District Not Recorded

INTERPOL Washington, the U.S. National Central Bureau (USNCB), is working closely with the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) to ensure that our U.S. law enforcement partners receive critical COVID-19 pandemic-related alerts in a timely manner. Recently, INTERPOL issued a world-wide alert warning of criminal activity associated with the pandemic. Distributed as an “Orange Notice” to law enforcement agencies in its 194 member countries, this alert identifies new criminal activity related to falsifying, stealing, and illegally advertising COVID-19 and seasonal flu vaccines. INTERPOL issues Orange Notices to warn of an event, a person, an object or a process representing a serious and imminent threat to public safety.

The USNCB ensures that our state and local law enforcement partners have access to the most current alerts and warnings from INTERPOL that could impact U.S. citizens. The USNCB’s active and continuous dissemination of information on threats identified by other INTERPOL member countries to these and other relevant U.S. Government agencies such as the Department of Health and Human Services, reinforces the value, reach, and efficiency of the USNCB’s outreach framework across all jurisdictional levels.

“The potential for counterfeit vaccines as well as fraudulent and unsafe personal protective equipment (PPE) to be distributed within the United States poses significant risks to first responders, law enforcement officers, vulnerable populations, and the general public. The USNCB has a longstanding commitment to providing state, local, federal and tribal authorities with direct access to INTERPOL data related to emerging threats to public safety. That commitment has been reaffirmed and strengthened during the worldwide pandemic,” said USNCB Director Uttam Dhillon.

The USNCB is also emphasizing INTERPOL’s advice to the general public to be cautious when seeking to purchase medical equipment or medicines, especially when those products are pandemic-related. “Criminal networks will also be targeting unsuspecting members of the public via fake websites and false cures, which could pose a significant risk to their health, even their lives,” warned INTERPOL General Secretary Jürgen Stock in an INTERPOL news release.

A component of the U.S. Department of Justice, the USNCB is the designated United States representative to INTERPOL on behalf of the Attorney General. It serves as the national point of contact for all INTERPOL matters, coordinating international investigative efforts among member countries and the more than 18,000 local, state, federal, and tribal law enforcement agencies in the United States.

Online child sexual exploitation is a global crime that demands a continued global response.  And yet an expansion of the “ePrivacy Directive” slated to take effect in the European Union this month may prohibit tech companies from using some of the most powerful tools available to detect child sexual abuse material and grooming by predators, making it easier for children to be exploited without detection.  We commend Senators Cotton, Loeffler, and Boozman for introducing a resolution that encourages the EU to preserve companies’ ability to detect and prevent child exploitation, consistent with the Voluntary Principles to Counter Online Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse. 

Attorney General William P. Barr gave the following statement in response to Mexico's proposed legislation. 

"The Department of Justice is committed to working with the Government of Mexico to fight the transnational criminals who threaten both our nations.  As always, our cooperation takes place within the longstanding framework designed to address jointly our shared challenges: that is why, for example, the United States recently returned former Secretary Cienfuegos to Mexico, in order to allow him to be investigated there.  Thus, we are troubled by legislation currently before the Mexican Congress, which would have the effect of making cooperation between our countries more difficult.  This would make the citizens of Mexico and the United States less safe.  The passage of this legislation can only benefit the violent transnational criminal organizations and other criminals that we are jointly fighting."

The Justice Department today filed a statement of interest in federal district court in Kalamazoo, Michigan, arguing that the Free Exercise Clause of the Constitution requires the state of Michigan to justify why it cannot provide exemptions to its school closing order for in-person instruction at religious high schools when it provides exemptions for trade and technical instruction in person, college sports teams, and other educational activities.

The plaintiff religious schools have implemented rigorous protocols to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission, including requiring masks and distancing, schedule changes to reduce movement, an outdoor tent cafeteria at one school, thermal screening kiosks, and others.   

“The education of children is a matter of faith to many people, and the Free Exercise Clause of First Amendment to the United States Constitution protects religious education. The Free Exercise Clause does not protect nonreligious activities such as trade and technical classes and college sports,” said Eric Dreiband, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “For more than two centuries, Americans have fought and died for the right of our people to worship and pray according to their conscience and faith. These noble patriots did not fight and die to protect the nonexistent authority of government to discriminate against the exercise of religion by people of faith. Discrimination against the right of the people to practice their religion violates everything this country stands for.”

The case was filed on Dec. 7, 2020, by three Catholic high schools, parents of students, and a Michigan association of religious schools challenging an order issued the same day by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services ordering public and nonpublic high schools throughout the state closed. The plaintiffs allege that the schools have a sincerely held religious belief that the diverse religious aspects of a Catholic education must be conducted in person, including daily Mass, Eucharistic adoration, communal prayer throughout the school day, and spiritual formation with their teachers, among others. The Michigan order, however, requires all high schools to close, including religious high schools, while granting exceptions for trade and technical education, boarding schools, English Language Learner instruction, special education, and even college sports. 

The United States’ brief explains that Michigan’s order “exempts a range of educational activities that the state deems important enough to be held in person notwithstanding the health risks, but has failed to exempt religious educational activities which the plaintiffs likewise sincerely believe must be held in person.” Such differential treatment of religious reasons for in‑person learning and various secular reasons for in-person learning and activities must be justified by a compelling government interest carried out through the least restrictive means. This, the brief maintains, the state has failed to do here.

Since Attorney General William P. Barr announced an initiative on April 27, 2020 to review state and local policies to ensure that civil liberties are protected during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Civil Rights Division has filed numerous briefs and statements of interest concerning protections under the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

The Justice Department announced the filing today of a lawsuit against J. Randolph Parry Architects, P.C. and eight owners of multifamily properties designed by the architectural firm.

The lawsuit alleges that the defendants violated the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by failing to design and construct housing units and related facilities to make them accessible to people with disabilities. 

“The Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act have been the law for more than a quarter century, and there is no excuse for owners and architects to continue developing properties that fail to comply with the accessibility requirements of these statutes,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Civil Rights Division. “This flagrant disregard of federal law must stop, and stop now. We will hold accountable those who ignore their legal obligations to design and construct multifamily housing to be accessible to people with disabilities.”

The lawsuit, which was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, alleges that at least 15 multifamily senior living properties have significant accessibility barriers, including inaccessible pedestrian routes to building entrances, inaccessible pedestrian routes from apartment units to amenities, inaccessible parking, door openings that are too narrow for a person using a wheelchair, environmental controls that are too high or too low for a person using a wheelchair to reach, and inaccessible bathrooms and kitchens. 

The lawsuit seeks an order (1) requiring the defendants to bring the properties into compliance with the FHA and ADA, (2) requiring the defendants to pay monetary damages to persons harmed by the lack of accessibility and civil penalties to the United States to vindicate the public interest, and (3) prohibiting the defendants from designing or constructing multifamily properties in a manner that discriminates against people with disabilities. 

The 15 properties, all designed by J. Randolph Parry Architects, that are alleged to violate the FHA and ADA are:

• Traditions of Hanover, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania;
• Traditions of Hershey, Palmyra, Pennsylvania;
• Chestnut Knoll, Boyertown, Pennsylvania;
• Arbour Square, Harleysville, Pennsylvania;
• Cedar Views Apartments, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania;
• The Birches, Newtown, Pennsylvania;
• The Lifequest Nursing Center Addition, Quakertown, Pennsylvania;
• Keystone Villa, Douglasville, Pennsylvania;
• Alcoeur Gardens, Brick Township, New Jersey;
• Alcoeur Gardens, Toms River, New Jersey;
• Church Hill Village, Newtown, Connecticut;
• Heritage Green, Mechanicsville, Virginia;
• Homestead, Hamilton Township, New Jersey;
• The Villa Rafaella Addition, Pleasantville, New Jersey; and
• Woodbury Mews Colonial House, Woodbury, New Jersey.

Anyone with information about the inaccessible conditions at these properties should call the Department of Justice at 1-833-591-0291, and select option numbers (1 4 1): select one for English, four for housing accessibility and one for US v. J. Randolph Parry Architects to leave a message or send an email to fairhousing@usdoj.gov. Individuals who have information about this or another matter involving alleged discrimination may submit a report online at https://civilrights.justice.gov/.

The FHA prohibits discrimination in housing based on disability, race, color, religion, national origin, sex, and familial status. Among other things, the FHA requires all multifamily housing constructed after March 13, 1991, to have basic accessibility features, including accessible routes to all units in buildings with elevators. Enacted in 1990, the ADA requires, among other things, that places of public accommodation, such as rental offices at multifamily complexes designed and constructed for first occupancy after Jan. 26, 1993, be accessible to persons with disabilities. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.usdoj.gov/crt. 

The complaint contains allegations of unlawful conduct; the allegations must be proven in court. 

Assistant Attorney General Beth A. Williams of the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Policy (OLP) announced her departure from the department, effective today.

“Beth has served the Department of Justice with distinction,” said Attorney General William P. Barr.  “Beth led the judicial nomination process for the department, resulting in the confirmation of hundreds of principled jurists who have demonstrated an unwavering commitment to the Constitution and the rule of law.  Beth also helped shape the terms of national debate on a range of legal policy questions of significant priority to the department and the administration, including advocating against unlawful nationwide injunctions, protecting religious liberty, improving our regulatory process, and combating human trafficking.  I am deeply appreciative of Beth’s service to the department and our country.”

“It has been the honor of my career to serve as Assistant Attorney General of the Office of Legal Policy,” said Assistant Attorney General Williams.  “For three and a half years, I have had the privilege of working to make our country safer and more secure, and to preserve and protect our most fundamental freedoms.  I have been grateful to work alongside the talented public servants at the department who dedicate their careers to this mission.”

Since 2017, OLP has assisted President Trump in appointing 229 Article III judges to the bench — more than any president has appointed in a single term since 1980.  The president’s nominees to date include three Supreme Court justices, 53 Circuit Court judges, 170 District Court judges, three Court of International Trade judges, and numerous judges to other federal courts.

Under Assistant Attorney General Williams’s leadership, OLP has also led the department in taking significant steps to make the regulatory process more lawful, accountable, and transparent.  The department recently issued two new regulations establishing a process for the responsible review, clearance, and issuance of guidance documents.  The rules officially prohibit the use of guidance documents as an end-run to lawful regulation.  OLP also played an instrumental role in the department’s landmark report to Congress issuing a formal recommendation that Congress modernize the 74-year-old Administrative Procedure Act. 

Assistant Attorney General Williams also spearheaded departmental efforts to protect religious liberty.  As part of this effort and consistent with recent Supreme Court holdings, OLP worked closely with the Office of Justice Programs and other department components to issue guidance making clear that recipients of Department of Justice grant funding would not be discriminated against on the basis of their faith.  The guidance is an important affirmation of the department’s commitment to ensure that individuals and organizations driven by faith to serve their communities are not subject to unequal treatment by virtue of their religious identity.

In response to the challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, Assistant Attorney General Williams has focused on policy initiatives geared at protecting our most vulnerable members of society.  OLP has worked with department components to prioritize the protection of children from online exploitation, to seek justice for victims of human trafficking, to ensure responsible policing, and to combat elder fraud and abuse. 

During Ms. Williams’s tenure as Assistant Attorney General, OLP played a lead role in the department’s cyber policies, including coordinating the development of a recent white paper on cryptocurrency as part of the Cyber-Digital Task Force, and undertaking a comprehensive assessment of the department’s work in the cyber area to identify how federal law enforcement can even more effectively accomplish its mission. 

OLP and the entire Department of Justice thank Assistant Attorney General Williams for her service and leadership.

Update: This rule was enjoined in its entirety on January 8, 2021. See Pangea Legal Servs., et al., v. U.S. Dep’t of Homeland Sec., et al., No. 3:20-cv-09253 (N.D. Cal.) (“Pangea II”) and Immigration Equality, et al. v. U.S. Dep't of Homeland Sec., et al., No. 3:20-cv-09258 (N.D. Cal.)

Today, the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security (collectively, the Departments) announced the forthcoming publication of a Final Rule that will streamline and enhance procedures for the adjudication of claims for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture (CAT) regulations. 

The Final Rule, consistent with the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), will enable the Departments to more effectively separate baseless claims from meritorious ones.  This will better ensure groundless claims do not delay or divert resources from deserving claims, and in particular, will better ensure the security of our nation’s borders by facilitating the efficient review of claims in a manner consistent with the law and the integrity of our immigration system.

The Final Rule addresses public comment received following publication of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, and codifies amendments to multiple provisions of the Departments’ regulations.  The rule takes effect 30 days after publication in the Federal Register, which is scheduled to occur on Friday, Dec. 11, 2020.

The Final Rule makes the following changes to the Departments’ regulations:

• Amend the regulations governing credible fear determinations so that individuals found to have such a fear will have their claims for asylum, withholding of removal, or protection under the CAT adjudicated by an immigration judge in streamlined proceedings, rather than in immigration court proceedings conducted under section 240 of the INA;
• Permit immigration judges to pretermit asylum applications without a hearing if the application does not demonstrate prima facie eligibility for relief;
• Clarify when an application is “frivolous”;
• Clarify standards for the adjudication of asylum and withholding claims including amendments to the definitions of the terms “particular social group,” “political opinion,” “persecution,” and “firm resettlement”;
• Outline factors, including an exemption for children under 18 for the factor regarding unlawful entry or attempted unlawful entry, for adjudicators to consider when making discretionary determinations;
• Clarify the standard for determining the acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity under the CAT regulations;
• Raise the burden of proof for the threshold screening of withholding and CAT protection claims from “significant possibility” to a “reasonable possibility” standard;
• Apply bars to asylum and withholding when making credible fear determinations; and
• Clarify the requirement to protect certain information contained in asylum applications, applications for withholding of removal under the INA, applications for protection under the regulations implementing the CAT, and applications for refugee admissions.

The Presidential Task Force on Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) today released a status report detailing accomplishments during its first year and outlining its strategy for the next 12 months. The President’s Executive Order (E.O.) 13898, set forth a range of tasks to be completed over the two-year life of the Task Force, with required reports at the end of each year. Attorney General William P. Barr and Secretary of the Interior David L. Bernhardt transmitted the status report to President Trump, and notably characterized these accomplishments as, “a productive first year of Task Force operations.”

In its first year, the Task Force, also known as Operation Lady Justice (OLJ), held more than 15 in-person and remote meetings with tribes, individuals and stakeholder groups, and established and convened 10 working groups to address specific mandates of the executive order, including developing protocols, solving cold cases and expanding outreach and awareness. Readouts of the sessions can be found on the Operation Lady Justice website.

“American Indians and Alaska Natives experience some of the highest rates of violence in the country, a situation that is all the more tragic in light of the generations of trauma already suffered by indigenous people,” said Attorney General Barr. “Despite the COVID-19 pandemic and the unprecedented challenges it posed, the Task Force continued to progress with appropriate urgency to diagnose the symptoms of this intractable problem. They sought the help and input from tribal leaders and tribal communities to develop sustainable protocols that will lead to long-term resolutions tribal communities need and deserve.”

“The Trump Administration has taken numerous actions to support Tribal communities with a particular focus on addressing the crisis of missing and murdered Native Americans and Alaska Natives,” said Secretary of the Interior David L. Bernhardt.  “The new cold case offices that we stood up around the country are already providing much needed support in a critical effort to resolve missing and murdered cases and provide justice for victims and their families.”

 “It has been a true honor to represent the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on the Operation Lady Justice Task Force and serve Native American communities and populations,” said Commissioner Jeannie Hovland of the Administration for Native Americans. “Tribal leaders and community advocates have been on the forefront of this issue for years.  At their request, I have elevated the critical role prevention must play in reducing the number of Native Americans who tragically go missing or are murdered. With their partnership and guidance, HHS is taking unprecedented action on this issue using a public health approach.  This means addressing the root causes of this issue. I believe that together we can, and will, end the crisis of Missing and Murdered Native Americans.”

“President Trump was the first President to formally recognize the long-overlooked issue of missing and murdered Native Americans, but more importantly he demanded action,” said Doug Hoelscher, Assistant to the President and Director of White House Intergovernmental Affairs. “The work of the Operation Lady Justice Task Force, created by President Trump’s executive order, is laying a solid foundation for long-sought progress by improving data coordination, enhancing collaboration among various law enforcement entities, creating several cold case offices, and elevating support for victims and their families. Thanks to President Trump’s leadership and the hard work of the Task Force members, tribal partners, and advocates, missing and murdered Native Americans are forgotten no more!”

President Trump signed E.O. 13898 on November 26, 2019, establishing the Operation Lady Justice Task Force, to “address the legitimate concerns of American Indian and Alaska Native communities regarding missing and murdered people.” The order requires the Task Force to submit a status report in November 2020 and a final report in November 2021. Attorney General Barr and Secretary Bernhardt are co-chairs, with Office of Justice Programs Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Katharine T. Sullivan and Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Tara Katuk Mac Lean Sweeney serving as their designees. Marcia Good, from the Justice Department’s Office of Tribal Justice, is executive director.

As noted in the report, the Task Force will continue to consult with tribal leaders and solicit stakeholder feedback as it develops strategies for strengthening investigations, raising public awareness, and improving data collection and information sharing. Submission of the report caps National Native American Heritage Month. A list of Task Force members follows:

• Katherine (Katie) Sullivan, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Office of Justice Programs U.S. Department of Justice Designee for Attorney General
• Tara Sweeney, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs U.S. Department of the Interior Designee for the Secretary of the Interior
• Charles (Charlie) Addington, Deputy Bureau Director Bureau of Indian Affairs, Office of Justice Services U.S. Department of the Interior
• Jean (Jeannie) Hovland, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Native American Affairs and Commissioner, Administration for Native Americans U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Laura Rogers, Principal Deputy Director Office on Violence Against Women U.S. Department of Justice
• Trent Shores, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma and Chair of the Native American Issues Subcommittee of the Attorney General's Advisory Committee
• Terry Wade, Executive Assistant Director Criminal, Cyber, Response and Services Branch Federal Bureau of Investigation    

Hagatña, Guam – SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, announced that defendant Kelvin John Mata Tedtaotao, age 37, from Merizo, Guam, was sentenced in the United States District Court of Guam to 30 months imprisonment for Conspiracy to Distribute Over 50 Grams of Methamphetamine Hydrochloride, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 846.  The Court also ordered three years of supervised release following imprisonment and $1,692 in restitution to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Homeland Security Investigations.  The defendant must also perform 100 hours of community service and pay a mandatory $100 special assessment fee.  In addition, defendants convicted of a federal drug offense may no longer qualify for certain federal benefits.

