

On April 6, 2018, White was found guilty at trial of nine counts of distributing crack cocaine, three counts of possessing crack cocaine with the intent to distribute, one count of possessing cocaine with the intent to distribute, one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

On two occasions in 2013, White was arrested in a traffic stop and officers found crack cocaine in his vehicle. On nine occasions in 2016, White distributed crack cocaine to sources who were cooperating with a law enforcement investigation.

On June 6, 2016, White was arrested after Kansas City police officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop. White fled in his vehicle, then abandoned the vehicle and fled on foot, but was found and arrested. When officers searched his vehicle they found a clear plastic baggie that contained 22 individually-wrapped baggies totaling 58.5 grams of crack cocaine.

Officers executed  a search warrant at White’s residence on the same day and seized $5,000, cocaine, and a loaded Kel Tec 9mm handgun.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. White has three prior felony convictions for possession of controlled substances and prior felony convictions for theft, conspiracy to possess cocaine and conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffrey Q. McCarther and Bradley K. Kavanaugh. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department and Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program that identifies the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develops comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for distributing crack cocaine and illegally possessing firearms.

Lamont E. Owens, 48, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Greg Kays to 18 years and four months in federal prison without parole. The court ordered today’s federal sentence to be served consecutively to the unexpired state sentence for a murder conviction for which he was on parole at the time of the federal offense.

On Jan. 18, 2018, Owens was found guilty at trial of possessing crack cocaine with the intent to distribute, possessing firearms in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, being a felon in possession of a firearm and five counts of distributing crack cocaine. Owens has been in federal custody since his arrest in October 2015.

According to evidence introduced during the trial, Owens sold crack cocaine to an undercover detective on five separate occasions between Aug. 31 and Oct. 20, 2015. Officers executed a search warrant at Owens’s residence on Oct. 27, 2015, and arrested him. He was in possession of 75 separate baggies that contained a total of 15 grams of crack cocaine.

When officers searched the residence they seized an additional 49 grams of crack cocaine, approximately 30 grams of powder cocaine, approximately 125.8 grams of marijuana, a Grand Power 9mm handgun, a Rossi .357-caliber revolver, various rounds of ammunition and $9,829.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Owens has eight prior felony convictions that arose out of a single Jackson County, Mo., Circuit Court case for which he was on parole at the time of these federal offenses. A jury found Owens guilty of murdering one man and attempting to rob another. Owens and his confederates attempted to rob two drug dealers of their money and drugs and when the two victims fled the scene, Owens and his henchmen shot them. Owens was sentenced to 80 years in state prison, during which time he was cited 57 times for violations including fighting, inciting a riot, assault, possession and use of intoxicating substances, theft, contraband, creating a disturbance, insulting behavior and disobeying an order.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stefan C. Hughes and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kim Moore. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Clinton, Mo., man has been sentenced in federal court for a $4.7 million investment fraud scheme in which he defrauded 92 investors who believed they were purchasing cattle for resale at a profit.

Cameron J. Hager, 43, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner on Tuesday, March 5, 2019, to eight years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Hager to pay $3,236,547 in restitution to the victims of his crime.

Hager pleaded guilty on June 26, 2018, to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering.

Hager, who operated 5A Holdings, LLC, admitted that he engaged in the fraud scheme from July 2015 to September 2017. Hager solicited victims to invest in a “cattle fund” that was used to purchase herds of cattle to be sold later at a substantial profit, although he never actually purchased or intended to purchase any cattle.

Hager received $4.7 million dollars from 92 investors, with investment amounts from $1,000 to $267,000. After taking into account money repaid to investors during the course of the scheme, and money paid to investors by Hager after the scheme was exposed, the total loss amount is $3,236,547.

Hager deposited $394,074 into his business bank account. He also used the proceeds of the scheme, among other things, to make substantial payments on the mortgage of his 46.6-acre residential property and to purchase a Ford F-150 pickup truck, a Toyota 4Runner, and two Winnebago travel trailers. All of Hager’s interest in that property has been forfeited to the government.

Hager convinced his victims that he was locating herds of cattle that farmers in distress needed to sell. He told them he would use investor funds to buy such herds, then transport the cattle to pastures/feed lots owned by himself or his company, 5A Holdings, where the cattle would be cared for, fattened, and eventually sold to slaughterhouses where Hager had “contacts.” Hager consistently represented that these transactions would produce a net “return” of from 23 to 28 percent on each investment. Hager paid an individual to pose as a veterinarian when at least one investor traveled to Missouri to inspect the cattle herds.

Investors filed complaints with the Missouri Secretary of State’s Securities Division, and that office opened an investigation. Hager sent the Securities Division a written response to the allegations of fraud; in that response he admitted that there were no cattle and that he had made false representations to investors.

The wire fraud charge relates to e-mails sent by Hager to a victim investor. The money laundering charge relates to Hager’s withdrawal of $21,500 from his business bank account to purchase a Ford F-150 pickup truck. The FBI determined that the money withdrawn by Hager for this transaction was derived from his wire fraud scheme.

This case was prosecuted by First Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Ketchmark and Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas M. Larson. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stacey Perkins Rock is handling the forfeiture. This case was investigated by the FBI and the Missouri Secretary of State, Securities Division.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An Adrian, Mo., man who led law enforcement officers on a high-speed pursuit after shooting at another person has been sentenced in federal court for illegally possessing a firearm.

Christopher Good, 32, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner on Wednesday, March 6, 2019, to nine years in federal prison without parole.

On Sept. 19, 2018, Good pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. Good admitted that he was in possession of a Taurus 9mm semi-automatic pistol on Feb. 27, 2018. Good acquired the firearm by taking it from a friend without the friend’s permission. Good engaged in a domestic dispute the same day, which ended with him driving away from a residence with a relative following him in another vehicle. Good fired gunshots at the relative, striking the vehicle the relative was driving.

Law enforcement officers tried to stop Good, but he led them on a vehicle pursuit that exceeded speeds of 90 miles per hour. Good twice avoided tire-deflation devices that the officers had positioned on the route. When officers stopped Good’s vehicle by using a special swerving maneuver, he resisted arrest by struggling with the officers. Officers subdued him by using a Taser.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Good has two prior felony convictions for assault.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Raskin. It was investigated by the Bates County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program that identifies the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develops comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – An Oklahoma man was sentenced in federal court today for the armed robbery of a hotel in Columbia, Mo., on May 31, 2017.

Darrell Eugene Black, 25, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Brian C. Wimes, to a total sentence of 318 months (26 years and 6 months) imprisonment for one count of robbery, one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm, and one count of possessing a stolen firearm.

Black brandished a Springfield 9mm handgun when he robbed the Staybridge Suites Hotel, 805 Keene Street, Columbia, Mo., on May 31, 2017. Black entered the hotel at approximately 1:50 a.m., pointed his pistol at a clerk, jumped over the counter and demanded money. The clerk opened the desk drawer and Black took approximately $200. Black told the clerk that if she did not open the hotel safe, he would shoot her. The clerk told him that only the manager had the key to open the safe. Black got upset and told the clerk to put her hands behind her back. He disconnected the phone cord and unsuccessfully tried to tie the clerk’s hands behind her back. Then he told the clerk to lie on the ground. When Black finished searching the hotel front desk area for items to steal, he told the clerk to face the wall and not move. Black left and the clerk faced the wall for approximately 10 to 15 minutes until her feet became numb, and then called the police. The clerk’s cellphone and purse were missing.

Black was spotted by a Jefferson City, Mo., police officer later the same day. Black fled on foot but was apprehended by the officer. At the time of his arrest, Black was carrying a black bag that contained the handgun, marijuana, an ecstasy pill, and a magazine with five rounds of 9mm ammunition. As the officer was handcuffing Black, a woman ran up, grabbed the black bag and ran away. Officers were able to apprehend the woman and retrieve the bag.

This case was prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. Oliver. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Columbia, Mo., Police Department and the Jefferson City, Mo., Police Department.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Fulton, Missouri man was sentenced in federal court today for his role in firing shots at law enforcement officers and other motorists during a high-speed pursuit by law enforcement.

            Russell Dean Moore, 28, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to 30 years in federal prison without parole.

            On December 13, 2018, Moore plead guilty to one count of the destruction of a motor vehicle (a USF Holland, Inc., semi-tractor trailer), a second count of the destruction of a motor vehicle (a DCE Transportation, Inc., semi-tractor trailer), one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm, and one count of knowingly possessing a stolen firearm, all alleged in an April 21, 2016, federal indictment.

            Boone County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to a Columbia, Mo., residence on the afternoon of April 6, 2016, for a stolen vehicle complaint. A woman told deputies that her 2007 Jeep, as well as firearms and other items, had been stolen from her residence. Among the items stolen was a Smith & Wesson 9mm semi-automatic pistol.

            At 2:44 a.m. the following morning, a sergeant with the Boone County Sheriff’s Department spotted the stolen Jeep in the parking lot of Midway Travel Center, 6401 E. Hwy. 40, Columbia. The sergeant drove over to the Jeep, which appear to be unoccupied, got out of his vehicle and walked towards the Jeep. As he did so, a woman appeared in the front passenger seat. She moved to the driver’s seat and drove away, stopping in the parking lot to allow Moore to get in the front passenger seat.

            The sergeant pursued the Jeep with his emergency lights active. The Jeep turned onto Highway 40 and, as it was crossing Interstate 70, Moore shot at the sergeant multiple times. The Jeep turned onto Highway UU and stopped at the intersection of Sugar Creek Road. The sergeant saw Moore exit the Jeep and started shooting at him. Moore got back into the Jeep and the pursuit continued.

            After the sergeant’s patrol vehicle was struck by at least one bullet, disabling it, other officers continued the pursuit of the stolen Jeep into the southern part of Columbia. The chase eventually moved onto Interstate 70 East, where officers continued to pursue the stolen Jeep into Callaway County. Throughout the pursuit, multiple shots were fired from the Jeep at various officers. Shots were also fired from the Jeep at four semi-trailer trucks traveling on Interstate 70, nearly striking one of the drivers.

            The Jeep ran out of gas on County Road 172 in Callaway County and the occupants of the Jeep were arrested.

            Moore told investigators that his intent when shooting at semi-trailer trucks on Interstate 70 East was to cause a serious accident, which would terminate the officers’ pursuit and aid in their escape. Two tractor trailers were shot during the pursuit. One of the drivers stopped his vehicle and discovered that his cab was damaged, and there was a 9mm bullet lodged behind the driver’s seat. Another driver told investigators he heard a pop and his truck engine began smoking and overheated. He pulled into a rest stop and called his employer. There was a hole in his tractor grill and the radiator, air cooler and condenser were damaged.

            This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence E. Miller. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Boone County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, and the Callaway County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A prior sex offender in Fulton, Mo., was sentenced in federal court today after his mother and grandmother transported a 13-year-old child victim from Alabama to engage in illegal sexual activity with him.

Michael James Collins, 22, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 15 years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Collins to 25 years of supervised release following incarceration.

Collins pleaded guilty on Nov. 26, 2018, to transporting a minor under the age of 14 across state lines with the intent to engage in illegal sexual activity and to committing the felony offense while he was under the requirement to register as a sex offender. Collins, who was a resident at the Community Supervision Center in Fulton, was on probation at the time of the offense for a prior felony conviction for sexual misconduct involving a child.