On February 14, 2018, Tedtaotao received two packages that had been mailed to Guam via the United States Postal Service (USPS) by another individual.  Prior to USPS delivery, law enforcement removed the methamphetamine from both packages and replaced it with a sham substance.  Tedtaotao believed the packages contained methamphetamine, which he intended to distribute to others.  The combined weight of the methamphetamine was approximately 223 grams, with a purity of 98%, as determined by the United States Postal Drug Laboratory.

U.S. Attorney Anderson stated, “This case sends an important message to drug traffickers who use our mail system to facilitate their illegal activity.  Anyone involved with the shipment of drugs in the mail can become the target of an investigation and face substantial time in a federal prison.  I applaud the efforts of these federal agencies in their continuing enforcement operations.”

This case was a result of a joint investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.  The case was prosecuted by Stephen F. Leon Guerrero, Assistant United States Attorney in the District of Guam.

Note: The defendant in this case, Neeraj Jindal, was acquitted by a jury of the charges alleged in the indictment described in the press release below.

A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Neeraj Jindal, the former owner of a therapist staffing company, for participating in a conspiracy to fix prices by lowering the rates paid to physical therapists and physical therapist assistants in north Texas, including the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, the Department of Justice announced today.  The indictment also charges Jindal with obstruction of the Federal Trade Commission’s separate investigation into this conduct.

According to the two-count indictment filed in the U.S. District Court in Sherman, Texas, Jindal and his co-conspirators agreed to pay lower rates to certain physical therapists and physical therapist assistants, and Jindal’s company paid lower rates, from in or about March 2017 and continuing through in or about August 2017.  Jindal is charged with participating in the conspiracy when he was the owner of a Texas-based therapist staffing company that provided in-home physical therapy services.  Jindal is also charged with obstruction of proceedings before the Federal Trade Commission.  According to the indictment, Jindal made false and misleading statements and withheld and concealed information during the Federal Trade Commission’s investigation to determine whether Jindal’s company or other therapist staffing companies violated Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act.

“The charges announced today are an important step in rooting out and deterring employer collusion that cheats American workers — especially health care workers — of free market opportunities and compensation,” said Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division.  “Employers who conspire to fix the wages of workers or restrict their mobility by allocating labor markets will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.  The division will also continue to prosecute those who undermine the integrity of federal investigations, including proceedings before other federal agencies.”

“The integrity of the market is the foundation of our free-enterprise system,” said U.S. Attorney Stephen J. Cox for the Eastern District of Texas.  “Wage-fixing agreements exploit workers by pushing down wages and eliminating competition.  The Eastern District of Texas is proud to partner with the Antitrust Division in protecting the marketplace and the opportunities for American workers.”

“The FBI is committed to rooting out anti-competitive activity and corruption in our markets,” said Assistant Director Calvin Shivers of the Criminal Investigative Division.  “In this case, Neeraj Jindal attempted to cheat the system and, in doing so, hurt hard-working Americans providing medical care and relief.  Our International Corruption team worked creatively and diligently to investigate this crime.  We are prepared to take our findings and work with our partners at the Department of Justice to ensure justice is served.”

An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

A violation of the Sherman Act carries a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine for individuals.  The maximum fine may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by victims if either amount is greater than $1 million.  The charged obstruction offense carries a statutory maximum penalty of five years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.

Today’s announcement is the result of a federal investigation being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s Washington Criminal I and II Sections and the International Corruption Unit of the FBI.

The charges in this case were brought in connection with the Antitrust Division’s ongoing commitment to prosecute anticompetitive conduct affecting American labor markets.  Anyone with information on market allocation or price fixing by employers should contact the Antitrust Division’s Citizen Complaint Center at 1-888-647-3258 or visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.html.

A Miami, Florida, tire importer pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to defraud the government, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Department of Justice’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida.  

According to court documents and statements made in court, Marco Parra operated Road Tire Plus Corp. (Road Tire), a tire importer located in Miami, Florida. From 2013 through 2016, Parra conspired with others in the tire industry to evade paying federal excise taxes on truck tires marked for highway use. Tire importers are responsible for excise taxes when their truck tires are sold to tire retailers, who then resell the tires domestically. Tire importers typically pass on the cost of the excise tax to tire retailers and collect the excise taxes from them. But, if the tires are later exported rather than sold domestically, the law provides for a credit for the excise taxes paid.

For some retailers, Parra sold truck tires subject to excise taxes. He collected the excise taxes that were due, but did not remit those taxes to the IRS and did not file tax returns reporting the tire sales as he was required. For others, Parra never collected the federal excise taxes due on the tire sales. Instead, Parra obtained false bills of lading claiming that the tires were exported, so that Parra could obtain an excise tax credit even though he knew the tires were not exported. As a result of Parra’s failure to timely file excise tax returns for 2014, 2015, and 2016, he caused an excise tax loss of approximately $887,112. Parra has since paid over $700,000 to the IRS.

U.S. District Judge Kathleen M. Williams scheduled sentencing for Feb. 18, 2021. Parra faces a statutory maximum of five years, as well as a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Orshan commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case and Trial Attorney Francesca Bartolomey and Assistant Chief Gregory Tortella, who are prosecuting the case.

Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.

A Chinese citizen was extradited from Malaysia to the United States today to face charges for money laundering.

Kang Juntao, 24, of Hangzhou City, China, was charged in February 2019 with financing a nationwide ring of individuals who smuggled at least 1,500 protected turtles out of the United States valued at $2,250,000.

“The Department of Justice is committed to prosecuting criminals who abuse the U.S. financial system to fund their illegal enterprises,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Jonathan D. Brightbill of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.  “I thank the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for their extraordinary efforts in this case to support the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s mission to protect America’s wildlife.”

“Wildlife trafficking is a serious crime that impacts imperiled species at home and abroad,” said Aurelia Skipwith, Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).  “The Trump Administration is committed to the conservation of wildlife.  I would like to thank the U.S. Department of Justice and our various law enforcement partners for their assistance with this case.  By working together, we can protect our nation's wildlife for future generations.”   

According to the indictment, from June 12, 2017, through Dec. 3, 2018, Kang allegedly purchased turtles in the United States and arranged for them to be smuggled to associates in Hong Kong.  He sent money through U.S. banks, including one in New Jersey, to pay for the turtles and their illegal shipments.  The turtles would then be sold on the Asian pet trade black market for thousands of dollars each, depending on their sex, coloring, and age. 

The United States, Malaysia, China, and approximately 181 other countries are signatories to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). CITES is an international treaty that restricts trade in species that may be threatened with extinction.

Kang allegedly trafficked in five turtle species protected by the treaty.  The eastern box turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina), the Florida box turtle (Terrapene carolina bauri), and the Gulf Coast box turtle (Terrapene carolina major) are subspecies of the common box turtle (Terrapene carolina) and have been listed in CITES since 1995.  The spotted turtle (Clemmys guttata) is a semi-aquatic turtle listed in CITES as of 2013.  The wood turtle (Glyptemys insculpta) has been protected under CITES since 1992.

The indictment further alleges that Kang sent money via PayPal to the United States to purchase turtles from sellers advertising on social media or reptile trade websites.  These suppliers then shipped the turtles to middlemen across five different states.  The middlemen were typically Chinese citizens who entered the country on student visas.  Kang paid and instructed these intermediaries to repackage the turtles in boxes with false labels for clandestine shipment to Hong Kong.  The turtles were inhumanely bound with duct tape and placed in socks so as not to alert customs authorities.  Neither Kang nor his associates declared the turtles to U.S. or Chinese customs or obtained the required CITES permits.

The Royal Malaysia Police arrested Kang on Jan. 23, 2019, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on a request submitted by the United States for his provisional arrest with a view to extradition.  An extradition request was subsequently submitted on March 5, 2019, pursuant to the Extradition Treaty between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of Malaysia.  Kang’s extradition was finalized in September 2020 and he was surrendered to the United States Wednesday as provided by the extradition treaty.  The United States is grateful to the Minister of Home Affairs of Malaysia, the Attorney General of Malaysia and the Transnational Crimes Unit, Prosecution Division, Attorney General’s Chambers for their steadfast cooperation and support in the litigation of the extradition request.  We also thank the U.S. Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations Malaysia Attaché, the Regional Security Office, Bureau of Diplomatic Security, U.S. Department of State, and the Consular Section of the U.S. Embassy in Kuala Lumpur for providing invaluable assistance in supporting the extradition and coordinating the return of Kang to the United States.

An indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The USFWS conducted the investigation and escorted Kang to the United States. The government is represented by Trial Attorneys Ryan Connors and Lauren Steele of the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Crimes Section.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

The Department of Justice Civil Rights Division has opened an investigation into whether the public contracting and procurement practices of Kansas City, Missouri, comply with the U.S. Constitution and the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

“No person anywhere in the United States should be subjected to unlawful discrimination on the ground of race, color or national origin, and the Civil Rights Act makes Kansas City, Missouri’s receipt of federal funding contingent on keeping that commitment,” said Eric Dreiband, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. “All government in this free country must treat all persons with equal dignity and respect and without dividing people into racial and ethnic blocs for the purpose of labelling certain people winners and others losers because of their race. The Department of Justice today opened an investigation to determine whether Kansas City, Missouri’s contracting program complies with the United States Constitution and the Civil Rights Act.”

According to publicly available information, for at least 24 years, Kansas City has used quota-based “set asides” in nearly 30 percent of all public contract dollars to favor certain people because of their race and sex and disfavor others. 

The department is opening an investigation into Kansas City’s public contracting and procurement programs to determine whether those programs violate Title VI, which prohibits race discrimination by entities receiving federal funds

Title VI incorporates the anti-discrimination protections of the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution’s Fourteenth Amendment. Discrimination on the ground of race in public contracting in the form of quota-based set asides may violate the Equal Protection Clause, which provides that “[n]o state shall . . . deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” 

“Classifications based on race carry a danger of stigmatic harm. Unless they are strictly reserved for remedial settings, they may in fact promote notions of racial inferiority and lead to a politics of racial hostility.”  See City of Richmond v. J.A. Croson Co., 488 U.S. 469, 493 (1989) (plurality opinion). Quota-based set asides may violate both the Equal Protection Clause and Title VI. In City of Richmond, the Supreme Court determined that a 30 percent minority set-aside by the City of Richmond, Virginia violated the Constitution.

The notice of investigation is not a finding of fault or wrongdoing by the city or any other individual or entity, and the department has not reached any conclusions about these matters.

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

The Department of Justice today announced that it signed a settlement agreement with Ikon Systems, LLC (Ikon), an IT staffing and recruiting company based in Texas. This is the eleventh settlement by the Civil Rights Division under its 2017 Protecting U.S. Workers Initiative, which is aimed at targeting, investigating, and taking enforcement actions against companies that discriminate against U.S. workers in favor of temporary visa workers. Today’s settlement resolves claims that Ikon routinely discriminated against U.S. workers by posting job advertisements specifying a preference for applicants with temporary work visas, and that Ikon failed to consider at least one U.S. citizen applicant who applied to a discriminatory advertisement.  

“Employers, no matter their size and no matter their industry, cannot limit employment opportunities only to temporary visa holders. When employers post job advertisements that discriminate against U.S. workers, they violate the Immigration and Nationality Act’s citizenship-status discrimination provision,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Civil Rights Division. “Our message is clear: if employers discriminate in advertising, recruiting, or hiring against U.S. workers by illegally preferring temporary visa holders, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will act to protect them under the Immigration and Nationality Act.”

The Department’s investigation began after a U.S. citizen filed a discrimination complaint with the Civil Rights Division against Ikon. Based on its investigation, the Department concluded that from May 8, 2019, to September 21, 2019, Ikon posted at least eight facially discriminatory job advertisements targeting non-U.S. citizens with immigration statuses associated with employment-based visas. For instance, the investigation revealed that one of Ikon’s advertisements stated, “Looking for OPT, CPT, H4 EAD, and H-1B transfer.” The Department also determined that Ikon failed to properly consider a U.S. citizen’s application to one of the job postings due to his citizenship status.

Under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), employers are not allowed to discriminate in recruitment or hiring based on citizenship status. The INA protects U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, refugees, asylees, and recent lawful permanent residents from citizenship status discrimination in hiring, firing, and recruitment or referral for a fee. Workers who fall outside of these categories are not protected from citizenship status discrimination under the INA.  

Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Ikon will pay $27,000 in civil penalties to the United States, revise its policies and procedures, and train relevant employees and agents on the INA’s anti-discrimination provision. Separately, Ikon will pay $15,000 to the affected U.S. citizen.

The Civil Rights Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) has reached 11 settlements under the Protecting U.S. Workers Initiative, and employers have agreed to pay or have distributed a combined total of more than $1.2 million in back pay to affected U.S. workers and civil penalties to the United States. These settlements involve employers that discriminated in their use of the H-1B, H-2A, H-2B and F-1 visa programs. In addition, the Department is currently litigating a U.S. Workers Initiative case, which involves a December 3, 2020 lawsuit filed against a major technology company for allegedly refusing to recruit, consider, or hire qualified and available U.S. workers in favor of temporary visa holders, including in the H‑1B visa program.

The Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA. Among other things, the statute prohibits discrimination based on citizenship status and national origin in hiring, firing, or recruitment or referral for a fee; unfair documentary practices; retaliation and intimidation. 

Learn more about IER’s work and how to get assistance through this brief video.  Applicants or employees who believe they were discriminated against based on their citizenship, immigration status, or national origin in hiring, firing, recruitment, or during the employment eligibility verification process (Form I-9 and E-Verify); or subjected to retaliation, may file a charge. The public also can contact IER’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688; call IER’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); email IER@usdoj.gov; sign up for a free webinar; or visit IER’s English and Spanish websites. Subscribe to GovDelivery to receive updates from IER.

The Civil Rights Division wants to hear about civil rights violations. Members of the public can report possible civil rights violations through the Civil Rights Division’s reporting portal.

SAIPAN, MP - SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, announced that defendants VINCE KOKI LEON GUERRERO, age 28, and EVELYN CHON TYDINGCO, age 28, were each sentenced in the United States District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands to 120-month terms of imprisonment for Conspiracy to Possess Over Fifty Grams of Methamphetamine Hydrochloride with the Intent to Distribute, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1).  The Court also ordered five years of supervised release following imprisonment, and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee.  In addition, defendants convicted of a federal drug offense may no longer qualify for certain federal benefits.

On February 21, 2018, law enforcement conducted a controlled delivery of a package containing suspected methamphetamine at a United States Post Office on Saipan.  Approximately 118 grams of methamphetamine was previously removed from the package and replaced with a sham substance.   Leon Guerrero and Tydingco, along with co-defendant Elaine Francisco Demei, received the package, which had been sent from California.  The defendants were arrested shortly after leaving the scene.

At sentencing, Chief U.S. District Judge Ramona V. Manglona found that Leon Guerrero and Tydingco obstructed justice in their attempts to obtain a reduced sentencing recommendation from the government.  The Court also found that the defendants had not accepted responsibility for their conduct.  The defendants were therefore sentenced to the mandatory minimum term of 120 months imprisonment under federal law.

United States Attorney Shawn N. Anderson stated, “The quantity of methamphetamine seized during this investigation is shocking, particularly given the size of the community.  As this case shows, multi-agency efforts are effective in combating drug trafficking in the CNMI.  I applaud the hard work of our law enforcement partners in keeping our communities safe.”

This was a joint investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and United States Postal Inspection Service, with the assistance of the CNMI Division of Customs and Guam Customs and Quarantine.  The case was prosecuted by Garth R. Backe, Assistant United States Attorney for the District of the Northern Mariana Islands.  

Correction (12/7/2020): Per the Memorandum of Understanding it was U.S. Bank’s policy to perform annual escrow analyses for borrowers in bankruptcy.

The Department of Justice’s U.S. Trustee Program (USTP announced today that it has entered into national agreements with three mortgage servicers to address past mortgage servicing deficiencies impacting homeowners in bankruptcy.  The agreements with Nationstar Mortgage, LLC (Nationstar), U.S. Bank National Association (U.S. Bank), and PNC Bank, NA (PNC) address noncompliance with the Bankruptcy Code and Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure that impacted over 60,000 accounts of borrowers in bankruptcy dating back to 2011 and resulted in payment application errors; inaccurate, missing, and untimely bankruptcy filings; and/or delayed escrow statements.

“Homeowners in bankruptcy are entitled to receive proper and timely notices and to have their payments properly accounted for, consistent with the Bankruptcy Code and Rules,” said USTP Director Cliff White.  “The failure of mortgage servicers to comply with those requirements compromises the integrity of the bankruptcy system and the ability of homeowners to receive a fresh start.” 

Collectively, the USTP’s agreements with Nationstar and U.S. Bank, and the letter of acknowledgement with PNC, provide over $74 million to remediate over 76,000 historical servicing errors impacting borrowers in bankruptcy.  The agreements also require the servicers to implement improvements in their bankruptcy operations to ensure that the errors do not recur.  Most of the remediation and corrective actions have already been taken by the servicers. 

Historical Servicing Deficiencies

Nationstar and PNC at times failed to run annual escrow analyses for borrowers in bankruptcy.  Further, Nationstar, U.S. Bank, and PNC failed to (1) file timely and accurate notices of changes to bankruptcy borrowers’ ongoing mortgage payments, (2) file timely and accurate notices of fees assessed during borrowers’ bankruptcy cases, and (3) provide an accurate final accounting of the payments made by the borrower during the bankruptcy case as required under the Bankruptcy Code and Rules.

In addition to these deficient servicing practices, U.S. Bank and PNC failed to accurately apply borrower payments in bankruptcy cases.  And U.S. Bank failed to file timely and accurate proofs of claim in bankruptcy cases.

Monetary Remediation and Changes to Internal Procedures

The servicers have or will provide account credits and refunds to impacted bankruptcy borrowers.  Nationstar has provided more than $40 million in credits and refunds.  U.S. Bank has, or will, provide at least $29 million in credits and refunds, and has waived approximately $43 million in fees and charges across its mortgage servicing portfolio, including for borrowers in bankruptcy.  PNC provided close to $5 million in credits and refunds, as well as additional remediation in the form of lien releases and debt forgiveness. 

In addition to monetary and other remediation, Nationstar, U.S. Bank, and PNC each made changes to their internal procedures to prevent the recurrence of the deficient bankruptcy servicing practices.  These changes included enhancements to computer platforms, improvements to vendor and employee training and oversight, and implementation of quality control processes to ensure the accuracy and timeliness of filings in bankruptcy cases and escrow analyses for borrowers in bankruptcy.

No Effect on Non-Parties 

These agreements do not affect the rights of any homeowner or other third party, including other governmental agencies.  Bankruptcy borrowers with questions may contact the servicers at:

Nationstar Mortgage LLC at 833-981-2112,

PNC Bank at 855-245-3814, and

U.S. Bank at 888-724-7362.

The agreements are posted at https://www.justice.gov/ust/national-mortgage-settlements. 

The USTP is the component of the Justice Department that protects the integrity of the bankruptcy system by overseeing case administration and litigating to enforce the bankruptcy laws.  The Program has 21 regions and 90 field office locations.  Learn more about the Program at: https://www.justice.gov/ust.

The Department of Justice today announced a settlement in which DISH Network LLC (DISH) will pay $126 million in civil penalties to the United States for placing millions of telemarketing calls in violation of the Federal Trade Commission's Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR). 

This settlement represents the largest civil penalty ever paid to resolve telemarketing violations under the FTC Act, and exceeds the total penalties paid to the government by all prior violators of the TSR.  DISH will also pay a combined $84 million to four states for violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, for a total settlement of $210 million. 

“The settlement sends a strong message to would-be violators that telemarketing laws and regulations cannot be ignored,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Bossert Clark for the Department of Justice’s Civil Division.

This case was filed in 2009 and went to trial in 2016.  The United States — along with its co-plaintiffs, the States of California, Illinois, North Carolina, and Ohio — alleged that DISH made millions of unlawful telemarketing calls to consumers and was responsible for millions more made by retailers that marketed DISH products and services. In a 2017 opinion, the district court found DISH liable for more than 66 million telemarketing violations of the TSR and other federal and state statutes, imposing significant compliance measures on DISH and awarding the plaintiffs $280 million in civil penalties and damages, with $168 million going to the United States and $112 million to the state plaintiffs.  In 2020, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed those liability findings, but vacated and remanded the civil penalties and damages awards for recalculation. 

As reflected in the stipulated judgment entered by the court today, DISH will pay the United States $126 million in civil penalties to resolve the monetary portion of the case and has agreed not to contest the court’s factual findings or liability determination.  DISH will continue to follow the robust compliance measures imposed by the court in 2017.  The injunction strictly prohibits any future telemarketing violations and significantly restricts DISH’s future telemarketing activities.  DISH also has been ordered to prepare and abide by a telemarketing plan, submit telemarketing compliance materials to the department and the FTC twice annually until 2027, and provide compliance reports requested by the department or the FTC. 

This matter was handled by attorneys in the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch, including Assistant Director Lisa K. Hsiao and Trial Attorneys Patrick R. Runkle, Daniel Crane-Hirsch, and Benjamin A. Cornfeld.  Mark B. Stern and Lindsey Powell of the division’s Appellate Staff handled the Seventh Circuit appeal.  Lois Greisman, Will Maxson, and Russell Deitch of the FTC’s Division of Marketing Practices represented the FTC.

For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts, visit its website at https://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. For more information about the FTC, visit its website at https://www.FTC.gov.

A Maryland man pleaded guilty today to filing a false claim for his role in a scheme to divert hundreds of thousands of dollars in State Department funds to his own use. 

Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction John F. Sopko, and the Department of State’s Assistant Inspector General for Investigations Michael Ryan made the announcement.

Oyetayo Fagbenro, 62, of Ellicott City, Maryland, pleaded guilty to one count of filing a false claim before U.S. District Chief Judge Beryl A. Howell of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.  Sentencing has been scheduled for Feb. 12, 2021, before Chief Judge Howell. 

As part of his guilty plea, Fagbenro admitted that he was awarded three grants to build media centers at Afghan universities, as part of the United States’ continuing efforts in Afghan reconstruction. He admitted that between September 2010 and August 2012 he received approximately $6.9 million in advances for part of the work on the projects.  He further admitted that in that same period he sent approximately $1.38 million from Afghan accounts funded by the State Department to persons he knew and entities he controlled in the United States and other countries, all outside of Afghanistan.

Fagbenro admitted that about $775,000 of the funds he sent outside Afghanistan went to relatives, friends, and corporate entities he controlled with no connection to the purposes of the grants. Fagbenro further admitted that in December 2012 he filed a document with the State Department for one of the grants certifying that he had spent all the State Department funds properly and that he needed more funds to complete the project.  He has admitted that those statements were both false.  Fagbenro has admitted that the State Department lost about $775,000 as a result of his fraud.

The Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is the nation’s leading prosecuting authority for complex procurement fraud and corruption matters.

This case was investigated by the State Department Office of Inspector General and the Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction.  Trial Attorney James Gelber of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is prosecuting the case. 

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

The United States filed a civil complaint to stop a California company from distributing unapproved and misbranded drugs and adulterated animal drugs, the Department of Justice announced today.

In a complaint for permanent injunction filed Dec. 2, 2020, the United States alleged that AMARC Enterprises Inc.; Albert Lee Sanchez Jr.; and Gary L. Matson Sr. sold and distributed “Poly-MVA” and “Poly-MVA for Pets,” which the defendants claim can cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent disease, including cancer. According to the complaint, defendants’ Poly-MVA products are not generally recognized as safe and effective by qualified experts for the uses intended by the defendants in the products’ labeling. The complaint also alleges that the defendants intend for Poly-MVA to be administered intravenously. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has previously warned defendants to cease making such claims.

“Marketing purported dietary supplements with unproven disease claims jeopardizes the public health,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Bossert Clark of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division. “We will continue working with the FDA to stop the illegal sale of such products.”

“Patients suffering from cancer or any other disease should not be deceived into relying on unproven treatments. The sale of such unapproved products has the potential to cause delays in getting proper diagnosis and treatment,” said FDA Chief Counsel Stacy Amin. “Patients need to have confidence that the available drug products have been shown to be safe and effective for their intended use. The FDA is committed to taking decisive action against those who disregard the law and risk the public’s health by distributing unapproved drugs for their personal financial gain.”

The complaint alleges that that the disease claims defendants make for Poly-MVA and Poly-MVA for Pets lack support from published, adequate, and well-controlled clinical studies. The complaint also asserts that, because Poly-MVA’s labeling does not have adequate directions for lay users, the product is misbranded. Additionally, the complaint alleges that Poly-MVA for Pets is an adulterated new animal drug because it lacks an approved application. The Department of Justice filed the complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California at the request of FDA.

A complaint is merely a set of allegations that, if the case were to proceed to trial, the government would need to prove by a preponderance of the evidence.

The case is being handled by Trial Attorney Shannon Pedersen of the Justice Department Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch, with the assistance of Associate Chief Counsel Seth I. Heller of the FDA’s Office of Chief Counse

For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts, visit its website at https://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch.

Ergonomic office furniture maker Workrite Ergonomics LLC, a Delaware company, and its parent, Knape & Vogt Manufacturing Co. (collectively, Workrite), have agreed to pay $7.1 million to resolve allegations under the False Claims Act that they overcharged the federal government for office furniture under General Services Administration (GSA) contracts, the Department of Justice announced today. 

“Companies that do business with the United States are expected to charge the government appropriately for their services,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Bossert Clark of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division.  “We will continue to protect the American taxpayers and hold accountable those who misuse federal funds.”

“Federal contractors must be honest and forthcoming,” said U.S. Attorney David L. Anderson of the Northern District of California.  “Contractors that overcharge the American taxpayer will be held accountable.”

“American taxpayers deserve fair prices and accurate information from GSA contractors,” said GSA Inspector General Carol Fortine Ochoa.  “I appreciate the hard work and dedication that led to this significant recovery.”

“The settlement is a positive outcome that holds Workrite accountable for its questionable business practices,” said Special Agent in Charge Bryan D. Denny, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Western Field Office.  “This is but one example of the law enforcement and oversight communities’ on-going, joint efforts to be good stewards of American taxpayer dollars.”

This settlement relates to a contract under which Workrite provided office furniture to government entities from 2009 to 2017 through GSA’s Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) program.  The MAS program provides the government with a streamlined process to procure commonly used commercial goods and services.  The settlement resolves allegations that Workrite did not fulfill its contractual obligations to provide GSA with accurate information about its commercial sales practices during contract negotiations, and did not subsequently extend lower prices to government customers as required by the GSA contract’s price reduction clause. 

The allegations were originally made in a lawsuit filed under the whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Michael J. Franchek, of Park City, Utah, a former Workrite sales manager.  The Act permits private parties to sue for false claims on behalf of the United States and to share in any recovery.  Franchek will receive approximately $1.27 million from the settlement proceeds.

The settlement with Workrite was the result of a coordinated effort among the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California, the GSA’s Office of the Inspector General, the Department of State’s Office of Inspector General, the DCIS, the Defense Contract Audit Agency, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Office of Inspector General. 

The lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. Franchek v. Workrite Ergonomics, LLC, No. 16-cv-02789 (N.D. Cal.).  The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.

The Department of Justice’s U.S. Trustee Program (USTP) has entered into a settlement agreement with global consulting firm McKinsey & Company (McKinsey) requiring McKinsey to forego payment of fees in the Westmoreland Coal bankruptcy case pending in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas (Westmoreland Case).  The agreement, which is subject to review and approval by the bankruptcy court, resolves the USTP’s objection to the adequacy of McKinsey’s disclosures of connections and possible conflicts of interest in the Westmoreland Case.

The USTP previously reached a $15 million settlement with McKinsey in February 2019 to address past disclosure practices by McKinsey in three bankruptcy cases, including the Westmoreland Case.  The USTP had objected to McKinsey’s initial application seeking to be retained in the Westmoreland Case, and after the prior settlement McKinsey withdrew that application.  McKinsey later made new disclosures in a renewed attempt to be retained in the Westmoreland Case.  The USTP again objected, alleging that the disclosures remained deficient because McKinsey failed to disclose the connections of all of its affiliates, failed to make adequate disclosures regarding its investments in entities that could create a conflict of interest, and failed to address inconsistencies concerning its disclosure of confidential client connections. 

“In bankruptcy, professionals who are paid at the expense of the debtor company’s creditors, employees, and shareholders must be free of any actual or potential conflicts of interest,” said USTP Director Cliff White.  “Under bankruptcy law, this also entails detailed disclosures to ensure that the professionals can provide single-minded loyalty to the debtor’s stakeholders.  Should any professionals fail to meet this standard, regardless of size, complexity, or motivation, they will be held accountable.  This settlement ensures that McKinsey is held accountable for its conduct in this case.”

Settlement Terms

Under the terms of the settlement, McKinsey’s application seeking employment in the Westmoreland Case will be withdrawn.  As a result, McKinsey will not seek to recover any fees in connection with services rendered in the case that would otherwise be subject to review and approval of the court.  While the total amount of fees it is waiving is unknown, McKinsey rendered services throughout the case and likely would have sought approval for, and reimbursement of, millions of dollars in fees and expenses. 

In addition, McKinsey has for the first time agreed that it will fully disclose all affiliate connections and all confidential client connections in any bankruptcy case in which it seeks to be retained in the future, unless the bankruptcy court orders otherwise. 

The USTP has agreed to withdraw its pending objection in the Westmoreland Case and to work cooperatively, as it does with all professionals seeking to be employed in bankruptcy cases, to ensure the adequacy of McKinsey’s disclosures relating to its proposed retention in future bankruptcy cases.  The USTP continues to review McKinsey’s practices with respect to its investment affiliates.

While the settlement resolves any actions that could be brought by the USTP for McKinsey’s inadequate disclosures in the Westmoreland Case, it does not impact the rights of other third parties, including any parties or government agencies not participating in the settlement.  This settlement, as with the prior settlement, is limited to resolving McKinsey’s disclosure deficiencies and does not address or resolve, among other things, claims relating to actual or potential conflicts of interest. 

The USTP has an ongoing initiative to ensure the rigorous review of applications to employ professionals, including those who have investment arms and complex multi-affiliate organizational structures.  The USTP’s public emphasis on enforcing conflict and disclosure set forth in bankruptcy law has resulted in more complete disclosures made by these professionals in cases across the country.

The U.S. Trustee Program is the component of the Justice Department that protects the integrity of the bankruptcy system by overseeing case administration and litigating to enforce the bankruptcy laws. The Program has 21 regions and 90 field office locations. Learn more information on the Program at: https://www.justice.gov/ust.

The Department of Justice announced today that it filed a lawsuit against Facebook Inc. for discriminating against U.S. workers. 

The lawsuit alleges that Facebook refused to recruit, consider, or hire qualified and available U.S. workers for over 2,600 positions that Facebook, instead, reserved for temporary visa holders it sponsored for permanent work authorization (or “green cards”) in connection with the permanent labor certification process (PERM). The positions that were the subject of Facebook’s alleged discrimination against U.S. workers offered an average salary of approximately $156,000. According to the lawsuit, and based on the department’s nearly two-year investigation, Facebook intentionally created a hiring system in which it denied qualified U.S. workers a fair opportunity to learn about and apply for jobs that Facebook instead sought to channel to temporary visa holders Facebook wanted to sponsor for green cards.   

“The Department of Justice’s lawsuit alleges that Facebook engaged in intentional and widespread violations of the law, by setting aside positions for temporary visa holders instead of considering interested and qualified U.S. workers,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric S. Dreiband of the Civil Rights Division. “This lawsuit follows a nearly two-year investigation into Facebook’s practices and a ‘reasonable cause’ determination by the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. Our message to workers is clear: if companies deny employment opportunities by illegally preferring temporary visa holders, the Department of Justice will hold them accountable. Our message to all employers — including those in the technology sector — is clear: you cannot illegally prefer to recruit, consider, or hire temporary visa holders over U.S. workers.”

The department’s lawsuit alleges that beginning no later than Jan. 1, 2018 and lasting until at least Sept. 18, 2019, Facebook employed tactics that discriminated against U.S. workers and routinely preferred temporary visa holders (including H-1B visa holders) for jobs in connection with the PERM process. Rather than conducting a genuine search for qualified and available U.S. workers for permanent positions sought by these temporary visa holders, Facebook reserved the positions for temporary visa holders because of their immigration status, according to the complaint. The complaint also alleges that Facebook sought to channel jobs to temporary visa holders at the expense of U.S. workers by failing to advertise those vacancies on its careers website, requiring applicants to apply by physical mail only, and refusing to consider any U.S. workers who applied for those positions. In contrast, Facebook’s usual hiring process relies on recruitment methods designed to encourage applications by advertising positions on its careers website, accepting electronic applications, and not pre-selecting candidates to be hired based on a candidate’s immigration status, according to the lawsuit.

In its investigation, the department determined that Facebook’s ineffective recruitment methods dissuaded U.S. workers from applying to its PERM positions. The department concluded that, during the relevant period, Facebook received zero or one U.S. worker applicants for 99.7 percent of its PERM positions, while comparable positions at Facebook that were advertised on its careers website during a similar time period typically attracted 100 or more applicants each. These U.S. workers were denied an opportunity to be considered for the jobs Facebook sought to channel to temporary visa holders, according to the lawsuit. 

Not only do Facebook’s alleged practices discriminate against U.S. workers, they have adverse consequences on temporary visa holders by creating an employment relationship that is not on equal terms. An employer that engages in the practices alleged in the lawsuit against Facebook can expect more temporary visa holders to apply for positions and increased retention post-hire. Such temporary visa holders often have limited job mobility and thus are likely to remain with their company until they can adjust status, which for some can be decades.

The United States’ complaint seeks civil penalties, back pay on behalf of U.S. workers denied employment at Facebook due to the alleged discrimination in favor of temporary visa holders, and other relief to ensure Facebook stops the alleged violations in the future. According to the lawsuit, and based on the department’s nearly two-year investigation, Facebook’s discrimination against U.S. workers was intentional, widespread, and in violation of a provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), 8 U.S.C. § 1324b(a)(1), that the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division enforces. 

The PERM process is administered by the U.S. Department of Labor and allows employers to offer permanent positions to temporary visa holders by converting them to lawful permanent residents who may live and work in the United States on a permanent basis. However, the PERM process requires an employer to first demonstrate that there are no qualified and available U.S. workers for the position that the employer plans to offer to the temporary visa holder. The INA protects U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, refugees, asylees, and recent lawful permanent residents from citizenship status discrimination in hiring, firing, and recruitment or referral for a fee. Workers who fall outside of these categories are not protected from citizenship status discrimination under the INA.  

This lawsuit is filed as part of the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division’s Protecting U.S. Workers Initiative, which was started in 2017 and is aimed at targeting, investigating, and taking enforcement actions against companies that discriminate against U.S. workers in favor of temporary visa holders. The Civil Rights Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) has reached numerous settlements under the Initiative, and employers have distributed or agreed to pay a combined total of more than $1.2 million in back pay to affected U.S. workers and civil penalties to the United States.  These settlements involve employers that discriminated in their use of H-1B, H-2A, H-2B, and F-1 visas.

IER is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA.  The statute prohibits citizenship status and national origin discrimination in hiring, firing, or recruitment or referral for a fee; unfair documentary practices; and retaliation and intimidation.   

Learn more about IER’s work and how to get assistance through this brief video. Applicants or employees who believe they were discriminated against based on their citizenship, immigration status, or national origin in hiring, firing, recruitment, or during the employment eligibility verification process (Form I-9 and E-Verify); or subjected to retaliation, can file a charge. The public also can contact IER’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688; call IER’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); email IER@usdoj.gov; sign up for a free webinar; or visit IER’s English and Spanish websites.  Subscribe to GovDelivery to receive updates from IER.

Members of the public can also report possible civil rights violations through the Civil Rights Division’s reporting portal.

WASHINGTON – El Departamento de Justicia anunció hoy que ha entablado pleito contra Facebook, Inc. por discriminar a trabajadores en este país. 

El pleito alega que Facebook se negó a reclutar, considerar o contratar a trabajadores cualificados y disponibles en este país para más de 2.600 puestos que en cambio, Facebook reservó para personas con visas temporales que había patrocinado para una autorización permanente para trabajar (o «tarjetas verdes»), en conexión con el proceso de certificación de trabajo permanente («PERM», por sus siglas en inglés). Los puestos que eran el sujeto de la alegada discriminación por parte de Facebook a trabajadores en este país ofrecían un salario medio de aproximadamente 156.000 $. Según el pleito y con base en la investigación del Departamento que duró casi dos años, Facebook creó intencionalmente un sistema de contratación que denegaba la oportunidad justa de trabajadores en este país de informarse sobre y solicitar puestos que Facebook, en cambio, intentaba reservar para personas con visas temporales que cuyas tarjetas verdes quería patrocinar.  