The Callaway County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department received information on Dec. 10, 2017, that a 13-year-old girl from Alabama was missing from her home. A cell phone ping placed the child victim at a residence in Fulton, where she was located and removed.

Collins admitted that he paid his grandmother $400 to go to Alabama to pick up the child victim, whom he met on a dating website in July 2017. Collins’s mother was with his grandmother when the child victim was picked up in Alabama and transported to Missouri. Collins’s grandmother and mother also transported the child victim between the Fulton residence and Collins’s residence at the Community Supervision Center when they were taking Collins back and forth to work. Collins admitted to engaging in sexual activity with the child victim while being transported by his grandmother and mother in their minivan to his place of employment.

Collins and the child victim communicated with each other from July to December 2017 via cell phone, Facebook Messenger and other apps, which was a violation of Collins’s probation. Collins accessed the internet using his cell phone as well as his mother’s cell phone. Collins and the child victim talked about having sex, had telephone sex and engaged in sexual role-playing that is commonly known as “sexting.” Collins’s mother and the child victim also communicated regularly using Facebook Messenger.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley S. Turner. It was investigated by the Callaway County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Fulton, Mo., Police Department, the FBI, the Callaway County, Mo., Prosecutor’s Office and the Callaway County Children’s Division.

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

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The former Callaway County Collector was sentenced in federal court today for embezzling nearly $300,000 from Callaway County taxpayers.

Pamela J. Oestreich, 60, of Fulton, Mo., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to two years and six months in federal prison without parole. Oestreich was immediately taken into custody at the conclusion of today’s sentencing hearing to begin serving her sentence.

The court also ordered Oestreich to pay $379,588 in restitution to the county, which includes approximately $280,000 in direct damages and $99,588 in indirect damages (such as audit expenses) resulting from her theft. In a memorandum to the court, the government recommends that, if Oestreich is unable to pay the full restitution within 30 days, the court should order her to turn over her half-interest in the sale of her home (which she owns outright with her husband), to pay 25 percent of her monthly pension benefits from the County Employees’ Retirement Fund, and to liquidate one of cars she owns with her husband as well as her part-interest in a residence she owns with her siblings.

On Sept. 24, 2018, Oestreich pleaded guilty to stealing from an organization that receives federal funds.

Oestreich, who was elected as the Callaway County Collector in November 2002, admitted that she disbursed taxpayer funds for her personal use on 103 occasions beginning in September 2015. Oestreich deposited taxpayer funds directly into her personal bank account. Oestreich also moved taxpayer funds between Callaway County bank accounts to conceal her theft of cash deposits made by taxpayers at the Callaway County Courthouse. The total amount embezzled by Oestreich from Callaway County taxpayers was $299,387.

Oestreich resigned from her office on March 15, 2018, when confronted by the Callaway County Sheriff and FBI agents.

During the course of her theft of public money, Oestreich made payments totaling $19,430 from her personal bank account into Callaway County Collector accounts to hide her theft, which reduced the amount of restitution ordered by the court.

This case was prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. Oliver. It was investigated by the Callaway County, Mo., Sheriff’s Office and the FBI.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Columbia, Mo., man was charged in federal court today with the arson at the Columbia Health Center (operated by Planned Parenthood Great Plains) on Feb. 10, 2019.

Wesley Brian Kaster, 42, was charged in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Jefferson City, Mo., with one count of maliciously damaging a building, owned by an organization the receives federal financial assistance, by means of fire or an explosive. Kaster, who was arrested on Saturday, March 2, 2019, remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing on Thursday, March 7, 2019.

According to an affidavit filed in support of today’s federal criminal complaint, surveillance video from Planned Parenthood and from neighboring businesses recorded Kaster in the early morning hours of Feb. 10, 2019. He parked his Toyota Sienna minivan (missing the right front passenger-side hubcap) nearby at about 2:30 a.m. and carried a seemingly heavy white bucket to the north exterior door of the Planned Parenthood building. Kaster broke the front door, the affidavit says, placed the bucket inside the building, and threw a Molotov cocktail-type device  inside the building. Kaster remained standing on the sidewalk outside the door, watching the inside of the building. Kaster then allegedly entered the building through the broken door. No explosion or fire was visible at this time.

At approximately 2:52 a.m., the affidavit says, two unidentified pedestrians approached and Kaster fled east across Providence Road. Kaster walked to where his vehicle was parked and drove away. At this time, there was no discernable smoke or active fire at the Planned Parenthood building.

Kaster returned at about 4 a.m., according to the affidavit. Surveillance video recorded Kaster walking to the Planned Parenthood door with what the affidavit describes as “an undiscernible item in his left hand.” At 4:03 a.m., smoke is visible billowing from the broken glass door of the Planned Parenthood building. Kaster fled north along the west side of Providence Road, and west along 4th Avenue, out of view.

The Columbia Fire Department received the fire alarm at the Planned Parenthood building at approximately 4:05 a.m. Firefighters observed that the north exterior door of the building, which was constructed of glass inside a frame, had been shattered and an accelerant fueled the fire that was set inside. The fire was fully extinguished by a fire sprinkler system before firefighters arrived, and only moderate fire damage was observed to the room and its contents. Among the evidence collected at the scene by investigators were two five-gallon buckets that had contained gasoline, one inside of the other, found lying on the floor just inside the broken doorway. Investigators also recovered the remains of a Molotov cocktail.

Investigators identified 55 Toyota Sienna minivans registered by Columbia residents, one of which was registered by Kaster. Investigators also received records from Lowe’s for a list of all recent purchases of five-gallon buckets from area stores in 2019, which included a purchase by Kaster. Surveillance videos related to that purchase, according to the affidavit, clearly captured Kaster’s face and physical features.