«El pleito del Departamento de Justicia alega que Facebook vulneró la ley de manera intencionada y extendida al reservar puestos para trabajadores con visas temporales en vez de considerar a trabajadores cualificados e interesados en este país», declaró Eric S. Dreiband, el Fiscal General Auxiliar de la División de Derechos Civiles. «El pleito es el resultado de una investigación de casi dos años de las prácticas de Facebook y una determinación de “motivos fundados” por parte de la División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia. Que quede claro nuestro mensaje para los trabajdores: si una compañía le niega una oportunidad de empleo al dar preferencia, de modo ilegal, a trabajadores con visas temporales, el Departamento de Justicia la hará rendir cuentas de sus acciones. Y que quede claro también nuestro mensaje para todos los empleadores, incluyendo a aquellos del sector tecnológico: no pueden dar una preferencia ilegal a trabajadores con visas temporales en vez de a trabajadores en este país a la hora de reclutar, considerar o contratarlos».

El pleito del Departamento alega que comenzando, a más tardar, el 1 de enero del 2018, y hasta al menos el 18 de septiembre del 2019, Facebook empleó tácticas que discriminaron a trabajadores en este país y dio preferencia, de manera rutinaria, a personas con visas temporales (incluyendo a personas con visas H-1B) para empleos asociados con el proceso PERM. En vez de realizar una búsqueda verdadera de trabajadores cualificados y disponibles en este país para puestos permanentes solicitados por estas personas con visas temporales, Facebook reservó los puestos para los trabajadores con visas temporales por motivos de su estatus migratorio, según indica la demanda. Más aún, la demanda alega que Facebook quería reservar puestos para personas con visas temporales, a costa de los trabajadores en este país, al abstenerse de publicar aquellas vacantes en su sitio web de profesiones, al requerir que los postulantes entregaran su solicitud por correo ordinario exclusivamente y al negarse a considerar a cualquier trabajador en este país que solicitó uno de esos puestos. En cambio, el proceso de contratación habitual de Facebook utiliza métodos de reclutamiento que alientan la entrega de solicitudes mediante la publicación de puestos en su sitio web de profesiones, aceptan solicitudes virtuales y no preseleccionan a candidatos para la contratación con base en el estatus migratorio del candidato, según afirma el pleito.

Durante el transcurso de su investigación, el Departmento determinó que los métodos de reclutamiento ineficaces de Facebook disuadieron a trabajadores en este país de solicitar alguno de sus puestos PERM. El Departamento concluyó que, a lo largo del período en cuestión, Facebook recibió cero o un solicitante que era trabajador en este país para el 99,7 % de sus puestos PERM, mientras que puestos comparables en Facebook que fueron publicados en su sitio web de profesiones durante un período de tiempo similar típicamente atraían a 100 solicitantes o más. Estos trabajadores en este país fueron denegados la oportunidad de ser considerados para los puestos que Facebook quería reservar para personas con visas temporales, según consta en el pleito. 

No solo que las prácticas alegadas de Facebook discriminan a trabajadores en este país, sino que han tenido consencuencias adversas para personas con visas temporales al crear una relación de empleo que no queda sujeta a las mismas condiciones. Un empleador que incurre en las prácticas alegadas en el pleito contra Facebook puede esperar que más personas con visas temporales soliciten puestos y una mayor tasa de retención pos-contratación. Tales personas con visas temporales suelen tener una movilidad laboral limitada y es, por lo tanto, más probable que se queden con su compañía hasta poder ajustar su estatus, y para muchos eso puede tardar décadas.

La demanda de los Estados Unidos pide sanciones civiles, pagos retroactivos por parte de trabajadores en este país a los que fueron denegado un empleo en Facebook debido a la alegada discriminacion a favor de trabajadores con visas temporales y otros tipos de compensación con el fin de agarantizar que Facebook ponga fin en el futuro a las alegadas vulneraciones. Según el pleito, y con base en la investigación de casi dos años del Departamento, Facebook discriminó a trabajadores en este país de manera intencionada, extensa y en contra de una disposición de la ley de Inmigración y Nacionalidad («INA», por sus siglas en inglés), Sección 1324b(a)(1) del Título 8 del Código de los EE. UU., la cual la División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia hace cumplir. 

El proceso PERM es administrado por el Departamento de Trabajo de los EE. UU. y permite a los empleadores ofrecer puestos permanentes a personas con visas temporales al convertirlos en residentes permanentes legales que pueden vivir y trabajar en los Estados Unidos de manera permanente. No obstante, el proceso PERM requiere primero que un empleador demuestre que no hay trabajadores cualificados y disponibles en este país para el puesto que el empleador tiene previsto ofrecer a trabajadores con visa temporal. Los ciudadanos estadounidenses, nacionales de los EE. UU., refugiados, asilados y residentes permanentes legales están protegidos bajo la INA de disriminación por motivos de su ciudadañía en los procesos de contratación, despido y reclutamiento o recomendación por comisión. Aquellos trabajadores que queden fuera de estas categorías no se benefician de la protección de la INA de la discriminación por motivos de estatus de ciudadanía.

Este pleito se entabló como parte de la Iniciativa para la Protección de Trabajadores en Este País de la División de Derechos Civiles, que fue lanzada en el 2017. Su meta es enfocarse en, investigar a y tomar medidas de aplicación de la ley contra compañías que discriminen a trabajadores en este país a favor de trabajadores extranjeros con visas temporales. La Sección de Derechos de Inmigrantes y Empleados («IER», por sus siglas en inglés) de la División de Derechos Civiles ha llegado a numerosos acuerdos bajo la Iniciativa y empleadores han distribuido o acordado distribuir un total combinado de más de 1,2 millónes de dólares por concepto de pagos retroactivos a trabajadores afectados en este país y sanciones civiles a los Estados Unidos. Estos acuerdos implican empleadores que fueron discriminatorios en su uso de visas de H-1B, H-2A, H-2B y F-1.

La IER es responsable de hacer cumplir la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la INA. La ley prohíbe la discriminación por motivos de estatus de ciudadanía y nacionalidad de origen en los procesos de contratación, despido o reclutamiento o recomendación por comisión; prácticas documentales injustas; y represalias o la intimidación.   

Aquellos aspirantes o empleados que creen haber sido discriminados por motivos de su estatus de ciudadanía o nacionalidad de origen en los procesos de contratación, despido, reclutamiento o verificación de la elegibilidad para trabajar (Formulario I-9 e E-Verify) o sujetos a represalias pueden presentar una denuncia. El público también puede llamar a la línea directa de la IER para trabajadores al 1-800-255-7688; llamar a la línea directa de la IER para empleadores al 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY para personas con discapacidades auditivas); enviar un correo electrónico a IER@usdoj.gov; inscribirse a un seminario en línea gratuito; o visitar los sitios web de la IER en inglés o español. Para recibir las últimas noticias de la IER, inscríbase a GovDelivery.

Miembros del público también pueden informarnos de posibles vulneraciones de derechos civiles mediante el portal de declaraciones de la División de Derechos Civiles.

Descargar la demanda (en inglés)

The U.S. Department of Justice, the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and six other federal law enforcement agencies announced the completion of the third annual Money Mule Initiative, a coordinated operation to disrupt the networks through which transnational fraudsters move the proceeds of their crimes.  Money mules are individuals who assist fraudsters by receiving money from victims of fraud and forwarding it to the fraud organizers, many of whom are located abroad.  Some money mules know they are assisting fraudsters, but others are unaware that their actions enable fraudsters’ efforts to swindle money from consumers, businesses, and government unemployment funds.  Europol announced a simultaneous effort, the European Money Mule Action (EMMA) today.

Over the last two months, U.S. law enforcement agencies took action against over 2,300 money mules, far surpassing last year’s effort, which acted against over 600 money mules.  This year, actions occurred in every state in the country.  The initiative announced today targeted money mules involved in a wide range of schemes including lottery fraud, romance scams, government imposter fraud, technical support fraud, business email compromise or CEO fraud, and unemployment insurance fraud.  Many of these schemes target elderly or vulnerable members of society.

“Money mules fuel fraud against some of America’s most vulnerable populations. Without the help of these money mules, many foreign fraud enterprises find it difficult to profit off of U.S. victims,” said Attorney General William P. Barr. “As this initiative demonstrates, the Department of Justice is committed to disrupting money mule networks, taking actions against more money mules this year than ever before, in an effort to cut off the flow of funds from American consumers and businesses to transnational criminal organizations.”

Eight federal law enforcement agencies participated in this year’s effort. Led by the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch, the FBI, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the participating agencies include the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, U.S. Secret Service, and U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

Some highlights from this year’s efforts are:

• Actions were taken to halt the conduct of approximately 2,300 money mules, spanning 92 federal districts.
• Law enforcement served approximately 2,000 money mules with letters warning the money mules that they were facilitating fraud and could face civil or criminal consequences for continuing their actions. Agents conducted over 450 interviews.
• On approximately 30 instances, agents seized assets or facilitated the return of victim funds. Among the asset seizures was a 2019 Lamborghini, which was seized as part of an investigation into a business email compromise scheme. 
• The U.S. Postal Inspection Service filed 14 administrative actions requiring money mules to cease facilitating fraud.
• U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Consumer Protection Branch filed 17 civil injunctive actions seeking court orders requiring money mules to stop facilitating fraudulent activity. Districts filing those actions include the Western District of Washington, District of South Carolina, Middle District of Florida, Southern District of Florida, Central District of California, Northern District of New York, and District of Colorado.

Additionally, more than 35 individuals were criminally charged or arrested for their roles in receiving victim payments and forwarding the fraud proceeds to accomplices or laundering fraud proceeds. Cases include:

• The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California indicted three individuals for collecting parcels containing victim proceeds in a government imposter scheme.
• The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland indicted three individuals for opening bank accounts using falsified documents for the purposes of facilitating a business email compromise scam.
• The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas indicted an individual for facilitating a lottery fraud scheme. The indictment also seeks to forfeit over $1.2 million.
• The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio indicted two money mules who facilitated a grandparents scam.
• The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia charged a money mule who laundered gift cards purchased by fraud victims.

Additional criminal charges were brought by U.S. Attorney’s Offices in Southern District of Florida, Western District of Pennsylvania, Western District of North Carolina, Southern District of Texas, the Southern District of Mississippi, and the District of New Jersey. 

The above charges are merely allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

“The success of the Money Mule Initiative is the culmination of the hard work by and coordination between the FBI and our federal, state, local, and international partners,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray.  “This campaign has resulted in hundreds of criminal arrests worldwide and justice for countless victims.  Today’s announcement should send a clear message to those engaged in this type of criminal activity: they are not outside the reach of law enforcement, and the FBI and its partners will relentlessly pursue them in order to protect the American people.”

“The Postal Inspection Service has zero tolerance for fraudsters who use the U.S. Mail to transport funds from scammed victims,” said Chief Postal Inspector Gary Barksdale.  “Postal Inspectors use cutting-edge technology to build strong cases and campaigns like those announced today, which make significant progress towards disrupting money mule networks.  Postal Inspectors and our law enforcement partners will be relentless in the pursuit of criminal organizations that perpetrate these schemes.”

The agencies participating in the Money Mule Initiative and community partners are undertaking an outreach campaign to increase awareness of how fraudsters use and recruit money mules. U.S. Attorney’s Offices across the country, through their Elder Justice Coordinators, will be reaching out to their communities to educate the public about money mules.  AmeriCorp Seniors (formerly Senior Corps) will be working to increase awareness of how money mules facilitate fraud and how consumers can avoid unwittingly assisting fraud schemes.

Additionally, the American Bankers Association will be engaging with its members on money mules and the role of financial institutions in addressing the problem.  The Department of Justice will also be distributing resources for state and local law enforcement on identifying, disrupting, investigating, and prosecuting money mules.

To find public education materials, as well as information about how fraudsters use and recruit money mules, please visit www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch/money-mule-initiative. 

Since President Trump signed the bipartisan Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act (EAPPA) into law, the Department of Justice has participated in hundreds of enforcement actions in criminal and civil cases that targeted or disproportionately affected seniors.  In January 2020, the department designated “Preventing and Disrupting Transnational Elder Fraud” as an Agency Priority Goal, one of its top four priorities.  In March 2020, the department announced the largest elder fraud enforcement action in American history, charging more than 400 defendants in a nationwide elder fraud sweep.  The department has also conducted hundreds of trainings and outreach sessions across the country since the passage of the Act. 

The department’s extensive efforts to combat elder fraud seek to halt the billions of dollars seniors lose each year to fraud schemes, including those perpetrated by transnational criminal organizations.  The best method for prevention, however, is sharing information about the various types of elder fraud schemes with relatives, friends, neighbors, and other seniors who can use that information to protect themselves.

If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311).  This U.S. Department of Justice hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, is staffed by experienced professionals who provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim, and identifying relevant next steps.  Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies, and provide resources and referrals, on a case-by-case basis.  Reporting is the first step.  Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses.  The hotline is staffed seven days a week from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. eastern time. English, Spanish and other languages are available.

Attorney General William P. Barr has appointed Kevin M. Epstein as the U.S. Trustee for the Southern and Western Districts of Texas (Region 7) effective Jan. 1, 2021, the Executive Office for U.S. Trustees (EOUST) announced today.  He will replace Henry G. Hobbs Jr., who is retiring after 28 years of government service. 

Mr. Epstein has been a Trial Attorney with the U.S. Trustee Program for 21 years, first in San Jose, California, and since 2003 in San Antonio, Texas.  During his tenure, he also has served as an Acting Assistant U.S. Trustee in charge of three different field offices.  Mr. Epstein received his law degree from the University of Texas School of Law and his undergraduate degree from Duke University, both with honors.

“We are pleased to have Mr. Epstein join our leadership team,” said EOUST Director Cliff White.  “His depth of legal experience and practical approach to management, along with his strong commitment to mission, will serve Region 7 well.  I also want to extend my best wishes and deepest appreciation to Mr. Hobbs for his many significant contributions to the U.S. Trustee Program over the years.”

The U.S. Trustee Program is the component of the Justice Department that protects the integrity of the bankruptcy system by overseeing case administration and litigating to enforce the bankruptcy laws.  The USTP has 21 regions and 90 field office locations.  Region 7 has offices in Austin, Corpus Christi, Houston, and San Antonio, Texas.

The Justice Department today announced that it reached an agreement with Amtrak, the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, to resolve the department’s findings of disability discrimination in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Under the agreement Amtrak will fix inaccessible stations and pay $2.25 million to victims hurt by its inaccessible stations.

The accompanying complaint filed by the department alleges that Amtrak has violated and continues to violate the ADA by failing to make existing stations in its intercity rail transportation system readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities, including individuals who use wheelchairs. The ADA gave Amtrak 20 years from the law’s 1990 enactment to make its stations accessible, requiring Amtrak to comply by July 26, 2010.

“When Congress enacted the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990, it recognized the crucial role transportation plays in our lives,” said Eric Dreiband, Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division. “Transportation is the linchpin of access for people with disabilities to the full economic, social, and cultural benefits of our country. The Americans with Disabilities Act gave Amtrak until 2010 to make its stations accessible for individuals with disabilities. Amtrak failed or refused to comply with the Congressionally-mandated 2010 deadline, and Amtrak’s noncompliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act injured individuals with disabilities. Passengers with disabilities have waited long enough. Today’s agreement is a historic victory for individuals with disabilities, Amtrak, the rule of law, and the promise of equal opportunity for all Americans. We welcome Amtrak’s commitment today to bring its system into compliance with the law so that all individuals have an equal opportunity to barrier-free rail transportation.”

Under the agreement, Amtrak has committed to make its intercity rail stations accessible, prioritizing stations with the most significant barriers to access. Over the next 10 years, Amtrak will design at least 135 stations to be accessible, complete construction at 90 of those stations, and have at least 45 more under construction. Amtrak will also train staff on ADA requirements and implement an agreed-upon process for accepting and handling ADA complaints. As part of this commitment, Amtrak recently established an Office of the Vice President of Stations, Properties & Accessibility to coordinate its compliance with the ADA.

To compensate those harmed by inaccessible stations while trying to travel by train, Amtrak will establish a $2.25 million settlement fund. Individuals with mobility impairments who traveled or desired to travel at 78 specified stations with significant accessibility issues may be compensated from the settlement fund. 

This action was brought by the Disability Rights Section of the department’s Civil Rights Division. To read the settlement agreement, please click here, and to read the complaint, please click here.

This year marks the 30th Anniversary of the ADA. The Justice Department plays a central role in advancing the nation’s goal of equal opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency for people with disabilities. To learn more about the ADA’s history and impact, please visit the department’s ADA Anniversary webpage.

For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt. For more information on the ADA, please call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383) or visit www.ada.gov.

On December 1, as our country joins in observing World AIDS Day, the Justice Department stands with all people living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Since the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) 30 years ago, the department has worked zealously, through enforcement, outreach, and technical assistance, to protect and advance the rights of people living with HIV and AIDS. This past year is no exception. 

In recognizing World AIDS Day 2020 Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division Eric Dreiband gave the following statement: 

“The Department of Justice is proud to play a central role in protecting the civil rights of individuals living with HIV and AIDS. On this day, the Civil Rights Division reaffirms its commitment to eradicating discrimination against those living with HIV or AIDS. Discrimination against individuals with HIV or AIDS is not only unlawful, it also is contrary to this nation’s ideals. As long as the unlawful treatment of persons living with HIV and AIDS continues, the Justice Department will continue its efforts to protect their rights.”

Notably, the Civil Rights Division’s enforcement efforts over the last year have helped ensure that people with HIV and AIDS are not turned away when seeking medical care because of unfounded fears and misinformation about the virus. In March 2020, the department entered into a settlement agreement with a nationwide pharmacy after an investigation substantiated that an individual was denied a flu shot after disclosing that he has HIV. The agreement requires the company to pay compensatory damages to the individual and a civil penalty to the government, and to provide training to all pharmacists on this issue.

Another settlement agreement resolved allegations that an individual, who due to back pain sought a breast reduction procedure at the recommendation of her primary care provider, was denied that procedure because she has HIV. The Illinois-based plastic surgery provider agreed to pay compensatory damages to the complainant and to ensure that its customers are aware that the practice welcomes patients with disabilities. 

Still other resolutions addressed the ability of individuals living with HIV to access the vast array of goods, services, and privileges regularly available to all members of the public. One settlement agreement addressed the allegation that an individual with HIV was turned away by a provider of cosmetic medical procedures in California. The provider was required to pay compensatory damages to the individual and a civil penalty to the United States, and to provide training on ADA requirements. Another settlement agreement resolved allegations that an Illinois tattoo provider refused to provide tattoo services to a prospective customer who disclosed that she has HIV. The settlement agreement secured a monetary payment to the individual and the business adopted a non-discrimination policy.

Finally, this year we worked to ensure that children are not denied opportunities based on their actual or perceived HIV status. Specifically, we entered into a settlement agreement to resolve allegations that a daycare in New Jersey denied admission to the complainant’s child based on the perception that the child has HIV or hepatitis. The agreement requires the daycare to adopt a non-discrimination policy, train staff, and pay compensatory damages to the complainant.

As we support our federal agency partners in furthering the nation’s shared goal to eradicate HIV altogether, the department will continue its enforcement, outreach, and technical assistance work to ensure that people living with the virus enjoy their rights. Until the day when HIV is eliminated, we will act every day to stamp out the scourge of illegal discrimination against those living with the virus. 

To learn more about the department’s work, please visit www.ada.gov/hiv. 

Today, senior law enforcement officials from the United States, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras announced criminal charges in Central America against more than 700 members of transnational criminal organizations, primarily MS-13 and 18th Street gangs, which resulted from a one-week coordinated law enforcement action under Operation Regional Shield (ORS).

ORS began in 2017 and is a Justice Department-led initiative to combat transnational organized crime that brings together gang prosecutors and investigators from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico and the United States.  Through quarterly meetings, this group has coordinated multi-country investigations and simultaneous takedowns throughout the region. 

Authorities also announced the arrest of 36 individuals in El Salvador and Honduras involved in human smuggling networks that span Central America and the United States.  Among those arrested in Honduras, include one police commissioner, one police deputy inspector, and three law enforcement agents.  All arrestees were charged with human smuggling, money laundering and illegal association to commit a crime.  The charges were announced by U.S. Attorney General William P. Barr, Attorney General Raul Melara of El Salvador, Attorney General María Consuelo Porras Argueta of Guatemala, and the Attorney General of Honduras, Oscar Fernando Chinchilla, through the Public Ministry’s Press Office. 

“The U.S. Department of Justice and our law enforcement partners in Central America are committed to continued collaboration in locating and arresting gang members and associates engaged in transnational crimes,” said U.S. Attorney General Barr.  “Our countries are made safer by working together to protect national security and to ensure public safety in our neighborhoods.”

In 2017, the U.S. Attorney General, together with the Attorneys General of the three Central American countries, committed to combatting transnational organized crime and reducing illegal migration to the United States through increased cooperation and capacity building of law enforcement partners. These efforts have led to the following results this week:

Prosecutors in El Salvador filed criminal charges against 1,152 members of organized crime groups in the country, primarily MS-13 and 18th Street Gangs.  Within hours, the National  Civil Police had captured 572 of the defendants for charges involving terrorism, murder, extortion, kidnapping, vehicle theft, robbery, conspiracy, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, weapons violations, human trafficking and human smuggling.  Prosecutors and the Police also seized assets from these organized crime groups for forfeiture purposes. 

In Guatemala, the Anti-Extortions Prosecution Office, the Prosecutor’s Office against Transnational Crimes, the Special Unit against Transnational Gangs, and police officers executed 80 search warrants, arrested 40 individuals, and served 29 arrest warrants against individuals already in custody, all of who are members of the 18th Street gang and MS-13.  Authorities seized drugs and a firearm, and filed charges for extortion, illicit association, conspiracy to commit murder, and extortive obstruction.  This investigation involves four transportation companies as victims of extortion in the amount of $54,523.

In Honduras, ORS joint operation took place in different phases during a one-week period resulted in the arrest of over 75 MS-13 and 18th Street gang members and five police officers and the execution of over 10 search warrants. Illegal firearms, cellular phones, drugs and money were seized.  The arrestees were charged with illicit association, murder and conspiracy to commit murder, extortion and drug trafficking.  

On February 9, President Donald J. Trump issued an Executive Order on Enforcing Federal Law with Respect to Transnational Criminal Organizations and Preventing International Trafficking to dismantle and eradicate transnational criminal organizations threatening the safety of our communities. Pursuant to that order, the U.S. Department of Justice has made dismantling transnational human smuggling networks and gangs, including MS-13, a top priority.

Regional Shield anti-gang efforts have led to charges against more than 11,000 gang members since 2017, including gang leaders nationwide.  Many of these indictments included the seizure of gang assets including firearms and money.  Also, during that time, more than a dozen smuggling/trafficking structures were dismantled.  The capacity-building efforts in Central America of the Justice Department’s Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT) have played a key role in bringing together the Attorneys General from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras to form the regional operations targeting MS-13, 18th Street, and other gangs, as well as human smuggling transnational organizations. Additionally, as a result of OPDAT’s capacity building efforts, the Justice Department’s partners in Central America have strengthened cooperation and developed the skills, tools, and techniques to maximize results against all forms of transnational organized crime impacting the region and the United States. 

“Since 2017, we have taken a joint and coordinated approach as northern triangle countries with our strategic partner, the United States of America,” said Attorney General Raul Melara of El Salvador.  “To give our Salvadoran people a response and ensure that criminals face justice, we have strengthened the work of our Specialized Prosecution Units to be more effective in combating organized crime and terrorist organizations.  I am committed as Attorney General to continuing this coordinated effort.  We will only eradicate transnational organized crime by combining efforts as a region and by continuing to work together.”    

“As Attorney General of the Republic and Chief of the Public Ministry, I reaffirm my commitment to the fight against transnational organized crime, one of the main goals of my administration,” said Attorney General María Consuelo Porras Argueta of Guatemala.  “To this end, we have increased efforts to provide an effective response to the population through the creation of the Prosecutor’s Office against Transnational Crimes, the Special Unit against Transnational Gangs, the Special Unit against Crimes in Airports and Airfields, the signing of the statement of the Advisory Group of General Prosecutors of the Northern Triangle, which I have the honor to preside; among other strategic actions to combat transnational organized crime with frontal actions against drug trafficking, gangs, organized crime and smuggling of migrants.”

“I consider that, due to the regional threat posed by these transnational crimes, equal interagency and regional efforts should come into effect,” said Attorney General Oscar Fernando Chinchilla of Honduras.  “Only by joining forces, the damaging consequences produced by these criminal organizations could be neutralized.”

In El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, the investigations into transnational criminal organizations is being handled by regional gang prosecutors who receive State Department-funded training and mentoring from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and OPDAT. With support from State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, prosecutors from OPDAT helped establish task forces in the region and work with FBI’s local Transnational Anti-Gang (TAG) units, as well as HSI’s Transnational Criminal Investigative Units (TCIUs). These efforts have helped Central American partners convict thousands of criminals, seize over $1 billion in illicit assets, and coordinate dozens of transnational investigations with their U.S. counterparts.

Law enforcement agencies involved in this latest sixth ORS operation included El Salvador’s Fiscalia General de la Republica (FGR) and the Policia Nacional Civil (PNC); Honduras Policía Nacional, la Dirección Nacional de Servicios Especiales de Investigación (DNSEI), Agencia Técnica de Investigaciones Criminales (ATIC), and Fuerza Nacional Anti Maras y Pandillas (FNAMP) and Guatemala’s Prosecutor’s Office against Transnational Crimes, National Civil Police, Special National Division of Criminal Investigation, National Civil Police’s Anti-Gang Unit, Public Ministry, Anti-Extortions Prosecution Office, and the Special Unit against Transnational Gangs.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

Oficiales principales de las agencias del orden público de los Estados Unidos, El Salvador, Guatemala y Honduras anunciaron hoy la radicación de imputaciones de más de 700 miembros de organizaciones criminales transnacionales, principalmente miembros de las pandillas de la MS-13 y Calle 18 en Centroamérica, en una operativo judicial coordinado que duró por una semana conocido como Operación Escudo Regional (OER).  OER comenzó en el 2017 y es una iniciativa liderada por el Departamento de Justicia para combatir el crimen organizado transnacional que une a fiscales anti-pandillas e investigadores de El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico y los Estados Unidos.  A través de reuniones de coordinación celebradas trimestralmente, este grupo ha coordinado investigaciones que abarcan varios países y arrestos a través de la región. 

Las autoridades también anunciaron los arrestos de 36 individuos en El Salvador y Honduras involucrados con redes de tráfico de personas que abarcan Centroamérica y los Estados Unidos.  Entre los imputados en Honduras se encuentra un comisionado de la policía, un sub-inspector de la policía y tres agentes del orden público.  Los arrestados están imputados con violaciones de tráfico de personas, el lavado de dinero, y asociación ilegal para cometer un delito.  Las imputaciones fueron anunciadas por el Fiscal General de los Estados Unidos William P. Barr, el Fiscal General Raúl Melara de El Salvador, la Fiscal General María Consuelo Porras Argueta de Guatemala, y el Fiscal General de Honduras Oscar Fernando Chinchilla, a través de la Oficina de Prensa del Ministerio Público.   

“El Departamento de Justicia de los Estados Unidos y nuestros aliados del orden público en Centroamérica están comprometidos con la colaboración continua para localizar y arrestar a los miembros y asociados de las pandillas involucrados en crímenes transnacionales,” dijo el Fiscal General Barr.  “Nuestros países están más seguros cuando se trabaja conjuntamente en aras de proteger la seguridad nacional y asegurar la seguridad pública en nuestros vecindarios.”

En el 2017, el Fiscal General de los Estados Unidos en conjunto con sus homólogos de la región se comprometieron en combatir el crimen organizado transnacional y reducir la migración ilegal a los Estados Unidos a través de mayor cooperación y asistencia técnica con los aliados del orden público.  Estos esfuerzos han causado los siguientes resultados esta semana:

Fiscales en El Salvador radicaron acusaciones en contra de más de 1,152 miembros de grupos criminales organizados en el país, primordialmente contra las pandillas MS-13 y Calle 18.  En cuestión de horas, la Policía Civil Nacional había capturado a 572 individuos imputados por los delitos de terrorismo, asesinato, extorsión, secuestro, robo de vehículos, hurto, conspiración, narcotráfico, el lavado de dinero, violaciones a la ley de armas de fuego, tráfico de personas y trata de personas.  Los fiscales y la Policía Nacional incautaron bienes de estos grupos del crimen organizado con el propósito de decomisarlos. 

En Guatemala, la Fiscalía Contra el Delito de Anti-Extorsión, la Unidad Contra Delitos Transnacionales de la Fiscalía y la Unidad Especial Anti-Pandillas Transnacionales y la policía ejecutaron 80 órdenes de allanamiento, arrestaron 40 personas, y notificaron 29 órdenes de arresto a personas en custodia, todos ellos miembros de las pandillas Calle 18 y MS-13.  Se incautó drogas y un arma de fuego, y se radicaron por cargos de extorsión, asociación ilícita, conspiración para cometer asesinato y obstrucción a la justicia.  En este caso hay cuatro compañías de transportistas víctimas de extorsión por un monto que asciende a $54,523   

En Honduras, la operación conjunta OER se llevó a cabo en diferentes fases durante el periodo de una semana y resultó en el arresto de aproximadamente 75 miembros de las pandillas MS-13 y Calle 18, y la ejecución de más de 10 órdenes de allanamiento.  Armas de fuego ilegales, teléfonos celulares, drogas y dinero fueron incautados.  Los individuos arrestados fueron imputados con asociación ilícita, asesinato y conspiración para cometer asesinato, extorsión y narcotráfico.      

El 9 de febrero de 2017, el Presidente Donald J. Trump emitió la Orden Ejecutiva Para Hacer Cumplir la Ley Federal Sobre las Organizaciones de Crímenes Transnacionales y Prevenir el Tráfico Internacional para desmantelar y erradicar las pandillas transnacionales que amenazan la seguridad de nuestras comunidades.  Conforme a esa orden, el Departamento de Justicia ha hecho su prioridad el desmantelar las redes criminales transnacionales de tráfico de personas y pandillas incluyendo la MS-13.   

Los esfuerzos anti-pandilla de Escudo Regional han conducido a la radicación de cargos criminales en contra de más de 11,000 miembros de pandillas desde el 2017, incluyendo líderes de pandillas a nivel nacional.  Muchas de estas imputaciones incluyen la incautación de bienes pertenecientes a las pandillas incluyendo armas de fuego y dinero.  También durante este tiempo más de una docena de redes involucradas en el tráfico y/o trata de personas fueron desmanteladas.  La asistencia técnica provista por la Oficina Internacional para el Desarrollo, Asistencia y Capacitación Técnica del Departamento de Justicia (OPDAT) en la región de Centroamérica ha tenido un rol clave para reunir a los Fiscales Generales de El Salvador, Guatemala, y Honduras para desarrollar operaciones regionales enfocadas en combatir pandillas incluyendo la MS-13 y Calle 18, como también organizaciones transnacionales dedicadas al tráfico de personas.  Además, como resultado de la asistencia técnica provista por OPDAT, los aliados del Departamento de Justicia en Centro América han fortalecido la cooperación y desarrollado las habilidades, herramientas y técnicas para maximizar resultados contra todo tipo de crimen organizado transnacional impactando la región y los Estados Unidos.   

“Desde el 2017, se ha trabajado de manera conjunta y coordinada entre los países que conforman el triángulo norte y nuestro socio estratégico, los Estados Unidos de América,” dijo el Fiscal General de El Salvador Raúl Melara.  “Para dar respuesta a la población salvadoreña y procurar que los criminales respondan ante la justicia, hemos reforzado el trabajo que realizan las Unidades Especializadas de la Fiscalía para ser efectivos en lucha contra el crimen organizado y estructuras terroristas.  Estoy comprometido como Fiscal General a continuar en este esfuerzo coordinado. Solo lograremos erradicar el crimen transnacional uniendo esfuerzos regionales y continuando el trabajo conjunto.”

“Como Fiscal General de la República y Jefe del Ministerio Público, reafirmo mi compromiso en el combate de la delincuencia organizada transnacional, uno de los ejes primordiales de mi gestión,” dijo la Fiscal General de Guatemala María Consuelo Porras Argueta.  “Para el efecto, hemos incrementado los esfuerzos para dar una respuesta efectiva a la población mediante la creación de la Fiscalía contra Delitos Transnacionales, la Unidad Especial Antipandillas Transnacionales, la Unidad Especial contra Delitos en Aeropuertos y Aerodromos, la suscripción de la declaración del Gurpo Asesor de Fiscales Generales del Triángulo Norte, la cual tengo a honra presidir; entre otras acciones estratégicas para combatir la delincuencia organizada transnacional con acciones frontales contra el narcotráfico, pandillas, crimen organizado y tráfico ilícito de migrantes.”

“Considero ante la amenaza regional que presentan estos delitos transnacionales, la respuesta debe ser de igual forma interagencial y regional,” dijo el Fiscal General de Honduras Oscar Fernando Chinchilla.  “Solo de esta forma se puede neutralizar los efectos dañinos de estas organizaciones criminales.”

En El Salvador, Guatemala, y Honduras, las investigaciones de organizaciones criminales transnacionales se manejan por fiscales regionales anti-pandillas que reciben capacitaciones financiadas por el Departamento de Estado y asesoría por el Negociado Investigaciones Federales (FBI), la Oficina de Investigaciones de Seguridad Nacional del Servicio de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas (HSI), y la Oficina Internacional para el Desarrollo, Asistencia y Capacitación Técnica del Departamento de Justicia (OPDAT).  Con el apoyo de la Oficina de Narcóticos Internacionales y Asuntos de Aplicación de la Ley del Departamento de Estado (INL), los fiscales de OPDAT han ayudado a establecer fuerzas de tarea en la región y trabajan con las Unidades Transnacionales Anti-Pandillas (TAG) del FBI y también las Unidades de Investigaciones Criminales Transnacionales de HSI (TCIU).  Estos esfuerzos han ayudado a nuestros aliados en Centroamérica a condenar a miles de criminales, confiscar más de USD$ 1 billón de activos ilícitos, y coordinar docenas de investigaciones transnacionales con sus homólogos de Estados Unidos.

Las agencias del orden público involucrados en esta última sexta operación OER incluyeron El Salvador’s Fiscalia General de la Republica (FGR) y la  Policía Nacional Civil (PNC); Honduras Policía Nacional, la Dirección Nacional de Servicios Especiales de Investigación (DNSEI), Agencia Técnica de Investigaciones Criminales (ATIC), y Fuerza Nacional Anti Maras y Pandillas (FNAMP) y Guatemala’s Fiscalía Contra Delitos Transnacionales, Fiscalía Contra el Delito de Extorsión, y la Unidad Especial Anti-Pandillas Transnacionales, Policía Nacional Civil, División Especializada en Investigación Criminal y División Nacional Contra las Pandillas de la Policía Nacional Civil.

En Inglés

WASHINGTON – Oficiales principales de las agencias del orden público de los Estados Unidos, El Salvador, Guatemala y Honduras anunciaron hoy la radicación de imputaciones de más de 700 miembros de organizaciones criminales transnacionales, principalmente miembros de las pandillas de la MS-13 y Calle 18 en Centroamérica, en una operativo judicial coordinado que duró por una semana conocido como Operación Escudo Regional (OER).  OER comenzó en el 2017 y es una iniciativa liderada por el Departamento de Justicia para combatir el crimen organizado transnacional que une a fiscales anti-pandillas e investigadores de El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico y los Estados Unidos.  A través de reuniones de coordinación celebradas trimestralmente, este grupo ha coordinado investigaciones que abarcan varios países y arrestos a través de la región.

Las autoridades también anunciaron los arrestos de 36 individuos en El Salvador y Honduras involucrados con redes de tráfico de personas que abarcan Centroamérica y los Estados Unidos.  Entre los imputados en Honduras se encuentra un comisionado de la policía, un sub-inspector de la policía y tres agentes del orden público.  Los arrestados están imputados con violaciones de tráfico de personas, el lavado de dinero, y asociación ilegal para cometer un delito.  Las imputaciones fueron anunciadas por el Fiscal General de los Estados Unidos William P. Barr, el Fiscal General Raúl Melara de El Salvador, la Fiscal General María Consuelo Porras Argueta de Guatemala, y el Fiscal General de Honduras Oscar Fernando Chinchilla, a través de la Oficina de Prensa del Ministerio Público.

“El Departamento de Justicia de los Estados Unidos y nuestros aliados del orden público en Centroamérica están comprometidos con la colaboración continua para localizar y arrestar a los miembros y asociados de las pandillas involucrados en crímenes transnacionales,” dijo el Fiscal General Barr.  “Nuestros países están más seguros cuando se trabaja conjuntamente en aras de proteger la seguridad nacional y asegurar la seguridad pública en nuestros vecindarios.” 