Investigators contacted Kaster’s employer, a light manufacturing business in Jefferson City, where he works as a floor supervisor in the welding shop. According to the affidavit, Kaster had acquired a pair of Ansell HyFlex gloves, which are cut and abrasion resistant, which were the same make, model, color and size gloves recovered from the Planned Parenthood building.

Investigators searched social media accounts connected to Kaster. On Oct. 25, 2015, a picture was posted to the Facebook page of Kaster’s wife depicting a handgun and the words, “Guns Don’t Kill People, Planned Parenthood Kills People.”

Multiple federal search warrants were executed on Saturday, March 2, 2019. Investigators searched Kaster’s minivan a few minutes after he left his workplace that morning and took Kaster to obtain hair specimens. Investigators searched Kaster’s residence, the affidavit says, where numerous items of evidence were collected that definitively tied Kaster to the crime scene at Planned Parenthood. Based on these facts, Kaster was arrested at 11:07 a.m.

The charge contained in this complaint is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

This case is being prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. Oliver. It was investigated by the FBI.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Compton, Calif., man was sentenced in federal court today for his role in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine through the mail.

Shadeed Seifullah Muhammad, 42, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 11 years and three months in federal prison without parole. 

On Sept. 10, 2018, Muhammad pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine from April 4, 2016, to April 4, 2017. 

On March 9, 2016, Muhammad mailed a U.S. Priority Mail package from the state of California to an address in Jefferson City, Mo. The package, which had been tracked by Muhammad and co-conspirator Javiar Rosser, 32, of Jefferson City, was seized by law enforcement and sent to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Laboratory; it was determined that the substance contained approximately 894 grams of pure methamphetamine.

Muhammad mailed a U.S. Priority Mail Package from the state of California on April 4, 2016, to a residence in Columbia, Mo. The package was intended for Rosser. James Alexander Larkins, 39, of Columbia, accepted delivery of the package, and Robert Istill McNair, 32, of Jefferson City, transported the package and was en route to Jefferson City when officers made a traffic stop. The package was seized and sent to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Laboratory; it was determined that the substance contained approximately 810 grams of pure methamphetamine.

On March 30, 2017, Muhammad mailed another package from a post office in the state of California that was addressed to a residence at Lincoln University in Jefferson City. It was also intended for Rosser. The package was accepted by an unknowing Lincoln student at the request of  fellow student Bria Royale Lanier-Richie, 24, of Jefferson City. Lanier-Richie intended to give the package to Rosser.  The package was seized by law enforcement and was also sent to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Laboratory; it was determined that the substance contained approximately 856 grams of pure methamphetamine.

Co-conspirators McNair, Rosser, Lanier-Richie and Larkins have pleaded guilty to their roles in the drug-trafficking conspiracy and await sentencing.
 
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence E. Miller. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man has been sentenced in federal court for illegally possessing a firearm.

Laron J. Wainwright, 44, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Beth Phillips on Thursday, Feb. 28, 2019, to 20 years in federal prison without parole. Wainwright was sentenced as an armed career offender due to his prior felony convictions.

On Aug. 22, 2018, Wainwright was found guilty at trial of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Wainwright possessed a loaded Jimenez 9mm semi-automatic handgun, which had been reported as stolen, on April 5, 2015.

According to court documents, Kansas City, Mo., police officers were dispatched to the area of 11th Street and Prospect Avenue on April 5, 2015, to investigate suspicious drug activity in the park. When they contacted Wainwright, he fled and led officers on a pursuit through the park. As Wainwright ran onto Prospect Avenue, an officer saw the loaded Jimenez 9mm handgun fall onto the street. Wainwright continued running to a nearby apartment building; he attempted to get into the building but was unable to do so, and he was placed under arrest.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Wainwright has three prior felony convictions for distribution of a controlled substance, two prior felony convictions for possession of a controlled substance and a prior felony conviction for unlawful use of a weapon.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stefan C. Hughes and Matthew Moeder. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program that identifies the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develops comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An Independence, Mo., woman has been sentenced in federal court for her role in leading a conspiracy to distribute multiple kilograms of methamphetamine.

Melanie C. Hamilton, 46, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes on Thursday, Feb. 28, 2019, to eight years in federal prison without parole.

On Oct. 6, 2017, Hamilton pleaded guilty to being the source of supply for the drug-trafficking conspiracy that ran from Nov. 1, 2013, to Sept. 24, 2014. Hamilton admitted that she obtained large quantities of methamphetamine, which she broke down into smaller quantities for redistribution. The totality of the investigation indicates that Hamilton was involved in the distribution of at least five kilograms of methamphetamine.

A confidential informant made three separate controlled purchases from Hamilton; on each occasion she weighed out approximately 8.3 grams of methamphetamine from a large zip-lock freezer bag that contained multiple pounds of methamphetamine.

Law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Hamilton’s residence on Sept. 24, 2014, and seized more than a kilogram of methamphetamine, a DVR containing video surveillance of individuals coming and going from her residence, and drug paraphernalia. Hamilton told investigators that she had received one to two pounds of methamphetamine from her source every other week over the past three months (1.5 pounds per two weeks, or three pounds per month, totals nine pounds, or 4,086 grams).

Hamilton is the final defendant to be sentenced among 10 defendants who have pleaded guilty and been sentenced in this case.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Edwards. It was investigated by the Jackson County Drug Task Force and the Independence, Mo., Police Department.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Waynesburg, Kentucky, man who was caught at a traffic stop with 10 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in a spare tire was sentenced in federal court today for his role in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

Kevin Ray Wilson, 46, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 15 years in federal prison without parole.

On Oct. 31, 2018, Wilson was found guilty at trial of participating in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Wilson was driving a 2004 Toyota 4Runner SUV on May 19, 2015, on I-70 eastbound near Highway H. A Lafayette County, Mo., sheriff’s deputy saw Wilson commit a traffic violation by failing to use a turn signal and pulling in front of a semi-tractor trailer in a careless manner. The deputy also noticed that the Toyota displayed two different license plates.