En el 2017, el Fiscal General de los Estados Unidos en conjunto con sus homólogos de la región se comprometieron en combatir el crimen organizado transnacional y reducir la migración ilegal a los Estados Unidos a través de mayor cooperación y asistencia técnica con los aliados del orden público.  Estos esfuerzos han causado los siguientes resultados esta semana:

Fiscales en El Salvador radicaron acusaciones en contra de más de 1,152 miembros de grupos criminales organizados en el país, primordialmente contra las pandillas MS-13 y Calle 18. En cuestión de horas, la Policía Civil Nacional había capturado a 572 individuos imputados por los delitos de terrorismo, asesinato, extorsión, secuestro, robo de vehículos, hurto, conspiración, narcotráfico, el lavado de dinero, violaciones a la ley de armas de fuego, tráfico de personas y trata de personas. Los fiscales y la Policía Nacional incautaron bienes de estos grupos del crimen organizado con el propósito de decomisarlos.

En Guatemala, la Fiscalía Contra el Delito de Anti-Extorsión, la Unidad Contra Delitos Transnacionales de la Fiscalía y la Unidad Especial Anti-Pandillas Transnacionales y la policía ejecutaron 80 órdenes de allanamiento, arrestaron 40 personas, y notificaron 29 órdenes de arresto a personas en custodia, todos ellos miembros de las pandillas Calle 18 y MS-13.  Se incautó drogas y un arma de fuego, y se radicaron por cargos de extorsión, asociación ilícita, conspiración para cometer asesinato y obstrucción a la justicia. En este caso hay cuatro compañías de transportistas víctimas de extorsión por un monto que asciende a $54,523

En Honduras, la operación conjunta OER se llevó a cabo en diferentes fases durante el periodo de una semana y resultó en el arresto de aproximadamente 75 miembros de las pandillas MS-13 y Calle 18, y la ejecución de más de 10 órdenes de allanamiento.  Armas de fuego ilegales, teléfonos celulares, drogas y dinero fueron incautados.  Los individuos arrestados fueron imputados con asociación ilícita, asesinato y conspiración para cometer asesinato, extorsión y narcotráfico.

El 9 de febrero de 2017, el Presidente Donald J. Trump emitió la Orden Ejecutiva Para Hacer Cumplir la Ley Federal Sobre las Organizaciones de Crímenes Transnacionales y Prevenir el Tráfico Internacional para desmantelar y erradicar las pandillas transnacionales que amenazan la seguridad de nuestras comunidades.  Conforme a esa orden, el Departamento de Justicia ha hecho su prioridad el desmantelar las redes criminales transnacionales de tráfico de personas y pandillas incluyendo la MS-13.

Los esfuerzos anti-pandilla de Escudo Regional han conducido a la radicación de cargos criminales en contra de más de 11,000 miembros de pandillas desde el 2017, incluyendo líderes de pandillas a nivel nacional.  Muchas de estas imputaciones incluyen la incautación de bienes pertenecientes a las pandillas incluyendo armas de fuego y dinero.  También durante este tiempo más de una docena de redes involucradas en el tráfico y/o trata de personas fueron desmanteladas. La asistencia técnica provista por la Oficina Internacional para el Desarrollo, Asistencia y Capacitación Técnica del Departamento de Justicia (OPDAT) en la región de Centroamérica ha tenido un rol clave para reunir a los Fiscales Generales de El Salvador, Guatemala, y Honduras para desarrollar operaciones regionales enfocadas en combatir pandillas incluyendo la MS-13 y Calle 18, como también organizaciones transnacionales dedicadas al tráfico de personas.  Además, como resultado de la asistencia técnica provista por OPDAT, los aliados del Departamento de Justicia en Centro América han fortalecido la cooperación y desarrollado las habilidades, herramientas y técnicas para maximizar resultados contra todo tipo de crimen organizado transnacional impactando la región y los Estados Unidos. 

“Desde el 2017, se ha trabajado de manera conjunta y coordinada entre los países que conforman el triángulo norte y nuestro socio estratégico, los Estados Unidos de América,” dijo el Fiscal General de El Salvador Raúl Melara.  “Para dar respuesta a la población salvadoreña y procurar que los criminales respondan ante la justicia, hemos reforzado el trabajo que realizan las Unidades Especializadas de la Fiscalía para ser efectivos en lucha contra el crimen organizado y estructuras terroristas.  Estoy comprometido como Fiscal General a continuar en este esfuerzo coordinado. Solo lograremos erradicar el crimen transnacional uniendo esfuerzos regionales y continuando el trabajo conjunto.”

“Como Fiscal General de la República y Jefe del Ministerio Público, reafirmo mi compromiso en el combate de la delincuencia organizada transnacional, uno de los ejes primordiales de mi gestión,” dijo la Fiscal General de Guatemala María Consuelo Porras Argueta.  “Para el efecto, hemos incrementado los esfuerzos para dar una respuesta efectiva a la población mediante la creación de la Fiscalía contra Delitos Transnacionales, la Unidad Especial Antipandillas Transnacionales, la Unidad Especial contra Delitos en Aeropuertos y Aerodromos, la suscripción de la declaración del Gurpo Asesor de Fiscales Generales del Triángulo Norte, la cual tengo a honra presidir; entre otras acciones estratégicas para combatir la delincuencia organizada transnacional con acciones frontales contra el narcotráfico, pandillas, crimen organizado y tráfico ilícito de migrantes.”

“Considero ante la amenaza regional que presentan estos delitos transnacionales, la respuesta debe ser de igual forma interagencial y regional,” dijo el Fiscal General de Honduras Oscar Fernando Chinchilla.  “Solo de esta forma se puede neutralizar los efectos dañinos de estas organizaciones criminales.”

En El Salvador, Guatemala, y Honduras, las investigaciones de organizaciones criminales transnacionales se manejan por fiscales regionales anti-pandillas que reciben capacitaciones financiadas por el Departamento de Estado y asesoría por el Negociado Investigaciones Federales (FBI), la Oficina de Investigaciones de Seguridad Nacional del Servicio de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas (HSI), y la Oficina Internacional para el Desarrollo, Asistencia y Capacitación Técnica del Departamento de Justicia (OPDAT).  Con el apoyo de la Oficina de Narcóticos Internacionales y Asuntos de Aplicación de la Ley del Departamento de Estado (INL), los fiscales de OPDAT han ayudado a establecer fuerzas de tarea en la región y trabajan con las Unidades Transnacionales Anti-Pandillas (TAG) del FBI y también las Unidades de Investigaciones Criminales Transnacionales de HSI (TCIU). Estos esfuerzos han ayudado a nuestros aliados en Centroamérica a condenar a miles de criminales, confiscar más de USD$ 1 billón de activos ilícitos, y coordinar docenas de investigaciones transnacionales con sus homólogos de Estados Unidos.

Las agencias del orden público involucrados en esta última sexta operación OER incluyeron El Salvador’s Fiscalia General de la Republica (FGR) y la Policía Nacional Civil (PNC); Honduras Policía Nacional, la Dirección Nacional de Servicios Especiales de Investigación (DNSEI), Agencia Técnica de Investigaciones Criminales (ATIC), y Fuerza Nacional Anti Maras y Pandillas (FNAMP) y Guatemala’s Fiscalía Contra Delitos Transnacionales, Fiscalía Contra el Delito de Extorsión, y la Unidad Especial Anti-Pandillas Transnacionales, Policía Nacional Civil, División Especializada en Investigación Criminal y División Nacional Contra las Pandillas de la Policía Nacional Civil.

En el 2020 el Departamento de Justica cumple sus 150 años de aniversario. Use el enlace para conocer más sobre la historia de nuestra institución, www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

A North Carolina resident and his sport supplement company pleaded guilty today to a felony charge relating to the introduction of unapproved new drugs into interstate commerce, the Department of Justice announced.

Brian Michael Parks, 47, of Apex, North Carolina, and MedFitRX, Inc, now known as MedFit Sarmacuticals Inc., a sport supplement company based in Cary, North Carolina, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia to one count of distributing unapproved new drugs with the intent to mislead and defraud the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and consumers. Parks admitted that, from approximately June 2017 to September 2019, he and his company unlawfully distributed Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (SARMs) and other substances that the FDA has not approved, including Ostarine (MK-2866), Ligandrol (LGD-4033), and Testolone (RAD-140). SARMs are synthetic chemicals designed to mimic the effects of testosterone and other anabolic steroids. The FDA has long warned against the use of SARMs like those found in MedFit products, including stating in a 2017 warning letter to another firm that SARMs have been linked to life-threatening reactions including liver toxicity, and have the potential to increase the risk of heart attack and stroke.

“Drugs must undergo FDA approval to ensure they are safe and effective for the public, and this defendant put consumers at risk by deliberately ignoring that process,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Bossert Clark of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department of Justice will continue to work hand-in-hand with FDA to investigate and prosecute anyone who puts personal profit before public health.” 

“FDA enforces laws that are designed to protect the public health by ensuring, among other things, that drugs are safe and effective for their intended uses. Drugs disguised as supplements, of unknown origin and possibly toxic ingredients, that are manufactured and distributed outside the FDA’s oversight, endanger consumers,” said Assistant Commissioner for Criminal Investigations Catherine A. Hermsen. “We remain committed to pursuing and bringing to justice those who mislead the public and attempt to subvert the regulatory functions of the FDA by distributing unapproved and potentially dangerous products.” 

“Parks and his company put his customers’ health at risk when he unlawfully distributed drugs without their being FDA approved,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Bubar. “FDA regulations are integral to safeguarding consumers, and I am proud of our federal team that took on this investigation to ensure the process and the public are protected.”

In connection with his plea, Parks agreed to forfeit $1.2 million, reflecting the amount of MedFitRX products he sold across the United States through retail outlets and over the internet.

In pleading guilty, Parks also admitted that he intended to mislead and defraud the FDA and consumers by omitting ingredients on MedFitRX product labels, falsely claiming MedFitRX was licensed and registered to sell these new drugs, importing raw drug ingredients with the intent to avoid regulatory scrutiny, and misrepresenting MedFitRX products as “dietary supplements” or “sports supplements” to create the impression that they were safe and legal to use. 

U.S. District Judge James P. Jones heard the defendants’ guilty pleas in federal court in Abingdon, Virginia, and set sentencing for Feb. 16, 2021.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy Ramseyer of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia and Trial Attorney Speare Hodges of the Department of Justice Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch are prosecuting the case. This matter was investigated by the FDAs Office of Criminal Investigations.

Hagatña, Guam – SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, announced that defendant Linda Jean Pangelinan Palacios, age 48, from Dededo, Guam, was sentenced in the United States District Court of Guam to five months imprisonment for Unauthorized Access of a Protected Computer in Furtherance of Fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1030(a)(4) and 1030(c)(3)(A).  The Court also ordered three years of supervised release following imprisonment and restitution of $5,625 to the Department of Revenue and Taxation, Government of Guam.  In addition, the defendant was ordered to perform 50 hours of community service and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee.

Palacios was previously employed as a Driver’s License Examiner I with the Guam Department of Revenue and Taxation (DRT), Motor Vehicle Division.  Between April 2015 and November 2015, Palacios used her access to the DRT’s computer system to create, process and issue fraudulent Guam driver’s licenses.  Palacios processed at least 75 fraudulent Guam driver’s licenses for her own financial benefit.  Palacios advised law enforcement that she entered information into the system when nobody was around, and she did not think she would ever get caught.

This case was a result of a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Guam Police Department, and the Guam Department of Revenue and Taxation.  The case was prosecuted by Stephen F. Leon Guerrero, Assistant United States Attorney in the District of Guam.

The Department of Justice announced today that it is requiring Intuit Inc. and Credit Karma Inc. (Credit Karma) to divest Credit Karma’s tax business, Credit Karma Tax, to Square Inc. in order for Intuit, the creator of TurboTax, to proceed with its $7.1 billion acquisition of Credit Karma.  The department said that without this divestiture, the proposed transaction would substantially lessen competition for digital do-it-yourself (DDIY) tax preparation products, which are software programs used by American taxpayers to prepare and file their federal and state returns.

The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division filed a civil antitrust lawsuit today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to block Intuit’s acquisition of Credit Karma.  At the same time, the department filed a proposed settlement that, if approved by the court, would resolve the competitive harm alleged in the department’s complaint. 

“Intuit’s TurboTax has long led the market for digital do-it-yourself tax filing services, but disruptive competition from Credit Karma Tax has brought substantial benefits to American taxpayers,” said Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division.  “Today’s divestiture to Square, another highly successful and disruptive fintech company, ensures that taxpayers will continue to both benefit from this competition and benefit from new innovative financial service offerings from both Intuit and Square.”

According to the complaint, Intuit’s TurboTax has enjoyed a dominant position in the market for DDIY tax preparation products for more than a decade.  Since entering four years ago, Credit Karma Tax has become a disruptive competitor with a significant competitive impact.  Unlike other providers, including Intuit, Credit Karma Tax never charges for its products, regardless of the complexity of an individual’s tax preparation needs.  This always-free business model has enabled Credit Karma Tax to compete aggressively for filers who pay for TurboTax, which helps constrain TurboTax prices and push Intuit to improve TurboTax offerings.  The combination of Intuit and Credit Karma would eliminate this competition, likely resulting in higher prices, lower quality, and less choice for consumers of DDIY tax preparation products.

Under the terms of the proposed settlement, Intuit and Credit Karma must divest the assets that comprise Credit Karma Tax to Square, Inc., including relevant software and intellectual property.  Square is also expected to hire certain key Credit Karma employees that today support Credit Karma Tax.  Intuit and Credit Karma have agreed to provide certain transition support services to Square while Square integrates Credit Karma Tax into its Cash App platform.

Intuit is a Delaware corporation based in Mountain View, California, that offers tax preparation, accounting, payroll, and personal finance solutions to individuals and small businesses.  Intuit offers DDIY tax preparation products under the TurboTax brand.  Approximately 41 million individuals filed individual federal tax returns in 2020 using TurboTax.  Intuit, through its TurboTax business, is the largest provider of DDIY tax preparation products for U.S. federal and state tax returns.  In 2019, Intuit earned over $6.5 billion in revenue, including over $2.5 billion from sales of TurboTax products.  

Credit Karma is a privately-held Delaware corporation based in San Francisco, California, that offers an online and mobile personal finance platform.  Credit Karma’s platform provides individuals with access to free credit scores, credit monitoring, and DDIY tax preparation, among other products and services.  Credit Karma is home to more than 100 million customers and in any given month, over 35 million customers are actively engaged on the Credit Karma platform.  Credit Karma Tax is Credit Karma’s DDIY tax preparation business.  It is the fifth-largest provider of DDIY tax preparation products for U.S. federal and state tax returns.  Approximately two million individuals filed U.S. federal tax returns with Credit Karma Tax in 2020.

Square is a Delaware corporation based in San Francisco, California, that offers business and consumer financial services and tools.  Square’s consumer finance service platform, Cash App, provides its more than 30 million users peer-to-peer money transfer services, a debit card product, and equity and cryptocurrency investment services.  Square earned over $4.71 billion in revenue in 2019. 

As required by the Tunney Act, the proposed consent decree, along with a competitive impact statement, will be published in the Federal Register.  Any person may submit written comments concerning the proposed settlement during a 60-day comment period to Robert Lepore, Chief, Transportation, Energy, and Agriculture Section, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 450 Fifth Street, N.W., Suite 8000, Washington, D.C. 20530.  At the conclusion of the 60-day comment period, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia may enter the final judgment upon a finding that it serves the public interest.

Hagatña, Guam – SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, announced that defendant Dexter Wilton Long, age 59, from Barrigada, Guam, was sentenced in the United States District Court of Guam to 87 months imprisonment for Possession of Fifty or More Grams of Methamphetamine Hydrochloride, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(A)(viii).  The Court also ordered five years of supervised release following imprisonment, and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee.  In addition, defendants convicted of a federal drug offense may no longer qualify for certain federal benefits.

On May 9, 2019, Long was apprehended at the airport after arriving on Guam via United Airlines Flight 201.  A secondary inspection of his luggage resulted in the recovery of 430 net grams of 99% pure methamphetamine hydrochloride (“ice”).  The subsequent investigation revealed that Long had also mailed a package to himself from Honolulu that contained two separate bags containing 2.05 net grams of 98% pure methamphetamine and 182 net grams of 99% pure methamphetamine.

This case was a result of a joint investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration with assistance from the Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency, and the United States Postal Inspection Service.  The case was prosecuted by Laura C. Sambataro, Assistant United States Attorney in the District of Guam.

Hagatña, Guam – SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, announced that defendant Brian Sanchez Chan, age 40, from Dededo, Guam, was sentenced in the United States District Court of Guam to 71 months imprisonment for Possession of Fifty or More Grams of Methamphetamine Hydrochloride, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(A)(viii). The Court also ordered five years of supervised release following imprisonment, and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee. In addition, defendants convicted of a federal drug offense may no longer qualify for certain federal benefits.

On September 16, 2019, Chan was arrested after agreeing to sell five ounces of methamphetamine to an undercover officer from the Drug Enforcement Administration in exchange for $27,000. The parties agreed to meet in the parking lot of the Guam Hilton Hotel in Tumon to complete the sale. Chan stated that he was uncomfortable selling that high of a quantity, and would bring two ounces first, and then when he had the money in hand, would leave and return with the rest.  Once the transaction was made, Chan was arrested and 55.6 net grams of 97% pure methamphetamine hydrochloride was recovered.

This case was the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration. The case was prosecuted by Laura C. Sambataro, Assistant United States Attorney in the District of Guam.

Opioid manufacturer Purdue Pharma LP (Purdue) pleaded guilty today in federal court in Newark, New Jersey, to conspiracies to defraud the United States and violate the anti-kickback statute.

Purdue pleaded guilty to an information charging it with three felony offenses: one count of dual-object conspiracy to defraud the United States and to violate the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, and two counts of conspiracy to violate the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute. 

“The abuse and diversion of prescription opioids has contributed to a national tragedy of addiction and deaths, in addition to those caused by illicit street opioids,”  said Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey A. Rosen.  “Today’s guilty pleas to three felony charges send a strong message to the pharmaceutical industry that illegal behavior will have serious consequences.  Further, today’s convictions underscore the department’s commitment to its multi-pronged strategy for defeating the opioid crisis.”

“Purdue admitted that it marketed and sold its dangerous opioid products to healthcare providers, even though it had reason to believe those providers were diverting them to abusers,”  said Rachael A. Honig, First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey.  “The company lied to the Drug Enforcement Administration about steps it had taken to prevent such diversion, fraudulently increasing the amount of its products it was permitted to sell. Purdue also paid kickbacks to providers to encourage them to prescribe even more of its products.”

“As today's plea to felony charges shows, Purdue put opioid profits ahead of people and corrupted the sacred doctor-patient relationship,” said Christina Nolan, U.S Attorney for the District of Vermont.  “We hope the company's guilty plea sends a message that the Justice Department will not allow big pharma and big tech to engage in illegal profit-generating schemes that interfere with sound medicine.  We hope, also, that this guilty plea will bring some sense of justice to those who have suffered from opioid addictions involving oxycodone and some vindication for families and loved ones of those who did not survive such addiction."

"This case makes clear that no company, including Purdue Pharma, whose actions harm the health and safety of the American public, is beyond the reach of law enforcement,”  said Assistant Director Calvin Shivers of the FBI's Criminal Investigative Division.  “The opioid epidemic continues to spread across the United States impacting countless Americans and harming communities. Together with our law enforcement partners, the FBI is committed to investigating and holding criminals accountable for the roles they play in fueling this crisis.”

As part of today’s guilty plea, Purdue admitted that from May 2007 through at least March 2017, it conspired to defraud the United States by impeding the lawful function of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).  Purdue represented to the DEA that it maintained an effective anti-diversion program when, in fact, Purdue continued to market its opioid products to more than 100 health care providers whom the company had good reason to believe were diverting opioids.  Purdue also reported misleading information to the DEA to boost Purdue’s manufacturing quotas.  The misleading information comprised prescription data that included prescriptions written by doctors that Purdue had good reason to believe were engaged in diversion.  The conspiracy also involved aiding and abetting violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act by facilitating the dispensing of its opioid products, including OxyContin, without a legitimate medical purpose, and thus without lawful prescriptions.

Purdue also admitted it conspired to violate the federal Anti-Kickback Statute. Between June 2009 and March 2017, Purdue made payments to two doctors through Purdue’s doctor speaker program to induce those doctors to write more prescriptions of Purdue’s opioid products.  Also, from April 2016 through December 2016, Purdue made payments to Practice Fusion Inc., an electronic health records company, in exchange for referring, recommending, and arranging for the ordering of Purdue’s extended release opioid products – OxyContin, Butrans, and Hysingla.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Purdue agreed to the imposition of the largest penalties ever levied against a pharmaceutical manufacturer, including a criminal fine of $3.544 billion and an additional $2 billion in criminal forfeiture. For the $2 billion forfeiture, the company will pay $225 million within three business days following the entry of a judgment of conviction in accordance with the Plea Agreement.  The department is willing to credit the value conferred by the company to state and local governments under the department’s anti-piling on and coordination policy if certain conditions are met.

Purdue has also agreed to a civil settlement that provides the United States with an allowed, unsubordinated, general unsecured bankruptcy claim for recovery of $2.8 billion to resolve its civil liability under the False Claims Act.  Separately, the Sackler family has agreed to pay $225 million in damages to resolve its civil False Claims Act liability.

The criminal and civil resolutions, which were announced on Oct. 21, 2020, do not include the criminal release of any individuals, including members of the Sackler family, nor are any of the company’s executives or employees receiving civil releases.

On Nov. 17, 2020, the bankruptcy court in the Southern District of New York approved the financial terms of the global resolution with the company.  The resolution includes the condition that the company cease to operate in its current form and instead emerge from bankruptcy as a public benefit company (PBC) or entity with a similar mission designed for the benefit of the American public.  The proceeds of the PBC will be directed toward state and local opioid abatement programs.  Based on the value that would be conferred to state and local governments through the PBC, the department is willing to credit up to $1.775 billion against the agreed $2 billion forfeiture amount.  The department looks forward to working with the creditor groups in the bankruptcy in charting the path forward for this PBC to best accomplish public health goals.

The global resolution does not resolve claims that states may have against Purdue or members of the Sackler family, nor does it impede the debtors’ or other third parties’ ability to recover any fraudulent transfers.

Except to the extent of Purdue’s admissions as part of its criminal resolution, the claims resolved by the civil settlements are allegations only.  There has been no determination of liability in the civil matters.

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced on Friday, November 20, 2020 that KESHAWN PATTON, age 25, a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana, was charged in a three-count indictment by a Federal Grand Jury for violations of the Federal Gun Control Act and the Federal Controlled Substances Act.

PATTON is charged in Count 1 with possession with  intent to distribute a quantity of a substance containing a detectable amount of amphetamine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(E)(i).  In Count 2, PATTON is charged with possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(c)(1)(A).  In Count 3, PATTON is charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(g)(1).

If convicted of Count 1, PATTON faces a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment, a $500,000 fine, up to 3 years of supervised release, and a special assessment fee of $100.  If convicted of Count 2, PATTON faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years up to life imprisonment, which is to run consecutively to all other sentences, a $250,000 fine, up to 5 years of supervised release and a special assessment fee of $100.  If convicted of Count 3, PATTON faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years, a $250,000 fine, up to 3 years of supervised release, and a special assessment fee of $100.

U. S. Attorney Strasser reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. 

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

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws.  Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities.  The United States Attorney’s Office has prosecuted this case with support from the following Project Guardian partner, The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. For more information about Project Guardian, please see https://www.justice.gov/usao-edla/project-guardian.

The case was investigated by the New Orleans Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Haller of the Violent Crime Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

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Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of the Department of Justice Antitrust Division issued the following statement on his participation in the Robert H. Jackson Center’s virtual reading of Justice Jackson’s opening statement at Nuremberg for the 75th anniversary of the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg:

“I was honored and humbled to be a part of this project marking 75 years since the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg. Justice Robert Jackson, who was the Chief U.S. Prosecutor at Nuremberg and once held the position of Assistant Attorney General of the Antitrust Division, has long been a hero of mine for his boundless faith in justice and fairness. His work at Nuremberg showed the world that unspeakable acts of hatred will not go unpunished so long as there are good people willing to stand up for the powerless. In my role overseeing the Antitrust Division, I draw on this faith and commitment to justice to guide our work defending American consumers.”

The virtual reading of Justice Jackson’s opening statement will be available at https://www.youtube.com/RobertHJacksonCenter on Saturday, November 21, 2020.

WASHINGTON – A Montana chiropractor and his wife pleaded guilty today to tax evasion, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Department of Justice’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Kurt G. Alme for the District of Montana.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Jonathan Wilhelm, owned and operated Pro Chiropractic PC (Pro Chiro) and Big Sky Spinal Care Center Inc. (Big Sky). From 2013 through 2018, the Wilhelms directed payments to cash and then did not report the cash transactions on Pro Chiro’s and Big Sky’s books and records, which they provided to a return preparer to prepare the businesses’ tax returns. The Wilhelms knew that omitting the cashed checks and cash payments resulted in an understatement of taxable income totaling $284,691 for tax years 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2018. In total, the defendants caused a tax loss to the IRS of $74,486.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto has scheduled a sentencing for March 12, 2021. At sentencing the defendants each face a maximum sentence of five years. The defendants also each face a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Alme commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Assistant Chief Andrew Kameros and Trial Attorney Sarah Kiewlicz of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting the case.

Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.

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The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

Doctor’s Choice Home Care, Inc. and its former executives, Timothy Beach and Stuart Christensen, have agreed to pay $5.15 million to resolve allegations that the home health agency provided improper financial inducements to referring physicians through sham medical director agreements and bonuses to physicians’ spouses who were Doctor’s Choice employees, the Department of Justice announced today. 

Timothy Beach and Stuart Christensen founded Doctor’s Choice and formerly served as its top executives.  Doctor’s Choice is a home health agency based in Sarasota, Florida, with branches throughout the state. 

Doctor’s Choice will pay $3,856,000 to settle these allegations and Beach and Christensen will each pay $647,000.  Doctor’s Choice will pay an additional $675,000 to resolve separate allegations that employees pressured clinical personnel to increase the number of home visits for Medicare patients to avoid the Medicare Low Utilization Payment Adjustment that would have decreased the reimbursement Doctor’s Choice received from Medicare in the absence of these unnecessary services.

“The Department of Justice will continue to hold companies and individuals accountable for the payment of illegal remuneration in any form,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Bossert Clark of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division.  “Improper inducements have no place in our federal healthcare system, which relies on healthcare providers making decisions based on the healthcare needs of their patients and rather than their personal financial interests.” 

“Operating an illegal referral scheme and providing medically unnecessary services places patients at risk and jeopardizes millions of taxpayer dollars,” said Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Tampa Division Michael McPherson.  “This settlement highlights the FBI’s commitment to protect the integrity of the federally funded healthcare system.”

The Anti-Kickback Statute prohibits the offering or payment of remuneration to induce or reward referrals for services paid for by federal healthcare programs.  The Stark Law forbids certain medical providers, including home health agencies, from submitting claims to Medicare for services provided to patients who were referred by a physician with whom the provider has a prohibited financial relationship, unless that relationship falls within an applicable exception.

This settlement resolves allegations that Doctor’s Choice, Beach, and Christensen violated the Anti-Kickback Statute and the Stark Law by entering into sham medical director agreements with physicians as a means of providing remuneration for referrals, and also violated the Stark Law by providing bonuses to employees based on referrals to Doctor’s Choice by the employees’ physician spouses.  In addition, the agreement resolves allegations that Doctor’s Choice provided unnecessary services to Medicare patients in order to increase the number of skilled service visits provided during a home health episode to avoid the Low Utilization Payment Adjustment which otherwise would have decreased Doctor’s Choice Medicare reimbursement.  This adjustment is triggered when a home health patient has a treatment episode consisting of less than five skilled service visits and results in the provider receiving a standardized per visit payment rather than the higher payment for a full home health episode. 

The allegations resolved in this settlement were originally brought in two lawsuits filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act; one case was filed by Corina Herbold and the second case was filed by Sara Billings, Misty Sykes, and Marina Eschoyez-Quiroga, all of whom are former employees of Doctor’s Choice.  The Act permits private parties to sue on behalf of the government for false claims for government funds and to receive a share of any recovery.  Billings, Sykes, and Eschoyez-Quiroga will jointly receive a share of approximately $145,000 arising from the government’s recovery for the Low Utilization Payment Adjustment allegations.  Herbold’s share has not yet been determined.

The government’s intervention in these matters illustrates its emphasis on combating health care fraud.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act.  Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement, can be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services, at 800-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477).

The settlement was the result of a coordinated effort by the Civil Division of the Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, and the FBI. 

The cases are captioned United States ex rel. Herbold v. Doctor’s Choice Home Care Inc., et al., No. 8:15- cv-01044 (M.D. Fla.) and United States ex rel. Billings, Sykes, and Eschoyez-Quiroga v. Doctor’s Choice Home Care Inc., No. 8:16-cv-3112 (M.D. Fla.).

The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.

The Justice Department announced today that a federal court in Arizona permanently enjoined a Tucson area tax return preparer from preparing federal income tax returns for others.

The civil complaint filed in the case alleged that Joseph Michael Vosberg included false business losses and charitable deductions on some of his clients’ returns. According to the complaint, Vosberg also allegedly instructed his clients to keep receipts from their day-to-day activities to document their false business expenses and charitable donations in the event of an IRS audit and not to cooperate with the IRS during civil audits. The complaint alleges that Vosberg’s fraudulent tax return preparation activities have caused significant harm to his customers, the United States, and the public at large.

Vosberg consented to the entry of a permanent injunction as part of his 2018 plea agreement with the United States in United States v Vosberg, CR 18-2527-RCC-EJM (D. Ariz.) (Dkt. No. 7). Under the terms of that agreement, Vosberg pleaded guilty to two counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation and presentation of a false federal income tax return. 

“Return preparer fraud is a significant drain on the U.S. Treasury, and the Justice Department is committed to working with the IRS to bring enforcement actions against return preparers who prepare fraudulent tax returns,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard Zuckerman. “The Tax Division will use all available enforcement tools to hold dishonest return preparers accountable and protect the U.S. Treasury from further damage.”

Return preparer fraud is one of the IRS’s Dirty Dozen Tax Scams and taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant. The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax return preparer and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers.

In the past decade, the Department of Justice Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.

Cognosante LLC has agreed to pay the United States $18,987,789 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by using unqualified labor and overcharging the United States for services provided to government agencies under two General Services Administration (GSA) contracts, the Justice Department announced today.  Cognosante, which is headquartered in Falls Church, Virginia, provides health care and IT services and solutions to federal agencies.   

GSA’s Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contracts allow the federal government to leverage its buying power to achieve favorable pricing.  Under MAS contracts, contractors negotiate with GSA to set maximum prices for goods and services subsequently ordered by agencies across the federal government.  These contracts provide streamlined access to the federal marketplace.

The settlement resolves allegations that Cognosante overcharged the United States for services performed under two GSA MAS contracts, including by providing false information concerning Cognosante’s commercial discounting practices during contract negotiations.  It also resolves allegations that Cognosante charged the United States for labor that failed to meet the qualifications in one of the contracts.

“MAS contract holders must deal forthrightly with federal agencies during negotiations and throughout the life of their contracts,” said Acting Attorney General Jeffrey Bossert Clark of the Justice Department’s Civil Division.  “We will hold accountable contractors who cause the government to pay more than it should for goods and services.”  

“This settlement exhibits our dedication to recover overcharges paid by the government,” said Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Michael R. Sherwin.  “We expect our contracting partners to be fully candid with the government, and we will pursue those that fail to fulfill that expectation.”

“Today's settlement is a result of the successful partnership of the Office of Inspector General and the Department of Justice to protect and maintain the integrity of GSA's Multiple Award Schedule program,” said Carol F. Ochoa, Inspector General of GSA.

Cognosante investigated and disclosed to the United States the contractual violations resolved in the settlement.  It received credit for its disclosure and cooperation.

The settlement was the result of a joint investigation by the GSA OIG, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch.  The claims resolved by the settlement agreement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.    

Attorney General William P. Barr today directed the Federal Bureau of Prisons to schedule the executions of three federal-death row inmates sentenced to death for staggeringly brutal murders, including the murder of a child and, with respect to two inmates, the murder of multiple victims.

• Alfred Bourgeois abused, tortured, and beat to death his young daughter.  After a paternity test identified Bourgeois as the father of a two-and-a-half-year-old girl and a court ordered that he pay child support to the mother, Bourgeois took temporary custody of his daughter and brought her with him on a trucking route.  While on the trip, Bourgeois systematically abused and tortured her — including by punching her in the face, whipping her with an electrical cord, and burning the bottom of her foot with a cigarette lighter.  In July 2002, Bourgeois arrived at the Corpus Christi Naval Air Station for a delivery.  While backing his truck up to a loading dock, his daughter tipped over her training potty.  Bourgeois became enraged and repeatedly slammed the back of her head into the truck’s window and dashboard, killing her.  On March 16, 2004, a jury in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas found Bourgeois guilty of murder within the special territorial jurisdiction of the United States, and unanimously recommended a death sentence, which the court imposed.  His conviction and sentence were affirmed on appeal, and his requests for collateral relief were ultimately rejected by federal courts. In July 2019, his execution was scheduled for Jan. 13, 2020, but legal impediments prevented the government from proceeding at that time.  Bourgeois is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on Dec. 11, 2020, at the Federal Correctional Complex, Terre Haute, Indiana.
•  Cory Johnson murdered seven people — Peyton Johnson, Louis Johnson, Bobby Long, Dorothy Armstrong, Anthony Carter, Linwood Chiles, and Curtis Thorne — in furtherance of his drug-trafficking activities.  Between 1989 and July 1992, Johnson and several co-conspirators, including federal death-row inmates Richard Tipton and James Roane, were partners in a large drug-trafficking conspiracy based in Richmond, Virginia.  In early 1992, Johnson went on a killing spree, shooting and killing each of the seven victims for perceived slights or rivalry in the drug trade.  Johnson shot one victim at close range after ordering him to place his head on a car steering wheel.  Johnson shot and killed another victim at the victim’s home when he failed to pay for crack cocaine — and Johnson also murdered the victim’s sister and a male acquaintance.  In February 1993, a jury in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia found Johnson guilty of numerous federal offenses, including seven counts of capital murder, and unanimously recommended seven death sentences, which the court imposed.  Johnson’s convictions and sentences were affirmed on appeal more than 24 years ago, and his initial round of collateral challenges failed 15 years ago.  Johnson’s execution initially was scheduled to occur in May 2006, but a preliminary injunction prevented the government from proceeding until it was vacated this September.  Johnson is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on Jan. 14, 2021, at the Federal Correctional Complex, Terre Haute, Indiana.
• Dustin John Higgs kidnapped and murdered three women — Tamika Black, 19; Tanji Jackson, 21; and Mishann Chinn, 23.  One evening in January 1996, Higgs and two friends drove to Washington, D.C., to pick up Black, Jackson, and Chinn, whom Higgs had invited to his apartment in Laurel, Maryland.  At the apartment, Jackson rebuffed an advance by Higgs and the women left.  Higgs offered the women a ride back to Washington, D.C., but instead drove to a secluded area in the Patuxent National Wildlife Refuge, ordered the women out of the vehicle, gave a gun to one of the friends, and said, “better make sure they’re dead.”  The other man shot Black and Jackson in the chest and back, and shot Chinn in the back of the head, killing all three women.  On Oct.11, 2000, a jury in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland found Higgs guilty of numerous federal offenses, including three counts of first-degree premeditated murder, three counts of first-degree felony murder, and three counts of kidnapping resulting in death, and unanimously recommended nine death sentences, which the court imposed.  Higgs’ convictions and sentences were affirmed on appeal nearly 17 years ago, and his initial round of collateral challenges failed nearly eight years ago.  Higgs is scheduled to be executed on Jan. 15, 2021.

The Justice Department today filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the Ninth Circuit federal appeals court defending Idaho’s Fairness in Women’s Sports Act against a challenge under the U.S. Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause.  

“The Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution provides that no State shall ‘deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.’ Idaho’s Fairness in Women’s Sports Act complies fully with the U.S. Constitution because it protects all persons equally,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband for the Civil Rights Division. “The Constitution does not require States to abandon their efforts to provide biological girls and women with equal opportunity to participate in and enjoy the life-long benefits that flow from interscholastic athletics. The Fairness in Women’s Sports Act protects equal athletic opportunities for girls and women and permits all persons fairly to participate in sports.” 

On Aug. 17, 2020, an Idaho federal district court preliminarily enjoined the Fairness Act, finding that Act discriminated against some transgender athletes. The injunction requires Idaho to allow biological males, who gender identify as female, to play in sports designated only for biological females.     

On appeal, the United States’ friend-of-the-court brief explains that the Fairness Act serves the important purpose of preserving equal athletic opportunities for women. The Constitution allows states like Idaho to separate sports by biological sex because females and males have innate physiological differences that directly affect athletics. Ignoring these biological differences in sports would result in females unfairly being displaced by males. The Equal Protection Clause allows Idaho to limit its female athletic teams to biological females to keep a level playing field and preserve women’s equal opportunity to participate in sports. Idaho does not need to abandon this important equality goal and provide the special treatment the district court ordered for some biological males who are allowed to compete against biological females if and only if the biological males are transgender. The Constitution does not require the resulting harm to female equality in athletics.