The deputy stopped Wilson’s vehicle. Wilson and his passenger, co-defendant Kenneth W. Dowell, 50, also of Waynesburg, seemed nervous and gave inconsistent statements about their trip. A police drug detection dog indicated a positive alert for the odor of illegal drugs, and the deputy searched the vehicle. 

During the search of the vehicle, the deputy discovered a blanket that was covering a spare tire. The tire was deflated and off the rim. In addition to the tire, there were several pry tools and a sledge hammer lying next to the tire. The rim of the tire was scraped up with large gouges and scrape marks along the outer edge. The deputy used a knife to cut into the tire and located a blue nylon bag concealed inside. Inside the nylon bag were 10 one-pound bundles of methamphetamine. The deputy also found $2,900 (all in $100 bills and wrapped with rubber bands around it) under the front seat; Wilson also had $1,622 in cash at the time of his arrest.

According to court documents, Wilson and others had picked up and transported an additional 10 pounds of methamphetamine shortly before his arrest.

This is Wilson’s fifth felony case overall, and his 35th felony charge. Wilson has an extensive prior criminal record over the past 28 years (since the age of 18) that includes felony convictions for two counts of second-degree robbery occurring on separate dates, first-degree fleeing from police, 24 counts of second-degree criminal possession of forged instrument (in two separate cases), complicity to second-degree burglary, theft by unlawful taking over $300 (four counts), and receiving stolen property over $300. Wilson was paroled for the robberies mere weeks before committing this federal offense, after having served approximately 11 years of his 17-year sentence.

Dowell pleaded guilty on Sept. 18, 2017, to his role in the drug-trafficking conspiracy and was sentenced to three years in federal prison without parole.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alison D. Dunning and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Courtney R. Pratten. It was investigated by the Lafayette County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Joplin, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for illegally possessing more than 1.4 kilograms of methamphetamine and a firearm.

Keith K. Koile, 34, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to 25 years in federal prison without parole.

On Aug. 29, 2018, Koile pleaded guilty to possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute, to possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, and to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

According to court documents, a confidential informant who had traveled with Koile on multiple occasions to Oklahoma City, Okla., to obtain methamphetamine, told investigators that Koile had agreed to deliver two pounds of methamphetamine to him. The confidential informant met Koile at a residence in Lawton, Kan., then followed him to the Cherokee Casino in Grove, Okla. While the confidential informant waited, Koile left to pick up the methamphetamine; when Koile returned, he placed a black backpack in the back seat of the confidential informant’s vehicle and got in the front passenger’s seat. They left the casino, traveling east on Interstate 44 towards Springfield, Mo.

A Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper stopped the vehicle for speeding in Lawrence County, Mo. The trooper ordered the confidential informant, who was driving, to get out of the vehicle. He complied, but Koile refused. The trooper observed Koile making furtive movements by reaching under the passenger seat. Koile then got out of the vehicle and began to walk towards the front of the vehicle, refusing to comply with commands to get on the ground; the trooper took Koile to the ground.

The trooper searched the vehicle and found a loaded Springfield Armory .45-caliber semi-automatic pistol underneath the passenger seat where Koile was reaching. The backpack contained approximately 1,416 grams of methamphetamine, which was 99 percent pure, and drug paraphernalia. 

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Koile has a prior felony conviction for being a drug user in possession of a firearm.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nhan D. Nguyen. It was investigated by the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the Ozarks Drug Enforcement Team.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man with prior felony convictions for child pornography was sentenced in federal court today for receiving child pornography over the Internet.

Travis E. Fleming, 44, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 15 years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Fleming to 20 years of supervised release following incarceration. The court ordered Fleming to pay $5,000 in restitution to each of three identified victims of sexual abuse portrayed in the images of child pornography that he possessed.

Fleming was convicted in federal court in 2010 of two counts of receiving child pornography and two counts of possessing child pornography, for which he was sentenced to six years and six months in federal prison without parole. He was on supervised release at the time of this offense.

On Sept. 20, 2018, Fleming pleaded guilty to receiving child pornography. Fleming admitted that he had 256 images of child sexual abuse (including bondage) on his cell phone. Some of the victim children ranged in age from four to 10 years old. A forensic examination determined that Fleming did the bulk of his viewing of child pornography in the dark web.

Fleming’s probation officer discovered the cell phone during a home visit on Nov. 16, 2017. Fleming admitted that he had been accessing the internet since at least February 2017. Among the conditions of Fleming’s supervised release was that he not possess any type of computer or electronic device with access to any on-line computer service.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine A. Connelly. It was investigated by the Western Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force and the Clay County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department.

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

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An Overland Park, Kan., woman has been convicted by a federal trial jury for her role in a multi-defendant drug-trafficking conspiracy with ties to the Sinaloa drug cartel in Mexico. 

Christine Little Wood, 61, was found guilty of participating in a conspiracy to distribute heroin from Jan. 1, 2010, to April 18, 2017, and of participating in a money-laundering conspiracy. In addition to the criminal conspiracies, Little Wood was found guilty of using a cell phone to aid the drug-trafficking conspiracy and of maintaining a residence for the distribution and use of heroin.

In addition to Little Wood, 20 co-defendants have pleaded guilty and three have been sentenced in this case. Dennis McLallen, 66, and his wife, and Pamela Gaddy-McLallen, 65, both of Overland Park, were in direct contact with Mexico-based heroin and methamphetamine suppliers and Kansas City-based suppliers. They received multi-ounce levels of black tar heroin from their suppliers, which they and other conspirators repackaged into ounce and gram levels for distribution by Little Wood and others. 