On March 30, 2020, Idaho enacted the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act Fairness Act, which went into effect in July 2020. Idaho’s Fairness Act contains two main provisions. First, covered athletic teams “shall be expressly designated as one (1) of the following based on biological sex: (a) Males, men, or boys; (b) Females, women, or girls; or (c) Coed or mixed.” Second, “[a]thletic teams or sports designated for females, women, or girls shall not be open to students of the male sex.” The Fairness Act does not contain a comparable limitation for biological females who wish to participate on a team designated for biological males.

In enacting the Fairness Act, Idaho determined that “[h]aving separate sex specific teams furthers efforts to promote sex equality. Sex-specific teams accomplish this by providing opportunities for female athletes to demonstrate their skill, strength, and athletic abilities while also providing them with opportunities to obtain recognition and accolades, college scholarships, and the numerous other long-term benefits that flow from success in athletic endeavors.” In support of this conclusion, the Fairness Act cites authority establishing that inherent physiological differences between men and women generally include a difference in “strength, speed, and endurance” that results in “different athletic capabilities,” which generally give men a significant advantage in head-to-head competition.  Id.

The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) has dismissed the appeal of Tennessee resident Friedrich Karl Berger, a German citizen who was ordered removed from the United States earlier this year on the basis of his service in Nazi Germany in 1945 as an armed guard of concentration camp prisoners in the Neuengamme Concentration Camp system (Neuengamme).

“Berger’s willing service as an armed guard at a Nazi concentration camp cannot be erased and will not be ignored,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department's Criminal Division.  “On the eve of tomorrow’s 75th anniversary of the commencement of the Nuremberg trials of the surviving leaders of the defeated Nazi regime, this case shows that the passage of time will not deter the department from fulfilling the moral imperative of seeking justice for the victims of their heinous crimes.”

“Berger was an active participant in one of the darkest chapters in human history. He attempted to shed his nefarious past to come to America and start anew, but thanks to the dedication of those at the Department of Justice and Homeland Security Investigations, the truth was revealed,” said Deputy Assistant Director Louis A. Rodi III of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) National Security Investigations Division, which oversees the Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center.  “War criminals and violators of human rights will not be allowed to evade justice and find safe haven here.”

The BIA upheld a Memphis, Tennessee, Immigration Judge’s Feb. 28, 2020, decision that Berger was removable under the 1978 Holtzman Amendment to the Immigration and Nationality Act because his “willing service as an armed guard of prisoners at a concentration camp where persecution took place” constituted assistance in Nazi-sponsored persecution.  The court found that Berger served at a Neuengamme sub-camp near Meppen, Germany, and that the prisoners there included “Jews, Poles, Russians, Danes, Dutch, Latvians, French, Italians, and political opponents” of the Nazis.  The largest groups of prisoners were Russian, Dutch and Polish civilians.

After a two-day trial in February, the presiding judge issued an opinion finding that Meppen prisoners were held during the winter of 1945 in “atrocious” conditions and were exploited for outdoor forced labor, working, “to the point of exhaustion and death.”  The court further found, and Berger admitted, that he guarded prisoners to prevent them from escaping during their dawn-to-dusk workday, and on their way to the worksites and also on their way back to the SS-run subcamp in the evening. 

At the end of March 1945, as allied British and Canadian forces advanced, the Nazis abandoned Meppen.  The court found that Berger helped guard the prisoners during their forcible evacuation to the Neuengamme main camp – a nearly two-week trip under inhumane conditions, which claimed the lives of some 70 prisoners.  The decision also cited Berger’s admission that he never requested a transfer from concentration camp guard service and that he continues to receive a pension from Germany based on his employment in Germany, “including his wartime service.”

In 1946, British occupation authorities in Germany charged SS Obersturmführer Hans Griem, who had headed the Meppen sub-camps, and other Meppen personnel with war crimes for “ill-treatment and murder of Allied nationals.”  Although Griem escaped before trial, the British court tried and convicted the remaining defendants of war crimes in 1947.

The trial and appeal of the removal case were handled by Eli Rosenbaum, Director of Human Rights Enforcement and Policy in the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section (HRSP), HRSP Senior Trial Attorney Susan Masling, and attorneys from ICE New Orleans, Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (Memphis), with assistance from HRSP Chief Historian Jeffrey S. Richter, and the Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center.  The investigation was initiated by the HRSP and was conducted in partnership with the Nashville ICE HSI office.

Since the 1979 inception of the Justice Department’s program to detect, investigate, and remove Nazi persecutors, it has won cases against 109 individuals.  Over the past 30 years, the Justice Department has won more cases against persons who participated in Nazi persecution than have the law enforcement authorities of all the other countries in the world combined. HRSP’s case against Berger was part of its ongoing efforts to identify, investigate and prosecute individuals who engaged in genocide, torture, war crimes, recruitment or use of child soldiers, female genital mutilation, and other serious human rights violations.  HRSP attorneys prosecuted the first torture case brought in the United States and have successfully prosecuted criminal cases against perpetrators of human rights violations committed in Guatemala, Ethiopia, Liberia, Cuba, and the former Yugoslavia, among others.

To learn more about HRSP, visit https://www.justice.gov/criminal-hrsp.  

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

Today, Orlando Cordia Hall was executed at U.S. Penitentiary Terre Haute in accordance with the capital sentence unanimously recommended by a federal jury and imposed by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas in 1996.  Hall was pronounced dead at 11:47 p.m. EST.

In September 1994, Hall and several accomplices ran a marijuana trafficking operation out of Pine Bluff, Arkansas.  After a failed drug transaction involving $4,700, Hall and his accomplices drove to the Arlington, Texas, home of a man they believed had stolen their money.  The man’s 16-year-old sister, Lisa Rene, refused to let them inside.  Although Rene — an honor roll student with dreams of becoming a doctor — had no role in the drug transaction, Hall and his accomplices broke into the apartment and kidnapped her at gunpoint.  In the assailants’ car, Hall raped her and forced her to perform oral sex on him.  Hall’s accomplices subsequently drove her to a motel in Arkansas, where they tied her to a chair and repeatedly raped her.  Hall arrived at the motel room the next morning, took Rene into the bathroom for fifteen to twenty minutes, and emerged to announce that “she know too much.”  That night, Hall and his accomplices took her to a park where Hall and another accomplice had dug a grave that afternoon, but they could not find the grave site in the dark.  The next morning, they returned to the park with Rene.  At the grave site, Hall placed a sheet over Rene’s head and hit her in the head with a shovel.  Rene screamed and tried to run away, but the men tackled her and took turns beating her with the shovel.  After soaking her with gasoline, they dragged her into the grave and buried her alive. 

In 1995, a federal jury found Hall guilty of, among other offenses, kidnapping resulting in death, and unanimously recommended a death sentence, which the court imposed.  His convictions and sentence were affirmed on appeal, and his requests for collateral relief were rejected by every court that considered them.

The Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS) announced today that they reached a landmark agreement with the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (DCF).  

The agreement resolves findings by the Justice Department and HHS that DCF discriminated against parents with disabilities in the administration of its child welfare program in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. This is the first Department of Justice settlement to address disability discrimination by a state child welfare agency.  

“The stakes are never higher than when a parent faces the possibility of losing a child,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Civil Rights Division. “Individuals with disabilities have just as much a right to raise their children as any other person in this free country, and no government should unnecessarily infringe upon that sacred right. While child welfare agencies are faced with challenging and weighty decisions on a daily basis, they must always strive to ensure that no child is removed from a parent on the basis of unsupported stereotypes, discriminatory attitudes, or other unlawful reasons. This agreement will ensure that parents with disabilities are treated as individuals, and that they receive the supports and services they need to have an equal opportunity to retain or regain custody of their children. We believe this agreement will not only help thousands of families in Massachusetts, but also will provide a roadmap for child welfare agencies nationwide on how to treat parents with disabilities with the fairness, dignity, and respect that they deserve.” 

“Parents with disabilities should never lose custody of their children due to discriminatory assumptions about their abilities. The love of a parent, coupled with proper support services, can overcome a multiplicity of challenges,” said Roger Severino, Director of the HHS Office for Civil Rights. “We are pleased to have reached this great result with the Department of Justice and Massachusetts.”

In 2015, the Department of Justice and HHS jointly found that DCF discriminated against a mother with a developmental disability and sought to terminate her parental rights to her infant daughter based on assumptions about her disability. Over the past five years, the Department of Justice and HHS received similar complaints against DCF from parents with physical, hearing, developmental, and other disabilities. The departments also received numerous complaints alleging that DCF denied requests for reasonable modifications, failed to provide interpreters to individuals with hearing impairments, and otherwise denied parents with disabilities an equal opportunity to benefit from DCF’s programs and services. The Justice Department investigated and substantiated many of these allegations, as well as allegations that DCF’s methods of administering its programs and services have the effect of discriminating against parents with disabilities.

Under today’s agreement, DCF will take critical steps to ensure the ADA’s protections extend to parents with disabilities throughout the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. DCF will not base decisions about removal of a child on stereotypes or generalizations about persons with disabilities. Rather, DCF will base such decisions on an individualized assessment of the parent with a disability and objective facts. Additionally, DCF will appoint statewide and regional coordinators to oversee DCF’s efforts to comply with the ADA and Section 504; create a new Parents with Disabilities Policy, including processes for requesting disability-based accommodations and filing disability-based complaints; train staff on DCF’s obligations to parents with disabilities and its new policies and procedures; and periodically report to the Department of Justice and HHS on its handling of accommodation requests and disability-related complaints.

The ADA requires that child welfare agencies provide parents with disabilities an equal opportunity to access and benefit from their services. Such agencies must reasonably modify policies and practices when necessary to avoid disability discrimination. They must ensure that communication with parents with disabilities is effective. And they must not use criteria or other administrative methods that result in disability discrimination. 

This year marks the 30th Anniversary of the ADA. The Justice Department plays a central role in advancing the nation’s goal of equal opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency for people with disabilities. To learn more about the ADA’s history and impact, please visit the department’s ADA Anniversary webpage.

To read the Department of Justice and HHS’s previously issued technical assistance for child welfare agencies, please click here. For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt. For more information on the ADA, please call the Justice Department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383) or visit www.ada.gov.

Today, the Department of Justice filed a civil complaint against Jeffrey and Lauren Lowe, Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park LLC, and Tiger King LLC, to address recurring inhumane treatment and improper handling of animals protected by the Endangered Species Act. 

The complaint alleges violations of the Endangered Species Act and the Animal Welfare Act and asks the court to declare that defendants have violated and will continue to violate the Endangered Species Act by illegally taking, possessing, and transporting protected animals, and the Animal Welfare Act by exhibiting without a license and placing the health of animals in serious danger.  The complaint also asks the court to require the defendants to relinquish certain animals to the United States, to cease violating these laws, to award the United States costs, and to grant other relief as appropriate. 

“The Lowes’ failure to provide basic veterinary care, appropriate food, and safe living conditions for the animals does not meet standards required by both the Animal Welfare Act and the Endangered Species Act,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Jonathan D. Brightbill of the Environment and Natural Resources Division.  “Exhibitors cannot evade the law simply by shutting out the USDA and moving their animals elsewhere.  The Department of Justice will support the USDA in pursuing those who violate federal animal protection laws.”

“Animal exhibitors, whether they exhibit in person or on-line, must possess a license and provide adequate care for their animals as provided for by Animal Welfare Act regulations,” said U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) General Counsel Stephen A. Vaden.  “This action reflects the priority that USDA places on the enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act.”

Until August 2020, Jeffrey and Lauren Lowe operated the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park, located in Wynnewood, Oklahoma.  The Wynnewood facility exhibited numerous animals protected by the Endangered Species Act, including tigers, lions, and other big cats, a grizzly bear, and ring-tailed lemurs. 

In June and July 2020, USDA Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service inspectors found numerous animals in poor health and living in substandard conditions at the Wynnewood facility, in violation of the Endangered Species Act and the Animal Welfare Act.  The Lowes did not provide timely and adequate veterinary care, causing the animals to suffer from easily treatable conditions, in some cases resulting in untimely death.  Animals were not provided with sufficient quantities of appropriate food and were underweight and suffering from nutritional deficiencies, making them susceptible to fractures, unable to stand or walk, and exhibiting neurological problems. 

The Lowes also failed to maintain sanitary and safe conditions, resulting in fly strikes on the animals’ bodies.  Fly strike dermatitis is a preventable condition in which flies continuously attack, bite, and penetrate the skin of an animal.  The flies lay eggs on open or irritated skin, causing infestations of maggots and painful sores.  Inspectors also found foul-smelling, partially burned and decomposing big cat carcasses and a broken-down refrigerator truck containing rotting meat.  They found no other properly refrigerated meat on site for the animals.  The Lowes also routinely separated big cat cubs and lemur pups from their mothers at too early an age for public “playtime” events, resulting in long-lasting harm.

As one example of this inhumane treatment, in June 2020, USDA Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service inspectors observed a lion cub named Nala.  The cub was lethargic, depressed, thin, and would not get up out of the mud even after prompting.  She had discharges emanating from her nose and eyes, and sores on her ears. The inspectors directed the Lowes to immediately obtain veterinary care for Nala.  Nala was diagnosed with an upper respiratory infection, dehydration, and urinary tract infection, and was also suffering from fly strikes, parasites, and fleas.  Nala was transferred to a wildlife sanctuary in Colorado in September. She has been diagnosed with malnutrition and vitamin deficiencies so severe as to cause a chronic bone fracture and lameness.

USDA suspended Jeffrey Lowe’s Animal Welfare Act exhibitor license and initiated an administrative action to permanently revoke his license.  Lowe has previously claimed to be above the law and, “If we lose a lawsuit, we simply change the name and open another business someplace else.”  Days later, Lowe unilaterally terminated his license and sought to put his operation beyond USDA inspection and investigation.  The Lowes then moved animals to a property in Thackerville, Oklahoma, located in the middle of a rural, residential area.  The Lowes have made public statements that the new Thackerville facility will be named “Tiger King Park” and will operate as a film set for television shows and other video content.  The Lowes do not have a license to exhibit animals. 

The complaint also seeks a court order to permit immediate inspection of the facility, to prevent the Lowes from exhibiting their animals in person or through online platforms, to prevent the Lowes from acquiring or disposing of any animals during the injunction, and for any and all veterinary records for any animals treated during the injunction.

The case is being handled by attorneys from the Environment and Natural Resources Division.  The case is being investigated by USDA’s Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service and the Department of the Interior’s Fish and Wildlife Service.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

The Department of Justice today filed a civil lawsuit against the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) alleging that NAR established and enforced illegal restraints on the ways that REALTORS® compete.

The Antitrust Division simultaneously filed a proposed settlement that requires NAR to repeal and modify its rules to provide greater transparency to home buyers about the commissions of brokers representing home buyers (buyer brokers), cease misrepresenting that buyer broker services are free, eliminate rules that prohibit filtering multiple listing services (MLS) listings based on the level of buyer broker commissions, and change its rules and policy which limit access to lockboxes to only NAR-affiliated real estate brokers. If approved, the settlement will enhance competition in the real estate market, resulting in more choice and better service for consumers.

“Buying a home is one of life’s biggest and most important financial decisions,” said Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “Home buyers and sellers should be aware of all the broker fees they are paying. Today’s settlement prevents traditional brokers from impeding competition — including by internet-based methods of home buying and selling — by providing greater transparency to consumers about broker fees. This will increase price competition among brokers and lead to better quality of services for American home buyers and sellers.”

According to the complaint, NAR’s anticompetitive rules, policies, and practices include: (i) prohibiting MLSs that are affiliated with NAR from disclosing to prospective buyers the commission that the buyer broker will earn; (ii) allowing buyer brokers to misrepresent to buyers that a buyer broker’s services are free; (iii) enabling buyer brokers to filter MLS listings based on the level of buyer broker commissions offered; and (iv) limiting access to the lockboxes that provide licensed brokers with access to homes for sale to brokers who work for a NAR-affiliated MLS. These NAR rules, policies, practices have been widely adopted by NAR-affiliated MLSs resulting in decreased competition among real estate brokers.

NAR is a trade association of more than 1.4 million-member REALTORS® who are engaged in residential real estate brokerages across the United States. NAR has over 1,400 local associations (called “Member Boards”) organized as MLSs through which REALTORS® share information about homes for sale in their communities. Among other activities, NAR establishes and enforces rules, policies, and practices that are adopted by the Member Boards and their affiliated MLSs.

The proposed settlement will be published in the Federal Register as required by the Antitrust Procedures and Penalties Act. Any person may submit written comments regarding the proposed final judgment within 60 days of its publications to Chief, Office of Decree Enforcement and Compliance, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 950 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Washington, DC 20530. At the conclusion of the 60-day comment period, the court may enter the proposed final judgment upon a finding that it serves the public interest.

An employee of a government contractor pleaded guilty today to his involvement in a scheme to overbill a contract administered by the General Services Administration (GSA) by approximately $1.25 million, and solicit and receive kickbacks from a subcontractor in exchange for providing that subcontractor valuable contract modifications.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Special Agent in Charge Eric D. Radwick, Mid-Atlantic Division, Office of Investigations, GSA Office of Inspector General; Assistant Director in Charge Steven M. D’Antuono of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Robert J. Smolich of the Department of State’s Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Americas, Pacific, and Asia Division made the announcement.

Elmer Baker, 68, of Gulf Breeze, Florida, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the anti-kickback statute and four counts of wire fraud before Judge Amy Berman Jackson of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.  Sentencing will be scheduled for a later date.

According to admissions made in connection with the plea agreement, Baker served as the project manager for his company on the contract administered by the GSA.  After his company awarded a subcontract to a construction company for work on the facility, Baker began receiving kickbacks in the form of meals, golf sessions, vacations, and other things of value.  In or around 2015, Baker began demanding monetary kickbacks that were valued at 10 percent of the amount of each of the subcontract modifications that he awarded the subcontractor.  Baker sent the subcontractor fake invoices to make it appear as though the payments he was receiving were for legitimate work, and he set up a shell company to receive the payments.  Additionally, Baker took the subcontract estimates provided to him and illegally inflated them in his requests to the GSA.  Over the course of several subcontract modifications, Baker defrauded the GSA out of approximately $1.25 million.

The Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is the nation’s leading prosecuting authority on government procurement fraud and corruption matters.

The GSA Office of Inspector General, FBI’s Washington Field Office, and the State Department Office of Inspector General are investigating this case.  Trial Attorney Vasanth Sridharan of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is prosecuting the case. 

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.