McLallen admitted that he was responsible for the distribution of more than 10 kilograms of heroin. Conspirators distributed at least 500 ounces (more than 14 kilograms) of heroin, with an average sale price of $1,700 per ounce, for a total of $850,000.

In September 2016, investigators searched vehicles and residences and seized heroin, methamphetamine, prescription drugs, more than $200,000 in bulk cash, a load vehicle with hidden compartments, drug ledgers, drug packaging, drug scales, firearms, ammunition, a bullet proof vest, and various other drug trafficking related items. Little Wood’s son, a co-defendant in this case, distributed and used heroin in her residence.

McLallen and Gaddy-McLallen each pleaded guilty to their roles in the drug-trafficking and money-laundering conspiracies and to a conspiracy to use firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking. McLallen was sentenced on April 18, 2018, to 15 years in federal prison without parole. Gaddy-McLallen died of natural causes while awaiting sentencing.

Co-defendant Kevin Fletcher,30, of Kansas City, Mo., was sentenced to nine years and two months in federal prison without parole. Co-defendant Sterling Cline, 38, of Kansas City, Mo., was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison without parole. Several co-defendants remain fugitives from justice.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., deliberated for about four hours before returning the guilty verdicts to U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough on Friday, Feb. 22, 2019, ending a trial that began Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2019.
Under federal statutes, Little Wood is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bruce Rhoades and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean T. Foley. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the FBI and the Jackson County Drug Task Force.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A St. Peters, Mo., woman pleaded guilty in federal court today to a fraud scheme in which she received more than $231,000 in disability payments intended for her mother, who died nearly 50 years ago.

Marsha Gail Coy, 68, waived her right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Willie J. Epps, Jr., to a federal information that charges her with one count of bank fraud.

Coy’s mother was an employee of the Kirkwood, Mo., R-VII School District until she retired with the Public School Retirement Systems of Missouri (PSRS) in 1968. PSRS is a non-Social Security contributory system that provides retirement, disability and survivor benefits. Although Coy’s mother died on Sept. 23, 1969, PSRS unwittingly continued to make disability benefit payments into her bank accounts. PSRS made 584 disability benefit payments totaling $382,933 before learning on May 1, 2018, that she had died. Coy’s father was placed in a long-term care facility in April 1996 and resided there until the last few days prior to his death in 1999.

By pleading guilty today, Coy admitted that she engaged in a fraud scheme from April 1996 to May 1, 2018, to steal from PSRS by obtaining benefits to which she was not entitled, and to use the money for her own benefit. Under the terms of today’s plea agreement, Coy must forfeit to the government $231,148, which is the amount of disability benefits paid by PSRS after April 1, 1996.

Under federal statutes, Coy is subject to a sentence of up to 30 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence E. Miller. It was investigated by the FBI.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – U.S. Attorney Tim Garrison and Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt announced today that a Marshfield, Mo., couple has been convicted by a federal trial jury of multiple fraud schemes totaling more than $1 million that involved Medicaid payments to their dental clinics, failing to pay over payroll taxes and collecting unemployment benefits they were not entitled to receive.

Pamela M. Van Drie, 59, and her husband, Lorin G. Van Drie, 60, were found guilty on Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2019, of all 40 counts contained in a Nov. 2, 2016, federal indictment.

“When criminals cheat federal programs like Medicaid, they are stealing from the pockets of honest tax-paying citizens,” said Garrison. “This multi-faceted investigation exposed hundreds of fraudulent Medicaid claims and a payroll tax fraud conspiracy that totaled more than $1 million. We are pleased to partner with the Missouri Attorney General’s Office to combat health care fraud and hold accountable those who abuse the system for their own benefit.”

“Those who rig the Medicaid system for unlawful personal gain will be held accountable, and my office’s dedication to this case illustrates how we’re continually working towards bringing fraudsters and scammers to justice,” said Schmitt, “I’m thankful to have such a talented team fighting tirelessly to protect all 6 million Missourians, and I’m grateful to have worked alongside U.S. Attorney Garrison and his talented team.”

Steve Hanson, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Kansas City, Mo., said, “Our office will continue to pursue those individuals who bill HHS-funded programs for services that were never rendered or for services provided to ineligible beneficiaries, as such actions place an unnecessary financial burden on both our programs and the American taxpayer.”

“Withholding and properly remitting employment taxes is the responsibility of all business owners,” said Karl Stiften, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation. “As demonstrated by these guilty verdicts, choosing to spend withheld employment taxes on a luxurious lifestyle will not be tolerated. IRS Criminal Investigation and the Department of Justice will vigorously investigate and prosecute those who commit employment tax fraud.”

Pamela and Lorin Van Drie were the owners of All About Smiles, LLC, a Springfield company that provided dental services at clinics in Springfield (until it closed in November 2015), Mountain Grove, Mo., (until it closed in October 2014) and Bolivar, Mo. (until it closed in March 2014). They also owned PL Family Management Company, LLC, which managed the staff for those clinics.

$885,748 Health Care Fraud Conspiracy

    Pamela Van Drie participated in a conspiracy to commit health care fraud from Oct. 6, 2010, to Aug. 19, 2015. This conspiracy consisted of a fraud scheme related to dentures and other dental services and a fraud scheme related to orthodontic appliances. Both fraud schemes involved fraudulent Medicaid claims and payments.

Pamela Van Drie and Dr. James R. Dye, a dentist at the clinics, arranged for All About Smiles to provide dentures and other dental services to adults who did not qualify for Medicaid reimbursement. They submitted claims to Medicaid for those dentures and other dental services, knowing that Medicaid’s requirements were not met.

Pamela Van Drie, through All About Smiles, submitted and received $720,048 on numerous claims for dentures and other dental services that lacked the required written referral from a physician.

Additionally, Pamela Van Drie and Dye purchased Ortho-Tain orthodontic appliances (designed to straighten teeth without braces) for approximately $50 each, provided them to Medicaid pediatric beneficiaries and billed each such appliance to Medicaid as a speech aid prosthesis for approximately $695. They knew the Ortho-Tain appliances should have been billed to Medicaid as orthodontic services; they also knew Medicaid did not cover orthodontic services unless the Medicaid program’s requirements were met and they received precertification, which required review by a dentist/orthodontist employed by Medicaid. They billed the Ortho-Tain appliances as speech aid prostheses in order to bypass the precertification requirement.

Between Oct. 6, 2010, and Aug. 19, 2015, Pamela Van Drie submitted and received payment for approximately 241 claims submitted for speech aid prosthesis.  On each claim, All About Smiles (or its predecessor company) was paid between $675 to $695, for an approximate total amount of $165,700.

Dye pleaded guilty on Feb. 11, 2016, to health care fraud in a separate but related case.

    
$194,751 Payroll Tax Fraud Conspiracy

Pamela and Lorin Van Drie participated in a conspiracy to defraud the government by failing to pay over the IRS payroll taxes from Jan. 31, 2013, to Jan. 31, 2015. Although payroll taxes were withheld from the paychecks of employees at All About Smiles and PL Family Management Company, the Van Dries failed to pay over to the IRS approximately $194,751 in payroll taxes.

The Van Dries diverted a substantial amount of money from their businesses during this period. They caused All About Smiles and PL Family Management Company to make thousands of dollars for their personal benefit while failing to pay over to the IRS payroll taxes withheld from their employees’ paychecks.

Rather than paying the payroll taxes due and owing, the Van Dries purchased and made payments on a 2013 Tracker boat and trailer, a recreational vehicle, multiple vehicles (including a 2010 Hummer and a 2009 Mercedes), several utility trailers, two golf carts, a motorcycle, expenses associated with two homes and family vacations in Florida, and a pulling truck called “Momma’s Money,” which Pamela Van Drie’s son used in pulling competitions throughout Missouri.

Additional Charges

In addition to these two criminal conspiracies, Pamela Van Drie was found guilty of eight counts of health care fraud related to fraudulent claims for speech aid prosetheses, 10 counts of health care fraud related to fraudulent claims for dentures and other dental services and one count of theft of public money related to $3,520 in unemployment benefits that she was not entitled to receive while working full-time at All About Smiles.

In addition to the payroll tax conspiracy, Lorin Van Drie also was found guilty of 18 counts of failure to pay over employment tax and one count of theft of public money related to $11,840 in unemployment benefits that he was not entitled to receive while working at his own construction company and doing maintenance work at All About Smiles.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Springfield, Mo., deliberated for about one and half hours before returning the guilty verdicts to U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool, ending a six-day trial that began Monday, Feb. 11, 2019.
Under federal statutes, Pamela Van Drie is subject to a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole on each count of conviction except the payroll tax conspiracy, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison without parole. Lorin Van Drie is subject to a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole for theft of unemployment benefits and five years in federal prison without parole on each additional count of conviction. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cindi S. Woolery and Steve Mohlhenrich and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Shannon Kempf of the Missouri Attorney General’s Office. It was investigated by Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, the Missouri Attorney General’s Office Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and IRS-Criminal Investigation.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Jefferson City, Mo., woman pleaded guilty in federal court today to embezzling more than $65,000 from her employer.

Laura Lynn Winge, 47, waived her right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Willie J. Epps, Jr., to a federal information that charges her with one count of bank fraud and one count of theft from an employee benefit plan.

Winge worked as a bookkeeper for Turk’s Construction, Inc., a residential construction company, and an affiliated company, Pools Unlimited, LLC, which builds in-ground swimming pools and spas, from July 2009 until she left employment on March 11, 2016. Company employees participated in an IRA plan that was administered by Winge.

By pleading guilty today, Winge admitted that she withheld $56,876 of the IRA plan deferrals from employees’ payroll from Jan. 1, 2013, to March 31, 2016, but never forwarded them to their individual accounts. Winge also admitted that she never forwarded the required employer matching contributions of $38,913 for the same time period. Instead, Winge kept those funds in the companies’ operating accounts, and used the employees’ deferrals for her own use and the use of another, including approximately $49,214 for her own personal benefit.

Winge’s theft consisted of $12,871 in unauthorized payroll checks to herself, $19,073 in unauthorized pay by inflating her hours worked, $5,447 in unauthorized spending on the companies’ credit card, and $11,822 in health insurance premiums for her dependents. Winge also admitted that she obtained $16,316 in services and products from the companies and a related company (Midwest Welding) for which she did not pay, but amended the invoices to show paid.  Winge’s theft from the companies totaled $65,531.

Under federal statutes, Winge is subject to a sentence of up to 35 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence E. Miller. It was investigated by the U.S. Department of Labor – Employee Benefits Security Administration and Office of Inspector General, and the Cole County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Two Kansas City, Kan., men have been convicted at trial by a federal jury of 17 counts contained in a Dec. 13, 2016, federal indictment.

Jamerl M. Wortham, 33, and Anthony B. Williams, 36, were each found guilty on Thursday, Feb. 14, 2019, of one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, three counts of kidnapping, one count of carjacking, one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, one count of attempted Hobbs Act robbery, one count of distribution of phencyclidine (PCP), six counts of possession of a short-barreled shotgun in furtherance of a crime of violence or drug trafficking crime, one count of being felons in possession of a firearm, one count of possession of an unregistered short-barreled shotgun, and one count of possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.

During the early morning hours of April 9, 2016, the defendants, along with another man, stole a Jaguar vehicle in Kansas City, Kansas, then set off to Kansas City, Missouri, with a plan to rob people at ATM machines.  While driving around the Westport entertainment district, at approximately 1:30 a.m., the men came across M.M., a woman who was waiting to be picked up by an Uber car.  One of the defendants stepped out of the stolen Jaguar, put his arm around M.M., and corralled her into the vehicle.

From there, the defendants proceeded north toward a set of ATMs located in the River Market neighborhood of Kansas City, Missouri.  There, they waited until a red Toyota Camry pulled up to use the ATM at approximately 2:00 a.m.  The defendants drove up behind the Camry where two women, T.J. and Y.C., were attempting to deposit money into the ATM.  One of the defendants and another man approached the Camry, pointed a loaded sawed-off shotgun at the driver and passenger, demanded money, then forced them in the backseat of the Camry.  The two men then got in the driver and passenger seats of the vehicle and sped away towards Kansas City, Kansas, with the stolen Jaguar containing M.M. following close behind.

Once in Kansas City, Kansas, the defendants forced all of the victims into the Camry.  From there, the defendants took the victims to another ATM in Kansas City, Kansas, and told them to withdraw as much money as they could from their bank accounts.  After leaving the ATM, the defendants forced M.M. and Y.C. to smoke phencyclidine (PCP), while they drove for hours around the Kansas City metro area.  During the entirety of this time, the victims were consistently threatened with death and bodily harm while the defendants pointed the sawed-off shotgun in the victims’ direction.  Williams also indicated he was armed with a handgun during this time.

At around 5:00 a.m. the defendants split the victims up into two separate cars – with Wortham in the stolen Jaguar with T.J., and Williams in the stolen Camry with M.M. and Y.C.  While they caravanned through Kansas City, Kansas, police officers recognized the stolen Jaguar and engaged it in pursuit.  The Jaguar fled at a high rate of speed, lost control, then crashed with T.J. in the passenger seat of the vehicle.  After the crash, Wortham fled from the vehicle on foot but was apprehended shortly after and placed under arrest.  T.J. was unhurt in the crash.  Discovered inside of the vehicle was a loaded Coast to Coast, Master Mag, Model CC660, 20-gauge shotgun that had approximately 12-inches of the barrel sawed off, along with the shotgun stock shortened.

In the stolen Camry, Williams and another man drove M.M. and Y.C. throughout the Kansas City metro area in search of drugs and a house to use.  At approximately 8:00 a.m., the other man was dropped off at an unknown location.  With only Williams in the vehicle, M.M. found an opportunity to jump out of the Camry at a stop sign, run into a convenience store, and call the police.  Soon after, Y.C. also attempted to escape the vehicle, but had to fight Williams to get out of his grasp.  Once out of his grasp, Y.C. ran down a residential street, with Williams chasing behind.  She used the panic button on her key fob to set off her car alarm, which stopped Williams from pursuing.  Y.C. ran for at least three blocks, found a good Samaritan, then called the police.

Investigation of these crimes, led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department involved numerous witness interviews, review of surveillance video, and analysis of forensic evidence. 

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., deliberated for less than two hours on Thursday, February 14, 2019, before returning the guilty verdicts to U.S. District Judge Brian Wimes, ending a trial that began Monday afternoon, February 11, 2019.

Under federal statutes, Wortham is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 60 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. Williams is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of life in federal prison without parole based on prior convictions.  

The minimum and maximum statutory sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of each defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffrey Q. McCarther and Alison D. Dunning. It was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department, the Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Parkville, Mo., man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for filing false tax returns.

Patrick Michael Dingle, 48, was charged in a four-count indictment returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo., on Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2019. That indictment was unsealed and made public today following Dingle’s arrest and initial court appearance.

The federal indictment alleges that Dingle filed false tax returns for the four calendar years from 2013 to 2016. According to the indictment, Dingle claimed a total of $1,661,198 in business expenses for Mets, LLC, a business he formed, on Schedule C forms filed during those years. Dingle allegedly knew the actual expenses were substantially lower.

The charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stacey Perkins Rock and Paul S. Becker. It was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Colorado man pleaded guilty in federal court today to traveling to Kansas City, Mo., to meet an undercover FBI agent, whom he believed to be a mother with her 7-year-old daughter, for illicit sexual activity.

Ryan Edward Mausner, 42, of Basalt, Colo., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays to the online enticement of a minor.

By pleading guilty today, Mausner admitted that from Jan. 31 to May 25, 2018, he induced, enticed, and coerced a child victim to engage in criminal sexual activity. Mausner was actually communicating (via the Kik messaging application and texts) with an undercover FBI agent, who portrayed a single mother with a 7-year-old daughter.

Mausner admitted that he engaged the undercover agent in several private chat sessions in which he said he wanted to engage in sexual activity with the mother and daughter. These discussions entailed descriptions of the 7-year-old girl and an insistence, on Mausner’s part, that the mother and 7-year-old would call him “Sir.” Mausner described, in explicit detail, the sorts of sexual activity that he intended to perform on the 7-year-old when they met.

Mausner began communicating plans to either travel to Kansas City, Mo., or arrange for the travel of the mother and her daughter to come to Colorado. Mausner traveled by plane from Denver, Colo., to Kansas City, Mo., on May 25, 2018, with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity with the child victim.

Under federal statutes, Mausner is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick D. Daly. It was investigated by the FBI.

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

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A former teacher in Cameron, Mo., has been indicted by a federal grand jury for using three minor victims to produce child pornography.

William Derek Williams, 39, was charged in a four-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo., on Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2019. Williams formerly was a high school language arts teacher and more recently a part-time high school multimedia teacher at the time of the alleged offense.

The federal indictment charges Williams with three counts of producing child pornography, involving three different minor victims, from Jan. 1, 2013, to Sept. 6, 2018. Williams is also charged with one count of possessing child pornography on Sept. 8, 2018.

The charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Luna. It was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Clinton County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department.

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